The 142 Sqdn left from Gransden Lodge at 1945-01-22 at 18:45. Loc or duty Kassel
He flew with a de Havilland Mosquito (type XXV , serial KB463 , code 4H-W).
Campaign report of the USAAF:
21 January 1945
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS
(Eighth Air Force):: 2 missions are flown.
Mission 803: 912 bombers and 523 fighters are dispatched to hit industrial and rail targets in C Germany using PFF methods with some visual bombing; they claim 8-0-1 Luftwaffe aircraft; 8 bombers are lost:
1. 379 B-17s are sent to hit the marshalling yard (257) and oil plant (66) at Aschaffenburg; targets of opportunity are the Pforzheim marshalling yard (24) and military vehicle plant at Mannheim (3); Gee-H and H2X are used; 2 B-17s are lost, 2 damaged beyond repair and 4 damaged; 18 airmen are KIA and 2 MIA.
Escorting are 112 of 139 P-51s.
2. 382 B-17s are dispatched to hit the marshalling yard (254), Lanz military vehicle factory (21) and highway and rail bridges (16) at Mannheim; targets of opportunity are the Pforzheim marshalling yard (16), Speyer (4) and other (3); bombing is by Micro H and H2X; 6 B-17s are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 53 damaged; 3 airmen are KIA, 12 WIA and 55 MIA.
The escort is 138 of 150 P-51s; they claim 2-0-0 aircraft on the ground.
3. 152 B-24s are sent to hit the marshalling yard at Heilbronn (68) using H2X; targets of opportunity bombed visually are the marshalling yard at Pforzheim (11), the communications centers at Arnbach (14) and Mannheim (1) and Reutlingen (1); 4 B-24s are damaged beyond repair and 2 damaged; 3 airmen are WIA.
Escort is provided by 120 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 6-0-1 aircraft on the ground.
4. 26 of 26 P-51s fly a scouting mission.
5. 6 of 7 P-51s fly an armed photographic mission over Politz.
6. 22 of 23 P-51s escort 4 F-5s on a photo reconnaissance mission over Germany.
Mission 804: 2 B-17s and 9 B-24s drop leaflets in the Netherlands, France and Germany during the night without loss.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS
(Ninth Air Force): In Germany, 166 A-26s, A-20s, and B-26s hit a rail junction and bridge at Euskirchen and marshalling yard and defended positions at Mayen; fighters fly armed reconnaissance, escort bombers, bomb bridges, and support the US 7th Armored Division.
22 January 1945
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS
(Eighth Air Force):: 2 missions are flown.
Mission 805: 206 B-17s and 258 fighters are dispatched to make visual attacks on the Holten synthetic oil plant at Sterkrade (167); 1 hits the secondary target, the marshalling yard at Rheine; targets of opportunity are Dinslaken (12), Osnabruck (5), Heiden (8) and other (4); 5 B-17s are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 144 damaged; 13 airmen are WIA and 45 MIA.
Escort is provided by 85 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 3-0-1 Luftwaffe aircraft on the ground.
Other fighter missions are:
1. 128 of 136 P-51s fly a sweep in the St Vith, Belgium-Karlsruhe- Darmstadt and Kobenz, Germany areas, some as escort for Ninth AF bombers; 1 P-51 is lost (pilot MIA).
2. 10 of 11 P-51s fly a scouting mission.
Mission 806: 1 B-17 and 8 B-24s drop leaflets in the Netherlands and France.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS
(Ninth Air Force): 304 B-26s, A-26s, and A-20s bomb a marshalling yard, railhead, and road and rail bridges in Germany with the aim of obstructing troop movement; fighters escort the 9th Bombardment Division, fly armed reconnaissance and sweeps and airfield cover, and support the US 7th Armored Division near Montfort, the Netherlands; the III, VIII, and XII Corps from S of Saint-Vith, Belgium along the battlefront to NW of Echternach, Luxembourg; and the 4th, 5th, 94th, and 95th Infantry Divisions from Echternach, Luxembourg S to just W of Saarlautern, Germany.
In Belgium, HQ 70th Fighter Wing moves from Liege to Verviers.
In France, the 514th Fighter Squadron, 406th Fighter Group, based at Mourmelon with P-47s, begins operating from Prosnes.
Campaign report of the RAF:
22 January 1945
1 Halifax flew an RCM sortie.
22/23 January 1945
Duisburg: 286 Lancasters and 16 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3 and 8 Groups. 2 Lancasters lost. This raid was intended for the benzol plant in the Bruckhausen district of Duisburg. This target was identified visually by moonlight and much damage was inflicted on it. Further bombing also hit the nearby Thyssen steelworks, either by misidentification or by a simple spread of the bombing. Duisburg's local report assumed that the steelworks were the primary target and stated that 500 high explosive bombs fell on the Thyssen premises.
Gelsenkirchen: 152 aircraft - 107 Halifaxes, 29 Lancasters, 16 Mosquitos - of Nos 4, 5 and 8 Groups. No aircraft lost. This was a small area-bombing raid. The Bomber Command report states that 'moderate' damage was caused to residential and industrial areas.
48 Mosquitos to Hannover and 6 to Dortmund, 50 RCM sorties, 40 Mosquito patrols. No aircraft lost.
Total effort for the night: 598 sorties, 2 aircraft (0.3 per cent) lost.
With thanks to the RAF and USAAF.net!
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