26 April 1944

26 April 1944 Channel Islands Sea Defence diary

Weather: wind from 300°, 8 metres per second. At 02:42 [as typed; inconsistent with the subsequent times] Guernsey Artillery Group alerted following detection of unidentified targets in BF 2669. From 01:02 to 01:09 Batterie Steinbruch fired under radar control at the targets, bearing 333.4°, range 44.5–48.5 hectometres [4,450–4,850 metres]. At 01:08 Steinbruch fired a spread of illuminating shells. The source strikes out “Effect of hits not observed.” No enemy counteraction. Ammunition expenditure: nine 15-cm high-explosive and three 15-cm illuminating shells. At 01:40 the alert ended because the targets could no longer be detected. [The opening time is not silently corrected.]

08:15–08:30: Jersey Artillery Group conducted sea-target firing practice towards the south. Batterie Lothringen expended twelve 15-cm high-explosive shells and ninety-two 2-cm rounds.

Roll 2422, scans 0825–0826, original pages 39–40.