He flew with a Avro Lancaster (type III, serial ND465, code OL-L).
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS
(Eighth Air Force): The shuttle-bombing mission UK- USSR-Italy-UK is completed; of the 72 B-17s taking off from Fifteenth AF bases in Italy, 3 have various problems; the others bomb Toulouse/Francazal Airfield, France and then proceed to the UK; 62 P-51s (part of the shuttle- mission force) and 43 from the UK provide escort; no aircraft are lost; 70 B-17s and 58 P-51s land in the UK; 5 B-17s and 6 P-51s, either left in Italy or returning there during this mission, subsequently return to the UK.
Mission 545: 577 bombers and 436 fighters are dispatched to make visual attacks on the Metz marshalling yard and airfield in C and E France; 3 bombers and 3 fighters are lost (number in parenthesis are the number of bombers attacking the target):
1. 276 B-24s are dispatched to hit airfields at Mourmelon (75), Laon/Athies (63), Laon/Couvron (61) and Juvincourt (52); 3 B-24s are lost, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 46 damaged; 10 airmen are KIA, 7 WIA and 32 MIA.
2. 301 B-17s are dispatched to hit airfields at Chaumont (72), Buc (67), La Perthe (58) and Etampes/Mondesir (12); 69 hit the Metz marshalling yard; 1 B-17 is damaged beyond repair and 28 damaged; 9 airmen are KIA and 1 WIA.
The 2 groups above are escorted by 386 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 P-51s are lost (pilots are MIA).
Mission 546: 6 of 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night.
486 P-38s, P-47s and P-51s attack transportation targets in the Paris and Brussels areas; they claim 5-0-0 aircraft in the air and 13-0-0 on the ground; 1 P-38s, 5 P-47s and 7 P-51s are lost (pilots are MIA).
220 P-47s and P-51s attack transportation targets in NE France; 2 P-51s are lost (pilots are MIA) and 3 are damaged beyond repair.
1 fighter group escorts Ninth Air Force B-26s.
The 850th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 490th Bombardment Group (Heavy), moves from Harrington to Eye, England with B-24s.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS
(Ninth Air Force): In France, A-20s and B-26s attack Oissel rail bridge, Corbeil-Essonnes refueling siding, and numerous points along highways in the Argentan area with the aim of bottling up enemy troops; fighters fly ground forces cover and armed reconnaissance over wide areas of W and N France, also escort IX Bomber Command aircraft; HQ IX Tactical Air Command moves from Canisy to Coulouvray; the 14th Liaison Squadron, XIX Tactical Air Command (attached to Third Army), moves from Poilley to St Germain with L-5s; and the 377th Fighter Squadron, 362d Fighter Group, moves from Lignerolles to Rennes with P-47s.
The 425th Night Fighter Squadron, IX Air Defense Command, moves from Scorton to Stoneman Park, England with P-61s.
179 Lancasters and 10 Mosquitos of Nos 1 and 8 Groups carried out an exceptionally accurate attack on the railway yards at Givors. No aircraft lost.
33 Mosquitos to Berlin and 2 to Trossy St Maxim, 9 RCM sorties, 28 Mosquito patrols, 8 Stirlings and 6 Lancasters minelaying off Biscay ports, 14 aircraft on Resistance operations. 1 Mosquito lost from the Berlin raid.
117 aircraft - 95 Halifaxes, 16 Lancasters, 6 Mosquitos - of 6 and 8 Groups attacked a fuel dump at Forêt De Montrichard, which was soon covered by a thick pall of smoke. No aircraft lost.
68 Lancasters of No 1 Group and 2 Mosquitos of No 5 Group attacked pens at Brest, La Pallice and Bordeaux without loss. A U-boat was believed to have been hit at La Pallice. 8 Mosquitos of No 100 Group provided a fighter escort. 1 Wellington flew an RCM sortie.
Brunswick: 242 Lancasters and 137 Halifaxes. 17 Lancasters and 10 Halifaxes lost, 7.1 per cent of the force. This was an experimental raid. No Pathfinder aircraft took part and there was no marking. The intention was to discover how successfully a force of aircraft could carry out a raid with each crew bombing on the indications of its own H2S set. The raid was not successful and there was no concentration of bombing. The Brunswick report calls it a 'heavy raid' but only states that bombs fell in the central and Stadtpark areas. Other towns, up to 20 miles distant, were mistaken for Brunswick and were also bombed.
297 aircraft - 191 Lancasters, 96 Halifaxes, 10 Mosquitos - to Rüsselsheim. 13 Lancasters and 7 Halifaxes lost, 6.7 per cent of the force. The target for this raid was the Opel motor factory and normal Pathfinder marking methods were used. The motor factory was only slightly damaged; the local report states that the tyre and dispatch departments and the powerhouse were hit but most of the bombs fell in open countryside south of the target.
144 aircraft - 91 Lancasters, 36 Halifaxes, 12 Stirlings, 5 Mosquitos - bombed a German troop concentration and a road junction north of Falaise. The bombing was believed to have been very effective. No aircraft lost.
40 Halifaxes and 12 Mosquitos bombed 2 launching sites and a storage depot. No aircraft lost.
Support and 143 training aircraft on a diversionary sweep over the English Channel, 21 Mosquitos to Kiel, 10 to Frankfurt and 3 each to Coulommiers and Juvincourt airfields, 33 RCM sorties, 47 Mosquito patrols, 10 Lancasters and 4 Halifaxes minelaying off Biscay ports, 21 OTU sorties. 2 Mosquitos lost - 1 from the Frankfurt raid and 1 Mosquito of No 100 Group, probably a Serrate aircraft.
Total effort for the night: 1,167 sorties, 49 aircraft (4.2 per cent) lost. The bombs dropped during this night brought Bomber Command's total for the war so far to approximately 500,000 tons.
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