THEIR FINEST HOUR

85 summers ago, the British Royal Air Force and Nazi Germany's Luftwaffe fought the world's first great air campaign

- BY BARRETT TILLMAN

The brown-green fighters swept down from altitude, pushing 300mph to attack the serried ranks of gray-green bombers. Within 1,000 feet of the enemy formation, the fighters opened fire, each with eight machine guns. Properly aimed, the effect could be devastating. Throughout the day, the Germans took a beating: 32 bombers destroyed and 18 damaged, plus nearly 30 fighters downed.

But behind the numbers lay blood, fear and suffering. Radio operator Horst Zander's Dornier 17 was riddled with bullets from British fighters. "The cabin was full of blood. Our pilot was hit. In the intercom, I heard him say feebly, 'Heinz Laube, you have to take us home.' The flight mechanic put a dressing on the badly wounded pilot, and our observer with his B-2 pilot's license took over our shot-up machine. Twenty minutes later, the aircraft was bucking like a horse, but he managed to land us safely."

It was September 15, 1940, and the Royal Air Force claimed 185 kills. The actual toll was about one-third as much, and RAF Fighter Command lost 26 planes and 10 pilots.

Following the evacuation of the British army from Dunkirk in June, the RAF and the Luftwaffe both began to rebuild with a sense of urgency. Both had lost heavily in the Battle of France, but neither could afford to rest. From early July through October, Germany repeatedly attempted to achieve air superiority over southeastern England, presumably as a prelude to invasion.

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