ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 196560
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| Date: | Monday 29 January 1940 |
| Time: | |
| Type: | Fokker C.X |
| Owner/operator: | LLv 10 Suomen ilmavoimat |
| Registration: | FK-111 |
| MSN: | |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 2 / Occupants: 2 |
| Aircraft damage: | Destroyed |
| Location: | On frozen Lake Ladoga, near Saunasaari -
 Finland
|
| Phase: | Combat |
| Nature: | Military |
| Departure airport: | |
In december 1939 the Soviet Lake Ladoga Flotilla had supported the initial advance of the Soviet troops in the Karelian Isthmus and had set a new base in Saunasaari’s harbor on the southwestern coast of the lake. In late January most of its ships were here, blocked by the frozen lake.
LLv 10, the only Finnish air unit trained for dive-bombing, despatched on 29 January six Fokker C.X light bombers (FK-85, -86, -88, -89, -108 and -111) to attack "one large transport ship and one ice-breaker" anchored to Saunasaari’s harbor. They took off at 1555 hrs a,d met their escort (6 Fokker D-XXIs) over Käkisalmi at 1605 hrs. The attack was carried out as dive bombing with dropout as 900 m. Each plane carried 2x100kg and 8x12,5 kg bombs. Finnish crew reported meeting heavy AA fire that shot down one Fokker and hit two other. Only three could drop all their bombs, and claimed hits on or close both targetted ships.
Soviet reported that at 1740 hrs (Soviet time); 6 airplanes heading 130 degrees from Ranta-Kyla direction at the height of 2500-3000 metres were noticed. Having skirted the base from the south the airplanes reached the lake at the place where a group of ships were left outside the cape for the winter. Having turned to the north the airplanes in the bearing order headed for the harbour. Having reached the traverse of the Valkaniemi Cod the head plane went into a dive and at about 1745 hrs dropped the bombs which landed at a distance from the ships which were situated at the beginning of the dike. Immediately the "Oranienbaum" gunboat and later the "Razvedchik" and "Dozorni" patrol ships started firing the second plane of this flight, which reaching the harbour was going into a dive on the ships but caught fire and falling down broke into pieces. The third plane dropped the bombs in the area where minesweeper M-34 was standing and headed for the northwest after the first plane. After the first flight of aircraft in 2-3 minutes a second one appeared, it was going in the same direction. The second flight encountered the fire of the 45 mm antiaircraft guns and machine-guns on the gunboats. The machines-guns and antiaircraft artilleries of the ships soon joined the battle. Probably, under the influence of the fire the flight of aircraft scattered. The first airplane continued the flight, it dived on the harbour and dropped the bombs between a group of minesweepers and patrol ships in the corner formed by the dike. The second airplane reaching the traverse of Valkaniemi was, obviously, hit and the undercarriage with the skis fell down in 200 m from the dike. The airplane caught fire and quickly lost height. At the height of 15 m above the surface of the lake the airplane emitting smoke headed for the northwest and disappeared in the dark of the twilight. The third plane, having reached the harbour, and being in the fire of the antiaircraft artillery of the ships and battery, turned, first taking the reverse course as if it wanted to turn to the gunboat, but then continuing the turn made a circle, headed for the antiaircraft artillery battery, swooped on it and having shot it from the machine-gun headed for the north-west.
During this raid, the minesweeper No.32 was sunk and No. 34 was damaged, and two Soviet sailors were killed. The gunboat Oranienbaum and the patrol vessels Razvedchik (hit by bomb splinters) and Dozornyi claimed two Finnish aircraft shot down.
Actually only the Fokker C-X FK-111 was shot down. The second to attack, it got a direct AA hit when it started the dive and fell and burned on the frozen lake. Both crew, Vänrikki Robert Nenonen (pilot) and Vänrikki Sverre John Torsten Roschier (observer), were killed. Another plane, the FK-89, was hit by AA fire and lost its undercarriage but its pilot, WO Hämelä, made a successfull belly landing on Mensuvaara airfield. It was the one reported by Soviets has having lost undercarriage and last seen on fire.
Sources:
http://www.network54.com/Forum/46825/message/1103321779/Saunasaari-raid
http://www.geocities.ws/finnmilpge/fmp_faf_losses39_41.html
http://heninen.net/laatokka-war/report_e.htm
http://www.network54.com/Hide/Forum/message?forumid=46825&messageid=1004514823 (no more online)
http://wikimapia.org/#lang=en&lat=60.570946&lon=30.685501&z=12&m=b
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 07-Jul-2017 12:08 | Laurent Rizzotti | Added |
| 07-Jul-2017 13:58 | Laurent Rizzotti | Updated [Location] |
| 16-Feb-2021 18:09 | Lelek | Updated [Operator, Operator] |
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