WW2 US 8th AF bombing Germany - Bomber Escorts joining the bomber group later (3 Viewers)

Ad: This forum contains affiliate links to products on Amazon and eBay. More information in Terms and rules

Intrafinesse

Recruit
1
0
Joined
Oct 3, 2026
Late 1943/very early 1944 - The escorts (say P-47s) typically joined up with the bombers (B17) later, say near the enemy coast, so as to preserve fuel.
Did escorts ever plan on joining up not at the coast but deeper inland, say 100 miles inland?
If the first group of escorts was engaged and forced to drop tanks, the bombers would be unescorted.
Did the raid planners account for this and send a second group of escorts an hour later?

And a group of escorts that would meet up with the returning bombers (going to a deep target) would presumably meet deep inside Germany, yes?

How did escorts meet up with bombers inside Germany?
I would think there would be frequent misses where they fail to meet up
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back