COMMUNICATIONS
483 aircraft - 286 Lancasters, 169 Halifaxes, 28 Mosquitoes - attacked railways at Alenon, Fougres, Mayenne, Pontabault and Rennes to prevent German reinforcements from the south reaching Normandy. All of the raids appear to have been successful. 4 aircraft were lost, 2 Lancasters from the Pontabault raid and 1 Lancaster and 1 Mosquito from the Rennes raid.
37. Precision bombing. The huge craters caused by 617 Squadron's 12,000-pound bombs, which blocked the Saumur railway tunnel and held up a Panzer division moving towards the Normandy battlefield.
The first 12,000-lb Tallboy bombs developed by Barnes Wallis were used on this night by 617 Squadron in a raid on a railway tunnel near Saumur, 125 miles south of the battle area. The raid was prepared in great haste because a German Panzer unit was expected to move by train through the tunnel. The target area was illuminated with flares by 4 Lancasters of 83 Squadron and marked at low level by 3 Mosquitoes. 25 Lancasters of 617 Squadron then dropped their Tallboys with great accuracy. The huge bombs exploded under the ground to create miniature 'earthquakes'; one actually pierced the roof of the tunnel and brought down a huge quantity of rock and soil. The tunnel was blocked for a considerable period and the Panzer unit was badly delayed. No aircraft were lost from this raid.
Minor Operations: 17 Serrate and 19 Intruder patrols, 34 aircraft minelaying from the Scheldt to Lorient. No aircraft lost.
Total effort for the night: 585 sorties, 4 aircraft (0.7 percent) lost.
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AIRFIELDS
401 aircraft - 206 Lancasters, 175 Halifaxes, 20 Mosquitoes - of 1, 4, 6 and 8 Groups bombed airfields at Fiers, Le Mans, Laval and Rennes, all situated south of the Normandy battle area. Bomber Command documents do not give any reason for these raids; it is possible that the intention was to prevent these airfields being used for German reinforcements being brought in by air because the railways were blocked. All the attacks were successful. 2 Halifaxes were lost on the Laval raid.
TAMPES
108 Lancasters and 4 Mosquitoes of 5 Group, with 5 Pathfinder Mosquitoes, attempted to bomb a railway junction at tampes, south of Paris. 6 Lancasters lost. The marking was accurate but late and the bombing spread from the railway junction into the town. The local report states that a quarter of the small town was affected by the bombing; between 400 and 500 houses were destroyed and 133 people were killed and 51 injured.
Minor Operations: 36 Mosquitoes to Berlin, 13 R.C.M. sorties, 2 Serrate patrols, 24 Halifaxes and 4 Stirlings minelaying off Brest. No aircraft lost.
Total effort for the night: 597 sorties, 8 aircraft (1.3 percent) lost.
