Re: The Macintosh is a girl's computer!

Graeme Wall <Graeme@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

In message <1hw57xr.6d2yjv1gubksjN@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
nospam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (J. J. Lodder) wrote:

Rowland McDonnell <real-address-in-sig@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

J. J. Lodder <nospam@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

sigvaldi <sigvald@xxxxxxxx> wrote:

J. J. Lodder wrote:
[snip]

German planes near Iceland were very rare indeed.

German aircraft flew over Reykjavik and other places in the west of
Iceland on numerous occasions, often bombing and strafing, German
planes near the east of Iceland were almost a daily occurrence.

(Wow! Almost a plane a day!)

Iceland does not have a large population - the entire country has a
population only marginally more than the London borough[1] I grew up in
(London's population dwarfs Iceland's), and I doubt it was much
different back in the WWII years. If that `almost one warplane a day'
is also `often bombing and strafing', it's a big deal to Iceland.

How do you 'often bomb and strafe' with one plane?

Very easily if there is no air opposition.

After the first (few) runs you'll be out of ammo.

Remember the Luftwaffe was set
up as a tactical force to support the army, after dropping the bomb load they
would return and shoot up the survivors.

That is standard tactics, for fighter-bombers.
However, the FW 200 can hardly be descibed as one.

Didn't find anything at first sight.
Quite likely it happened though.
Hitler seems to have been furious
about the British occupation of Iceland,
and even ordered plans made for a counter-invasion.

The Germans had outline plans for invading Iceland before the British
arrived. It was one of the factors for the Allied occupation.

Standard blahblah of any occupier, always.
We were forced to, cause otherwise the other...
Churchill's policy was invade first, talk later.
(overruling the foreighn office)

Not different at all in principle
from that of Hitler with respect to Holland.
Only difference was that Iceland agreed to being occupied,
after the fact.
Hitler otoh lost the battle at The Hague,
and failed to capture the Dutch government to make it agree,
else he might conceivably have been as justified in occupying,
after the fact.

German naval strategy at one time envisaged using Iceland as a base for
surface raiders. Though how they were going to resupply was never clear.

Indeed.
Just plans for every occasion that general staffs like to make.
Not a chance of course of actually doing it.

Whatever military operations must have been aimed
at the Brits there, not at the Icelanders.

Not just the British there was a major US base there as well, Meeks Field.

That was later in the war, after 1941.
The Brits moved out then, on more urgent tasks.

As I said elsewhere, after 1941 the Condor
was used for recon only to conserve numbers.

But not a situation that could be relied on by the Allies to continue.

The allies (staff, not aircrews or sailors in the convoys)
would have loved to see more fighting Condors around Iceland.
After all, this was a gross national product war.
Germany wasting resources on getting expensive
and hard to replace Condors shot down over the North Atlantic
would have eaten up industrial capacity better used for other things.

Too bad for your father, but if it meant getting a Condor shot down
for on average one cheaper allied plane lost
that would have suited them fine.

Best,

Jan
.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: The Macintosh is a girls computer!
    ... Iceland on numerous occasions, often bombing and strafing, German ... Almost a plane a day!) ...
    (uk.comp.sys.mac)
  • Re: The Macintosh is a girls computer!
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    (uk.comp.sys.mac)
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  • Re: The Macintosh is a girls computer!
    ... Iceland on numerous occasions, often bombing and strafing, German ... How do you 'often bomb and strafe' with one plane? ...
    (uk.comp.sys.mac)
  • Re: The Macintosh is a girls computer!
    ... Iceland on numerous occasions, often bombing and strafing, German ... How do you 'often bomb and strafe' with one plane? ...
    (uk.comp.sys.mac)