military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) (07/10/90)
From: military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Wednesday, 10 July, 1940 Several air battles take place over the English Channel, and a 70-plane German air strike is sent against the dockyards of South Wales. 11 German planes are lost, with only one British fighter downed. Among the targets are Falmouth, Swansea, and the Pembrey Royal Ordnance Factory. (History records this as the first day of the Battle of Britain) The RAF forms No. 310 Squadron, the first Free Czech fighter group. Britain completes a string of minefields along the Orkneys-Iceland- Greenland line. German U-boats begin operations from their new base in Bergen. President Roosevelt asks Congress for a $4.8 billion to strengthen US defenses, especially the Navy. 2 million reserve soldiers are to be trained and equipped, and 19,000 additional aircraft procured. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military-request@att.att.com "No one wishes to send American troops beyond our borders unless the protection of the United States itself makes such action necessary." - Colonel Henry L. Stimson