MITTELLAND CANAL
152 Lancasters and 5 Mosquitoes of 5 Group carried out an accurate attack on the Gravenhorst section of the canal. Half a mile of banks were pitted with bomb craters and some parts were breached. No aircraft lost.
VOHWINKEL
146 aircraft of 3 Group successfully attacked the railway yards. 1 Lancaster lost.
DORTMUND
105 Halifaxes of 4 Group and 18 Lancasters and 16 Mosquitoes of 8 Group attempted to bomb a benzol plant but the attack was scattered and the plant was not hit. No aircraft lost.
Minor Operations: 28 Mosquitoes to Hanau and 27 to Hannover (both 'spoof' raids), 42 R.C.M. sorties, 59 Mosquito patrols. No aircraft lost. The 100 Group Mosquitoes claimed 6 German night fighters destroyed.
Total effort for the night: 598 sorties, 1 aircraft (0.2 percent) lost; 5 aircraft crashed in England.
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2 Hudsons flew on Resistance operations without loss.
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NUREMBERG
514 Lancasters and 7 Mosquitoes of 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups. 4 Lancasters were lost and 2 crashed in France.
Nuremberg, scene of so many disappointments for Bomber Command, finally succumbed to this attack. The Pathfinders produced good ground-marking in conditions of clear visibility and with the help of a rising full moon. The centre of the city, particularly the eastern half, was destroyed. The castle, the Rathaus, almost all the churches and about 2,000 preserved medieval houses went up in flames. The area of destruction also extended into the more modern north-eastern and southern city areas. 4,640 houses (mostly blocks of flat) were destroyed. The industrial area in the south, containing the important M.A.N. and Siemens factories, and the railway areas were also severely damaged. 415 separate industrial buildings were destroyed. It was a near-perfect example of area bombing. 1,838 people were killed and at least 50 more were missing; the number of injured was not recorded.
LUDWIGSHAFEN
389 aircraft - 351 Halifaxes, 22 Lancasters, 16 Mosquitoes - of 4, 6 and 8 Groups. 1 Halifax which crashed in France was the only loss.
The aiming point for this raid was the area of the two I.G. Farben chemical factories. A good local report shows that the bombing was accurate, with severe damage to the main I.G. Farben factory and to the same firm's factory at nearby Oppau. Estimated totals of 500 high-explosive bombs and 10,000 incendiaries fell inside the limits of the 2 factories, causing much damage. 10 large, 30 medium and 200 small fires were recorded at the main factory. Production failure at both plants was complete because of loss of power'. 13 other industrial firms and several railway installations were also hit; the train of a railway repair unit was destroyed. Only a small proportion of the bombing fell in housing areas. 103 houses were destroyed and 251 seriously damaged. 1,800 people were bombed out. The people of Ludwigshafen must have been provided with very good shelters; only 5 people were killed and 50 injured.
Minor Operations: 53 Mosquitoes to Berlin, 9 to Castrop-Rauxel and 7 to Hanau, 49 R.C.M. sorties, 41 Mosquito patrols. 2 Mosquitoes were lost, 1 each from the Berlin and Castrop-Rauxel raids.
Total effort for the night: 1,069 sorties, 9 aircraft (0.8 percent) lost.
