CS: Misc-Dover guns
From: Jeremy Peter Howells, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Turpitz was attacked more than once by 617 Squadron and 9 Squadron. The in last pair of attacks she was first severely damaged, then the Germans moved her South to be emplaced as a massive coastal battery. It was here that she received at least one direct hit from a 6-ton 'Tallboy' bomb and several near misses and subsequently capsized. After the war it was discovered that a Fleet Air Arm raid on her from carriers in 1943 had effectively ended her wartime career as an ocean going fighting ship as her main electrical switching and communications centre had been destroyed beyond repair. It was patched together so she could move but she would nver have been able to undertake an ocean voyage and fight. One of the Germans best kept secrets, if the Royal Navy had known it would have affected all naval planning for the convoys to Russia and all major activities in the North Atlantic, allowing much of the Home Fleet to be re-deployed for offensive action rather than covering for a breakout led by the Turpitz. Regards Jerry Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ T O P I C A http://www.topica.com/t/17 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
CS: Misc-Dover Guns
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Davisd Johnson said: The guns were about 2-300 yards inland from the cliff edge and often, when walking along the cliff path, we would notice that we were being tracked by the guns - very disconcerting! I used to drive the road from Swaffham to Mildenhall over Thetford Chase quite often. When there were A10 tank busters stationed there they would often fly over the road just behind you as you were passing beneath. I was told a while later by an ex-RAF Jaguar pilot that the cars on that road were travelling at about the same speed as a Russian tank would have been moving over the North German plains and were used for non-firing target practice. I never did feel quite the same about driving along there after I heard this. Can anyone confirm the truth of this? Kenneth Pantling Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ T O P I C A http://www.topica.com/t/17 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
CS: Misc-Dover Guns
From: "David Johnson", [EMAIL PROTECTED] The coast around Dover was positively bristling with guns! In the early '50s I lived just along the coast from Dover. There were batteries of (I think) 6" guns that were still used for practice, firing at a sort of raft of railway sleepers towed behind an MTB (on a VERY long line!). Towards the end of the day, the splashes would creep forward until the boat crew got the message and shot back to Dover. The guns were about 2-300 yards inland from the cliff edge and often, when walking along the cliff path, we would notice that we were being tracked by the guns - very disconcerting! Thats when I started to learn to walk fast. There were also 2 guns, further inland, only about a mile from our house. These were known locally as Winnie and Pooh. We were always told that they were 18" and came from a WW1 warship. Every few months, notices would be posted around the village, warning that firing would take place on a certain day. On the day, a police car would tour the village with a loudspeaker, warning to open your windows. My recollection of the actual firing was that you felt the shock through the ground first, this would rattle crockery, etc. followed by a fairly deep roar that rattled the windows. I never actually saw them being fired, I was only about 10 at the time and it was so soon after the war that loud bangs didn't have the novelty value that they would have now. Years later, I remember seeing the site littered with 40-gallon oil drums and wondered what was going on - until I realised that they were sections of the barrels, cut up into 'bite-sized' chunks for transport. Dave Johnson Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___ T O P I C A http://www.topica.com/t/17 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
