September 22nd, 1940 (SUNDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM:RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - aluminium works at Lauta - industrial targets at Berlin.
10 Sqn. Four aircraft to Lauta. All bombed, causing fires.
58 Sqn. Five aircraft to Berlin. One returned early, three bombed primary, one bombed an alternative. two aircraft to Lauta, but failed to bomb due to weather.
77 Sqn. Three aircraft to Lauta. All bombed.
Battle of Britain:
Slight activity in daylight. At night raids on London and Merseyside.
During the night raids a parachute mine exploded at Ilford (London) demolishing a hundred houses, while in Poplar and Lambeth direct hits killed over 50 in shelters. The British Museums King Edward buildings were damaged and Mile End 'tubestation was closed by a direct hit.
The weather is mainly fine. During the day, Luftwaffe reconnaissances is active along the East, South and South West Coasts and attacked some isolated objectives. In the evening a strong formation, consisting mainly of fighters, made a sweep over Kent and the Estuary, some penetrating to the eastern boundary of Central London. Between 1750 and 1800 hours seven formations crossed the coast between Dungeness and North Foreland, flying North West. These is followed by others until about 200 German aircraft in all is over the country. Twenty RAF fighter squadrons is sent up, while others patrolled Hornchurch, North Weald, and Guildford. In the North and East reconnaissance aircraft is reported off North East Scotland in the Castletown area, 20 miles (32 kilometers) South of Scapa Flow, and East of Flamborough Head. In the afternoon the Royal Air Force Station at Waltham is attacked and suffered minor damage. In the South East at 0823 hours German aircraft attacked Weybridge and one of these is believed damaged. Later targets near Ramsgate and Rye is unsuccessfully attacked. Reconnaissance aircraft flew over the Hastings, Dungeness, Redhill and Tonbridge areas during the day. Attempts to intercept did not succeed. In the South and West Luftwaffe aircraft reconnoiter Thorney Island, Tangmere, Kenley, Middle Wallop, Spithead and districts in South Wales.
During the night, London and Merseyside is attacked. London Central received a RED warning at 2009 hours. A steady stream of German aircraft came from Holland and Le Havre, France. Those from Holland crossed the coast between Thames Orfordness and went to London from the North; those from Le Havre crossed the coast near Shoreham and went to London and then returned to the South. During the night raids a parachute mine exploded at Ilford (London) demolishing 100 houses, while in Poplar and Lambeth, direct hits killed over 50 in air raid shelters. The British Museum's King Edward buildings is damaged and The Mile End tube (subway) station is closed by a direct hit. Later hostile raids continued to come from the direction of the Belgian Coast and later still from the direction of Le Havre and Dieppe, France, entering between Beachy Head and Dungeness and covering South London, Biggin Hill and Kenley districts. On the whole, it would seem that the German activity is not quite so intense as of late. Just after dust East Anglia received a good deal of attention and some of the raiders flew down to the London area. Many Luftwaffe aircraft flew over the Bristol Channel and up over Wales to Liverpool which is given more notice than for some time past. Minelaying is suspected in the Estuary also off the northeast coast of Yorkshire, in the Tyne area, possibly off the Firth of Forth and off the entrance to Stranraer. Raiders also visited the Lancashire Coast, North of the Tyne and the Midlands near Derby and Sheffield, and two raids is plotted off the Scottish Coast South of Aberdeen. Four or five raids flew over two convoys North of the Tyne and it is reported that two aerial torpedoes is dropped.
RAF Fighter Command claim 2-1-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; the RAF did not lose any aircraft.
GERMANY: Flight testing
begins on the unpowered airframe of the Heinkel He 280 V1 twin turbojet
fighter. The He 280 was towed aloft by a Heinkel He 111B bomber and cast off
for gliding flight.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: Submarine HMS Osiris on patrol in the southern Adriatic attacks a convoy and sinks torpedo boat 'Palestro'.
FRENCH INDOCHINA: Japanese troops
cross the Chinese border seizing the Vietnamese outposts of Dong Dang and Lang
Son from retreating French forces. As a result, The Vichy French government
signs an agreement with the Japanese in Hanoi allowing them the use of airfields
and also allowing them to base troops in northern part of the country.
Vietnamese communists establish a revolutionary government in the Bac Son
border district with the approval of the Japanese but the Japanese withdraw
following a diplomatic protest from Vichy and the French quickly resume control.
Communist forces in Bac Son effect a retreat to the mountains but their comrades
engaged in a similar uprising in Cochinchina’s Plain of Reeds area find
themselves without refuge and are wiped out by the French.
URUGUAY: The government arrests eight Nazi leaders "for conspiracy against the State."
ATLANTIC OCEAN: Beginning after midnight, German submarines continue their attacks on Convoy HX-72 (Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, to the U.K.). In six hours, two boats, U-32 and U-100, sink three freighters and two tankers, totaling 30,306 tons; one freighter is damaged. During the attacks which began yesterday and lasted for about 27-hours, nine of the 40 ships in the convoy are sunk totaling 66,797 tons is sunk.