NUREMBURG
231 Lancasters of 1 Group and 46 Lancasters and 16 Mosquitoes of 8 Group. 24 Lancasters, all from 1 Group, lost, 8.7 percent of the Lancaster force and 10.4 percent of the 1 Group aircraft involved. Most of these losses were due to German night fighters, which found the bomber stream on its way to the target.
The local report (from Dr Erich Mulzer) states that the southern and south-western districts were hit as well as the ruins of the Altstadt which was destroyed in a previous raid. A serious 'fire area' was established in the Steinbuhl district. The main railway station was also on fire and the city's gasworks were so badly damaged that they did not resume production before the end of the war. There are no figures for property damage and the only casualty figure given is 529 dead.
This was the last heavy Bomber Command raid on Nuremberg.
WRZBURG
225 Lancasters and 11 Mosquitoes of 5 Group. 6 Lancasters lost.
This was another dramatic and devastating blow by 5 Group. 1,127 tons of bombs were dropped with great accuracy in 17 minutes. According to a post-war survey, the old cathedral city with its famous historic buildings suffered 89 percent of its built-up area destroyed. Wrzburg contained little industry and this was an area attack. Estimates of the number of dead vary from 4,000 to 5,000. No further details are available.
Minor Operations: 56 Mosquitoes to Berlin, 24 to Hanau and 6 each to Brunswick and Osnabrck, 32 R.C.M. sorties, 40 Mosquito patrols, 12 Halifaxes and 12 Lancasters minelaying in the Kattegat and off Heligoland. No aircraft lost.
Total effort for the night: 717 sorties, 30 aircraft (4.2 percent) lost.
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BENZOL PLANTS
167 Lancasters of 3 Group carried out G-H attacks through cloud on plants at Dortmund and Hls. Both raids appeared to be accurate. No aircraft lost.
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MINOR OPERATIONS
66 Lancasters and 29 Halifaxes from training units on a sweep over Northern France to draw up German fighters, 39 Mosquitoes to Nuremberg, 38 to Berlin and 2 each to Mannheim and Stuttgart, 6 R.C.M. sorties, 15 Mosquito patrols. 1 Intruder Mosquito of 100 Group lost.
