1. FORCE H BOMBARDMENT OF MERS EL-KÉBIR HARBOUR, 1759HRS, 3 JULY 1940
There are several surviving aerial photographs of Mers el-Kébir harbour during Force H’s bombardment, which began at 1756hrs on 3 July, taken by Dunkerque’s and Strasbourg’s Loire 130 spotter aircraft. They give unique glimpses of events within a naval battle as it was fought. Those photographs inspired this scene, showing the events in Mers el-Kébir harbour at 1759hrs, three minutes after the start of the bombardment. At the left end of the quay, adjacent to Fort de Mers el-Kébir, Dunkerque (1) is still moored by her stern to the pier and unable to get underway as the deck crew failed to slip the mooring lines prior to taking cover. To the right, Provence (2) has trained all of her 340mm turrets towards Force H, to the north-west, and has begun to return fire. Next in line, Strasbourg (3) is just beginning to move forward into the harbour channel. To her right, Bretagne (4) has just been hit aft by two 381mm shells, one of which causes an internal explosion while the second explodes in her central engine room, causing her to lose power.
2. AÉRONAVALE ATTACK ON SOMERVILLE’S BATTLELINE, 1940HRS, 3 JULY 1940
As Ark Royal’s Skuas duelled with the H-75s from GC II/5, to the west aboard Hood, lookouts spotted incoming enemy aircraft. The land-based bombers of the Armée de l’Air may have been unable to attack the British fleet, but the Aéronavale responded to Gensoul’s requests for air support. Shortly after the British bombardment began, Marine Oran ordered its reconnaissance squadrons based at Arzew, 32km north-east of Oran, to arm their aircraft and to engage the enemy. Beginning at 1805hrs, the six Loire 130 flying boats of Escadrille HS-1 took off, each carrying two 75kg bombs. They were followed ten minutes later by the two large Bréguet 521 Bizerte three-engine flying boats of Escadrille E-2, each carrying six 75kg bombs. Slow and unwieldy, the flying boats were ordered to bomb Somerville’s battleline from a high altitude. It was a desperate effort, made by aircraft unsuited for the mission, but it was hoped the attack would force the British into evasive manoeuvres and perhaps put a little more distance between the British and the French vessels escaping to the east. Beginning at 1915hrs, the Loire 130s released their bombs over Hood and her consorts. As the flying boats lacked bombsights, it was merely a dramatic show of resistance. Despite the heavy antiaircraft fire, none of the Loire 130s were seriously damaged and all returned to Arzew. At 1940hrs, Bréguet 521 E2-3 dropped its six bombs over the destroyer Wrestler (1) and managed an uneventful return to base. Then, Bréguet 521 E2-1, commanded by Lieutenant de Vaisseau Remi Duval, released its bombs over the destroyer, some actually landing within 50 metres of the vessel, and escaped the bursting clouds of flak. As Duval flew towards Arzew, he happened upon Bruen and Brokensha, both heading back to Ark Royal. Duval began evasive manoeuvres and the flying boat’s crew took to the five 7.5mm machine guns as the Skuas circled around their intended prey. Despite being low on fuel, low on ammunition, and with several of their aircrafts’ machine guns out of action, Bruen and Brokensha could not resist such an easy target. They made two passes on the flying boat, and on the second, one of the engines was knocked out. Content with this result, the Skua pilots turned towards Ark Royal, ending a rather frantic sortie. With an engine out and gasoline trailing from leaking tanks, Duval nevertheless managed to coax his aircraft down onto the waters off Oran and then, with its hull leaking like a sieve, drove it up onto the beach. Upon examination, Duval counted 44 bullet holes in the flying boat; a fortuitous escape. Seen here, Bréguet 521 E2-1 (2), piloted by Lieutenant de Vaisseau Duval, takes evasive action as Sub-Lieutenant Brokensha (3) in Blackburn Skua L.2997 flies past after attacking the flying boat.
3. ROYAL NAVY AERIAL TORPEDO ATTACK ON DUNKERQUE, 0655HRS, 6 JULY 1940
After learning from intelligence reports that Dunkerque had not been critically damaged in the 3 July bombardment, Churchill insisted upon another attack upon Mers el-Kébir by Force H to finish the battleship off. On the morning of 6 July 1940 in Operation Lever, three waves of Swordfish torpedo bombers from Ark Royal made torpedo runs against Dunkerque. The first wave, six Swordfish of 820 Squadron, led by Lieutenant Commander Hodgkinson, flew in from the east, out of the sun, and dropped to an altitude of 20ft before turning southward. The aircraft skimmed over the quay and alongside the damaged destroyer Mogador before slipping their torpedoes into the water against Dunkerque. Five of the torpedoes porpoised upon landing, bouncing up out of the water, which caused them to go off course; one torpedo struck the patrol boat Terre-Neuve, which was moored along Dunkerque’s starboard side, but failed to explode. At 0650hrs, a sub-flight of three Swordfish from 810 Squadron, led by Captain Alan Newson, began their approach towards Dunkerque, also coming out of the east, out of the sun. Newson’s Swordfish had to take evasive action over the Bay of Oran, as by this time the defender’s anti-aircraft batteries were on full alert. After dropping to 20ft, Newson led his sub-flight over the quay, skimming over the pier and past Mogador. The anti-aircraft batteries aboard Mogador, and in Fort de Mers el-Kébir, fired at the Swordfish but had difficulty aiming as the aircraft were coming in at such a close distance. Newson’s rear gunner, however, opened up on an anti-aircraft machine battery on the pier and sent its gunners diving for cover. Newson’s pilot was unable to release the aircraft’s torpedo, so the sub-flight leader was forced to bank away with their payload still attached. Newson’s squadron mates, however, successfully released their torpedoes, one of which detonated against Terre-Neuve, splitting the gunboat in half. Several minutes later, some of the depth charges aboard the wreck of the gunboat exploded underwater, wrenching a large breach in Dunkerque’s starboard hull and causing Terre-Neuve to settle on the harbour bottom. Seen here, Captain Newson’s Swordfish (1) roars past the damaged Mogador (2) and Fort de Mers el-Kébir (3) at low altitude, leading his sub-flight in their successful attack on Dunkerque (4).
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