FRIEDRICHSHAFEN
322 Lancasters and 1 Mosquito of 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups. This was a raid with some interesting aspects. The Air Ministry had urged Bomber Command to attack this relatively small town in moonlight because it contained important factories making engines and gearboxes for German tanks. But the flight to this target, deep in Southern Germany on a moonlit night, was potentially very dangerous; the disastrous attack on Nuremberg had taken place only 4 weeks previously in similar conditions. However, Friedrichshafen was further south and on the fringe of the German night-fighter defences; because of this and the various diversions which confused the German controllers, the bombers reached the target without being intercepted. However, the German fighters arrived at the target while the raid was taking place and 18 Lancasters were lost, 5.6 percent of the force.
1,234 tons of bombs were dropped in an outstandingly successful attack based on good Pathfinder marking; Bomber Command later estimated that 99 acres of Friedrichshafen, 67 percent of the town's built-up area, were devastated. Several factories were badly damaged and the tank gearbox factory was destroyed. When the American bombing survey team investigated this raid after the war, German officials said that this was the most damaging raid on tank production of the war. A civil report states that 136 people were killed and 375 injured in Friedrichshafen, and that 656 houses were destroyed and 421 severely damaged.
AULNOYE
223 aircraft - 191 Halifaxes, 16 Lancasters, 16 Mosquitoes - of 4, 6 and 8 Groups. 1 Halifax lost. Bombing was concentrated and much damage was caused to the railway yards.
MONTZEN
144 aircraft - 120 Halifaxes, 16 Lancasters, 8 Mosquitoes - of 4, 6 and 8 Groups. The bombing force, particularly the second of the 2 waves, was intercepted by German fighters and 14 Halifaxes and 1 Lancaster were shot down. Only one part of the railway yards was hit by the bombing.
The only Lancaster lost was that of Squadron Leader E. M. Blenkinsopp, a Canadian pilot of 405 Squadron who was acting as Deputy Master Bomber. Blenkinsopp managed to team up with a Belgian Resistance group and remained with them until captured by the Germans in December 1944. He was taken to Hamburg to work as a forced labourer and later died in Belsen concentration camp 'of heart failure'. He has no known grave.
SUPPORT AND MINOR OPERATIONS
159 O.T.U. aircraft on a diversionary sweep over the North Sea, 24 Mosquitoes on diversion raid to Stuttgart, 11 R.C.M. sorties, 19 Serrate and 6 Intruder patrols, 8 Halifaxes minelaying off Brest and Cherbourg, 44 aircraft on Resistance operations. 1 Serrate Mosquito lost.
Total effort for the night: 961 sorties, 35 aircraft (3.6 percent) lost.
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ST-MDARD-EN-JALLES
88 Lancasters and 4 Mosquitoes of 5 Group to attack this explosives factory near Bordeaux. Only 26 aircraft bombed the target. Because of haze and smoke from fires started by flares in woods near the factory, the Master Bomber ordered the remainder of the force to retain their bombs. No aircraft lost.
OSLO
51 Lancasters and 4 Mosquitoes of 5 Group were dispatched and bombed an airframe factory near Oslo. Visibility was clear; the bombing was accurate and no aircraft were lost.
Minor Operations: 26 Mosquitoes to Hamburg (3 small fires, 2 people killed, 97 bombed out), 2 R.C.M. sorties, 40 aircraft on Resistance operations. No aircraft lost.
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- Montzen raid. Page 501, line 5:
Squadron Leader E. M. Blenkinsopp should read Squadron Leader E. W. Blenkinsop.
