COLOGNE
282 Lancasters and 6 Mosquitoes of 1, 5 and 8 Groups. 7 Lancasters lost, 2.5 percent of the force.
The Oboe sky-marking was accurate and another successful raid followed, the north-western and south-western sections of the city being the worst hit. 19 industrial and 2,381 domestic buildings were destroyed in areas which had not been severely bombed until now. 502 civilians were killed but the fatalities at a prisoner-of-war camp and an artillery barracks which were both heavily bombed are not known. A further 48,000 people were bombed out, making a total of 350,000 people losing their homes during this series of 3 raids in 1 week.
Minor Operations: 8 Mosquitoes to Duisburg, 46 aircraft minelaying off Texel, Brittany and the Biscay coast, 27 O.T.U. sorties. 1 Wellington minelayer lost.
Total effort for the night: 364 sorties, 8 aircraft (2.2 percent) lost.
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GELSENKIRCHEN
418 aircraft - 218 Lancasters, 190 Halifaxes, 10 Mosquitoes. 12 aircraft - 7 Halifaxes and 5 Lancasters - lost, 2.9 percent of the force.
This raid was not successful. The Oboe equipment failed to operate in 5 of the Mosquitoes and a 6th Mosquito dropped sky-markers in error 10 miles north of the target. Gelsenkirchen reports that its southern districts were bombed and assumed that the main raid was on the neighbouring towns of Bochum and Wattenscheid, also to the south, which received many more bombs than did Gelsenkirchen. Gelsenkirchen itself suffered 10 industrial firms hit, including the all-important synthetic-oil refinery at Scholven, but damage in all places was only light. 41 people died in Gelsenkirchen.
Minor Operations: 4 Mosquitoes to Nordstern, 18 aircraft minelaying in the Frisians and off Texel. No losses.
