. LONG AND WIDELY SPACED STICKS ACROSS DUMPS "L" AND "M". ALTERNATIVE TARGET: DISPERSED… — Operations

Operational Record

Duty: High level bombing attack. Long and widely spaced sticks across Dumps "L" and "M". Alternative target: Dispersed aircraft Gazala No. 2
Committed: 6 Glenn Martin Maryland
Airborne: 0450 hrs
Returned: 0835 hrs
From: L.G. 021
Map: Target Map 1/415 (Gazala box) Tobruk 1: 100,000
Day / night: Day
Casualties: –
Air defences: –

Six Marylands took off at 0650 hours. S/c 20 miles South of Fort Madelena and then to inlet at Ain - El - Gazala. The run up was made parallel to the road from West to East. The leader's observer located the position of Dump "L" and their sticks seemed to them to cover the target area both for length and width. The leader of the 2nd. formation failed to sight dump "M" and decided to drop his bombs on Gazala No. 2. but only 2 bombs released. He then saw the target, but only one more bomb released. The rest were hung up. The other two aircraft of this flight dropped twelve bombs in target area. Four bombs hung up, but were later jettisoned. Flashes and small red fires were seen, with a little smoke. No A/A; Five monoplanes 4000 ft. above sea level were seen climbing from the direction of the bay. These could have taken off from Gazala No. 1. A fairly large camp was seen on the beach near Ras - El - Mahets(?)