The 9 Sqdn left from Waddington at 1943-01-14 at 17:29
He flew with a Avro Lancaster (type I, serial W4843, code WS-K).
Campaign report of the USAAF:
(Eighth Air Force): Eight Spitfire Mk Vs of the 4th Fighter Group carry out three Rhubarbs ( a small number of aircraft attacking ground targets usually in bad weather) and engage Fw 190s west of Ostend. We claim 2 enemy aircraft destroyed; two Spitfires are damaged one making a forced landing at Bradwell Bay with flak damage. One of the three squadrons of the 4th Fighter Group completes its transition from the Spitfire Mk V to P-47Cs; the group will fly its first P-47 mission on 10 Mar 43.
Campaign report of the RAF:
13/14 January 1943
Another trial raid on Essen by 3 Mosquitos and 66 Lancasters. 4 Lancasters lost.
Another poor raid for Oboe aircraft - 2 aircraft had to return without marking and the skymarkers of the third aircraft failed to ignite above the cloud. German aircraft also appeared to have dropped decoy flares to distract the Lancasters. Despite all this, Essen reports a sharp raid with 63 people killed, including 11 French prisoners of war and 6 other foreigners.
This raid concluded the Oboe trials.
14 January 1943
6 Halifaxes on a cloud-cover raid to Leer but only 1 aircraft bombed, through a gap in the clouds. 7 Wellingtons of No 4 Group minelaying in the Frisians; 1 aircraft lost.
14/15 January 1943
122 aircraft - 63 Halifaxes, 33 Wellingtons, 20 Stirlings, 6 Lancasters - in the first of 8 area attacks on the French port of Lorient which was being used as a U-boat base. 2 Wellingtons lost. This was No 6 (Canadian) Group's first bombing operation, with 9 Wellingtons and 6 Halifaxes being dispatched. One Wellington of No 426 Squadron was the group's first loss; Pilot Officer George Milne and his crew - 5 Canadians and 1 Englishman - all died when their aircraft Wellington was lost in the sea.
The Pathfinder marking of the target was accurate but later bombing by the Main Force was described as 'wild'.
41 aircraft minelaying of Lorient and Brest, 13 OTU flights. 1 Wellington of 91 OTU lost.
With thanks to the RAF and USAAF.net!
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