The Battle of Britain Five Months That Changed History, May—October 1940 by James Holland (z-lib.org).epub

all the British fighters would be in the south, he had launched a series of
attacks using more than a hundred Junkers 88s, Heinkels and Zerstörers to
pulverize a number of airfields in the north-east. All were bomber airfields
and only one was actually hit, Driffield, where four hangars were damaged
and ten Whitleys destroyed on the ground. It was, however, a poor return.
The unescorted bombers had proved rich pickings for Cocky and the other
pilots scrambled with time to spare. Fifteen bombers were shot down,
several more badly damaged, while the Me 110s had also taken a battering,
with seven shot down and two more damaged. For the bomber crews, it had
been a terrible shock to see Spitfires, Hurricanes and even Blenheims
homing in on them, guns blazing.
While the northern squadrons were having their turkey shoot, the aerial
battles were raging all over southern England, too. Never had so many
enemy aircraft been seen over Britain’s skies. Deichmann had not been
chastised for his decision; in fact, the number of raids had been hastily
stepped up, with more airfields and aircraft works the targets. German
bombers headed once more to Dover, Lympne and Deal, while Walter
Rubensdörffer’s Erpro 210 Zerstörers attacked Martlesham Heath. Later in
the afternoon, raids totalling some 300 aircraft hit the south coast between
Portsmouth and Weymouth. Bee Beamont and 87 Squadron had been
scrambled at around 4.30 p.m., and by the time they were airborne heard the
soothing tones of the controller telling them, ‘One hundred and twenty plus
approaching Warmwell from the south – good luck, chaps.’ Over Lyme
Regis at some 12,000 feet they began to weave about searching the sky
above and behind. And then Bee saw them, still out to sea – what looked to
him like a gigantic swarm of bees all revolving round each other in a
fantastical spiral from about 8,000 to 14,000 feet. If the CO had been
worried, he did not say so; instead, he swung the squadron round, opened
the throttle and urged his men to pack in behind him.
As they drew closer, Bee saw there were about fifty or more Stukas with
Me 110s above and Me 109s above them. The CO shouted, ‘Tally ho!’, the
attack signal, and then they were diving into the fray. In a brief, manic and
confused action, Bee nearly hit a Stuka, then noticed he was under attack by
Me 110s, managed to shoot one of those down instead, and then another
one. In minutes the organized air armada had become a mass of swirling
aircraft more like a swarm of angry bees than ever, tracer zipping and