On July 13/14, 1943 at position 50:20N-04:10E while outbound to Aachen at 02:30 hrs, flying at a height of 20,000 feet, Halifax II JD-270 coded VR-P, sighted an ME-110 on the stbd quarter below at a range of 600 yards. Evasive action was taken in a cork screw stbd as the ME-110 came in fast and was unable to make an attack. It broke away on the port quarter level after coming in to 150 yards range at which moment, Sgt R. Boos, the rear gunner opened fire with a 3 second burst.
Sgt Boos reported seeing red flashes on the aircraft as his rounds were seen to hit in the vicinity around the cockpit. This was confirmed by the engineer.
Further contact was broken off when the aircraft was last seen on the port quarter below, traveling away fast. This ME-110 was claimed as damaged.
Shortly after the Halifax had resumed course, Sgt Boos was making a
search almost directly below when he sighted a JU-88 climbing fast from
a position slightly to stbd and almost underneath the rear turret. Evasive
action was taken in a cork screw stbd and the rear gunner opened fire.
Owing to the oblique angle of the attack, his guns would not depress enough
and tracer rounds were seen to go over top of the JU-88. The JU-88
made a quick turn to port off the top of its climb and slid away to port,
coming very close to breaking away.
Three or four minutes later another JU-88 was seen on the same level,
dead astern. This was possibly the same aircraft returning for a second
attack. Sgt Boos gave the evasive action to dive and opened fire at a range
of 500 yards. Fire was immediately returned but his trace was seen to go
over top of the Halifax, owing to the evasive action. The JU-88 came in
close, continuing to fire with a 2 second burst and broke away down and
astern and was lost from view. No further contact was made.
All these combats top place within a span of 7 minutes. The rear gunner
reports that the camouflage on the JU-88 was particularly effective, as
the greyness of the leading edges of the main planes above and below as
almost invisible against the moonlit greyness of the background. Only the
twin engines could be clearly seen. Visibility was good, with no cloud
above and only broken cloud below. 500 rounds were fired in these encounters.
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