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8th Air Force Europe in March 1943
THURSDAY, 4 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission 39: 71 B-17s of the 1st Bombardment Wing are dispatched against the marshalling yard at Hamm, Germany; 16 drop 40 tons of bombs on the target at 1043 hours; we claim 13 enemy aircraft destroyed, 3 probably destroyed and 4 damaged. We lose 4 B-17s and 9 others are damaged; casualties are 1 KIA, 7 WIA and 33 MIA. Another 28 B-17s hit the shipyards at Rotterdam, The Netherlands dropping 70 tons between 1020 and 1021 hours. We claim 3 enemy aircraft destroyed; we lose 1 B-17 while 15 others are damaged; casualties are 9 MIA. This is the first Eighth Air Force attack on a Ruhr industrial target. To divert the enemy, 14 B-24s of the 2d Bombardment Wing fly a diversion without a loss.
The Spitfire Mk Vs of the 4th Fighter Group fly 26 uneventful sorties, 24 on fighter patrols and 2 on offensive patrols over the Ostend/Dunkirk, France area.
SATURDAY, 6 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 40: 71 B-17's of the 1st Bombardment Wing are dispatched against the power plant, bridge and the port area at Lorient, France; 65 drop 162.5 tons on the target between 1441 and 1445 hours local. We claim 7 aircraft destroyed, 2 probably destroyed and 1 damaged; we lose 3 B-17's and 8 others are damaged; casualties are 30 MIAs. Fifteen B-24's of the 2d Bombardment Wing fly a diversionary mission against the a bridge and the U-boat facilities at Brest, France; all 15 drop 44.5 tons of bombs at 1416-1417 hours local. We claim 2 aircraft destroyed and 2 damaged; 3 B-24's are damaged but there are no casualties.
MONDAY, 8 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 41: 67 B-17's of the 1st Bombardment Wing and 16 B-24's of the 2d Bombardment Wing are dispatched against the marshalling yard at Rouen, France. Thirteen B-24's drop 39 tons of bombs on the target at 1402-1403 hours local; we claim 14 aircraft destroyed, 3 probably destroyed and 3 damaged; we lose 2 B-24's, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 3 others are damaged; casualties are 5 KIA, 3 WIA and 17 MIA. 54 B-17's hit the target at 1430 hours dropping 134.75 tons of bombs; they claim 14 enemy aircraft destroyed, 1 probably destroyed and 5 damaged; we lose 2 B-17's, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 9 others are damaged; casualties are 8 WIA and 20 MIA. The bomb run over Rouen is considerably disrupted by the well-executed attack of fighters which down 2 bombers including the lead aircraft. This action is preceded by an earlier wave of German fighters which occupy the fighter escort while the second wave attacks the bombers.
WEDNESDAY, 10 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
The 4th Fighter Group flies 32 uneventful sorties during the day, 14 in P-47's. Aircraft-to-aircraft communication proves impossible because of VHF radio malfunctions in the Thunderbolts.
FRIDAY, 12 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 42: 72 B-17's are dispatched by the 1st Bombardment Wing against the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yard; 63 drop 156.5 tons of bombs on the target between 1241 and 1244 hours local. There are no losses and no claims on this mission; good fighter escort is a major factor in this no-loss mission. Eighteen B-24's of the 2d Bombardment Wing fly a diversionary mission with no losses or claims.
The 4th Fighter Group flies 43 sorties in their Spitfire Mk V's; 41 are flown on a flighter sweep and 1 Spitfire is shot down near St. Omer, France; the pilot is listed as MIA; we claim 2 enemy aircraft damaged. The other 2 sorties were shipping patrols.
SATURDAY, 13 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 43: 80 B-17's of the 1st Bombardment Wing are dispatched against the marshalling yard at Amiens, France; 44 bomb the marshalling yard while 31 hit targets of opportunity. A total of 223.5 tons of bombs are dropped between 1515-1517 hours local. We claim 2 enemy fighters destroyed and 2 damaged; 11 B-17's are damaged and 6 men WIA. Sixteen B-24's of the 2d Bombardment Wing fly a diversion without loss.
WEDNESDAY, 17 MARCH 1943 (ST. PATRICK'S DAY)
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 44: 78 B-17's of the 1st Bombardment Wing are dispatched against the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yard. Due to bad weather, the aircraft are recalled before they leave England. 28 B-24's of the 2d Bombardment Wing are dispatched on a diversionary mission over the North Sea but are also recalled.
The 506th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 44th Bombardment Group (Heavy) with B-24's arrives at Shipdham, England from the U.S.
THURSDAY, 18 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 45: 76 B-17's of the 1st Bombardment Wing and 27 B-24's of the 2d Bombardment Wing are dispatched against the submarine yards at Vegesack, Germany; 73 B-17's and 24 B-24's drop 268 tons of bombs on the target at 1531-1535 local. Seven U-boat hulls appear severely damaged. This mission marks the first successful combat use of automatic flight control linked with bombsights. Our claims are 52-20-23; we lose 1 B-17 and 1 B-24; 1 B-17 is damaged beyond repair; 9 B-17's and 14 B-24's are damaged; casualties are 1 KIA, 16 WIA and 20 MIA.
MONDAY, 22 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 46: 76 B-17's and 26 B-24's are dispatched against the U-boat yards at Wilhelmshaven, Germany; 69 B-17's and 15 B-24's drop 224 tons of bombs on the target at 1501-1510 hours local. We claim 28-9-9; we lose 1 B-17 and 2 B-24's; 12 B-17's and 10 B-24's are damaged; casualties are 1 KIA, 18 WIA and 32 MIA.
The 452d Bombardment Squadron (Medium), 322d Bombardment Group (Medium) with B-26's transfers from Rattlesden to Rougham, England.
SUNDAY, 28 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 47: 79 B-17's and 24 B-24's are dispatched against the Rouen-Sotteville, France marshalling yard. The B-24's are recalled at 1245 due to bad weather; 70 B-17s drop 209 tons of bombs on the target at 1249-1250 hours. We claim 5-4-1; we lose 1 B-17 and 9 others are damaged; casualties are 2 WIA and 10 MIA.
WEDNESDAY, 31 MARCH 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
VIII Bomber Command Mission No. 48: 78 B-17's and 24 B-24's are dispatched against the shipyards and dock area at Rotterdam, The Netherlands. The target is clouded and only 33 B-17's drop 99 tons of bombs at 1225 hours; we claim 1-1-2; we lose 3 B-17's and 1 B-24 plus 3 B-17's are damaged beyond repair and 4 B-17's and 1 B-24 are damaged; casualties are 16 KIA, 10 WIA and 10 MIA.
The air echelons of the 414th and 415th Night Fighter Squadrons, AAF School of Applied Tactics arrive in England from the U.S.; the ground echelons are enroute to Algeria. Both squadrons will train with Beaufighters before moving to North Africa.
Source:
COMBAT CHRONOLOGY OF THE US ARMY AIR FORCES
Jack McKillop
USAF (Airways and Air Communications Service)
1955-59
used sources by McKillop:
AIR FORCE COMBAT UNITS OF WORLD WAR II, Office of Air Force History, Headquarters USAF, 1961, ISBN 0-912799-02-1
COMBAT SQUADRONS OF THE AIR FORCE, WORLD WAR II, Office of Air Force History, Headquarters USAF 1982
THE ARMY AIR FORCES IN WORLD WAR II: COMBAT CHRONOLOGY, 1941-1945 by the Office of Air Force History, Headquarters USAF, 1973
