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8th Air Force Europe in November 1943
MONDAY, 1 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
A progress report, assessing results of the Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO), estimates that 19 important German towns and cities have been virtually destroyed, 19 severely damaged and 9 more effectively damaged. A joint report of the British Ministry of Economic Warfare and Air Ministry lntelligence Branch claims that 10 percent of the total war potential of Germany has been destroyed.
HQ 92d Combat Bombardment Wing (Heavy) is activated at Polebrook, England.
HQ 93d Combat Bombardment Wing (Heavy) is activated at Horsham St. Faith, England.
HQ 401st Bombardment Group (Heavy) arrives at Deenethorpe,England from the U.S.
TUESDAY, 2 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
The 406th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), Eighth Air Force, transfers from the U.S. to Alconbury, England without personnel or equipment. The squadron will be equipped with B-24's and begin CARPETBAGGER operations (dropping supplies to partisans) on 5 Jan 44.
The 700th, 701st, 702d and 703d Bombardment Squadrons (Heavy), 445th Bombardment Group (Heavy), arrive at Tibenham, England from the U.S. with B-24's. They will fly their first mission on 13 Dec.
WEDNESDAY, 3 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 119. 539 of 566 B-17's and B-24's dispatched to the Wilhemshaven, Germany port area hit the target at 1307-1335 hours. They claim 21-3-24 Luftwaffe aircraft; 7 B-17's are lost, 2 damaged beyond repair, and 47 damaged; casualties are 12 WIA and 70 MIA. The mission includes 11 Pathfinders, 9 using new H2X blind-bombing device (first time on a US mission) and 2 using H2S. This is the first Eighth Air Force blind-bombing mission in which the aiming point is completely destroyed and is also the Eighth's first 500-plane mission. 333 P-47's and 45 P-38's escort the bombers with the P-38's escorting the heavy bombers almost the entire trip and see their first real ETO combat, claiming 3-5-5 Luftwaffe aircraft.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 120. During the night of 3/4 Nov, 2 B-17's drop 1.5+ million leaflets on Antwerp at 1915 hours and Rotterdam at 2008 hours.
The 612th and 613th Bombardment Squadrons (Heavy), 401st Bombardment Group (Heavy), arrive at Deenethorpe, England from the U.S. with B-17's. They will fly their first mission on 26 Nov.
THURSDAY, 4 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
HQ 445th Bombardment Group (Heavy) arrives at Tibenham, England from the U.S.
HQ 446th Bombardment Group (Heavy) and it's 704th, 705th, 706th and 707th Bombardment Squadrons (Heavy) arrive at Flixton, England with B-24's. They will fly their first mission on 16 Dec.
The 27th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, 7th Photographic Reconnaissance and Mapping Group, arrives at Mount Farm, England from the U.S. with F-5's.
The 614th and 615th Bombardment Squadrons (Heavy), 401st Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), arrive at Deenethorpe, England from the U.S. with B-17's. They will fly their first mission on 26 Nov.
FRIDAY, 5 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 121. Two targets in Germany are hit with the loss of 8 B-17's and 3 B-24's.
1. 323 of 374 B-17's and 9 of 11 B-17 pathfinders hit the marshalling yard and oil plants at Gelsenkirchen, Germany at 1313-1350 hours; they claim 6-1-4 Luftwaffe aircraft; 8 B-17's are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 223 damaged. Casualties are 4 KIA, 35 WIA and 84 MIA. The B-17's are escorted by 47 P-38's and 336 P-47's; they claim 18-6-3 Luftwaffe aircraft; 4 P-47's are lost and 1 is damaged beyond repair; casualties are 4 MIA.
2. 104 of 118 B-24's hit the marshaling yard at Munster at 1349-1358 hours; they claim 21-3-7 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-24's are lost, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 43 damaged; casualties are 7 KIA, 22 WIA and 31 MIA.
3. VIII Bomber Command Mission 122: 5 B-17's drop 1,004,000 leaflets over Paris, Amiens, Rouen and Caen at 1917-2005 hours; no losses or casualties.
SATURDAY, 6 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 123. 2 B-17's drop 440,000 leaflets over Paris at 0241-0250 hours.
The 36th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), Eighth Air Force, arrives at Alconbury, England from the U.S. The squadron will begin flying CARPETBAGGER missions in Dec 43.
SUNDAY, 7 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 124. Three targets in Germany are hit without loss. Poor weather restricts operations.
1. 53 of 59 B-17's bomb the Wesel industrial area at 1124-1125 hours; 4 B-17's are damaged; casualties are 1 KIA and 2 WIA.
2. 60 B-17's are dispatched to the industrial area at Duren; 37 hit the primary target at 1114 hours and 20 hit Randerath, the secondary target, at 1114-1125 hours; 2 B-17's are damaged.
3. 2 of 3 B-17 pathfinders escort the B-17's dispatched to Duren but an Oboe PFF failure resulted in the bombs being widely scattered.
The bombers are escorted by 283 P-47's; they claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 6 P-47's are lost; casualties are 6 MIA.
HQ 20th Combat Bombardment Wing (Heavy) transfers from Hethel to Hardwick, England.
MONDAY, 8 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 125: 2 B-17's drop 312,000 leaflets over Paris at 0038-0042 hours.
WEDNESDAY, 10 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 126: 5 B-17's drop 1 million leaflets over Paris, Rennes, Le Mans and Rouen, France at 2020-2051 hours.
THURSDAY, 11 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 127: Two areas in Germany are targetted.
1. 57 of 167 B-17's hit the marshalling yard at Munster at 1408 hours; 1 B-17 hits Cleve; the rest abort the mission because of bad weather that hinders assembly; they claim 10-0-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 4 B-17's are lost and 27 damaged; casualties are 4 WIA and 40 MIA.
2. 180 B-17's, including 5 PFF aircraft, dispatched to Wesel, abort the mission over the English Channel due to assembly difficulties and the presence of heavy frontal cloud; 1 B-17 is damaged; no casualties.
The two missions above are escorted to 59 P-38's and 342 P-47's; the P-47's claim 8-1-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 2 P-47's are lost and 1 is damaged; casualties are 2 MIA.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 128: 1 PFF B-17 is dispatched to Emmerich, Germany but hits Rees at 2057 hours in an Oboe test.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 129: 1 PFF B-17 hits Emmerich at 2115 in an Oboe test.
The 406th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 1st Bombardment Division, transfers to Alconbury, England with B-24's. The squadron will begin flying CARPETBAGGER missions on 5 Jan 44.
SATURDAY, 13 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 130: 79 of 159 B-17's, 61 of 109 B-24's and 3 of 4 B-17 PFF aircraft hit the port area at Bremen and targets of opportunity in the Kiel-Flensburg area at 1120-1145 hours; 100+ aircraft abort the mission due to weather; they claim 20-14-13 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-17's and 13 B-24's are lost; 3 B-17's and 3 B-24's are damaged beyond repair and 12 B-17's and 10 B-24's are damaged; casualties are 21 KIA, 26 WIA and 162 MIA. The bombers are escorted by 45 P-38's (all the way to the target) and 345 P-47's; they claim 10-3-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; 7 P-38's and 3 P-47's are lost; 2 P-38's are damaged beyond repair; 5 P-38's and 2 P-47's are damaged; casualties are 9 MIA.
TUESDAY, 16 NOVEMBER 1943
ALLIED EXPEDITIONARY AIR FORCE: Air Marshal Sir Tafford L Leigh-Mallory, RAF, is named Air Commander-in-Chief, Allied Expeditionary Air Force (AEAF). Brigadier General William O Butler, USAAF, is named Deputy Commanding General.
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 131. Two targets in Norway are hit with the loss of 2 bombers.
1. 130 of 189 B-17's hit the industrial area at Knaben at 1133-1238 hours; they claim 2-0-4 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 B-17 is lost and 7 damaged; casualties are 1 WIA and 10 MIA.
2. 147 of 160 B-17's hit the industrial area at Rjukan at 1143-1145 hours; 1 B-17 is lost and 1 damaged beyond repair; casualties are 2 KIA and 10 MIA.
3. 29 of 39 B-24's hit the industrial area at Rjukan at 1204-1212 hours; no losses or casualties.
THURSDAY, 18 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 132. 82 of 102 B-24's hit the Oslo/Kjeller Airfield in Norway; they claim 10-7-5 Luftwaffe aircraft; 9 B-24's are lost, 3 are damaged beyond repair and 10 damaged; casualties are 2 KIA, 9 WIA and 91 MIA.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 133: 5 B-17's drop 980,000 leaflets over Paris, Orleans, Chartres, Rennes and Le Mans, France between 2015 and 2041 hours; no losses or casualties.
FRIDAY, 19 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 134: 127 of 161 B-17's and 3 of 6 B-17 PFF aircraft are dispatched to Gelsenkirchen, Germany but the malfunction of blind-bombing equipment and the weather causes the force to attack targets of opportunity on the German-Dutch border at 1241-1251 hours; 1 B-17 crashes after takeoff; the crew of 10 are KIA.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 135: 6 B-17's drop 2.316 million leaflets on Amiens and Reims, France; Brussels and Ghent, Belgium; and Amsterdam and The Hague, The Netherlands at 1915-2011 hours; no losses.
THURSDAY, 24 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 136: 7 B-17's dropped 2.4 million leaflets over Lille, France; and Brussels, Antwerp, Charleroi/Gosselies and Ghent, Belgium between 2026-2111 hours. No losses or casualties.
THURSDAY, 25 NOVEMBER 1943
AEAF: Air Chief Marshall Sir Trafford L Leigh-Mallory activates HQ Allied Expeditionary Air Force (AEAF). The RAF's Second Tactical Air Force, and-on 15 Dec-the US Ninth Air Force (operationally) are included under AEAF.
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
In France, bombing by P-47's is inaugurated by the VIII Fighter Command in an attack on Saint-Omer airfield by the 56th and 353d Fighter Groups; two other fighter groups, the 55th (P-38's) and 352d (P-47's), carry out offensive sweeps in the Lille area; the fighters, including 2 escorting groups, fly over 330 offensive sorties. The 401st Bombardment Group (Heavy) reaches operational status, making 22 heavy bomber groups now operational in the Eighth Air Force.
The 712th and 713th Bombardment Squadrons (Heavy), 448th Bombardment Group (Heavy), arrive at Seething, England from the US with B-24's. They will fly their first mission on 22 Dec.
FRIDAY, 26 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 138: Bremen, Germany and Paris, France are targetted.
1. 350 of 390 B-17's, 77 of 101 B-24's and 13 of 14 B-17 PFF aircraft attack the port area of Bremen at 1145-1228 hours; they claim 16-3-10 Luftwaffe aircraft; 22 B-17's and 3 B-24's are lost; 3 B-17's and 1 B-24 are damaged beyond repair and 139 B-17's, 19 B-24's and 7 PFF B-17's are damaged; casualties are 10 KIA, 35 WIA and 215 MIA.
2. 128 B-17's are dispatched to Paris but they abort the mission on arrival over the target because of complete cloud cover which totally obscures the objective; they claim 8-2-3 Luftwaffe aircraft; 4 B-17's are lost and 18 damaged; casualties are 3 WIA and 40 MIA.
These missions are escorted by 28 P-38's and 353 P-47's; they claim 36-3-9 Luftwaffe aircraft; 4 P-47's are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 7 damaged; casualties are 4 MIA.
MONDAY, 29 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 140. 154 of 360 B-17's hit the port of Bremen, Germany and targets of opportunity in the area at 1429-1450 hours; unfavorable cloud conditions and malfunction of blindbombing equipment cause 200+ B-17's to abort; they claim 15-11-10 Luftwaffe aircraft; 13 B-17's are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 43 damaged; casualties are 2 KIA, 13 WIA and 131 MIA. The B-17's are escorted by 38 P-38's and 314 P-47's; they claim 15-4-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; 7 P-38's and 9 P-47's are lost; 1 P-47 is damage beyond repair and another damaged; casualties are 1 WIA and 16 MIA.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 141: 8 B-17's drop 1.6 million leaflets over Paris, Reims, Le Mans, Orleans, Chartres, Amiens and Rouen, France; no casualties.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 142: 1 B-17 drops two 2,000 pound (907 kg) bombs and 1 photoflash on Emmerich, Germany at 2108 hours; no casualties.
HQ 358th Fighter Group transfers from Goxhill to Leiston, England.
HQ 447th Bombardment Group (Heavy) arrives at Rattlesden, England from the US.
The 714th and 715th Bombardment Squadrons (Heavy), 448th Bombardment Group (Heavy) arrive at Seething, England from the US with B-24's. They will fly their first mission on 22 Dec.
TUESDAY, 30 NOVEMBER 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
VIII Bomber Command Mission 143. 349 B-17's, 29 B-24's and 3 PFF B-17's are dispatched to the industrial area at Solingen, Germany; 270 B-17's, the B-24's and 2 PFF B-17's abort the mission due to cloud formations which cause assembly difficulties and require flying at altitudes not feasible for the B-24's; 79 B-17's and 1 PFF B-17 use blind-bombing equipment to hit Solingen plus 1 aircraft drops on Wermelskirchen; they claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-17's are lost; 3 are damaged beyond repair and 9 damaged; casualties are 11 KIA, 20 WIA and 23 MIA. This mission is escorted by 20 P-38's and 327 P-47's; they claim 0-2-1 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 P-38 and 5 P-47's are lost and 1 each damaged; casualties are 6 MIA.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 144: 6 B-17's drop 1.4075 million leaflets on Paris, Rouen and Tours, France; and Krefeld and Opladen, Germany during the evening; no casualties.
HQ 357th Fighter Group arrives at Raydon, England from the US.
HQ 361st Fighter Group and it's 374th, 375th and 376th Fighter Squadrons arrive at Bottisham, England from the US with P-47's. They will fly their first mission on 22 Jan 44.
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
THE MIGHTY EIGHTH WAR DIARY by Roger A. Freeman, ISBN 1-85409-071-2
