The unit an unknown left from Mepal at 1943-09-09 at an unknown time. Loc or duty ?

On Thursday 09 September 1943, a member of the unit an unknown, Section Officer J M Easton, took off from Mepal in the United Kingdom. His mission is mentioned elsewhere on Back to Normandy. You can find the other details of this mission by searching here. Training and cargo flights are not separately mentioned as a mission. The plane left at an unknown time .

He flew with a Short Stirling (type lll, serial BK809, code AA-T).

Campaign report of the USAAF:

(Eighth Air Force):: On D-day for Operation STARKEY (a rehearsal for the invasion of France), the Eighth Air Force dispatches a record number of 330 heavy bombers against various targets in France: 1. 87 B-17's are dispatched to the industrial area at Paris; 20 hit the primary target at 0903 hours and 48 hit the secondary target, the Beaumont Suroise Airfield; they claim 16-2-9 Luftwaffe aircraft; 2 B-17's are lost and 21 damaged; casualties are 3 WIA and 21 MIA. 2. 63 B-17's are dispatched to Beauvais/Tille Airfield; 59 hit the target at 0816-0819 hours; 6 B-17's are damaged. 3. 37 B-17's are dispatched to Lille/Nord Airfield; all hit the target at 0830-0833 hours; 10 B-17's are damaged; casualties are 2 WIA. 4. 56 B-17's are dispatched to Lille/Vendeville Airfield; 52 hit the target at 0830-0840 hours; 7 B-17's are damaged. 5. 56 B-17's are dispatched to Vitry-en-Artois Airfield; 51 hit the target at 0837-0840; no losses or casualties.

6. 38 B-24's are dispatched to St Omer/Ft Rouge and St Omer/Longuenesse Airfield; 28 hit the target; 3 B-24's are damaged; casualties are 1 WIA. 7. 40 B-24's are dispatched to Abbeville/Drucat Airfield; 35 hit the target; no losses or casualties.

All missions except 7. above are escorted by 215 P-47's. They claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 2 P-47's are lost; casualties are 1 MIA. Operation STARKEY is a disappointment as the Luftwaffe refuses to commit fighter defenses on a large scale, thus preventing possible destruction of many of their aircraft, which Allied air forces hoped to accomplish. VIII Air Support Command Mission 55: 217 B-26's are dispatched to the coastal defenses around Boulogne, France; 202 hit the targets at 0745-0915 hours; 3 B-26's are lost, 2 are damaged beyond repair and 24 damaged; casualties are 11 KIA, 8 WIA and 19 MIA.

Campaign report of the RAF:

8/9 September 1943

Boulogne gun positions: 257 aircraft - 119 Wellingtons, 112 Stirlings, 16 Mosquitos, 10 Halifaxes. OTU aircraft formed part of this force and 5 B-17s also flew the first American night-bombing sorties of the war with Bomber Command. Nos 4 and No 5 Groups did not take part in the raid. The target was the site of a German long-range gun battery and the marking was mainly provided by Oboe Mosquitos, some of whom were experimenting with a new technique. But the raid was not successful; the marking and the bombing were not accurate and the battery does not appear to have been damaged. No aircraft lost.

With thanks to the RAF and USAAF.net!

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