He flew with a Handley Page Hampden (type I, serial P4353, code KM-).
August
A change of duties for the Blenheims saw a number (normally 6 aircraft) employed on anti-shipping patrols on most days of the month. They rarely saw anything worthy of further action. Having suffered terribly at the hands of German fighters earlier in the year (see 17 May 1940), No 82 Squadron was almost wiped in a single operation on 13 August. Twelve aircraft from No 82 were sent to attack Hamstede airfield in Holland. Only one aircraft returned, the rest having been caught by fighters over the airfield during their bombing runs. It wasn't just the fighters that the bomber crews had to contend with. Poor weather (or even a lack of cloud cover) forced many crews to abort their missions, and on many occasions only one or two aircraft from an original force of twenty or thirty would complete their tasks. Bomber Command planning staff were still sending small numbers of medium bombers (60-80) to multiple targets during night operations. For example, the night of 10th/11th August saw 57 aircraft involved in raids on 9 targets. These had very little effect on the population of the cities (Hamburg, Wilhelmshafen and Münster were frequent targets) indeed, the three and a half months covered by the Battle of Britain saw 14 raids against Münster. Only on one night did more than 10 bombs fall. Bombing accuracy was still a major problem for those crews who managed to find their intended targets as there were no navigation aids to help them, and 'dead reckoning' (speed and heading corrected for forecast winds) frequently caused aircraft to miss their targets by many miles. The industrial centre of the Ruhr was often targeted as were many cities including, for the first time, those in the east and south of Germany. The month also saw the first Victoria Cross awarded to Bomber Command. It was to Flight Lieutenant RAB Learoyd of No 49 Squadron for his part in a successful attack on the Dortmund-Ems canal near Münster during 12th/13th August.
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