26 June 1943

26 June 1943 Channel Islands Sea Defence diary

Weather: wind 225°, 7 m/sec. From 03:00 to 06:00, Alert Level I was in force by order of the 319th Infantry Division.

At 22:18, thirteen British fighters of unidentified type approached the roadstead and harbour of St Peter Port, Guernsey, from the south-west at a height of 100 metres. Anti-aircraft fire drove them away to the north-east. No bombs were dropped and no other enemy effect was recorded.

Batterie Strassburg's 2-cm Oerlikon weapons engaged the aircraft from 22:10 to 22:27. Nos. 1, 2, 5 and 6 guns each reported ten hits. The aircraft under fire lost height rapidly. According to the anti-aircraft brigade, one Typhoon was claimed shot down; another aircraft departed trailing heavy smoke. Ammunition expenditure: 371 rounds 2-cm.

Construction report — Batterie Mirus: work continued on the service building and gun wiring. Camouflage and gardening work was carried out at the guns and the bunker entrances were covered with camouflage nets. Further work included road construction at No. 1 gun, fitting screens in the air shafts, embankment work at Nos. 3 and 4 guns, and fitting steel girders as obstacles against airborne landing. The doors at No. 3 gun were made serviceable. The parapets of anti-aircraft positions I and II were poured, and excavation was carried out at positions V, VI and VIII.

Batterie Strassburg: installation of the communications and heating systems in the new fire-control bunker began. The infantry positions were extended further and reinforcement of the individual wire obstacles began.

Batterie Steinbruch: the reserve-ammunition bunker was poured. Excavation continued at anti-aircraft positions I and VI, while excavation for position II and the water bunker was completed. Siemens finished the heating installation in crew bunker III and began installing heating in the fire-control post; no electrical work was carried out. Battery personnel continued the drainage trench at the service barrack and the excavation, concreting and internal fitting-out of the communal barrack.

Batterie Lothringen: work began on the reinforcing mesh for the second storey of the new fire-control post. A daytime shelter was being built at searchlight B. A new wire fence was begun on the eastern side, construction of the craftsmen's workroom continued, and the concrete foundation for a new searchlight was completed.

Naval Artillery Battalion 605 — Batterie Annes: Organisation Todt carried out excavation and internal work at ammunition bunker I; poured a living room and built the emergency exit at the machinery bunker, where embankment work also continued; continued excavation at the fire-control-post living bunker; and poured the blinding layer at living bunker II, dug a drainage trench, delivered aggregate and prepared to pour the base. General levelling work continued. Battery personnel fitted out the washing, shower and decontamination barrack and strengthened and extended the field positions and wiring.

T-1022 Roll 2422, scans 0660–0661.