26 March 1944
Airmen and ground crew of the 448th Bomb Group carefully transfer a flak casualty through the waist gun window of a B-17 Flying Fortress. Official caption printed on image: '(GM-11-2-448)(26-3-44)(Flak Casualty).' Handwritten caption on reverse: 'Col Patterson.'
8th Air Force mission 280; V-1 launching site, France; March 26, 1944. 447th Bomb Group strike photo
Not yet known
9 V-Weapon sites in the Pas-de-Calaise, France area and 7 V-Weapon sites in the Cherbourg, France area are the targets of this mission. A combined force of 573 heavy bombers from all three Air Divisions are despatched. Mission Summary follows:
1st AIr Division: 243 B-17s from: 91BG; 303BG; 306BG; 351BG; 379BG; 381BG; 384BG; 401BG; and 457BG are despatched to bomb V-Weapon sites in the Pas-de-Calaise area of France. 234 aircraft are effective on targets. 4 aircraft Failed to Return (FTR) - 9KIA 31POW. 3 aircraft are Damaged Beyond Repair (DBR) in crash landings upon return - 30RTD. 134 aircraft are damaged, 1 airman in a returning aircraft is KIA and 10 others are WIA. There are no other losses, casualties or claims.
2nd Air Division: A combined force of 185 B-24s from: 44BG; 389BG; 392BG; 445BG; 448BG; 453BG; and 458BG are despatched to bomb V-Weapon sites in the Pas-de-Calaise area of France. 138 are effective on a target. 1 Aircraft Failed to Return (FTR) - 10KIA. 38 aircraft are damaged. 1airman in a returning aircraft is KIA and 5 others are WIA. There are no other losses casulaties or claims.
3rd Air Division: A combined force of 145 B-17s from: 94BG; 95BG;96BG; 388BG; 390BG;447BG and 452BG are despatched to bomb 7 V-Weapon sites in the Cherbourg area of France. There are no losses. 64 aircraft are damaged. There are no other losses, casualties or claims.
V-1 MISSILE SITES
B-17 Flying Fortress
No bomber gunner claims. Seven sites are hit in this raid. Groups participating are part of 3rd Bomb Division.
Group
The 388th Bomb Group flew strategic bombing mission from Knettishall, Suffolk from June 1943 to the end of the war. During this time, though, detachments were sent to Fersfield, Norfolk to conduct Aphrodite missions. In these Aphrodite missions veteran...
Group
The 390th Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Framlingham, Suffolk, between July 1943 and the end of the war in Europe. The Group was engaged in strategic missions until the invasion of Europe when its role became more of a tactical one. This...
Group
The 447th Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses on strategic bombardment missions out of Rattlesden, Suffolk. With their first mission coming on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1943, their main focus was hitting sites that would weaken enemy forces...
Group
The 452nd Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Deopham Green, Norfolk, from January 1944. The air crews hit strategic sites in Germany but also supported the movement of ground forces across Europe after D-Day. On 6 June 1944 itself, the Group...
Group
Activated 15 June 1942 at MacDill Field, Florida. Initial organization and training at Pendleton Field, Oregon on 29 June 1942. Primary flight training at Davis-Monthan Field in Arizona from 28 Aug. 42 to 31 Oct. 42; then at Biggs Field, El Paso, Texas...
Group
The 95th Bomb Group was the only Eighth Air Force Group to be awarded three Distinguished Unit Citations. The first, shared by all four Bomb Wing Groups, was for the bombing of an aircraft factory under intense enemy fire at Regensburg on 17 August...
Group
The 96th Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses to targets across occupied Europe from May 1943 to April 1945.
...
| Tonnage dropped | 325.37 |
| Number of aircraft Sent | 145 |
| Number of aircraft Effective | 128 |
| Number of aircraft Damaged | 64 |
V-1 MISSILE SITES
B-17 Flying Fortress
Nine sites are hit in this raid. No bomber gunner claims. All Groups from 1st Bomb Division participate except 92nd Bomb Group which stands down.
457th BG MISSION NO. 20 - WATTEN, FRANCE
26 MARCH 1944
The Group dispatched thirty-six aircraft to the No Ball anti-invasion fortification at Watton, France, a repeat of mission No. 15. Lt. Col. Wilson was Air Commander and Lt. J. L. Smith, pilot. The weather was clear; bombing results were poor.
No enemy fighters were sighted; however, there was intense flak over the target. The lead craft had an engine knocked out on the bomb run, causing it to lose both altitude and power. There were no personnel casualties and all planes returned safely, although many received flak damage. Crew members witnessed a B-17, from another group, explode after taking a direct flak hit.
The thirty-six craft put aloft by the Group represented a new high for one mission. The only other occasion to date was the first mission when the A and B Formations were flown. The post exchange announced the opening between hours of 1800 and 2200 daily, except Sunday, of the new beverage bar. One bottle of Coca-Cola per person per week could be purchased by submitting the ration card and paying the nominal sum of three pence for the product. (Same price as back home!)
Group
The 303rd Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated on 3-Feb-1942 at Pendleton Field, Oregon. They assembled at Gowen Field, Idaho on 11-February 1942 where it conducted flight training until 12-Jun-1942. The Group then moved to Alamogordo Field, New...
Group
The 305th Bombardment Group (Heavy), nicknamed "Can Do" was activated 1-March-1942 at Salt Lake City Air Base, Utah which was their primary training base until 11-Jun-1942 when they relocated to Geiger Field, Washington until 29-Jun-1942, then on to...
Group
Constituted as 306th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 28 Jan 1942. Activated on 1 Mar 1942. Trained for combat with B-17's. Moved to England, Aug-Sep 1942, and assigned to Eighth AF Eighth Air Force in September 1942 Station 111 Thurleigh. During combat,...
Group
The 351st Bomb Group flew strategic bombing missions from their base at Polebrook, Northamptonshire from April 1943 to June 1945. The Group's most famous member was Hollywood actor Clark Gable, who flew four/ five missions with them as an observer...
Group
The 379th Bomb Group (H) (heavy), based at Kimbolton, flew more sorties than any other Bomb Group in the Eighth Air Force and dropped a greater bomb tonnage than any other Group. The B-17 Flying Fortress Group was awarded two Distinguished Unit...
Group
The 381st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Ridgewell, Essex between June 1943 and April 1945. The Group was awarded two Distinguished Unit Citations, the first for bombing shipyards at Bremen, whilst under heavy attack, on 8 October 1943 and...
Group
The 384th Bomb Group flew B-17s from Grafton Underwood, Northamptonshire, between May 1943 and June 1945. They were engaged in daylight bombing missions over Germany as part of the Allies' efforts to destroy the effectiveness of the Luftwaffe by...
Group
The 401st Bomb Group flew B-17 Flying Fortresses from Deenethorpe, Northamptonshire, from November 1943 to June 1945. Starting their missions at that time meant the focus was very much on the coming invasion attempt of France planned for the following...
Group
The 457th Bomb Group began combat operations during the Big Week of 20-25 February when American bombers carried out concentrated raids against German aircraft bases, factories and assembly plants. The air crews' targets on that first mission were...
Group
The 91st Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated at Harding Field, Louisiana on 15-April-1942 and went to MacDill Field, Florida for the first phase of training from 16-May-1942 to 25-June-1942. The Group was then assigned to 2nd Air Force at Walla...
| Tonnage dropped | 594.83 |
| Number of aircraft Sent | 243 |
| Number of aircraft Effective | 234 |
| Number of aircraft Missing In Action | 4 |
| Number of aircraft Damaged Beyond Repair | 3 |
| Number of aircraft Damaged | 134 |
| Number of people Killed In Action | 10 |
| Number of people Wounded in Action | 10 |
| Number of people Prisoners of War | 31 |
| Number of people Returned To Duty | 30 |
V-1 MISSILE SITES
B-24 Liberator
No bomber gunner claims. All Groups are part of 2nd Bomb Division.
Group
The 389th Bomb Group, known in more familiar terms as "the Sky Scorpions", flew strategic bombing missions in B-24 Liberators from Hethel, England. They also sent detachments to join bases in North Africa at Benghazi No. 10, Libya, between 3 July 1943...
Group
The 392nd Bomb Group flew B-24 Liberators out of Wendling, Norfolk from August 1943 until April 1945. They were the first Group allocated B-24H Liberators, the first B-24 series fitted with a nose turret on the production line. The adaptation increased...
Group
The 445th Bomb Group flew B-24 Liberators from Tibenham, Norfolk. The crews' first mission was bombing U-boat installations at Kiel on 13 December 1943. The Group continued to hit strategic targets in Germany, including the aircraft components factory...
Group
The 448th Bombardment Group was organized on 6 April 1943 and activated on 1 May 1943 at Gowen Field, near Boise, Idaho. The initial training of the air crews took place in Florida. The entire group was assembled Wendover Field, Utah. Both air and...
Group
The 44th Bombardment Group (Heavy) was activated 15-January-1942 at McDill Field, Florida and equipped with B-24Cs. The Group moved to Barksdale Field, Louisiana and acted as a training unit for the 90th 93rd and 98th Bomb Groups and flew anti...
Group
As well as strategic bombardment missions, the 453rd Bomb Group also ferried cargo on two occasions. They hauled petrol, blankets, and rations to France in September 1944 and dropped ammunition, food and medical supplies near Wesel during the airborne...
| Tonnage dropped | 350.80 |
| Number of aircraft Sent | 185 |
| Number of aircraft Effective | 138 |
| Number of aircraft Missing In Action | 1 |
| Number of people Killed In Action | 10 |
Military | Technical Sergeant | Radio Operator | 95th Bomb Group
Military | First Lieutenant | Pilot | 379th Bomb Group
Assigned to 526BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) Pas de Calais in B-17 42-97485 26-Mar-44; Hit by flak, crashed St-Marie-Cappel, France; Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 3592
Awards: POW, WWII Victory, EAME.
Military | Staff Sergeant (Technician Third Grade) | Radio Operator | 390th Bomb Group
Frank Bobrowicz was Radio Operator on board B-17 #42-39819, hit by Flak on return from the 13 April 1944 mission to Augsburg, Germany. Ditched in the Channel/North Sea, about 18km West of the entrance to the port of Ostend, Belgium. Killed In Action ...
Military | Staff Sergeant (3rd Grade) | Ball Turret Gunner | 390th Bomb Group
Crew Number 7
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball turret gunner | 389th Bomb Group
James Braa served as a ball turret gunner with the 566th Bomb Squadron of the 389th Bomb Group, flying bombing missions out of Hethel, England. He completed his tour of 30 missions between March and June 1944, flying his final two missions on D-Day.
Military | First Lieutenant | Co-Pilot | 95th Bomb Group
Flew 27 missions
DFC, AM, Unit Citation
Military | Captain | Pilot/Lead Pilot | 458th Bomb Group
Military | Technical Sergeant (2nd Grade) | Flight Engineer | 390th Bomb Group
Crew Number 7
Military | Staff Sergeant | Ball Turret Gunner | 379th Bomb Group
Assigned to 526BS, 379BG, 8AF USAAF. Failed to Return (FTR) Pas de Calais in B-17 42-97485 26-Mar-44; Hit by flak, crashed St-Marie-Cappel, Nth of Hazebrouck, 7 miles NE of St Omer, France; Prisoner of War (POW) MACR 3592
...
Military | Brigadier General | Group Commanding Officer | 388th Bomb Group
Retired from the USAF with the rank of Brigadier General
B-17 Flying Fortress
Assigned to the 359BS/303BG [BN-R] Bangor 22-Sep-42; Molesworth 22-Oct-42; First 8th Air Force aircraft to complete 50, then 75 missions- 27-Mar-44; with M/Sgt Buford Pafford as crew chief; 1 Base Air Depot, Burtonwood 5-Jun-44; Reconstruction Finance...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 27/1/44; Kearney 1/2/44; Presque Is 5/3/44; Assigned 560BS/388BG Knettishall 6/3/44; Missing in Action Liege 25/5/44 with Bill Warren, Bombardier: Jerome Fontaine (2 Killed in Action); Navigator: Gene McClellan, Flight engineer/top...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 29/4/43; Sioux City 11/5/43; Smoky Hill 9/6/43; Dow Fd 12/6/43; Assigned 561BS/388BG [ -T] Knettishall 14/6/43; Missing in Action Bordeaux 27/3/44 with Julius Lederman, Co-pilot: Waite Law, Bombardier: John Luzell (3 Prisoner of War)...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 28/7/43; Gore 6/8/43; Pendleton 12/8/43; Reno 14/8/43; Pierre 16/8/43; Assigned 561BS/388BG Knettishall 3/9/43; crashed on take off for France 13/8/44 with Leon Sutton, Co-pilot: Harlan Thompson, Navigator: George Healy, Bombardier:...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 13/11/43; Gt Falls 15/11/43; Denver 22/11/43; Kearney 27/11/43; Presque Is 25/12/43; Assigned 569BS/390BG [CC-H] Framlingham 2/1/44; suffered n/battle damaged hitting tree at Grundisburgh Hall, Sfk, being slow timed on 2/6/44, with...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 12/12/43; Kearney 30/12/43; RAF Nutts Corner 14/1/44; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 17/1/44; Missing in Action Liege 25/5/44 with Capt Jim Zengerle, Co-pilot: Albt Millin, Navigator: Walt Travis, Bombardier: Capt Wayne Barnett,...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Denver 28/8/43; Scott 16/9/43; Assigned 544BS/384BG Grafton Underwood 7/11/43; transferred 547BS [SO-N]; transferred to 364FG Leiston, Sfk, UK. 11/43; Returned to the USA Bradley 14/7/45; 4185 BU Independence 17/7/45; Reconstruction Finance...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 28/1/44; Kearney 14/2/44; Presque Is 20/2/44; Assigned 568BS/390BG [BI-S] Framlingham 3/3/44 DOC'S FLYING CIRCUS, then GIRL OF MY DREAMS; on mission 21/7/44 with ? , Lt Sam Dubin (Killed in Action); severe icing during assembly for...
B-17 Flying Fortress
Delivered Cheyenne 5/2/44; Gr Island 20/2/44; Grenier 10/3/44; Assigned 562BS/388BG Knettishall 12/3/44; Missing in Action Rostock 11/4/44 with Art Thomas, Co-pilot: John Harper, Navigator: Joe Tilley, Bombardier: Lew Clemens, Flight engineer/top...
| Date | Contributor | Update |
|---|---|---|
| 06 March 2016 19:02:53 | Lee8thbuff | Changes to description |
| Sources | ||
Lee Cunningham 6-Mar-2016. Added Mission Narrative per "The Mighty Eighth War Diary", Roger A. Freeman and "Losses of the 8ht & 9th Air Forces", Stan Bishop & John A Hey MBE. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 13 May 2015 14:21:37 | general ira snapsorter | Changes to event |
| Sources | ||
Mission detail added courtesy of Diane Reese - http://www.457thbombgroup.org/Narratives/ma20.html |
||
| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 13 November 2014 12:38:30 | Emily | Changes to media associations |
| Sources | ||
Associated Media based on images associated with missions in Freeman, The Mighty Eighth War Diary. |
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| Date | Contributor | Update |
| 27 September 2014 18:43:12 | 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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