HÜRNUM SEAPLANE BASE
This was an important operation. While attacking British ships in Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands, 2 nights earlier, German planes had dropped bombs on land which killed 1 civilian (on an airfield) and wounded 7 more civilians in a village. The British Government ordered Bomber Command to carry out a reprisal raid on one of the German seaplane bases but only where there was no nearby civilian housing. The seaplane base at Hrnum, on the southernmost tip of the island of Sylt, was chosen.
30 Whitleys and 20 Hampdens were dispatched. The Whitleys bombed first, being allocated a 4-hour bombing period; 26 Whitleys claimed to have found the target in clear visibility and to have bombed accurately. The Hampdens followed with a 2-hour bombing period and 15 crews claimed to have bombed accurately. This was the first real bombing operation for both types of aircraft after more than 6 months of war. 20 tons of high explosives and 1,200 incendiary bombs were dropped. Only 1 Whitley was lost.
This was the biggest operation of the war so far and the first raid on a German land target. R.A.F. commanders were gratified that so many crews reported accurate bombing. Proper photographic reconnaissance was not carried out until 6 April when photographs of poor quality were brought back; no damage could be seen but some repairs could have been carried out by the Germans in the interval.
SEARCHES FOR SHIPPING, GERMAN BIGHT TO DENMARK, 4 to
