533rd Bomb Sq.
381st Bomb Group (H)
WAR DIARY
Submitted by Pvt John Haggerty
JUNE 1944
1. No action.
2. Completing the first "double header" in nearly a year of combat operations, the 381st followed a morning blow at the Pas de Calais area with an early evening attack on the Paliseaux/Massy marshalling yards near Villacoublay, just south of Paris.
The latter target was one of several which participating crewmen observed hit in the Paris outskirts. Today's two missions brought to an even dozen the total number of consecutive operations completed by the group without a single turnback from a target because of mechanical or personnel failure.
Seven ships of the 533rd took part in the morning attack on the Boulogne area of the Pas de Calais, and three took part in the afternoon attack on Paliseaux. No enemy aircraft were encountered and AA fire was meagre on both occasions.
Morning pilots were: Lts Schindler, Holmes, O'Black, Eselun, Townsend and Wolbrink, while after lunch it was: Lts Holland, Wilson and Wezowicz.
3. No ships of the 533rd took part in the attack on Boulogne today, six of the 534th made up part of the formation.
Another new crew was assigned: 1st Lt Beverley Lessenger, 2nd Lts William Wetzel, Albert Singer, Emil Pane; Sgts Richard Shields, Walter Gordon, Walter Stein, William Keaveney, John Brady and Herbert Weir.
4. For the third consecutive day, aircraft of the 381st added to the mounting intensity of the attack on the invasion coast, dropping tons of explosives on targets in the Pas de Calais, near Bologne. Twelve ship of the group took part, half of them from the 533rd, all returning safely.
Group leader for the day was Capt Karl Franek, 533rd operations officer, riding aboard a PFF ship. Crewmen with him agreed that today's operation - the fourth in three days, and the 381st's 14th consecutive without a abort - was "As near perfect as they come in this business." No enemy fighters or flak was seen.
Today's pilots: Lts Melomo, Henderson, O'Black, Holland, Holmes and Wolbrink.
5. Thirty nine aircraft of the 381st, including ten of the 533rd, led by Lt Col John E. Fitzgerald, Jr, 532nd commander, blasted a tactical target at Tailleville, France, today. A 10/10th cloud cover hid the English Channel from the bombers as they flew towards the French coast, but the clouds broke over the Continent and the target was observed from 70 miles away.
An excellent bombing run was carried out, the aircraft being unhampered by flak. Results are believed to be good. No enemy fighters were seen during the entire flight, and all our ships returned safely without casualties.
Squadron pilots were: Lts Eselun, Tarr, Wolbrink, Wilson, Holland, O'Black, Holmes, Townsend, Schindler and Bailey.
6. D-DAY. All squadron ground personnel were awakened during the early hours of the morning and rushed to the line, armed with carbines, to act as guards before the take-off of the bombers for the D-Day mission.
Minutes before Allied troops begun the invasion of the Continent this morning of D-Day, a strong force of 381st bombers - among them eight of the 533rd - poured tons of bombs on enemy shore defenses in Normandy. The bombers were escorted by enormous forces of Allied fighters. There were more allied aircraft taking part in this operation than had ever been put in the air before at one time.
Under the command of Lt Col Conway S. Hall, 36 ships of the 381st took part in the first bombing mission of the day, timed to precede the Allied invasion by a few minutes. The history-making events were completely hidden from the bombers by clouds. Formation after formation made its way to one of the various objectives and dropped bombs. None reported flak and none saw enemy fighters.
Today's pilots were: Lts Watson, Henderson, Bailey, Eselun, Helm, Holmes, O'Black, Schindler, Wilson. Three other squadron ships hit Caen, later in the day, flown by: Lts Lancaster, Holland and Wolbrink.
7. Seven crews of the 533rd participated in an attack on the Kerlin/Bastard airdrome in France this afternoon, while three more ships of this squadron were flown by others. The mission was uneventful.
Pilots for the operation were: Lts Eselun, Melomo, Anderson, Wolbrink, Wezowicz, O'Black and Bailey.
New crews still arrive: 2nd Lts Harry Carroll, Jack Pearson, Charles Freeman, William Greene; Sgts Sidney Feldman, Robert Moore, William Gildemeister, Ronald Herman, Robert Hilt and Cpl Adelbert Wszolek.
2nd Lt Edward Huber, David Gardner, Paul Schirmeyer, Harold Asay; Sgts Stanley Elstad, Charles Polito, Philip Griffee, James Vaughn, Marvin Walters and Frederick Johnston.
8. Again smashing the Nazi transportation system in France, nine ships of this squadron were part of the 381st formation of 36 aircraft which bombed a steel railway bridge six miles west of Tours today. Results were reported to be excellent. Flak at the target was meagre and no enemy fighters were encountered.
Participating were: Capt Sandman and Lt Col Shackley leading: Lts Bailey, Wilson, Holland, Lancaster, Tarr, Henderson, Wolbrink and O'Black.
9. No action.
10. Returning to the job of cracking enemy defences of West Wall points, north of the Normandy beachhead, 22 aircraft of the 381st, including six from this squadron, this morning participated in a large-scale attack on Nazi military installations at the coastal town of Hardelot, south of Boulogne.
Although 10/10th undercast prevented observation of bombing results, returning crewmen said their heavy explosives went down in close formation as scheduled. Well escorted by American fighters, the ships made the entire trip without sighting an enemy plane. No flak was met at the target.
Squadron pilots were: Lts Henderson, Wezowicz, Anderson, Bailey, Holmes and Eselun.
11. Led by Capt Seth A. Armstead, 18 aircraft of the 381st including seven from the 533rd, took part in a heavy attack on the airdrome at Beaumont-le-Roger, north east of the Normandy battle zone today. American fighters escorted the bombers which met only the most meagre and inaccurate flak and no enemy fighters at all in the course of the operation. Haze and undercast forced bombardiers to work on instrument technique, and bombing result are as yet undertermined.
Taking part were: Lts Holland, Henderson, Wilson, Lancaster, O'Black, Winter and Anderson.
Another squadron arrived today: 1st Lt Leon O'Dell, 2nd Lts John Cochran, Nelson Rekos, Peter Kowalski; Sgts Jerry Delligatti, Barnie Dyson, Richard Henry, William Bursaw, Joseph Caglione and Henry Harris.
12. Under the leadership of Major Arthur F. Briggs, 534th commander, the 381st contingent containing nine 533rd aircraft took part in an attack on the airfield at Lille/Nord, France, today. Bombing was reported as "good". Flak was meagre and no enemy aircraft encountered, thus all bombers returned safely.
Those in participation were: Lts Watson, Palmer, Dunkel, Holland, Nelson, Anderson, Holmes, Wilson and Wezowicz.
13. Under the command of 1st Lt George W. Reese, Jr, 533rd operation officer, the 381st formation, with nine from this squadron, struck at the airdrome and Melun/Villaroche, France, today. Visual bombing was accomplished, and returning crewmen reported seing many bomb bursts among the hangars and dispersal areas. Flak at the target was meagre and no enemy fighters were met. All our ships returned safely to base with no casualties.
Today's pilots were: Lancaster, Dunkel, Anderson, Palmer, Wilson, Holland, Henderson and Tarr (see following story).
A severely crippled Flying Fortress, 43-37737, returning from today's bombing operation against the airfield at Melun, southeast of Paris, narrowly avoided a pick-a-back landing atop a sister ship and spun neatly to a halt on the grass beside the runway.
The bomber, piloted by 1st Lt Milton F. Tarr, carrying 1st Lts George W. Reese, Jr, who acted as group commander for this mission, had been hit by flak near the French coast on its way back from the target. In a few brief moments just about everything possible happened to the Fortress. The #2 engine was knocked out of commission and its prop left windmilling. The #1 engine went out a second later, the oxygen supply was cut off and the lef wheel came seeping out of its sheath.
"A piece of falk came flying into the nose," Lt Reese said, "and went skimming past the seat of the navigator's pants. Another piece went through the cockpit, and a second later, there wasn't an instrument left in working order."
With two engines out on the same side and one prop windmilling, without instruments, with landing gear damaged, and (as the pilot discovered later) with the landing flaps "knocked silly", the pilot and co-pilot brought their ship home. The radio was non-operational, so contact could not be made with the control towere for the landing, so the ship could make only one pass at the runway because it would not be possible to regain altitude.
That accounts for the fact that it started to come in on the runway while another ship was making its landing. The two men in the cockpit fought the controls with great strength and skill, managing to turn the cripple Fort off to the side of the runway and groundloop beautifully on the grass to keep the ship from running into parked aircraft. The #2 prop fell off as the landing was made and and smashed into the bottom of the fuselage, part of one side and took off a piece of the stabilizer. But the entire crew walked away from the ship.
The Fortress, a new bomber tentatively called "Second Year" in honour of the Group's combat anniversary on 22 June, was pounced on by its ground crew immediately after the landing and is expected to fly again in a few days.
14. Fresh crews continue to be assigned: 2nd Lts John Fenton, Robert Irwin, Wilbur Stoltz, F/O Willis Griggs; Sgts William Chin, Phillip Nichols, George Wiggins, Robert Staubitz, Walter Miller and Walter Gunn.
2nd Lt Roger La Pierre, William Jones, Arnold Gittelmann, Herbert Higginbotham; Sgts David Harris, Loren Wilcox, Joseph Paskewich, Harold Dyer, Frank Zajac and William Weems.
15. Under the command of Lt Col David E. Kukel, group operations officer, bombers of the 381st, including 11 from the 533rd, smashed at the airfield of Bordeaux/Merignac, France. Heavy flak was encountered in the target area, but no enemy fighters were seen throughout the whole operation. Bombing results were believed to be "good."
Today's pilots were: Lts Watson, Anderson, Wilson, Dunkel, Eselun, O'Black, Wezowicz, Bailey, Tarr, Palmer and Henderson.
16-17. No action, but another crew joined the squadron: 2nd Lts Frederick Masterson, William Bigham, Howard Kronick, Richard Maskin; Sgts William Rump, William Huber, John Hlavcak, Everett Coates, Rafael Esquada and Cpl Jack Norman.
18. Heavy barrage flak, broken cloud and an all-out enemy attempt at smoke-screening today failed to prevent the 381st, operating in Wing strength with 52 aircraft, from striking hard at oil refineries in Hamburg.
In addition to representing a chance of pace from short-haul thrusts at airdomes and rail targets in France that occupied the 381st for the first couple of weeks of this month, today's assault on Hamburg marked the group's first attack on that city sine 25 July 1943, at a time when combined USAAF-RAF blows had virtually obliterated the city.
Combat wing leader,who paced three full sized units of the 381st to visual bombing, was squadron commander, Lt Col George G. Shackley, aboard a PFF ship. Group leaders of other squadrons led the other two units making up the Wing.
No enemy fighters were encountered, but veteran crewmen said that flak at Hamburg was as heavy as they'd ever seen it. Weather conditions prevented accurate observation of bombing results. All our 52 bombers returned to base without claim or casualty. For the 39th consecutive time no bomber returned early for any reason. Every one dropped its load.
Pilots for the 533rd were: Lts Wezowicz, O'Black, Wilson, Lancaster, Biley, Lessenger, Dunkel, Anderson, Palmer, Henderson, Wolbrink, Eselun and Nelson.
19. Despite dense concentrations of AA fire, 51 aircraft of the 381st, under the leadership of Lt Col Conway S. Hall, bombed airfields at Merignac and Cazaux, France, today with excellent results.
AA fire at Merignac was "heavy", but at Cazaux only "meagre". No enemy fighters were seen throught the operation. Three ships from the group were shot down, but all 12 of the 533rd returned safely.
Pilots participating were: Lts Watson, Dunkel, Nelson, Holland, Lessenger, Bailey, Palmer, Anderson, Wezowicz, Winter, Holmes and Wilson.
20. Back at their job of strategic bombing, Fortesses were in their element over Hamburg today, smashing oil refinery objectives along to dock fronts despite a curtain of AA fire.
The aircraft acquired a bumper amount of flak holes, the crews were battered - but nothing could stop them. Take the 533rd ship "The Railroader" for example: "We could see the target from 40 to 50 miles away," said the navigator, 2nd Lt Albert I. Singer. "There were columns of smoke towering up from it, and as we came up on it we saw it absolutely covered by flak. They just filled the sky with the stuff."
The big bombers embarked on a long, straight and level bombing run, nevertheless. Flak bursts slammed into "The Railroader", and the pilot 1st Lt Beverley Lessenger was severely wounded in both knees. He slumped down on the stick. A flak burst broke the glass in the goggles of the navigator. The co-pilot and ball turret gunner sustained bruises.
2nd Lt William R. Wetzel, the co-pilot, pried the pilot from the controls with one arm and flew the rest of the bombing run with his other arm. Bombs were away in a cloud and the crew reported they "were right in there."
The bombing run completed, Sgt Walter S. Gordon, engineer and top turret gunner, and the bombardier, 2nd Lt Emil Pane, removed the pilot to the floor near the escaped hatch and the bombardier administered first aid while the engineer assumed the pilot's seat and performed co-pilot's duties for the trip home. There was no further trouble and "The Railroader" made it without difficulty despite the fact that it had collected more than 100 flak holes. With the exception of the pilot, the crew walked away from the airplane.
Also on the crew were: Sgt John P. Brady - tail gunner; Sgt Walter Stein and Sgt Richard V. Shields - waist gunners; Sgt Herbert Weir - ball turret gunner.
The 381st were led into action by Capt Karl Franek, squadron operations officer, however one of our ships in missing in action.
Today's pilots were: Lts Bailey, Winter, Henderson, Lessenger, Palmer, O'Black, Carroll, Lancaster, Holmes, Eselun and Dunkel, the latter missing in action.
MIA crew: 1st Lt Mark R. Dunkel, 2nd Lts Kenneth Roehr, Frank L. Kelly, Clifford Evans Jr; S/Sgts Aaron R. Kochel, William M. Stoll, Sgts John L. Pillotti, Theodore E. Schmidt and Roger L. Beaman.
21. Berlin felt the weight of Fortress bombs today for the first time since the invasion begun, huge formations of the four-engined bombers roaring over the German capital in the attack. The ships fought their way to the target through enemy fighters and flak to perform a bombing job which the jubilant crews called "the best pasting Berlin ever got."
Major Charles L. Halsey, 535th commander, served as combat wing leader for the operation. He said that bombing was accomplished visually. The aircraft faced no difficulty until they began to approach the target area. , There, flying off to the left was a large formation of "60 to 80 planes", which Major Halsey thought at first must be Fortresses until he took another look. They turned out to be enemy fighters.
The fight began in a few minutes. "It was a battle royal," said Major Halsey, "and came in high, level and from both sides at the same time. The duel lasted 25 minutes. It looked as if we got plenty of them, too."
The ship flown by 2nd Lt Frank O'Black, "Yardbird", took a direct attack from a swarm of ME 210's, estimated to be over 60 or more. "They came in just once, all around us, and peeled off," said Lt O'Black. "They didn't make a second pass at our ship."
The fighters left the formation a few minutes before the bomb run, and then the flak came. There was plenty of it. The B-17s were considerably battered by flak. Four had their hydraulic systems shot out over the target and had to make landings back at base without brakes. Of these, two, remembering the Stars and Stripes stories, put out parachutes on the runways and stopped mostly in good time.
Nine ships from this squadron took part, the pilots being: Lts O'Black, Holmes, Wilson, Henderson, Palmer, Carroll, Bailey (missing in action), Winter (see story below) and Lancaster (see story below).
MIA crew: 1st Lt Arthur J. Bailey, 2nd Lts Robert W. Irwin, Lloyd A. Peterson, Erwin M. Brown; T/Sgt Charles C. Campbell, Jr., S/Sgt John J. Molloy, S/Sgts Walden W. Forke, Coral C. Highsmith and Alfred Paoli.
Hit in the jaw by a piece of flak while his ship "Marsha Sue" was beginning its bomb run, flown by Lt Winter, over Berlin this morning, 2nd Lt Peter Kowalski, bombardier, clung to consciousness just long enough to gets his explosives away and close to bomb doors.
Given first aid by navigator 2nd Lt Nelson Rekos, the bombardier wanted to know one thing - What happened to the bombs? Assured that he had got them off and closed the doors, he settled back to sweat out the ride home.
The flak burst which hit Kowalski also smashed into the plane's hydraulic system, and when "Marsha Sue" returned to base she was forced to land without brakes. Kowalski didn't see the landing, but it was a thriller, 2nd Lt John Winter, the pilot, bringing her in with three parachutes billowing out from the waist windows and tail to act as brakes. "Marsha Sue" stopped neatly on the grass after turning off the runway and Kowalski was rushed to hospital.
Meanwhile, aboard 1st Lt Ryan Lancaster's ship, the unnamed 43-37561, a chunk of flak nearly an inch thick tore through the plexi-glass nose over Berlin today, sliced through the bombardier's switches like a razor and smashed into the chest of the navigator, knocking him unconscious.
1st Lt Kenneth Cagwin, bombardier, had been preparing to release bombs just as the monster piece of flak struck him, gashing his head. "I was dazed for a minute," he said, "but I managed to reach the salvo switch and got the bombs away."
Navigator 1st Lt Charles Gilpin, who was knocked to the floor, recovered his senses within a few minutes and performed usual duties on the return flight. In 29 missions it was the fourth time Lt Gilpin had been hit by flak, each time in the chest, and on all four occasions he escaped death because of his flak suit.
22. Six aircraft of the 533rd took part in the 381st's operation directed against the switch and power stations in Abbeville, France. Flak was meagre over the target and no enemy fighters were encountered. Crewmen described bombing results as excellent, and all ships returned safely.
Our pilots were: Lts Nelson, Holland, Carroll, Wezowicz, Palmer and Wilson.
A new crew assigned were: 2nd Lts Joseph Pearce, Dale Winsor, Eugene Wiesser, Morton Yolofsky; Sgts Bruce Bentley, Charles Bowman, Robert Wakerley, Glen Studebaker, Joseph Marshall and Robert Harper.
23. Led by 1st Lt George W. Reese, Jr, aboard a PFF ship, 533rd operations officer, led the 381st contingent, including six of the 533rd, attacked pilotless plane launching sites in the Pas de Calais this morning. Flak at the target was moderate and no enemy aircraft were encountered, but bombing was done on instruments.
Pilots from this squadron were: Lts Winter, Henderson, Holmes, O'Dell, Holland and Usher.
24. Thirty five aircraft of the 381st, including nine from the 533rd, attacked the steel railway bridge over the Loire river west of Tours, France, today. Flak was negligible and bombing results are reported to be good.
All 533rd ships returned safely, flown by: Lts Henderson, Winters, O'Dell, Usher, Wilson, Palmer, O'Black, Nelson and Carroll.
25. Under the leadership of Capt George K. Sandman, aboard "Dee Marie" of the 534th, the 381st, including nine from the 533rd, took part in an attack on the airdrome at Toulouse, France. Bombing results were reported to range from "fair" to "poor". Over the target itself, the ships were met with meagre, inaccurate flak, while no enemy aircraft were seen throughout the operation. All ships returned safely.
Participating were: Lts Tarr, with Capt Sandman, Wilson, Winter, Usher, O'Black, O'Dell, Nelson, LaPierre and Palmer.
26. No action.
27. Another combat crew assigned were: 2nd Lts Mitchell Rolin, Oscar Gills, Franklin Ross, Robert Lane; Sgts Warren Conklin, Nile Greathouse, Theodore Matthews, Anthony Ferrara, John Diedrich and Charles Brown.
28. Nine bombers of the 533rd participated in an attack on a bridge at Fismes, near Rheims, France. The 381st mission was led by Major Arthur F. Briggs, 534th commander, but the target was missed. The bombers encountered little flak and no enemy fighters.
Unfortunately, Sgt William F. Bursaw, tail gunner with Lt O'Dell was killed in action, other pilots being: Lts Henderson, Wilson, Huber, Carroll, Anderson, Wezowicz, LaPierre and Winters.
Two assignments were 1st Lt Charles Eager from the 534th and 2nd Lt William Bonar from the 532nd.
29. Seven 533rd aircraft took off this morning with other bombers of the 381st to attack military objectives at Leipzig, Germany. However bad weather interfered with assembly and the mission was recalled.
30. More combat men assigned were: 2nd Lts Dona LaCouture, Morton Tolchinsky, no nav, Irvinf Taxel; Sgts Donald Kirkpatrick, James McKeene, Edward Donahue, Wilmer Myers, (only one WG) and Robert Meek.
31. A mission planned for Allach, near Munich, was scrubbed.
> July 1944