The 239 Sqdn left from West Raynham at 1944-09-13 at 21:10. Loc or duty BS
He flew with a de Havilland Mosquito (type II, serial DZ254, code HB-).
Campaign report of the USAAF:
AIRBORNE OPERATIONS
(IX Troop Carrier Command): In France, C-47s fly numerous supply and evacuation missions; and the 95th, 97th and 98th Troop Carrier Squadrons, 440th Troop Carrier Group, move from Exeter, England to Reims with C-47s.
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS
(Eighth Air Force): 3 missions are flown.
Mission 628: 1,015 bombers and 477 fighters attack oil and industrial targets in S Germany by visual means; 15 bombers and 8 fighters are lost:
1. 376 B-17s are dispatched to oil refineries at Stuttgart/Sindelfingen (109) and Ludwigshafen (74); secondary targets hit are Darmstadt (95) and Wiesbaden (8); targets of opportunity hit are Mainz (22), a marshalling yard near Wiesbaden (12) and others (3); 4 B-17s are lost, 2 damaged beyond repair and 134 damaged; 1 airman is KIA, 2 WIA and 37 MIA.
Escort is provided by 73 of 74 P-47s, they claim 6-0-2 aircraft on the ground.
2. 342 B-24s are dispatched to hit Schwabish Hall Airfield (65), a munitions dump at Ulm (65) and Weissenhorn (45); a target of opportunity hit is Reichelsheim (1); 4 B-24s are lost, 2 damaged beyond repair and 127 damaged; 3 airman are WIA and 39 MIA.
Escort is provided by 99 P-38s and P-51s; they claim 14-0-5 aircraft on the ground; 2 P-51s are lost.
3. 297 B-17s are dispatched to hit oil refineries at Merseburg (141) and Lutzkendorf (77); targets of opportunity hit are Giessen (17), Eisenach (12), Altenburg (7), Gera (7) and other (19); they claim 1-0-0 aircraft; 7 B-17s are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 145 damaged; 4 airmen are KIA, 8 WIA and 67 MIA.
Escort is provided by 233 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 33-0-4 aircraft in the air; 6 P-51s are lost.
Mission 629: 11 B-24s are dispatched on an Azon mission to the oil refinery at Hemminstedt (6); 5 hit the secondary target, ammunition dumps at Kropp.
Escort is provided by 15 of 15 P-51s without loss.
Mission 631: 8 of 8 B-17s drop leaflets on the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
73 of 74 B-17s, escorted by 63 P-51s, continuing the UK-USSR-Italy-UK shuttle-bombing mission, take off from USSR bases, bomb steel and armament works at Diosgyor, Hungary and proceed to Fifteenth AF bases in Italy.
40 of 48 P-51s fly a strafing mission S of Munich hitting an aircraft dispersal area, airfield and marshalling yard; they claim 5-0-0 aircraft on the ground; 2 P-51s are lost.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS
(Ninth Air Force): In France, HQ XIX Tactical Air Command accompanies HQ US Third Army HQ to ChaIons-sur-Marne; B-26s fly a leaflet mission to coastal N France and Belgium; fighters support ground forces in the Brest and Nancy-Metz areas (air-ground coordination being especially effective between XIX Tactical Air Command and French 2d Armored Division in defeating the enemy move on Vittel), and in Germany, fly armed reconnaissance over the Cologne, Aachen, Koblenz, Linz/Rhine, and Wahn areas; the XIX Tactical Air Command inaugurates a rail cutting campaign; HQ 97th Combat Bombardment Wing (Medium) moves from Little Walden, England to Voisenon; HQ 404th Fighter Group and the 508th and 509th Fighter Squadrons move from Bretigny to Juvincourt with P-47s; the 162d Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, 363d Tactical Reconnaissance Group, moves from Azeville to Montrevil with F-6s; and the 392d Fighter Squadron, 367th Fighter Group, moves from Pera to Clastres with P-38s.
Campaign report of the RAF:
12/13 September 1944
378 Lancasters and 9 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3 and 8 Groups on the last major RAF raid of the war against Frankfurt. 17 Lancasters lost, 4.5 per cent of the Lancaster force. The local report says that the raid occurred when many of the city's firemen and rescue workers were away working in Darmstadt. The bombing caused severe destruction in the western districts of the city, which contained many industrial premises. Property damage was extensive. A troop train was hit at the West Station.
204 Lancasters and 13 Mosquitos of Nos 1 and 5 Groups to Stuttgart. 4 Lancasters lost. The attack was a success and local reports state that a firestorm occurred.
Support and 138 training aircraft on a diversionary sweep over the North Sea, 29 Mosquitos to Berlin and 6 to Steenwijk, 31 RCM sorties, 81 Mosquito patrols, 12 Halifaxes minelaying in Oslo harbour. 2 Halifaxes were lost, 1 from the diversionary sweep and 1 from the minelaying operation.
Total effort for the night: 901 sorties, 23 aircraft (2.6 per cent) lost.
13 September 1944
140 aircraft - 102 Halifaxes of No 4 Group and 28 Lancasters and 10 Mosquitos of No 8 Group - attacked the Nordstern oil plant at Gelsenkirchen. Large explosions were seen through the smoke-screen. 2 Halifaxes lost.
98 Halifaxes and 20 Lancasters of Nos 6 and 8 Groups attacked Osnabrück, with the cutting of railway communications being one of the raid's objectives. The marking and bombing were accurate but no details are available. No aircraft lost.
13 aircraft flew RCM sorties without loss.
13/14 September 1944
36 Mosquitos to Berlin and 3 to Karlsruhe, 29 RCM sorties, 41 Mosquito patrols. 2 Mosquitos lost from the Berlin raid.
With thanks to the RAF and USAAF.net!
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