By morning, on August 13, the Pedestal convoy had indeed aproached to within range of Malta's fighters, and although Park quickly scrambled his squadrons, when the fighters arrived over the convoy, their effectiveness was curtailed by the absence of the fighter-direction ships, HMS Nigeria and Cairo. Nevertheless, the RAF flew 407 sorties in direct support of Pedestal; the Spitfires mounted intercept missions, while the Beaufighters held off the Italian fleet and low-flying bombers. Despite their efforts however, the cruiser Manchester was crippled by torpedo-boats and scuttled and four other merchant ships were sunk. Ohio was heavily damaged and set afire by two German bombers crashing onto its deck, but its brave crew managed to put out the fire. The vessel was perilously close to sinking, and to keep it afloat, Ohio was lashed between the destroyers Penn and Ledbury and was towed by the minesweeper HMS Rye. Ohio's progress and its dogged refusal to sink would become the symbol of the convoy's determination to beat the enemy, and they had all but showed it to the world. In the past two days, the convoy had succeeded in shooting down large numbers of enemy airplanes and had sunk two U-boats. But they knew that they had to reach Malta soon - before their low ammunition ran out. But 'Pedestal's' ordeal was almost at an end. In the late hours of the 13th, three merchantmen (Port Chalmers, Rochester Castle and Melbourne Star) reached Valletta and a fourth, the Brisbane Star arrived the next morning. Meanwhile Ohio, which had been inching forward painfully, was attacked again by enemy aircraft. Despite the effort of her companion destroyers, the tanker was damaged by a near miss and began taking on more water.

Seasoned Veteran. Although he had his crtics, Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park was an excellant choice for the role of AOC in Malta. A veteran group commander during the Battle of Britian, he had conducted his squadrons with great skill and calm. Now, with that same skill and calm, Park and his units would break the enemy of its fighting resolve before the year 1942 was out.

The valiant The tanker Ohio struggles to make it to Malta with the help of the destroyers HMS Penn and HMS Ledbury. Photo © Malta Archives

Then, on the morning of August 14 at 8 am, she passed the ancient forts guarding Valetta harbor and entered the island's capital in triump. Even at this late hour, it was feared that the Ohio would sink and block the harbour's channel. But she did not, and by the afternoon, the gallant vessel limped into Valletta to a heroes welcome. The streets of the dock were lined with cheering locals. At last the Ohio had arrived, bringing with her badly need fuel. Docksmen and port workers immediately set about taking off Ohio's cargo and an hour later, just as the last gallons of precious fuel had been barely unloaded, the tired tanker finally gave way and settled in the shallows of Valetta harbor.

Operation 'Pedestal' was the turning point for the Battle of Malta; the arrival of the five merchant ships permitted the British to re-establish their base against the Axis trans-Mediterranean supply routes. But both sides had lost big, including the Italians, who suffered the loss of two cruisers - Bolzano and the Muzio Attendolo damaged by the British submarine HMS Unbroken on the morning of 13th August north-west of the Straits of Messina. Two submarines were also lost as were 24 aircraft (eleven on 12th August, seven on the 13th and six on the 14th).

The Germans meantime suffered the loss of fourteen bombers and an almost equal number of fighters. The British meantime, had lost almost 45 carrier-based aircraft, including 13 lost in air combat and those that went down with Eagle, and those pushed overboard after Indomitable had been disabled. They had also lost nine merchant ships, three cruisers and a many other warships had been damaged. But Operation 'Pedestal' had been a major success. Malta now had enough supplies to keep on fighting.

Three cheers! The ships of 'Pedestal' reach their destination under joyous gaze of the Maltese population. Photo © Malta Archives

PARK FINISHES IT

Malta was restocked and there was now enough provisions and ammuniton to hold out for a few more months. The fighter strength on the island was built up again - ironically considering that at the same time that Field Marshal Kesselring was losing some of his best units to other fronts. On August 17, Furious returned to fly off 32 Spitfires to Malta - 29 made it to the island. But aircraft were not the only ones to make the run to Malta; the RAF also transferred experienced pilots and commanders to build up the fighting prowess of Park's squadrons. One of the new arrivals was Wing Commander Arthur Donaldson, who was initially put in charge of ground training. But in August, he was designated as the Wing Commander Flying of the Takali Wing (Nos. 185, 229, 249 Squadrons). Another senior officer, Group Captain Walter Churchill, who had flown off Furious during 'Pedestal', was made incharge of fighter operations. On these two men rested the future of Park's offensive plans.

The worried field marshal. Apopular leader, Field Marshal Albert Kesselring (or 'smiling Albert') as he was fondly known to his men, looks perturbed in this circa-early 1942 photo.

With fists and heels. This is No. 249 Squadron's badge. No. 249 was the highest scoring RAF squadron of the war, and during Malta, produced the highest number of allied aces - no coincidence obviously. The squadron's latin motto stood for 'With fists and heels'.

Donaldson's first task as fighter leader was to test the enemy reaction. From August 20 to 24th, he and his three squadrons flew over Sicily, making the circuit around the island's principle airfields, Comisio, Biscari and Gela, but there was no reaction from the Germans; not even flak. It was an invitation to attack. Park was growing weary of these tentative probes, and he decided to hit the Germans with the full force of Malta's fighters to make them to respond. The constant reconnaissance flights of No. 69 Squadron had revealed that the Germans were building up their bomber strength on Sicily, and Park ordered Churchill to demolish the airfields. On August 27, Nos. 185, 229 and 249 Squadrons lifted off to attack the three bomber airfields - one for each squadron. Donaldson with Churchill as his wingman led the force, which was ordered to maintain strict radio-silence as it streaked over the Mediterranean at low level. Approaching the Sicilian coast, the squadrons divided and launched simultaneous attacks on Comisio, Biscari and Gela.

The attack took the enemy completely by surprise. Enemy fighters attempted to scramble, but three were caught by the Spitfires and were shot down. Donaldson and Churchill meantime, led No. 229 Squadron to Biscari airfield, situated a few miles west of Comisio. As the Spitfires came in low, guns blazing, the airfield's ack-ack gunners put up a fierce hail of fire. Churchill's Spitfire was hit, burst into flames and went down. The group captain was killed in the subsequent crash.

As the flak intensified, a Dornier bomber lifted off, but Donaldson had spotted it. He gave chase but ran out of amuniton before he could shoot it down. Gathering his squadrons, Donaldson led his force for home. The raid had been a spectacular success. The RAF had managed to destroy ten aircraft in the air, with another twenty-nine on the ground! All this for the loss of two pilots - one of them Churchill.

The raid had the intended enemy reaction that Park had hoped for. Two days later, a large force of enemy fighters swept over Malta in a retaliatory act, and succeeded in causing some damage, including the destruction of two Spitfires. But the RAF itself had failed to score. This disappointment was soon offset by Park's insistence that his squadrons continued their offensive missions beyond Malta. Before long, the Spitfires were flying daily sweeps and 'Rhubarbs' over Sicily, forming a nuisance force while at the same time causing considerable material damage on the enemy. Much of the effort was expended in the form of squadron-strength sweeps over Sicily, but at dawn and dusk, flights of four aircraft would mount hit-and-run attacks on Sicilian airfields such as the seaplane base at Syracuse and the reserve airfields at Pachino and Cape Scaramia. When night arrived, Malta's Beaufighter squadrons would take over, flying 'Intruder' sorties over the airfields, catching enemy aircraft as they took off or landed. The Germans could do little to stop these raids for attempts at interception invariably caused fresh casualties.

In September, Park changed tactics and ordered 'Ramrods' . The 'Ramrods' comprised of a small force of Hurricane fighter-bombers escorted by large numbers of fighters. These were meant to draw the Luftwaffe into the skies, while at the time involving the destruction of a ground target. On September 11, the first of these 'Ramrods' went into action. Three 'Hurribombers', escorted by twelve Spitfires from the Takali wing set out to destroy Gela airfield. Included in the fighter section were two veteran pilots - Donaldson and George Beurling. The Spitfires flew up at 18 000 ft, while the Hurricanes, tucked into a neat 'line-astern' formation flew at a low height. As the formation crossed the Sicilian coast, Donaldson was aware that enemy radar would have picked them up, but there was little that could be done about that. The Spitfires needed altitude to pick off the enemy fighters that were expected to intervene. As the Hurricanes began their attack run, Donaldson and his Spitfires hid in the clouds, awaiting the Luftwaffe. Then just the Hurricanes dived, two Me109s appeared above the Spitfires. As Donaldson's Spitfires rose up to engage the Messerschmitts, the Hurricanes dive-bombed Gela. Although one of the Hurricanes missed its target, the other two were on mark, peppering the runway, before turning for home at high speed at low-altitude. The Spitfires flew in-between the Hurricanes and the Me109s, forming a rear-guard. No RAF aircraft were lost.

Park was elated at the success, but the next few weeks were uneventful. There were now days when the enemy made scant appearance. The reason for this soon became clear. British reconnaissance flights revealed a German build-up for yet another another offensive. Kesselring had been ordered by Berlin to protect axis shipping routes to North Africa, where Rommel's Afrika Korps was desperately in need of reinforcements and supplies before the second Battle of El Alamein. Kesselring's offensive came underway during the first days of October, when the Germans sent over fighter sweeps to neutralize the Spitfires. The sweeps had been brilliantly planned, and the Germans fighters, on several occasions, managed to bounce the Spitfires as they climbed. Several seasoned pilots were lost.

With preliminary phase over, Luftwaffe chief, Herman Göring now ordered the final destruction of Malta within eight days, and Kesselring resumed the Blitz on October 10. Since September 1942, Kesselring had built up his fighter and bomber forces (see Appendix A); there were now six groups of Ju88s on Sicily together with a small force of He111H night bombers from the elite Kampfgeschwader 100. The Italian Regia Aeronautica meantime had deployed three groups of Cant Z.1007bis bombers, while the German Ju87Ds of II/Stukageschwader 3 had flown in from North Africa to reinforce the Ju87Bs of the Italian 101st Gruppo. To deal with Park's fighter squadrons, Kesselring reinforced its existing two Me109F fighter groups, I/JG77 and II/JG53 with the transfer of I/JG53 from Russia, and the crack I/JG27 from North Africa. The Italians fielded the three groups of Macchi MC.202s and one of Reggiane Re.2001 fighters. In response, Park had five Spitfire Mk V squadrons - Nos. 126, 185, 229, 249 and 1435 - all at full strength and staffed by experienced pilots and commanders.

On October 11, the first of Kesselring's major raids hit Malta. Spitfires from No.229 Squadron were scrambled to intercept the force of three Ju88s escorted by almost thirty Me109s. Ignoring the escorts, the Spitfires attacked the Ju88s head-on and broke them up. Wing Commander Donaldson, flying with the squadron managed to down one of the Ju88s. The next day, October 12, Kesselring increased the number of escorts. As the raiders left their bases in Sicily, Park had already scrambled the Takali wing, and the Spitfires caught the eight Ju88s and their seventy plus escorts over Sicily. The sky was instantly filled with twisting and flaming aircraft as the Spitfires tore into the enemy ranks. Within minutes, six Ju88s had fallen and perhaps five or six Me109s, but owing to their sheer numbers, the raiders managed to reach and bomb Malta. The following day, October 13, No. 249 Squadron was scrambled at 4.30 am to intercept an enemy raid. Rushing from the readiness room, the pilots ran to their Spitfires in the morning cold and were airborne within two minutes. Fighter Controllers at Valetta radioed that the enemy forces numbered an estimated fifteen bombers and over eighty fighters - the biggest formation in the past few days. The squadron had no time to climb above the raiders, but instead smashed into the enemy force at level height, north of St. Paul's bay. Some Spitfires managed to break through the fighter screen and engage the bombers, while others were quickly enmeshed among the Me109s. Flying Officer George 'Screwball' Beurling was one of those in the thick of action. He quickly shot down a Ju88 and riddled another with bullets before being set upon by the Me109s. Turning to ward off his attackers, he shot down two Messerschmitts before landing back at Takali. By the end of the dogfight, No. 249 Squadron had destroyed a total of eight enemy bombers and fifteen fighters. The Germans returned in the afternoon to try again, but were as before, were intercepted before they reached Malta. All three raiding Ju88s were forced to jettison their bombs by the attacking Spitfires.

An ace's machine. With this 249 Squadron Spitfire Mark V (Serial No. EP706), George Buerling shot down four German fighters and damaged another on two seperate encounters. The first instance was on 25th September, when Beurling blew two Me109s out of the sky, 30 miles northeast of Zonker, and the next kills (again Me109s) came on 10th October. Like every type of aircraft on the island, the Spitfires were never numerous enough to satisfy demand, and therefore machines were often shared among pilots and even squadrons. This aircraft was shared between Beurling and fellow ace pilot,the British Squadron Leader Maurice M. Stephens. The 'T' stands for Takali, where the squadron was based at the time.

On October 14, Park's radar controllers again picked up blips, and two Spitfire squadrons were scrambled to investigate. They ran into an enemy force, eight bombers strong with an escort of fifty fighters. Beurling was again in the skies and in the skirmish, he managed to shoot down one Ju88 and two Me109s. But he had forgotten about his tail while going to the aid of fellow pilot, Flying Officer 'Billy the Kid' Williams. A fighter got on his tail and peppered his Spitfire with cannon rounds. Hit in the elbows, ribs, leg and heel, Beurling attempted to stabilize the crippled fighter, but the controls had been shot away and the throttle was jammed wide open. The Spitfire went into a full-power dive, and when Beurling flung back the canopy to bail out, the spin forced him back into his seat. The thought, "this is what it's like when you're going to die", ran through Canadian's mind, but then then he began to fight. The engine was streaming flames, but Beurling fought the terrific physical forces, and somehow managed to wriggle his way out onto the port wing, where he could bail into the inside of the spin. The stricken fighter was less than a thousand feet from the sea when Beurling pulled his ripcord. The parachute burst open with a cannon-like crack, and seconds later the injured pilot splashed into the clear sea. Beurling spent the next two weeks in the hospital and was given the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for his gallantry. His three victories on October 14 brought his total score to 28.33 confirmed victories, but there would be no more over Malta for he was told pack up. His death would be too much of a loss to the RAF.

Above: Spitfire cockpit. Photo ©IWM

The DSO. The Distinguished Service Order was awarded for gallantry in the face of fire. Before 1943, the award could only be gained if the person was actually mentioned in dispatches. Therefore both Beurling and Donaldson had to have been mentioned in such official messeges to the government and the King. Secondly, the order was generally reserved for officers above the rank of Lt Colonel or equivalent, but if it was given to someone of lesser ranks such as Beurling (and others), it was usually for the highest degree of valour, which was just short of deserving the Britian's highest military honor, the Victoria Cross.

On August 15, the Germans launched another ferocious attack. The Luqa wing was scrambled but failed to meet the raiders. The Fighter Controlers alrted their forces at Takali, and scrambled a force under Wing Commander Donaldson at 6.30 am with a section of just four Spitfires - all that were avaliable. Climbing hard to intercept, the allied pilots spotted eight Ju88s with perhaps seventy Me109s higher-up. Going for the bombers, Donaldson soon lost his novice wingman in the confusion, leaving his tail open for attack. Lining up with a Ju88, Donaldson saw his cannons pound the Ju88, which began flaming, but at the same time, a Me109 had fixed itself on his tail. The British pilot was still firing when the cannon shells came ripping through the Spitfire's cockpit. The clean cockpit was suddenly filled with blood, but Donaldson had not idea where he had been hit. Then he saw two fingers lying on his lap. A cannon round had entered through the side of the cockpit, blowing off the lower two fingers of his left hand as they grasped the control stick. Then Donaldson felt the blinding pain. To continue fighting under such conditions was impossible and he turned the Spitfire on his back and dived away from the dogfight. Approaching Takali, which had just been bombed, he discovered that the Spitfire's undercarriage had been shot away. A wheels-up landing on an airstrip filled with unexploded bombs and incendiaries was not a good-idea but Donaldson was losing consciousness. He somehow miraculously glided in the Spitfire for a smooth belly-landing, and the ground crews managed to pull out the injured pilot before the fighter went up in flames. He was rushed to the Mtarfa hospital, where doctors saved the remains of his left hand. As few days later, when Keith Park came to visit him in the hospital, Donaldson bravely told the Air Vice-Marshal that he was still fit to fly and that the two fingers that were lost 'were not the important ones.' Like Beurling, Donaldson's won the DSO, and like Beurling, he was going home.

By October 16th meantime, Field Marshal Kesselring's aerial onslaught had eased. The Luftwaffe's tactic of sending over massed aircraft formations was not having the desired effect, and on October 18, Kesselring stopped the raids. In seven days of fighting, the Germans had lost large numbers of aircraft to the under-strengthed RAF figher squadrons. The Luftwaffe's Ju88s, in particular, had suffered a crippling price - 30 Ju88s had been lost and 13 more seriously damaged, some of them subsequently written off. Fighter losses had also been heavy with at least a dozen Me109s and MC.202s shot down with more than ten damaged. The RAF in turn had lost 27 Spitfires shot down (against German claims of 100) and more than 20 others had crash-landed or suffered heavy damage. It was apparent that the Luftwaffe's bombers were unable to break through Park's defenses, and even when some did, their numbers were never sufficient to cause more than minimal damage to the defenders. So, the Germans decided to use fast, single-seat fighter-bombers instead.

The veteran I Gruppe, Schlachtgeschwader 2 (Ground Attack Wing 2), equipped with Me109E-4/B fighter-bombers was pulled out of North Africa, where it was needed and pitted into action against Malta. On October 19, the Messerschmitts swung into action. In what was a well planned (but ultimately doomed) attack, fast-flying Italian Re.2001s and German Me109Es struck at Malta's airfields. Then three formations of heavily escorted bombers made their appearance, one from the north, one from the east and one from the west; the intention being to split Malta's defenses. But with typical tenacity, Park sent up one Spitfire squadron, which split up the western attack before flying east to fend off the eastern formation. With light fading, Park sent up night fighting Beaufighters to destroy the northern formation. Kesselring's attack had been once again thwarted.

On October 20, Me109 fighter-bomber made their appearance once again, but as the previous day, they were unable to cause more than trivial damage. Kesselring had finally had enough and pulled out his dayfighting units. In just two days of savage fighting between October 19 to the 20th, Kesselring had lost nine German and three Italian aircraft to minor RAF losses.

The attrition rate were unacceptable, and from October 21, Kesserling resorted to sporadic night raids by German bombers and Italian Cant Z.1007s. Unfortunately for them, Malta's night defenses were formidable, and in time they too faded away. By mid-November, Malta was again in the throes of a supply and ammuniton shortge - there was only about two weeks of food left on the island. Another convoy was planned, and four merchantmen escorted by cruisers and destroyers set sail from Egypt on November 17. Three days later, the convoy entered Valetta's Grand Harbor triumphant and intact. None of the freighters had been lost. The lack of enemy intervention suggessted that Malta's ordeal was at last over - and indeed it was.

Emil's re-birth. The old 1939-41 era Me109E 'Emil' saw a re-birth as a fighter-bomber during 1941-42, long after the Luftwaffe's fighter elements had switched to the newer 'F' and 'G'. The above aircraft (model variant Me109E-4/B) carries a 250-lb bomb in its underbelly. Such aircraft, operating in small numbers, could make fast hit-and-run attacks on targets and usually there was little the RAF could do to stop them, except post constant fighter patrols or keep the aircraft on the runway ready to take off at the first word of trouble - either way, these were resources that Air Vice-Marshal Park had very little of in Malta. Profile ©Unknown.

During the eighteen-month siege, the island fortress had suffered terribly. Almost 1540 civilians had died and another 1846 severely wounded. The RAF in Malta had lost 547 planes in the air and another 160 on the ground. But the biggest losers were the axis - the Germans lost 574 planes over Malta in addition to the Regia Aeronautica's 286 aircraft - these, along with their pilots and crews would prove irreplaceable losses for an enemy fighting on three fronts.