533rd Bomb Sq.
381st Bomb Group (H)
WAR DIARY
Submitted by Pvt John Haggerty
DECEMBER 1944
1. A non-operational day. A Congressional War Investigation Committee, including the beauteous Connecticut Representative, Claire Booth Luce, toured the base today prior to leaving for France.
Four officers and five EM left for rest home; two EM left on furlough and 16 ground men returned.
2. No mission was scheduled for today. Sgt Nelson was re-classified from 682 to852; Sgt Nicholas from 862 to 860; Pvt Porter from 612 to 911 and Pvt Keffer from 611 to 590. Three ground crew men left on furlough; S/Sgt French E. Lewis was transferred to the 47th Station Complement Squadron, Station #161.
3. No operation was scheduled for today. The cigarette famine, which has driven ground enlisted men here to smoking Woodbines, Players and Craven "A", will be eased tomorrow when sales begin in the P.X. Combat men will be allowed seven packs per week; all others, five packs.
Sgt James M. Garvey was sent to the 70th RD casual pool, Station #594, Jefferson Hall, Staffordshire.
4. Nine ships of the 533rd, under command of Capt Ned Renick, squadron operations officer, took part into today's attack on Soest. Bombs were dropped through 10/10th cloud cover on railway sidings. There was no flak and no enemy fighters seen. Flying weather for the mission was good.
Our pilots were: Lts LaCouture, Winsor, Coombs, Roush, Hollendorfer, Nolan, Orcutt, Long and Tolchinsky.
One of our ships #560, piloted by 2nd Lt J H. Nolan is believed to have landed in France. The rest of his crew are: 2nd Lts Donald F. Urban, John A. Conklin, A S. Carter; S/Sgts Charles H. Wyatt, R S. Redmond, J E. Whitesell, Sgts J Howard and J. F. Phelan.
Sales of cigarettes began today in the P.X. The following combat men, on TD with the 533rd, went sent the 70th RD for further orders: 1st Lt O'Black; 2nd Lt Karch; S/Sgts Forke, Highsmith, Rich, Molloy and Paoli; two ground EM left on furlough; 1st Lt Franklin L. Ross was transferred to 70th RD casual pool; 2nd Lt Stevens left for DS at the rest home.
5. No operation scheduled for today. Lt Nolan and his crew reported safe in France.
6. Weather was clear today until 14.00 hrs when columns of grey clouds began rolling in across the sky. There was a heavy frost last night and mist remained in low areas until almost noon.
No mission was scheduled so the group flew a practice mission.
Two new crews were assigned: 2nd Lts Robert Fawcett, Raymond Aron, Clarence Farr, Archie Bredeson; Sgts Marvin Elsberry, Edward Palmer, Edward Litoget, Erwin Salomon and Clarence Kessler.
2nd Lts Dale Sutherland, Alfred Kembler, Milton Jakovec, Victor Milroy; Sgts John Thrush, Lloyd Shelton, Walter Ahl, Roland Kinzel and Robert Hinders.
Five combat EM returned to duty from rest home; Sgt Roy Minnick assigned; T/Sgts Warren T. Conklin and William M. Mills transferred to 70th RD casual pool; 1st Lt Martin L. Healey, 533rd executive officer was promoted to captain as was Dona Lacouture, one of the squadron lead pilots; other promotions include: S/Sgts Brown, Redmond, Callan and Wyatt to T/Sgt; Sgts Gatzmeier, Howard, Phelan and Scott to S/Sgt; two combat men left for DS.
7. This third anniversary of Pearl Harbor, and the weather was alternatively clear and overcast, thus a mission scheduled for today was scrubbed.
8. A stand down was received last night. Heavy frost covered the ground this morning and the sky was overcast. Light rain fell during the afternoon.
A general ground alert was sounded at the station at 14.15 hrs today. All station defence personnel, including the 533rd units, fell in with full equipment.
Three combat officers and five EM returned to duty from rest home, and one combat officer made the return trip; two ground EM returned from furlough while another left; Sgt Hender returned to duty from DS.
9. Nine bombers of the 533rd took part in today's attack on the marshalling yards in the Unterturkheim district of Stuttgart. Lt Col Harry P. Leber, Jr., the 381st commander led the formation, in a 533rd ship 44-8175, flown by Capt Ewing S. Watson.
The weather was bad from the German border to the target, but a last minute break in the clouds permitted a visual bomb run. One ball turret gunner reported a good concentration on the target; flak was heavy and six ships of the formation reported major battle damage. One 535th ship force landed in France.
Today's other pilots were: Lts Baker, Tolchinsky, Pearce, Kinney, Privett, Goldin, Roush and Riza.
M/Sgt Jesse Hyten, a ground crew chief, having not returned on time from pass, is believed to be one of the American soldiers killed when a V-Bomb struck a pub near Selfridge's Store, London. Sgt Broslawsky returned to duty from DS; four ground EM returned from furlough.
10. Light frost covered the ground this morning. Weather was clear, cold and windless. The scheduled mission was scrubbed at 09.00 hrs.
M/Sgt Jesse Hyten has been reported sick at the 150th Station Hospital, doing away with the rumor he was killed by a V-Bomb in London; so far the squadron has suffered no casualties from either V-1 or V-2; S/Sgt Philip H. Imhof was transferred from the squadron to the 70th RD.
11. Ten squadron bombers took part in today's attack on a railroadbridge spanning the river between Ludwigshafen and Mannheim. On take off at 06.30 hrs the weather was clear, damp and cold.
There were 1,600 heavy bombers over Germany today, the largest number to attack the Reich in one day. The majority attacking targets in the Ruhr Valley. The 381st formation found a 10/10th cloud cover at the target and bombing was carried out by instruments. Flak was meagre but accurate; no enemy fighters were seen, but a 532nd ship was lost in action.
Pilots for today were: Lts Steinwinter, Winsor, Baker, Kinney, Hollendorfer, Coombs, Goldin, Carr, Schmalz and Privett.
Pfs Steensrud left for DS at the 311th Signal Co., Station #103; 1st Lt Eugene P. Weisser was transferred to the 70th RD casual pool; Two ground EM returned from furlough.
12. For the group's 223rd mission, an attack was made on the synthetic oil plants at Merseburg. The original target was Ludwigshafen, but bad weather forced Capt Tyson, lead pilot, to order the attack on a secondary target.
Two 533rd ships, #059 piloted vt Lt Ruf, and #986, piloted by Lt Orcutt had a minor collision as the formation approached the continent. Lt Ruf's rudder was sheared off, while damage to Lt Orcutt's is unknown. Both aircraft landed at Brussels, in Belgium.
Capt Tyson led the 37 ships on the mission, two aborting. Weather was clear over Europe until the primary was reached, when undercast formed at 10/10th cover. An excellent PFF bombing run was then carried out on Merseburg. Ceiling was down to 1,000 ft by the time the Forts dropped down from high altitude, but the formation held together in good shape and landing at the home field began around 16.45 hrs.
Participating were: Lts Fenton, Schmalz, Goldin, Illig, Riza, Ruff, Orcutt, Privett and Johnson.
Two combat officers and five EM left for rest home; one officer returned from same while two ground EM left on furlough.
13. A stand down was received late last night. Weather this morning was cold at misty, with intermittent rain squalls. Shortly before noon the heaviest fog of the season rolled over the base, and thickened to a "pea-souper" by nightfall. Due to weather conditions the Liberty Run for tonight was cancelled.
14. The first squadron casualty from V-Bombs was reported this morning: st Orrall a 533rd gunner, was moderately wounded. Another stand down today. Fog has cleared, but the sky in lead-colored and rain is threatened.
Two ground EM went on furlough; 2nd Lt Willis W. Griggs transferred to 70th RD casual pool; S/Sgt Kellner returned to duty from the Mine & Booby Trap School, and RAF West Kirby.
15. Weather was clear at dawn, but the sky was filled with grey clouds, when the 37 ships of the group took off under the leadership of Lt Col John E. Fitzgerald, Jr. The 533rd ship 44-8010, lead aircraft of the low squadron, piloted by Capt Ned Renick, aborted.
"Weather was bad most of the way,"said Col Fitzgerald, "and 10/10th cover over the target caused us to choose the secondary, marshalling yards at Kassel. We bombed by instruments. Flak was meagre and inaccurate. We saw no enemy plans. Allied fighter escort was very powerful."
The following officers and EM were ordered on TD on the Continent: 1st Lts Graebener, Oppenheim, Orcutt, Ruff, Barron and Stanowicz; T/Sgts Berkowitz, Grim, Powell, Quick, Russolino; S/Sgts Henthorn, Johnson, Meek, Miskovsky, Sullivan, Wallace and Williams.
1st Lt Treadwell returned after DS with the 15th Air Force, Foggia, Italy; three ground EM left on furlough, and one returned; promotions included: Sgt to S/Sgt: Nicholas, Drum, Babin, Caldwell, Hunt and Joachim; Cpl to Sgt: Oviatt, Chamberlain, Trevisani. Short, Timm and Messeroll.
Captain Paul A. Smyer ordered to Laredo, Texas, for TD at the Flexible Gunnery School there; T/Sgt Niles Greathouse and S/Sgt Everett Coats transferred to 70th RD casual pool; Pfc Steensrud placed on DS at Station #103 for an indefinite period.
16. Bad news for ground crew men, the base cloaked in gloom today. No more furloughs will be granted at only three months intervals. Men must wait at least six months between furloughs in the future. This measure was reported necessary because of a shortage of ground men on the line.
Weather was warm today, with heavy moisture in the air, and rain began falling about noon. No combat operation scheduled.
The following EM were promoted from Cpl to Sgt: Kinzel, Litoget, Palmer, Salomon, Shelton and Thrash; one combat officer left for rest home.
17. No mission was scheduled for today, which has been warm, with low-hanging clouds. The following promotions were announced: S/Sgts to T/Sgts: Chas, meek, Poole, Hrehocik and Williams; Sgts to S/Sgts: Bressie, Bruner, Butler, Clements, Gilbert, Halstead, Hoene, House, Patrick, Schmidt and Schnidt; Cpls to Sgt: Ahl, Elsberry, Hinders and Kessler.
18. Marshalling yards at Cologne were the target for a formation of 37 bombers of the 381st, nine from the 533rd. Again the CO, Col Harry Leber led, with Capt Ewing S. Watson as his pilot.
The ships bombed from 31,000 ft, a PFF run over 10/10th cloud cover. Crewmen reported seeing only four bursts of flak and no enemy fighters. There were five aborts, our formation was the only one in the wing to hit the target.
Pilots taking part were: Lts Schmalz, Kinney, Illig, Long, Baker, Pearce, Ruf and Orcutt.
2nd Lts Beckham, Coombs, Greaves, Gstrein, Johnson, Layton, Marks, Nolan, Schilling, Stephens and Stevens were promoted 1st Lt; 1st Lt Dale P. Winsor was transferred to 70th RD casual pool.
19. Visibility was not over 25 yards this morning at dawn. Thick fog, hugging the ground, forced operations to scrub a mission.
Lt Hamory and a group of enlisted men, who were returning from London to catch the Liberty Run at Chelmsford, missed the trucks because the train was late in heavy fog and arrived at Chelmsford almost simultaneously with a V-2 rocket. The rocket demolished the Hoffman factory in the city. The 381st men, including several of the 533rd, rushed to the scene and spent the rest of the night helping victims of the disaster.
Four combat officers and five EM left for the rest home; Sgt Hofland left for DS at Station #111.
20. Pea soup this morning, with chilly rain. A scheduled mission was scrubbed about 08.00 hrs, after the crews had been awakened and fed.
Pfc Steensrud, on DS with the 8th Service Command, was ordered to report to the CO, 401st Signal Co., on the Continent for an indefinite period; 1st Lt Irving Taxel was transferred to the 70th RD casual pool; two ground EM returned from furlough.
21. Non-operational today. Weather was misty and chilly. A fine drizzle beagan about 07.00 hrs and lasted throughout the day. Six combat EM left for the rest home and two officers returned; S/Sgt Jack W. Norman was transferred to 70th RD casual pool; T/Sgt Waterhouse left for DS at Station #102 Alconbury; Capt Bonneau left on DS at London; Capts E. Murray and McCarthy, 1st Lt Wagner left on furlough and four EM returned.
Promotions included: 2nd Lts Bryson and Wagner to 1st Lt; Sgts Comery, Engelman, Schmidt, Duran and Lovenson to S/Sgt.
22. Non-operational. Fog closed in on the base again today. Ground visibility is limited to less than 50 yards.
The base Christmas party for children in the vicinity of the base was held this afternoon in the Red Cross Aeroclub. More than 350 children attended the party, which was a big success, despite the weather.
Sgt J.W. Demski, 533rd gunner, was tried by summary court-martial, sentenced to be restricted to the base for one month, reduced to private and forfeit $15.00 of his pay for one month. Two ground EM left on furlough.
23. Two distant explosions about 07.05 and 07.10 hrs were followed at 08.00 hrs by a red alert and passage of a buzz-bomb from the northeast over the eastern edge of the base. A fighter was attacking to robot as it passed from sight.
Sgt Marston left on DS in London to take photographs of the wedding of S/Sgt George A. Ranger, 533rd operations clerk; 1st Lt Leyton left on DS in London to participate in a broadcast; Capt Bonneau returned from DS in London.
24. This was the first clear morning since the 18th. Col Harry P. Leber, Jr., 381st commander, led the entire First Division today in an attack on German supply lines at Ettinghausen and Kirch Gons. The Eighth Air Force carried out it's greatest operation to date, putting 2,000 bombers in the air, escorted by 900 fighters; 13 bombers were supplied by the 533rd.
Weather for the mission was the best, VACU everywhere. Col Leber headed "A" Combat Wing, which an outstanding job on the landing ground at Ettinghausen, bombing visually. Only one bomb was seen to explode outside the tight pattern concentrated on the target.
"C" Combat Wing included one squadron form the 91st BG, the 533rd (High) and one squadron from the 398th BG. This wing attacked a similar landing field at Kirch Gons. Flak was moderate but inaccurate half an hour from the bomb run. There was no flak and no enemy fighter opposition encountered. One ship of the 381st aborted out of the 51 which took off.
Today's pilots were: Lts Fenton, Privett, Berkley, Goldin, Long, Kinney, Steinwinter, Schmalz, Carr, Ruf, Riza, Beckman and Leyton.
An unusual situation arose when the ships returned. Heavy fog had closed in tight over Nuthampstead, Bassingbourn, Polebrook and Grafton Underwood. Fog was so bad at Polebrook that trucks could not be sent here for their crews, which had not been back to base since the 18th - nearly a week. Some 74 "visitors" landed here without difficulty in addition to the 50 ships of the 381st. Planes were parked everywhere, wing-tip to wing-tip on the cross-runway in front of the tower and briefing block. This meant a heavy burden of extra work for almost all our ground crew personnel. The visiting crews had to be fed, transported to barracks, and their aircraft required morning pre-flight and loading in addition to our own.
1st Lt Robert W. Baker was transferred to 70th RD casual pool; Sgt Marston returned to duty from DS in London.
25. The fog-bank which was west of us last night moved early this morning. Heavy ground frost had whitened the fields and hills giving us a "phoney" White Christmas. The mission scheduled for today was scrubbed after out armament and ordnance men had loaded 149 ships. No rest for the weary! Now the poor guys have to unload all the ships again. For most of the rest of the ground personnel, Christmas is a day off.
Free beer for G.I.s at the theatre, the P.X. and the WAAF Site from 14.30 to 16.30 hrs. The officers' club is open this afternoon to top three graders.Capt Murray and Lt Wagner returned from furlough; Sgt Hofland returned from DS at Station #111.
26. Today is Boxing Day the Limeys tell us. It's also hangover day. Weather this morning was clear and cold, with the ground covered with thick frost. No mission was scheduled.
Planes which landed here Christmas Eve began taking of at 11.00 hrs, and the last was not airborne until more than an hour later. Sgt Nicholas left for DS at Station #102 Alconbury.
27. No operation was scheduled today, which is just as well, for heavy fog rooled in last night but cleared early this morning. Weather is very cold. Water in pipes and toilet bowls in latrines was frozen. Poor visibility cancelled the Liberty Run.
Capt Martin L. Healey, Jr., 533rd executive officer, was appointed safety officer; four combat officers and five EM returned from the rest home while one officer left for same; 1st Lt Morton Tolchinsky was transferred to the 70th RD casual pool; Pvt McCormick promoted to Pfc.
28. The sky was clear, but misty, and weather again very cold this morning. Ships took off at 09.45 hrs for an attack on Ludendorf bridge over the River Rhine at Remagen. Nine bombers of the 533rd were part of the 381st's 36 strong formation, which was led by Lt Col Arthur F. Briggs, 534th commander. Major William E. Fullick, group bombardier, carried out a G.H. bomb run over 10/10th clouds.There was no flak or fighters.
Our pilots were: Capt LaCouture, Lts Long, Privett, Pearce, Schmalz, Hales, Hollendorfer, Illig and Johnson.
Five ground EM returned from furloughs and one officer returned; four combat officers and five EM left for the rest home; Major Joseph Krieger, Jr., was assigned to the squadron today; T/Sgt Roy C. Capshaw was transferred to 70th RD casual pool.
29. Weather was cold and clear this morning. Mission was briefed at 05.35 hrs but scrubbed soon after.
Major George K. Sandman was transeferred to the 532nd on return from the States; S/Sgt Robert P. Staubitz and T/Sgt Donald E. Kirkpatrick were transferred to the 70th RD casual pool; 2nd Lt Riza was promoted 1st Lt; one officer and one EM returned from the rest home.
30. Cloud front moved in about 22.00 hrs last night, obscuring a brilliant three-quarter moon. Dawn found the sky solid with low-hanging clouds. Light rain started falling at 08.15 hrs, time of take off. Bad weather persisted until noon.
This group put up 37 ships, nine supplied by the 533rd. The formation was led by Lt Col George G. Shackley, 533rd commander, who called it "a routine mission," with Capt Ewing S. Watson as his pilot. The weather was bad most of the way and the ships met a 10/10th cloud cover at the target, Bischofsheim. Bombing was by instruments. There was no flak or fighters, and all ships returned safely.
Other pilots participating were: Capt LaCouture, Lts Goldin, Hollendorfer, Orcutt, Nolan, Kinney, Nelson and Illig.
Capt John A. Fenton was transferred to the 70th RD casual pool.
31. Another "routine" mission for the group today, this time to Prum, Germany. A formation of 36 ships attaccked the target, ten supplied by the 533rd. Lt Col Conway S. Hall was in the lead, the target bombed by instruments.There was no flak about and no enemy fighters encountered. This was mission 229 for the group and marked the ninth consecutive day that AAF heavies have been over Germany.
The pilots for today were: Lts Schmalz, Steinwinter, Beckman, Privett, Orcutt, Nelson, Layton, Carr, Kinney and Long.
Two dances were held on the base tonight, one for enlisted men at the Aeroclub, and one at the Officers' Club. The P.X. beer parlour stayed open until midnight.
> January 1945