This day in the war in Europe 65 years ago

[Njaco]

9 NOVEMBER 1943

MEDITERRANEAN: The British 8th Indian Division captured Castiglione.

General De Gaulle becomes President of the French Committee of National Liberation.

In Italy, B-24s attacked the Villarperosa ball-bearing works at Turin and B-17s hit the Genoa-Ansaldo steel works. P-38's provided escort. The NATBF bombed Formia and Itri as a diversion to the naval bombardment of Formia and Gaeta. US XlI Air Support Command fighter-bombers attacked roads and bridges in the Mignano-Ceprano area while other NATAF fighter-bombers hit shipping in the harbor at Split, Yugoslavia and rail targets in the Rome-La Spezia area and vessels, radio stations, and gun emplacements off the coast of Albania.

EASTERN FRONT: West of Kiev the Soviet forces were advancing toward Zhitomir.

GERMANY: 18 RAF Oboe Mosquitos bombed blast furnaces at Bochum and a steelworks at Duisburg. No aircraft were lost.

 

[Njaco]

10 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: The Red Army achieved a breakthrough near Gomel in Belorussia.

The Kremlin, feeling secure in victory announced the creation of two new decorations: the Order of Victory - large ruby star encrusted with 91 diamonds - for senior officers, and the Order of Glory for other ranks.

Ambassador Litvinov stated in Moscow that the principle of unconditional surrender did not include Finland. This was in response to the Nov 3 announcement in London that unconditional surrender did apply to Finland.

MEDITERRANEAN: Lieutenant Maurice L. Britt, U.S. Army, 3d Infantry Division in the face of German hand grenades and close-range machine-pistol, machinegun and rifle fire, inspired and led a handful of his men in repelling a bitter counterattack by approximately 100 Germans against his company positions north of Mignano.

The Allied Control Commission was formed, to yoke the Italian economy into the overall Allied war effort.

WESTERN FRONT: 'U-966' was sunk in the Bay of Biscay near Cape Ortegal, Spain, by depth charges from British, American and Czech Wellington and Liberator aircraft (Sqn 612/B, 311/D, VB-103/E, VB-110/E). 8 dead and 42 survivors. Spanish fishing trawlers rescued the survivors.

313 Lancasters of RAF 5 and No 8 Groups were sent to attack the railway yards at Modane on the main line between France and Italy. The Pathfinder marking, in difficult conditions, was slightly beyond the target but 200 aircraft brought back photographs to show that their bombs fell within 1 mile of the target and the railway system was seriously damaged.

Around 60 B-26s of the US IX AF bombed Chievres airfield, Belgium. As they crossed over France, bad weather caused the force sent to bomb the Lille/Vendeville airfield to abandon their mission, though a few bombers managed to bomb other targets in the area. A force of 72 B-26s dispatched to attack Montdidlier airfield also suffered numerous aborts because of the weather. 6 bombers managed to bomb the airfield at Amiens/Glisy.

 

[Njaco]

11 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: In their advance on Zhitomir, Soviet forces crossed the Teterev River and captured Radomyshl.

Lt. Anton 'Toni' Dobele of I./JG 54 was killed in a collision with another German fighter over the airfield at Smolensk. Lt. Dobele was a member of the "Nowotny Schwarm", one of the most feared formations in the Luftwaffe. With Walter Nowotny as Schwarmfuhrer, the other members included Uffz. Karl 'Quax' Schnorrer, Nowotny's wingman and Rudolf Rademacher. Lt. Dobele had a final victory score of 94 kills.

WESTERN FRONT: The unescorted 'Pompoon' (Master Edward Condell) was hit by one torpedo from 'U-516' about 75 miles north of Cartegnea, Colombia. The torpedo struck amidships on the port side and broke the ship in two. Both ends sank with the midship part sinking first on both ends. The 23 crew members and four armed guards on board had no time to launch a lifeboat. Five survivors managed to rescue themselves on a raft that had floated free, but one of them died the next day and was buried at sea. In the afternoon of 3 December, the four survivors (a messman and three armed guards) were picked up by a Panamanian ship and were taken to Cristobal where they were hospitalized in serious condition.

In another attack on the French transport system, 124 Halifaxes and 10 Lancasters of RAF 4,6 and No 8 Groups bombed marshalling yards at Cannes and railway installations on the main coastal line to Italy. 4 Halifaxes were lost. The night was clear and the Pathfinders marked the target from 5,000ft but the railway yards were not hit at all and the railway workshops suffered only blast damage. No 617 Squadron resumed operations after its period of high-level training with the new 'Stabilizing Automatic Bomb Sight'. 10 Lancasters each dropped one 12,000lb bomb on the railway viaduct at Anthéor but no hits were recorded.

Lt. Hans Joachim Kannegiesser of 10./JG 11 crashed in his Fw 190A-4 during landing at Fliegerplatz Aalborg Ost and was killed.

MEDITERRANEAN: Montgomery's forces occupy Casalanguida in their advance on the Sangro River.

Destroyer HMS 'Rockwood' was hit by an Hs.293 glider bomb and had to be towed to Alexandria where she arrived on 19th November, but was not repaired.

CONVOY 'UNTRUE': A Ju 88 of 1(F)/33 made contact with a convoy, KMS-31, codenamed 'UNTRUE', 45 miles west of Alboran Island, reporting on the convoy's composition and the weather in the area. Two more Ju 88s shadowed the ships throughout the day. At 16:46 hours, the convoy was reported to consist of 15 merchant vessels and 4 destroyer escorts. Defense of 'UNTRUE' was by pairs of P-39s patrolling about 3 miles outside the convoy while a single Walrus provided close anti-sub cover. By the time of the German attack there were 15 aircraft distributed a various heights and in various positions up to 15 miles north of the convoy.

Luftwaffe attacks commenced at 18:20 hours and the ships' flak opened fire. The first German wave consisted of 10 to 12 Do 217s from II./KG 100 at 3,000 feet. The first of the Dorniers ran in from dead ahead, into the setting sun and launched its Hs 293s. Explosions were seen 500 yds ahead of the leading escort but no ships were hit. The next 9 Do 217s approached from the west on the starborad quarters by ketten. Two of the II./KG 100 aircraft turned back early and there were at least 2 casualties. 20 minutes later, 12 to 15 He 111s from III./KG 26 approached from landward in a single formation at 300 feet. Flares were dropped and the Heinkels spread out over the convoy prior to to dropping their torpedoes in 2 attacks. One He 111 banking steeply to port after releasing its 'fish' was destroyed by AA fire from 2 ships. The Ju 88s of I./KG 26 also took part.

The 'Indian Prince' was torpedoed and sank undertow 5 hours later. 'Birchbank' was hit and blew up and the Belgium oiler 'Carlier' went missing, presumed to have blown up. A French oiler, 'Nivose' was hit but continued in the convoy and the SS 'Takliwa' had also been damaged but was able to continue. The Flower Class corvette, HMS 'Oxlip' reportedly had her steering gear damaged but this was repaired and she continued.

The Luftwaffe's losses from this operation were 6 He 111H-11s of III./KG 26 and 2 Ju 88A-4s from I./KG 26. A Beaufighter intercepted 2 Do 217s an the return flight, reporting 2 cannon strikes on the wing of the first. It attacked the second bomber with its .303 guns before losing it in a cloud. Two aircraft were claimed shot down by the convoy and a dinghy was reported by German aircraft.

GERMANY: 29 RAF Mosquitos went to Berlin, Hannover and the Ruhr, 45 aircraft minelaying from Brest to the Frisian Islands, 6 OTU sorties. 1 Halifax and 1 Wellington lost from the minelaying force.

Obstlt. Hermann Graf was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of JG 11.

 

[Njaco]

12 NOVEMBER 1943

UNITED KINGDOM: US Lieutenant General Lewis H. Brereton takes command of the US Ninth Air Force. HQ Ninth Air Force issued Tables of Organization for the US IX Fighter Command, authorizing 2 air support divisions, 5 fighter wings, 1 reconnaissance group, 21 fighter groups, and 65 fighter squadrons. 3 combat wings were activated for the US IX Bomber Command: the 97th Combat Bombardment Wing (Medium) at Marks Hall which will control light bomber groups; the 98th Combat Bombardment Wing (Medium), formerly the 3d Bombardment Wing, at Earls Colne; and the 99th Combat Bombardment Wing (Medium), formerly the 44th Bombardment Wing (Heavy), at Great Dunmow.

A Halifax bomber based at Leeming, returning from an air raid on Cannes was running short of fuel, so the pilot made an emergency, rather rough, three-engined landing at Marston Moor airfield near York, as it was taxiing round the perimeter track, the pilot opened the bomb doors, as he did so he felt a bump. At the control tower he examined the bomb doors and found that they were badly damaged, so he decided to walk round the perimeter track where he found a live 1,000 lb bomb lying there. An aircraftsman with a rifle and fixed bayonet was put on guard and he was later seen patrolling around it, but as far away from it as possible. The plane was refuelled and was flown back to its base - after the crew had breakfasted.

EASTERN FRONT: Soviet forces continued their drive out of Kiev, entering Zhitomir. This was an important rail center on the last rail line available to the Germans east of the Pripet marshes. German resistance grew more serious as reinforcements arrived to begin patching up their shattered lines. The Russians captured Korostyshev.

MEDITERRANEAN: The Allied advance was at the Germans 'Reinhard' Line. The British 56th Division was forced to withdraw from some positions on Monte Camino.

The Germans launched a division-sized combined sea borne and airborne invasion of the British held island of Leros in the Aegean Sea. The British defenders were subjected to heavy air attacks from Stuka dive-bombers as the RAF was unable to provide support to the distant outpost. Heavy fighting ensued.

The Luftwaffe was up again looking for convoys. 62 aircraft with HE bombs and 12 Hs 293 glide bombs searched throughout the day for enemy ships in the Aegean and near Rhodes. There was an attack by 4 Do 217s with 8 Hs 293s on enemy shipping. A mine-sweeper had 4 near misses before being hit by aircraft from 5./KG 100 with 3 killed and a great deal of damage but she did not sink. The destroyer HMS 'Rockwood' was hit and although the bomb did not explode it still put her out of commission. The Hs 293s ultimately did not sink anything.

In Italy, B-26s attacked railroad bridges and tracks in the Montalto di Castro and Orbetello areas, but heavy cloud cover prevented effective hits on the targets. P-38s flew an air-sea rescue patroled off the mouth of the Semeni River in Albania. NATBF light bombers hit guns, troops, and railway facilities near Palena, the town of Atina, and the road at Acquafondata. Medium bombers hit the Berat/Kucove airfield and an oil refinery in Albania after failing to locate targets near Athens, Greece.

WESTERN FRONT: 'U-508' and US Navy Liberator aircraft (Squadron VB-103/C) engaged in a deadly duel. Both the aircraft and the boat perished. The aircraft was forced to ditch a few miles away from where the u-boat sank due to three damaged engines caused by the attack of a Ju-88 squadron. According to one of the survivors, Frank Kittle, the first report that came back to Dunkeswell was that the U-boat and the B 24 crew all perished. 57 men died from the u-boat.

Grand Admiral Donitz complained that in the Atlantic;

"...the enemy holds every trump card ... (he) knows all our secrets!"

President Roosevelt embarked in the battleship 'Iowa' (BB-61) at the start of his journey that would include his presence at conferences at Teheran and Cairo.

 

[Njaco]

13 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Having captured Zhitomir, the Soviets began moving north toward Korosten.

MEDITERRANEAN: While the British 8th Army continued its advance, capturing Atessa; General Clark advised Alexander that the US 5th Army's attacks should be halted.

Destroyer HMS 'Dulverton' was in the Aegean north of Rhodes looking for landing forces when she was hit by an Hs293 glider bomb and sank within two hours. There were 109 survivors.

Weather limited air operations to air-sea rescue patrols which were hampered by overcast. In Italy, NATBF light bombers hit Palena and Atina and later bombed Civitavecchia harbor and a road W of Terracina; US XII Air Support Command fighter-bombers, along with RAF DAF airplanes, bombed Giulianova harbor and shipping, roads leading to the battle zone, and landing grounds of Aquino, Frosinone, and Marcigliana; fighters hit train and trucks in the Pescara-Rieti area.

GERMANY: US VIII Bomber Command Mission 130: 79 of 159 B-17s, 61 of 109 B-24s and 3 of 4 B-17 PFF aircraft hit the port area at Bremen and targets of opportunity in the Kiel-Flensburg area. 100+ aircraft aborted the mission due to weather. Twenty-four B-24s were sent to Bremen with the 576th leading and escorted by 45 P-38s. Fifteen reached the target with 8 having to abort due to mechanical difficulties and 1 because of weather prior to target. Results were not observed. Enemy defenses again were quite heavy and Group losses high. Some 50-75 single and twin-engine fighters pressed home attacks and anti-aircraft fire was some of heaviest and accurate seen on these early missions. The Group lost 4 aircraft; one due to enemy fighters and 3 to flak. An additional 6 B-24s were damaged. Group gunners claimed 7 enemy aircraft, but the unit suffered an additional 43 casualties, 40 crew-members MIA and 3 injured. This was to be one of the costliest raids to the Group in men and aircraft losses during the early missions of World War II.

9 RAF Mosquitos attacked Berlin, 8 Oboe Mosquitos were sent to blast furnaces at Bochum. No losses.

UNITED KINGDOM: HQ 354th Fighter Group and it's 353d, 355th and 356th Fighter Squadrons transferred from Greenham Common to Boxted, England with P-51's. They will fly their first mission on 1 Dec.

SS 'Cormount' (2,841t) cargo ship, London to Blyth, was sunk by a mine off Harwich.

 

[Njaco]

14 NOVEMBER 1943

WESTERN FRONT: Marshal Petain, having tried and failed to reintroduce a measure of legitimacy and thus free France and himself from the head of government, Pierre Laval, and his collaborationist clique, was now virtually a German prisoner. Petain planned to say in a speech that he represented legitimate authority in France, and that on his death power would revert to the National Assembly. However, the contents of the speech were communicated to Hitler, who ordered Petain not to give it. Instead, the Germans planned to launch a campaign of repression and terror against the Resistance, exploiting what was left of Marshal Petain's reputation.

In a freak accident, President Roosevelt, Generals Marshall and Arnold, Admirals Leahy and King, plus scores of distinguished politicians, and army, naval and air force strategists came under fire while traveling to the the Tehran Conference on board the battleship 'Iowa'. While running a torpedo drill, the US destroyer 'William D. Porter' was targeting the 'Iowa's' #2 magazine, a live torpedo was ejected and headed for the battleship. After maneuvering, the torpedo detonated 1200 feet aft of 'Iowa' in her wake turbulence. When the incident was concluded, Air Force General Hap Arnold leaned over to Fleet Commander Admiral King and asked;

"Tell me Ernest, does this happen often in your Navy?"

GERMANY: 'U-794', the Germany navy's first true submarine, goes into service at Kiel: it has a Schnorkel to provide the engines with oxygen while it is submerged.

EASTERN FRONT: The Germans began counterattacks against Vatutin's forces around Zhitomir. The 7.Panzerdivision spearheads the attacks which throw the Soviet spearheads into disarray.

MEDITERRANEAN: The British 8th Indian Division with the 2nd New Zealand Division captured Perano.

B-25s, escorted by Fifteenth Air Force P-38s, bombed the Sofia, Bulgaria marshalling yard; the P-38s claimed 5 enemy aircraft destroyed. In Italy, US XII Air Support Command operations were curtailed by weather, and only battle area patrols were flown; RAF DAF fighter-bombers hit trains on the E coast of Italy near Avezzano, along the Dalmatian coast SE of Metkovic, Yugoslavia, and at Sarajevo, Yugoslavia; fighters strafed the airfields at Furbara and Tarquinia, Italy.

 

[Njaco]

15 NOVEMBER 1943

UNITED KINGDOM: Air Chief Marshal Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory is made C-in-C of the Allied Expeditionary Air Force.

WESTERN FRONT: The British Special Operations Executive landed six agents in France and took 12, including Francois Mitterrand, back to Britain.

MEDITERRANEAN: The US 5th Army stopped their attacks by order of General Alexander. The German defensive positions were not giving way. The guns were silent along the entire Italian line. The invading armies were exhausted. The plight of the defenders was no better. Both the British and Americans have given their all in the Fifth Army sector. On 5 November the British 56th Infantry Division attacked Monte Camino, a barren 3,000-foot mountain which the Germans had covered with mines and booby-traps. At the half-way point, they faced a series of brutal counter-attacks by the 15.Panzergrenadier Division but held on. They were finally forced to retire through sheer exhaustion. The US VI Corps suffered days of attacking elusive German defenders. It was only then that General Mark Clark gave the order to withdraw.

SS men rounded up nearly 2,000 Italian workers in the industrial suburbs of Milan and held them as hostages against further sabotage. Even so, explosions continued to rock this northern city and other forms of sabotage have become widespread. Milan's population has already been fined £1 million; more communal punishments have been threatened. Resistance continues to grow against the German occupiers and Fascist collaborators. Six Fascists were killed in ambushes in the Florence district. It was inevitable that Italy's Jewish population should bear the brunt of Nazi fury. At least 7,500 Jews were being rounded up in Rome and herded in trains bound for German death camps. Hundreds more were being sheltered from the Gestapo in Rome's labyrinth of catacombs where Christians once sheltered from persecution.

'U-565' fired a spread of three torpedoes at the convoy TE-16 and heard one hit after 2 minutes 2 seconds, but could not observe the result due to the escorts. At 11.12 hours, the U-boat fired a coup de grâce at a damaged tanker and observed a hit in the stern, but the HMS 'Seminole' remained afloat, was salvaged and repaired.

The HMS 'Quail' (G 45) struck a mine laid on 11 November by 'U-453' off Bari. She was towed into the harbour of Bari but the damage was too extensive to warrant repairs.

B-24's bombed Eleusis airfield in Greece while B-25s attacked the Kalamaki airfield at Athens. P-38s provideed escort. The P-38s from the 82d FG fought off attacks by Bf 109G-6 fighters of IV./JG 27, damaging 6 in addition to downing a Fw 190 and a Ju 87. Bf 109s from IV./JG 27 made claims of 4 P-38s and then 2 hours later of another 10 Lightnings although only 2 P-38s were lost. Lt. James McClure of the 71st FS/ 1st FG was killed. Hptm. Joachim Kirschner of Stab IV./JG 27 claimed to have shot down 3 P-38s during the day plus a B-25 south of Lebadeia. Fw. Heinz Bartels claimed 4 P-38s bringing his score to 70 kills.


EASTERN FRONT: German forces counterattacking against the Steppe Front recaptured Zhitomir. The attack was now being executed by the elite 48.Panzerkorps (7 divisions in all).

GERMANY: German SS leader Heinrich Himmler ordered that Gypsies and "part-Gypsies" are to be put;

"...on the same level as Jews and placed in concentration camps."

 

[Njaco]

16 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: North of Zhitomir the Soviet advance continued. The German force which was involved in a counterattack from the south was very small, but small penetrations gave the appearance of a larger force.

Lt. Wilhelm 'Willi' Batz of JG 52 scored his 40th victory.

MEDITERRANEAN: After five desperate days of fighting, the bulk of the British survivors of the 234th Brigade surrender to the Germans on Leros, ending effective resistance on the island. The Germans took 3500 British soldiers prisoner along with nearly 6000 Italians who did not participate in the battle. The Allies decide to evacuate all the islands except Castelrosso.

B-25s bombed the airfields at Sibenik, Yugoslavia and Eleusis, Greece; the latter mission was escorted by Fifteenth Air Force P-38s.

WESTERN FRONT: 'U-280' sunk SW of Iceland, by depth charges from a British Liberator aircraft (Sqn 86/M). 49 dead (all hands lost).

Germany's dream of developing an atom bomb comes to an end as 160 US heavy bombers hit the hydro-electric plant at Vermork, Norway. Twenty civilians were killed in the attack which missed the plant. However, the damage done to the rest of the facility was so severe that the Germans abandoned further production of "heavy water".

In France, B-17s bombed the Istres-Le-Tube airfield, and B-26s hit Salon-de-Provence airfield. P-38s escorted the B-26s.

 

[Njaco]

17 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Novodichi fell to the Soviets during their advance on Korosten. North, near Gomel, they also continued the advance. German counterattacks south of Zhitomir succeeded in breaking the Soviet lines at several points.

WESTERN FRONT: Grand Admiral Dönitz took personal charge of a U-boat assault on convoy SL-139/MKS-30, comprising 66 Allied merchant ships.

GERMANY: 66 Lancasters and 17 Halifaxes of RAF No 8 Group were sent on a purely H2S blind-bombing raid to Ludwigshafen without any target indicators being dropped. Few details were available about the results of the bombing but it was believed that the attack was accurate and the IG Farben factory was hit. Because of misleading instructions broadcast from England to the German night-fighter pilots, most of the fighter force landed early and only 1 Lancaster was lost. But Major Walter Ehle - a 36 victory night-fighter with NJG 1 (33 night kills) - was killed in action over St. Truiden.

21 RAF Mosquitos attacked Berlin, Bochum, Bonn and Duisburg.

MEDITERRANEAN: B-17s hit the airfield at Eleusis, Greece, destroying several parked airplanes and scoring many hits on hangars, other buildings, and runways; P-38s escorted the B-17s as well as NATAF B-25s attacking the airfield at Kalamaki, Greece.

 

[Njaco]

18 NOVEMBER 1943

GERMANY: The Battle of Berlin has begun which will last until March 24, 1944. This well publicized campaign consisted of 16 major attacks on the German capital plus attacks on other targets. 9000+ sorties will be flown and over 600 aircraft will be lost. In the first mission, 440 Lancasters and four Mosquitos were dispatched to attack the German capital; 402 aircraft bombed the city. Few German fighters intercepted the force but nine Lancasters were lost, 2.0 per cent of the force. Berlin was completely cloud-covered and both marking and bombing were carried out blindly; Bomber Command could make no assessment of the results. A major diversionary raid by 395 aircraft, 248 Halifaxes, 114 Stirlings and 33 Lancasters, was made to Mannheim and Ludwigshafen; 325 aircraft hit the targets. German fighters successfully engaged the bomber force and 23 aircraft, 12 Halifaxes, nine Stirlings and two Lancasters, were lost, 5.8 per cent of the force. Cloud was present over the target area and much of the bombing was scattered. 21 people were killed, 154 injured and 7,500 bombed out. Many bombs fell outside the city and the local report listed much damage and loss at farms. Mannheim was raided by 395 aircraft - making this Bomber Command's heaviest night of operations so far in the war. This was the last major raid on the much-bombed city of Mannheim for 15 months. Other raids to five cities were made by Mosquitos, eight each bombed the Krupps armaments plant at Essen and the city of Frankfurt-am-Main; six hit Aachen; two attacked Groningen and one bombed Hannover.

UNITED KINGDOM: Aircraft of the USAAF Ninth Air Force's IX Troop Carrier Command carried paratroops of the U.S. 101st Airborne Division in a rehearsal of cross-channel operations. This was the first of an extended series of training exercises to be conducted prior to the Normandy invasion.

WESTERN FRONT: Five USAAF Eighth Air Force VIII Bomber Command B-17 Flying Fortresses flew Mission 133 dropping 980,000 leaflets over Paris, Orleans, Chartres, Rennes and Le Mans between 2015 and 2041 hours. During the night of 18/19 November, RAF Bomber Command Wellingtons laid mines off three Bay of Biscay ports: five aircraft laid mines off Brest and four each off Lorient and St. Nazaire. Seven other aircraft dropped leaflets over northern France.

The USAAF Eighth Air Force's VIII Bomber Command flew Mission 132: 78 B-24 Liberators hit Kjeller Airfield 10 miles (16 kilometers) east of Oslo; nine B-24s were lost. Four other aircraft bombed Rygge Airfield 2 miles (3,2 kilometers) east of Rygge. 18 bombers were claimed between fighters from JG 11, JG 5 and NJG 3. Lt. Friedrich Feuchter and Uffz. Reinhold Gullert from 10./JG 11 were both killed.

Whilst escorting combined convoys MKS.30 and SL.139, sloop HMS 'Chanticleer' had her stern blown off by a Zaunkoenig fired by 'U-515'. There were 28 casualties. She was towed to the Azores and paid off, but subsequently recommissioned as 'Lusitania' and served as a base ship at Horta.

The 3000 ton British freighter 'Penolver' stuck a mine off Newfoundland. Within minutes, 14 of her crew were rescued by the US merchantman 'De Lisle', which shortly thereafter struck a mine and was sunk.

EASTERN FRONT: Fighting on the eastern front remained heavy west of Kiev as Korosten and Ovruch were captured by the Soviets. To the north, the rail line out of Gomel to the west was cut as the Red Army captured Rechitsa. German forces in Gomel were imperiled by rapid expansion of the Rechitsa salient. Soviet troops forced the Dnieper River near Cherkassy, southeast of Kiev, and take Ovruch, northwest of Kiev. Meanwhile German attacks south of Zhitomir continued to make progress.

'U-18' fired two torpedoes and observed two hits on the 'Josif Stalin' off Lazarevskoje and reported the sinking of the ship after 20 minutes, however the tanker was only damaged.

MEDITERRANEAN: In Greece, 50 USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses, with P-38 Lightning escort, bombed Eleusis Airfield near Athens; two aircraft wer lost. P-38 Lightnings also escorted USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium and light bombers of the XII Air Support Command and RAF aircraft in an attack on Larissa Airfield, 2 miles (3,2 kilometers) east of the city of Larissa.

In Italy, USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium and light bombers of the XII Air Support Command and the RAF attacked a billeting area at Rivisondoli and road, railway and town area west of San Vito Chietino and at Lanciano. Defended points and gun positions along the battleline were also attacked.

In Yugoslavia, USAAF Twelfth Air Force fighter-bombers hit a ship in the Krka River, trains at the Knin marshalling yard and between Knin and Kosovo, the landing ground at Sinj, harbor and vessels at Sibenik. USAAF Fifteenth Air Force P-38 Lightnings escorted transports dropping supplies to partisans.

The 'Empire Dunstan' (Master Norman Ramsay), dispersed from convoy KMS-31, was torpedoed and sunk by 'U-81' southwest of Taranto. Two crew members were lost. The master, 29 crew members, seven gunners and three passengers were picked up by the Norwegian merchant 'Lom' and landed at Taranto.

 

[Njaco]

19 NOVEMBER 1943

UNITED KINGDOM: 'Fido', a secret device to clear fog from runways was used for the first time to help bombers returning from the Rühr to land.

WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF Eighth Air Force's VIII Bomber Command flew Mission 135: six B-17 Flying Fortresses dropped 2.316 million leaflets on Amiens and Reims, France; Brussels and Ghent, Belgium; and Amsterdam and The Hague, The Netherlands. Over 100 USAAF Ninth Air Force B-26 Marauders dispatched to attack airfields in France aborted the mission when bad weather prevented rendezvous with the fighter escorts.

The USAAF Eighth Air Force's VIII Bomber Command flew Mission 134: 110 B-17 Flying Fortresses and three B-17 pathfinder force aircraft were dispatched to Gelsenkirchen but the malfunction of blind-bombing equipment and the weather caused the force to attack targets of opportunity on the German-Dutch border.

During the night of 19/20 November, RAF Bomber Command dispatched 25 aircraft to lay mines off coastal ports: four lay mines off St. Nazaire, three each lay mines off La Pallice and Lorient, and two each lay mines off Brest and Le Havre. Eleven other aircraft dropped leaflets over northern France.

'U-211' was sunk east of the Azores, by depth charges from a British Wellington Mk. XIV aircraft (Sqn 179/F). 54 dead (all hands lost).

GERMANY: Leverkusen was bombed by 266 RAF Bomber Command aircraft, 70 Halifaxes, 86 Stirlings and ten Mosquitos; only four Halifaxes and one Stirling, 1.9 per cent of the force, were lost; very few German fighters were operating, probably because of bad weather at their airfields. The target was the I.G. Farben chemical plant but failures of equipment prevented most of the Oboe marking being carried out and other Pathfinder aircraft were unable to mark the target properly in difficult weather conditions, leading to bombs being scattered over a wide area. At least 27 towns, mostly well to the north of Leverkusen, recorded bombs. Leverkusen's own records show only one high-explosive bomb in the town! Mosquitos were also sent to bomb four cities: six hit Duisburg, two bomb Rheinhausen, and one each attacked Bonn and Dusseldorf.

In Berlin much of the fashionable Wilhelmstrasse has been destroyed and 131 people died, but factories were undamaged. Sir Arthur Harris, the chief of Bomber Command, recently told Mr Churchill:

"We can wreck Berlin from end to end ... It will cost between 400 and 500 aircraft. It will cost Germany the war."

In the latest raid bombers followed pathfinders over cloud cover all the way. Most did not see the target, releasing their loads (often one big bomb of 4,000 pounds or more) at an aiming point marked by a burning flare. Hopes that the USAAF would join in the Berlin campaign were unfulfilled. American fighter escorts lacked the range to reach Berlin.

Major Manfred Mossinger was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of JG 301. 3./JG 301 transferred to Bad Woerishofen from Gardelegen.

EASTERN FRONT: The German forces entered Zhitomir and heavy street fighting resulted. The Soviets, realizing how exposed their position was against this strong thrust made limited and organized retreats to more defensible lines while continuing their attacks west of Kiev. Red Army forces abandoned Zhitomir to avoid being trapped there.

Liaison vessel 'Pukkio' was damaged by bomb off Suursaari in the Baltic Sea.

MEDITERRANEAN: In the British Eighth Army's V Corps area, Indian 8th Division sector, the Germans completed a withdrawal across the Sangro River into prepared defensive positions. The British 8th Army was stopped cold.

The First Special Service Force, made up of American and Canadian troops, landed in Italy. The men of this crack unit have completed a rigorous training course in wilderness survival, skiing, mountain climbing, parachuting and hand-to-hand combat.

A-36 Apaches and P-40s of the USAAF Twelfth Air Force's XII Air Support Command bombed a bridge east of Cassino and the bridge and village of Pontecorvo, and, along with RAF Desert Air Force (DAF) fighter-bombers, hit strongpoints around the village of Barrea while supporting ground forces. Fighters (mostly RAF DAF) also strafed trucks and trains around Rieti.

S class submarine HMS 'Simoom' was lost in the Mediterranean with all 48 crew after leaving Port Said on 2 November. She may have been the victim of a mine, or of an attack by 'U-595' albeit in a position well away from Simoom's route. This was the last British submarine to be sunk in the Mediterranean during WW2.

 

[Njaco]

20 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: A new attack by the Soviets began near Cherkassy as they crossed the Dniepr River. The Red Army achieved a breakthrough near Kremenchug in the Ukraine, and advanced toward Kirovograd.

'U-768' was sunk in the Gulf of Danzig after a collision with 'U-745'. 44 survivors (No casualties).

MEDITERRANEAN: The British 8th Army commenced Operation Encroach toward Rome, Italy. Heavy rains dulled Montgomery's planned attack across the Sangro River to a limited effort. The 36th Brigade was the only unit to cross.

The USAAF Twelfth Air Force's XII Air Support Command and RAF Desert Air Force fighters carried out uneventful armed reconnaissance; Northwest African Tactical Bomber Force aircraft bombed the Porto Civitanova railway junction, Pedaso, Giulianova, and Loreto.

With the loss of Leros, British forces began a hasty withdrawal from the exposed Aegean island of Samos. The Germans occupied Samos in the Dodecanese Islands, after the British evacuated. This ended the British campaign. The British have taken a beating and their effort will later be described as quickly improvised with insufficient forces.

Einsatzkampf Gruppe Ju 88/Gen.d.Fl.Ausb was disbanded at Athens/Eleusis and its assets returned to bomber schools or re-assigned to other units.

WESTERN FRONT: Donitz called off his U-boats, as the combined convoys MKS.30 and SL.139 were protected by 19 warships and a 24-hour air cover: three U-boats have been sunk. German submarine 'U-536' was sunk about 453 nautical miles (839 kilometers) northeast of Lagens Field, Azores Islands, by depth charges from the British frigate HMS 'Nene' (K 270) and the Canadian corvettes HMCS 'Snowberry' (K 166) and 'Calgary' (K 231); 17 of the 55 crewmen survive. 'U-618' shot down a RAF Liberator aircraft (Sqn 53/N). The entire aircrew was lost. 'U-648' shot down a RCAF Sunderland aircraft (Sqn 422/G). The entire aircrew, 11 men, were lost.

 

[Njaco]

21 NOVEMBER 1943

MEDITERRANEAN: The commander of Oberfehlshaber Sud, Luftwafffe Generalfeldmarschall Albert Kesselring was dismissed from his duties and assigned as commander of Oberfehlshaber der Heeresgruppe C - commander-in-chief of all German forces in Italy.

USAAF Twelfth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bombed gun emplacements at Gaeta. USAAF and RAF Desert Air Force fighter-bombers hit strongpoints in the Santa Maria Imbaro and Poggiofiorito areas and fighters carried out patrols and reconnaissance along the battleline along the Corigliano and Sangro Rivers. USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-26 Marauders bombed the harbor at Civitavecchia, a bridge at Fano, and marshalling yard at Chiusi. P-38 Lightnings provide escorted to the latter target.

German forces finish taking Samos capturing 4800 British soldiers.

EASTERN FRONT: The Germans advanced through Zhitomir and now attacked toward Korosten.

WESTERN FRONT: Captain-class frigate HMS 'Foley' and sloop HMS 'Crane' sank 'U-538' with depth charges in the North Atlantic, south-west of Ireland. There were no survivors from her crew of 55 men. Both 'Foley' and 'Crane' were members of Support Group 7. This was the second U-boat to be sunk by US-built DE's operated by the RN. 'U-538' was a long-range Type IXC U-boat built by Deutsche Werft AG, at Hamburg. Commissioned on 10 Feb 43. 'U-538' conducted one operational patrol and had not sunk any ships. This event demonstrated the combined effect of emerging new technology and inexperience on the part of the U-boat commanders. New commanders, particularly when charged with the larger and less manoeuvrable Type IX boats, were at a definite disadvantage when attacked by well-equipped ships from a proficient ASW group. The USN's DE's were widely regarded as the best ASW escorts of the war. Their high endurance, speed and sea kindliness, combined with the best weapons and sensors of their type, made them highly effective. RN sloops and the River-class frigates also had good endurance and sea characteristics but were slower and had numerous technological limitations. The Type IX U-boats were most effective when employed in remote areas of operation where organized convoy systems were not in effect. These submarines were used with outstanding success in the first phase of Operation 'Paukenschlag' (Drumbeat) off the US eastern seaboard, in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, in the South Atlantic and in the Indian Ocean. Many Type IX's served as replenishment boats for the smaller, medium-range Type VII U-boats.

German attacks continued on the Allied convoy SL 139/MKS 30. 25 He 177s of II./KG 40 took off to attack the Allied convoy. 20 aircraft attacked the convoy at 17:00 hours with 40 Hs 293s from between 400 and 600 meters. One ship, the 'Delius' was hit and set on fire and another ship, the freighter 'Marsa' was sunk. During the attack a Coastal Command Liberator from 224 Sqdrn arrived from an anti U-boat patrol and not only interrupted the attack but took on the bombers with its own defensive guns, forcing the Germans to break off the attack and head for home. Greater successes were thwarted by the escort's AA fire. The crew of Oblt. von Berg from 5./KG 40 were reported missing while 5 of the crew of Ofw. Freyer from 4./KG 40 were killed in a crash at St. Christoly. 'U-648' shot down a RAF Liberator a/c (Sqn 53/A) near Convoy SL-139. 'U-155' was badly damaged in an attack by enemy aircraft.

 

[Njaco]

22 NOVEMBER 1943

WESTERN FRONT: RAF Bomber Command sent 14 Wellingtons to lay mines: eight lay mines in the Frisian Islands and four lay mines off Texel Island. During the night of 22/23 November, an RAF Bomber Command bomber dropped leaflets over France.

Whilst undertaking operation Barbara, midget submarine Welman 46 (one of four such craft on the operation) which was commanded by Lt. B Pedersen of the Norwegian Army was spotted making an approach to the Laksevåg floating dock at Bergen and was captured. This was the only instance of operational use of the Welman submarines: Welman 45, 47 and 48 were abandoned by their operators (who were all later recovered to the UK by MTB). Lt. Pedersen made three escapes from a naval PoW camp but his fourth was frustrated by the arrival of the British Army in May 1945. Welman features may have been used in the German Biber miniature submarines.

GERMANY: Battle of Berlin: Harris' bombing campaign against Berlin continued. RAF Bomber Command dispatched 764 aircraft, 469 Lancasters, 234 Halifaxes, 50 Stirlings and 11 Mosquitos, to bomb Berlin; 670 aircraft bomb. This was the greatest force sent to Berlin so far but it was also the last raid in which Stirlings were sent to Germany. Bad weather again kept most of the German fighters on the ground and the bomber force was able to take a relatively "straight in, straight out" route to the target without suffering undue loss. Twenty six aircraft, Lancasters, ten Halifaxes and five Stirlings, were lost, 3.4 per cent of the force. Berlin was again completely cloud-covered and returning crews could only estimate that the marking and bombing were believed to be accurate, In fact, this was the most effective raid on Berlin of the war. A vast area of destruction stretched from the central districts westwards across the mainly residential areas of Tiergarten and Charlottenburg to the separate suburb city of Spandau. Because of the dry weather conditions, several "firestorm" areas were reported and a German plane next day measured the height of the smoke cloud as 6,000 meters (19,685 feet). It was estimated that 175,000 people were bombed out. 2000 civilians were killed, including 500 who died when an air raid shelter took a direct hit from a 4000lb bomb. Interesting entries among the lists of buildings destroyed or severely damaged were: the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche (the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church), the Charlottenburg Castle, the Berlin Zoo, much of the Unter den Linden, the British, French, Italian and Japanese embassies, the Ministry of Weapons and Munitions, the Waffen SS Administrative College, the barracks of the Imperial Guard at Spandau and, among many industrial premises, five factories of the Siemens electrical group and the Alkett tank works which had recently moved from the Ruhr. In secondary raids, 12 Mosquitos were dispatched to hit three targets: six bombed the city of Leverkusen, four attacked the I.G. Farben chemical plant at Leverkusen and one bombed the city of Hannover.

UNITED KINGDOM: A Halifax bomber had just taken off from Croft airfield, County Durham, and had reached 500' when it suddenly dived into the ground at Blue Anchor Farm, Scotch Corner at 19.26. Six of the crew were killed and one was injured.

MEDITERRANEAN: The British bridgehead on the north side of the Sangro River was now 5 miles wide and 2,000 yards deep. Getting supplies across the river due to the rain was a very arduous task and the hold on the bridgehead remained tenuous.

Over 100 USAAF Twelfth Air Force XII Air Support Command P-40s, B-25 Mitchells, and RAF Baltimores, attacked strongpoints in the Lanciano-Fossacesia area, concentrating on gun positions. P-40s also hit roads and railways at Fabriano, the towns of Viticuso and Vallerotonda, and as far north as Urbino; A-36 Apaches hit chemical works, harbor and railroad yards at Civitavecchia and bombed the village of San Vittore del Lazio. USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-26 Marauders, escorted by P-38 Lightnings, hit the railroad center at Foligno, scoring numerous hits; others attacked a bridge at Ciciana. During the night, forty three RAF aircraft of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bombed Ciampino Airfield while one aircraft dropped leaflets over the battlefield.

Minesweeper HMS 'Hebe' was mined off Bari, in an area that had been swept twice the previous day. There were 38 casualties and 72 survivors of whom 38 had received fractures due to being thrown into the air by the explosion.

NORTH AFRICA: The SEXTANT Conference between U.S. President Franklin D Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston S Churchill and Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek begins in Cairo. Talks last until 26 November and concern Operation OVERLORD (the overall plan for the invasion of western Europe), the possibility of expanding operations in the Mediterranean, and future operations against Japan. It is decided to make an amphibious landing and offensive in Burma (Operation CHAMPION) and to base B-29 Superfortresses in the China-Burma-India Theater (Operation TWILIGHT). They discuss Burma and China plans without making any decisions. They also do not prepare a plan for the upcoming discussions with Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin in Teheran, Iran.

SOUTH AMERICA: A Brazilian expeditionary force is to be sent to Europe, the Brazilians announced today. At least 60,000 men will cross the Atlantic to assist the Allied fight on European soil. Brazil's air force, though heavily engaged in the defence of Brazil's extensive coastline, will also send a contingent to Europe. Brazil declared war on the Axis powers on 22 August last year, after a series of U-boat attacks on several merchant ships in Brazilian waters.

 

[Njaco]

23 NOVEMBER 1943

WESTERN FRONT: Seven RAF Bomber Command Mosquitos bombed Texel Island. Eighty three USAAF Ninth Air Force B-26 Marauders bombed Berck-sur-Mer and Longuenesse Airfields at Saint-Omer.

The unescorted 'Elizabeth Kellogg' (Master Norman Thomson Henderson) was hit by one torpedo from 'U-516' 150 miles north of Cristobal. The torpedo struck on the port side at the #4 tank amidships. The explosion ruptured the #2, #3 and #4 port tanks and threw burning oil all over the ship. The ship caught fire from the bridge to the poop deck and killed all the deck officers. Flames shot through the ventilators into the engine room and prevented the watch below from throttling down the engines. The survivors of seven officers, 29 men and twelve armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, two .50cal and two .30cal guns) abandoned ship in two lifeboats, two rafts and others jumped into the water. The burning tanker with engines full speed astern and her rudder hard aport made large circles around the survivors. The master, four other officers, three men and two armed guards died in the attack. The after magazine exploded after six hours, broke her back and the fire burned out after about twelve hours. An aircraft spotted the stopped tanker, took a picture and reported the position. The American tug USS 'Favorite' (IX 45) and several escort vessels were sent to salvage the ship, but the vessel sank before they arrived. On 24 November, the Army tanker USAT Y-10 picked up six survivors and the submarine chaser USS SC-1017 the remaining survivors. All were landed in Cristobal the same day.

'U-648' was sunk NE of the Azores, by depth charges from frigates HMS 'Bazely', 'Blackwood', and 'Drury'. 50 dead (all hands lost).

GERMANY: Battle of Berlin: RAF bombers returned to the city, killing 1,315 people in a raid in which the Germans tried to confuse the RAF by using a woman's voice to direct their fighters; the RAF responded by using a woman's voice to direct the bombers. 383 aircraft, 365 Lancasters, ten Halifaxes and eight Mosquitos, to continued the attack on Berlin; 322 bombed the target. The bombing force used the same direct route as had been employed yesterday. The German controllers made an early identification of Berlin as the probable target; their single-engined fighters were gathered over the city before the arrival of the bombers and other fighters arrived a few minutes later. Fake instructions broadcast from England caused much annoyance to the German who was giving the "running commentary;" the Germans started using a female commentator but this was promptly countered by a female voice from England ordering the German pilots to land because of fog at their bases. "Spoof" fighter flares dropped by Mosquitos north of the bomber stream also caused some diversion of German effort. Bomber crews noticed that flak over the target was unusually restrained, with the German fighters obviously being given priority. Twenty aircraft, all Lancasters, were lost, 5.2 per cent of the bomber force. The target was again cloud-covered and the Pathfinders carried out skymarking, but many of the Main Force crews aimed their bombs through the cloud at the glow of 11 major fires still burning from yesterday. Much further destruction was caused in Berlin. In other raids, four Oboe Mosquitos attacked Cologne while one each attacked the Knapsack power-station near Cologne and the city of Emden without loss.

A test flight of the first true jet fighter aircraft, the Me-262 was made for Hitler at Insterburg, East Prussia. Hitler inexplicably declared that the plane must be capable of carrying bombs. This remarkable aircraft could have potentially turned the tide of the air war over German in favor of the Nazis had it gone into production earlier.

MEDITERRANEAN: In the U.S. Fifth Army's II Corps area, the 1st Special Service Force, a highly trained group of Canadians and Americans under Colonel Robert T. Frederick, was attached to the 36th Infantry Division. Weather limited USAAF Twelfth Air Force operations to fighter patrols of the battle area.

 

[Njaco]

24 NOVEMBER 1943

WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF Eighth Air Force's VIII Bomber Command flew Mission 136: seven B-17 Flying Fortresses dropped 2.4 million leaflets over Lille, France; and Brussels, Antwerp, Charleroi and Ghent, Belgium. USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers bombed Toulon harbor, sinking light cruiser 'Jeanne de Vienne', destroyer 'Aigle' and sloop SG 21.

The unescorted 'Melville E. Stone' (Master Lawrence J. Gallagher) was hit by two torpedoes from 'U-516' about 100 miles northwest of Cristobal. The ship was less than seven hours in sea when the torpedoes were spotted by a lookout. The first torpedo struck on the port side in the settling tank and the second hit ten seconds later near #4 hold. The explosions opened large holes in the side and extensively damaged the main and auxiliary engines. As the ship settled rapidly on an even keel, the ten officers, 32 crewmen, 23 armed guards (the ship was armed with one 4in, one 3in and eight 20mm guns) and 23 passengers (military personnel) abandoned ship immediately in rough seas. Two of the lifeboats capsized from the suction created by the ship, which sank within eight minutes and several men drowned, including the master. Three boats got away and later picked up men from rafts and debris. The survivors were later spotted by an aircraft, which dropped flares so that the American submarine chasers USS SC-1023 and USS SC-662 could pick them up. Five officers, seven crewmen, two armed guards and one passenger were lost.

Survivors of U.S. tanker 'Elizabeth Kellogg', torpedoed by German submarine 'U-516' on 22 November 1943, were rescued by submarine chaser SC-1017 and Army tanker Y 10. Eight of the tanker's 36-man merchant complement and two of the 12-man Armed Guard perished with the ship.

MEDITERRANEAN: The U.S. Fifth Army outlined a final plan of attack to begin about 2 December. The first phase called for the capture of the Mt. Camino-Mt. Ia Difensa-Mt. Maggiore area, to be preceded on 1 December by the capture of Calabritto. In the second phase, Mt. Sammucro was to be cleared in conjunction with a drive west along the Colli-Atina road. The third phase was to be an attack into the Liri Valley. In the British Eighth Army area, XIII Corps captured Castel Alfedena. The corps bridgehead north of the Sangro River was now firmly established.

Northwest African Tactical Bomber Force bombers, along with RAF Desert Air Force fighter-bombers, in close support of the British Eighth Army, hit gun positions and defended points in the Fossacesia area. The USAAF Twelfth Air Force XII Air Support Command A-36 Apaches, in support of the U.S. Fifth Army, hit roads northwest of the battleline, and bombed the harbor at Civitavecchia. During the night, RAF No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group aircraft bombed four targets: Six bombed a ball bearing plant in Turin with the loss of one aircraft; and one each bombed a highway at Gallinaria, a railroad at Genoa and a highway at Savona. Seventeen USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses, with P-38 Lighting escorts, bombed the marshalling yard at Sofia with the loss of two aircraft.

EASTERN FRONT: German attacks at Korosten increased, forcing the Soviets to fall back.

 

[Njaco]

25 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Propaisk was liberated by the Soviets in their attacks near Mogilev and Gomel.

Obstlt. Dietrich Hrabak became the 337th soldier to be awarded the Eichenlaub for achieving 118 kills.

14(jabo)./JG 5 took part in a large combat over northern Finland. Two jabostaffel pilots made victory claims. Uffz. Rudolf Gerndt claimed an Airacobra southeast of Petsamo airfield and Ofw. Richard Luy claimed an IL-2 east of the airfield. 23 other claims were made for destructions of IL-2s and other fighters by III./JG 5 pilots.

WESTERN FRONT: 'U-600' was sunk in the North Atlantic north of Punta Delgada, by depth charges from the British frigates HMS 'Bazely' and HMS 'Blackwood'. 54 dead. 'U-849' was sunk in the South Atlantic West of the Congo estuary, by depth charges from a US Liberator aircraft (VP-107/B-6). 63 dead (all hands lost).

On a fighter sweep over Lille with 6./JG 26 and 8./JG 26, Major Johannes Seifert's Fw 190 was seen colliding with a P-38 from the US 55th FG, dive away out of control and crash. His body was found still strapped in the wreckage of his plane. He was posthumously promoted to Oberstleutnant. His final score was 57 kills.

GERMANY: At Erfurt airfield, a speed test of the new Focke-Wulf Ta 154 Moskito A0/U-1 resulted in a top speed of 620 kph with the aircraft fully armed. Also tested at this time was the Ta 154V-3, the first Moskito powered with the Jumo 213 engine. But the V-3 was too heavy because of its 4 20mm cannon, 30mm MG 108 high-speed cannon and FuG 212 Lichenstein C-1 Matratzen antenna array that its top speed was 75kph slower than expectations.

MEDITERRANEAN: II./JG 77 was re-equipped with the Macchi 205. The machine was fast and good to fly except for a tendancy to enter a spin easily when losing speed in tight turns. A further disadvantage was the fitting of an Italian radio. Despite talking over a powerful transmitter, it was barely possible to communicate with the aircraft. Finally, refueling and rearming were very intricate, so that establishing operational readiness was very protracted.

 

[Njaco]

26 NOVEMBER 1943

EASTERN FRONT: The Red Army has driven the Germans out of Gomel, north of the Pripet Marshes, and was chasing them along a 100-mile front in White Russia. This powerful and well-timed blow now cracked the Wehrmacht's winter line, and the Germans were forced out of the deep belts of well-equipped dugouts where they had intended to spend the winter in comparative comfort. Now they were being hounded into the marshes and forests where the snow was deep and the partisans lie in wait for the unwary. The German high command admited that the Russians were;

"..trying to interfere with our disengaging movements."

MEDITERRANEAN: The British transport HMT 'Rohna' was sunk by a German guided bomb in the Mediterranean Not wanting to give the enemy any information about its success, the American and British military did not acknowledge the sinking. The secrecy prevailed even after the war. About 2,200 American servicemen boarded the 'Rohna', which had been designed to carry 100 passengers in comfort, in Oran, Algeria. The largest single unit was the 853rd Engineer Aviation Battalion, which was going to India to build runways. The 'Rohna' left Oran and joined a convoy sailing from Great Britain. Since the departure was on Thanksgiving Day, the crew provided a holiday repast that didn't stay down long as the ship rolled through the swells. Seasickness, however, would be the least of their problems.

At 4:30 p.m. the next day, German bombers based in occupied France attacked the convoy. The attack lasted for an hour, and most soldiers saw none of it. All were ordered below, in many cases levels below deck. In additional to conventional bombs, German aircraft had Henschel 293 guided bombs. The large explosive was fitted with aluminium wings, rudders and rocket propulsion, and the bombardier guided it with radio signals. At about 5:15 p.m., a guided bomb struck the 'Rohna' near the waterline on the port side, blowing a hole through both sides of the ship. It hit near where much of the 853rd was berthed. About 300 were killed by the blast itself. It is impossible to determine how many survived but couldn't get out of the ship before it sank. Attempts to abandon ship were disastrous. Many of the lifeboats and rafts were frozen by rust or paint to their moorings. Instead of life vests, which would hold heads out of the water if the wearer was unconscious, soldiers had inflatable life rings. Many drowned while wearing them. Seas were rough enough to inhibit visibility, and night fell shortly after the attack. Five ships criss-crossed the water searching for survivors, who bobbed in and out of sight of the searchlights. The 853rd had 30 officers and and 93 enlisted men when the 'Rohna' left port. Now, 495 were gone, and 14and of the survivors were injured. As well, 134 British and Australian officers and Indian crew members died. The total death toll was 1,149. But the British, French and American defending aircrew made the following claims; 6 He 177A-3s lost and 3 He 177A-3s were destroyed in crash landings, all from II./KG 40. A further aircraft was claimed destroyed by the AA gunners aboard an LCI. The defenders lost a single Beaufighter.

Two Macchi 205s of II./JG 77 were scrambled on a recon flight of a castle where a partisan HQ was suspected.

GERMANY: Battle of Berlin: RAF Bomber command again sends bombers against Berlin, striking the city center. 443 Lancasters and 7 Mosquitos to Berlin and Stuttgart (diversion). Both forces flew a common route over Northern France and on nearly to Frankfurt before diverging. The German controllers thought that Frankfurt was the main target until a late stage and several bombers were shot down as they flew past Frankfurt. Only a few fighters appeared over Berlin, where flak was the main danger, but the scattered condition of the bomber stream at Berlin meant that bombers were caught by fighters off track on the return flight and the casualties mounted. 28 Lancasters were lost, 6.2 per cent of the force, and 14 more Lancasters crashed in England. The weather was clear over Berlin but, after their long approach flight from the south, the Pathfinders marked an area 6-7 miles north-west of the city centre and most aircraft bombed there. Because of Berlin's size, however, most of the bombing still fell within the city boundaries and particularly on the semi-industrial suburb of Reinickendorf; smaller amounts of bombing fell in the centre and in the Siemensstadt (with many electrical factories) and Tegel districts. 2-3000 civilians were killed in the raid. In addition, the Berlin Zoo was heavily hit, killing most of the animals but several large and dangerous animals - leopards, panthers, jaguars, apes - escaped and had to be hunted and shot in the streets. The diversionary raid on Stuttgart was carried out by 157 Halifaxes and 21 Lancasters. 6 Halifaxes lost, 3.4 per cent of the force. The bombing was very scattered and caused little damage but part of the night-fighter force was drawn off from the Berlin operation.

At Intersburg during an inspection of the new Me 262 jet fighter with the designer, Professor Willy Messerschmitt, Adolf Hitler asked the professor if the new jet could carry bombs. Messerschmitt gave him the answer that he had given Goring on 2 November. After being told it could carry 2200lb or 1100lb bombs, Hitler proclaimed that he had found his 'blitzbomber' that could keep the Allies off the beaches whenever the landings would happen. From this point on - in Hitler's mind - the Me 262 was expected to be a fighter-bomber and not the fighter so desperately needed. Messerschmitt ignored the 'will' of the Fuhrer and busily worked to put the machine into production as a fighter. Milch, upon reading intel reports on US bombers also pressed on with production of the Me 262 as a fighter. Though Milch made agreeable noises about building a fighter-bomber, little or nothing was done to that end.

350 B-17s, 77 B-24s and 13 B-17PFF aircraft attacked the port of Bremen. 22 B-17s and 3 B-24s were lost but only 4 to defending fighters. 128 B-17s were dispatched to Paris but aborted because the target was covered in cloud. These missions were escorted by 28 P-38s and 353 P-47s with the loss of 4 Thunderbolts.

Hptm. Wilhelm Fulda succeeded Hptm. Graf Resugier as Gruppenkommandeur of II./301.

 

[Njaco]

27 NOVEMBER 1943

GERMANY: Battle of Berlin: Sir Arthur Harris, the chief of Bomber Command, stated that the RAF will bomb the city until the heart of Nazi Germany stops beating. The capital was probably the most intensively bombed city anywhere, hit this year by 12,000 tons of explosive, of which 5,000 have been dropped in the past few days. Much of administrative Berlin has been hit, including the Air Ministry, Admiralty, Hitler's Chancellery and his train. The Führer was not in town, but dispatched fire engines to his capital from Brandenburg and Potsdam. Despite this, and the efforts of the army to create fire-breaks by blowing up buildings, fires spread rapidly.

Among several armaments factories hit was the Allkett tank factory. The greatest loss of life occurred when a bomber crashed onto a building, killing 92 people in the air-raid shelter. A Swede told journalists:

"The Berlin we know has ceased to exist."

MEDITERRANEAN: A British tank brigade crossed the Sangro River to offer further support to British forces north of the river. Tanks of the 4th Armoured Brigade and transport were brought across the Sangro River. In the British Eighth Army area, V Corps prepared to attack in the Adriatic coastal sector, weather conditions at last permitting close air support.

During the day and night, USAAF Twelfth Air Force fighters, light and medium bombers and aircraft of the associated RAF units of the Northwest African Tactical Air Force attacked enemy positions, gun emplacements, roads, vehicles, railroad facilities, and targets of opportunity in the Lanciano-Fossacesia-Castelfrentano-Casoli area. B-25 Mitchells also bombed Porto Civitanova. USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses, with P-38 Lightning escort, bombed three targets: 51 bombed the marshalling yard at Rimini with the loss of two aircraft; 39 bombed the marshalling yard at Grizzano; and 16 bombed a railroad bridge over the Reno River 25 miles (40 kilometers) southwest of Bologna.

USAAF Twelfth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bombed Sibenik, Yugoslavia.

A Me 410 from 2(F)./122 failed to return from a photo recce over the Naples area, but in fact got lost on the return leg to Perugia and landed at Montecorvino airfield, which was then in Allied hands. The Me 410 was captured intact and found to have on board a treasure trove of valuable signal documents. Fw. Hans Beyer (F) and Uffz. Helmut Hein (Bf) captured.

NORTH AFRICA: At a meeting of the South East Asia Command (SEAC) delegation to the Cairo Conference, U.S. Lieutenant General Joseph Stilwell, Commander in Chief, U.S. China-Burma-India Theater of Operations (CBI); Chief of Staff to Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek; Commander in Chief Northern Area Combat Command (NCAC); and Deputy Commander in Chief SEAC, revealed that Chiang Kai-Shek was unwilling to fulfill his commitments agreed to at Cairo and wanted Stilwell to hold out for an airborne assault on Mandalay, Burma, (Operation TOREADOR) and 10,000 tons (9 072 metric tonnes) a month over the Hump.

NORTH AMERICA: The USN placed an order for two prototype Grumman (Model G-58 ) XF8F-1 Bearcats.

The one and only Martin (Model 170) XPB2M-1R Mars flying boat transport was delivered to the USN's Transport Squadron Eight (VR-8 ) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. On 30 November, this aircraft carried a 13,000 pound (5 897 kilogram) cargo load on a 4,375 mile (7 041 kilometer) nonstop flight from NAS Patuxent River to Natal, Brazil.

Brigadier General Kenneth B Wolfe becomes Commanding General XX Bomber Command.

WESTERN FRONT: 'U-238' rescued two pilots from a Wellington aircraft (172 Sqn RAF), which was shot down by 'U-764'.

A Ju 88A-4 belonging to 11./KG 30 hit trees in the hills east of Eode Molle, south of Gravlev, crashed to the ground and was engulfed in flames, killing the crew of four.

EASTERN FRONT: The fighters of JG 52 lost another experte when Paul Eberhardt (20 kills) was killed in action against the Russians.

 

[Njaco]

WESTERN FRONT: Further confirmation of the existence of the V1 Flying-Bomb was made during a photographic reconnaissance mission by a No. 540 Squadron Mosquito.

'U-542' was sunk north of Madeira by depth charges from a British Wellington aircraft with "Leigh light" (Sqn 179/H). 56 dead (all hands lost).

10 RAF Mosquitos flew to Essen and 1 to Duisburg, with 10 aircraft conducting minelaying off Brest and Cherbourg.

B-26s were recalled over S France due to bad weather; the medium bombers and their fighter escort claimed 5 fighters destroyed in combat over the French coast.

EASTERN FRONT: Northwest of Gomel near Zhlobin, the Russian Army advanced.

MEDITERRANEAN: The British 8th Army began an offensive to again cross the Sangro River. Montgomery declared that;

"..the road to Rome is open"

...as the Eighth Army launched its heavy attack across the Sangro. Aircraft and artillery bombardment was heavy in preparation. The attack was spearheaded by the Indian 8th Division and heavily supported by artillery and air assets. The German 65th Infantry division defending the area took heavy losses and withdrew in disorder before German reinforcements restored the situation. By the end of the day the British 8th Indian Division almost reached Mozzogrogna.

HMS 'Birmingham' was torpedoed and very seriously damaged by 'U-407' off the coast of Cyrenaica. The cruiser managed to reach Alexandria, where temporary repairs were carried out. In June 1944, she sailed to the USA for permanent repairs and returned to service in November 1944.

In Yugoslavia, B-25s bombed warehouses, docks, marshalling yards, barracks, shipping, and other targets at Sibenik, Zara, and Dubrovnik; RAF DAF fighters strafed trains between Dubrovnik and Metkovic.

IRAN: Beginning today Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin, with their respective staff, met in Teheran. Lasting for four days the meetings confirmed the Overlord plan in May of 1944 and the Anvil plan for southern France. Stalin agreed to join the war against Japan after the war in Europe was over. This conference will become controversial in US Politics, because the American accommodations were bugged by their hosts. Roosevelt also hesitated to appear to Stalin as too close to Churchill. This hesitation was claimed to have allowed the Soviets more concessions than otherwise would have been allowed.