BREST
54 aircraft - 39 Wellingtons, 11 Hampdens, 4 Manchesters; 1 Hampden was lost.
A direct hit was claimed on one of the German cruisers.
German records show that one bomb fell in the dry dock in which the Gneisenau was lying. The bomb remained in the water left in the bottom of the dock alongside the cruiser. Further bombs hit the Continental Hotel in Brest just as the evening meal was being served. Several German naval officers, including some from the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, were believed to have been killed.
Next day the captain of the Gneisenau decided it would be safer to move his ship and he did so, mooring at a buoy out in Brest harbour. While there, Gneisenau was attacked by a Coastal Command Beaufort daylight torpedo bomber which scored a direct hit and inflicted serious damage that required six months to repair. The Beaufort was shot down and its crew all killed; its pilot, Flying Officer K. Campbell, was awarded a posthumous Victoria Cross.
Minor Operations: 16 aircraft to Cologne, Rotterdam and Dunkirk but thick cloud prevented good bombing. 6 Hampdens minelaying off Brest. 2 O.T.U. sorties. No losses.
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10 Hampdens to Brest but only 1 aircraft bombed, because of cloud. 1 aircraft lost.
