July 25th, 1940
Southwestern France - The progression of the German columns is slowed down in each village, transformed into a center of resistance; but the law of the strongest eventually prevails, and the panzers advance.
Mont-de-Marsan - Tired of the incessant attacks on the columns of the Heer, the Luftwaffe sent several Bf 110 to search for the Bloch 152/5 departure base. The aircraft took off from Mérignac at 06:30 and reconnoitered Pau, Biarritz and Mont-de-Marsan, where they finally discovered their adversaries. They were however spotted and the GC II/8 was put on alert, while the network of observers was warned.
At 10:00, twelve Bloch 152/5 took off on alert and went to meet a powerfulGerman formation. Indeed, twenty Bf 110s left Mérignac, closely followed by fifteen
Heinkel 111s escorted by twelve Bf 109s.
The Bloch 152/5s encountered the attackers above the small town of Villeneuve-de-Marsan. The melee was terrible and lasted fifteen minutes. A Bf 110 was shot down near Aire sur l'Adour, the crew was taken prisoner. Two Heinkel 111 are destroyed; one falls on the side of Grenade sur l'Adour, killing its crew. Lieutenant Dutey-Harispe, isolated, attracted the attention of two Bf 109s after a pass against the He 111s: "With two 109s in my six o'clock, I had no chance of getting away with maneuvering, so I went down low to the ground itowards Saint-Sever.
I flew over this charming town at rooftop level, skirting along a road, probably not more than 10 meters above the ground. For half a second I caught a glimpse of a poor devil with his cows, who must have scattered when they saw three airplanes passing like a hurricane over their horns. The 109's wouldn't let me go, but the Bloch knew how to take it, that was its great quality.
But it couldn't last forever and soon my engine, after taking several bullets, started to whimper. I decelerated abruptly and landed my plane straight in front of me, on my belly, in a field, while the 109s passed over me. There was a terrible sound of pounding metal, then silence. I was intact! I unbuckled my harness in a hurry, jumped out of the cockpit and ran for cover, while the 109s, who must have been irritated by the chase, swooped down on my poor Bloch and blew him up in a big bang! Fortunately the farmers of the neighboring village, called Aubagnan, were sympathetic, and they mobilized a cart to take me back to Mont de Marsan... "
Two other Bloch 152s were shot down, their pilots killed. During this time, the Heinkel 111 bombed the Mont-de-Marsan airfield, very recognizable once you know that it is located on the city's racecourse, and that the Bf 110s had previously strafed copiously.
Three Blochs waiting for an unlikely repair were destroyed and the buildings were badly damaged. One of the Bf 110s returned to the charge, but it was hit by the meager flak and crashed on the city, falling on the district of the station where it made many victims.
Another Bloch was shot down during a final battle over Saint-Sever, 15 km south of the city. The aircraft was surprised at the end of the mission by two marauding Bf 110s
and managed in extremis to escape to the north, fell under the bullets of Bf 109 covering the retreat of the He 111. The pilot, slightly wounded, jumped in parachute; he was taken in and cared for by Doctor Fournier (a local legend), who drove him back in his car to Mont-de-Marsan.
In spite of the exploits accomplished by the mechanics during the night, the next day only nine operational aircraft remained in GC II/8 out of the twenty available six days earlier. These are these nine machines which will, the next day, July 26th, fly to Biarritz, with the order to cover the region, from Orthez to Oloron.
(Extract from "Le Groupe de Chasse II/8 dans la défense de l'Ouest - D'après le journal de marche de l'unité", Editions Ouest-France, 1990)
Languedoc and Provence - It's the "sauve-qui peut": everything that can be evacuated through the ports of the Mediterranean coast is frantically embarked on cargo ships, liners, fishing boats; all that floats and can at least reach Corsica is used... In Marseilles, it is still claimed today that even the famous "ferry-boat" [1] made the shuttle with Algiers.
[1] Boat that takes passengers from one side of the "Vieux port" to the other.
