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25 February 1944
Not yet known
A combined force of 899 fighters of types: P-38; P-47 and P-51 are despatched to provide escort to heavy bombers attacking the German aircraft industries at Regensberg, Augsburg, Stuttgart and Furth, Germany in the final Day 6 operation of BIG WEEK. Mission Summary follows:
A combined force of 73 P-38s from 20FG & 55 FG are despatched. 1 aircraft is Damaged Beyond Repair (DBR) but TN was not recorded in source data - 1RTD. The fighters in this element claim 1-2-0 of attacking German aircraft. There are no other losses or casualties.
A combined force of 687 P-47s in despatched. 8th Air Force: 4FG; 56FG; 78FG; 352FG; 353FG; 355FG; 356FG; 359FG; and 361FG are joined by IX Fighter Command: 358FG; 362FG; and 365FG. 1 aircraft from IX FC 358FG Failed to Return (FTR) 1KIA. 6 aircraft are damaged. The fighters in this element claim 13-2-10 of attacking German aircraft. There are no other losses or casualties.
A combined force of 139 P-51s from 357FG and IX Fighter Command 354FG and 363FG participate. 2 aircraft of 357FG Failed to Return (FTR) - 2POW. The fighters in this element claim 12-0-3 of attacking German aircraft. There are no other losses or casualties.
FIGHTER ESCORT
P-38 Lightning
Division of aircraft between VIII Fighter Command and IX Fighter Command not included in available data, so aircraft despatch totals include both Fighter Commands, claims and losses limited to VIII Fighter Command, 361st Fighter Group, 363rd Fighter Group and 365th Fighter Group flew two missions in support of 8th Air Force mission 235.
Group
In August 1943, the 20th Fighter Group arrived in Clyde, Scotland, before travelling to Kings Cliffe, Northamptonshire, which was to be their base for the rest of the war. The Group flew 312 missions before their last mission on 25 April 1945. The...
Group
The 55th Fighter Group were the first P-38 Lightning Group to go fully operational from England. The pilots flew long-range escort missions for bombers flying over occupied Europe and racked up 'kills' of their own by destroying enemy aircraft in...
| Number of aircraft Sent | 73 |
| Number of aircraft Damaged Beyond Repair | 1 |
| Number of people Returned To Duty | 1 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Destroyed by Fighter Command | 1 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Probably Destroyed by Fighter Command | 2 |
FIGHTER ESCORT
P-47 Thunderbolt
358th Fighter Group, 362nd Fighter Group and 365th Fighter Group from IX Fighter Command contribute P-47s to the escort, number not available in source data, so those despatched from VIII Fighter Command and IX Fighter Command have been bundled together. Losses and claims are only those of VIII Fighter Command.
Group
The 352nd Fighter Group were based at Bodney, Norfolk from July 1943 until November 1945 but in the winter months of 1944/1945 detachments moved to bases in Belgium to provide extra air support to ground forces during the Battle of the Bulge and to...
Group
The 353rd Fighter Group was assigned to the Eighth Air Force on 7 June 1943. The group flew P-47 Thunderbolts, and from October 1944, P-51 Mustangs, as escorts for bombing missions across occupied Europe and to strafe targets on the ground. Tactical...
Group
Where the 353rd Fighter Group had pioneered ground strafing techniques, it was the 355th Fighter Group who destroyed more enemy aircraft by ground strafing than any other Eighth Air Force Group. Based at Steeple Morden from July 1943 to July 1945, the...
Group
The 356th Fighter Group flew 413 missions between 15 October 1943 and 7 May 1945 and suffered the highest ratio of losses to enemy aircraft claims of any Eighth Air Force Group. This gave the Group the reputation of being the 'hard luck' outfit. The...
Group
The 358th Fighter Group flew seventeen missions with the Eighth Air Force from Leiston air base. At the beginning of February 1944 the Group were transferred to the Ninth Air Force in exchange for the 357th Fighter Group. With the Ninth, the Group went...
Group
The 359th Fighter Group flew 346 missions from East Wretham between December 1943 and April 1945. In the main these missions were escorting bombers flying over occupied Europe. The Group, soon after converting from Thunderbolts to Mustangs, were...
Group
The 361st Fighter Group was the last P-47 Thunderbolt Group to join the Eighth Air Force. Between 21 January 1944 and 20 April 1945, the Group flew 441 missions, the majority in an escort role in support of bombers flying over occupied Europe. The...
Group
The Group trained in P-47s and moved to England in November 1943. Arriving earlier than many other Ninth Air Force fighter groups, the pilots main occupation was escort work for heavy bombers. The Group's first mission on 8 February 1944 was one...
Group
The Group moved to England in December 1943 as part of the Ninth Air Force. Flying P-47s, the Group took part in missions over northern France designed to weaken Germany's ability to repulse the planned Allied invasion of summer 1944. After the...
Group
Some of the pilots of the 4th Fighter Group had seen many hours of combat by the time they joined the 4th Fighter Group as they had volunteered with the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Air Force. The three 'Eagle Squadrons' of RAF Fighter...
Group
Flying P-47 Thunderbolts throughout their time stationed in England, the Group, known as "the Wolfpack", had more ace pilots than any other Eighth Air Force Fighter Group. The 56th Fighter Group also destroyed more enemy aircraft in air combat than any...
Group
The 78th Fighter Group was initially based at Goxhill but moved to Duxford in April 1943 and stayed there until October 1945. The 78th FG flew each of the three US built principal fighters of the AAF in the ETO. In their Thundetbolts, the 78th FG ...
| Number of aircraft Sent | 687 |
| Number of aircraft Missing In Action | 1 |
| Number of aircraft Damaged | 6 |
| Number of people Killed In Action | 1 |
| Number of people Wounded in Action | 1 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Destroyed by Fighter Command | 13 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Probably Destroyed by Fighter Command | 2 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Damaged by Bomber Command | 10 |
FIGHTER ESCORT
P-51 Mustang
354th Fighter Group and 363rd Fighter Group from IX Fighter Command contribute P-51s to the escort. Number stated is the combined total of VIII Fighter Command and IX Fighter Command. Losses and claims are those of 8th Air Force only.
Group
The Group moved to England in the autumn of 1943 and was assigned to the Ninth Air Force in December 1943. The Group were the first to fly P-51 Mustangs operationally and in their bomber escort missions pushed to find the long-range limits of the...
Group
The 357th Fighter Group was the first P-51 Mustang Group in the Eighth Air Force, training with them from November 1943 at Raydon, England and entering combat with them in the February of the following year from their new base at Leiston. The Group was...
Group
Equipped with P-51s, the Group entered combat from England in February 1944, flying bomber escort and ground-strafing missions. They took part in the invasion of Normandy, protecting gliders and troop carriers on 6 and 7 June. In September 1944, now...
| Number of aircraft Sent | 139 |
| Number of aircraft Missing In Action | 2 |
| Number of people Prisoners of War | 2 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Destroyed by Fighter Command | 12 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Probably Destroyed by Fighter Command | 0 |
| Enemy aircraft claimed as Damaged by Bomber Command | 3 |
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 11 February 2016 19:22:55 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to event |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 11-Feb-2016. Made connections to IX FC units, Place and added claims on enemy aircraft to P-51 element per "the Mighty Eighth War Diary", Roger A. Freeman. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 11 February 2016 19:16:52 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to event |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 11-Feb-2016. Made connections to IX FC units, added IX casualties, added claims on enemy aircraft per "the Mighty Eighth War Diarr", Roger A. Freeman and "Losses of the 8th & 9th Air Forces", Stan Bishop & John A. Hey MBE. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 11 February 2016 19:11:55 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to event |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 11-Feb-2016. Added Place and fighter claims on enemy aircraft to P-38 statistics per "The Mighty Eighth War Diary", Roger A. Freeman. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 11 February 2016 19:09:43 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to name and description |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunninghm 11-Feb-2016. Added Mission Narrative per "The Mighty Eighth War Diary", Roger A. Freeman. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:43:14 | AAM | AAM ingest |
| Sources | ||
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'. |
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