Three-phase attack on airfields in Kent, Essex and Suffolk.
Night: First major attack on Liverpool (150 bombers). Further harassing attacks over London, the Midlands and north-east coast.
Weather: Fine and fair but cold. Cloud in Dover Straits.
Enemy Action by Day
The day dawned fine and fair across southern England, though temperatures remained cold and patches of cloud lingered over the Dover Straits. Conditions were favourable for flying, and the Luftwaffe took full advantage. Göring’s directive to concentrate on the destruction of RAF No. 11 Group’s airfields was carried out in a series of coordinated attacks across Kent, Essex, and Suffolk. The result was a day of grinding attrition in the south-east, marked by hard-fought combats in the air and increasing strain on both sides.
Early Reconnaissance
At 06:40 hours, three enemy aircraft conducted a reconnaissance flight along the coast from Lympne to North Foreland, likely photographic in nature. This foreshadowed the major strikes to come. Further reconnaissance flights were reported off Cornwall, Pembroke, and in the Bristol Channel, with isolated aircraft also active over Northern Ireland near Aldergrove and off the east coast near Yarmouth.
Morning Raids on Kent and Essex
At 08:30 hours, the first significant attacks developed as two heavy formations, each around sixty aircraft strong, crossed the coast between Dover and North Foreland. The bombers comprised Dornier Do 17s of I./KG 3 and Heinkel He 111s of II. and III./KG 53, escorted by Messerschmitt Bf 109s of I. and III./JG 51. Their objectives were Eastchurch and Rochford.
RAF Fighter Command scrambled Hurricanes from Nos. 56 (North Weald), 79 (Biggin Hill), 85 (Croydon), and 615 (Kenley) Squadrons. Supporting them was No. 264 Squadron, flying Defiants from Manston. In the ensuing combat, three of the twelve Defiants engaged were shot down; five aircrew were killed. With losses continuing to mount, the squadron was withdrawn from front-line service, and thereafter the Defiant was no longer employed in daylight operations within range of enemy fighters.
The Luftwaffe pressed through and inflicted heavy damage. At Eastchurch, bombs destroyed two Battles outright and damaged two more, leaving the station badly scarred. Rochford was also hit, its landing ground cratered and buildings damaged, though the airfield remained operational.
Both sides suffered heavy losses. The RAF lost eight fighters and six pilots killed, while five German aircraft were destroyed. Among the Luftwaffe losses was Leutnant Arthur Dau of 7./JG 51, who was shot down— by Sergeant George Smythe of No. 56 Squadron—and taken prisoner after claiming seven victories. JG 51’s Kommodore, Major Werner Mölders, increased his tally to 29 by destroying a Spitfire and a Curtiss fighter during the battle.
Midday Attack on Rochford
Around 13:00 hours, a second raid developed as Dornier Do 17s of I./KG 2 struck Rochford again. The raid caused only limited damage, but intense combat followed. Spitfires of No. 54 Squadron engaged at high altitude. Flight Lieutenant Al Deere claimed a Bf 109 before being forced to bail out, while Flight Lieutenant George Gribble downed another after an extraordinary chase that ended so low his fire killed a cow in a field. Squadron Leader Leathart destroyed a Dornier, while Hurricanes of No. 1 Squadron downed a Do 17 of 6./KG 3 over the aerodrome, its crew captured.
Afternoon Fighter Sweep over Kent
Between 15:50 and 16:45 hours, the Luftwaffe launched a major fighter sweep over Kent and the Thames Estuary. Seven Gruppen of Bf 109s took part, including JG 2, JG 3, JG 26, JG 27, JG 51, JG 54, and Erprobungsgruppe 210. Flying at altitudes of 25,000 feet and higher, they sought to draw RAF fighters into combat. Despite orders from Air Vice-Marshal Park not to engage fighters unless bombers were present, the formations were intercepted and fierce air battles followed. Losses were heavy on both sides, with sixteen fighters destroyed.
The Luftwaffe’s casualties included Oberleutnant Hans-Theodore Griesebach of 2./JG 2, listed as missing after failing to return; Oberleutnant Hans-Herbert Landry of JG 3, a five-victory ace shot down and badly wounded, later taken prisoner; and Georg Beyer of JG 26, with eight victories, who was also brought down and captured, ending his combat career. A Ju 88A-1 from I./KG 54 crashed near Dieppe while returning from England.
Evening Incursions
At 19:00 hours, a final formation of around sixty aircraft crossed inland over Kent, some heading west and others north toward the Estuary, following similar tracks to earlier raids. Fighters intercepted and destroyed one enemy aircraft, but most of the formation withdrew without pressing deep attacks.
Churchill at Dover
During the afternoon, Prime Minister Winston Churchill visited Dover Castle. As he toured, air-raid sirens sounded, and he and his entourage witnessed a dogfight overhead as RAF fighters engaged German bombers. Two Luftwaffe aircraft were seen crashing into the sea. Later, driving to Ramsgate, Churchill stopped to inspect the wreckage of a downed German fighter. Eyewitnesses recorded him remarking quietly, “Dear God, I hope it isn’t a British plane,” before being reassured that it was German.
Enemy Action by Night
The night of 28/29 August saw the heaviest German night operations so far. For the first time, Liverpool was the main target, struck by 150 bombers including He 111s of KG 27, Ju 88s of LG 1, and Ju 88s of KGr 806. Though the attack was not well concentrated, bombs fell across the city and docklands. Avonmouth was also hit, with the Shell Mex plant and National Smelting Company works damaged. Coventry suffered fires across shops and houses, while in Altrincham a 50,000-gallon oil tank at the Anglo-American depot was set ablaze.
Other raids struck Birmingham, Sheffield, Manchester, and South Yorkshire. A He 111 of 9./KG 55 was shot down into the sea off Sussex by Hurricanes of No. 615 Squadron following a raid on Bristol. Heinkels of III./KG 27 bombed Birmingham and Avonmouth, while additional bombs were dropped on the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough, factories at Cricklewood, and installations across the Midlands. Minelaying operations were carried out from the Wash to the Thames Estuary, Lyme Bay, and Liverpool Bay.
Home Security reports for the night confirmed thirty-seven civilians killed and seventy-eight injured, with five RAF personnel wounded on the ground.
RAF Retaliation: Berlin Bombed Again
That same night, Bomber Command carried out its second raid on Berlin. Wellingtons, Hampdens, and Whitleys struck the German capital, targeting Siemens and Halske, the Klingenberg power station, and Tempelhof. For the first time, casualties were recorded inside Berlin—ten civilians killed and twenty-nine injured—shattering Göring’s boast that no enemy bombers would ever penetrate German skies.
German Losses:
Airmen: 46 | Aircraft: 32
British Losses:
Airmen: 10 | Aircraft: 15
Defiant N1574, No. 264 Squadron
P/O D. Whitley killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Whitley.htm
Sgt. R.C. Turner killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/TurnerRC.htm
Shot down by Bf 109 during combat.
Defiant L7026, No. 264 Squadron
P/O P.L. Kenner killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Kenner.htm
P/O C.E. Johnson killed.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/JohnsonCE.htm
Shot down by Bf 109 during combat.
Defiant L7021, No. 264 Squadron
F/L R.C.V. Ash killed. Shot down by Bf 109 and crashed in flames. Pilot baled out unhurt.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/Ash.htm
Spitfire R6751, No. 603 Squadron
F/L J.L.G. Cunningham listed as missing. Failed to return to base. Possibly shot down into sea.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/CunninghamJLG.htm
Spitfire L1046, No. 603 Squadron
P/O D.K. MacDonald listed as missing. Failed to return to base. Possibly shot down into sea.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/MacDonaldDK.htm
Spitfire P9511, No. 610 Squadron
P/O K.H. Cox killed. Shot down by Bf 109 and crashed into a house in village outside Dover.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/CoxKH.htm
Spitfire N3105, No. 603 Squadron
P/O N.J.V. Benson killed. Shot down by Bf 109 and crashed in flames.
http://www.bbm.org.uk/airmen/BensonNJV.htm
Photo Descriptions
- Boulton Paul Defiant Mk Is of No. 264 Squadron RAF based at Kirton-in-Lindsey, Lincolnshire, August 1940. The squadron was withdrawn from the front line on 28 August 1940 after the loss of 11 aircraft (including L7026 PS-V and N1535 PS-A), five pilots, and nine air gunners. The Defiant was never committed to daylight operations within range of enemy fighters again.
- Winston Churchill viewing activity in the Channel from an observation post at Dover Castle during his tour of defences, 28 August 1940. Enemy air attacks were in progress at the time, and two German bombers were seen to crash into the sea. © IWM (H 3499)
- The wreckage of Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (Werk Nr.941) of 2 Staffel./Jagdgeschwader 3 shot down near Dover on 28 August 1940. The pilot, Leutnant Hans-Herbert Landry, bailed out immediately after the aircraft was attacked by a Spitfire and the engine caught fire.
- Winston Churchill and his entourage walk away from the crash-site of Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 (Werk Nr.941) of 2 Staffel./Jagdgeschwader 3 on Church Farm at Church Whitfield near Dover, 28 August 1940. Churchill was travelling between Dover and Ramsgate at the time, touring invasion defences, when the German aircraft was shot down. He ordered his car to halt and walked over to view the wreckage, much to the consternation of his personal bodyguard, Inspector W H Thompson (seen here on the right), as German aircraft were still in the vicinity. © IWM (H 3512)
- Oberfeldwebel Artur Dau of 7 Staffel./Jagdgeschwader 51 is quizzed by PC Hills, with left to right Home Guard Jack Wood, ARP Warden Cyril Souton and local farmer J Wood. Dau was shot down over Hougham in Kent possibly by S/L Peter Townsend of No. 85 Squadron on 28 August 1940. © IWM (KY 10266)