OIL DEPOTS
215 aircraft - 109 Lancasters, 101 Halifaxes, 5 Mosquitoes - of 5, 6 and 8 Groups attacked depots at Bordeaux and La Pallice successfully and without loss.
DIJON
104 Halifaxes of 4 Group and 20 Lancasters of 1 and 8 Groups attacked a railway junction and the railway yards; much damage was caused. 2 Halifaxes were lost and a further Halifax crashed or crash-landed in the liberated part of Normandy.
Minor Operations: 32 Mosquitoes to Berlin, 3 Lancasters of 8 Group to Bremen, 8 R.C.M. sorties, 37 Mosquito patrols, 12 Lancasters minelaying off Biscay ports, 8 aircraft on Resistance operations. No aircraft lost. The 3 Pathfinder Lancasters which bombed Bremen were the first Lancaster Mark VTs flown on operations by Bomber Command and they dropped the command's first 10,000-lb bombs.
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RAILWAY TARGETS
459 aircraft - 270 Lancasters, 169 Halifaxes, 20 Mosquitoes - of 1, 3,4 and 8 Groups attacked 3 railway yards and 1 bridge. Forces of between 133 and 142 aircraft attacked Douai, Lens and Somain; the bombing at these targets started well but ground features rapidly became covered by smoke and dust. 1 Halifax lost on the Somain raid. 49 aircraft attacked the taples railway bridge without loss and claimed direct hits on the bridge.
U-BOAT PENS
53 Lancasters and 3 Mosquitoes of 5 Group attacked pens at Bordeaux and La Pallice with 2,000-lb armour-piercing bombs, but examination of the pens after their capture a few weeks later showed that these bombs could not penetrate the roofs. 6 Mosquito fighters of 100 Group provided a partial escort cover for the Bordeaux raid but no German fighters were encountered. No aircraft lost.
FLYING-BOMB SITES
40 Halifaxes of 4 Group and 20 Pathfinder Mosquitoes attacked 4 launching sites. Visibility was clear; the bombing was accurate and no aircraft were lost.
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GIVORS
179 Lancasters and 10 Mosquitoes of 1 and 8 Groups carried out an exceptionally accurate attack on the railway yards. No aircraft lost.
Minor Operations: 33 Mosquitoes to Berlin and 2 to Trossy-St-Maxim, 9 R.C.M. sorties, 28 Mosquito patrols, 8 Stirlings and 6 Lancasters minelaying off Biscay ports, 14 aircraft on Resistance operations. 1 Mosquito lost from the Berlin raid.
