Italian Forces

Malta: the first raids

Stato Maggiore Aeronautica

An Italian Regia Aeronautica’s S.79 over Malta on the first weeks of the war, Summer 1940. The first mission date back to 11 June 1940, the day after the Italy’s declaration of war to Great Britain and France when 35 aircraft raided La Valletta, Hal Far airfield and Kalafrana air harbor. The mission was duplicated on the afternoon of the same with 38 bombers. After this raids, the missions over Malta was limited to recce flights. This until 26 June when the Regia Aeronautica restarted the bombardment missions increasingly opposed by the fighters, still few, and by anti-aircraft artillery particularly redoubtable. On 7 July an Italian bomber was shot down in flames, on 24 July two others S.79s was shot down by the Gladiators, on the 13 July the first night bombardment of La Valletta by 8 S.79s (one shot down). And the escalation kept with day and night raids took also, for a brief time, by Cant-Z-1007bis. Victor Sierra