Day 321 July 17, 1940

Battle of Britain Day 8. Bad weather again restricts flying across most coastal areas. Germans bomb Bristol on the West coast of England, a tempting target due to its docks, airfields and aircraft factories. The industrial centers on the East coast of Scotland are also bombed again.

WWI-era British submarine H31 sinks German anti-submarine trawler Steiermark (UJ126) 5 miles off the coast of Holland. Other German anti-submarine trawlers counterattack but H31 is undamaged.

U-43 sinks British SS Fellside, West of Ireland (12 dead, 21 crew rescued and landed at Liverpool). U-34 sinks Greek SS Naftilos (all 28 crew abandon ship safely, 1 dies of wounds). Off the North Scottish coast, U-57 sinks Swedish SS O.A. Brodin (3 dead, 21 survivors picked up by armed trawler HMS Sicyon and taken to Kirkwall) and British SS Manipur (14 dead, 65 survivors rescued by Canadian destroyer HMCS Skeena and landed at Rosyth). http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/425.html http://www.uboat.net/allies/merchants/ships/427.html

German bombers sink Estonian SS Leola 120 miles South of Ireland (2 killed). Belgian trawler Roger Jeannine rescues survivors.

In the Mediterranean, Italian bombers sink Finnish SS Wiiri 30 miles off Malta (all 26 crew rescued).