8th Air Force 252
8 March 1944![A bomber crew of the 381st Bomb Group return to base after a mission in their B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-31761) nicknamed "Rotherhithe's Revenge". Image stamped on reverse: 'Sunday Pictorial for Censor.' [stamp], 'Passed for publication 10 Mar 1944.' [stamp] and '310673.' [Censor no.] Printed caption on reverse: 'BACK FROM BERLIN. Scenes this week at a Bomber station of the U.S. Air Force , somewhere in England. The crew of the Flying Fortress "Rotherhithe's Revenge", a British subscribed ship](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/wysiwyg_x2/public/freeman/media-380068.jpg.webp?itok=oWmBgchJ)
Object Number - FRE 1271 - A bomber crew of the 381st Bomb Group return to base after a mission in their B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-31761) nicknamed "Rotherhithe's...
Description
The VKF ballbearing factory at Berlin/Erkner is the primary target for 623 heavy bombers despatched by all three Air Divisions. Fighter opposition and anti-aircraft fire are intense. There are so many formation attacking that some divert to other Targets of Opportunity close by to avoid collisions and over-flying of formations. Losses are high but not considered too severe at 5.939%. Bomber gunner claims for all Air Divisions were bundled in source data as 63-17-19 (probably exaggerated. Claims listed under 3AD Mission event). Mission Summary follows:
3rd Air Division: A combined force of 179 B-17s from: 94BG; 95BG; 96BG; 100BG; 384BG; 388BG; 390BG; 447BG; and 452BG are despatched to Berlin/Erkner, 98 are effective on the target; 33 others divert to attack the industrial areas of Wildau, Germany and other Targets of Opportunity. 23 aircraft Failed to Return (FTR) - 41KIA 169POW. 1 aircraft listed by Freeman as DBR was actually repaired - 1KIA 3POW 6RTD. 65 aircraft are damaged (apportioned). 1 airman is KIA and 5 others are WIA in returning aircraft. There are no other losses or casualties.
1st Air Division: A combined force of 235 B-17s from: 91BG; 92BG; 303BG; 305BG; 306BG; 351BG; 379BG; 381BG; 384BG; 401BG; 457BG; and 482BG are despatched to bomb Berlin/Erkner. Fighter opposition against this force is light. 222 are effective on Berlin/Erkner; 3 others bomb Targets of Opportunity (TOs). 4 aircraft Failed to Return (FTR) (Freeman lists 5, but only 4 could be confirmed from MACR records) - 4KIA 34POW 2EVD. 86 aircraft were damaged (apportioned). 1 airman is KIA and another 2 are WIA in returning aircraft. There are no other losses or casualties.
2nd Air Division: A combined force of 209 B-24s from: 44BG; 93BG; 389BG; 392BG;445BG; 446BG;448G; 453BG; and 458BG are despatched to bomb Berlin/Erkner. 150 are effective on Berlin/Erkner; and 33 divert to bomb Berlin City as a Target of Opportunity (TO). 9 aircraft Failed to Return (FTR) - 40KIA 49POW(1DIC) 2RTD (rescued by ASR). 4 aircraft with battle damage are Damaged Beyond Repair (DRB) in crash landings upon return - 10RTD. 77 aircraft are damaged (apportioned). 1 airman is KIA another 7 are WIA in returning aircraft. There are no other losses or casulaties.
Mission Details
Description: BOMB TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY
Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Notes: It has not been determined which 1st Bomb Division Groups bombed this target.
Mission Statistics
- Tonnage Dropped: 6.00
- Aircraft effective: 3
BERLIN
Description: INDUSTRIAL AREA
Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
Notes: It has not been determined which 2nd Bomb Division Groups bombed this target.
Mission Statistics
- Tonnage Dropped: 82.00
BERLIN/ERKNER (Primary)
Description: BALL BEARING FACTORIES
Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Notes: The lead aircraft of 45th Combat Bomb Wing (CBW) was hit by an enemy aircraft and turned back, the deputy took over but turned short of the Initial Point (IP) to avoid a collision with another Combat Bomb Wing approaching the IP, so the 45th CBW ended up attacking Wildau. Again, Luftwaffe opposition is fierce, 23 bombers and 16 fighters are lost. However, the bombers and their fighter escort take a terrible toll on the Luftwaffe. Groups participating are all part of 3rd Bomb Division
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Mission Statistics
- Tonnage Dropped: 186.50
- People killed in action: 43
- People wounded in action: 5
- Prisoners of war: 169
- Enemy aircrafts destroyed by bomber: 63
- Enemy aircrafts probably destroyed by bomber: 17
- Enemy aircraft damaged by bomber: 19
- Aircraft sent: 146
- Aircraft effective: 98
- Aircraft missing in action: 23
- Aircraft damaged: 1
BERLIN/ERKNER (Primary)
Description: BALL BEARING FACTORIES
Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Notes: 457th BG MISSION NO 9 - BERLIN, GERMANY 8 MARCH 1944 Seventeen aircraft returned to Erkner and the VK.F. ball bearing works, this time with excellent results. Ten combat wings, totaling 620 bombers of the Eighth Air Force, were dispatched, accompanied by 500 fighters, the largest number of fighter escort planes assembled to date to escort the bombers. A total of 470 bombers attacked the primary target. The 457th comprised the low box of the 94th Combat Wing. Major Francis was Air Commander and Lt. Charles D. Brannan was pilot. The route to the target was flown as briefed. The area surrounding the target was clear and bombing was visual. The factory was blanketed with bombs, which covered the target area with fire and smoke. Other smaller industrial buildings were hit and the railway station was destroyed. Again the Group was attacked by enemy fighters; however, the friendly fighter support was excellent. Anti aircraft fire was moderate, with nine aircraft sustaining damage. No aircraft were lost. The lead wing of the 3rd Air Division met fierce fighter Opposition and sustained heavy losses. A total of thirty-eight.
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Mission Statistics
- Tonnage Dropped: 367.50
- People killed in action: 4
- People wounded in action: 2
- People evaded: 2
- Prisoners of war: 34
- Aircraft sent: 235
- Aircraft effective: 222
- Aircraft missing in action: 4
BERLIN/ERKNER (Primary)
Description: BALL BEARING FACTORIES
Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
Notes: One Group plus 9 aircraft of another Group from 2nd Bomb Division constituted a second wave in the attack. They had been directed in their target briefing that if they could not hit the ball bearing plant which was their primary target, they were to drop their bombs on the city of Berlin. The commander of this wave was Col. Ardery, and the lead aircraft was that of Major Jack W. Dieterle, his deputy. The first wave completely obliterated the primary target, which was no longer visible from the massive cloud of pitch black smoke rising from it. However, Dieterle's plane did not initiate a bomb run over the center of Berlin as expected. Ardery says in his book (p. 174), "We kept flying over heavily built-up areas. Why didn’t the bombardier in Dieterle’s ship let go? We know now we were only bombing the city, and one place was about as good as another. What were they holding their bombs for? I called Dieterle. 'Why the hell don’t you let them go? We’ll be past the city in another hour of this kind of flying.' 'Sorry, the bombardier wants to bomb the railroad yards. Bomb line almost here.' A few seconds later the bombs were away from the lead ship and in quick succession from every other ship of the gangling formation." This target was thoroughly demolished. Col. Ardery led the formation home after heavy losses from intense anti-aircraft fire and the shooting down of a couple of planes that had fallen behind from engine damage. Losses were less than expected and the mission was considered a success.
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Mission Statistics
- Tonnage Dropped: 346.50
- People killed in action: 41
- People wounded in action: 7
- Prisoners of war: 49
- People died in captivity: 1
- People returned to duty: 42
- Aircraft sent: 209
- Aircraft effective: 150
- Aircraft missing in action: 9
- Aircraft damaged beyond repair: 4
WILDAU (Opportunistic)
Description: INDUSTRIAL AREA
Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
Notes: Units comprise 45th Combat Bomb Wing of 3rd Bomb Division.
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
- Unit Hierarchy: Group
- Air Force: Eighth Air Force
- Type Category: Bombardment
Mission Statistics
- Tonnage Dropped: 217.00
- Aircraft sent: 33
- Aircraft effective: 33
Connections
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People
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 458th Bomb Group 755th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-739644
- Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
- Role/Job: Pilot
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 31037975 / O-681515
- Highest Rank: Major
- Role/Job: Bombardier
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 93rd Bomb Group 328th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: O-752975 T42 43 A
- Highest Rank: Captain
- Role/Job: Navigator, bombardier, nose gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 384th Bomb Group 545th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 33213036
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant (Technician Third Grade)
- Role/Job: waist gunner
- Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
- Nationality: American
- Unit: 389th Bomb Group 566th Bomb Squadron
- Service Numbers: 19193344
- Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
- Role/Job: Ball turret gunner
Aircraft
- Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
- Nicknames: - Little Sheppard
- Unit: 448th Bomb Group 712th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Olin's 69ers, Gremlin Gus II
- Unit: 388th Bomb Group 560th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Old 66/Lady Margaret
- Unit: 388th Bomb Group 561st Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Nicknames: Tenny Belle
- Unit: 379th Bomb Group 525th Bomb Squadron
- Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
- Unit: 94th Bomb Group 333rd Bomb Squadron
Revisions
Richard Dieterle, corrected a typographical error.
Philip Ardery, Bomber Pilot: A Memoir of World War II (Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky: 1978) 168-179.
Philip Ardery, Bomber Pilot: A Memoir of World War II (Lexington: The University Press of Kentucky: 1978) 174. Added by Richard Dieterle.
1st Lt. Richard F. Lemanski Pilot Vaierie Lemanski Holley Collection
#42-31576 - B-17G
Group Squadron Sq Code A/C Code
96BG 339BS
MIA 1944-03-08 - MACR #: 3426
Notes 42-31576 Delivered: Denver 20/11/43; Gt Falls 25/11/43; Kearney 22/12/43; Romulus 31/12/43; Presque Is 2/1/44; Assigned: 339BS/96BG [QJ-G] Snetterton 16/1/44; MIA Erkner 8/3/44 Pilot: Dick Lemanski, Co-Pilot: Jim Buttermore, Navigator: Leroy Chappell, Bombardier: Frank Sewell, Engineer / Top Turret Gunner: Matt Mendys, Radio Operator: Dave Hohm, Ball Turret Gunner: Phil Kierstead, Waist Gunner: Jeff Roberts, Waist Gunner: Edgar Currie, Tail Gunner: Dean Shuck (10POW); Enemy aircraft, crashed between Wegenstedt & Calvorden, 13 miles NE of Helmstadt A/Fd, Germany. MACR 3426.
Source B-17 Master Log - Dave Osbourne
Lee Cunningham 21-Feb-2016. Corrected typo in 3AD Summary.
Lee Cunningham 21-Feb-2016. Corrected statistics and added bomber gunner claims on enemy aircraft to 3AD element based on "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces", Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE.
Lee Cunningham 21-Feb-2016. Added Mission Narrative per "The Mighty EIghth War Diary", Roger A. Freeman and "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces", Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE.
Mission detail added courtesy of Diane Reese - http://www.457thbombgroup.org/Narratives/ma9.html
Lee Cunningham, 8th Air Force missions research database / Stan Bishop's 'Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces', the Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces and the work of Roger Freeman including the 'Mighty Eighth War Diary'.
![A bomber crew of the 381st Bomb Group return to base after a mission in their B-17 Flying Fortress (serial number 42-31761) nicknamed "Rotherhithe's Revenge". Image stamped on reverse: 'Sunday Pictorial for Censor.' [stamp], 'Passed for publication 10 Mar 1944.' [stamp] and '310673.' [Censor no.] Printed caption on reverse: 'BACK FROM BERLIN. Scenes this week at a Bomber station of the U.S. Air Force , somewhere in England. The crew of the Flying Fortress "Rotherhithe's Revenge", a British subscribed ship](https://assets.americanairmuseum.com/s3fs-public/styles/teaser_thumb_x2/public/freeman/media-380068.jpg.webp?itok=3h76SN3N)
