April 22 to 24 1941 in Greece

German air attacks on 22 and 23 April 1941 forced the remaining Hurricanes to withdraw to the island of Crete. The attacks on 22 April in the Athens area caused the Hurricanes to fly to Argos. More attacks on 23 April caught 13 Hurricanes on the ground and destroyed them. It was after this incident that Air Vice-Marshal d'Albiac ordered the withdrawal to Crete. It was about this time that Lt-Colonel King, the 2/5 Battalion commander, was ordered by General Mackay to take a column of all arms through the night to Levadia to provide cover for the ongoing demolitions. The men drove all night with their lights on, knowing that the German aircraft were not likely to be operating at night. At this point, the King of Greece announced that he would move to Crete with his government to continue the fight against the German attackers. This is based on the account in Vol.II of the Australian Official History.