World War II Database

• Home
• » Events
• » WW2 Timeline
• » 8 Oct 1940

• During the night, 17 British aircraft from Waddington, Lincolnshire attacked battleship Tirpitz to little effect. ww2dbase [Tirpitz | CPC]
• Orion made rendezvous with raider Komet and Komet's supply ship Kulmerland. Orion and Komet began operating together against Allied shipping. ww2dbase [Orion | CPC]
• The United States transferred 8 more old destroyers to the British Royal Navy as part of the Destroyers for Bases Agreement. ww2dbase [CPC]

• British submarine HMS Trident and German submarine U-31 exchanged fire in the Bay of Biscay off France; Trident hit U-31 with the deck gun, causing minor damage; both torpedoes fired missed. German submarine U-58 hit British ship Confield 88 miles west of Barra Head, Outer Hebrides, Scotland, United Kingdom at 2131 hours with two torpedoes, killing 1; the ship remained afloat, allowing the remaining 36 to escape via lifeboats. Far to the south, 350 miles northeast of Natal, Brazil, German armed merchant cruiser Thor attacked British refrigeration ship Natia, killing 2; after the remaining 83 crew members were captured, Natia was sunk by a torpedo and two more shells from Thor's 150-mm gun; after this attack, Thor now had 368 prisoners aboard, outnumbering her crew. ww2dbase [First Happy Time | Thor | CPC]
• Seeadler patrolled off the Isle of Wight, southern England, United Kingdom. ww2dbase [Seeadler | English Channel | CPC]
• After sundown, Jaguar and Wolf made an unsuccessful sortie off the Isle of Wight. ww2dbase [First Happy Time | Wolf | Jaguar | English Channel | CPC]
• Italian submarine Leonardo da Vinci sighted the liner Highland Brigade in the Atlantic Ocean at 1600 hours. At 2024 hours, she fired two torpedoes at the distance of 2,500 meters; both missed. ww2dbase [Leonardo da Vinci | First Happy Time | CPC]

• The British Mediterranean Fleet departed Alexandria, Egypt to escort a supply convoy to Malta. The fleet consisted of battleship HMS Warspite, battleship HMS Valiant, battleship HMS Malaya, battleship HMS Ramillies, aircraft carrier HMS Eagle, aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious, 12 cruisers, 16 destroyers, and 6 submarines; they escorted four British transport ships. ww2dbase [Malta Campaign | Warspite | Alexandria | CPC]

• The German Luftwaffe mounted 4 raids of 30 to 160 aircraft consisted mostly of fighter-bombers and fighters, with few medium bombers, against London, England, United Kingdom; various government offices in Whitehall and the Charing Cross Railway Station were damaged by bombs. The Germans lost 1 Bf 109 fighter and 3 bombers; the British lost 4 fighters with all 4 pilots killed. Overnight, London, East Anglia, East Midlands, Portsmouth, and Southampton were bombed, with a serious fire damaging wharves and nearby warehouses. ww2dbase [Battle of Britain | England | CPC]
• Czech-born fighter ace Sergeant Josef Frantisek of No. 303 "Warsaw-Kosciuszko" Squadron RAF was killed when his Hurricane crashed whilst landing at RAF Northolt at Ruislip near London, England, United Kingdom. At the time of his death Frantisek had a score of 17 kills and had been awarded the British Distinguished Flying Medal. Posthumously he was commissioned lieutenant, and awarded a Bar to his DFM, the Czech Military Cross, the Polish Cross of Valour (with three bars) and the Polish Virtuti Militari. ww2dbase [London, England | AC]
• Josef Frantisek passed away in Ewell, England, United Kingdom. ww2dbase [Josef Frantisek | Ewell, England | CPC]

• The United States Department of State released an announcement advising American citizens to leave the Far East and return to the US. ww2dbase [Washington | CPC]

8 Oct 1940 Interactive Map