military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (05/16/91)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Thursday, 15 May, 1941 British troops in Egypt launch "Operation Brevity," a limited counteroffensive against the Afrika Korps. Early success is realized with the capture of Sollum and the Halfaya Pass. The RAF is instructed to take action against airfields in Vichy Syria, from which German aircraft are operating. Palmyra and Damascus are the first targets. Croatia declares itself an independent nation, naming Zagreb as its capital. The Gloster E.28/29 Pioneer, Britain's first jet aircraft, makes its first test flight. The battleship USS Washington joins the fleet, 5 months ahead of schedule. Roosevelt orders the Coast Guard to board eleven French ships, including the liner Normandie, harbored in US ports. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "For you, the French people, it is simply a question of following me without mental reservation along the path of honor and national interest." - Marshal Petain