HAMBURG
263 aircraft - 84 Halifaxes, 66 Stirlings, 62 Lancasters, 51 Wellingtons - provided by all groups on the first 200-plus raid for more than 2 weeks.
Icing conditions in cloud over the North Sea caused many aircraft to return early. The Pathfinders were unable to produce concentrated and sustained marking on H2S and the bombing of the Main Force was scattered. The results in Hamburg were no better than the attack by a much smaller force a few nights earlier. 45 fires classed as 'large' were started, including 2 in various oil depots and 1 in a warehouse near the Elbe waterfront. 55 people were killed and 40 injured.
The German night fighters operated effectively, despite the bad weather, and 16 bombers were lost - 8 Stirlings, 4 Halifaxes, 3 Wellingtons and 1 Lancaster, 6.1 percent of the force.
Minor Operations: 8 Wellingtons minelaying off Lorient and St-Nazaire, 4 O.T.U. sorties. 1 Wellington minelayer lost.
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TURIN
188 aircraft - 77 Lancasters, 55 Halifaxes, 50 Stirlings, 6 Wellingtons. 3 Lancasters lost.
156 aircraft reached and bombed Turin, causing serious and widespread damage. The brief local report states that 29 people were killed and 53 injured.
LA SPEZIA
4 Pathfinder Lancasters were sent to this Italian port to try out a new type of 'proximity fuzed' 4,000-lb bomb which exploded between 200 and 600 ft above the ground to widen the effects of the resulting blast. 3 aircraft dropped their bombs successfully, but this type of weapon does not seem to have come into general use. The Lancasters all returned safely.
LORIENT
128 aircraft - 103 Wellingtons, 16 Halifaxes, 9 Lancasters. 1 Wellington lost.
This was an all-incendiary attack without the Pathfinders. Bombing was concentrated and large areas of fire were started.
Minor Operations: 2 Mosquitoes bombed Bochum and Ruhrort, 1 Wellington laid mines off Lorient. No aircraft lost.
Total effort for the night: 323 sorties, 4 aircraft (1.2 percent) lost.
