The 161 Sqdn left from Tempsford at 1944-10-19 at 10:59. Loc or duty Air Test
He flew with a Short Stirling (type IV, serial LK207, code MA-W).
Campaign report of the USAAF:
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS
(Eighth Air Force): 2 missions are flown.
Mission 683: 1,022 bombers and 753 fighters attack targets in Germany using PFF or GH; 6 bombers and 2 fighters are lost:
1. 381 B-24s are dispatched to hit the diesel engine and armored vehicle plant at Gustavsburg (50) and the Mainz marshalling yard (280) the secondary target; 5 B-24s are lost, 1 damaged beyond repair and 148 damaged; 3 airmen are KIA and 49 MIA.
Escort is provided by 195 P-47s and P-51s; 1 P-47 is lost (pilot MIA) and 1 damaged beyond repair.
2. 217 of 267 B-17s hit the secondary target, Mannheim; 34 others hit a target of opportunity; 1 B-17 is lost and 97 damaged; 2 airmen are KIA, 1 WIA and 10 MIA.
Escort is provided by 286 P-47s and P-51s; 1 P-51 is lost (pilot MIA).
3. 374 B-17s are dispatched to hit an artillery tractor plant at Mannheim (25); 257 hit the secondary, Mannheim; targets of opportunity are Karlsruhe (32), Kreuznach (10), Rudesheim (9), Bad Kreuznach (8), Steyer (2) and other (21); 182 B-17s are damaged; 2 airmen are KIA and 4 WIA.
Escort is provided by 226 P-47s and P-51s; 1 P-51 is damaged beyond repair.
Mission 684: 5 B-17s and 5 B-24s are dispatched to drop leaflets in France, the Netherlands and Germany during the night.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS
(Ninth Air Force): Weather prevents bomber operations; fighters attack a tank concentration E of Luneville, France, strafe targets NW of Kaiserslautern, Germany, fly reconnaissance in W Germany, and provide cover for US Third and Seventh Army forces in E France.
Campaign report of the RAF:
18/19 October 1944
19 Mosquitos to Hannover, 18 to Mannheim, 8 to Düsseldorf, 5 to Pforzheim and 4 to Wiesbaden. 1 aircraft lost from the Pforzheim raid.
19 October 1944
4 Wellingtons and 1 Liberator on signals patrols, 2 Hudsons on Resistance operations. 1 aircraft lost.
19/20 October 1944
Stuttgart: 565 Lancasters and 18 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups in 2 forces, 4½ hours apart. 6 Lancasters lost. The bombing was not concentrated but serious damage was caused to the central and eastern districts of Stuttgart and in some of the suburban towns. Among individual buildings hit were the important Bosch factory.
263 Lancasters and 7 Mosquitos of No 5 Group dispatched to Nuremburg. 2 Lancasters lost. This was only a partial success for the No 5 Group method and the knock-out blow on Nuremberg, which had eluded Bomber Command for so long, was not achieved. The target area was found to be almost completely cloud-covered. The aiming point is believed to have been the centre of the city but the local report says that the bombing fell almost entirely in the southern districts, but this was the industrial area of Nuremberg.
48 Mosquitos to Wiesbaden and 6 to Düsseldorf, 49 RCM sorties, 82 Mosquito patrols. 1 Mosquito Intruder was lost but other Mosquitos claimed 2 Ju88s, 1 Ju188 and 1 Me110 destroyed and 3 other night fighters damaged, a better-than-average night's success.
Total effort for the night: 1,038 sorties, 9 aircraft (0.9 per cent) lost.
With thanks to the RAF and USAAF.net!
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