Thypoons battle on April 12 1945 de Blesse, the Netherlands.

[Noppie]

Hello to you all.

I hope that this in the right Forum.

I am reseaching the Royal Canadian Dragoons in april 1945.
After a battle with Germans RCD D squadron had probably contact with a couple of Typhoons who where in the area on April 12 1945.
When a column of German trucks were trying to get away from Peperga to Steenwijk they where shot by these wonderful fighters. The fore mentioned places are on the border of the provinces Friesland and Overijssel in the Netherlands. The Germans get under fire at the a town of de Blesse.

Is it know which Typhoon squadron was involved in this battle? They might have RAF B.91 as home base.
Any answer is appreciated.

Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[SaparotRob]

Hi Noppie, welcome to the Forum. I wouldn't know but there are a few here who probably do.

 

[MikeMeech]

Hello to you all.

I hope that this in the right Forum.

I am reseaching the Royal Canadian Dragoons in april 1945.
After a battle with Germans RCD D squadron had probably contact with a couple of Typhoons who where in the area on April 12 1945.
When a column of German trucks were trying to get away from Peperga to Steenwijk they where shot by these wonderful fighters. The fore mentioned places are on the border of the provinces Friesland and Overijssel in the Netherlands. The Germans get under fire at the a town of de Blesse.

Is it know which Typhoon squadron was involved in this battle? They might have RAF B.91 as home base.
Any answer is appreciated.

Greetz,
Noppie.

Hi
I cannot give the exact Typhoons involved but the Typhoon IBs operating from B.91 at that time were from; 164, 183, 198 and 609 Squadrons, all part of 123 Airfield/Wing. They were there from 21 March to 17 April 1945. Also on the same airfield were Tempest V aircraft of 33, 222 and 274 Squadrons.
Information sources are from '2nd Tactical Air Force, Volume Three' by Shores and Thomas and C G Jefford's 'RAF Squadrons'. Details of all the ground attack missions is not contained in these volumes.

Mike

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

Thy Poons are in battle?!

 

[GrauGeist]

Thy Poons are in battle?!

Watching the Typhoons rip apart German elements was almost as good as Poon-tang.

Almost...

 

[SaparotRob]

Almost.

 

[Noppie]

Hi
I cannot give the exact Typhoons involved but the Typhoon IBs operating from B.91 at that time were from; 164, 183, 198 and 609 Squadrons, all part of 123 Airfield/Wing. They were there from 21 March to 17 April 1945. Also on the same airfield were Tempest V aircraft of 33, 222 and 274 Squadrons.
Information sources are from '2nd Tactical Air Force, Volume Three' by Shores and Thomas and C G Jefford's 'RAF Squadrons'. Details of all the ground attack missions is not contained in these volumes.

Mike

Hello Mike.

Thank you this info. I will look up the ORB from April 1945 for the hopefully matching data.
Will let know if there is a hit.

Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[33k in the air]

Watching the Typhoons rip apart German elements was almost as good as Poon-tang.

Almost...

They mostly come at night. Mostly.

Wait, that was Newt talking about the aliens. Never mind.

 

[Thumpalumpacus]

They mostly come at night. Mostly.

I think that was really Hall and Oates:


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRYFKcMa_Ek

 

[Noppie]

Hello Mike.

Thank you this info. I will look up the ORB from April 1945 for the hopefully matching data.
Will let know if there is a hit.

Greetz,
Noppie.

Hello Mike.

Looked up the ORB's from your mentioned squadrons. But no positive hit on these.
Could it be an other aircraft besides the Typhoon or Tempest V who straffed the German trucks. Maybe Spitfire's?
Would please take an other look in the '2nd Tactical Air Force, Volume Three' by Shores and Thomas and C G Jefford's 'RAF Squadrons'.

Thank you in advance.
Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[MikeMeech]

Hello Mike.

Looked up the ORB's from your mentioned squadrons. But no positive hit on these.
Could it be an other aircraft besides the Typhoon or Tempest V who straffed the German trucks. Maybe Spitfire's?
Would please take an other look in the '2nd Tactical Air Force, Volume Three' by Shores and Thomas and C G Jefford's 'RAF Squadrons'.

Thank you in advance.
Greetz,
Noppie.

Hi Noppie
I have attached below information from Volume Three, as I mentioned it does not give that much detail on all ground attack missions but does give an indication of what squadrons were up on the day:

Also info on the 12th April from 'Fighter Command War Diaries, Volume 5' by John Foreman:

Also info from 'Fighter Command Losses of the Second World War, Volume 3' by Norman Franks:

Not the detail you want but may narrow your squadron search a little bit.

Mike

 

[Andrew Arthy]

Hi,

Here are all the 2nd TAF operations on that day.

Cheers,
Andrew A.

 

[Noppie]

Hi Noppie
I have attached below information from Volume Three, as I mentioned it does not give that much detail on all ground attack missions but does give an indication of what squadrons were up on the day:
View attachment 731268
View attachment 731269
Also info on the 12th April from 'Fighter Command War Diaries, Volume 5' by John Foreman:
View attachment 731270
Also info from 'Fighter Command Losses of the Second World War, Volume 3' by Norman Franks:
View attachment 731271
Not the detail you want but may narrow your squadron search a little bit.

Mike

Hello Mike.

Thank you s much for this upload. Appreciate you work. Will let know if there a match.

Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[Noppie]

Hi,

Here are all the 2nd TAF operations on that day.

Cheers,
Andrew A.

Hello Andrew.

Thank you for this great upload. Will let know in this tread if there is a hit on those brave airman who hit those German trucks.

Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[Noppie]

Hello Andrew.

Thank you for this great upload. Will let know in this tread if there is a hit on those brave airman who hit those German trucks.

Greetz,
Noppie.

Hello again Andrew.

This might be the ones I hoped for. Spitfires on April 12 1945. I translated the coordinate Z.8377 and came in the neighborhood. Real lat/long is 52° 52' 37'' N 6° 00' 03'' E.
Please check the details given in the attachment.
Very glad you gave me the wright info. Now I will continue for the SQ and tailnumbers with pilots Mike gave me.

Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[Andrew Arthy]

Hi,

Here you go:

Cheers,
Andrew A.

 

[Noppie]

Hi,

Here you go:
View attachment 731402

Cheers,
Andrew A.

This opens a really new world for me. Normally I do research ground troops. The 308 Polish Squadron from the 131 Wing No.84 where the Spitfires that the the air attack.


Greetz,
Noppie.

 

[fannum]

Check David Ince's "Brotherhood of the Skies" which is an eloquent and informative account of his flying Typhoons in Europe of that period. Very instructive on the techniques and technology, and very insightful and detailed prose. An amazingly smooth and articulate writer, giving details never found in the standard "as told to" chronicles.

 

[Greyman]

Speaking of Ince's book and in the theme of researching events connected by air and ground forces ... I'd always wanted to hunt for more information regarding the incident he detailed near the end of chapter nine:

Some days later I accompanied Jimmy Simpson to ops, sneaking a preview of the target, as he prepared to brief A Flight for a low level show. Neville Thomas climbed down from his van and joined us. He looked decidedly angry and out of sorts, not at all his usual urbane self, and muttered about the unspeakable bastards we were going to attack.

Eventually it all came out. The Canadians had overrun an enemy position, in the immediate vicinity of our target, and found the body of one of their soldiers who had been captured on the previous day. And then, barely able to contain his rage, Tommy looked at us and said: "Those filthy Huns had hung him over a fire and roasted him to death."

For the first and almost the only time, as Jimmy headed the jeep along the peritrack, I felt hatred and loathing for the enemy troops who were shortly to be at the receiving end of our guns. A feeling that would not go away ... that got worse as I ran through the familiar drills, swamping all rational thought.

Down below it looked just like the photograph. A pillbox surrounded by a network of trenches – sodden, treeless, and low lying – beside a narrow lake with the river beyond. A bleak and cheerless place to die in agony.

We came in slowly. Eight Typhoons with sixteen one thousand pound bombs. Hell bent on revenge. The pillbox filled our gunsights – smothered in bursting shells. The first section was through. Bombs gone and twenty-five seconds to go. Eight muddy explosions. And another eight. A direct hit. Others cratering the spidery network of diggings. We went back again and
again. Ferocious, bloodthirsty, strafing runs, hammering the damaged pillbox. Raking the trenches from end to end. Willing our shells to tear such a monstrous enemy to shreds. Until the ammunition ran out and our cannons clattered into silence ...​

 

[fannum]

Grim!