Sortie Report (Form 541)
BA. TRAPANI MILO A/D.BB. at 0311 LT and 0355 LT.BC. Medium Level 10000/10500 ft. Courses 217°/185° Mag.6 x 500 GP 49 Det .025. ) all tail2 x 500 GP 39 Det 37 Pistol 6/12 hrs. ) fused.30 x 4 lb Incendiaries.BD. Earlier aircraft saw Mt S.GIULIANO and hangars NE corner of LGin light of own 2 flares - estimated bombs hit SE corner of targetarea. Did NOT see bombs explode. NO results observed. Returned0415 hrs., coast line NOT visible to obtain target run to dropremaining flares and set course for base.Later aircraft saw 2 flares SE of target - extinguished beforeETA. Bombed in long stick on ETA and dropped incendiaries on4th bomb. Two bombs seen to explode. Incendiaries seen to startsmall fires. 2 flares seen to drop over burning incendiaries.BE. NO AA from target area. 1 Searchlight from TRAPANI, whichaircraft at sea approaching target. Approx 15 Searchlightsbetween TRAPANI and LG. Heavy cloud West of target interferedand searchlights inaccurate. 4/5 Searchlights and 1 green lightat CAP S. VITO. Seemed fairly accurate - evasive action taken.BF. Nil.BG. Nil.BI. (i) One large fire seen on coast approx 2 miles North of TRAPANI.(ii) Gun flashes in wide area 3/4 miles NE CAP BON.(iii) 4/5 lights seen at approx 12000 ft in comet form travellingin same direction, in front and above a/c, and curving beforefading or exploding. Both aircraft saw these in target area andNORTH of Mountain.(iv) NO beacons seen.(v) Bearings received by one aircraft - 3 poor, 1 good.LIST OF AIRCRAFT AND CREW 8/9 JULY 43.176 YY Major Jandrell, Lt. Christie, F/Sgts. Pearce & Le Roux.226 H Capt. Ord, Lt. Hodges, F/Sgts. Walker & Devenish.
Transcriber's Notes
- A/D
- Aerodrome.
- LT
- Local Time.
- Mag
- Magnetic (referring to compass heading).
- GP
- General Purpose (bombs).
- Det
- Detonator.
- Mt S.GIULIANO
- Modern Mount Erice, which overlooks the city of Trapani and the Milo airfield.
- LG
- Landing Ground.
- ETA
- Estimated Time of Arrival.
- AA
- Anti-Aircraft.
- CAP S. VITO
- Capo San Vito.
Abbreviations and Technical Terms Expanded:
ft: feet.
lb: pound (weight of incendiaries).
hrs: hours.
a/c: aircraft.
Observations about Individuals Mentioned:
Information about the Location:
Historical Theatre Context: