Minor Operations
6 Mosquitoes bombed Berlin through cloud and 9 O.T.U. Wellingtons took leaflets to France. 1 Mosquito lost.
---
FRANKFURT
262 aircraft - 236 Halifaxes and 26 Lancasters - of 4, 6 and 8 Groups. As on the previous night, there were no major diversions and the bomber force took a relatively direct route to the target. The German controller did not, at first, know whether Mannheim or Frankfurt was the real objective but he eventually chose Frankfurt, where the Flak was restricted to 15,000 ft. 12 bombers - 11 Halifaxes and 1 Lancaster - lost, 4.6 percent of the force.
Cloud covered the target area and the bombing appeared to be scattered. Frankfurt's report confirms this, the number of bombs recorded suggesting that fewer than 100 aircraft managed to hit the city. A moderate amount of housing was destroyed, 80 people were killed and 3,500 were bombed out. The report states that some fires in granaries and cattle sheds in outlying farms were blamed, not on the bombing but on sabotage, presumably by foreign workers.
Minor Operations: 3 Mosquitoes to Berlin, 48 aircraft minelaying off Brest and Texel and in the Frisians, 28 O.T.U. sorties. 1 Stirling minelayer lost.
Total effort for the night: 341 sorties, 13 aircraft (3.8 percent) lost.
---
and flew Lancasters from Waddington until the end of the war.
OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE
463 Squadron flew 2,525 Lancaster sorties and lost 69 aircraft (2.7 percent) in 180 bombing raids. 10 further Lancasters were destroyed in crashes.
POINTS OF INTEREST
The squadron's aircraft often carried cameramen of the R.A.F. Film Unit.
Suffered the highest percentage loss rate in Australian squadrons, but only by a small fraction from 460 and 467 Squadrons.
464 (AUSTRALIAN) SQUADRON
SERVICE
Formed in 2 Group and flew Venturas from Feltwell and Methwold until 2 Group left Bomber Command in May 1943. Continued to operate in the 2nd Tactical Air Force until the end of the war, converting to Mosquito fighter-bombers in August 1943.
OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE
464 Squadron flew 226 Ventura sorties and lost 6 aircraft (1.8 percent) in 28 bombing raids.
466 (AUSTRALIAN) SQUADRON
SERVICE
Formed in 4 Group on
---
and flew Lancasters from Grimsby and North Killingholme until the end of the war.
OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE
550 Squadron flew 3,582 Lancaster sorties and lost 59 aircraft (1.6 percent) in 192 raids. 14 further Lancasters were destroyed in crashes.
571 SQUADRON
SERVICE
Formed in 8 Group on
---
and flew Lancasters from Elsham Wolds and Fiskerton until the end of the war.
OPERATIONAL PERFORMANCE
576 Squadron flew 2,788 Lancaster sorties and lost 66 aircraft (2.4 percent) in 189 bombing and 2 minelaying raids. 9 further Lancasters were destroyed in crashes.
578 SQUADRON
SERVICE
Formed in 4 Group on
