13th August 1940 - Eagle Day
Bomber attacks were directed towards British airfields on this day but a combination of fighter resistance and thick clouds served to foil them.
Also it seems that the bomber crews were suffering from frayed nerves. Laws was a member of "Flight B" when they spotted a formation that they identified as Dornier 215's. The enemy, set on a north-easterly course, needed no more persuasion than the sight of Spitfires to turn and run for home.
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| Laws' Personal Combat Report Click to enlarge |
Once on the run the formation opted simply for speed and wasted no energy on evasion. However when Laws latched onto his tail one German pilot decided to fight for his life. He led Laws into a series of steep diving turns that challenged both Laws and his Spitfire to keep up. A lesser pilot would have been thrown off; Laws clung on. The German, with his rear gunner disabled from the initial attack, may have believed he'd done enough to lose his tormentor and straightened up to dive for cloud. He reached the cloud, but on his way collected more Spitfire ordnance in his fuselage.
Suddenly alone in the sky, Laws returned to base.
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| Click to enlarge © Punch Ltd. |