1. 336 B-17s are dispatched to the Gutersloh, Lippstadt and Werl Airfields; because of thick overcast, 285 hit Achmer, Hopsten, Rheine, Diepholz, Quakenbruck and Bramsche Airfields and the marshalling yards at Coevorden and Lingen; they claim 12-5-8 Luftwaffe aircraft; 8 B-17s are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 63 damaged; casualties are 4 KIA, 13 WIA and 75 MIA.
In the last week of February 1944 the USAAF 8th AF started an offensive against the German warplane industry, later known as the 'Big Week' offensive. On Sunday February 20th, the USAAF launches an attacks on German aircraft plants and airfields. For the first time, over 1,000 bombers are dispatched. Despite bad weather the following, the 8th AF launched another heavy attack on the German war i...
Here's the original photo interpreter's comments from the back of the photo: "Two of the three bridges over the Orne at Thury-Harcourt. They still stand despite the many bombs aimed at them. The A.A. defence has only appeared during the last weekand indicates the value the enemy places on the bridges"
Advanced Landing Ground (ALG) B.8 near Sommervieu, Normandy, France.
The airfield was completed by 22 June 1944 and was 1200m lond and 40m wide.
Some british squadrons (39 Recce Wing (400,168), 74 Squadron, 145 Wing (329,340,341)) were stationed here after the invasion.
The marshalling yards at Seddin, south of Berlin, were the primary target. The Group comprised the 94th C Combat Wing. Lt. Col. Smith was Air Commander.
During assembly, the 41St Combat Wing flew through the assembly area, making it necessary for the 457th to deviate to the left of course in order to avoid a collision. Consequently, the route over E...
Col. Shower led the squadron of nineteen aircraft that took off at 1010 carrying 120 x 500lb GPs and 612 x 100lb GPs. The bombing was visual with good results, the field and runways hit.
Moderate heavy flak at target. No enemy aircraft seen. Fair fighter support.
Results of an attack by two squadrons of the 405 Group on the Command Post (CP) of the 17 SS Panzer Grenadier Division. The CP, located at Peltre, France, two miles east of Metz, was dive-bombed on November 8 along with many other CPs in a campaign timed to aid General Patton's offensive in the area. The buildings housing the G-2 and G-3 at Peltre were completely destroyed and most of the occup...
On the evening of 4 December 1944, 282 Lancaster bombers of 627 Squadron and ten escort fighters flew over the city in loose formation. The night was thickly clouded, and this factor altered the approach height for the planes. At 7:18 the first plane flew over, but it was the second plane that dropped 10 bombs with long-term fuses onto the city about one minute later. Immediately after dropping...
The airfield at Juvincourt, France, 10 miles north of Reims, which was used as a base for XIX TAC fighter-bombers for many months during the winter of 1944-45.
During the afternoon of the 14th, the "hot information" on the big push came down through channels. "H" Hour of "D" Day was to be the break of dawn the morning of 15 August. The invasion was to be aimed at the southern coast of France. Missions of the Fifteenth Air Force in the support of the invasion were four in number: (1) To cause...
Garbutt aerodrome was initially established as a lightly gravelled runway with a pavement 100 feet wide to carry service aircraft.
When the RAAF base was established at Garbutt the runway was widened to 150 feet. In November 1941, the Commonwealth Works Department requested three runways to be extended to 5,000 feet by the Main Roads Commission (MRC). The Townsville City Council...
During World War II, Operation Detroit was the insertion, by parachute and glider, of the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division into Normandy on the night of 5–6 June 1944 as part of Operation Overlord. The drop zone for the 82nd Airborne was around Sainte-Mère-Église, to the west of Utah beach, intending to protect the western flank of the invasion.
The veteran team of Lt. Colonel Knapp, Captain Strong, Lt. King, Lt. Coles, and Lt. Sullivan came through with their second superior mission of the young month when they scored 62 percent on the oil refinery at Almasfuzito, Hungary. Conditions for the attack were ideal -- CAVU weather, no fighters, and not too much flak. Although Captain Strong and Lt. Sullivan did...
Aerial view, 6 June 1944. In the lower right corner we can see the location of the crash of the C-47 # 42-92868, 313th TCG, Chalk number #16, serial 22, piloted by 1st Lt. William Robert Roycraft. All the crew members in the plane were killed in the crash.
In Italy, bad weather during the morning causes all medium bombers to abort except for an attack on a bridge at Bressana Bottarone; XXII Tactical Air Command fighters and fighter-bombers continue the interdiction of communications with good results against motor transport, trains, rail lines, bridges, and storage dumps.
Overlays from the village before and after the battle.
The 1917 Battle of Passchendaele, also known as the Third Battle of Ypres or simply Third Ypres, was one of the major battles of World War I. In this battle, British, ANZAC, Canadian and South African units engaged the Imperial German Army. The battle was fought for control of the village of Passchendaele (now called Passenda...
The city of Beirut has been described as the Paris of the Middle East, but as these dramatic pictures show the capital of Lebanon now resembles a post-Blitz London.
A million people – almost a quarter of the population of Lebanon – have been forced to abandon their homes with up to 1,000 people killed.
Whole city squares have been obliterated across miles of the ...
Subscribe in a reader
Subscribe by e-mail
Get updates via Twitter
Connect on Facebook
