This day in the war in Europe 65 years ago

[syscom3]

8 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: The German attacks around Mortain continue as they attempt to recapure Avranches. The US 3rd Army continues its advance in Brittany. The US 79th Division enters Le Mans. The newly activated XX Corps advances toward Nantes and Angers. The 1st Canadian Army launches Operation Totalize down the Falaise Road.

In France, the USAAF's Ninth Air Force dispatches 406 B-26s and A-20 Havocs to bomb a rail embankment and bridges at 8 locations in northern and western France, attack radar installations between Argentan and Alencon, and give tactical support to ground forces near Saint-Malo; fighters escort IX Bomber Command aircraft, give defensive air cover, and fly armed reconnaissance east of Paris and in the battle area.

The USAAF's Eighth Air Force in England flies Mission 530: 414 B-24s and 265 fighters are dispatched to attack airfields and V-weapon sites in France; 115 hit V-weapons sites in the Pas de Calais; 91 hit Clastres Airfield, 53 hit Romilly air depot, 50 hit La Perthe Airfield, 12 hit Athies Airfield at Laon, 14 hit railroad bridges, 13 hit targets of opportunity and 11 hit Bretigny Airfield; 1 B-24 is lost. Escort is provided by 265 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51s; 2 P-51s are lost. Mission 531: 681 B-17s and 100 P-51s are dispatched to bomb enemy troop concentrations and strongpoints south of Caen; 25 Canadian soldiers are killed and 131 wounded by short bombing; 231 hit Cauvincourt, 99 hit Bretteville-sur-Laise strongpoint, 99 hit St Sylvain strong point, 67 hit targets of opportunity and 1 hits Gouvix strongpoint; ; 7 B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 91 P-51s; 3 are lost. 41 P-51s escort RAF Coastal Command Beaufighters on a convoy strike in Norway; 3 P-51s are lost. 175 P-38s, P-47s and P-51s fly a fighter-bomber mission against the railroad north and west of Dijon, France; 2 P-47s and 2 P-51s are lost. Mission 532: 5 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night.

Luftflotte 3 issued orders that in the event of an Allied landing in Southern France, Stab and III./KG 100 were to be subordinated to Fl.Div. 2. The Division was also told that for fuel reasons, FAG 5 would be operating only single aircraft on weather recce when a Westa was not available.

EASTERN FRONT: Most of Warsaw is now controlled by forces of the Polish resistance. SS General Bach-Zelewski is appointed to lead the defending German forces.

The USAAF's Eighth Air Force in England continues to fly shuttle missions as 78 B-17s with 55 P-51 Mustang escorts, leave bases in the USSR to hit airfields in Rumania; 38 hit Bizau and 35 hit Zlistea; no Luftwaffe fighters are encountered during the mission and the force flies to Italy.

After having flown 480 sorties Oberleutnant Fritz Seyffardt, Staffelkapitän of 5./SG 2 was awarded the Ritterkreuz, primarily in recognition of his aerial victories. Thirty victories was a particularly valiant effort for an Fw 190 ground-attack pilot.

GERMANY: The first confirmed jet kill in history occurred when Me 262s of Ekdo 262 downed an RAF Mosquito near Munich in the afternoon. Lt. Joachim Weber destroyed the PR XVI Mosquito from RAF No. 540 Squadron over Ohlstadt. Despite the claim of 26 July of a Mosquito that was destroyed but actually escaped to Italy, the destruction of the Spitfire stood as the first jet kill.

 

[syscom3]

9 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: The Canadian II Corps continues to attack along the Caen-Falaise road. The German attacks around Mortain are running out of steam. The US XV Corps heads from Le Mans toward Argentan to assist the Canadians.

In France, the USAAF Ninth Air Force sends close to 400 B-26s and A-20 Havocs to attack an ammunition dump in Foret de Blois, shipping at Brest, and other targets, including rail bridges at 10 locations in northern and western France; fighters escort IX Bomber Command aircraft, cover ground forces, and fly armed reconnaissance in the wide areas of northern France (around Paris, as far south as Orleans, and as far northeast as Reims and Chalons-sur-Marne).

EASTERN FRONT: By this day the battle of Ilomantsi has ended. During the ten days of fighting the Finns lose 1700 men KIA or wounded; Soviet casualties are estimated at 3000 men. This is the last significant battle of Continuation War that is about to end in few weeks. The battle ends in a 'real' Finnish victory (unlike the earlier battles of Tali-Ihantala, Vuosalmi and Bay of Viipuri, which are classed by Finnish military historians as 'defensive victories', the opposing Soviet divisions are effectively destroyed as fighting formations.

GERMANY: The chief defendants of the 20 July attempt on Hitler's life are tried by Roland Freisler's People's Court and condemned to death. They are hanged two hours later.

The USAAF's Eighth Air Force in England flies 3 missions. Mission 533: 824 bombers and 675 fighters, in 3 forces, are dispatched to strategic targets (aircraft and tank factories, airfields and fuel depots) in southeastern Germany; weather deteriorated enroute and many bombers were recalled when confronted with a front rising to 28,000-feet (8,534 m) and most units attacked targets of opportunity; only 25 bombers hit their primary (Sindelfingen) ; 18 bombers and 3 fighters are lost; targets were (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of bombers bombing). (1) Of 359 B-17s, 103 hit Pirmasens; 56 hit Elsenborn, 41 hit Karlsruhe, 30 hit Ulm, 8 hit Spreicher and marshalling yards at Saarbrucken (34) and Luxembourg (29); 11 B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 243 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs; 1 P-47 and 1 P-51 are lost. (2) Of 218 B-17s, 16 hit Aacen, 12 hit Eindhoven, 12 hit St Vith marshalling yard and 7 hit targets of opportunity; 3 B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 162 P-47s and P-51s without loss. (3) Of 247 B-24s, 147 hit Saarbrucken marshalling yard and 25 hit an aircraft engine plant at Sindelfingen; 4 B-24s are lost. Escort is provided by 165 P-38 Lightnings, P-47s and P-51s; 1 P-38 is lost. Mission 535: 3 B-17s fly a Micro H test mission against Aubigny, France airstrip. Escort is provided by 16 P-38s without loss. Mission 536: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France and the Netherlands during the night. 116 P-47s, escorted by 40 P-51s, are dispatched on fighter-bomber missions against communications in France without loss.

MEDITERRANEAN: The USAAF Fifteenth Air Force in Italy dispatches around 400 B-17s and B-24s, with fighter escort, hit targets in Hungary and Yugoslavia; B-17s bomb an aircraft assembly plant and a rolling stock plant at Gyor, Hungary and a marshalling yard and oil refinery at Brod, Yugoslavia; B-24s bomb 2 airfields and an oil refinery at Budapest, Hungary.

An Allied raid on Bergamo-Seriate in northern Italy was to have been the first of a series hitting at German units that might intervene against the intended Allied landings in southern France. The B-26s of 17th BG, 42nd BW dropped 350 x 250lb bombs on the airfield causing "at least 50 craters" on the concrete runway while the Wing's other two groups dropped fragmentation bombs with:

"...excellent results, completely covering the centre of the south dispersal area, starting numerous fires, destroying eight aircraft and damaging others."

Three German aircraft were seen to take off just before the bombs fell, one of them crashing 10 miles from the airfield. The raid's success was confirmed by Luftflotte 2 which reported all its FuG 200 aircraft (i.e. the Ju 188s of 6.(F)/122) lost and asked Fl.Div. 2 to provide that night's cover instead. Why a reconnaissance base in northern Italy had been targeted was not clear. The Luftwaffe in Italy was at a low numerical ebb already and practically devoid of offensive capability, while in the invasion area itself were three operational anti-shipping Gruppen, a fighter Gruppe and two Staffeln engaged in long-range over-water reconnaissance.

 

[syscom3]

10 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: Vimont, S of Caen, falls to the Canadian 1st Army. St. Malo and Dinard are liberated by the forces under General Middleton. The XX Corps liberates Nantes, France. German forces in the Mortain area withdraw slightly bowing to US pressure and the threat to their rear areas.

In France, the USAAF's Ninth Air Force sends almost 200 B-26s and A-20s to bomb rail bridges and embankments in wide areas around Paris; fighters escort bombers, support ground forces, give defensive cover, and fly armed reconnaissance in battle areas and around Amiens, Paris, Cambrai, Meaux, Dijon, and Troyes.

The USAAF Eighth Air Force in England flies 4 mission. Mission 537: 175 B-24 and 249 fighters are dispatched against fuel dumps and bridges southeast of Paris; 38 hit Clamecy Bridge, 31 hit Joigny, 31 hit Pacy-sur-Armencon, 26 hit Sens, 23 hit St Florentin and 13 hit targets of opportunity; 1 B-24 is lost. Escort is provided by 238 P-51s; 3 P-51s are lost. Mission 538: 138 fighters are dispatched to hit rail targets in central and eastern France; 5 fighters are lost. Mission 539: B-17s drops leaflets on Brest, France. Mission 540: 4 B-17s drop leaflets in France and Norway during the night. 583 fighters are dispatched to hit rail targets in France; they claim 19 Luftwaffe aircraft; 2 P-38s and 4 P-51s are lost.

German submarine 'U-608' is sunk about 85 nautical miles (158 kilometers) west-northwest of La Rochelle, France (46.30N, 03.08W) by depth charges from the British sloop HMS 'Wren' (U 28 ) and a British Liberator Mk. V or VI of No. 53 Squadron based at St Eval, Cornwall, England. All 52 crewmen of the U-boat survive.

MEDITTERRANEAN: The Polish II Corps reaches the Cesano River in Italy.

The USAAF Fifteenth Air Force in Italy sends 450+ B-17s and B-24s, with fighter escort, to bomb 6 oil refineries in the Ploesti, Rumania area. 45 Eighth Air Force P-51s in Italy during an Operation FRANTIC mission are dispatched with Fifteenth Air Force aircraft to escort a troop carrier evacuation mission.

 

[syscom3]

11 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: Hitler refuses Feldmarschal Kluge's request to withdraw from Mortain. US forces cross the Loire River in France.

In France, the US Ninth Air Force sends A-20 Havocs and B-26 Marauders to attack bridges at Montrichard, Oissel, Fismes, and Creil/Saint- Maximin, gun defenses at Ile de Cezembre and Saint-Malo, and an ammunition dump at Foret de Roumare; fighters cover the assault area, escort IX Bomber Command aircraft, and fly armed reconnaissance in the battle area and extensively over northern France.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 3 missions today (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of bombers attacking the target). Mission 541: 660 bombers and 300+ fighters, in 5 forces, are dispatched to attack 13 marshalling yards, fuel dumps, airfields, and targets of opportunity, in northeastern France and the Paris area; 4 bombers are lost (1) B-17 Flying Fortresses attack Belfort (76) and Mulhouse (76) marshalling yards and 1 B-17 hit a target of opportunity. (2) B-24s bomb Coulommiers Airfield (47), Pacy-sur-Armancon (36) and St Florentin (34). (3) 76 B-17s bomb the Villacoublay aircraft depot; 1 B-17 is lost. (4) 45 B-24s attack Toussus le Noble Airfield; 9 others hit Saran Airfield at Orleans. (5) B-24s, bomb the Strasbourg fuel dump (66); marshalling yards at Strasbourg (65) and Saarbrucken (60); Nivelles Airfield (10) and 1 hits a target of opportunity; 3 B-24s are lost. Mission 542: 275 B-17s attack 23 arsenal areas, barracks, concrete emplacements and heavy artillery posts in and around Brest, France; 1 B-17 is lost. Mission 541 and 542 are escorted by 356 P-38s and P-51 Mustangs; 1
P-51 is lost. Mission 543: 1 B-17 flies a Micro H test against La Chenaie rail bridge. Escort is provided by 7 P-47 Thunderbolts. Mission 544: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in Franc during the night. 165 P-47s fly a fighter sweep of the Paris area; they claim 5-0-0
Luftwaffe aircraft. 28 B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions in France.

German submarine 'U-385' is sunk about 64 nautical miles (118 kilometres) south-southwest of its' base at Saint-Nazaire, France (46.16N, 02.45W) by depth charges from the British sloop HMS 'Starling' (U 66) and depth charges from an Australian Sunderland Mk III of No. 461 Squadron based at Pembroke Dock, Wales; 42 of the U-boat crew of 43 survive.

German submarine 'U-967' is scuttled in Toulon; two crewmen die.

EASTERN FRONT: South of Lake Peipus a new offensive begins by the Soviet 3rd Baltic Front.

NORTH AMERICA: An electric-powered rescue hoist is installed on a USCG HNS-1 helicopter at CGAS Floyd Bennett Field, New York. During the ensuing 4-day test period, in which flights are conducted over Jamaica Bay, the feasibility of rescuing personnel from the water and of transferring personnel and equipment to and from underway boats is demonstrated. In late September, a hydraulic hoist, which overcomes basic disadvantages of the electric hoist, is installed and successfully tested, leading to its adoption for service use.

GERMANY: II./JG 11 was increased to four Staffeln with a new 7./JG 11 and 8./JG 11 from the old 4./JG 11. III./JG 4 moved from Rotenburg to Hoya.

 

[syscom3]

12 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: The US XV Corps liberates Alencon, France and advances towards Argentan to meet the German 116th Division.

The first PLUTO begins pumping fuel from the Isle of Wight to Cherbourg, France. P(ipe) L(ine) U(nder) T(he) O(cean).

In France, US Ninth Air Force A-20 Havocs and B-26s attack the Oissel rail bridge, Corbeil-Essonnes refueling siding, and numerous points along highways in the Argentan area with the aim of bottling up enemy troops; fighters fly ground forces cover and armed reconnaissance over wide areas of western and northern France, also escort IX Bomber Command aircraft.

The Eighth Air Force also flies two missions: Mission 545: 577 bombers and 436 fighters, in 2 forces, are dispatched to make visual attacks on the Metz marshalling yard and airfield in central and eastern France; 3 bombers and 3 fighters are lost (number in parenthesis are the number of bombers attacking the target). (1) 276 B-24s are dispatched to hit airfields at Mourmelon (75), Laon/Athies (63), Laon/Couvron (61) and Juvincourt (52); 3 B-24s are lost. (2) 301 B-17s are dispatched to hit airfields at Chaumont (72), Buc (67), La Perthe (5 8 ) and Etampes/Mondesir (12);and 69 hit the Metz marshalling yard. The 2 forces above are escorted by 386 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs; they claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 P-51s are lost. Mission 546: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night. 486 P-38s, P-47s and P-51s attack transportation targets in the Paris and Brussels areas; they claim 18-0-0 aircraft; 1 P-38s, 5 P-47s and 7 P-51s are lost. 220 P-47s and P-51s attack transportation targets in northeastern France; 2 P-51s are lost.

With the Luftwaffe almost convinced that an Allied landing was imminent in southern France, Fl.Div. 2's urgently requested to Luftflotte 3 for aircraft torpedoes to be delivered by rail and - at 09.00 hours - III./KG 100's subordination to the Division. It was 2./NAGr. 13 that brought hard information of Allied intentions. At 04.40 hours three Fw 190s took off to photograph Ajaccio. Lt. Georg Pemler was in one of the pair that continued:

" On 12.8.44, I flew the morning reconnaissance of the bay of St. Florent. By this time the assembly of the Allied landing fleet was almost complete, their air superiority crushing."

The Fw 190s had picked up two large convoys (each of about 75-100 merchant vessels and warships including two aircraft carriers) due south of Ajaccio, course northeast and entering harbor; in the harbor itself were another 20 vessels. Added to that, on the airfield were 8 gliders and 5 multi-engined aircraft. This news was sufficiently disquieting for Luftflotte 3 to order that reconnaissance of these convoys be continued;

"....by every means, day and night."

Later in the morning, an Me 410 was sent to photograph Ajaccio harbor and a report was made of one carrier leaving the Bay on a southwesterly course. A few hours earlier, another Me 410 had been to look at Sardinia. At 1100 hours, Luftflotte 2 signaled Fl.Div. 2 and FAGr. 122 that in the first half of the night a Hohentwiel aircraft was to return from France, carrying out a mission off the Italian west coast en route. Meanwhile, an Me 410 at Fl.Div. 2's end could also be used to pick up a convoy.

German fighters attacked bombers over Nîmes, shooting down six of them plus an escort fighter against Allied claims of eighteen destroyed or probable. This is something of an exaggeration since JGr. 200 only mounted 18 sorties that day in two scrambles from Aix Les Milles. At 0736 hours, the Gruppe sent up three aircraft of its 1. Staffel, two from the 2. Staffel and six of the 3 Staffel and Allied radio monitoring recorded that from 07.55-08.36 hours there was Luftwaffe reaction to bombing in the Toulon area where;

"...fighters engaged one formation and claimed a success at 0831 hours." RAF No. 232 Squadron reported that:" ...from 10/11000' bombers were seen attacking enemy positions in the Hyères Islands and in the area of U.3250. At 1030 hours 12 ME 109's flying on 090° at 15000' in 3 boxes of 4 were seen in the Cap Benat area. In the ensuing combat 2 ME 109's were destroyed one seen to fall into water in the Hyères roads and the second burst into flames in the air finally crashing to earth against a hillside in area of U.0030. No less than 6 other e/a were attacked but no positive damage was seen although cine-gun photograph may confirm expectations. The remaining e/a escaped [in] Westerly directions. At 1045 one of our a/c was hit presumed by e/a and Control reported position of Pilot [Lt. G.W. Gibb, SAAF] in sea at 4328N by 0881E to which ASR services were being sent... One e/a was seen to have instead of Nazi markings reported on others of formation 2 dark stripes on mainplane tops from leading to trailing edges inboard of which were roundels (colour not specified)."

Ofw. Eduard Isken of 2./JGr.200 and Obgefr. Horst Rippert of 3./JGr.200 were each credited with a Spitfire. The latter coincides precisely with the claim heard over the airwaves but both are earlier than the RAF's timing of the hit on Lt. Gibb. Early in the evening, 42 P-47s of 82nd FW attacking a marshalling yard were attacked by six bandits (among them three Bf 109s of 1./JGr. 200, scrambled at 1605 hours) after leaving the target area: two P-47s were damaged. The Americans claimed one Fw 190 and 1-0-1 Bf 109s (by 522nd FS) while a fighter from 524th FS damaged another Bf 109. In this action, Ofw. Eduard Isken of 2./JGr.200 was credited with a P-47 as were Fw. Herbert Guth of 3./JGr. 200 and Fähnrich Brandau of 1./JGr. 200. The latter was killed in his turn, shortly after bringing down his P-47 and Jagdgruppe 200 's pilot casualties for the day, all fatal, were recorded as follows: Fhr. Johannes Brandau, Uffz. Martin Hermanitz and Uffz. Kurt Kubeit.

It was on this day too that Jagdgruppe 200 moved from Aix-Les Milles to Avignon-East:

" . . . little more than a dirt landing strip and a Werft [workshop]. The aircraft are dispersed in dirt blast shelters camouflaged with brushwood."

After the morning's sightings the reconnaissance effort for the night and evening was intense: an Me 410 was up to photograph Ajaccio Bay and harbor and Propriano Bay and a Ju 88 covered the area west and northwest of Corsica to Ajaccio Bay, where it sighted three large vessels on radar, evaluated as carriers or battleships. Luftflotte 2 reported shipping sufficient for one division in Ajaccio and warned that a landing was to be expected in the South of France or Liguria "in the near future."

German submarine 'U-981' is sunk about 63 nautical miles (117 kilometres) northwest of Bordeaux, France (45.41N, 01.25W), by an air-laid mine in field "Cinnamon" and a British Halifax Mk. II, aircraft "F" of No. 502 Squadron based at RAF St. David's, Pembrokeshire, Wales; 40 of the 52 crewmen in the submarine survive.

MEDITERRANEAN: The liberation of Florence, Italy is completed.

The shuttle-bombing mission flown by US Eighth Air Force from UK-USSR-Italy- UK is completed; of the 72 B-17s taking off from Fifteenth Air Force bases in Italy, 3 have various problems; the others bomb Francazal Airfield, Toulouse, France and then proceed to the UK; 62 P-51 Mustangs (part of the shuttle-mission force) and 43 from the UK provide escort; no aircraft are lost; 70 B-17s and 58 P-51s land in the UK; 5 B-17s and 6 P-51s, either left in Italy or returning there during this mission, subsequently return to the UK.

In Italy, the US Fifteenth Air Force dispatches almost 550 fighter-escorted B-17s and B-24s to attack targets in France and Italy; the B-17s bomb gun positions in the Savona, Italy area; B-24s attack gun positions in the Genoa, Italy and the Marseilles, Toulon, and Sete areas of France; 100+ P-51s strafe radar installations and other coast-watching facilities along the southern French coast; these strikes are preparatory to Operation DRAGOON, the invasion of southern France.

German submarine 'U-198' is sunk about 169 nautical miles (314 kilometres) west-northwest of the Seychelles Islands (3.35S, 52.49E) by depth charges from the British frigate HMS 'Findhorn' (K 301) and the Indian sloop HMIS 'Godavari' (U 52). All 66 crewmen in the U-boat are lost.

UNITED KINGDOM: Lt. Kennedy was commissioned as a Naval Aviator in May, 1942. He flew Caribbean patrols until September, 1943 when he was transferred to England. He and his crew finished their rotation in May, 1944. They stayed though July, 1944 as they felt "D-Day" was important. The balance of the crew was rotated to the US. Lt. Kennedy chose to stay in England because he had heard of a new and special assignment for which volunteers had been requested which would require another month of the most dangerous type of flying. The Secret mission on which he lost his life was described by a fellow officer after it was declassified: Lt. Kennedy, regarded as an experienced Patrol Plane Commander, and a fellow-officer, an expert in radio control projects, was to take a "drone" Liberator bomber loaded with 21,170 pounds of high explosives into the air and to stay with it until two "mother" planes had achieved complete radio control over the "drone." They were then to bail out over England; the "drone," under the control of the "mother" planes, was to proceed on the mission which was to culminate in a crash-dive on the target, a V-2 rocket launching site in Normandy. The airplane was in flight with routine checking of the radio controls proceeding satisfactorily, when at 6:20 p.m. on August 12, 1944, two explosions blasted the "drone" resulting in the death of its two pilots. No final conclusions as to the cause of the explosions has ever been reached.

 

[syscom3]

13 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: Argentan is cleared by the US XV Corps. Bradley orders a halt. The US XII and XX Corps advance on Orleans and Chartres from the area of Le Mans. Hitler authorized the retreat of German forces in north-west France. Two days later he ordered the withdrawal of all German forces in southern France.

In France, US Ninth Air Force A-20 Havocs and B-26s attack the Oissel rail bridge, Corbeil-Essonnes refueling siding, and numerous points along highways in the Argentan area with the aim of bottling up enemy troops; fighters fly ground forces cover and armed reconnaissance over wide areas of western and northern France, also escort IX Bomber Command aircraft.

Four aircraft of III./KG 100 were operating out of Toulon from 0338-0547 hours and an early patrol by RAF No.72 Sqd sighted a Ju 88 in the area of Calvi, while 2./NAG 13 too continued scouting the sea lanes for Allied convoys

:". . . the appearance of the Focke-Wulfs always set off an ear-piercing drumfire of antiaircraft guns from scores of ships before the enemy snoopers fled for home."

One aircraft of 2./NAG 13 suffered accidental damage on a mission and the Allies bombed Aix-Les Milles Aerodrome, 1.(F)/33 reporting an aircraft destroyed and three damaged in these raids. Otherwise, there seems to have been little activity by the Luftwaffe during the daylight hours but from 2250-0635 hours, eight aircraft of 6./KG 77 were up on an operation, controlled from Istres and;

"...further shipping was seen approaching CORSICA from the south west."

'U-270' (Type VIIC) is sunk at 0010hrs in the Bay of Biscay west of La Rochelle, in position 46.19N, 02.56W, by depth charges from a Australian Sunderland aicraft (RAAF Sqdn. 461/A).

'U-547' (Type IXC/40) is damaged by mines in the Gironde near Pauillac and taken out of service at Stettin, 31 Dec 1944.

 

[syscom3]

14 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: The Canadians are about 5 miles north of Falaise, France. Their advance is assisted by the RAF with 4,000 tons of bombs. The US XV Corps moves east from Argentan toward Dreux as other US units move into Argentan. Except for the ancient citadel in the Port of St. Malo the city has been liberated.

OPERATION DRAGOON: The Allied invasion of the south of France, began with a parachute assault at night, in thick fog, to the west of St Raphael. The first recorded action by the Luftwaffe came between 0755 and 0824 hours when;

"...four aggressive a/c met heavies nr. Toulon."

In this encounter, Ofw. Isken and Uffz. Kniestedt claimed a P-51 each at 1023 hours local time.

According to civilians living near Cuers-Pierrefeu aerodrome,

"...the last plane took off from the field 14th August"

and only one abandoned Fw 190 from 2./NAG 13 was found there after the invasion. The Staffel was operational nonetheless with an Fw 190 and a Bf 109 on convoy recce over the Golfe du Lion from 0835-0945 hours. From 1138-1425 hours, an Fw 190 of 2./NAG 13 and four Bf 109s were on convoy recce south of Marseille-Toulon-Golfe du Lion but made no sightings

That afternoon, FAG 122 ordered one of its Me 410s at St. Martin to carry out a photo reconnaissance of La Maddalena early on the 15th, weather and state of aircraft permitting. Meanwhile there was undeniable evidence coming in that a major Allied amphibious operation was underway. At 1915 hours, 2./NAG 13 reported landing craft stretching 50 miles west from Ajaccio Roads and at 2035 hours, two convoys were sighted by Luftwaffe aircraft, 100 miles south of Menton. These totaled over 100 landing craft and included strong surface and air escorts. Meanwhile, the USAAF had wrecked the Luftwaffe's fighter control centre in Southern France. Ju 88s of 6./KG 77 were active all night (flying five sorties in all) and at 2222 hours shipping was reported 30 miles south of the Hyères Islands.

In France, the US Ninth Air Force sends A-20 Havocs and B-26 Marauders with fighter escort to hit several highway and rail bridges, junctions and sidings mostly beyond the battlelines to delay and complicate the German retreat; fighters fly armed reconnaissance over the Falaise, Broglie, and Chartres areas, and support ground forces, especially 7 armored and infantry divisions, over wide areas of northern and western France; a XIX Tactical Air Command squadron uniquely effects the surrender of a number of German ground troops, Germans on roads being strafed by the squadron northeast of Carrouges wave white flags, whereupon the planes buzz the road and shepherd the enemy troops into a column which then proceeds to US lines to surrender.

Eleven Fw 190s and six Bf 109s were lost with locations such as near Chartres, near Evreux, Ballancourt, Houdan, Nogent Le Rotrou, Mareuill sur Ourcq, Fere Champenoise, and Illiers. At 1025 hours 2/Lt. George M. Rhodes Jr. of 100th FS claimed an Fw 190 in the Toulon area. Fliegerdivision 2's losses during the day had been an aircraft of 1.(F)/33 damaged by bombing and two Ar 196 of 2./128 destroyed and one damaged by a Mosquito at Perpignan.

In England, the US Eighth Air Force flies 2 missions. Mission 552: 1,183 bombers and 429 fighters, in 4 forces, are dispatched to attack 9 airfields, 2 aero engine factories, 1 oil plant, 2 bridges, 2 rail junctions and other secondary and targets of opportunity in southwestern Germany, eastern France, and the Bordeaux, France region; 2 bombers and 1 fighter are lost (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of bombers attacking the target). (1) B-24s attack 3 airfields in France, Lyon/Bron (10 8 ), Dijon/Longvi (83) and Dole/Evaux (70); 2 bridges Anizy (46) and Fismes (34); and 12 B-24s hit Liart rail junction and 1 hits a target of opportunity; escort is provided by 92 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs. (2) B-24s bomb French rail junctions at Saintes (3 8 ) and Angouleme (3 8 ); escort is provided by 40 P-51s. (3) B-17s dispatched to Germany hit Ludwigshafen (144), Mannheim (110) and Sandhofen Airfield at Mannheim(72) ; 4 others hit targets of opportunity; 2 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 88 P-51s; (4) B-17s dispatched to Germany hit airfields at Hagenau (92), Metz/Frascaty (72), Florennes (24), Chievres (9); Stuttgart/Echterdin gen (72), Kaisereslautern (46), Sindelfingen (12), Trier (10) and targets of opportunity (16); escort is provided by 168 P-51s that claim 10-0-11 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 P-51 is lost. Mission 553: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night; they claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft. 37 B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions in France; 1 B-24 is lost. 136 P-38s and P-47s fly fighter-bomber missions in the Paris area; claiming 3-0-0 aircraft; 1 P-38 and 2 P-47s are lost.

The US Twelfth Air Force in Italy dispatches medium bombers to hit coastal defenses while fighter-bombers pound various gun positions, tracks, enemy HQ, and targets of opportunity in the Toulon-Nice area; fighters strafe radar installations and targets of opportunity along the south coast as Operation DRAGOON forces approach.

The US Fifteenth Air Force in Italy sends 540 B-24s and B-17s to bomb gun positions in the Toulon, France and Genoa, Italy areas as the Operation DRAGOON (the invasion of southern France) convoy heads for the French Mediterranean coast; 145 P-38s and P-51s strafe radar installations at several coastal points.

The German submarine 'U-618' is sunk in the Bay of Biscay west of St. Nazaire, in position 47.22N, 04.39W, by depth charges from the British frigates HMS 'Duckworth' and HMS 'Essington' and by depth charges from an RAF Liberator of No. 53 Squadron based at St Eval, Cornwall, England. All hands on the U-boat, 61 men, are lost.

EASTERN FRONT: The Focke-Wulf Ta 154 night-fighter program at the Polish production facility in Posen was terminated due to numerous crashes. Only eight Ta 154 A-1s were built before the end of the program.

 

[syscom3]

15 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: The British VIII Corps enters Tinchebray, France. From here to Falaise there is heavy fighting by other British and Canadian units. South from Tinchebray to Argentan the US VII and V Corps attack to the north. They have trapped the German 7th Army, the 5th Panzer Army, and Panzer Group Eberbach. A desperate retreat to the east begins for these units. FM Kluge attempts to visit the front and spends most of the day dodging Allied air strikes. His unavailablity increases Hitler's suspicions that Kluge is attempting to defect to the Allies.

Between Toulon And Cannes, in southern France, Operation Dragoon begins. The troops are General Alexander Patch's US 7th Army. General de Lattre's French II Corps will be the follow on troops. The defending German troops are General Weise's 19.Armee of 7 weak infantry divison and 11 Panzer divisions for the whole south and southeast of France. The US Special Service Force invades Levant and Port-Cros Island and secures the left flank of the assault area; French commandoes land east of Cap Negre and clear coastal defenses, the French Naval Assault Group lands southwest of Cannes and secures the right flank; the 1st Airborne Task Force drops in the rear of assault beaches and blocks off the invasion area from the interior; the main force, the US VI Corps, lands 3 divisions abreast between Nice and Toulon at 0800 hours local;

In northern France, 330+ A-20 Havocs and B-26s with fighter escort bomb Marseille-en-Beauvaisis and Foret de Chantilly ammunition and fuel dumps, rail bridges at Auvers-sur-Oise and L'Isle-Adam, Serqueux marshalling yard, and coastal defense at Saint-Malo; fighters fly cover for 5
infantry and armored divisions, and fly extensive armed reconnaissance over northern and western France.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies Mission 554: 932 bombers and 443 fighters, in 4 forces, are dispatched to attack 11 airfields in northwestern Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium in conjunction with 1,000 RAF heavy bombers and Mosquitos raiding 9 airfields in the Netherlands and Belgium; 16 bombers and 5 fighters are lost; numbers in parenthesis indicate the number of bombing attacking.
(1) B-17s bomb German airfields at Cologne/Ostheim (10 8 ), Frankfurt/Eschborn (65) and Wiesbaden (3 8 ); 3 others hit targets of opportunity; 9 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 112 P-51 Mustangs; 1 P-51 is lost. (2) B-24 Liberators attack German airfields at Wittmundhaafen (91), Zwischenahn (90), Vechta (67), Plantlunne (54) and Hopstein (10); 4 B-24s are lost; escort is provided by 163 P-38s and P-51s; 2 P-38s and 2 P-51s are lost. (3) B-17s bomb Dutch airfields at Handorf (109), Venlo (104) and Twente/Enschede (75); 3 others hit targets of opportunity; 2 B-17s are lost. (4) In Belgium, 59 65 B-24s hit Florennes/Juzaine Airfield and 1 hits a target of opportunity; 1 B-24 is lost. Forces (3) and (4) are escorted by 118 P-51s. 33 P-47 Thunderbolts dive-bomb and skip-bomb a repair shop and locomotives in the marshalling yard at Braine-le-Comtes; 1 P-47 is lost. 12 B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions during the night.

During the night of 14/15 August, the US Twelfth Air Force based in Italy, dispatches A-20s to bomb Le Vallon, Istres, and Orange/Plan de Dieu Airfields and other Rhone Valley targets while the US Seventh Army carries out preliminary operations to isolate Operation DRAGOON invasion beaches; A-20s bomb barracks in the invasion area while B-25s, B-26s, P-38s, and P-47s, supporting the invasion, pound beaches, enemy concentrations, and gun positions in coastal areas and later in the day move attacks inland to interdict enemy communications lines successfully hitting numerous bridges; fighters maintain constant patrol over the convoys and invasion area.

In the US Ninth Air Force's 50th and 53d Troop Carrier Wings, on loan to the Mediterranean Allied Air Force (MAAF), participate in the invasion of southern France as part of the Provisional Troop Carrier Air
Division.

The US Fifteenth Air Force in Italy flies its first night raid; 252 B-17s and B-24s after a predawn takeoff pound beaches in the Cannes-Toulon, France area in immediate advance of Operation DRAGOON; 28 other fighter-escorted B-17s bomb highway bridges over the Rhone River; B-17s sent against coastal gun positions abort the mission owing to poor visibility; and 166 P-51s escort Mediterranean Tactical Air Force (MATAF) C-47 Skytrains carrying airborne invasion troops.

The first aggressive action by the Luftwaffe was launched at 0510 hours, when JGr. 200 scrambled a formation of perhaps a dozen Bf 109s from its 1. and 2. Staffeln. The former was to provide top-cover while 2./ JGr.200 attacked the landing fleet with WGr. 21 mortars. Before they could come near, they ran into the Lightnings of 1st FG on "Grapes" patrol, the codename for relays of twelve P-38s patrolling at 12-15,000 feet between Fréjus and the Hyères Islands. The Germans were forced to jettison their rocket launchers while the Americans shed their "bombs" (probably drop tanks in fact). According to Uffz. Walter Lang of 1./ JGr 200 "everybody made for home as fast as he could", nevertheless the left landing gear of Lang's "white 16", was hit by anti-aircraft fire over the coast though he returned to base and got down successfully and the Messerschmitt was operational again by the next afternoon. During this engagement, 2/Lt. Robert A. Longworth of 71st FS claimed a Bf 109 and Capt. Thomas Edward Maloney of 27th FS claimed two in the St. Tropez area. The Germans conceded that two Bf 109s had been shot down with one of the pilots safe but Uffz. Hans Ludwig was missing.

Six Do 217s of III./KG 100 attacked between 1838 and 1959 hours, a seventh aborted. One hit was claimed with Fritz X and two with the Hs 293. III./KG 100 flew its last desperate missions against the landing fleet, heavily damaging the American destroyer 'Le Long', LST 312 and 384. LST 282 and a 7,000 ton freighter were sunk (the latter by Ofw. Kube's crew). Although one Allied source attributes the loss of two American LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicles/Personnel) to glider bombs as well, the victories reported seem excessive. Several ships were sunk or damaged by mines and shellfire however and these may have become confused with the few victims of the air attack.

LST 282 (Landing Ship, Tank) was 600 yards off St. Raphael and heading for shore when she was hit and caught fire. Although beached, she was a total loss and about 40 men aboard were killed. Bombs were also reported to have landed near USS 'Bayfield'. German guided weapons had sunk their last ship of the war and III./KG 100's work for the night was finished. Between 2050 and 2128 hours, two Fritz X and five Hs 293 aircraft landed at Blagnac. In the immediate aftermath, three Do 217s were reported lost: Ofw. Rudolf Blab's crew was still missing; Fw. Helmut Germann's bailed out; from 7. Staffel, Ofw. Rudolf Freiberg's plane was shot down by the ships' AA fire, the crew subsequently bailing out, to be rescued by Spanish fishermen and interned.

While the Dorniers were engaging the fleet, Ju 88s were also in action. I./KG 26 had been ordered to carry out a torpedo attack at St. Raphael while II. Gruppe was assigned a target just east of Cap Nègre, where French commandos had come ashore. Bombs were to be dropped only south of the road since German troops were to the north of it. According to Rudi Schmidt:

" Only a few crews could be sent into action and they found the same thing as they had a few weeks previously off the Normandy Invasion Coast. They could not get near the real targets, the transport ships and their war material. These lay within so strong a protective cordon of warships that to break through the massive defensive fire was simply not possible. To carry out a torpedo attack at all they had to search further out to sea where supply convoys were still running in. This torpedo attack was the last in the Mediterranean."

A few Ju 88s attacked shipping without result at dusk and only four from II./KG 26 operated: one broke off, two did not attack on account of the darkness and just one bombed the Cap Nègre landing point.

The German submarine 'U-741' is sunk in the English Channel northwest of Le Havre, in position 50.21N, 00.35W, by depth charges from the RN corvette HMS 'Orchis'. Of the 49 U-boat crewmen at an unknown depth, there is 1 crew that is able to self escape with Drager gear during sinking without an air lock. He survives as a PoW.

II./JG 1 was increased to four staffeln; 4./JG 1 was converted into 7./JG 1 and 8./JG 1 was formed from 7./JG 51, transferred in from the Eastern Front. From this point until 1945, II./JG 1 would consist of 5./JG 1, 6./JG 1, 7./JG 1 and 8./JG 1.

GERMANY: The Me 262 jets of Ekdo 262 destroyed their first and only heavy bomber, a lone Allied B-17 from the USAAF 303rd BG, flying along the Rhine shooting up river traffic near Stuttgart. Fw. Helmut Lennartz surprised the crew of the Flying Fortress, who were intensely watching the heavy flak in the area;

"I scored hits on the left wing. The effect of my 30mm shells was devastating. The wing was blown completely off."

When Fw. Lennartz landed the first person to congratulate him on his victory was Professor Willy Messerschmitt.

But Professor Messerschmitt's other unique fighter, the rocket propelled Me 163, was having some problems. Bad Zwischenahn was bombed resulting in another move for EK16, to Brandis.

 

[syscom3]

16 AUGUST 1944

EASTERN FRONT: The Russian attacks reach Osow, 7 miles NE of Warsaw where they are pushed back by a German counterattack.

Soviet Premier Josef Stalin announces the Soviets will give no help to the "reckless" Warsaw uprising by the anti-Communist Polish Home Army.

WESTERN FRONT: Canadian troops from II Corps enter Falaise. Polish units of the British I Corps advance west over the River Dives. The US XX Corps liberates Chartres, France.

The French II Corps lands and passes forward through the US lines in the South of France. Adolf Hitler orders the withdrawal of all German forces in southern France.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies Mission 557: 8 of 8 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night.

In France, the US Ninth Air Force dispatches about 130 B-26s and A-20s, with fighter escort, to hit a Foret de Roumare ammunition dump and rail bridges at Pont-Audemer, Thibouville, Brionne, Nassandres, and Le Bourg; fighters give air cover to an armored division and infantry forces, and fly patrol and armed reconnaissance over northern and western France.

In France, 108 US Fifteenth Air Force B-17s, supporting Operation DRAGOON, attack railroad bridges at Saint-Vallier, Saint-Pierre-d'Albigny, Grenoble, and Isere-Valence.

In support of the landings in Southern France (Operation DRAGOON): US Twelfth Air Force fighters and fighter-bombers continue to blast enemy defenses and communications on the beaches and in the invasion area of southern France; A-20s hit lights and vehicles during the night of 15/16 August from north of the beachhead to the Rhone River and during the day raid ammunition stores; medium bombers pound Rhone River bridges and gun positions throughout the general area. 42 US Fifteenth Air Force P-51s escort MATAF C-47 Skytrains on a supply dropping mission to the beachheads.

The first of Luftwaffe daylight operations were way at 0436 hours when 2./JGr. 200 scrambled three Bf 109s, followed a minute later by a pair of Fw 190s from 2./NAG 13. They were up for about an hour, photographing Hyères from 7,000m. Another Rotte of Focke-Wulfs was sent off at 0500 hours to take pictures of the Draguignan and Le Muy area but their mission had to be abandoned owing to the weather. At 0943 hours, JGr. 200 sent up seven Messerschmitts to escort reconnaissance aircraft. Two of 2./NAG 13's Fw 190s (presumably the ones the Messerschmitts were to accompany) were up to photograph Draguignan - St. Raphael - St. Tropez - Lavandou between 0947 and 1130 hours. Near St. Raphael, the Fw 190s and their escorts were bounced by RAF No. 72 Sqd 's Spitfires. The German formation broke up on seeing the enemy, some escaping into cloud.

In the meantime, seven Bf 109s of II./JG 77 flew a reconnaissance of Marseilles and offshore to the West, during which one of their number seems to have gone missing and at 1325 hours another seven took off on an operation against guerrillas in St. Remèze area which lasted just over an hour. An hour after they landed, eleven of II./JG 77's Bf 109s mounted a freie Jagd looking for low-flying raiders and reconnoitered fires on the Salon-Lézignan railway. Fifteen JU88s took off around 1800 hours to attack St. Tropez town and harbor, arriving over their targets at dusk and giving rise to the first of two Red Alerts. A group of five, allegedly escorted by four Bf 109s, approached St. Tropez port at 2050 hours from 20,000ft. They spread out and dropped anti-personnel bombs accurately into Allied concentrations along the beaches, killing 14 people and wounding 36 more. Also at dusk, six Do 217s of III./KG 100 operated against ships off St. Tropez with Hs 293s. Fliegerdivision 2 later reported that one Do 217 did not attack. Four missiles had technical defects but one hit was claimed. As Balke tells it:

" III. Gruppe flew attacks on shipping targets at St. Raphael. Ofw. Kube's crew had a large transport in their sights but their Hs 293 wouldn't guide and crashed, probably due to enemy jamming. One Do 217 failed to return but the crew was saved... After these operations the Gruppe was bled white and no longer capable of any operations of consequence: 36 crews lost since D-Day on 6 June, a 100% loss rate in nine weeks of operations!"

The bombers had approached from landward with only a brief warning period. In fact no hits were achieved although a glider bomb landed near USS 'Charles F. Hughes', a destroyer stationed on the eastern sector of the screen.

GERMANY: The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 2 missions. Mission 556: 1,090 bombers and 692 fighters, in 4 forces, are dispatched to make visual attacks on oil refineries and aircraft plants in central Germany; 23 bombers and 3 fighters are lost (number in parenthesis indicate number of bombers attacking). (1) B-17s hit Delitzsch air depot (102), the aviation industry at Schkeuditz (92) and Halle (60) and the oil industry at Bohlen (8 8 ); other targets are Naumburg (15), Halberstadt Airfield (13) and targets of opportunity (9); they claim 6-4-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; 10 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 246 P-47s and P-51 Mustang; they claim 15-1-6 Luftwaffe. (2) B-17s are dispatched to hit the oil industry at Rositz (105) and Zeitz (101); 3 others hit targets of opportunity; 6 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 166 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 5-0-1 Luftwaffe aircraft; 2 P-47s are lost. (3) B-24s are dispatched to Halberstadt Airfield (51); 10 others hit Quedlinburg Airfield and 1 hits a targets of opportunity; escort is provided by 42 of 46 P-38 Lightnings. (4) B-24s are dispatched to hit the aviation industry at Dessau (99), Kothen (71) and Magdeburg/Neustadt (67) and the oil industry at Magdeburg/Rothensee; 2 others hit targets of opportunity; 7 B-24s are lost; escort is provided by 156 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 12-0-0 aircraft; 1 P-51 is lost.

Seven Tagjagdgruppen, namely JG 302, JG 300, and JG 3, put up some 130 machines including Me 163 Komet rocket fighters of JG 400 to combat the bombers. Two Komets were shot down, one of the fighters lost being the Me 163 of Lt. Hartmut Ryll of 1./JG 400 shortly after he shot down a B-17 for his sixth victory. Lt. Ryll was killed.

IV./JG 3 attacked a Combat Box of the 91st Bomb Group scoring some 12 Ab-und Herausschüsse. Probably incapacitated by his handicap - he was severely wounded in the eye in a dogfight with the bomber escorts on 18 March 1944 - Ekkehard Tichy, Staffelkapitän of 13./JG 3, rammed or collided with a B-17. He plunged to his death only a few weeks after taking over as Staffelkapitän. Posthumously promoted to Oberleutnant and awarded the Ritterkreuz, Ekkehard Tichy had some 25 victories including eleven four-engined bombers. Uffz. Probst of 2./JG 3 got his first victory by ramming a P-51 from the escorting fighter formations. Uffz. Probst survived the collision unhurt. He was flying a Bf 109 G-6/AS. I./JG 3 losses that day were six Bf 109s destroyed in aerial combat and two damaged. Four pilots were killed and Uffz. Richard Kärcher of 1./JG 3 was wounded.

461 RAF "heavies" attempted to destroy industrial centers and harbors. In addition, 89 Lancaster were diverted for "Gardening" – setting mines in Stettin's and Kiel's Bays. Four aircraft were lost before reaching the Stettin, one over target from RAF 630.Sqn, plus two of the "gardeners" from RAF 57.Sqn and 97.Sqn, lost at 01.33 hours.

The US Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bombs targets in Germany and France. In Germany, 89 B-24s, with fighter escort, bomb a chemical works at Friedrichshafen.

The He-287 V1 performed its first flight at Brandis airfield. It was built around the fuselage of a Heinkel He-177A Grief heavy bomber, with the tail assembly of a Ju-388 and the new forward-swept wing. It was powered by four Junkers Jumo 004B turbojets, with one engine attached to each side of the fuselage behind the cockpit, and one engine slung under the rear of each wing. As the He-177's main gear retracted into its engine nacelles, which didn't exist with the new wing, the Ju-287 V1 was fitted with fixed landing gear in spats. The nose gear was salvaged from a downed American B-24 Liberator and the main gear was borrowed from a Junkers Ju-352 transport. Rauchergeraet units were used to get the contraption off the ground. It actually flew very well, though the concerns about excessive stress on the wings were justified and worrisome.

 

[syscom3]

17 AUGUST 1944

EASTERN FRONT: Soviet Army Group North attacks toward Siauliai in Lithuania to prevent Riga from being cutoff.

Finnish President Mannerheim meets Generalfeldmarschal Wilhelm Keitel who has come for a sudden visit to Finland. The formal reason for Keitel's visit is to bring Mannerheim the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross and a Knight's Cross for General of Infantry Erik Heinrichs, the Chief of Finnish General Staff. Mannerheim informs Keitel that the promise given by the ex-President Risto Ryti, that Finland won't make peace unless in agreement with Germany, is in force no more. It was made by President Ryti personally and was not ratified by the Parliament. The Finnish people do not approve of the promise and thus Ryti had to resign. Finland shall stay in the war only as long as is in her interest to do so. Keitel assures that Germany won't submit, but will keep fighting for ten more years if necessary. Mannerheim comments that unfortunately we Finns can't do that. Keitel is visibly agitated when he leaves.

Hptm. Wilhelm "Willi" Batz of III./JG 52 scored his 200th victory.

WESTERN FRONT: The mayor of Paris, Pierre Charles Tattinger, meets with the German commander Dietrich von Choltitz to protest the explosives being deployed throughout the city. Adolf Hitler had decreed that Paris should be left a smoking ruin, but Dietrich von Choltitz thought better of his Fuehrer's order. German Field Marshal Walther Model takes over command of German forces in the West from Field Marshall Gunther von Kluge who committed suicide because of his involvement in the July 20 plot against Hitler.

In southern France, St. Raphael, St. Tropex, Frejus, Le Luq an St. Maxime fall to the Allies. There is little German resistance. Chief of State Marshal Henri Petain and his staff are interned at Belfort by order of the FŸhrer. The Vichy French government under Premier Pierre Laval resigns.

Falaise, France is completely capured by the Canadian 2nd Division. There remain only a few miles between The Canadians to the north and the US V Corps to the south. Dreux, Chateaudun and Orleans are captured by US forces. The citadel at St. Malo, France surrenders.

The US Twelfth Air Force, despite bad weather, sends medium bombers to attack railroad bridges leading to the beachhead area of the south coast and hit coastal guns southwest of Toulon; A-20s hit motor transport during the night and drop ammunition to invasion forces; fighter-bombers and fighters on armed reconnaissance and patrol score excellent results against motor transport and rail cars and destroy several airplanes on airfields in the south.

The US Ninth Air Force dispatches 400+ A-20 Havocs and B-26s to bomb road bridges at Montfort-sur- Risle, Pont-Audemer, Nassandres, Beaumont-le- Roger, Le Bourg, Brionne, and Beaumontel, and a rail bridge at La Ferriere-sur- Risle; fighters fly ground force cover over Saint-Malo and Dreux and armed reconnaissance in northwest France; IX Tactical Air Command fighters attack and severely damage Gestapo HQ near Chateauroux.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 3 missions. Mission 558: 10 B-24s are dispatched to drop Azon missiles on the Les Foulous, France rail bridge but the mission is abandoned due to deteriorating weather. Mission 559: 1 B-17 drop a BATTY TV bomb on the port area at La Pallice, France. Mission 560: 7 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night. 33 B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions during the night. Fighter-bomber missions flown by the VIII Fighter Command: 397 P-38 Lightnings and P-47 Thunderbolts hit the Paris/Brussels area; they claim 3-0-3 aircraft. 318 P-51 Mustangs are dispatched to hit communications targets; 7 P-51s are lost.

Capt. Dave C. Hearrell Jr, in an F-6 Mustang of the 111th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron, claimed the destruction of a Ju 52. Then, on an airfield at Avignon-East, he claimed a Fw 190 damaged while 2/Lt. Forrest L. White of the same unit claimed a Ju 52, also damaged. A wrecked Fw 190 was later found on the airfield and the two Americans had indeed hit tri-motor transports, but they weren't Ju 52s. In fact a Savoia Marchetti S.82 of 6./TG 1, was en route from Strasbourg to Avignon when it was attacked by two fighters between the latter city and Orange. The transport caught fire and its centre engine was apparently blown right off, injuring the pilot, Obgefr. Fritz Pauleweit, while gunner Uffz. Otto Meistring was hit in the head by gunfire.

At 1325 hours, six Thunderbolts strafed the airfield at Avignon, setting a parked Ju 52 on fire (or so they thought but more likely an S.82, since two were later found burned out there). One of the P-47s overflew the position of 2. Batterie, 1. Abteilung, Flak Regiment 501 (mot.) and was hit several times, crashing 2km south of Avignon. Soon after this, six Bf 109s of JGr. 200 flew an operation against guerillas in the Vallon Pont de l'Arc area.

Luftwaffe bomber operations resumed at dusk. At 2040 hours, six Ju 88s bombed the stretch of ground between St. Raphael and St. Maxime without inflicting damage while, five minutes later, the control vessel HMS 'Ulster Queen' logged bombers and AA fire over the St. Tropez area. Five of III./KG 100's Do 217s had operated: two aborted the mission; another jettisoned its Hs 293; two claimed near misses. Use of the Fritz X was reported to have been impossible on account of cloud cover, yet the crew of one Do 217 claimed a near miss on a 6-8,000 tonne troop transport with this weapon. Just under an hour later another USN destroyer, the 'Champlin', came under attack, this time from a low-flying Ju 88. Struck by the ship's return fire, the bomber exploded and I./KG 26 posted four NCO's missing.

MEDITERRANEAN: The Germans pull out of Florence, releasing Italy's most beautiful city from a vise in which it long has been clutched. Neither army shelled Florence and it is believed that the historic city is intact except for five bridges blown up by the Germans.

One B-24 of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy visually bombs a target of opportunity.

Two hundred forty five B-24 Liberator of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bomb three oil refineries at Ploesti with the loss of 19 aircraft: Using H2X radar, the Romano Americano Refinery if bombed by 70 aircraft while 54 bomb visually; 124 aircraft bomb the Romano Americano Refinery, 70 using H2X radar; and 34 bomb the Standard Oil Refinery visually. Other targets hit by individual aircraft are a highway at Bailesti, a marshalling yard at Dragonesti, and another unnamed highway.

B-17 Flying Fortresses of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bomb two targets: 51 aircraft bomb the airfield at Nis with the loss of one aircraft while one bombs the railroad at Pirot.

GERMANY: I./JG 11 was increased to four Staffeln. The new 4./JG 11 was formed from 10. and 11./JG 11.

 

[syscom3]

18 AUGUST 1944

WESTERN FRONT: The Polish Corps from the north and the US forces from the south close the gap at Falaise, France.

The US 3rd Army reach Versailles on their way the the Seine. The US VI Corps is now advancing toward Aix-en-Provence with French units advancing on Toulon and then Marseilles.

German troops stationed near the Spanish border and the Gulf of Biscay begin withdrawing. Less celebrated elements of the Luftwaffe were also pulling out of the area. Luftwaffe Berge-Kompanie z.b.V. 29 (29th Luftwaffe Special Duties Recovery Company) departed for Rheims. Commanded by Hauptmann Oberlein, who had lived at Pélissanne (just east of Salon), the unit had operated all over Southern France, salvaging German and French aircraft wrecks. Units streaming back east from Normandy were beginning to converge with those retreating from the south. The crews of II./JG 6 and their Fw 190s were ordered to move to bases in France the next day. Jagdgruppe 200 was also ordered to withdraw along with its control staff, Jafü Süd, to Metz..

In northern France, the US Ninth Air Force dispatches nearly 100 B-26s and A-20 Havocs to strike a fuel dump, ammunition dump, rail and road overpass, rail embankment, and junction beyond the battleline to disorganize retreating German forces; 1,000+ fighters fly cover over ground forces in the Argentan-Paris area, along the Seine River, and armed reconnaissance over northern and western France.

In southern France, the US Twelfth Air Force sends medium bombers to blast coastal guns in the Toulon area and shipping in Toulon harbor; fighter-bombers closely support beachhead troops, hit rolling stock and rail lines, and generally disrupt communications as the US VI Corps overruns the primary defenses in the coastal area of southeastern France; fighters maintain beachhead patrols and area cover for the bombers.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 3 missions (numbers in parenthesis are numbers of bombers attacking): Mission 561: B-24s bomb Amy Airfield at Roye, France (42) and 10 hit targets of opportunity; 2 B-24s are lost; escort is provided by 96 P-51 Mustangs. Mission 562: 720 bombers and 242 fighters, in 3 forces, are dispatched against bridges, airfields, fuel dumps and an aircraft engine factory in France and Belgium; 2 bombers and 1 fighter are lost. (1) B-17s bomb bridges at Namur (37), Liege/Benoit (36), Huy (35), Yvoir (35), Liege/Seraing (26), Vise (25) and Maastricht (24); 13 hit Tongres marshalling yard, 12 hit Eindhoven Airfield and 12 hit targets of opportunity; escort is provided by 99 P-38 Lightnings and P-51s; they claim 46-0-15 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 P-38 is lost. (2) B-24s attack airfields at Metz (7 8 ), Nancy/Essey (70), Woippy (60) and Laneureville (35); escort is provided by 38 P-51s; 1 P-51 is lost. (3) B-17s hit St Dizier Airfield (116), Pacy-sur-Armancon (39) and Bourran (3 8 ); 1 other hits a target of opportunity; escort is provided by 93 P-51s; they claim 2-0-3 aircraft; 2 P-51s are lost. Mission 564: 7 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night.

At 0600 hours, KG 26 reported a Mustang attack on Valence in the course of which one Ju 88 and a gantry crane were destroyed. Local communications were in a poor state, with the bridge between Valence and Montélimar destroyed and the road bridge at Valence again bombed and destroyed. At 0830 hours, Lt. Nicholson of 111th TRS destroyed a Ju 88 on the deck southeast of Orgon. Two Bf 109s were seen in the Montélimar area by Mustangs of the same unit but no contact was made and at 1430 hours P-38s of 14th FG saw two Bf 109s attacking a Supermarine Walrus amphibian but the Germans flew off as the Americans approached.

During the afternoon, Fl.Div. 2, including KG 26, III./KG 200, 1.(F)/33, 2./NAG 13 and JG 77, was subordinated to Luftflotte 2 with immediate effect. The Divisional Operations Staff was to be in Bergamo by the 20th, with its Battle HQ set up at Merate. Flying units were ordered to prepare for transfer, with all ferry flights taking place in the early morning or late evening in view of the air situation.

'U-107' is sunk west of La Rochelle, in position 46.46N, 03.49W, by depth charges from an RAF Sunderland Mk III of No 201 Squadron based at Pembroke Dock, Pembrokeshire, Wales. All hands, 58 men, on the U-boat are lost.

'U-621' is sunk of La Rochelle, in position 45.52N, 02.36W, by depth charges from the RCN destroyers HMCS 'Ottawa', HMCS 'Kootenay' and HMCS 'Chaudiere'. All 56 men on the U-boat are lost.

EASTERN FRONT: The First Ukraine Front takes Sandomierz, on the west bank of the Vistula in southern Poland.

MEDITERRANEAN: Five heavy bombers of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy visually bomb the port area of Lom without loss.

Heavy bombers of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bomb five targets: 273 bomb the oil refineries at Ploesti (48 using H2X radar and the rest visually) with the loss of seven aircraft; 102 bomb the Steauea Oil Refinery at Campina with the loss of one aircraft; two bomb a highway, another a railway and one bombs the marshalling yard at Craiova.

Heavy bombers of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bomb four targets without loss: 87 bomb Alibunar Airfield; two bomb the railroad at Kraljevo; one bombs the marshalling yard at Lapovo; and one bomb a railroad line.

GERMANY: EKdo 262 was divided into two Staffeln led by Oblt. Müller and Oblt. Bley. Oblt. Müller took the only two pilots with jet victories in the unit, Lt. Weber and Fw Lennartz, and flew to Rechlin and made ready to become an operational Staffel.

 

[syscom3]

19 AUGUST 1944 SATURDAY

WESTERN FRONT: By Saturday 19 August 1944, the German forces in France were in deep trouble. In Normandy, the neck of the Falaise pocket was being closed on the 7.Armee and 5.Panzerarmee; in Provence, 19.Armee was ordered to withdraw north up the valley of the River Rhone and the units of Luftflotte 3 were following suit. In their precipitate retreat from France, the German armed forces had become desperately disorganized and if a new defense line was to be established commanders must first find and then regain control of their troops as well as locate their opponents. The US XV Corps reaches the Seine at Mates Grasicourt. The Polish 1st Armored Division links up with the U.S. 90th Infantry Division at Chambois, a village 15 miles (24 kilometers) southeast of Falaise thereby closing the Falaise Pocket. German loses in the ensuing four day battle are 10,000 dead and 40,000 captured.

The French resistance in Paris begins open operations against the Germans as police and partisans seize public buildings and begin battling the city's German garrison. Wehrmacht commander Dietrich von Choltitz disobeys Hitler's order to turn Paris into "a field of ruins." He arranges a five-day truce to evacuate his troops.

The USN battleship USS 'Nevada', French battleship 'Lorraine', and heavy cruiser USS 'Augusta' conduct reconnaissance in force off Toulon to support the U.S. Army's Third Division and French troops making a drive on that port. Escorted by four destroyers, 'Nevada', 'Lorraine', and 'Augusta' shell the harbor and batteries at St. Mandrier; heavy cruiser USS 'Quincy' provides counter-battery fire on Giens, from position south of Isle Port Cros.

German submarines 'U-123' and 'U-129' are scuttled to avoid capture at Lorient. 'U-466' (Type VIIC) which had been damaged on 5 July, 1944 by bombs from US B-24 aircraft at Toulon, France, is scuttled 19 Aug, during the Allied invasion of southern France.

In southern France, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20 Havocs hit marshalling yards while B-25s and B-26s bomb road and rail bridges throughout southeastern France; fighter-bombers and fighters continue to pound enemy communications north and west, of the beachhead and guns in the immediate battle area as the US Seventh Army's Task Force Butler crosses the Durance River and moves north to Sisteron and Digne.

Oblt. Franz Dörr, Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 5, was awarded the Ritterkreuz for 99 victories.

MEDITERRANEAN: Using H2X radar, 65 B-17 Flying Fortresses, supported by 125 P-51 Mustangs, of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy bomb two oil refineries at Ploesti for the third consecutive day.

Two B-17s of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy, visually bomb the railroad at Cuprija.

 

[syscom3]

20 AUGUST 1944 SUNDAY

WESTERN FRONT: Last night the last units of the German 7.Armee and 5.Panzerarmee escaped from the Falaise pocket through the Allied lines around Chambois and St. Lambert. Patton takes crossings on the Seine River at Mantes Grassicourt, 30 miles west of Paris. US 79th Division reached the west bank of the Seine above Paris. The XX Corps enters Fontainebleau.

Petain is arrested by the Germans in Vichy for refusing to go to an area which is safe from the Allied advance.

61 US Ninth Air Force B-26s bomb troop and equipment concentrations waiting at Foret de la Lande to be ferried across the Seine River; fighters fly armed reconnaissance along the Seine River, support ground troops in the battle area of northern France, and fly an escort mission to 100+ C-47 Skytrains on a supply and evacuation run.

In southern France during the night of 19/20 August, US Twelfth Air Force A-20s attack lights and motor transport from the battleline northwest to the Rhone River; B-26s, joined by fighter-bombers and fighters, hit coastal defense guns in the Toulon area, while B-25s bomb Rhone Valley bridges and airfields achieving especially good results at the airfield near Valence.

'U-984' is sunk about 44 nautical miles (81 kilometers) west of Brest, France, in position 48.16N, 05.33W, by depth charges from the RCN destroyers HMCS 'Ottawa' (H 31, ex HMS Griffin), 'Kootenay' (H 75, ex HMS Decoy) and 'Chaudiere' (H 99, ex HMS Hero). All hands on the U-boat, 45 men, are lost.

German submarine 'U-188' is scuttled at the U-boat base in Bordeaux when it is unable to escape the Allied advance.

Gruppenkommandeur Hptm. Egon Albrecht and his III./JG 76 finished with their conversion training and moved from Stade to Athis, France. Major Anton Hackl was appointed Geschwaderkommodore of JG 76 and moved with the III Gruppe to Athis. Hptm. Heinrich Offterdinger's I./JG 76 moved to Gahro.

EASTERN FRONT: A major Soviet offensive begins near Jassy and Tiraspol. This involves a massive artillery bombardment from Malinovsky's Second Ukraine Front and Tolbukhin's Thrird Ukraine Front. The defense is by the 3rd and 4th Rumanian Armies and the German 6. Armee, which contains many Rumanian troops. This is General Freissner's Army Group South Ukraine.

Stavka devised a plan that had three main objectives. The first and most important was the destruction of German forces in Romania. Politically, the new offensive was designed to knock Romania out of the war, then Soviet troops would advance into Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, outflanking the Germans and, hopefully, forcing Hungary to sue for peace. Finally, there was the economic objective. The Ploesti oil fields had to be seized. To accomplish these objectives the Soviets planned to strike in a pincer movement designed to isolate and destroy Army Group South Ukraine.

The sun rose blood-red when the Soviet offensive opened with a huge artillery bombardment from the massed guns of Malinovsky's Second Ukrainian Front. The shells fell without mercy on the surprised Romanians for 11 1/2 hours. Meanwhile, the positions of the 6. Armee and Third Romanian Army also came under a heavy barrage. Shells and bombs from the preliminary barrage had forced the men of Maj. Gen. Erick von Bogen's 302nd Infantry and Brig. Gen. Friedrich Blümke's 257th Infantry divisions deeper into their trenches. As the bombardment lifted, the roar of tank engines and the bloodcurdling Russian war cry could be heard from the enemy lines. Massed Soviet infantry formations soon charged on the German positions.

The combination of Soviet artillery, tank and air power proved too great for most of the Romanian divisions. While the 6. Armee managed to hold most of its sector, the Third and Fourth Romanian armies continued to melt away. The Red Army Air Force ruled the skies, and the two air armies supporting Malinovsky and Tolbukhin flew an estimated 3,000 sorties on the opening day of the attack. In comparison, Luftflotte 4, commanded by Maj. Gen. Paul Deichmann, could muster only 43 bombers, 57 ground support aircraft and 72 fighters to help stem the Russian tide.

Although the Germans had stood up to the initial Soviet attacks, a feeling of doom began to creep through the ranks. Once again the 6. Armee was in danger of being encircled. At General Johannes Friessner 's Army Group South Ukraine headquarters, when the Soviets' opening moves were realistically assessed, it soon became clear that the battle to hold the frontier was already lost. The few German divisions interspersed among the Romanian armies could do little to stop the Soviet onslaught, and they were themselves in danger of being surrounded.

Shellfire from 'Prinz Eugen' assists in the successful defense against the Russian attack near Riga.

Two hundred twelve USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17s bomb the I.G. Farben oil refinery at Oswiecim with the loss of one aircraft.

German submarine 'U-9' is sunk at 1030 hours local at the seaport of Constanta on the Black Sea, in position 44.10N, 28.38E, by bombs from Soviet aircraft.

MEDITERRANEAN: Seventy six USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24s bomb the oil refinery at Dubrova without loss.

USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24s attack three targets: 94 aircraft bomb the marshalling yard at Szolnok, 88 bomb Rakoczifalva Airfield at Szolnok with the loss of two aircraft, and six bomb the city of Szeged.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: 'U-1229' is sunk about 315 nautical miles (584 kilometers) south of St. Johns, Newfoundland, in position 42.20N, 51.39W, by depth charges and rockets from three TBM Avengers and two FM Wildcats of Composite Squadron Forty Two (VC-42) in the US escort aircraft carrier USS 'Bogue' (CVE-9). Forty one of the 59 U-boat crewmen survive.

UNITED KINGDOM: German submarine 'U-413' is sunk about 28 nautical miles (53 kilometers) south of Brighton, Sussex, England, in position 50.21N, 00.01W, by depth charges from the RN escort destroyer HMS 'Wensleydale' (L 86) and the destroyers HMS 'Forester' (H 74) and 'Vidette' (D 4 8 ). Only one of the 46 crewmen of the U-boat survived.

 

[syscom3]

21 AUGUST 1944 MONDAY

WESTERN FRONT: A rapid advance across northern France begins by Allied units in pursuit of retreating German units. The first of the V-1 flying bomb launch sites were abandoned when the British 21st Army Group crossed the River Seine and moved toward the Pas-de-Calais. The US 3rd Army patrols reach Versailles. The US VI Corps is advancing on Aix-en-Provence and French forces on their left are moving on Toulon and Marseilles in the south of France.

In southern France, US Twelfth Air Force fighter-bombers and fighters again blast enemy communications lines and gun positions and motor transport and train cars.

'U-230' runs aground in the Mediterranean in the Toulon roadsteads, France, in position 43.07N, 06.00E. She is scuttled by her crew during the Allied invasion of southern France. All 50 crewmen survive.

'U-766' is stricken near La Pallice, in position 46.10N, 01.14W, when unable to put to sea and surrendered to France.

The RCN corvette HMCS 'Alberni' (K 103) is torpedoed with a Gnat torpedo amidships by 'U-480' (Oberleutnant Hans-Joachim Forster) and sinks about 41 nautical miles (76 kilometers) southwest of Brighton, Sussex, England, within 30 seconds. Only 31 of her 90-man crew survive. Location: 50 18N 00 51W.

The RN Flower class corvette HMS 'Orchis' (K 76) is mined off Normandy in Seine Bay. Her bows are blown off as far back as the gun, and she is beached "Juno" Beach at Courseulles- sur-Mer, and subsequently declared a Constructive Total Loss.

While there seemed to be no Allied claims on 20 August to account for the loss of two Junkers Ju 52 of II./TG 1 at Courmayeur, US Navy pilots claimed three such machines at 1615 hours on 21 August. The airmen concerned were members of VOF-1, which had both fighter and artillery-spotting roles, flying F6F-5 Hellcats off the escort carrier USS 'Tulagi' (CVE-72). The 21st was the carrier's last day supporting the DRAGOON landings. During a fighter-bomber attack on a retreating transport convoy, two Ju 52s were claimed by Ensign Edward W. Olszewski and a third by Ensign Richard W.B. Yentzer. The location is variously described as "north of Orange" (a long way from Courmayeur) and " near La Capella." To match these claims with the two German losses, one has to allow for the possibility that either the Luftwaffe or the USN recorded a wrong date and that the Americans were not very precise about the location of the combat.

EASTERN FRONT: The Soviet 3rd Baltic and Leningrad Fronts move forward on both sides of Lake Peipus. Sandomierz on the west bank of the Vistula River falls to the First Ukraine Front. Kravchenko's Sixth Tank Army and the Second Ukrainian Front reserve were able to make substantial gains. Kravchenko's army, meeting stiff resistance but, managed to take some important positions on the Mare Ridge south of Jassy. German forces of Heeresgruppe Mitte retake Tukkum in Estonia, reestablishing contact with Heeresgruppe Nord (Schoerner).

UNITED STATES: The Dumbarton Oaks Conference begins. This conference marks the beginning discussions about a postwar assembly that will become the United Nations. Stettinius for the US, Cadogan for Britain and Gromyko for the USSR are in attendance. The conference will last through the 29th.

MEDITERRANEAN: During the day, 102 B-24 LIberators of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy visually bomb Boszormeny Airfield at Hajdu with the loss of two B-24s. During the night of 21/22 August, 70 RAF Liberators of No. 205 Group visually bomb Szony Airfield at Komoron with the loss of three aircraft.

During the day, 117 B-24s of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy visually bomb the airfield at Nis without loss.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: 'U-743' is listed as missing in the Arctic Ocean or the North Atlantic with all hands, 50 men.

Whilst escorting convoy JW.59 (Loch Ewe, Scotland to Kola Fjord, U.S.S.R.), RN sloop HMS 'Kite' (U 87) is torpedoed and sunk about 268 nautical miles WSW of Bjornoya (Bear Island), Norway, by 'U-344' (Kapitanleutnant Ulrich Pietsch) using a spread of FAT torpedoes which ran a wandering course with regular 180-degree turns. There are 183 casualties and just 9 survivors. Position is 73 01N, 03 57E.

GERMANY: The rest of the pilots forming Oblt. Müller's new Staffel of EKdo 262 finally arrived at Rechlin. The airfield was not really prepared to operate a fighter unit and lacked much of the equipment needed to do so, including the much needed ground radar. But this didn't stop the ground crew from making do. Signals Officer Viktor Preusker visited Berlin and found a complete Wurzburg radar set earmarked for the Eastern Front. With the help of some friends he was able to get the equipment written off as bomb damaged and re-routed to Rechlin.

 

[syscom3]

22 AUGUST 1944 TUESDAY

WESTERN FRONT: 2 British escort carriers and 3 fleet carriers, HMS 'Duke of York' and supporting escorts of the Home Fleet under Admiral Moore sail toward Norway. Their mission, the German battleship 'Tirpitz' in Kaafiord. The air attacks are heavily attacked on approach and the raid today is unsuccessful with heavy British losses.

Whilst refueling some of convoy JW.59 (Loch Ewe, Scotland, to the Kola Fjord, U.S.S.R.) escorts, the Canadian-manned escort aircraft carrier HMS 'Nabob' [D 77, ex USN 'Edisto' (CVE-41)] is torpedoed by German submarine 'U-354' (Kapitanleutnant Hans-Jurgen Sthamer) about 422 nautical miles (782 kilometers) north of Tromso, Norway, in position 71.42N, 19.11E. Although the torpedo struck aft causing considerable damage, 'Nabob' is able to make the 1100+ natucial mile (2 000+ kilometre) return trip to Rosyth, Scotland, U.K., but is not repaired and subsequently broken up. 'Nabob' had just participated in a Home Fleet attack on 'Tirpitz', and was returning from that operation.

Frigate HMS 'Bickerton' (K 466) is torpedoed in the same attack. There are 38 casualties. Although the ship was salvageable the force commander did not wish to be burdened by two crippled ships and since HMS 'Nabob' was the more valuable unit, 'Bickerton' was scuttled by destroyer HMS 'Vigilant' (R 93).

German submarine 'U-344' is sunk about 61 nautical miles (113 kilometres) west-northwest of Bjornoya (Bear) Island, Norway, in position 74.54N, 15.26E, by depth charges from a RN Swordfish Mk III in the escort aircraft carrier HMS 'Vindex' (D 15). All hands on the U-boat, 50-men, are lost.

German officer Heinz Stahlschmidt blows up a bunker full of detonators, effectively preventing the destruction of Bordeaux by the retreating German army. Heinz Stahlschmidt had three ships sunk under him and he survived all three. He stayed behind and settled in Bordeaux after the war.

In the air over northern France, US IX Bomber Command operations are cancelled because of weather however, fighters fly sweeps, provide air cover for 2 infantry and 1 armored division, strafe numerous military and transportation targets, and fly armed reconnaissance from Evreux to Troyes.

In the air over southeastern France, weather restricts operations by the US Twelfth Air Force; A-20 Havocs hit motor transport in the Nice area during the night of 21/22 August and hit industrial buildings during the day; fighters hit motor transport west of the Rhone River and in scattered parts of southeastern France.

RN minesweeper HMS 'Loyalty' (J-217, ex-HMS Rattler) is torpedoed and sunk by 'U-480' (Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Joachim Forster) about 45 nautical miles (83 kilometers) south-southwest of Brighton, Sussex, England, in position 50.09N, 0.41W. This is about 11 nautical miles (20 kilometres) southeast of the position that 'U-480' torpedoed and sank the Canadian corvette HMCS 'Alberni' (K 103) yesterday. 'Loyalty' sinks within seven minutes with the loss of 20 of her crewmen.

EASTERN FRONT: The Red Army recaptured Jassy on the Dnestr river in the southern Ukraine. Two mechanized corps were thrown into the battle to widen the gap between the Third Romanian Army and the Sixth Army. Romanian units caught in the path of the advancing mechanized corps were either cut to ribbons or surrendered en masse. Unless he could get permission to retreat, General Maximilian Fretter-Pico knew his Sixth Army was doomed. The order finally came during the evening, but it was already too late.

The Soviet break through to Jassy convinces Romania's King Michael to sign an armistice with the Allies and concede control of his country to the USSR.

Hptm. Wilhelm "Willi" Batz, Kommodore of III./JG 52 shot down six aircraft bringing his total to 208 enemy aircraft destroyed.

Soviet Premier Josef Stalin writes letters to U.S. President Roosevelt and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill denouncing the leaders of the Warsaw rising as;

"....a group of criminals."

GERMANY: Three targets are bombed by the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy: The Deschowitz synthetic oil facilities at Odertal is the target for 150 B-17 Flying Fortresses: 97 bomb visually and 53 use H2X radar to bomb. Five aircraft are lost. The I.G. Farben synthetic oil facilities at Blechhammer is the target for 114 B-24 Liberators: 66 bomb visually and 48 use H2X radar to bomb. Fourteen aircraft are lost. One aircraft bombs a marshalling yard as a target of opportunity.

Vienna is the target for 269 B-24 Liberators of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy: 150 bomb the Lobau oil refinery, 96 bomb the Korneuburg oil refinery and 23 bomb the Vienna oil refinery with the loss of 18 aircraft. All bombing is visually

MEDITERRANEAN: During the night of 22/23 August, 50 RAF Liberators of No. 205 Group bomb a marshalling yard at Miskolc with the loss of three aircraft.

During the night of 22/23 August, an RAF Liberator of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group drops leaflets on Milan.

 

[syscom3]

23 AUGUST 1944 WEDNESDAY

WESTERN FRONT: The French resistance has largely freed Paris after fierce fighting. East of Paris Melun falls to US forces. South of Paris French troops with the US V Corps move forward to join the advance toward the French capitol. German SS engineers begin placing explosive charges around the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Montgomery advances toward the River Seine. In the south French troops reach the outskirts of both Marseilles and Toulon.

The Ninth Air Force sends 4 B-26s to drop leaflets in the Lisieux-Bernay area; fighters fly ground forces cover, sweeps, armed reconnaissance over the battle areas and along the Seine River, and attack artillery positions; 150+ C-47s fly supply and evacuation missions and several hundred reconnaissance aircraft fly tactical, visual, photographic, and artillery adjustment reconnaissance missions.

In France, 142 USAAF Eighth Air Force P-47s bomb and strafe rail transportation from Saint-Omer to Reims, France; 2 P-47s are damaged. The Eighth Air Force also dispatches 6 B-17s to drop leaflets in France and Belgium during the night.

The forty or so Fw 190s of II./JG 6 arrived at their new airbase at Herpy near Reims. The base was not one of the known permanent bases as the Allies were constantly bombing these; so improvised airstrips in the country were being used. During the day, in getting familiar with the area, two Fw 190s crashed into each other during take-off.

EASTERN FRONT: The Soviet noose around the 6.Armee was almost complete by the evening of August 23. 12 divisions of the German 6.Armee are cut off by the Second and Third Ukraine Fronts. The Second Ukraine Front also takes Vaslui south of Jassy. In the west, elements of General Friedrich Mieth's 4.Armeekorps, which had been attached to the Fourth Romanian Army, had been trapped by the encircling Soviet armor south of Jassy and were being pushed toward the 6.Armee's positions. Meanwhile, Maj. Gen. Georg Postel's 30.Armeekorps, guarding the right flank of the 6.Armee, was forced to retreat to the southwest, suffering heavy casualties from enemy armor and air attacks. Along the entire front, Fretter-Pico's divisions fought delaying actions while attempting to reach the assumed safety of the Prut River.

As the German 6.Armee struggled to avert disaster, a political upheaval that would have far-reaching consequences for German forces in Romania was taking place in Bucharest, the nation's capital. King Michael dismissed Premier Ion Antonescu, who had been a leading supporter of Hitler and Romania's participation in the war against the Soviet Union.

The Luftwaffe, forced to fight a defensive battle, was rarely seen by the men of the Sixth Army. When the severity of the Soviet attack became clear, however, more air units were ordered to Romania by the Luftwaffe high command, but it was already too late to help Fretter-Pico's embattled troops.

Oblt. Franz Dörr, Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 5, claimed six victories to record his 100th through 106th victories.

GERMANY: Eighty three Fifteenth Air Force bombers attack a railroad bridge at Ferrara with the loss of two aircraft. B-17s and B-24s of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bomb six targets in Austria: In Vienna, 68 bomb the Vosendorf Oil Refinery, 53 bomb the marshalling yard and 13 bomb the industrial area. Other targets hit are Markersdorf Airfield at St. Polten by 133 bombers, an aircraft engine plant at Wiener Neudorf by 94 aircraft (23 used H2X radar), and the industrial area at St. Leonhaid by 26 aircraft. Twelve aircraft are lost. One Fifteenth Air Force bomber bombs the marshalling yard at Nagykanizsa.

MEDITERRANEAN: In France and Italy, USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium bombers attack road and rail bridges north of the Arno River and roads leading north from Florence, and also hit bridges in the Rhone Valley of France; widespread haze in parts of France and Italy prevents accurate bombing; fighter-bombers continue to attack communications, gun positions, and road movements in the Provence battle areas.

 

[syscom3]

24 AUGUST 1944 THURSDAY

WESTERN FRONT: In the north, the French 2nd Armored Division, under Major General Jacques LeClerc reaches the ourskirts of Paris. Fighting within the city again, due to German defensive movements. The French use back streets to crack the Germans' defenses of Paris and reach the heart of the city. Nearby, the US 4th Infantry Division pushes into Paris' suburbs. Meanwhile, the US 5th Infantry and 7th Armored Divisions bridge the Seine at Melun and Mandara, east of Paris.

In the south, US forces liberate Cannes and Antibes on the Riviera and Arles on the Rhone River while the Germans evacuate Bordeaux however, the Germans occupy fortified bunker positions on the Gironde estuary west of the city.

The first shipments of gasoline, ammunition, food and other military equipment begin streaming across France on the "Red Ball Express," a highway supply line using thousands of American trucks. Using two roads restricted to military traffic, Red Ballers hotrod form St. Lo in Normandy to advanced supply dumps of the US First and Third Armies. The Red Ball rolls 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

In the air, weather cancels a USAAF IX Bomber Command mission against 4 fuel dumps north of the Seine River; fighters give air cover to ground forces, mainly for 3 armored and 2 infantry divisions, bomb Seine River bridges, and fly armed reconnaissance along the Seine and around Troyes, Orleans, and Tours; about 270 C-47 Skytrains fly supply and evacuation missions.

During the night of 23/24 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20s hit motor transport and targets of opportunity in the Rhone Valley; during the day, medium bombers bomb bridges at Montpelier, Avignon, and Lunel and score direct hits on gun positions in the Marseilles area; and fighters bomb and strafe gun positions, vehicles, roads and bridges throughout southeastern France.

At 18.00 hours on the 24th, Ob. West signaled that the Bf 109-equipped 5.(F)/123 would be transferring to Dijon to cooperate with Nineteenth Army. Its first task would be to cover the area east of the River Rhone plus Digne, Grenoble and Lyons, keeping in touch with the Army by radio. Earlier that day, Jafü Süd, by now also in Dijon, had been informed that the flying and ground elements of JGr. 200 assembling there were to be attached to Aufklärungsstaffel Kaatsch and operationally subordinated to Fernaufklärungsgruppe 123. This was the first Allied Intelligence had heard of the new Staffel. he 5.(F)/123 had already taken a battering over Normandy. While 5.(F)/123 would have been trained and - if it was receiving the right aircraft - equipped for photo reconnaissance, the new Staffel, composed of fighter pilots and ordinary Bf 109s, was presumably confined to visual observation. It was a measure of the trouble the Germans were in that they were having to convert the remains of an emergency fighter Gruppe into a stop-gap tactical reconnaissance Staffel. There had been an Fw 190 recon unit, 2./NAG 13, alongside JGr. 200 in the south but on 19 August orders had been given to move its operations to Italy and Bavaria and the unit was gone from JGr. 200.

GERMANY: In the air, the USAAF's Eighth Air Force in England dispatches 1,319 bombers and 739 fighters in four forces on visual attacks on strategic targets with some PFF on targets of opportunity; 26 bombers and 4 fighters are lost. (1) 433 B-24s are dispatched to attack aviation industry targets Waggum and Querum Airfields in Brunswick, Langenhagen Airfield in Hannover an oil refinery at Misburg; (2) 451 B-17s are dispatched to hit Merseburg oil refinery, Weimar and Kolleda Airfields and targets of opportunity; (3) 383 B-17s are dispatched to hit oil industry targets at Ruhland and Freital while 15 hit targets of opportunity; and (4) 43 B-24s hit Walther Airfield at Kiel while 3 others hit Hemmingstedt Airfield and 2 hit targets of opportunity. (5) 132 aircraft bomb the synthetic oil refinery in Brux while seven others bomb the industrial area; two aircraft are lost.

Eight Me 163 rocket fighters were sent aloft from Brandis to attack a formation of 185 B-17s on a raid on the oil refinery at Merseburg. Fw. Siegfried Schubert destroyed two B-17s while other rocket fighters destroyed two more bombers becoming the first victories for the little rocket bomber-destroyer. Two Komets were damaged, one from return fire of the bombers and another on landing.

The remaining pilots of Ekdo 262 at Lechfeld continued to fly missions in their jet fighters. Ofw. Helmut Baudach, a fifteen victory pilot from JG 2, shot down a Spitfire PR XIX of RAF No. 683 Squadron in his Me 262.

The second version of the Focke-Wulf Ta 152 crashed after developing engine trouble.

MEDITERRANEAN: The USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bombs three targets: 158 bomb the airfield at Pardurice while 110 hit the oil refinery in the same city; another 100 bomb the oil refinery at Kolin; 13 bombers are lost. 62 bomb the railroad bridge at Ferrara; individual bomber hit the railroad at Bordeno and Formignana and a target of opportunity at Polesella; two aircraft are lost. Forty nine heavy bombers visually bomb the railroad bridge at Szeged [Hungary] without loss. Fifty one visually bomb a marshalling yard at Vincovici [Yugoslavia].

During the day, medium bombers of the USAAF's Twelfth Air Force bomb bridges at Solignano Nuovo, and Castel del Rio. During the night of 23/24 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20s hit motor transport and targets of opportunity at Genoa, Milan, and Turin while 74 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb the Main marshalling yard at Bologna.

EASTERN FRONT: The German Heeresgruppe Sud Ukraine, under Freissner, has been shattered by Russian attacks and the defection of the Romanian forces attached. Kishinev falls to the Soviets. German forces in the area of Kishinev on the Southern front were surrounded by the Red Army. Although some gaps remained in the Soviet line guarding the Prut River, units of the IV Guards Mechanized Corps and the XVIII Tank Corps were able to link up, ensuring that most avenues of escape were effectively blocked. The encirclement of the 6.Armee was nearly complete.

Finnish President Mannerheim and the cabinet unanimously decide to seek peace with Soviet Union. It is agreed that the decision can't be postponed even if Germany is continuously providing Finland with war material and Hitler hasn't reacted to Mannerheim's message to Keitel that Finland will stay in the war only as long as it is in her interest to do so.

German submarine U-354 (Type VIIC) is sunk about 238 nautical miles (441 kilometres) north-northwest of Murmansk, U.S.S.R. (now Russia), in position 72.49N, 30.41E, by depth charges from the British sloops HMS Mermaid (U 30) and Peacock (U 96), the frigate HMS Loch Dunvegan (K 425) and the destroyer HMS Keppel (D 84). All 51 crewmen on the U-boat are lost.

Elements of famed Stuka pilot Hans-Ulrich Rudel's StG 2 were flown to a base near Ploesti during the final week of August. In his memoirs, Rudel described the situation as he arrived at the base:

"As I come in to land, I see roads leading to the aerodrome are packed with endless streams of Romanian military trekking southward; in places convoys are halted by traffic jams. Heavy artillery of all calibers are among them. But there are no German units there. I am witnessing the last act of a tragedy. Whole sectors were held by Romanian units which have ceased to offer any resistance whatever and are now in full retreat. The Soviets are at their heels."

Rudel had seen the same thing near Stalingrad -- masses of Romanian troops fleeing in the face of a Russian attack. At that time, he later said, he would have bombed or strafed his erstwhile allies if he had any ammunition left. The same thought apparently crossed his mind as he witnessed this latest debacle.

Hptm. Erich Hartmann Staffelkapitän of 9./JG 52, became the first person ever to score 300 kills in an aircraft. German fighters claimed a total of twenty-four victories near Sandomierz.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: 'U-445' (Type VIIC) is sunk about 148 nautical miles (274 kilometres) west of Saint-Nazaire, France, in position 47.21N, 05.50W, by depth charges from the British frigate HMS 'Louis' (K 515, ex USN DE-517). All 53 crewmen on the U-boat are lost.

 

[syscom3]

25 AUGUST 1944 FRIDAY

WESTERN FRONT: In France: Paris is liberated by French and US troops. The French 2d Armored Division, bypassing resistance in the Versailles area, get forward elements into Paris from the southwest at 0700 hours local. The US 4th Infantry Division enters the city from the south at about 0730 hours local. FFI forces and jubilant French civilians assist in the methodical clearing of scattered strongpoints within the city. The German commander in Paris, Lt. General Dietrich von Cholitz, surrenders formally to Brigadier General Jacques-Philippe LeClerc of the French 2d Armored Division. The US 22d Infantry Regiment, 4th Infantry Division, establishes a bridgehead across the Seine River south of Paris. The Fall of Paris ended the Normandy campaign, but the Allies were still dependent on the port of Cherbourg for supplies.

The US VIII Corps begins a major attack on Brest at 1300 hours after preparatory bombardment for an hour but three divisions make little headway. The British battleship HMS 'Warspite' bombards the German garrison with her 15-inch (38,1 centimetre) guns.

The British 43d Division establishes a bridgehead across the Seine River at Vernon under cover of artillery fire. The British XXX Corps enters Vernon on the Seine. The XII Corps prepares to cross at Louviers. Canadian forces liberate Elbeuf.

In Southern France, the US 3d Infantry Division drives through Cavaillon, Orgon and Avignon without opposition. Avignon in southern France is liberated by US forces. Fighting in Toulon and Marseilles continues.

The US IX Air Force sends about 240 A-20s and B-26s to attack various enemy strongholds in and around Brest supporting the ground forces' attempt to capture Brest harbor; fighters provide air cover for 5 divisions, fly armed reconnaissance along the Seine River, and sweeps in wide areas around Paris which is liberated; fighters of the IX Tactical Air Command raid, and set afire with napalm tanks, the reported HQ of Field Marshall Walter Model (Commander-in-Chief West) and Verzy.

A-20s of the US XII Air Force fly armed reconnaissance over the Rhone Valley and hit ammunition stores; B-25s and B-26s attack Rhone River bridges at Avignon, Culoz, Saint-Alban- du-Rhone, Pont d'Ain, and Loyes, and hit gun positions around Marseilles.

The US VIII Air Force flies 3 missions; Mission 571: 10 B-24s fly an Azon glide bomb mission to Moerdijke, the Netherlands but the target is missed. Escort is provided by 36 P-47s. Mission 572: 107 bombers and 172 fighters are dispatched to make visual attacks on liquid oxygen and ammonia plants in Belgium and northern France: (1) 31 38 B-17s hit Henin Littard; and (2) B-24s bomb Willerbroeck (1 8 ), Tertre (17), Tiller/Liege (12) and La Louviere (10); 4 others hit St Trond Airfield and 1 hits a target of opportunity. Escort for Mission 572 is provided by 152 P-38s and P-51s. Mission 573: 6 B-17s drop leaflets on France and Belgium during the night. 1 C-47 Skytrain flies a CARPETBAGGER mission during the night.

German submarine 'U-667' is sunk about 18 nautical miles (34 kilometres) west-southwest of the sub base at La Rochelle, by a mine in the minefield Cinnamon. All 45 men on the U-boat are lost.

German submarine 'U-178' is scuttled at Bordeaux to prevent capture by the Allies.

II./JG 6 flew its first operational sortie from the new base at Herpy. During a sweep of the Seine, the Gruppe was led by ground control to a squadron of P-38 Lightnings attacking the airfield at Clastres. As twelve P-38s of the USAAF 394th FS attacked the airfield, about forty Fw 190s bounced the American warplanes. Six P-38s were shot down in very quick succession. Distress calls from the US Squadron brought help from the USAAF 392nd and 393rd Fighter Squadrons who took on the Focke-Wulfs. The tables turned and sixteen Fw 190s were shot down, including that of Lt. Rudi Dassow, a Staffelkapitän with the 8./JG 6 and a successful bomber-destroyer pilot with twenty-two victories. The remaining fighters of JG 6 accounted for only one more P-38 before breaking off the engagement. The Gruppe had lost nearly half its strength and fourteen pilots killed.

The 474th FG lost 11 of 23 P-38s shot down against 75+ Bf 109s and Fw 190s from JG 26 and JG 76, some flown by top Luftwaffe aces such as Hptm. Emil Lang who claimed three of the Lightnings.


MEDITERRANEAN: During the night of 25/26 August, the British Eighth Army (British V, Canadian I and Polish II Corps) begin their main assault on the Gothic Line from the Metauro River line. The Germans, taken by surprise, offer only ineffective opposition. Meanwhile, 73 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group visually bomb the marshalling yard and canal at Ravenna.

B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators of the US XV Air Force based in Italy bomb four targets, three of them in Brno: 82 bomb the Kurim aircraft factory at Brno, 80 bomb Brno Airfield and 79 bomb the Lison aircraft engine factory at Brno; one bomber is lost. The fourth target is Prostejov Airfield which is hit by 71 bombers with the loss on one.

Three bombers of the US XV Air Force hit targets of opportunity in Hungary including a railroad bridge.

EASTERN FRONT: Before the ring finally closed on the 6.Armee in the Ukraine, most of the surviving troops of Hell's 7.Armeekorps had managed to cross the river and continued retreating to the southwest. The remnants of Mieth's 4.Armeekorps were also on the west side of the Prut. However, their attempt to escape would prove futile, as armored spearheads of the Second Ukrainian Front had already gained positions on the west banks of the Prut, Barladul and Siret rivers. The rapid Soviet advance forced the 6.Armee to change the direction of its retreat. Instead of heading southwest, the army was told to break out in a westerly direction in order to join with German forces in the Carpathian Mountains. ith Soviet forces blocking the German retreat, pressure was now increased on the main body of the 6.Armee north of the Prut. Heavy fighting occurred east of Kishinev and German casualties increased as Soviet tanks broke through the main defensive line, forcing both corps to retreat. While the generals debated what course of action they should take, the Second Ukrainian Front captured Hsui, closing the last German escape route. Instead of relatively weak forces in the southwest, the Germans now faced a double ring of steel.

King Michael of Romania concluded an armistice with Moscow and declared war on Germany. The armistice allowed many of the Soviet units participating in mopping up the remnants of the Romanian armies to be brought into action against the 6.Armee. Compounding the danger to the Germans, several Romanian units were almost immediately incorporated into the Red Army. With the wholesale capitulation of the Romanian army, the entire German front in southeast Europe was on the verge of collapse. Inside the pocket, General Postel issued orders to the encircled divisions:

"We are surrounded. Begin a breakthrough in a southwesterly direction toward the Prut."

The mass retreat began during the night, in hopes there would be some relief from the constant bombing and strafing by the Soviet air force.

Major Erich Rudorffer of II./JG 54 shot down 5 Russian aircraft to bring his score to 172 victories.

The Finnish Ambassador in Stockholm, G. A. Gripenberg meets the Soviet Ambassador Alexandra Kollontay and hands her a letter written by Foreign Minister Enckell. In the letter Enckell informs the Soviet government that Finland is willing to start peace negotiations in Moscow. On the same day Finland officially informs Germany that the promise made by the ex-President Risto Ryti to Ribbentrop (that Finland shall not make peace unless in full agreement with Germany) is in force no more.

German submarines 'U-18' and 'U-24' are scuttled at Konstanza on the Black Sea. Eight men are killed on the 'U-18'.

GERMANY: The US VIII Air Force in England flies 1 mission. Mission 570: 1,191 bombers and 708 fighters, in 3 forces, make visual bombing attacks against aircraft component plants, Luftwaffe experimental stations and the synthetic oil industry; 18 bombers and 7 fighters are lost; numbers in parenthesis indicate number of bombers attacking the target. (1) B-24s attack aircraft component plants at Rostock (116), Schwerin (106), Wismar (91) and Lubeck (81); 11 others hit Grossenbrode Airfield and 4 hit targets of opportunity; 5 B-24s are lost; escort is provided by 243 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs; they claim 11-2-3 aircraft; 1 P-51 is lost. (2) B-17s bomb the Rechlin Experimental Station (179) and oil refinery at Politz (169); 6 others hit targets of opportunity; 8 B-17s; escort is provided by 215 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 4-0-2 aircraft; 4 P-51s are lost. (3) B-17s attack the Peenemunde Experimental Station (146), Neubrandenburg Airfield (10 8 ) and Anklam Airfield (73); 21 others hit Parow Airfield and 5 hit targets of opportunity; 5 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 171 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 36-0-28 aircraft; 2 P-51s are lost.

With the abandonment of He 177 operations due to the critical fuel situation, the crews from KG 1 'Hindenburg' were disbanded and incorporated into a new Geschwader, JG 7, that initially flew Fw 190s. Due to the scarcity of pilots, the Geschwader was equipped instead with Bf 109G-14s. III./KG 1 was ordered renamed II./JG 7 at Prowehren/East Prussia and was stationed at Ziegenhain airfield in Czechoslovakia. Formations were the Stab./JG 7 led by Obst. Johannes 'Macki' Steinhoff, I Gruppe formed from II./KG 1 led by Hptm Gerhard Baeker and II Gruppe formed from III./KG 1 at Prowehren/East Prussia.

 

[syscom3]

26 AUGUST 1944 SATURDAY

WESTERN FRONT: General de Gaulle returns to Paris to participate in a ceremonial parade.

The US Ninth Air Force's IX Bomber Command, with fighter escort, strikes fuel dumps at Saint-Gobain, Fournival/Bois- de-Mont, and Compiegne/ Clairoix, and troop and equipment concentrations at Rouen; fighters fly ground forces and assault area cover, and armed reconnaissance in the Rouen, Dijon, Chatillon-sur- Seine and S Loire areas.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 7 missions: Mission 575: 359 B-17s attack gun batteries in the Brest, France area; targets are Brest/Pte de St Mathieu (35) and coastal batteries at Kerandieu (27), Cornovailles (21), Brest/Ile Longue (20), Brest/Kerviniov (9) and Brest/Ponscorf (7); targets of opportunity are Brest/Pte des Espagnoles II (21) and Brest/Pte des Espagnoles III (18 ); escort is provided by 48 P-51s; 1 P-51 is lost. Mission 577: 9 B-24s fly an AZON bomb mission to Moerdijk rail bridge, the Netherlands but clouds prevent an attack. Escort is provided by 32 P-51s. Mission 578: 37 B-17s are dispatched to hit liquid oxygen plants at La Louviere, Torte and Willebroeck, Belgium but the mission is aborted due to clouds. Escort is provided by 18 P-51s. Mission 579: 3 B-17s fly a special bomb test using Micro H radar against aviation industry targets at Meaulte, France. Escort is provided by 7 P-47s. Mission 580: 3 B-17s fly a Micro H test mission; 2 of the aircraft also drop leaflets. Mission 581: 7 B-24s are dispatched on a radio countermeasures mission to aid the RAF Bomber Command. Mission 582: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France and Belgium during the night. 183 P-47s and 206 P-51s attack transport targets in Belgium, eastern France and western Germany in an attempt to prevent the escape of German forces; they claim 1-0-0 aircraft; 2 P-47s and 7 P-51s are lost.

During the night of 25/26 August, the US Twelfth Air Force sends fighter-bombers on armed reconnaissance over the Nice, France area to bomb vehicles and other targets of opportunity, and during the day to bomb ammunition dumps in southeastern France; B-25s and B-26s hit guns in the Marseilles area but several missions into the Rhone Valley are aborted due to bad weather; fighter-bombers and fighters fly armed reconnaissance over southeastern France, attacking rail lines, roads, guns, vehicles, and other targets of opportunity.

The remaining planes of II./JG 6 were ordered to cover the retreating German forces crossing at the River Seine.

MEDITERRANEAN: Solid bridgeheads are established by the British 8th Army over the River Metauro in Italy. The German 71.Division falls back in the face of attacks by V Corps.

During the night of 26/27 August, two RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group fly a night leaflet mission over Hungary.

During the day, USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-17s visually bomb five railroad targets without loss: 55 bomb the railroad viaduct at Venzone; 54 bomb the railroad bridge at Ferrara, 39 bomb the railroad viaduct at Aviso; 13 bomb the railroad bridge at Latisana and one bombs the railroad bridge at Piave. During the night of 26/27 August, 66 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group attack German troop concentrations at Pesano without loss.

USAAF Fiftheenth Air Force B-24s visually bomb three targets, two of them in Bucharest: 114 bomb Otoperni Airfield in Bucharest and 114 bomb 114 bomb tactical targets in Bucharest and 20 bomb the ferry at Giurgiu.

USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24s visually bomb two targets without loss: 54 bomb the railroad bridge at Borovnica and one hits the marshalling yard at Nis.

EASTERN FRONT: The Russian advance reaches the Danube River east of Galati, Romania. The German army in southeast Europe now began to disintegrate as division and regimental commanders took their own initiative in seeking avenues of escape. As soon as dawn broke, the rain of steel began anew as Soviet ground-attack aircraft set upon the columns of retreating Germans. Brigadier General Werner von Eichstadt, commanding the 294.Infantriedivision, and Maj. Gen. Hans de Salengre-Drabbe of the 384.Infantriedivision were both killed during the retreat while General Postel and General Erich von Bogen of the 302.Infantriedivision were wounded. In other areas, small groups of Germans found breaks in the Soviet lines and fled farther west. However, the majority of the 6.Armee was caught in a vise that continued to compress the pocket relentlessly. The bulk of the 6.Armee remained trapped near the Prut River, with smaller pockets encircled near Vulcani and Stalinesti.

Bulgaria withdraws from the war and disarms German troops.

The USS 'Yarnell' (DD-143), was commissioned as HMS 'Lincoln' (G-42) on 23 Oct. 1940, part of the destroyers-for- bases deal. Today, this ship is transferred to Russia as 'Druzhny'. She joins several sister ships transferred earlier this year. They will return to the RN between 1949-1952.

GERMANY: The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 1 mission (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of bombers attacking). Mission 576: 588 bombers and 402 fighters, in 3 forces, attack oil refineries, fuel stores and chemical works in Germany; 10 bombers and 3 fighters are lost. (1) B-24s bomb the chemical works at Ludwigshafen (41); secondary targets hit are marshalling yards at Ehrang (33) and Kons/Karthaus (8 ); 11 others hit Alzey and 2 hit other targets of opportunity; 7 B-24s are lost; escort is provided by 77 P-51s; they claim 1-0-0 aircraft on the ground; 1 P-51 is lost. (2) B-17s bomb oil refineries at Gelsenkirchen/ Buer (89) and Gelsenkirchen/ Nordstern (85); 19 hit Deelen Airfield, a secondary target, and 11 hit targets of opportunity; 3 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 159 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51s without loss. (3) B-24s hit the Dulmen fuel dump (73) and oil refineries at Salzbergen (71) and Emmerich (36); 36 others hit Eindhoven Airfield; escort is provided by 129 P-38s, P-47s and P-51s; 1 P-38 and 1 P-51 are lost.

UNITED KINGDOM: The US IX Troop Carrier Command is relieved of its assignment to the Ninth Air Force upon transfer of the command and its service organizations from the IX Air Force Services Command to HQ First Allied Airborne Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lewis H Brereton.

 

[syscom3]

27 AUGUST 1944 SUNDAY

WESTERN FRONT: In northern France, the Canadian 4th Armoured and 3d Divisions begin crossing the Seine River between Elbeuf and Pont de l'Arche and clear Tourlaville. The French 2d Armored Division and the US 4th Infantry Division drive northeast to the outskirts of Paris, the French overcoming strong opposition at Le Bourget Airfield. The US VIII Corps completes the encirclement of Brest while Third Army armored units reach the Marne River at Chauteau-Thierry, secure crossings, and overrun the town. The US 12th Army Group allocates priority in supply to the US First Army rather than Patton's Third Army. Supplies are becoming increasingly short.

In southern France, the French 2d Corps continues to clear the environs of Toulon but halts when the Germans agree to surrender the peninsula tomorrow. At Marseille, Fort St. Nicolas surrenders, but scattered opposition remains. In the evening, the German command requests an interview to discuss surrender terms.

Whilst attempting the clearance of a German minefield 5 miles (8 kilometres) off the Normandy coast between Fecamp and Cap d'Antifer near Le Harve, three British minesweepers are attacked by Allied aircraft: (1) HMS 'Hussar' (J 82) of the 1st Minesweeping Flotilla is sunk by rockets fired by RAF Typhoon Mk IBs of No 263 and 266 (Rhodesia) Squadron resulting in 55 casualties; (2) HMS 'Britomart' (J 22)is also sunk with 22 casualties; and (3) HMS 'Salamander' (J 86) is so seriously damaged that she is beyond repair. In all 78 officers and ratings were killed and 149 wounded, in what was the most serious "friendly fire" incident involving RN ships of the war.

Two hundred twenty one RAF Bomber Command aircraft bomb the Mimoyecquest V-1 site at Marquise while 24 Lancasters bomb two ships in Brest Harbor and claimed hits on both.

In southeastern France and Italy, the USAAF Twelfth Air Force sends B-25s and B-26s to hit gun emplacements in the Marseilles area.

In northern France, the USAAF Ninth Air Force's IX Bomber Command attacks troop concentrations in the Rouen area, Rouen bridge, the Boursin navigational beam station at Boulogne-sur- Mer, and Bucy-les-Pierrepont and Foret de Samoussy fuel dumps; fighters cover ground forces and fly sweeps and armed reconnaissance in the Senlis area and south of the Loire River claiming 16 aircraft (11 in the air) destroyed, and losing 6.

Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb eight targets: 45 bomb Heligoland Island using H2X radar, 37 bomb the port area at Emden, 35 bomb the airfield at Brondom, 34 bomb the Wilhelmshaven port area using H2X radar, five bomb the airfield at Husum, and six aircraft bomb individual targets of opportunity. Only two aircraft are lost. Sixty USAAF Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb the airfield at Esbjerg with the loss of one aircraft and one aircraft bombs the marshalling yard at Flensberg.

GERMANY: During the day, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 243 aircraft, 216 Halifaxes 14 Mosquitos and 13 Lancasters on a historic raid to Homberg, the first major raid by Bomber Command to Germany in daylight since 12 August 1941, when 54 Blenheims had attacked power-stations near Cologne for the loss of 10 aircraft. This raid was escorted by nine squadrons of Spitfires on the outward flight and seven squadrons on the withdrawal. One Bf110 is seen; the Spitfires drove it off. There was intense flak over the target but no bombers were lost. The target was the Rheinpreussen synthetic-oil refinery at Meerbeck. The bombing was based on Oboe marking but 5-8/10ths cloud produced difficult conditions, though some accurate bombing was claimed through gaps in the clouds.

During the night of 27/28 August, 27 RAF Mosquitos bomb Mannheim using H2S radar while four visually bomb Duisburg.

The USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force, based in Italy, bombs two I.G. Farben synthetic oil refineries at Blechhammer: 213 B-24s bomb the Blechhammer South facility (28 using H2X radar) and 137 B-17s bomb the Blechhammer North facility.

MEDITERRANEAN: The British Eighth Army makes steady progress northward toward the main Gothic Line positions.

USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium bombers attack bridges at Berceto; fighter-bombers continue armed reconnaissance in the Po Valley and over roads leading north from the battle line north of the Arno River; and A-20 Havocs bomb targets of opportunity in the Po Valley.

During the night of 27/28 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force aircraft fly armed reconnaissance in north central Italy.

One hundred fifty five B-24 Liberators of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force bomb four targets: 56 bomb the railroad bridge at Ferrara, 52 bomb a railroad viaduct at Aviso while 46 a second railroad viaduct at Aviso, and one bombs a railroad bridge at Latisana.
54 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb troop concentrations at Pesano.

Twenty nine B-24s of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force visually bomb a railroad bridge at Borovnica and six bomb the marshalling yard at Pec.
During the night of 27/28 August, six RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group mine the Danube River.

EASTERN FRONT: Focsani falls to troops of the Second Ukrainian Front while Galati, the third largest city in Romania and chief port on the Danube, falls to troops of the Third Ukrainian Front.

The Red Army crossed the Carpathian Mountains and advanced into central Romania. In the end, the 6.Armee suffered the same fate as its predecessor at Stalingrad. It took the Soviets another week to eliminate the last pockets of resistance, but most of the German divisions had already been destroyed by the end of the month. The number of Germans killed during the Jassy-Kishinev operation was put at 100,000, with another 98,000 taken prisoner. All 14 German divisions of the 6.Armee were destroyed, though some of them were later rebuilt. The four corps commanders, along with most of the divisional commanders, were taken prisoner or killed. The 6.Armee was all but gone, and the 8.Armee was badly weakened. Romania was out of the war, and the oil fields at Ploesti were now in the hands of the Red Army.