Ralph Edward Tomlinson

Hampden P1156 455 Sqn. Take off from RAF Wigsley on Operation Fuller. The Channel Dash, codenamed Operation Cerberus by the Germans. Kriegsmarine squadron consisting of both Scharnhorst-class battleships, Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and the heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen along with escort destroyers, Räumboote and Schnellboot, ran a British blockade and successfully sailed from Brest in Brittany to their home bases in Germany via the English Channel. The move was ordered for two reasons: on the one hand Brest was within reach of British planes and became too dangerous, on the other hand, from a base further north, it would be easier to interdict North Atlantic convoys, which were giving the Soviet Union much needed and growing help.

On 11 February 1942, the Kriegsmarine ships left Brest at 21:14 and escaped detection for more than 12 hours, approaching the Straits of Dover without discovery. As the German ships passed through the straits and on into the North Sea, British armed forces intercepted them, and the Royal Air Force, the Fleet Air Arm and Coastal Artillery attacked.

The attacks and bombardment were unsuccessful, and by 13 February all the Kriegsmarine ships had completed their transit. In support of the German naval operation, the Luftwaffe launched Operation Donnerkeil (Thunderbolt) to provide air superiority for the passage of the ships. P1156 lost without trace.

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