This day in the war in Europe 65 years ago

[Hugh Spencer]

12th May 1943
238 Lancasters, 142 Halifaxes, 112 Wellingtons, 70 Stirlings and 10 Mosquitoes attacked Duisburg. 34 aircraft lost.
This was the fourth raid on Duisburg so far during the Battle of the Ruhr, the first 3 raids having been only partially successful. The Pathfinder marking on this night, however, was near perfect and the Main Force bombing was particularly well concentrated. The centre of Duisburg and the port area just off the River Rhine, the largest inland port in Germany, suffered severe damage. 1596 buildings were totally destroyed and 273 people were killed. 4 of the August Thyssen steel factories were damaged. Nearly 2000 prisoners of war and forced workers were drafted into Duisburg to repair windows, roofs and other bomb damage. In the port area 21 barges and 13 other ships totalling 18,921 tons were sunk and 60 further ships of 41,000 tons were damaged. It was not deemed necessary to attack Duisburg again during this period.

[Njaco]

NORTH AFRICA: After three years of struggle, Allied forces liberated all of North Africa from the Axis powers. A quarter of a million troops (130,000 Germans and 120,000 Italians) surrendered in Tunisia, ending the campaign. General Jurgen von Arnim and 25 other generals were included in the tally of prisoners. General Gustav Fehn, the last commander of the vaunted ‘Afrika Krops’, sent this final message to higher authorities … “Ammunition exhausted. Equipment destroyed. In accordance with orders received, the Afrika Korps has fought to the last man”. General Alexander, in a message to Churchill wrote, “It is my duty to report that the Tunis campaign is over. All enemy resistance has ceased. We are masters of the North African shores.” British Deputy Prime Minister, Mr. Atlee, formally announced end of the North African Campaign. Mussolini promoted General Messe to Field Marshall in hope of inspiring him to hold out.
....Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) fighters, A-20's, and medium bombers flew sweeps and tactical reconnaissance over the battle area and hit positions south of Bou Ficha which formed the last link between the enemy forces and the sea. By night, enemy resistance in the south was almost ended.

WESTERN FRONT: A Consolidated Liberator maritime patrol aircraft of RAF No.86 Squadron based at Aldergrove, Co. Antrim, Ireland, dropped a Mark 24 acoustic homing torpedo (codenamed 'Fido'), seriously damaging U-Boat 'U-456' and driving it to the surface. It was originally thought to have been sunk as the result of subsequent attacks by a Short Sunderland of No.423 Squadron RCAF, and the warships HMS 'Lagan' and HMCS 'Drumheller'. However, it now appears that 'U-456' was forced to dive by approaching destroyers and then sank because of the damage inflicted by the Liberator. This may properly be said to mark the first successful use of an air-dropped precision weapon in air warfare. The Sunderland and the two warships had actually combined to sink 'U-753'. 'U-456' was sunk while facing the British destroyer HMS 'Opportune' after being badly damaged by the 'Fido' homing torpedo. All 49 hands on the U-boat were lost.
....Among other notable U-Boat actions were 'U-223' was rammed by HMS 'Hesperus' in the North Atlantic and badly damaged. 'U-377' and 'U-359' assisted the boat, which could no longer dive, and 'U-223' reached base on 24 May. 'U-311' shot down an RAF 206 Sqn B-17 Fortress and 'U-89' was sunk in the Northern Atlantic, by an RN 811 Sqn Swordfish from HMS 'Biter', destroyer HMS 'Broadway' and frigate HMS 'Lagan'.
....The Canadian-built, British-registered cargo ship 'Fort Concord' (7,130 GRT) was damaged by 'U-456' and later sunk by 'U-403' north of the Azores. 'Fort Concord' was proceeding from New York City to Liverpool, as part of the 46-ship convoy 'HX-237'. She was loaded with 8,500 tons of grain and 700 tons of military stores. Thirty-seven of the 56 crewmembers, DEMS gunners, and passengers onboard were lost. The survivors were rescued by the Canadian Flower-class corvette 'Drumheller' and were landed in Londonderry. Records show that 'HX-237' arrived in Liverpool on 17 May 43 without having lost any ships, indicating that 'Fort Concord' was sunk after straggling behind the convoy. 'U-230' shot down an RN 811 Sqn Swordfish in Convoy 'HX-237'.
....The 'Sandanger', a straggler from Convoy 'HX-237' due to thick fog, was hit amidships, in the pump room and in #6 tank by three torpedoes from 'U-221' and caught fire immediately. Some survivors tried to abandon ship in boats and rafts but they died in the burning sea. After the tanker broke in two, the stern sank while the burning forepart remained afloat. Because of the fast combustion, an area of low pressure was created, which caused a very strong wind to blow in along the water from the high pressure area outside of the flames, and this wind split the flames on the starboard side in two. This phenomenon saved the 19 survivors in the only intact lifeboat. They rowed for 40 minutes through this area away from the flames that burned just a few feet above their heads and behind them. The tanker sank completely about 90 minutes after the hits, but the fuel burned for several hours on the water surface. 20 crewmembers, including the master and all deck officers were lost. The survivors set sail and were spotted several times by aircraft, one of them dropped a portable radio transmitter that made it possible that they were picked up on 22 May by HMCS 'Kootenay' and landed at Londonderry the next day.
....The 'Brand' was separated from Convoy 'HX-237' in thick fog and was torpedoed by 'U-603'. 36 crewmen and seven gunners abandoned ship in three lifeboats. The vessel sank after seven minutes, taking two crewmen and one gunner with her. The lifeboats set sails for Ireland, but were picked up the same day by corvette HMCS 'Morden'. A Swordfish aircraft had been sighted in the afternoon and it had probably guided the corvette to the boats.
....The 417th Night Fighter Squadron, US VIII Fighter Command arrived at Ayr, Scotland from the US and began training with Beaufighters.

EASTERN FRONT: SKR-31 (ex-RT-43 'Ribets') was sunk by Luftwaffe aircraft, close to Cape Zip-Navolok.

MEDITERRANEAN: Hitler downgraded the defence of Sicily, giving priority to Sardinia and the Peloponnese.
....In Sicily, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) Wellingtons bombed the docks at Marsala during the night. Some bombs fell on Mazara del Vallo and Trapani.

[Hugh Spencer]

13th May 1943
135 Halifaxes, 104 Wellingtons, 98 Lancasters, 95 Stirlings and 10 Mosquitoes attacked Bochum. 24 aircraft were lost.
This raid started well but after 15 minutes what were believed to be German decoy markers drew much of the bombing away from the target. The only information available from Germany is that 394 buildings in Bochum were destroyed, 716 were seriously damaged and 302 people were killed.
156 Lancasters and 12 Halifaxes were despatched in a further attempt to bomb the Skoda armaments factory at Pilsen. 120 aircraft from this force were from 5 Group and the remainders were Pathfinders. 9 aircraft were lost. This target again proved to be a difficult one to find and mark accurately and nearly all the bombs fell in open country north of the Skoda works.
12 Mosquitoes went to Berlin, 1 was lost, and 8 aircraft went minelaying in the Frisians.
12 Bostons attacked Cherbourg docks and 6 Mitchells attacked railway targets at Boulogne. 1 Mitchell was lost.

[syscom3]

USA: The Trident Conference begins in Washington, DC. Churchill and Roosevelt meet until the 25th of May. They decide on a target date of May 1, 1944 for D-Day in northwest Europe. The US forces in the Pacific receive no restrictions on operations. British General Morgan, as Cossac, is choosen to head the Allied buildup of forces in preparation for the 1944 cross channel operation.

Note - for those that want to know more, heres a link that gives you all the details. This is an important conference for the allies, because it essentailly spells out the basic strategy of the war up to the Normandy invasion.

Chapter VI: The Trident Conference - New Patterns: May 1943

[Njaco]

EASTERN FRONT: Uffz. Alexander Bleymuller, a pilot with 10 kills flying with 3./JG 53, was listed as missing in action against the Russians.
....Volga Flotilla: GB "Vanya Communist" - was mined close to Svetlii Yar, in the Stalingrad area.

WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF's VIII Bomber Command in England flew Mission Number 55 against the Luftwaffe airfields at Meaulte and St. Omer with 4 groups of B-17s escorted by 13 squadrons of Spitfires. 97 B-17s were dispatched against the Avions Potez aircraft factory at Meaulte and 72 B-17s were dispatcged against the Longuenesse and Ft. Rouge airfields at St. Omer. At 12:00 hours the fighters of II./JG 26 were ordered into the air as the bomber formations reached the Belgian coast. After the B-17s suddenly turned south towards northern France, II./JG 26 was redirected to Lille. All the Fw 190s headed to the new vector except for the plane of Oblt. Otto Stammberger and his wingman who had a broken radio and did not recieve the new instructions. Not noticing that the rest of his Staffel had left for Lille, Oblt. Stammberger attacked the escorting Spitfires alone with his wingman. After his plane was hit and his fuel tank exploded, Stammberger bailed out and landed hard with a damaged parachute. He was knocked unconcious and ended up in hospital, severely injured.
....The rest of JG 26's fighters reached the bombers on their return course and attacked. The fighters of II./JG 26 ignored the Spitfires and assailed the 91st BG in the low box while the fighters of III./JG 26 attacked the 305th BG in the high box and the escortingSpitfires. The attack was vicious and several American airmen commented on the ferocity of the Luftwaffe's engagement. Hitting the bomber formations from the rear, the German fighters were able to damage several bombers while flying straight through the formations. One B-17 was severely damaged when a bomb was dropped on it from a bomb-carrying Fw 190. 3 B-17s and 3 RAF Spifires were shot down at a cost for the Luftwaffe of Oblt. Stammberger and an Unteroffizier, who was shot down in flames by a Spitfire. One of these B-17s was HELL'S ANGELS of the 303rd BG (H) which today completed it's tour of 25 missions, the first B-17 crew to complete a tour intact.
....During 'Ramrod 71' over Amiens, Polish pilot F/O Kuryllowicz (BS410, PK-E) was shot down and became a POW.
....The British have sunk three out of seven U-boats hunting convoy 'HX-237', which has lost three ships. 'U-753' was sunk by HMCS 'Drumheller', HMS 'Lagan' and RCAF 423 Sqn aircraft. A Sunderland from RCAF 423 Sqn sighted 'U-753' while flying in support of convoy 'HX-237'. Making skillful use of cloud cover, F/Lt Musgrave approached to within a mile before being sighted by the U-boat, which opened a withering fire that drove off her attacker. The Sunderland orbited out of the U-boat's AA range and called for support from the convoy escorts, only 10 miles away. As 'Lagan' and 'Drumheller' approached the U-boat dove, at which point the Sunderland made its attack. Two depth charges were seen to explode close to the 'swirl' and then the escorts made a series of follow-up attacks that produced oil and debris. Convoy 'HX-273' arrived in New York City on 17 May 43 with 45 ships. The convoy did lose 3 ships to U-boats, but theses were all 'stragglers' and no ships were lost from within the main body of the convoy.
....'U-176' attacked Convoy 'NC-18' and sank the 'Nickeliner' and 'Mambi'. The 'Mambi' was hit by one torpedo and sank fast. Of 29 Cuban crewmembers and five American armed guards, only the master, nine crewmembers and one armed guard survived. A first torpedo in the port bow and a second hit the 'Nickeliner' on the port side aft. The first explosion lifted the bow out of the water and threw water and flames about 100 feet into the air and the second released ammonia from the tanks. As the bow began to settle, the engines were secured and the eight officers, 15 crewmen, seven armed guards (the ship was armed with one 3in and two .30cal guns) and one passenger abandoned ship in two lifeboats 30 minutes after the hits. The tanker sank at 10:15 hours, while the survivors were picked up by a Cuban submarine chaser and landed at Nuevitas.
....The 416th Night Fighter Squadron, US VIII Fighter Command arrived at Honiley, England from the US. Detachments were dispersed to Cranfield, Usworth and Bath to train with Beaufighters under control of the RAF.

NORTH AFRICA: At 2.15pm today, the teleprinter chattered out a message for the British prime minister, who was in Washington. "Sir," said the Allied C-in-C, General Alexander, "it is my duty to report that the Tunisian campaign is over. All enemy resistance has ceased. We are the masters of the North African shores."
.....The German commander in North Africa, General von Arnim, had surrendered yesterday, and the Italian Feldmarschall Messe surrendered the "1st Italo-German Panzerarmee", the current designation of Rommel's 'Panzer Army Afrika'. The end came quickly as Axis troops found themselves trapped between 2 Allied spearheads and began to give themselves up in the thousands. A small 11th Hussar squadron from Montgomery's British Eighth Army found itself with 10,000 exhausted men of the once formidable Afrika Korps. Then the deluge began as General von Vaerst, commanding 5.Panzerarmee, signaled; "We will fight to the last." - only to watch his beaten troops raise their hands and march into captivity.
....On a beach near Bizerte, another Hussar squadron found 9,000 disconsolate Germans awaiting rescue, some trying to build rafts. More Germans had escaped in commandered small boats, only to be plucked out of the ocean by the Royal Navy. About 240,000 Germans and Italians went into captivity. The focus of all now turned to Sicily.
....For Hitler, who ordered a defence to "the last bullet", the implications were serious. The defeated Afrika Korps would have been invaluable in the defence of Europe. For the British, American and French, bitter lessons had been learnt. American generals and their troops had seen German armour in action and learned how to cope with skilled defensive fighting. The French learned to co-operate with the British, despite the sinking of their fleet. And the British, celebrating in the bars of Tunis, learned that it was a long way from Alamein.

MEDITERRANEAN: After two weeks of constant bombardment from the air, Italian defenders on Sardinia were joined by German troops as the island braced itself for an Allied invasion. Few Axis leaders now doubted that Sardinia would be the target and coastal defenses were being rebuilt and the airfields repaired after the Allied raids. B-17s, B-25s and B-26s from 7 Bomb Groups, escorted by fighters from 7 Fighter Groups, bombed Cagliari, hitting shipping, the dock area, marshalling yard, oil dump, chemical plant and the city area. Allied forces launched a series of heavy bombing attacks on Pantelleria Island in preparation for the invasion of Sicily.
....The intensive bombardment was an essential part of an Allied deception plan which involved the corpse of a mythical "Major William Martin" of the Royal Marines washed up in Spain last month carrying allegedly secret documents, giving details of the landings from North Africa. Hitlers Abwehr was taken in by the apparent authenticity; hence the reinforcements. Field Marshal Kesselring, the German commander in Italy, was known to be dubious, however, and kept strong mobile forces in Sicily and Southern Italy which he regarded as the more logical area for the attack. It was Mussolini who called for reinforcements for Sardinia.
....Ofhr. Hans-Jurgen Schumacher of 7./JG 77 was injured attempting to get airbourne from Foggia in Bf 109G-4 'White 5' - although the aircraft was 90% destroyed, the pilot returned to III./JG 77 after 14 days of hospitalization.
....'U-616' was attacked by escorts in the Mediterranean with 64 depth charges. The boat suffered severe damage and had to return to base.
....In Italy, B-25s bombed Augusta while RAF Liberators, under operational control of the IX Bomber Command, attacked the Messina ferry terminal. Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) Wellingtons bombed the area of the railroad station, marshalling yard and docks in Naples during the night.

ENGLAND: Although the Bristol area was not targeted by the Luftwaffe during 1943, Cardiff was attacked and in preparation for this on the afternoon of 13 May, two Bf 109F-5s of 3(F)./123 undertook a pre-raid mission to South Wales, their drop tanks falling at Yatton on what was one of the last operations carried out locally.
....British officials announced that for the first time in the war, there were more German prisoners of war in the hands of the Allies than British prisoners in the hands of the Axis.

[Hugh Spencer]

Welcome Back
15th May 1943
I was posted to No 19 Initial Training Wing (ITW) at Bridgnorth, Shropshire for more basic training before going to a radio school on 22nd July.
16th May 1943
617 Sqdn was formed by Wing Commander Guy Gibson on 21st March from selected crews in 5 Group and the squadron trained for 6 weeks for this special operation. 19 Lancasters were despatched in 3 waves with a bouncing bomb each to drop it against the wall of four dams. The Mohne and Eder Dams were breached which supplied water to the industrial Ruhr. The number of casualties was about 1,294 and 8 aircraft were lost. This raid was re-enacted yesterday, 16th May 2008, over the Derwent Valley Dam in Derbyshire, England.

[v2]

Originally Posted by Hugh Spencer

Welcome Back
15th May 1943
This raid was re-enacted yesterday, 16th May 2008, over the Derwent Valley Dam in Derbyshire, England.

BBC NEWS | UK | Dambusters remembered 65 years on

[Njaco]

ahhh great to be back!!

MEDITERRANEAN: Operation 'Mincemeat', the deception operation for the invasion of Sicily, bore fruit as the Germans reinforced their forces in Greece against the upcoming invasion, which, of course, would never come.
....The Allies' Mediterranean Air Command ordered a sea and air blockade of Pantelleria.
....In Sardinia during the night, Wellingtons hit Cagliari. During the day, B-25's and P-38 escorts bombed the dock and town area of Olbia claiming the destruction of 3 vessels. B-26's hit Porto Ponte Romano. During the day, P-38's bombed tunnel, barracks, airfield, industry,power station, and town areas at Sassari and Abbasanta, Italy; and Alghero and Porto Torres, Sardinia.

WESTERN FRONT: Maximum force was put in air as part of combined offensive against Wehrmacht. The USAAF VIII Bomber Command in England flew Mission Number 56. A maximum force, 154 B-17s, 21 B-24s and 12 B-26s, were dispatched against four targets. This was the first time more than 200 US bombers were dispatched. The principal attack was against submarine yards and naval installations at Kiel, Germany. 136 B-17s and 21 B-24s were dispatched with 126 B-17s and 17 B-24s hitting the target at 1200-1203 hours local. They claimed 62 Luftwaffe aircraft destroyed and lost 5 B-24s and 3 B-17s. The attack succeeded in destroying 3 U-boats. U-237 was sunk at Germaniawerft Kiel, by US bombs. Raised, repaired, and returned to service on 8 Oct 1943.15 B-17s of the US 96th and 351st BGs bombed Wevelghem, leaving the airfield unservicable. Oblt. Erwin Leykauf, Staffelkapitaen of 12./JG 26 decided to try and take-off during the raid and crashed his bf 109 in
a bomb crater. Another Bf 109G from 9./JG 26 collided with a Spitfire on take-off with both planes crashing to the ground. The Staffel pilot survived but lost an eye. Most of the Focke-Wulfs of JG 26 were able to get airbourne and intercepted the bombers. Two of the B-17s shot down were claimed by II./JG 26 along with a P-47 from the US 78th FG and an RAF Spitfire.
....But losses to JG 26 were heavy. Two pilots from 5./JG 26 were killed from return fire of the B-17s and the Staffelkapitaen of 8./JG 26, Hptm. Karl Borris, was forced to bail out of his damaged Fw 190. He opened his chute too soon and was severely injured when it collapsed and he landed hard. Another pilot from 8./JG 26 was seriously injured by return fire from the bombers. The US 78th got its first Luftwaffe kill when a P-47 shot down a fighter from 6./JG 26 during the battle. With the airfield at Wevelghem unusable, III./JG 26 was forced to move operations to the Lille-Nord airbase.
....42 B-17s were dispatched against the former Ford and General Motors plants at Antwerp, Belgium; 38 hit the target at 132hours local. They claimed 5 Luftwaffe aircraft destroyed and one B-17 was lost. The bombers were escorted by 118 P-47 of the US 4th FG and 78th FG, which claimed 4 destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft. 3 P-47s were lost. At 12:52 hours, II./JG 1 sortied 29 Fw 190s to meet the bomber force. Within 20 minutes of takeoff, they were engaged in fierce combat. Ofw. Otto Bach of 5./JG 1 was credited with his 6th victory, a B-17.
....39 B-17s were dispatched against Courtrai Airfield, France. 34 bombers hit the target and two B-17s were lost.
....In the 4th raid, 12 B-26s were dispatched against the Velsen power station at Ijmuiden, The Netherlands. 11 bombers hit the target. 1 B-26 was damaged beyond repair when it crashed upon returning to base and 9 others were damaged. The attack at Ijmuiden was made at low level by the 322d Bombardment Group (Medium), the first US medium bomber group to become operational in the UK.
....Three B-17s were downed with fragmentation bombs dropped by Uffz. Wilhelm Fest of 5./JG 11, Ofw. Erich Fuhrman of 5./JG 11 and Biermann. The weapon was a 250lb bomb, dropped with a set fuse to blow at low altitude.
....A B 17F belonging to 91 BG, 322 BS,christened ”Hells Angels”, with a hole on the rudder and with one engine stopped, crashed into the North Sea west of Amrum killing all onboard. Later in the afternoon, Fw. Peter Crump of 5./JG 26, returning from an unsuccessful interception, found a lone B-17 flying over the coast. As he attacked the bomber, he himself was hit and lost his entire electrical system. Finally landing at Vlissingen - after manually lowering his landing gear, but with no flaps or trim tabs - Fw. Crump found a single bullet hole that had narrowly missed him and hit his electrical system.
....'U-640' was sunk in the North Atlantic east of Cape Farewell, Greenland in position 60.32N, 31.05W by depth charges from a USN VP-84 Catalina. 49 dead.
....SS day was celebrated in Oslo, Norway.
....A BV 138C-1 of 1./706 made an emergency landing at sea after a battle with enemy aircraft. A Do 24T-3 of 5.Seenotstaffel had an engine catch fire during the rescue of the Blohm and Voss plane.

EASTERN FRONT: German forces in the Leningrad area attempted to cut the land bridge to the city, but the operation fell apart quickly.
....Submarine "M-122" of the Polar Fleet and White Sea Flotilla was sunk by aviation, close to Cape Zip-Navolok.

GERMANY: The British and American Chiefs of Staff at the TRIDENT Conference approved operation Pontblank, the systematic strategic bombing of Germany. That very night, British bombers struck the Skoda munitions factory near Pilsen. 156 Lancasters and 12 Halifaxes were dispatched in a further attempt to bomb the armaments factory. 120 aircraft of this force were from No. 5 Group and the remainder were Pathfinders.The terror bombing did little real damage, as the target again proved to be a difficult one to find and mark accurately and nearly all the bombs fell in open country north of the Skoda works but 9 bombers were lost in the raid.
....Bochum was attacked by 442 RAF aircraft - 135 halifaxes, 104 Wellingtons, 98 Lancasters, 95 Stirlings and 10 Mosquitoes. Of this force, 24 aircraft were lost. The raid started well but after 15 minutes, what were believed to be German decoy markers drew much of the bombing away from the target. Lothar Linke, a night-fighter NJG 2 with 28 victories, was killed over Holland.

[Njaco]

WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF VIII Bomber Command in England flew Mission Number 57. 113 B-17s were dispatched against various targets in Germany as well as airfield and naval installations on Helgoland Island and the naval base and submarine construction works at Wilhelmshaven. 76 bombed the targets and claimed 29 Luftwaffe aircraft destroyed but five B-17s were lost. 80 B-17s were dispatched against the U-boat yard, marshalling yard and airfield at Emden. 59 bombers bombed at 1056-1103 hours local and claimed 14 destroyed Luftwaffe aircraft while one B-17 was lost.
....The personnel of 7./JG 54 losts pilots when Lt. Friedrich Rupp was shot down and killed attacking B-17s over the North Sea along with Gunther Fink who was also killed. Fink had shot down 46 enemy aircraft during his combat career while Rupp had destroyed 52 enemy aircraft.
....116 P-47 Thunderbolts were dispatched on a high altitude sweep of the Amsterdam/Rotterdam area in the Netherlands prior to the bombing raids. They claimed two Luftwaffe aircraft damaged and one P-47 was lost.
....RAF No. 315 (Polish) Squadron flew Circus 297 over Caen. P/O Blokin in a Spitfire IX, was shot down by one Focke Wulf, while F/O Dubielecki damaged another. G/C Pawlikowski flying a Spitfire IX, was killed by AA, NE of Caen (France). Sgt Lewandowski was also killed. 2./JG 2 lost its Staffelkapitaen when Oblt. Horst Hannig was bounced by RAF Spitfires near Caen. He managed to bail out of his Fw 190 but his parachute failed to open and he was killed. A former Eastern Front experte, Oblt. Hannig had managed to add only 8 more victories - including a 4 engined bomber - to his 90 Russian kills since taking over 2 Staffel in January.
....'U-266' was sunk in the North Atlantic by depth charges from an RAF No.58 Sqn Halifax. At 20:43, the unescorted 'Maroussio Logotheti' was hit by two torpedoes from 'U-105' and sank immediately. The ship had been missed by a first torpedo, which detonated prematurely. The second officer was taken prisoner by the U-boat, transferred four days later to 'U-460' and landed at Bordeaux on 25 June. 'U-607' fired a spread of two torpedoes at the unescorted 'Irish Oak' and hit her twice under the bridge after 2 minutes 10 seconds. After the crew had abandoned ship, she was sunk by a coup de grâce. 'U-591' was hit with machine gun fire from an RAF No.10 Sqn Whitley that wounded the Commander and one seaman. The boat had to abort its 3 day-old patrol and returned to St Nazaire 2 days later.
....Major Fritz Losigkeit, Gruppenkommandeur of I./JG 1 gave up his duties to Hptm. Rudolf-Emil Schnoor.

MEDITERRANEAN: Hitler, worried over the potential for an Allied invasion of Italy (and the subsequent fall of Mussolini’s regime), removed troops earmarked for the eastern front and Operation Citadel and sent them to Italy.
....In Sicily, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) Wellingtons bombed Palermo during the night.
....Axis forces in Yugoslavia launched their fifth offensive against aimed at smashing local resistance. Unternehmen "Schwarz",as it was called, was the biggest offensive so far against the partisans, and promised to be the most savage. Axis troops were ordered to move "with utmost brutality" against "the hostile population". Four German and Italian divisions were supported by Bulgarian troops and the Ustachi, the notorious Croatian irregulars. In all 120,000 men were lined up against a much smaller force of guerrilla fighters. The Germans and their allies were using new tactics. Until now they had advanced along main roads; but now were using Tito's methods, advancing across the countryside, often by night.

EASTERN FRONT: Stalin dissolved the Komintern, the Communist International, who’s mission was to obtain the worldwide revolution. He thought it might be good for relations with Churchill and Roosevelt. The timing of the announcement, which will take effect in a week, is significant. The Grand Alliance against the Axis powers came under strain last month when Moscow broke with the Polish government in exile in London over the Katyn atrocity.
....Lt. Erich Hartmann of 7./JG 52 got his 15th kill when he destroyed a Russian U-2 biplane over the Kuban area.

NORTH AFRICA: General Giraud deposes the bey of Tunis for collaboration with the Axis.

[Njaco]

WESTERN FRONT: THE DAMBUSTER RAID – After 6 weeks of intensive training, RAF No.617 Sqdrn, lead by Wing Commander Guy Gibson, raided the power generating dams in the Ruhr. A force of 19 specially modified Avro Lancasters attacked the series of dams using Upkeep rotating mines designed by Barnes Wallis. Despite flying at extremely low level to avoid German night fighters, five bombers were destroyed and one other turned back with flak damage before reaching the target. One bomber turned back when a high wave tore the bomb from the belly. The twelve remaining planes headed for their targets. Five Lancaster hit and breached the Mohne Dam while three bombers struck and breached the Eder damn. Two planes hit the Sorpe Dam and one the Schwelme Dam but neither was breached. Three more bombers were downed on the return flight. The subsequent flooding caused severe damage and disrupted transportation routes. Civilian losses were estimated at 1,294 (859 people of Neheim-Husten were killed when the entire town was wiped out). Power supplies were disrupted to the local industry, and water was rationed in the area until the next winter, but little damage was done to factories. Gibson would be awarded the Victoria Cross for his gallantry during the mission, having delivered his attack with great accuracy and afterwards
circling very low for half an hour, drawing the enemy fire to his aircraft to clear the way for the attacks that followed. 34 other aircrew from the squadron were also decorated.
....The Germans confiscated all wireless sets in the Netherlands.
.....'U-463' was sunk in the Bay of Biscay by depth charges from an RAF No.58 Sqn Halifax. 57 dead (all hands lost).

EASTERN FRONT: The Nazi SS troops in Warsaw blow up the synagogue in the Warsaw Ghetto. Their actions in the Ghetto resulted in 14,000+ killed and 40,000+ sent to the death camp at Treblinka. Only eight buildings have survived: the police lodgings, quarters for factory guards and a hospital. The remnants of the Jewish resistance, driven from their bunkers by poison gas, still refused to give in. One man attacked the Germans with stones; he was beaten with rifle butts, kicked and left soaked in blood.
,....Operation 'Gypsy Baron' started as six German divisions (5 infantry and 1 panzer) made a partisan sweep through the Bryansk area. The attack would kill or capture 3,000 partisans but would not have any long-lasting effects on Soviet operations in the area. Further south, 17.Armee launched an attack out of the Kuban bridgehead. Little progress was made.

MEDITERRANEAN: Submarine HMS 'Unruly' torpedoed and damaged the Italian merchant 'Nicolo Tommaseo'.
....In Sicily, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) Wellingtons bombed Trapani during the night.

GERMANY: The aircraft of the fledgling Nachtjagd Versuchs Kommando (NJVK) led by the former bomber pilot of III./KG 30, Major Hans Joachim "Hajo" Herrmann, took to the air from Staaken airfield to defend the city of Berlin. But heavy AA fire kept the formation away from the RAF planes. The flak was so intense that the Fw 190 of Fw. Hans Muller was damaged by the ground fire but he was able to return to base.
....The idea of the Nachtjagd Versuchs Kommando night-fighting tactic had its roots in the mind of Major Herrmann even though he had never flown a single engined fighter in combat. The idea was based on using fast single engined fighters such as the Fw 190 or Bf 109 using 300 litre drop tanks under each aircraft for a longer operation time and patrolling over the approximate target cities of the RAF bombers. In the moon-shine, the NJVK pilots could find their targets and intercept them. For easier recognition, ground forces with lights and special units equipped with bomber planes were alled to help. From the ground the lights were turned toward the clouds, which illuminated and made a white base from which the bombers were easily seen. Bomber crews dropped phosphor or other illuminating materials from above. Herrmann began to test this style of bomber hunting in April 1943 from Staaken.

NORWAY: After sinking 2 "M" class submarines and 2 freighters during a 3 day period early in May, the personnel of 14(Jabo)./JG 5 were recognized for their achievement. Congratulations for these feats came from the highest level of the German administration.

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WESTERN FRONT: The USAAF's VIII Bomber Command in England flew Mission Number 58: 159 B-17 Flying Fortresses were dispatched to hit the port area and U-boat base at Lorient, France; 118 bombed the target and claimed 47 Luftwaffe aircraft destroyed. An additional 39 B-17s were dispatched to hit the docks and sub pens at Bordeaux, France. 34 bombed and one B-17 was lost.
.....The Fw 190s of I. and III./JG 2 and 1./SAGr 128 intercepted the bombers. Oblt. Wurm of 1./SAGr 128 made his unit's only claim, a Fortress II, while JG 2 claimed 10 bombers and a Spitfire. The Luftwaffe concentrated its efforts on the B-17s of the US 1st and 4 th BW, which lost 7 bombers shot down and 28 damaged.
.....In a third strike, 11 B-26 Marauders were dispatched on a low-level mission to bomb power stations at Haarlem and Ijmuiden, The Netherlands. One B-26 aborted, the other ten are all shot down before they reached the target. This action prompted the Eighth Air Force to abandon low-level medium bomber attacks. A B-26 Marauder of the USAAF was one of the flight of ten that encountered heavy AAA fire while en-route to bomb the power plants. It was shot down and forced to ditch in a canal. On-board was navigator Jim Hoel, of Evanston, Illinois, USA, one of three survivors of the aircraft's six man crew. During the crash Jim lost his elaborate Gallet Chronometer. 60 years later in 2003, Peter Cooper of England returned the watch to Jim.
.....The ‘Memphis Belle’ returned from a raid on Lorient, France, finishing her 25th bombing mission with an intact crew. This was a first for a plane in the USAAF's VIII Bomber Command. During the Belle’s 10 months of combat, her crew shot down eight enemy fighters, probably destroyed five others, and damaged at least a dozen more, dropped more than 60 tons of bombs over Germany, France and Belgium, flew 148 hours, 50 minutes, and covered more than 20,000 combat miles. Although there were no major injuries in the crew, the plane had five engines shot out and on one mission, her tail was nearly shot away.
.....RAF No.315 (Polish) Squadron flew Rodeo 217 over Cayeux-Poix. F/O Zajac was credited with 1 Fw-190 damaged.
.....Britain and America came to an agreement to share the work and the results of a joint attack on the codes and ciphers of the Axis powers. Britain is to concentrate its efforts on the German and Italian ciphers while the US war department devotes its attention to the Japanese army ciphers.
.....Experts from both sides will work on each other's cryptanalytic programmes, and there will be a full exchange of information and "decrypts". It was also agreed to adopt the Bletchley Park codename of "Ultra", derived from Ultra-Secret, for all information gleaned from breaking the German Enigma, the Japanese "Purple" and the Italian C38M enciphering machines. Bletchley Park in Buckinghamshire, 40 miles north of London, is the wartime home of the vastly expanded government code and cipher school whose name gives little hint of the extraordinary work it is doing in allowing Allied commanders to read enemy secrets.
....The 'Aymeric' in Convoy 'ONS-7' was torpedoed and sunk by 'U-657' east of Cape Farewell. 52 crewmembers and one gunner were lost. The master, 18 crewmembers and six gunners were picked up by British rescue ship 'Copeland' and trawler HMS 'Northern Wave' and landed at Halifax on 25 May.
.....'U-648' shot down an RAF 10 OTU Sqn Whitley. The entire aircrew was lost. 'U-229' was attacked by a Catalina with four bombs. The boat was damaged so badly that it returned to base. 'U-128' was sunk in the South Atlantic south of Pernambuco by gunfire from destroyers USS 'Moffett' and 'Jouett', and depth charges from two USN VP-74 Mariners. 'U-646' was sunk SE of Iceland by depth charges from an RAF 269 Sqn Hudson. 'U-657' sunk east of Cape Farewell, Greenland by depth charges from corvette HMS 'Swale'.

MEDITERRANEAN: A convoy of Allied ships successfully traversed the Mediterranean Sea without meeting any enemy submarines or air attacks. This was the first convoy to do this since Italy joined the war in 1940, offering tangible proof that the Axis has quit North Africa.
....In Italy, Northwest African Strategic Air Force (NASAF) Wellingtons bombed the Lido di Roma seaplane base and dropped leaflets over Rome.

EASTERN FRONT: The 17.Armee continued it’s attacks in the Kuban. Soviet defenses hold firm.

ENGLAND: The Luftwaffe sent 89 bombers on a night air raid against Cardiff in Wales and during the course of this a few stray bombs fell at Aust. Uffz. Joachim Troger of 3./KG 2 was rescued from the sea off Clevedon, his Do 217 having crashed at Woodspring Bay following a mid-air collision.

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WESTERN FRONT: The Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) plan for the round-the-clock bombing of the enemy from the UK by the RAF and USAAF was approved by the Combined Chiefs of Staff (CCS). The U.S. Eighth Air Force now has authorization to proceed with daylight strategic bombing within the type of combined offensive it has long wished to initiate. The CBO plan lists the destruction of German fighters as the immediate priority objective. Primary objectives in order are German submarine yards and bases, the German aircraft industry, ball bearings, and oil (the last being contingent upon attacks from the Mediterranean against Ploesti, Romania). Secondary objectives in order of priority are synthetic rubber and tires, and military motor transport vehicles.
..... 'U-103' rescued two shipwrecked survivors of the 'Fort Concord', which had been sunk by 'U-456' a week earlier.
....Hptm. Wilhelm-Ferdinand Galland of JG 26 was awarded the Ritterkreuz for achieving 35 victories and promoted to the rank of Major.

MEDITERRANEAN: 'U-414' attacked Convoy 'KMS-14' (combined with 'UGS-8') northeast of Mostaganem, Algeria, damaging SS 'Fort Anne' and sinking CAM ship SS 'Empire Eve'. The master, 55 crewmembers, 12 gunners and 13 RAF personnel from the 'Empire Eve' were picked up by boom defense ship HMS 'Barfoil' and an LCT and landed at Algiers. Five crewmembers were lost.
.....In Sardinia during the night, Wellingtons bombed the Alghero-Sassari area. In Sicily, B-17s, with fighter escort, bombed Trapani.
....The Northwest African Air Force (NAAF) began a strong air offensive against Pantelleria Island in conjunction with a naval blockade. Over 80 B-25s and B-26s, escorted by P-38s, blasted the island, hitting Porto di Pantelleria and Marghana Airfield. Prior to invading Sicily, the Allies needed to 'reduce' the two smaller islands of Pantelleria and Lampedusa.
....The Axis launched Unternehmen "Schwarz". Unternehmen "Schwarz" was a joint German-Ialian-Craotian anti-partisan offensive south of Sarajevo and Montenegro and used Ju 88s including those of Einsatzkampf Gruppe Ju 88/Gen.d.Fl.Ausb., II./LG 1 and IV./LG 1. Einsatzkampf Gruppe Ju 88/Gen.d.Fl.Ausb. formed in April/May 1943 in Germany as a provisional unit using assests taken from the bomber training schools and operated over Yugoslavia, mainly from Belgrade-Zemun, Sarajevo-Butmir and Mostar-South. It provided bomber support for Unternehmen "Schwarz". Einsatzkampf Gruppe Ju 88/Gen.d.Fl.Ausb. lost at least 5 Ju 88s on operations in the Balkans, all the Ju 88A-4 losses were crashes and accidents - none to hostile fire. The Gruppenkommander was Karl-August von der Fecht.

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WESTERN FRONT: 'U-954' was sunk in the North Atlantic SE of Cape Farewell, Greenland by depth charges from corvettes HMS 'Jed' and 'Sennen' escorting convoy SC-130. Among the crew of 47 who perished was Admiral Dönitz' younger son, Peter.
....'U-273' was sunk SW of Iceland by depth charges from an RAF 269 Sqn Hudson.
.... The Canadian-flagged barquentine 'Angelus' was stopped by 'U-161' north of Bermuda and sunk by gunfire after the crew of ten men abandoned ship in a lifeboat. When USS 'Turner' found the boat after five days; only two of them were still alive, the others had died from exposure. The survivors were landed at Portland ME on 27 May 1943.
....Hptm. Georg-Hermann Greiner was transferred back to 10./NJG 1 from Nachtjagdschule 1.

GERMANY: The USAAF VIII Bomber Command in England flew Mission Number 59: 123 B-17 Flying Fortresses were dispatched against the U-boat yards at Kiel, Germany. 103 bombed the target and claimed 48 Luftwaffe aircraft destroyed. Six B-17s were lost. A smaller force, 64 B-17s, was dispatched against the naval yards at Flensburg, Germany. 55 attacked the target and claimed 12 Luftwaffe aircraft. No B-17s were lost. An uneventful diversion is flown by 24 B-17s.

UNITED STATES: Churchill addressed a joint session of the US congress saying that, “The enemy is still proud and powerful. He is hard to get at. He still possesses enormous armies, vast resources and invaluable strategic territories. But, there is one grave danger, the undue prolongation of the war … No one can tell what new complications and perils might arise in four or five more years of war. And it is in the dragging-out of the war at enormous expense, until the democracies are tired or bored or split, that the main hopes of Germany and Japan must now reside.”
....Mr. Churchill, who first addressed a joint session of the Senate and the House of Representatives in December 1941, was greeted by cheering la