Known claims with the Gloster Gladiator over Malta

Claims:
Kill no. Date Number Type Result Pilot Plane type Serial no. Locality Unit
  11/06/40 1 S.79 (a) Damaged George Burges Sea Gladiator N5531 Valetta-Hal Far Ftr. Flt.
  11/06/40 1 MC.200 (b) Unconfirmed ’Timber’ Woods Sea Gladiator ? S Valetta Ftr. Flt.
1 11/06/40 1 S.79 (c) Destroyed John Waters Sea Gladiator N5520 Malta area Ftr. Flt.
2 12/06/40 1 S.79 (d) Destroyed John Waters Sea Gladiator N5520 Malta area Ftr. Flt.
  15/06/40 1 S.79 (e) Damaged Peter Hartley Sea Gladiator ? Malta area Ftr. Flt.
  16/06/40 1 S.79 (f) Damaged Peter Hartley Sea Gladiator ? Malta area Ftr. Flt.
3 22/06/40 1 S.79 (g) Destroyed George Burges Sea Gladiator N5519 off Kalafrana Ftr. Flt.
4 23/06/40 1 MC.200 (h) Destroyed George Burges Sea Gladiator N5519 off Sliema Ftr. Flt.
5 28/06/40 1 S.79 (i) Destroyed ’Timber’ Woods Sea Gladiator ? off Malta Ftr. Flt.
6 11/07/40 1 S.79 (j) Destroyed Charles Keighly-Peach Sea Gladiator N5517 ? HMS Eagle
  11/07/40 1 S.79 Damaged K. L. Keith Sea Gladiator N5513 ? HMS Eagle
7 13/07/40 1 S.79 (k) Destroyed Charles Keighly-Peach Sea Gladiator N5517 S Crete HMS Eagle
8 13/07/40 1 S.79 (k) Shared destroyed Charles Keighly-Peach Sea Gladiator N5517 S Crete HMS Eagle
8 13/07/40 1 S.79 (k) Shared destroyed K. L. Keith Sea Gladiator N5513 S Crete HMS Eagle
9 13/07/40 1 S.79 (k) Destroyed K. L. Keith Sea Gladiator N5513 S Crete HMS Eagle
10 29/07/40 1 S.79 (l) Destroyed P. W. V. Massy Sea Gladiator N5512 ? HMS Eagle
11 31/07/40 1 CR.42 (m) Destroyed ’Timber’ Woods Sea Gladiator ? Hal Far Ftr. Flt.
  17/08/40 1 S.79 (n) Probable Charles Keighly-Peach Sea Gladiator N5517 near Alexandria HMS Eagle
12 17/08/40 1/3 S.79 (o) Shared destroyed K. L. Keith Sea Gladiator N5513 Bardia-Alexandria HMS Eagle
12 17/08/40 1/3 S.79 (o) Shared destroyed A. N. Young Sea Gladiator N5567 Bardia-Alexandria HMS Eagle
12 17/08/40 1/3 S.79 (o) Shared destroyed ? Gladiator ? Bardia-Alexandria 112 Sq.
13 17/08/40 1 S.79 (p) Destroyed Lloyd Schwab Gladiator ? Bardia-Alexandria 112 Sq.
14 17/08/40 1 S.79 (p) Destroyed Peter Wickham Gladiator ? Bardia-Alexandria 112 Sq.
15 17/08/40 1 S.79 (p) Destroyed ? Gladiator ? Bardia-Alexandria 112 Sq.
16 17/08/40 1 S.79 (p) Destroyed ? Gladiator ? Bardia-Alexandria 112 Sq.
17 17/08/40 1 S.79 (p) Destroyed ? Gladiator ? Bardia-Alexandria 112 Sq.
18 31/08/40 1 Z.506B Destroyed Charles Keighly-Peach Sea Gladiator N5517 off Crete HMS Eagle
  13/10/40 1 S.79 (q) Inconclusive R. H. H. L. Oliphant Sea Gladiator N5567 ? HMS Eagle
19 02/11/40 1 CR.42 (r) Destroyed George Burges Sea Gladiator N5520 Zeitun 261 Sq.
  02/11/40 1 CR.42 (r) Damaged George Burges Sea Gladiator N5520 Zeitun 261 Sq.
20 08/11/40 ½ Cant Z.501 (s) Shared destroyed Jack Sewell Sea Gladiator ? Alexandria-Malta 806 Sq.
20 08/11/40 ½ Cant Z.501 (s) Shared destroyed O.J.R. Nicolls Sea Gladiator N5549 Alexandria-Malta 806 Sq.
21 24/01/41 1 Ju 88 (t) Destroyed Jack Sewell Sea Gladiator ? Malta 806 Sq.
(a) One S.79 piloted by Capitano Rosario Di Blasi from 52o Gruppo was hit in the fuselage.
(b) MC.200 of 79a Squadriglia, 6o Gruppo CT flown by Tenente Giuseppe Pesola - not badly damaged.
(c) S.79 of 34o Stormo BT, returned to base.
(d) S.79 of 60a Squadriglia, 33o Gruppo, 11o Stormo BT, returned to base.
(e) S.79 of 11o Stormo BT damaged. Claimed damage to anti-aircraft.
(f) S.79 of 41o Stormo BT damaged, possibly by Flying Officer Peter Hartley.
(g) S.79 (MM22068) of 216a Squadriglia, 53o Gruppo, 34o Stormo, flown by Tenente Francesco Solimene. The pilot and the co-pilot Sottotenente Alfredo Balsamo survived and became POW's.
(h) MC.200 of 88a Squadriglia (alternatively 71a Squadriglia) flown by Sergente Maggiore Lamberto Molinelli. The a/c crashed in the sea and the pilot was captured.
(i) S-79 of 11o Stormo BT damaged, but returned. Pilot Tenente Remo Maccagni and two other members of the crew were wounded, while another crew member, 1e Aviere Motorista Angelo Alvisi, his sense reeling from the fumes from a punctured fuel tank, baled out into the sea and was lost.
(j) S-79 of 194a Squadriglia, 90o Gruppo, 30o Stormo BT, flown by Sottotenente Ciro Floreani. The crew parachuted but was never found.
(k) Three Italian bombers were shot down by the two pilots (one each and one shared). All three were claimed as S.79s but one was a S.81 from 200a Squadriglia, 92o Gruppo, flown by Sottotenente Enrico Carapezza. From the shared destroyed, two men baled out, one of them being picked up HMS Hereward.
(l) S.79 shot down. One of the crew being picked up alive by HMS Capetown.
(m) CR.42 of 75a Squadriglia, 23o Gruppo CT; Capitanpo Antonio Chiodi killed; awarded posthumous Medaglia D'Oro.
(n) This aircraft disappeared into cloud after one man had been seen to bale out. RAF claimed 7 destroyed S.79 in this combat; actual Regia Aeronautica losses were four S.79 shot down and eight damaged.
(o) The third unknown pilot is believed to have been either Peter Wickham or Lloyd Schwab. RAF claimed 7 destroyed S.79 in this combat; actual Regia Aeronautica losses were four S.79 shot down and eight damaged.
(p) RAF claimed 7 destroyed S.79 in this combat; actual Regia Aeronautica losses were four S.79 shot down and eight damaged.
(q) Last seen very low over water with port engine damaged.
(r) Claimed in combat with CR.42s from 80a Squadriglia, which didn't suffer any losses.
(s) Cant Z.501 of 186a Squadriglia R.M., flown by Tenente Paolo Primatesta.
(t) Believed to be Ju 88 L1+HM of 4/LG1 flown by Unteroffizier Gustav Ulrich, lost over Malta on this date.

Sources:
3o Stormo, storia fotografica - Dai biplani agli aviogetti - C. Lucchini and E. Leproni, 1990 Gino Rossato Editore kindly provided by Jean Michel Cala with translations kindly provided by Birgitta Hallberg-Lombardi
Aces High - Christopher Shores and Clive Williams, 1994 Grub Street, London, ISBN 1-898697-00-0
Aces High Volume 2 - Christopher Shores, 1999, Grub Street, London, ISBN 1-902304-03-9
Adriano Visconti Asso di Guerra - Giuseppe Pesce and Giovanni Massimello, 1997 kindly provided by Jean Michel Cala.
Aerei Modellismo no. 2 1997 kindly provided by Jean Michel Cala
Battle over Malta - Anthony Rogers, 2000 Sutton Publishing Limited, Gloucestershire, ISBN 0-7509-2392-X
Courage Alone - Chris Dunning, 1998 Hikoki Publications, Aldershot, ISBN 1-902109-02-3
Fleet Air Arm Aircraft, 1939-1945 - Ray Sturtivant, kindly provided by Mark E. Horan
Galleria degli Assi, 1998 Aerofan nr. 64 gen-marzo 1998, kindly provided by Jean Michel Cala.
Gladiators at Malta (Malta Flypast - Issue 2) - Alfred Coldman, 1998
Hurricanes over Malta - Brian Cull and Frederick Galea, 2001 Grub Street, London, ISBN 1-902304-91-8
La caccia notturna Italiana 1940-1942 - Giancarlo Garello, 1996 Aerofan nr. 57 apr-giu 1996 kindly provided by Jean Michel Cala
Light Blue 'Stringbags' - The Fairey Swordfish in RAF service - 1998 Air Enthusiast no. 78 nov/dec 1998 kindly provided by Jean Michel Cala
Malta: The Hurricane Years 1940-41 - Christopher Shores and Brian Cull with Nicola Malizia, 1987 Grub Street, London, ISBN 0-89747-207-1
Malta: The Spitfire Year 1942 - Christopher Shores and Brian Cull with Nicola Malizia, 1991 Grub Street, London, ISBN 0-948817-16-X
Shark Squadron - The history of 112 Squadron 1917-1975 - Robin Brown, 1994 Crécy Books, ISBN 0-947554-33-5
The Commonwealth War Graves Commission
The Gloster Gladiator - Francis K. Mason, 1964
Additional information kindly provided by Liana Balsamo.

Gloster Gladiators and Fiat CR.42s over Malta 1940-41





Last modified 15 November 2010