This day in the war in Europe 65 years ago

[Hugh Spencer]

2 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: A Canadian 'Hampden' patrol aircraft from RCAF 415 Squadron attacked and damaged 'U-706', Kptlt. Alexander Von Zitzewitz, CO, in the Bay of Biscay north-west of Cape Ortegal, Spain. An immediate subsequent attack by an American 'Liberator' patrol aircraft from USAAF 479 Squadron sank the submarine. There were 15 survivors from her crew of 57 men, including the commanding officer.

The German submarine 'U-106' was sunk north-west of Cape Ortegal, Spain, by depth charges from a Sunderland of the Royal Air Force's No. 228 Squadron and a Sunderland Mk III of the Royal Australian Air Force's No 461 Squadron. Both squadrons were based at Pembroke Dock, Wales. 36 of the 58 crewmen on the U-boat survived.

Six men on 'U-218' were wounded during an attack from an RAF 547 Sqdn Wellington. The boat was damaged and had to abort its mine-laying mission and arrived in Brest 6 August.

EASTERN FRONT: German forces repelled massive Soviet attacks at Isjum and the Mius River line. Znamenskaya was liberated by the Soviet Army. The Russian 3rd Mountain Division, respectively 6th Mountain Battalion, took part in the defensive battles, the last positions being situated on the Black Sea shore, east of Anapa, near the city of Taman. German General der Infanterie H. Zorn XXXXVI Pz.Korps was killed at Krassnaja.

Ofw. Georg Schwienteck of 2./JG 52 was injured during combat with 2 Russian IL-2s The Russian aircraft were destroyed, bringing the Lieutenant's score to 30. He later returned to base safely.

Lt. Heinrich Ehrler, Staffelkapitaen of 7./JG 5 in the northern part of the Eastern Front, was awarded the Ritterkreuz for destroying 112 enemy aircraft.

Ofw. Gerhard Gorster of 3./JG 51 (25 kills) was killed in action. But another member of JG 51, Obfw. Franz-Josef Beerenbrock of IV./JG 51 destroyed 9 Soviet aircraft during the day to bring his score to 102 kills and the first pilot within the Geschwader to surpass Werner Moelders' 100 victory mark.

GERMANY: One of the more successful night-fighters, Hptm. Manfred Meuer of 3./NJG 1 was awarded the Eichenlaub. Major Helmut Lent, Gruppenkommanduer of IV./NJG 1 added the Schwerten (No. 32) to his Ritterkreuz for 65 night victories and 8 day victories. Lent was then appointed Geschwaderkommodore of NJG 3 based at Stade.

329 Lancasters, 235 Halifaxes, 105 Stirlings, 66 Wellingtons and 5 Mosquitoes attacked Hamburg, 30 aircraft lost, among them Lancaster JA873 of 61 Sqdn. The crew lost were:- F/Lt B Laing, F/O C.C. Godley, F/O B. Fox, P/O T.A. Holman, Sgt R.H. Burn, Sgt W.F. Ardron, Sgt W.M. Grant and Sgt S.H. Mortimer. The bombing force encountered a large thunderstorm area over Germany and the raid was a failure. Many crews turned back early or bombed alternative targets. At least 4 aircraft, probably more, were lost because of icing, turbulence or were struck by lightning. No Pathfinder marking was possible at Hamburg and only scattered bombing took place there. Many other towns in a 100 mile area of northern Germany received a few bombs. A sizable raid developed on the small town of Elmshorn, 12 miles from Hamburg. It is believed that a flash of lightning set a house on fire here and bomber crews saw this through a gap in the storm clouds and started to bomb the fire. 254 houses were destroyed in Elmshorn and 57 people were killed, some of them refugees from recent raids on Hamburg.

5 Mosquitoes went to Duisburg and 6 Wellingtons minelaying in the River Elbe. 1 minelayer lost.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 24: On the ground in Sicily, US ground forces pushed slowly west while British troops gained control of Regalbuto and fought indecisively in the streets of Centuripe.

In the air, Northwest African Tactical Air Force fighters, and light and medium bombers hit trucks, a dump and road junction in northeastern Sicily, docks and shipping at Milazzo, Messina and in the Reggio di Calabria, Italy area, and targets of opportunity (mainly motor transport) from Barcellona south to Adrano. Ninth Air Force P-40s attacked shipping in the Straits of Messina and off Milazzo.

U.S. General George S. Patton, Commanding General Seventh Army, slapped U.S. Army Private C.H. Kuhl in a hospital on Sicily.

WESTERN FRONT: The US Eighth Air Force's VIII Air Support Command scheduled 4 missions against airfields without loss. 31 B-26B Marauders bombed Merville Airfield, France, 18 B-26Bs bombed Ft Rouge Airfield at St Omer and an attack on Woensdrecht Airfield, The Netherlands was cancelled. Mission 13B was a diversion.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

3 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Two German submarines were sunk by US aircraft: 'U-572' was sunk northeast of Trinidad, by depth charges from a USN PBM-3 Mariner of Patrol Squadron Two Hundred Five (VP-205) based at NAS Guantanamo, Cuba. The submarine was on the surface and the U-boat crew shot the aircraft down during the bombing run; all hands on the aircraft and all hands on the submarine, 47 men, are killed.

'U-706' was sunk at 0630 hours local in the Bay of Biscay northwest of Cape Ortegal, Spain, by depth charges from a USAAF B-24 of the 4th Antisubmarine Squadron (Heavy) based at St Eval, Cornwall, England. There were 15 survivors of the U-boats 57 man crew. This submarine was earlier attacked by a Canadian Hampden patrol aircraft from RCAF 415 Squadron.

'U-66' was caught by Avenger and Wildcat aircraft from the escort carrier USS 'Card' and 3 men were killed and 8 more wounded, including the commander. [Oberleutnant zur See der Reserve Kurt Schütze, Matrosengefreiter Erich Lorenz and Mechanikergefreiter (T) Heinz Nitsch].

EASTERN FRONT: The Soviet Voronezh and Steppe Fronts launched a fresh set of offensives on the Belgorod-Poltava axis aimed at the liberation of Kharkov. In heavy fighting, the Soviets broke the German lines to the west and forced the 4.Panzerarmee to withdraw. The weak German defenses between Belgorod and Tomarowka were virtually smashed as the German command was taken completely by surprise. While a German front to the east of Kharkov was intact, there was no front at all to the north and northwest. Small Kampfgruppen of exhausted 6., 19. and 11.Panzerdivisons fought desperately, slowing down the Russian advance. As was to be expected, the defenders of the eastern and northeastern approaches to Kharkov were soon driven back when the Russians struck through the Donets River.

Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 added to his score by downing a LaGG-5 and two Yak-7s during a morning mission and another LaGG-5 in the afternoon, bringing his score to 50 victories. But another Eastern front Geschwader lost its Gruppenkommandeur when Oblt. Gerhard Homuth of I./JG 54 (63 kills) was shot down by Russian fighters.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 25: On the ground in Sicily, US forces continued east along the north coast toward the Furiano River. At Troina, further inland, the enemy continued firm resistance.

In the air, USAAF Ninth Air Force B-25s bombed Adrano and its highway approaches; and 300+ P-40s, the largest Ninth Air Force total to date, attacked harbors and shipping at Milazzo and Messina, and gave direct support to British ground forces in the Catania-Bronte area. Northwest African Tactical Air Force light bombers hit tactical targets; and fighters, light and medium bombers hit shipping in the Straits of Messina and at Milazzo and attacked Adrano and Biancavilla and gun emplacements and bridges in the area.

The evacuation of Sicily by Italian forces began.

General Alexander, the Allied commander in the Med, told his air and naval commanders;

"Indications suggest that the Germans are making preparations for withdrawl to the mainland...We must be in a position to take immediate advantage of such a situation by using the full weight of the Naval and Air Power. You have no doubt coordinated plans to meet this contingency."

In fact, they had not made plans to prevent the German evacuation, nor did they after this 'suggestion'. The Axis armies would successfully evacuate Sicily. The difficult terrain around Messina allowed small numbers of soldiers to hold the advance of Allied armies during the evacuation and the Navy had legitimate concerns about mines and shore batteries while operating in the Straits of Messina.

NORTHERN FRONT: Oblt. Theodo Weissenberger of 7./JG 5 was awarded the Eichenlaub as was Ofw. Franz-Josef Beerenbrock of IV./JG 51.

A Stirling belonging to RAF No. 75 Sqn Bomber Command was attacked by a German night fighter piloted by Hans Joachim Jabs of IV./NJG 1 and crashed at 03:51 hours into the North Sea 25 kilometres North West of Terschelling killing all onboard.

UNITED KINGDOM: Major General William E. Kepner became Commanding General, US VIII Fighter Command.

A Halifax bomber operating from Melbourne airfield in Yorkshire was approaching its target area when an attack by a Junkers Ju 88 damaged the fuselage, both elevators were shot away and the rudders were shot to ribbons. Despite this the rear-gunner shot the Ju 88 out of the sky and the pilot got the Halifax back to its base, where he was awarded the DFC and the rear-gunner the DFM.

WESTERN FRONT: 12 Wellingtons of 6 Group laid mines off Lorient and St Nazaire without loss.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

4 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: The German submarine 'U-489' was sunk southeast of Iceland by an RCAF Sunderland Mk III, s/n DD859, of No 423 Squadron based at Castle Archdale, Northern Ireland. 53 of the 54 crewman on the U-boat survive. This supply U-boat had set out on its first patrol on 22 July, barely a fortnight before its sinking, and did not, consequently provide replenishment to any other U-boat.

EASTERN FRONT: Soviet forces captured Orel. Fresh attacks were launched by the Steppe and Voronezh Fronts south of Kursk targeted at the 4.Panzerarmee and 8.Armee. The lines of the 52nd Corps were broken in the initial attacks.

Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 had another '5 in One Day' when he destroyed 4 LaGG-5s and a Yak-7 during combat over Varaovka. But Eastern Front Geschwaders lost another Experte. As he attacked a formation of Soviet IL-2s near Karatchev, Oblt. Hans Gotz of I./JG 54 (84 kills) was seen crashing his Bf 109 upside down into a wooded area and killed.

GERMANY: 5 Mosquitoes bombed the estimated positions of Cologne and Duisburg through cloud without loss.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 26: In Sicily, British forces were fighting in the Catania area. The British crossed the Salso River with 2 divisions, while other forces prepared to drive on Catania and others continued toward Misterbianco. Other American forces were halted by fierce opposition at the Furiano River and Troina.

In the air, Ninth Air Force P-40s attacked shipping at Messina and supported ground forces at the north end of Mount Etna. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) medium and light bombers, and fighters attacked communications targets, gun positions, and storage areas in the Milazzo-Adrano-Biancavilla and Bronte-Riposto-Fiumefreddo areas. A number of NATAF aircraft hit rail sidings on the toe of Italy and attacked shipping off Messina, Sicily.

In Italy, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) B-17s bombed the submarine base at Naples in what Rome called "the most barbarous and merciless" raid so far: 150 people were killed. B-26s and B-25s hit the railroad bridge at Cantanzaro and rail-road at Paola.

The Canadian-built, British-registered cargo ship 'Fort La Montee' (7,130 GRT) sank after a fire and explosion while in Algiers. 'Fort La Montee' was loaded with a cargo of phosphorous. As soon as the fire was discovered, the ship was moved out of the harbor due to her hazardous cargo. The Acasta-class fleet destroyer HMS 'Arrow' was standing by to render assistance when an enormous explosion destroyed the forward end of 'Fort La Montee'. Over 100 lives were lost in 'Fort La Montee' and 'Arrow'. A British submarine was eventually able to sink the after end of the freighter with gunfire. 'Arrow' was declared a Constructive Total Loss.

WESTERN FRONT: The US Eighth Air Force's VIII Air Support Command flew Mission 14. 33 B-26B Marauders bombed shipyards at Le Trait, France at 19:26 hours local without loss.

Lt. Karl Tauscher of 10./JG 11 was practicing high altitude air combat north of Fliegerhorst Aalborg West with another aircraft at 20-21:00 hours when his aircraft entered a shallow dive that suddenly changed to a steep dive. FW 190A-6 crashed at Egestedvej road in the Øster Halne parish killing Tauscher. The FW 190 was a 100% loss. The other aircraft returned to Fliegerhorst Aalborg West.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

5 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: At 2137 hours, USS 'Plymouth' was hit by one torpedo from 'U-566' about 120 miles SE of Cape Henry, Virginia. The gunboat had made a underwater sound contact while escorting a coastal convoy, just as the ship swung left to bear on the target she was struck just abaft the bridge. The ship rolled first to starboard, then took a heavy list to port with the entire port side forward of amidships in flames and sank within two minutes. The survivors were picked up by the US Coast Guard cutter USS 'Calypso' in heavy seas and arrived in Norfolk on 6 August.

At 17.45 hours, the unescorted 'Efthalia Mari' was hit by two torpedoes from 'U-177' and sank after 8 minutes east of Madagascar. The ship had been spotted in the morning by using the Bachstelze autogyro. The Germans questioned survivors in a lifeboat before leaving the area.

EASTERN FRONT: Belgorod fell to General Konev's troops. The German 2.Panzerarmee suffered such severe losses that it was incorporated into the 9.Armee. Russia was celebrating the recapture of Orel, which had been in German hands since 1941. In Moscow a 120-gun salute was given at Midnight. The Russians, who fought hard all the way to the approaches to the city, expected a bloody street battle, but when their patrols moved cautiously in they found the suburbs deserted. The Germans, fearing being cut off, had fled. The fall of this German bastion removed the last threat to Moscow and opened the way for the next stage in the Russian advance. The tide of battle was now rolling towards Bryansk.

The German submarine 'U-34' sinks at 2155 hours local at Memel after a collision with the German U-boat submarine tender 'Lech'. 39 of the 43 crewmen survived. MV 'Majakovski' (approx. 80 tons) was sunk by a mine laid on 31 July by 'U-212' SE of Koglujew in the Kara.

The Germans started the final deportation of Jews from the Vilna ghetto with a transport to the Vaivara labour camp in Estonia.

Another 5 victories for 7./JG 52's Lt. Erich Hartmann, downing 3 LaGG-5s and 2 Yak-7s brought his score to 60 kills. Gunther Schack, also of III./JG 52, added 5 more planes destroyed to his credit during 3 sorties.

GERMANY: 5 Mosquitoes, out of 8 dispatched, bombed Duisburg and Dusseldorf without loss.

Oblt. Alfred Grislawski (109 kills) arrived at Jagdgruppe Sud's airfield at Erbenheim and was given command of Major Graf's special unit, 1./JGr Sud, serving as Staffelkapitaen.

Hptm. Manfred Meuer, Staffelkapitaen of 3./NJG 1 was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of II./NJG 5.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 27: The race for Messina and victory in Sicily was reaching the final stage. The British have fought their way around Mount Etna on both sides with the Highlanders fighting hard for Biancavilla as the XIII Corps advanced to take Catania, Misterbianco and Paterno, and XXX Corps advances towards Adrano. The Germans were leaving strong rearguards as they retreated northwards to Messina. The British were aided by forward landings by airborne forces fighting to save bridges from demolition.

The American Seventh Army used seaborne landings to bypass the Axis defenders along the north coast of the island. They opened an assault on the San Fratello ridge, and further inland gained positions overlooking Troina. The enemy withdrew from the town during the night.

In the air, USAAF Ninth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bombed the town, roads, and road junctions of Francavilla and shipping in the Straits of Messina. Northwest African Tactical Air Force fighters and light and medium bombers attack troops, roads, and gun positions at Adrano and Troina and surrounding areas in support of Allied ground forces, hit motor transport behind enemy lines in Sicily and on the toe of Italy, and sank or damaged over 20 small vessels and barges at Milazzo and in the Straits of Messina; and Northwest African Strategic Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses, operating in 2 forces, hit the docks and railroad yards at Messina. B-25s bombed a switching station at Guspini, Sardinia.

NORTHERN FRONT: In a move which betrayed Germany's weakened position, the Swedish government announced that it would no longer allow the Swedish railways to be used to transport German troops and war material to Norway. The Swedes were forced to concede transit rights to the Germans in 1940 when the Nazi armies were sweeping to victory over most of Europe. Stockholm newspapers said that the government acted because a virtual state of war exists in Norway, with British commandos mounting raids and uniformed Allied guerrillas active.

A He 59D from 5. Seenotstaffel was sunk during a rescue of RAF pilots off Norway.

An Fw 200C-4 from I./KG 40 was reported missing near Nordkysten av Island, Norway and was probably shot down.

UNITED KINGDOM: A Fairey Barracuda II of RAF No. 810 Squadron flying from HMS 'Illustrious', landed on the beach at Falcarragh, County Donegal. Due to bad weather the aircraft did not fly out until August 8th. RAF No.810 Squadron were at this time sailing to the Mediterranean on HMS 'Illustrious'. Irish Army reports mentioned the aircraft being a Beaufort bomber but this was not operated by the RN at this time.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

6 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: At 0450 hours, the unescorted 'Fort Halkett' was torpedoed and sunk by gunfire by 'U-185' about 600 miles SE of Natal, Brazil. The master and 23 survivors landed south of Natal. The chief officer and 23 survivors were picked up by destroyer USS 'Goldsborough' and landed at Recife. The second officer and ten survivors landed at Cabadello, Brazil.

'U-615' was sunk by USN Mariner aircraft, Squadron VP-205/P-4. The boat was lost in a massive hunt in the Caribbean. It fought bravely for days against overwhelming odds before finally being sunk.

EASTERN FRONT: Konev's forces drive to the outskirts of Kharkov taking Zolochev.

Despite achieving 19 kills since the beginning of the week, Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 destroyed only one Yak-1 shortly after 15:30 hours over Kharkov, flying from his new base at Kharkov-Rogan.

A Bf 109G-2 belonging to III./JG 5 was shot down by ground fire over Norway and the pilot, Uffz. Heinfried Wiegang, was injured. IV./JG 5 lost two FW 190s in accidents with both pilots, Uffz. Heinz Umland and Uffz. Paul Neugebauer, injured.

GERMANY: German civil defense officials ordered the partial evacuation of Berlin, fearing that that city would become the next Hamburg.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 28: The US 1st Infantry Division captured Tronia after heavy fighting. The "Big Red One" had a bitter, tough fight. They then pushed through the town and one mile (1.6 km) to the east before opposition halted them. The British were advancing on Adrana. They also took Biancavilla. During the night they took Adrano as the enemy pulled back.

In the air, 60+ USAAF Ninth Air Force B-26 Marauders bombed Bronte, Catania, and Randazzo and the area north of the Adrano-Biancavilla road; 20+ others bombed road intersections in Adrano and Bronte; and 100+ P-40s attacked shipping and shore targets in the Messina area while 30 others attacked shipping on the west coast. Northwest African Strategic Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bombed coastal roads near Messina; B-26s and B-25 Mitchells hit a road junction southwest of Badiazza and railroad bridges north of Gesso. Northwest African Tactical Air Force light and medium bombers hit roads, junctions, and buildings in the Troina, Adrano, Biancavilla, Tortorici, Bronte, Piranino, and Randazzo areas and the Bagnara, Italy area; and fighter-bombers hit shipping from Vibo Valentia south to the Straits of Messina.

At Tarvisio, Italy, the new Italian government met with German Foreign Minister Ribbentrop and assured him that they would not be negotiating a separate peace with the Allies. But German troops started pouring in to take over the country's defences.

NORTH AFRICA: Luftwaffe bomber operations over North Africa in the weeks prior to the expected Allied landings on mainland Italy included a raid on Bizerta during the night.

WESTERN FRONT: 8 Mosquitoes went to Cologne and Duisburg. 20 Stirlings and 14 Wellingtons went minelaying south of Texel and off Brest and the Biscay ports, 2 Stirlings lost.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

7 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Two German U-boats were sunk by US aircraft. 'U-117' was sunk west of the Azores, while supplying 'U-66', by depth charges and a Fido homing torpedo from five USN TBF Avengers of Composite Squadron One (VC-1) in the escort aircraft carrier USS 'Card' (CVE-11). All hands, 62 men, on the U-boat were lost.

'U-615' was attacked southeast of Curacao Island, Netherlands Antilles, on 6 August by a PBM-3S Mariner of Patrol Squadron Two Hundred Five (VP-205), based at NAS Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The submarine was on the surface and returned fire shooting down the aircraft with the loss of all hands. A PBM-3C of VP-204, based at NS San Juan, Puerto Rico, then attacked causing moderate damage and forcing the submarine to dive. For the rest of the day and during the night, VP-204 flew continuous patrols over the area forcing the submarine to remain submerged. In the morning, 'U-615' surfaced and a VP-204 aircraft attacked but was shot down with the loss of all hands. A second PBM attacked and caused moderate damage to both the sub and the aircraft but the PBM remained in the area until a USN PV-1 Ventura of Bombing Squadron One Hundred Thirty (VB-130), based at Edinburgh Field, Trinidad, arrived and both aircraft conducted a coordinated bombing and strafing attack sinking the sub. 43 of the 47 crewman survived and were picked up by a US destroyer the next morning. This was possibly the longest ongoing combat between a U-boat and aircraft. 'U-615's' battle enabled many other U-boats in the Caribbean to surface and escape to the east. The aircraft were from the following squadrons; VP-204 (P-6 and P-8), VP-205 (P-2, P-11 and P-4) and VB-130 (Ventura B-5).

'U-566' shot down two PV-1 Ventura aircraft from VB-128.

The 'Umvuma' (Master John Newby Gibson), dispersed from convoy DN-54, was torpedoed and sunk by 'U-181' southwest of Port Louis, Mauritius. 17 crew members, one gunner and four passengers were lost. The master, 72 crew members, eight gunners and eight passengers were picked up by the salvage tug 'Maurice' and landed at Port Louis.

EASTERN FRONT: After a short break, Lt. Erich Hartmann was back in action with multiple kills over Soviet aircraft. During a morning mission, he destroyed 2 Yak-1s. Two hours later he shot down 2 Pe-2 bombers and a Yak-1. He finished the day with 2 LaGG-5s, bringing his total for the day to 7 aircraft and a whole total of 68 kills for his scoreboard. But with success came tragedy. Fw. Heinz Kurten (15 kills) of 7./JG 52 was killed in a flying accident. Lt. Heinrich Hofemeier (96 kills) of I./JG 51 was hit by AA fire near Karatchev and killed.

GERMANY: 4 Mosquitoes bombed Cologne and 1 bombed Dusseldorf without loss.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 29: British forces made good progress on Sicily, capturing Adrana and advancing toward Bronte. U.S. forces improved their positions on the north coast in the San Fratello region against heavy resistance. During the night, a small amphibious force landed on the coast 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Sant' Agata di Militello, greatly aiding progress along the coast. Other forces began a drive on Randazzo.

In the air, 150 USAAF Ninth Air Force B-25 Mitchells attacked Randazzo and 140+ P-40s attacked shipping at Messina and in the Straits, and shipping and shore-supply stores along the northeastern coast. Northwest African Tactical Bomber Force medium and light bombers pounded Randazzo, the enemy's key withdrawal point. Maletto was also bombed. P-40s and A-36 Apaches strafed and bombed small craft between Sicily and mainland Italy, motor transport near Randazzo, a warehouse north of Messina, dumps on the toe of Italy, and vehicles and communications targets in the Sant' Agata di Militello, Bronte, Cesaro, Tortorici, Castiglione di Sicilia and Riposto areas. Northwest African Strategic Air Force B-25s in 2 forces hit the landing ground at Crotone while B-26 Marauders bombed the railroad bridge at Marina di Cantanzaro and highway bridge over the Angitola River.

In response to urgent political orders, 197 Lancasters of 1, 5 and 8 Groups were dispatched to attack Genoa, Milan and Turin. It is believed that every aircraft reached the target area. 195 crews returned and reported bombing. 2 aircraft were lost, one was LM339 from 61 Sqdn crewed by F/O E. Filmer, P/O H. Halkier, F/Sgt E.R. Smart, Sgt D. Brown, Sgt C.P. Southcott, Sgt D.W. Thirsk and Sgt F.E. West. Group Captain J.H. Searby of RAF No.83 Sqdn acted as Master Bomber for the bombing at Turin but with only limited success. This was a trial in preparation for the role he would play in the raid on Peenemunde later in the month. The only report available from Italy says that 20 people were killed and 79 were injured in Turin.

The 'Contractor' (Master Andrew Brims) in convoy GTX-5 was torpedoed and sunk by 'U-371' about 75 miles southwest of Sardinia. The master and three crew members were lost. 68 crew members and eleven gunners were picked up by HMS BYMS-2011 (J 811) (Lt L. Hutchinson), HMS BYMS-2014 (J 814) (SubLt R.R. Macintosh), HMS BYMS-2024 (J 824) (Skipper J. Hunt) and HMS BYMS-2209 (J 1009) (Lt J.G. Reeve) and landed at Malta.

The 'Fernhill' (Master K.J. Neuberth Wie) was hit by one torpedo from 'U-757' about 300 miles west of Sierra Leone, while she was proceeding alone after her convoy OS-52 had been dispersed off Bathurst, Gambia. The ship sank within five minutes, killing the three men on watch below and one British gunner. The survivors abandoned ship in lifeboats and rafts and were picked up two days later by an American merchant and taken to Freetown. The third engineer Nils Bremer Johannesen was taken prisoner by the U-boat, this was not noticed by the other survivors.

In combat against the Allies, the Luftwaffe lost Lt. Egon Graf von Beissel (6 kills) of 4./JG 77.

WESTERN FRONT: A Ju 88D-1 of 1.(F)/22 crashed at Nordkysten av Rolfsøy killing all onboard.

Oblt. Henny Passier of 1./SAGr 128 shot down a Sunderland. Twenty minutes later, Ofw. Gryz continued his run of success by claiming a Beaufighter, possibly from RAF No. 248 Sqdrn.

 

[Njaco]

8 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: In the morning 'U-262' was awaiting refueling from 'U-664' while 'U-760' was being supplied in bad weather. At 10.11 hours, an Avenger/Wildcat team from USS 'Card' located the boats and attacked 'U-262'. The Wildcat (VC-1 USN, pilot Ens J.F. Sprague) strafed her while the Avenger (VC-1 USN, pilot Lt(jg) A.H. Sallenger) tried to attack with depth charges, but an AA hit in the bomb bay caused the ordnance to hung up and put the radio out of commission. Making a second run, the Avenger was hit again by AA fire and a fuel tank in the starboard wing caught fire. The two manually dropped depth charges severely damaged 'U-262', but the pilot had to jettison the Fido homing torpedo and ditched the burning aircraft. The radioman went down with the Avenger, while the pilot and the gunner were picked up in the afternoon by USS 'Barry' after being spotted by other aircraft from the escort carrier. The Wildcat was also shot down by the boat during another strafing run and crashed into the sea, killing its pilot. 'U-262' had to abort her patrol due to the damages. 'U-664' meanwhile, found the unalert escort-carrier USS 'Card' in a darkness and attacked her with 3 torpedoes before the Americans noticed him and drove him under and attacked with depth charges causing no damages.

A Beaufighter Ic belonging to RAF 2OTU Coastal Command crashed into the North Sea killing both crew members.

EASTERN FRONT: Oblt. Gerhard Barkhorn of JG 52 scored his 150th kill while Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 brought his score to 70 kills when he downed a Yak-1 and a LaGG-5 during the day.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 30: Patton launched an "end run" on Sicily by landing a small amphibious force east of Sant Agata. This move surprised the Germans and they were forced to make a hasty withdrawal allowing the 7th Army forces to take Cesaro. To the east, British forces took Bronte and Acireale. Militello and Monte Camolato were also captured. 130+ P-40s hit shipping at Messina and provided ground support in NE Sicily as US and British forces pushed east and north. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) light and medium bombers pounded Randazzo. Fighters hit road targets north of Etna, shipping in the Straits of Messina, and covered ground forces at Sant' Agata di Militello.

Feldmarschall Albert Kesselring ordered the evacuation of Sicily, code-named 'Unternehman Lehrgang', which had been under preparation since shortly after the fall of Mussolini. Kesselring did this without consulting Hitler, who entered no objection when word reached him the next day. Fearing that Allied landings might cut off the escape routes to Messina, the German Commander in Sicily, General Hans-Valentin Hube, had already begun evacuating the wounded and able-bodied men who could be spared from the rearguard fighting.

A week-long Allied bombing campaign against northern Italy commences. B-26s hit highway and rail bridges at Angitola, Italy, while P-38s strafed trains and other targets of opportunity SW of the town.

Mussolini was imprisoned on Maddalena Island, off northeast coast of Sardinia.

WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF's VIII Air Support Command in England flew Mission 15: 36 B-26B Marauders were dispatched to Nord Airfield at Poix, France but the formation was turned back by weather.

 

[Njaco]

9 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: The German submarine 'U-664' was sunk 570 miles (917 km) west of the Azores, by depth charges from 2 USN TBF Avengers of Composite Squadron One (VC-1) in the escort aircraft carrier USS 'Card' (CVE-11). 44 of the 51 crewman on the U-boat survived.

EASTERN FRONT: Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 has his score climb by 4 kills when he downed 3 Yak-1s and a LaGG-5 to bring his score to 74 victories.

GERMANY: 286 Lancasters and 171 Halifaxes attacked Mannheim. 6 Halifaxes and 3 Lancasters were lost, including Lancaster W4236 QR-K of 61 Sqdn with part of the crew, Sgt N.T. Holmes, Sgt J. Kendall and Sgt G. Spriggs. The target area was mainly cloud covered and the Pathfinder plan did not work well. The resulting bombing appeared to be scattered. Mannheim, whose wartime officials must have produced some of the best air raid reports in Germany, sent 37 typed pages of details which showed that this raid caused considerably damage in and around the city. 1,316 buildings were classed as "totally destroyed" or "seriously damaged". 42 industrial concerns, some of them being quite large ones, suffered loss of production. The compensation claims for 9 of the factories totalled 43,815,000 Reichsmarks(£4,381,500). 269 people were killed and 1,210 were injured. There were 1,528 fires: 133 large, 417 medium-sized and 978 small fires. 8 ralway engines, 146 passenger carriages and 40 goods wagons were damaged. 144 farm animals were killed: 96 pigs, 18 goats, 15 cows, 12 horses, 2 oxen and a calf. It is a measure of the increased striking power of Bomber Command that all of the damage and casualties quoted above was caused by a medium-sized raid which is described in the Bomber Command Record Book as a 'scattered attack'.

6 Mosquitoes went to Duisburg and 10 Stirlings minelaying in the Frisians without loss.

Some 20 high-ranking individuals banded together to form a group dedicated to the overthrow of National Socialism in Germany. Calling themselves the Kreisau Circle, after the Kreisau estate belonging to a leading member, Count Helmuth James von Moltke, they have drawn up a list of principles for post-Nazi reform. Among the points in this draft document are:

"1. Justice, which has been trampled on, must be restored ...
2. Freedom of belief and freedom of conscience will be guaranteed ...
3. Destruction of totalitarian direction of conscience and acknowledgement of the inviolability of human dignity as the foundation for an order of peace and justice ...
4. The basic unit for peaceful co-existence is the family...
5. work must be so designed that it arouses the desire for personal responsibility rather than stultifying it..."

MEDITERRANEAN: Submarine HMS 'Simoom' attacked Italian cruiser 'Giuseppe Garibaldi' off La Spezia. The torpedoes missed the cruiser but hit and sank the destroyer 'Vincenzo Gioberti'.

In secret negotiations between Hungry and Britain, it was agreed that RAF and American bombers flying on missions originating from Italy would not be fired on while over flying Hungry. In return, the British agreed that the Allies would not bomb Hungarian cities.

Operation 'Husky' Day 31: On the ground in Sicily, US troops reached Torrenuovo, and, to the south, drove the enemy back to the Simeto River between Cesaro and Randazzo.

In Sicily, B-25s hit Divieto and a nearby tunnel W of Spadafora San Martino, and attacked special points in the battle area of NE Sicily. P-40s hit shipping at Messina, Milazzo, and Palmi. NASAF B-17s bombed crossroads north of Messina, Sicily. NATAF bombers hit the Gesso road junction; fighters concentrated on highways and junctions and also hit all sidings and gun positions in areas around Linguaglossa, Floresta, Falcone, Patti, Orlando, Novara di Sicilia, and Milazzo.

In Italy, B-25s hit Cantanzaro and Soverato River bridges, B-26s attacked Angitola River bridges, P-40s swept over S Sardinia, and P-38s hit a lighthouse and other targets of opportunity in southern Italy.

From the 445th BS War Diary:

"The orderly room and practically the entire Squadron is already set up. The Operations building, which is in a Nissen hut, and the Officer's mess hall are still under construction. This field was formerly occupied during the North African campaign by the Germans. There are several 88 mm anti-aircraft guns still as the Germans left them. There are also many evidences that the Germans were heavily bombed here as we can see wrecked fighters and bombers and bomb crates all over the field. There is also a lot of equipment in one of the olive groves along the edge of the landing field...."

NORTHERN FRONT: A Ju 87D-5 of I./StG 5 was damaged during taxiing at Pori, Norway and the crew were uninjured.

UNITED KINGDOM: New Zealand fighter pilot Johnny Checketts of 611 Sqdn RAF, shoots down three Messerschmitt Bf109s in a single action. This will result in him being awarded the DSO. WWII air ace Johnny Checketts dies

WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF VIII Air Support Command Missions 16A and 16B. 72 B-26B Marauders were dispatched to the Ft Rouge Airfield at St Omer, France. Clouds prevented bombing and only 1 aircraft hit the target at 1904 hours.

Eric Scavenius, the Prime Minister of Denmark, refused to accept German demands that alleged saboteurs should be sent to Germany for trial.

 

[Njaco]

10 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: After a short pause, Red Army forces continued their drive in the Orel area, capturing Khotinets. The attacks against Kharkov met heavy resistance compelling Konev to divert his attacks to surround the city. The skillful German defense did not impede the speed of the Soviet advance.

Oblt. Walter Nowotny was appointed Gruppenkommandeur of I./JG 54.

GERMANY: 318 Lancasters, 216 Halifaxes and 119 Stirlings attacked Nuremberg, 16 aircraft lost. The Pathfinders attempted to ground mark the city and , although their markers were mostly obscured by cloud, a useful attack developed in the central and southern parts of Nuremberg. The Lorenzkirche, the largest of the city's old churches, was badly damaged and about 50 of the houses in the preserved Altstadt were destroyed. There was a large fire area in the Wohrd district. Serious property damage, both housing and industrial, was caused and 577 people were killed.

9 Mosquitoes went to the Ruhr and 18 Wellingtons went minelaying off Texel and in the Frisians, all without loss.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 32: Patton launched a second amphibious "end run", during the night. The US 3rd Infantry Division made an amphibious landing on the coast, outflanking the enemy east of Capo d'Orlando. The US 9th Infantry Division reached a point north of Bronte. The German's were once again surprised, but counter attacks against the beachhead caused serious losses. In the end, the Germans were once again compelled to abandon their defenses and withdraw. US Seventh Army forces pursued the enemy to a point west of Naso near the Northern coast.

The Second Slapping Incident: While visiting the 93rd Evacuation Hospital, General Patton encountered another battle fatigue case, the second in a week. Private Paul G. Bennett, an artilleryman from the 13 Artillery Brigade was found by the General sobbing on his cot. When asked why he was at the hospital, Bennett replied,

"It's my nerves, I can't stand the shelling anymore."

Patton lost all control. Shaking with rage, he shouted at the man,

"Your nerves, Hell, you are just a goddamned coward, you yellow son of a bitch. Shut up that goddamned crying. I won't have these brave men here who have been shot seeing a yellow bastard sitting here crying…You're a disgrace to the Army and you're going back to the front to fight, although that's too good for you. You ought to be lined up against a wall and shot. In fact, I ought to shoot you myself right now, God damn you!"

Patton then pulled his revolver from its holster and waved it in front of the terrified private. The base commander came in to settle the disturbance. Patton shouted at the man to not allow "cowards" into the hospital and slapped the private. Patton then turned to leave, but reversed course and struck Bennett again, this time hard enough to knock his helmet liner off.

B-25s attacked Randazzo, Sicily while P-40s bombed and strafed shipping on the SW coast of Italy and in the Straits of Messina.

Uffz. Max Bernhardt of 1./JG 51 (11 kills) was killed in action.

NORTHERN FRONT: A BV 138C-1 of 3./406 went missing, probably shot down by soviet aircraft in Norway. Another BV 138C-1 from 3./906, crashed after a catapult start at Tromsø.

A Bf 109G-2 from II./JG 5 was damaged in a crash landing at Svartnes, Norway. There were no injuries. Another Bf 109G-2 from 7./JG 5 was shot down by a Soviet P-39 at Ved Berlevåg and the pilot, Uffz. Alfred Leipersberger, went missing.

UNITED KINGDOM: The award of a George Cross to Wing-Cdr John Samuel Rowlands (September 23, 1915 – July 23, 2006) a Welsh Royal Air Force officer, was gazetted for his great bravery in his two years of bomb and weapon-disposal work. The citation for his George Cross declared: "For over two years, Wing Commander Rowlands has been employed on bomb-disposal duties and has repeatedly displayed the most conspicuous courage and unselfish devotion to duty in circumstances of great personal danger."

 

[Hugh Spencer]

11 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Three German submarines were sunk. 'U-468' was sunk near Bathurst, Gambia, by depth charges from an RAF Liberator Mk V of No 200 Squadron based at Yundum, Gambia. The Liberator was shot down by the U-boat crew. 7 of the 51 U-boat crewmen survived. F/O Lloyd Alan Trigg (b.1914), RNZAF, attacked this U-boat while on patrol. The U-boat fought back with its anti-aircraft guns, inflicting fatal damage on the aircraft. He died when his bomber was shot down by blistering anti-aircraft fire, but the U-boat sank soon after. (Victoria Cross).

'U-525' was sunk about 376 miles (605 km) west-southwest of the Azores, by depth charges and aerial torpedoes from a TBF Avenger and an F4F Wildcat of Composite Squadron One (VC-1) in the US escort aircraft carrier USS 'Card' (CVE-11). All hands on the U-boat, 54-men, were lost.

'U-604' was scuttled by her crew in the South Atlantic. The U-boat had been severely damaged by 4 Mark 47 depth charges from a USN PV-1 Ventura of Bombing Squadron One Hundred Twenty Nine (VB-129) based at NAF Ipitanga, Bahia, Brazil on 30 July. The crew of the PV-1 had spotted the U-boat on the surface and after attacking, the U-boat had submerged, resurfaced and submerged again. On 3 August, 'U-604' was again attacked by PB4Y-1 Liberators of Patrol Squadron One Hundred Seven (VP-107) based at NAF Natal, Brazil and the destroyer USS 'Moffett' (DD-362). The U-boat was so damaged that her crew scuttled her and they were taken aboard 'U-172' and 'U-185' for the voyage home. During the rescue 'U-172' was attacked by an American Liberator aircraft from Squadron VB-107, one man from its crew was killed [Maschinenobergefreiter Fritz Schiemann]. 31 of the 45-man crew survived.

'U-64' was scuttled in the South Atlantic, after being badly damaged by depth charges from 2 American aircraft, a Ventura (VB-129) and a Liberator (VB-107). 14 dead and 31 survivors.

EASTERN FRONT: Konev's forces cut the main rail line leading into German held Kharkov. 30 miles west of Kharkov the Red Army cut the Poltava--Kharkov railroad.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 33: Last night another landing on Sicily, east of Cape Orlando, at Brolo was made by US forces. The Germans fell back quickly. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) fighter-bombers supported the US Seventh Army's landing east of Orlando, Sicily by attacking troop concentrations, gun positions, and communications lines leading to the area. On the ground in Sicily, US Seventh Army forces took Naso and pressed closer to Randazzo. Medium bombers supported the British Eighth Army by raiding the Fiumefreddo and Randazzo areas.

German forces began a six-day evacuation of Sicily. Over the next six days and seven nights, the Germans evacuated 39,569 troops, 47 tanks, 94 heavy guns, 9,605 vehicles and 2,000+ tons of ammunition to Italy from Messina. In addition, 60,000 Italian troops were evacuated.

In Sicily, 90+ B-25s bombed a bridge, roads, railway, and the city area in and about Randazzo. About 170 P-40s hit Randazzo, shipping at Milazzo and Messina, roads and trains near Messina, and troop movements and evacuations in NE Sicily.

In Italy, the Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) again hit communications targets on the toe of Italy; B-17s hit the marshalling yard at Terni, B-25s bombed the Angitola River bridges and B-26s and P-38s attacked a bridge at Cantanzaro.

An Me 410 of 2(F)./122 forced landed at Frosinone, and was 30% damaged.

Uffz. Gerhard Lober of Stab./JG 51 (8 kills) was killed in action.

NORTHERN FRONT: In Norway, a Bf 109G-2 of III./JG 5 crashed in a take-off accident with the pilot uninjured. A Bf 109G-6 of 6./JG 5 also crashed in a take-off accident but this time the pilot, Lt. Herbert Knigge, was killed.

A JU 88 belonging to 13./KG 30 on a training flight unintentionally hit the water near Fornæs lighthouse 5 kilometres south of Grenå, Denmark. The aircraft crashed in the sea 100 metres off the beach and was a 100% loss. Wop Gefr.Gerhard Leyer was injured but made it ashore while Pilot Uffz. Rudolf Wölfle, Navigator Fw. Siegfried Stadermann and Air gunner Gefr. Jacob Adler lost their lives. They were laid to rest in Frederikshavn cemetery.

WESTERN FRONT: 8 Mosquitoes went to Cologne and Duisburg. 23 Wellingtons minelaying off Brest, Lorient and St Nazaire. 1 Wellington lost.

Uffz. Friedhelm Dorf of 1./SAGr 128 had his aircraft suffer an engine failure during a non-combat flight and he died in the subsequent crash at Brest-Sud airfield.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

12 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: The Red Army encirclement of Kharkov continued as Soviet forces took Chuguyev and drove on Plotava. The Germans were forced to pull their last major tank force (the 3.Panzerkorps) out of the Taganrog area and move toward Plotava. Hitler ordered the construction of a fortified defensive line (Panther-Steelung) along the Dnepr River.

Stukas led by Hans-Ulrich Rudel attacked the Russian ground forces. Covering the Stukas was a flight of 8 Bf 109s from JG 52 led by Lt. Erich Hartmann. After shooting down 2 IL-2s, Hartmann's fighter was hit. He coaxed his damaged Bf 109 down for a belly-landing and removed the clock as per standing orders. His first sight was of a German truck that led him to believe he was within German lines. It turned out to be a captured vehicle being used by Russian infantry. He was quickly captured but faking a stomach pain allowed him to plan an escape. When the chance came, he jumped out of the moving truck and took off in a field of sunflower plants. The Russians gave chase but were unable to catch him and he made good his escape. He later rejoined his unit who had moved from Kharkov-Rogan to Peretschepino.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 34: The US Seventh Army continued to pursue the enemy east along the Northern coast. Further inland, US forces gained a favorable position from which to assault Randazzo, but the Germans withdrew during the night, precluding an attack. The British Eighth Army seized Maletto and Riposto.

In Sicily, 79 B-25s attacked Falcone, Patti, Novara di Sicilia, and Barcellona; P-40s bombed and strafed shipping at Messina. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) P-40s and A-36s hit shipping along the NE coast and in the Straits of Messina, attacked gun positions and vehicles at Capo Calava and east of Randazzo, and hit a bridge at Taormina and roads in the Maletto-Fiumefreddo areas. NATAF bombers attacked Patti, Falcone, Barcellona, and Nunziata.

In Italy, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) B-25s attacked landing grounds at Crotone, and B-26s hit Grazzanise Airfield; they claimed 9 fighters shot down.

321 Lancasters and 183 Halifaxes raided Milan, 3 aircraft lost. Bomber Command considered that this was a successful raid. Milan only provided a general report which stated that, during August 1943, 4 major factories, including the Alfa-Romeo motor works, the main railway station and the La Scalaopera house were all badly hit and that 1,174 people died in air raids during 1943. Most of these results probably occurred on this night.

112 Stirlings, 34 Halifaxes and 6 Lancasters attacked Turin, 2 aircraft lost. The raid was described by the crews involved as 'heavy and concentrated'. Turin reported only 18 people killed and 83 injured. One of the bravest Victoria Crosses was one on this night. A Stirling of 218 Sqdn was badly damaged by a burst of fire while approaching Turin. The navigator was killed and several members of the crew were wounded, including the pilot, Flight Sergeant Arthur Louis Aaron whose was struck in the face by a bullet which shattered his jaw and tore part of his face away. He was also injured in the chest and his right arm could not be used. The flight engineer and the bomb aimer took over the controls of the aircraft and set course for North Africa although one engine was useless, the pilot was out of action having been dosed with morphia and the navigator was dead. The Stirling reached the coast of Africa and Flight Sergeant Aaron insisted on returning to his seat in the cockpit to help prepare for the landing. Twice he tried to take over the controls and, although he had to give up this attempt, he continued to help by writing down instructions for landing with his left hand. He could not speak. Under Aaron's guidance, in great pain and at the limits of exhaustion, the Stirling landed safely at its fifth attempt at Bone airfield with its wheels up. F/S Aaron died 9 hours later. It was considered that he might have survived if he had rested after having been wounded instead of insisting on helping his crew. The wireless operator, Sergeant T. Guy and the flight engineer, Sgt M. Mitcham were each awarded the Distinguished Flying Medal. It was later established that the machine gun fire which struck the Stirling was fired by a nervous tail gunner in another bomber. Flight Sergeant Aaron was 21 years old and came from Leeds.

Luftwaffe aircraft attacked convoy MKS 21 off the coast of Algeria, strafing and holing U.S. freighters SS 'Jonathan Elmer' and SS 'Anne Bradstreet'. U.S. freighter 'Francis W. Pettygrove' was torpedoed and partially abandoned, the survivors that cleared the ship were taken on board RN minesweeper HMS 'Hythe'. The rest of the crew and Armed Guard remained on board to prepare the ship for tow.

UNITED KINGDOM: A Hurricane fighter operating from Milfield airfield, in Northumberland crashed in a grass field at Kimmerston Farm, near Wooler, owing to engine trouble. The pilot was unhurt. The aircraft suffered damage to its propeller and undercarriage.

WESTERN FRONT: In the first daylight Allied bombing raid in nearly two weeks, 330 B-17s from 16 Bomb Groups were sent to the Ruhr industrial area. One group of bombers, the US 1st BW became scattered and tried for other targets while the rest of the formations were dispersed by heavy flak around Solingen. The escorting P-47 fighters failed to provide effective cover for the scattered groups and the Luftwaffe engaged the bombers. Along with I. and II./JG 26 attacking the bombers were Major Graf's Bf 109s of Jagdgruppe Sud and fighters from all three Gruppen of JG 1. The Americans lost 25 bombers while the Luftwaffe lost 2 fighters, an Fw 190 from 8./JG 26 and another from II./JG 1. One of the victors was Uffz. Jan Schild who claimed his first victory despite being engaged in combat for over a year of operations through France, the Low Countries and the Eastern Front. Although he had claimed 4 previous 4-engined bombers, this was his first to be confirmed.

7 Mosquitoes went to Berlin and 24 Wellingtons minelaying off Brittany ports. 1 Mosquito and 2 Wellingtons lost.

 

[Njaco]

13 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: The Soviet Army captured Bolshaya and Danilovka in their advance. A new offensive began in the Smolensk area and Spas-Demensk, west of Kirov fell.

The new Gruppenkommandeur of I./JG 54, Oblt. Walter Nowotny scored 9 kills over the Soviets during the day.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 35: On the ground in Sicily, the US Seventh Army entered Randazzo without opposition. Coastal forces continued east toward Patti. NASAF B-17s bombed a marshalling yard at Lorenzi, and B-25s and B-26s hit a marshalling yard at Littoria; other B-25s hit a vessel off Pizzo. P-40s flew a sweep over Sardinia, strafing small boats, a power station, and railroad junction. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) light and medium bombers bombed Piedimonte, Italy, Falcone, Sicily, and bridges north of Scaletta, Sicily. A-36s and fighters hit targets in NE Sicily, the Straits of Messina and on the toe of Italy, including Gioia Tauro, Italy and in Sicily, the Barcellona road junction E of Randazzo, the marshalling yard and trucks at Spadafora, trucks between Taormina and Baracca, and barges, ferries, and small vessels in the Strait of Messina.

80+ B-25s hit Piedimonte, Italy, Falcone, Sicily, and shipping at Messina, Sicily. 200+ P-40s attacked shipping and bridges along the SW Italian coast and hit shipping in the Straits of Messina.

NORTHERN FRONT: The Luftwaffe experienced the loss of several aircraft in Norway through various reasons. A FW 190A-3 and a FW 190A-2 from IV./JG 5 were both lost in landing accidents at Sola. One pilot, Uffz. Wolfgang Kind, was injured. A Bf 109G-2 of III./JG 5 crashed for unknown reasons north of Kirkenes, wounding the pilot, Fw. August Lütking. A Ju 88D-1 from Wekusta 1 Ob.d.L. collided with a awire and crashed, killing the entire crew. Another Ju 88A-4 belonging to 12./KG 30 was damaged at Fliegerhorst Aalborg West.

WESTERN FRONT: 61 B-24s hit the Messerschmitt works at Wiener Neustadt in the first Ninth Air Force raid on Austria. Almost no defending fighters intercepted the formation. Unknown to the Allies at the time, the factory was manufacturing rocket components.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

14 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Russian forces pushing on in ever increasing strength following the recapture of Bielgorod, have taken the southern outposts of the great Ukrainian city of Kharkov. The Germans defending the city were now in great danger of being cut off as Russian tanks worked their way behind their lines. The continuing Russian offensive, part of their master strategy after the great victory at Kursk, involved 120 Russian divisions. Many of these divisions were absolutely fresh and were thrown against Field Marshal von Manstein's battered army of only 42 divisions. The Russian commanders, General Konev and Vatutin, thrusting hard at the join in the German line between the 4.Panzerarmee and the Kampfgruppe, have split them apart and were pouring men through the gap. The apparently inexhaustible supply of Russian divisions was being supported by equally strong aerial formations. There were now 100 Russian air divisions, with 10,000 aircraft patrolling the battlefield. Faced by swarms of Russian planes, the Luftwaffe, forced to withdraw squadrons to defend Germany from Allied bombers, was finding it increasingly difficult to support the Wehrmacht. The question for the German high command now was where to find the reserves to stop the teeming Russians.

The Russian 3rd Mountain Division crossed the Kerch strait by ferries and regrouped in Crimea, and 6th Mountain Battalion was assigned to defend the southern shore of Azov Sea, in the gulf of Kazantip.

GERMANY: 7 Mosquitoes carried out a nuisance raid on Berlin without loss.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 36: US and British units captured Randazzo, Sicily. US troops sped east along the coast to the Barcellona area.

NASAF P-38s swept the toe of Italy but find little enemy movement. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) fighters, and medium and light bombers hit a refueling depot at Nicola and near Gesso, Sicily, a road junction N of Palmi, Italy, shipping in the straits and along the W coast of Italy N to Gioia, and numerous targets of opportunity in NE Sicily and S Italy as the enemy continued an orderly evacuation from Sicily to mainland Italy across the Straits of Messina. B-25s attacked road junctions and vehicle concentrations along the NE coast of Sicily and bombed a crossroads N of Palmi, Italy. P-40s hit shipping in the Milazzo and Messina, Sicily areas and along the Italian coast in the Palmi area.

In the evening 134 British bombers attacked Milan, Italy. 140 Lancasters of 1, 5 and 8 Groups carried out another attack on Milan, claiming much further damage. 1 Lancaster lost. Perhaps only a general report was provided by the authorities.

On orders from General Eisenhower, Lt-Gen Patton apologized to soldiers whom he had struck in a hospital.

Submarine HMS 'Saracen' suffered flooding after heavy depth charge attacks by Italian torpedo boats 'Euterpe' and 'Minerva' off Bastia. Unable to control buoyancy, the crew assemble in the control room to make their escape at the surface, and 'Saracen' sinks after being abandoned.

German agents watched with more than usual suspicion earlier this week as a senior Italian general flew here for secret talks with the British ambassador. The subject was the new Italian government's anxiety to declare Rome an open city after a second day of heavy bombing by Allied aircraft. Simultaneously, another Italian general was meeting Field Marshal Rommel on the Italian frontier, apparently with the same object in mind. Although the new prime minister, Marshal Pietro Badoglio, announced the news to delighted Romans tonight, Allied sources in Algiers said that they had received no official confirmation that Rome would be "open". A spokesman said that a city could be regarded as "open" only when all ministries, government agencies, military organizations and war industries had gone.

"As long as Rome continues to be a German military communications centre, it will constitute a legitimate objective of Allied bombings,"

he said. Many cynical observers believe that Badoglio's declaration should be interpreted as proof that Italy will continue to fight on and has no intention of seeking peace with the Allies.

NORTHERN FRONT: A Bf 109G-2 of II./JG 5 was damaged in a landing accident at Salmijärvi, Norway and the pilot, Lt. Martin Stahlschmidt, was injured.

UNITED KINGDOM: While visiting Roosevelt in Hyde park, Churchill and FDR agreed that British and American scientists would completely share all efforts involved in the development of the atomic bomb.

Polish C-in-C General Sosnkowski visited RAF No. 315 (Polish) Sqdrn on its Squadron's Day. The 14th August was accepted as Squadron Day to memorize the most outstanding victory of the Squadron, when, on this day in 1941, in a fight over France, they destroyed 8 enemy aircraft, had one probable and another damaged, all without loss. Gen. Sosnkowski decorated 14 pilots with the Polish Cross of Valour, and 2 who were awarded the Virtuti Militari – the highest Polish military award. After lunch, the General addressed the Squadron in the Hangar in a very hearty speech, and then stayed to converse most freely with all ranks.

WESTERN FRONT: 61 B-24s, on loan from the US Eighth Air Force, bombed the Bf 109 factory at Wiener-Neustadt, Austria.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

15 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Popov's Bryansk Front captured Karachev in heavy fighting.

Lt. Erich Hartmann of III./JG 52 destroyed a Pe-2 bomber and 2 LaGG-5s to bring his score to 78 kills.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 37: On Sicily, Patton attempted for a third time to trap German forces facing him with an amphibious "end run". This time, the Germans had already withdrawn before the sea borne force could land. US Seventh Army troops landed on the Sicilian north coast northwest of Barcellona during the night of 15/16 August to block the enemy withdrawal. The US 3d Infantry Division headed along the north coast to Spadafora. Meanwhile, British forces occupied Taormina. British Eighth Army troops completed a drive around Mount Etna as the Randazzo-Linguaglossa road was closed. Linguaglossa was taken.

In Sicily, B-25s hit shipping along the beaches of Sant' Agata di Militello; 180+ P-40s attacked shipping at Messina and in the Straits of Messina. Enemy forces withdrawing to mainland Italy were pounded severely by constant air attacks. German AA along the Straits around Messina damaged 28 of 96 Allied bombers trying to stop the evacuation.

In Italy, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) B-25s and B-26s bombed Sibari railroad junction and marshalling yard, and P-38s hit trains, troops, radar, and Staletti railroad tracks and tunnel. P-40s attacked a bivouac area near Monserrato, Sardinia.

199 Lancasters continued the offensive against Milan, claiming particularly concentrated bombing. 7 aircraft were lost, mostly to German fighters which were awaiting the bombers' return over France. Lancaster ED 722 of 61 Sqdn was lost, crew lost were P/O J.H. Miller, P/O W. Richards, F/Sgt E.H. Gunders, Sgt E.A. Hall and Sgt J.R. Harrison. Also, W5002 with crew F/O T. Downing, P/O C. Larnach, F/Sgt J.E. Walden, Sgt K. Brentnall, Sgt J. Griffin and Sgt G.A. Angwin. And DV186 with F/O F. Clough, P/O R. Steer, F/Sgt J.D. Pigeau, Sgt A. Hulmes, Sgt P. Salmond, Sgt R.A. Scott and Sgt H.F. Webster.

UNITED KINGDOM: Ninety-one German bombers hit Portsmouth.

WESTERN FRONT: Italian officials meet with Allied representatives in Spain, offering to defect to the Allies as soon as the invasion of the mainland occurs. They must have forgotten their promise to Ribbentrop on the 6th.

The US VIII Air Support Command flew Missions 19A, 19B and 20 against targets in France and the Netherlands. 31 B-26B Marauders bombed Ft Rouge Airfield at St Omer France at 0959 hours. 36 B-26Bs were dispatched against Woensdrecht Airfield, The Netherlands. They turned back at the Dutch coast aborting the mission. 19 B-26Bs attacked the marshalling yard at Abbeville, France at 1933 hours.

The VIII Bomber Command flew Mission 82 against Luftwaffe airfields in France and the Netherlands. 147 B-17 Flying Fortresses attacked Vlissingen Airfield in the Netherlands and Amiens and Poix Airfield in France at 1926-1931 hours. 143 B-17s bombed Merville, Lille/Vendeville and Vitry en Artois Airfields in France at 1925-1933 hours; 2 B-17s were lost.

Jagdgruppe Sud was officially renamed JG 50 and thrown into the latest Allied daylight attack - the attack on airfields in France.

An RAF Halifax crashes on a secret mission to supply the Maquis, killing crew and civilians and damaging property.

8 Mosquitoes went to Berlin and 63 aircraft minelaying in the Frisians and off Texel and off all the main Brittany and Biscay ports. 2 Wellingtons and 1 Stirling were lost.

A Wellington X belonging to PAF (RAF) 300 Sqdn Bomber Command was engaged in a mine-laying operation off the Frisian Islands. Four minutes before reaching the target area the starboard engine caught fire. The operation was however continued, but 20 minutes later the bomber was attacked by a German night fighter and crashed into the North Sea off Borkum. Pilot F/S M. Rech and W/Op-Air Gnr. F/S C. Poddany survived and managed to get into the aircrafts dinghy in which they drifted for eight days before being sighted and rescued by the German Kriegsmarine to become POW. Two Wellington bombers were lost on this night and Lt. Heinz Grimm of 12./NJG 1 claimed two Wellingtons off Vlieland at 00:07 and 00:36 hours.

Combat occurred over the Brest peninsula in the afternoon as Allied fighters swept the area. 'Circus 51' was flown by bomb carrying Whirlwinds of RAF No. 263 Sqdrn, escorted by various fighter units. The Whirlwinds were tasked with bombing Guipavas airfield. RAF No. 193 and 266 Sqdrns were to operate as a free-lance escort but the Whirlwinds were recalled due to bad weather. Not knowing the mission was scrubbed, No. 193 and No. 266 Sqdrns continued on to the Brest peninsula. Over the area, No. 266 Sqdrn spotted enemy aircraft approaching and 6 Typhoons turned to engage. No. 193 had turned to head home when it found No. 266 tangling with Fw 190s.

On the night of the 15th, two rangers from RCAF No. 410 Sqdn went out from Castle Camps (used as an advanced base for night Operations) on the Squadron's first operation with bombs; their target was St.Dizier aerodrome. Lawrence and Wilmer dropped their two 250-lb bombs on the runway and, on the return flight, attacked a train near Paris. Cannon and machine-gun strikes were seen, followed by a vivid blue flash. The second crew, P/O R.D. Shultz and F/O V.A. Williams, did not reach St. Dizier, but had an exciting sortie nonetheless. First three locomotives and three freight cars were damaged between Clermont and Poix and a bridge was bombed; then, 20 miles off Beachy Head on the way home, they met another aircraft and closed to investigate. It proved to be a Do.217 whose under gunner opened accurate fire on the Mosquito. Schultz engaged in a long chase while the enemy pilot tried to shake off pursuit. His second burst hit around the Dornier's cockpit where fires broke out and burning debris fell away. Three, perhaps four, of the crew were seen to bale out. Then, as the Dornier turned toward the French coast in a shallow controlled dive, Schultz fired again. The starboard wing and engine broke away and, completely enveloped in flames, the bomber hit the sea where it continued to burn brightly. After taking some cine camera films of the scene and reporting the position of the crew, Schultz headed for home. En route he flew over an Air/Sea Rescue launch already on its way to the crash.

S/Ldr A. S. McIntyre was shot down and killed. F/Sgt Derek Erasmus, a Rhodesian and McIntyre's Number Two, attacked the Fw 190 and shot it down. He then attacked a number of German aircraft and claimed one damaged. He returned to base alone and belly-landed his damaged Typhoon at Portreath. Three other No. 266 pilots closed formation and headed for home at low altitude. Crossing the French coast they found aircraft approaching from the rear. The 3 Typhoons turned to engage but in doing so, F/O F. B. Biddulph stalled and crashed into the sea. The remaining two Typhoons then engaged the German aircraft and became separated. F/L Wright damaged one German fighter. P/O Haworth's two starboard cannon had jammed and 2 Fw 190s continually attacked him. He eventually managed to escape the German and return home.

1./SAGr 128 became involved in this combat along with some III./JG 2 Fw 190s. The German fighters 4 fighters but lost two pilots. Ofw. George Seivert and Ofw. Hans Gryz were both shot down and killed by No. 266 Typhoons.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

16 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Popov's Bryansk Front continued to make good progress in the Smolensk area, capturing Zhidra, near Bryansk. Far to the south, the Southwest Front opened a fresh set of attacks against the Mius River line.

The pilots of III./JG 51 lost their Gruppenkommandeur , Hptm. Richard Leppla whe he was seriously injured in combat against the Soviets. But lost forever were 3 Staffelkapitaen of the Geschwader when they were killed during the day's combats.

A Ju 88D-1 from 4(F)./122 failed to return from the Krymskaya area and was believed to have been shot down by AA-fire.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 38: Montgomery attempted an "end run" on the east coast of Sicily but it failed to prevent the Germans from making a successful withdrawal. US reconnaissance forces entered Messina. Nearly 100,000 Axis troops were successfully evacuated from the island. Another 46 out of 96 Allied bombers trying to stop the evacuation were damaged by German AA guns in the straits including over 30 fighter-bombers.

86 US Ninth Air Force B-24s bombed the Messian area and 100+ P-40s hit shipping at Messina and in the Straits of Messina, as the enemy continued the withdrawal of rear guard troop to mainland Italy. Before midnight, US patrols entered Messina, which was under fire from the Italian coast.

The armed U.S. freighter SS 'Benjamin Contee' was hit by an aerial torpedo 16 miles (25.7 km) north of Bone, Algeria. The ship was carrying 1,800 Italian POWS, 26 British guards and 7 US Army security men. the explosion kills 264 POWS and injures another 142. The ship was in no danger of sinking and later returned to service only to become a sunken block ship at Normandy 10 months later.

154 British bombers attack Turin, Italy during the evening. 103 Stirlings, 37 Halifaxes and 14 Lancasters attacked Turin, 4 aircraft lost. Crews claimed a concentrated attack on Turin, including damage to the Fiat motor works but the city's casualties were much lower than in recent raids, only 5 dead and 56 injured. This raid concluded the Bomber Command attacks on Italian cities which had commenced in June 1940.

Allied high command agreed that Italy should be the next target, quickly before a massive German build-up of forces could take place.

WESTERN FRONT: 179 B-17s and 1 YB-40 were dispatched to Le Bourget air depot in the Paris area. 171 hit the target at 0929-0937 hours and claimed 29-3-11 Luftwaffe aircraft. 4 B-17s were lost and 46 damaged. The mission was escorted all the way to the target by P-47s using drop tanks. 66 B-17s were dispatched to Poix and Abbeville Airfields. All 66 hit the targets at 0911-0923 hours and 38 aircraft were damaged with no casualties. 36 B-26s were dispatched to Bernay St Martin Airfield. 31 hit the target at 1117 hours and 2 aircraft were damaged.

JG 2 lost Ofw. Herbert Gumprecht (6 kills) of 11./JG 2 when he was killed in action.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

17 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 met with American Lend-Lease aircraft when he destroyed 3 Russian P-39s during afternoon missions. Combined with a LaGG-5 that was brought down in the early morning, Hartmann's score now stood at 82 kills.

GERMANY: The Regensberg / Schweinfurt Raid: On the one year anniversary of its first mission, the US VIII Bomber Command launched its most complex mission of the war. In an effort to destroy the production facilities of German fighters, over 350 bombers (formed into 2 divisions, the 1st and 3d BD) took to the skies in a dual effort to bomb both a Messerschmitt plant in Regensberg and the ball bearing plant at Schweinfurt. 376 B-17s were to make the initial penetration as one force then split with 230 B-17s attacking Schweinfurt and returning to England. The remaining 146 B-17s would attack Regensberg and then continue to Allied bases in Algeria. Timing was critical in an effort to divide the defending Luftwaffe forces. But events went badly from the beginning. While the Regensberg bound 3d BD was taking off, the Schweinfurt bound 1st BD was grounded by fog and unable to take-off for 3 hours. This meant that the forces would be attacking separately and German fighters, rather than being divided, could concentrate on each force, sequentially. Shortly after 10:00 hours the 3d BD crossed the Dutch coast and met the first of 3 Luftwaffe groups with about 60 fighters. The Fw 190s of II./JG 1 and JG 26 were the first to make contact and Major Borris, Gruppenkommandeur of I./JG 26 destroyed the first bomber after a frontal attack. After this first encounter, 4 B-17s had been shot down and 2 more bombers fell to flak. Crossing into German airspace, the Luftwaffe waited until the escorts turned back and continued the attack. Over Wiesbaden, Major Graf's JG 50 sent 25 Bf 109s along with scores of Fw 190s and Bf 109s, some flown by instructors from training units in the area. Head-on attacks followed by attacks from the rear hit the 100th BG very hard. Oblt. Grislawski of 1./JG 50 downed 2 B-17s for his first victories in the west. More Gruppen of German fighters joined in the attack, including Bf 110s from II./NJG 1 and after 90 minutes, 14 B-17s were shot down. But the bombers reached their target and dropped accurately. The bomber formation continued on to Algeria loosing 7 more planes for a total of 24 bombers lost from a force of 146. Luftwaffe fighters landed and refueled and the OKL ordered more fighter Gruppen from the north and other areas to contact the Regensberg force on its return flight. But instead this mass of German fighters met the 1st BD on its way to Schweinfurt. Not waiting until the escorts left, the first fighters into the battle were from JG 11. Over 300 re-armed and refueled fighters from JG 1, JG 2, JG 11, JG 26, ZG 26 and 1./NJG 1 - twice as many fighters as those who flew against the morning bomber formations - met the Americans. Passing over Eupen, the worst fighter attacks occurred and 15 B-17s were lost. The air was full of blazing planes, cannon fire and rockets as the B-17s fought their way through, their formidable half-inch machine guns covering each other, closing up the formation as stricken aircraft staggered and fell out of position. The bombers suffered heavy casualties. The bombers made it to the target, released their bombs then turned for home, back through the cauldron of German fighters. Reaching Eupen, the first escorting P-47s arrived and tore into the German fighters. Fw 190s from II./JG 26 met the Thunderbolts of the US 56th FG and clashed over Lutych. Major Wilhelm-Ferdinand 'Wutz' Galland (55 kills), Gruppenkommandeur of II./JG 26 was shot down and killed in a crash near Maastricht. Two more B-17s were shot down. III./JG 3 led by Hptm. Walther Dahl were in their first action since the Eastern Front and was attacked by Spitfires from RAf No. 222 Sqdrn., who had their best day since 1940. Five Bf 109s from JG 3 were shot down including Ritterkreuztrager Lt. Hans Schleef, who survived. Oblt. Dahl had to crash-land near Capperath. III./JG 1 claimed 12 bombers at a loss of 5 Bf 109s. The final loss to the American bombers was devastating. 60 B-17s were shot down and another 168 severely damaged. Most heavily hit were groups the 91st BG which lost 10 planes and the 381st BG which lost 11. Although the Allies claimed 288 German fighters destroyed, the Luftwaffe suffered 27 fighters lost. Heavy damage was caused at several of the Allied targets It took approximately 4 weeks to repair the damage at the Messerschmitt plant at Regensberg. Production of the Me 262 had to be relocated to Oberammergau near the Bavarian Alps. Delivering the temperamental Jumo 004 turbojets was even more troublesome.

The Peenemunde Raid: The RAF sent 324 Lancasters, 218 Halifaxes and 54 Stirlings to attack Peenemunde, the German research establishment on the Baltic coast where V-2 rockets were being built and tested, during the night. This was the first raid in which 6(Canadian)Group operated Lancaster aircraft. 426 Squadron dispatched 9 Mark11 Lancasters, losing 2 aircraft including that of the squadron commander, Wing Commander L. Crooks, D.S.O, D.F.C., an Englishman who was killed. The raid was carried out in moonlight to increase the chances of success. There were several novel features. It was the only occasion in the second half of the war when the whole of Bomber Command attempted a precision raid by night on such a small target. For the first time there was a Master Bomber controlling a full scale Bomber Command raid. Group Captain J.H. Searby of 83 Squadron, 8 Group, carried out this task. There were three aiming points - the scientists' and workers' living quarters, the rocket factory and the experimental station - and the Pathfinders employed a special plan with crews designated as 'shifters' who attempted to move the marking from one part of the target to another as the raid progressed. Crews of 5 Group, bombing in the last wave of the attack, had practiced the 'time and distance' bombing method as an alternative method for their part in the raid. The Pathfinders found Peenemunde without difficulty in the moonlight and the Master Bomber controlled the raid successfully throughout. As a diversion, 20 Mosquitoes were sent over Berlin, dropping massive amounts of flares as if Berlin was the target. 148 twin-engined nightfighters and 55 single-engined fighters - the first night with the 'Wilde Sau' up in full strength - were dispatched. Searching the skies over Berlin, they found nothing except to be fired on by the city's flak batteries. Unfortunately, the initial marking and bombing fell on a labour camp for forced workers which was situated 1 1/2 miles south of the first aiming point but the Master Bomber and the Pathfinders quickly brought the bombing back to the main targets which were all bombed successfully. 560 aircraft dropped nearly 1,800 tons of bombs. 85% of this tonnage was high explosive. After the first bombs fell on Peenemunde, the fighters raced to intercept the bombers. Pouncing on the final wave of British bombers, several pilots increased their scores. Lt. Dieter Musset of 5./NJG 1 destroyed 4 bombers out of a group of 8. Major Ehle of II./NJG 1 claimed 2 bombers. Along with the 'Wilde Sau' tactic, the 'Zahme Sau' tactic was also used for the first time. Another innovation used for the first time against the British bombers was the 'Schrage Musik' gun installation. Mounted on Bf 110s from II./NJG 5, 2 MK-108 cannon fired obliquely upward from behind the cockpit and were used to good effect. Two of these aircraft found the bomber stream flying home from Peenemunde and are believed to have shot down 6 of the bombers lost on the raid. Uffz. Holker of 5./NJG 5 brought down 2 bombers using this arrangement. In total the RAF lost 40 bombers with another 32 damaged. Most of the casualties were suffered by the aircraft of the last wave, which included 61 Sqdn, when the German night fighters arrived in force. The groups involved were 5 Group which lost 17 of its 109 aircraft on the raid (14.5%) and the Canadian 6 Group which lost 12 out of 57 aircraft (19.7%). This raid set back the V-2 experimental programme by at least 2 months and reduced the scale of the eventual rocket attacks. Approximately 180 Germans were killed at Peenemunde, nearly all in the workers' housing estate and 500-600 foreigners, mostly Polish, were killed in the workers' camp where there were only flimsy wooden barracks and no proper air raid shelters. The losses were considered an acceptable cost for the successful attack on this important target on a moonlit night. Although the grounds of the rocket center were damaged, neither the vital testing blocks nor the construction drawings were destroyed. But the attack did cause a delay in another Luftwaffe project. A group of 30 pilots were due to arrive there to begin training to fly the Me 163. Erprobungskommando 16 (EK 16), an operational training unit commanded by Major Spate was formed in July 1943 and had 8 Me 163s to work up. The unit had to move to Bad Zwischenahn before the pilots arrived as a result of the bombing.

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Husky' Day 39: Patton's 7th Army marched into Messina, followed closely by Montgomery's 8th Army, thus completing the conquest of Sicily for the Allies. During the 39-day campaign, the Axis forces suffered 167,000 casualties (37,000 German, 130,000 Italian). Allied losses were 25,000. Most deemed this a great Allied victory, but in retrospective, it was a bitter one in that, had the Allied planning been more bold, they easily could have destroyed all of the forces on the island rather than allowing so many to escape. The Germans left in an orderly evacuation. The booty of captured weapons, fuel and ammunition was huge; but nothing could compensate for the sight of the civilian population emerging from cellars and other hiding places to see their beloved Messina almost flattened by not only Allied bombs and artillery but also, now, shells from the Italian mainland. The fall of Sicily paved the way for the stepped-up air offensive against Italy.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

18 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: The German submarine 'U-403' was sunk in the mid-Atlantic Ocean near Dakar, by depth charges from a French Wellington Mk XIII of the RAF's No 344 Squadron based at Quakram Airfield, Dakar, French West Africa. All hands, 49 men, on the U-boat were lost.

EASTERN FRONT: Oblt. Walter Nowotny of JG 54 claimed his 150th victory and was now number 16 on the Experten list. Following close behind was JG 52's Lt. Erich Hartmann who had 3 kills to bring his total to 85 victories.

GERMANY: In East Prussia, an early morning phone call from the chief of Luftwaffe operations staff, General Rudolf Meister to Generaloberst Hans Jeschonnek informed him that Peenemunde had been raided by the RAF. Jeschonnek called his personal adjutant Major Werner Leuchtenberg and ordered him to the rocket-testing ground. His secretary waited for the Generaloberst to join her at breakfast. After an hour, Frau Lotte Kersten called his room but received no answer. Going to his room, she found Jeschonnek dead of a pistol shot. A note found by Leuchtenberg stated in Jeschonnek's handwriting; "I can no longer work together with the Reichsmarschall. Long live the Fuhrer!" General Gunther Korten was named in Jeschonnek's place as the new chief of the general staff.

MEDITERRANEAN: US cruisers and destroyers bombarded Palmi and Gioai Taura. P-40s attack motor transport between Scilla and Bagnara, and bombed shipping off Scilla. Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) fighters and medium bombers hit barracks and railroad at Gonnesa, sank a small vessel in the Golfo di Sant' Eufemia and bombed and strafed a railway station, bridge, and tracks at Soverato, bridges and a road junction at Angitola, and highway and road junction at Staletti. Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) air-planes hit gun positions and road and rail transport in S Italy.

NORTHERN FRONT: The Gruppenkommandeur of III./JG 5, Hptm. Heinrich Ehrler, flew to Petsamo to fly with his old Staffel, 6./JG 5. Under his leadership it had become the famed "Expertenstaffel", a nickname earned when half of its pilots had been credited with dozens of individual scores within a short time. Taking to the skies in a Bf 109G-6 marked "Gelbe 12", Hptm. Ehrler scored 3 victories over Russian aircraft to bring his score to 115. But 6./JG 5 lost Fw. Christian Stolz when he was shot down by flak in his Bf 109G-6 over Motovski.

WESTERN FRONT: The US VIII Air Support Command in England flew Missions 25A and 25B against 2 Luftwaffe airfields without loss. 22 B-26B Marauders bombed the Vlamertinge Airfield at Ypres, Belgium and 32 B-26Bs attacked Woensdrecht Airfield in the Netherlands.

30 Wellingtons went on leaflet raids to France without loss.

 

[Hugh Spencer]

19 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Aircraft of Composite Squadron Twenty Five (VC 25) from the escort aircraft carrier USS 'Croatan' (CVE-25) attacked the German submarine 'U-134', northwest of the Azores, but the sub escaped.

EASTERN FRONT: After three days of heavy fighting, the Soviet Southwest Front broke through the German defenses on the Mius River line.

A Ju 88D-1 belonging to 4(F)./122 was shot down by a fighter in the Kuban bridgehead area.

Hptm. Max Stotz of II./JG 54 (189 kills) baled out of his damaged fighter over Vitebsk and was never seen again. At JG 53, Jens Bahnsen (18 kills) was killed in action against the Russians.

At Kutanikowo, Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 destroyed 3 more Russian aircraft including a Lend-lease P-39.

GERMANY: 8 Mosquitoes went to Berlin, 1 aircraft lost.

MEDITERRANEAN: The US Ninth Air Force in North Africa sent about 70 B-24s to bomb the marshalling yard at Foggia, Italy. The Northwest African Strategic Air Force dispatched 150+ B-17s to bomb the Foggia marshalling yard, while almost 100 medium bombers hit marshalling yards at Sapri and Salerno. The bombers, and escorting P-38 Lightnings claimed 34 enemy planes shot down, against 8 losses.

NORTHERN FRONT: A Bf 109G-2 from 9./JG 5 was shot down by friendly fire north of Kirkenes. The pilot, Fw. Hans Thomann, was killed.

Ofw. Rudolf Trenkel of Erganzung-Jagdgruppe Ost was awarded the Ritterkreuz for achieving 76 victories. The Staffelkapitaen of 12./JG 5. Hptm. Friedrich-Wilhelm Strakeljahn (9 kills), recieved the Ritterkreuz for his outstanding leadership.

UNITED KINGDOM: German bombs were scattered widely over the country, some falling in Yorkshire.

WESTERN FRONT: The US Eighth Air Force's VIII Air Support Command and VIII Bomber Command in England both fly missions. The US VIII Air Support Command flew Missions 27A, 27B and 28 against 3 Luftwaffe airfields in France without loss. 36 B-26B Marauders bombed Glisy Airfield at Amiens, 35 B-26s attacked Nord Airfield at Poix and 36 B-26s were dispatched to Bryas Sud Airfield but the target was obscured by cloud and the mission was aborted. Fighters from 4./JG 26 intercepted the escorting Typhoons and shot down 3 of the planes without loss.

The US VIII Bomber Command flew Mission 85 against 3 Luftwaffe airfields in The Netherlands. 38 B-17s attacked Gilze-Rijen and 55 hit Flushing, losing 4 B-17s. Escort was provided by 175 P-47 Thunderbolts of the 4th, 78th, 56th and 353d FGs who claimed 9-2-4 Luftwaffe aircraft but 1 P-47 was lost. 45 B-17s were dispatched to Woensdrecht Airfield but weather prevented them hitting the target. Luftwaffe fighters from JG 26 went sent to intercept but the escorts gave them a rough time. 3 Fw 190s were shot down before reaching the bombers.

U.S. General Bedell Smith, Eisenhower's Chief of Staff, and British General Kenneth Strong arrived in Lisbon to continue discussions with the Italians about surrender negotiations. General Giuseppe Castellano heads the Italian delegation. Castellano wanted an agreement that would allow Italy to join the Allies and fight the Germans. He's shocked when the Allies insist on unconditional surrender.

 

[Njaco]

20 August 1943

EASTERN FRONT: The Soviet encirclement of Kharkov continued. Red Army forces captured Libedin, west of Kharkov. A Soviet Army spearhead in northern Ukraine plunged 75 miles (120,7 kilometres) beyond Kharkov and threatened to trap German forces in the wrecked city. Hitler ordered Kharkov to be held at all costs. Since losing 3,000 panzers and 1,200 planes during last month's disastrous Battle of Kursk, the outnumbered and outgunned Germans were unable to contain Soviet offensives along a 600-mile (965,6 kilometer) front from central Russia to the Black Sea.

GERMANY: At Peenemunde, the head of rocket research was found dead, shot by an unknown assassin.

The 'Wilde Sau' units, formerly known as JG Hermann were given a permanent unit designation, JG 300.

MEDITERRANEAN: US Ninth Air Force B-24s attacked a railroad station, marshalling yard, and air depot at Cancello Arnone. US Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) B-26 Marauders and B-17s bombed marshalling yards at Villa Literno and Aversa. The P-38 escort also attacked Aversa. NASAF aircraft claimed 20+ enemy fighters shot down. Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) B-26 Marauders hit the Capua and Aversa marshalling yards, while B-25 Mitchells bombed the Benevento marshalling yard.

NORTHERN FRONT: A state of siege was proclaimed throughout Norway. Army officers were rounded up for deportation to PoW camps in Germany, and the Oslo police commissioner was shot dead. Gunnar Eilifsen, the police commissioner, repeatedly disobeyed an order to provide men to arrest Norwegian women for compulsory labour in war industries. There was now widespread defiance of German rule. Of the 35,000 new workers demanded by the Germans only 4,000 were found.

Uffz. Karl Mayerhofer of II./JG 5 was injured when he had a landing accident in his Bf 109G-2 at Svartnes.

UNITED KINGDOM: The air echelon of the 22d Antisubmarine Squadron (Heavy), 479th Antisubmarine Group, arrived at Dunkeswell, England from the US with B-24s. The ground echelon remained in the US, then moved to Utah in Sep 43 where it was inactivated.

 

[Njaco]

21 August 1943

ATLANTIC OCEAN: 'U-134' was attacked by Wildcat and Avenger aircraft from the escort-carrier USS 'Croatan' escorting convoy UGS 14. The boat escaped.

The Allies, while building up for Overload (D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944) established a new troopship convoy route called UT. This was a fast and heavily escorted convoy route averaging 15 knots.

EASTERN FRONT: Soviet forces captured Zmiev, south of Kharkov. Field Marshal von Manstein warned Adolf Hitler that the Soviet Army's crunching offensives may overwhelm out-numbered German forces in the Ukraine. Wehrmacht intelligence determined 287 Soviet divisions were battering 52 German divisions.

Oblt. Walter Nowotny of JG 54 scored 7 kills over Russian aircraft.

MEDITERRANEAN: US Ninth Air Force B-24s attacked a railroad station, marshalling yard, and air depot at Cancello Arnone. US Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) B-26 Marauders and B-17s bombed marshalling yards at Villa Literno and Aversa. The P-38 escort also attacked Aversa. NASAF aircraft claim 20+ enemy fighters shot down. NATAF fighter-bombers hit traffic on the Bovalino-Bagnara road.

The 'Lily' was sunk by 'U-596' with eight shells from her deck gun about 20 miles north-northwest of Beirut. At 12.42 hours, the 'Panikos' was sunk by 'U-596' with 25 rounds from the deck gun. And at 15.00 hours the 'Namaz' was sunk by 'U-596' with 13 rounds from the deck gun.

NORTH AFRICA: In Algeria, Maj. André Gilbert Kempster (b.1916), Duke of Wellington's Regiment, threw himself on a grenade which had rolled into his trench - he died instantly.

WESTERN FRONT: Riots, strikes and sabotage paralyzed Copenhagen and other Danish cities and towns. The Germans rushed 40,000 troops from Norway to quell the disturbances.