8th air force bombing missions in wwii

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This mission, the largest wartime raid on Berlin, was intended to support the Russian advance by attacking rail stations and tank factories in the city. Under ACC, the Eighth received control over active duty, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units in the central U.S. and two overseas locations. The intensive bombing of Hanoi and Haiphong during 11days in December 1972, known as LINEBACKER II, was but one highlight of those war years. On 4 January 1944, the Consolidated B-24 Liberators and B-17s based in England flew their last mission as a subordinate part of VIII Bomber Command. On the night of 1920 February, the RAF bombed Leipzig with 823 aircraft. // Fancy box miscalculates because of race conditions with new layout Eighth Air Force carries out its warfighting missions under U.S. Strategic Command and the air component commands of the other regional Unified combatant commands. Col. Carl Tooey Spaatz, a military aviation pioneer who had commanded the 13th Aero Squadron, and shot down three enemy aircraft in World War I, became assistant military attach (air) to Britain in May 1940. During World War II, the group's predecessor unit, the 305th Bombardment Group was one of the first VIII Bomber Command Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress units in England, and, was one of the most-decorated USAAF heavy-bombardment groups in the European Theater. The 8th lost 31 bombers, the 15th lost 33. The first combat group of VIII Bomber Command to arrive in the United Kingdom was the ground echelon of the 97th Bombardment Group, which arrived at RAF Polebrook and RAF Grafton Underwood on 9 June 1942. Although the Luftwaffe could, and did, mount effective attacks on the ever-larger formations of Allied heavy bombers, the sheer numbers of B-17s and B-24s attacking enemy targets was overwhelming the German fighter force, which simply could not sustain the losses the Eighth Air Force bombers and fighters were inflicting on it. return isMobile; Fighters from both Eighth and Ninth Air Forces made wide sweeps over the area, mounting strafing missions at airfields and rail networks. $currentSlide.find(".fancy-detail-link").on("touchstart", function() { captionToggle(); }); The exhibit opens with an examination of the rise of Adolf Hitler in Nazi Germany and the Battle of Britain. The Bloody Hundredth's legacy began when the100th Bomb Group flew its first 8th Air Force combat mission in a bombing raid on Germany's Bremen U-boat yards on June 25, 1943. On 6 March 1944, over 700 heavy bombers along with 800 escort fighters of the Eighth Air Force hit numerous targets within Berlin, dropping the first American bombs on the capital of the Third Reich. This dedicated offensive force supported strategic objectives, and an eventual invasion of Europe. [12], Eighth Air Force's mission in the Pacific was initially to organize and train new bomber groups for combat against Japan. The Me 262A was a difficult foe for the P-47s and P-51s, possessing a distinct speed advantage. During the Cold War (19451991), 8 AF was one of three Numbered Air Forces of the United States Air Force's Strategic Air Command (SAC), with a three-star general headquartered at Westover Air Force Base, Massachusetts commanding USAF strategic bombers and missiles on a global scale. To reduce the risk to its bomber fleet in the United States, Eighth Air Force aircraft stood nuclear alert, providing a deterrent against an attack on the United States by the Soviet Union. Notably, the 1 June 1992 change inactivated SAC and the Tactical Air Command (TAC), and reassigned the Mighty Eighth to the new Air Combat Command (ACC). $(".fancybox-button").css("display", "none"); For instance, the Eighth suffered about half of the U.S. Army Air Force's casualties (47,483 out of 115,332), including more than 26,000 dead. Importantly, the Eighth's bombing effectiveness influenced the North Vietnamese to end hostilities. "[citation needed]. Luckadoo remembered one such attack on the B-17 called Piccadilly Lilly: Out of the corner of my eye I saw this flight of FW-190s barreling into our squadron. The 94th Bomb Group flew 324 missions in 8,884 sorties from 13 May 1943 to 21 April 1945 and dropped 18,924 tons of bomb while losing 153 aircraft MIA. Forty-five B-17s failed to return to England that night. The Air Force retired nearly all of its piston-engined B-29/B-50s and they were replaced by new Boeing B-47 Stratojet aircraft. In the grisly battle for European air supremacy, the Luftwaffe proveda deadly foe to Allied bombers. Airmen were asked to complete a 25-mission quota at a time when the life expectancy of a crew didn't surpass six missions. On 22 February 1944, due to many mistakes, Nijmegen was bombarded by twelve aircraft of the 446th Bombardment Group and two aircraft of the 453rd. Major General Jimmy Doolittle relinquished command of the Fifteenth Air Force to Major General Nathan F. Twining and on January 6, 1944, took over command of the Eighth Air Force from Lieutenant General Ira C. Eaker at RAF Daws Hill. The Eighth's weapons inventory also changed to include KC-135 air refuelers and intercontinental ballistic missiles (the Atlas, Titan I and Titan II, and all Minuteman models.) Luftwaffe airfields that were identified as jet and rocket bases, such as Parchim and Bad Zwischenahn, were frequently bombed, and Allied fighters patrolled over the fields to attack jets trying to land. The effect of the Mustangs, fully operating as an air supremacy fighter force, on the Luftwaffe defenders was arguably swift and decisive. Many never did, however, as between 1942 and 1945 flying bombing missions for the "Mighty 8th" proved to be the most dangerous occupation in the U.S. Army Air Forces. As a headquarters, the Eighth had another important role in victory over Iraqi forcesoperating the logistics supply and air refueling bridge between the U.S. and gulf region. afterClose: function () { else { caption += $(this).find('figcaption').html() + Eighth Air Force also supports STRATCOM's Joint Force Headquarters Information Operations and serves as the command element for Air Force wide computer network operations. if (isMobile()) { While posturing itself for that mission change, the Eighth also supported Operation Enduring Freedom in which the Air Force operates against targets in Afghanistan, and Operation Noble Eagle for the defense of North American airspace. Based on British experience, they advocated adding multi-gun power operated turrets to bombers, and expanding air service training programs. Many more awards were made to Eighth Air Force veterans after the war that remain uncounted. There are (46894) servicemen of the 8th AF Bomber Groups in this archive. function closeDetails() { ", The Eighth Air Force team consists of more than 16,000 Regular Air Force (e.g., active duty), Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve professionals operating and maintaining a variety of aircraft capable of deploying air power to any area of the world. This strategy fatally disabled the twin-engined Zerstrergeschwader heavy fighter wings and their replacement, single-engined Sturmgruppen of heavily armed Fw 190As, clearing each force of bomber destroyers in their turn from Germany's skies throughout most of 1944. Conversely, the Eighth was in the crosshairs of the Luftwaffe, determined more than ever to defend their cities and facilities. An Eighth Air Force unit, the 2d Bomb Wing, spearheaded the air campaign by dispatching B-52s from Barksdale to launch conventional air-launched cruise missiles against Iraqi targets. Eighth Air Force remained in Okinawa until 7 June 1946. During World War II, Eighth Air Force earned a reputation as a great warfighting organization. On 8 March, another raid of 600 bombers and 200 fighters hit the Berlin area again, destroying the VKF ball-bearing plant at Erkner. However, the P-51B was introduced as a tactical fighter, so the first deliveries of the P-51B in November 1943 were assigned to three groups in the tactical Ninth Air Force at the expense of VIII Bomber Command, whose need for a long range escort fighter was critical. } '

' + It was a last-ditch effort to keep up the momentum of the German forces during the stagnant stage of the Battle of the Bulge (Unternehmen Wacht am Rhein). Within three years it grew to become the greatest military striking force in history. $(this).find('figcaption').html() + return '

' Its last assignment was with Far East Air Forces at Nagoya, Japan, where it was inactivated on 30 June 1948. [citation needed]. Elements of 8 AF engaged in combat operations during the Korean War (19501953); Vietnam War (19611975), as well as Operation Desert Storm (19901991) over Iraq and occupied Kuwait in the First Persian Gulf War. Modern mechanized armies need a robust logistics chain to provide fuel, ammunition, and other sinews of war to sustain combat operations. var dstTop = Math.floor((winHgt - newImgHgt)) / 2; The end came on 25 April 1945 when Eighth Air Force flew its last full-scale mission of the European War. Regular combat operations by the VIII Bomber Command began on 17 August 1942, when the 97th Bombardment Group flew twelve Boeing B-17E Flying Fortresses on the first VIII Bomber Command heavy bomber mission of the war from RAF Grafton Underwood, attacking the Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yards in France. Altogether, the Eighth's bombers flew 325 sorties to drop over 7 million pounds of ordnance on enemy targets in that campaign. function getDetailsURL(fbObj) { $(".fancybox-content").css("width", newImgWth + "px"); Seth Paridon was a staff historian at The National WWII Museumfrom2005 to 2020. From 1946 through 1949, what little money became available was used to buy new planes (Boeing B-50 Superfortress, Convair B-36 Peacemaker) for SAC, and as the newer aircraft became available, the older B-29s were sent to storage depots or sent to Air Force Reserve units for training missions. isDesktopInit = false; function isMobile() { } The 308th Bombardment Wing (308th BW) is an inactive United States Air Force unit. }, 1000); Over 950 fighters had been sent west from the Eastern Front for "Operation Bodenplatte". Support to the latter command included the operation of Task Force 204 (bombers). Here is B-17 Rose Marie, which served in the 390th Bombing Group. Altogether, the Eighth Air Force dropped over 4,800 tons of high explosive on Berlin during the first week of March. The ALLIED FORCE campaign also marked the Eighth's return to Europe and the participation of U.S. bombers in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) first combat operation. more than 200,000 people (it is estimated that more than On 1 May, over 1,300 Eighth Air Force heavy bombers made an all-out attack on the enemy's rail network, striking at targets in France and Belgium. Over 60 Luftwaffe fighters were shot down with a loss of 19 US bombers and 5 US fighters. The Mighty Eighth's modern history is equally impressive. As the nuclear weapons carried by the bombers were so powerful that only one plane was assigned to a target that might have previously needed a whole bomb group of aircraft. It dug a crater just two feet deep and nine feet wide. $(".fancybox-caption").addClass("af3-caption-bg"); let displayhgt = "95vh"; The second Schweinfurt raid, [10] also called Black Thursday, was a World War II air battle that took place on 14 October 1943, over Nazi Germany between forces of the United States 8th Air Force and German Luftwaffe fighter arm ( Jagdwaffe ). They thought these bombers should have strong defensive armament to fight through enemy fighter aircraft, and they would fly high, making them harder targets for enemy interception and antiaircraft fire. function captionToggle() { There were 985 can see the gradual buildup of Eighth Air Force in England. Under Air Force Global Strike Command since 1 Feb 2010, Eighth Air Force controls strategic bomber (e.g., B-2 Spirit and B-52 Stratofortress, and B-1 Lancer) forces throughout the United States and overseas locations. The first air attacks against Warsaw start. Fifteenth Air Force relocated to March Air Force Base, California. In a prelude to the invasion of France, American air attacks began in February 1944 against railroad junctions, airfields, ports and bridges in northern France and along the English Channel coastline. Fifteen months after Operation Desert Storm, the Air Force reorganized. October 8s target was the shipyard in dreaded Bremen, known as Flak City by the aircrews. On 7 April 1945, the Luftwaffe flew its most desperate and deadliest mission, with the dedicated aerial ramming unit Sonderkommando Elbe. Superior aerodynamic and structural design gave the B-17 and B-24 respective extreme ranges of 800 and 1200 miles. On 2 March, when Eighth Air Force bombers were dispatched to attack the synthetic oil refineries at Leipzig, Messerschmitt Me 262As attacked the formation near Dresden. Phone: 703-584-1501. The first contingent arrived in May. if ($(".fancybox-caption__body").hasClass("af3-caption-body")) { These attacks and the July 4th raid were just the beginning. fbObj.find(".actions .download").attr("href") + Also, by using a four-bladed propeller, rather than the three-bladed one used on the P-51A, the performance was greatly improved; the XP-51B achieved a level speed of 441mph at 29,800ft (9,100m), over 100mph (160km/h) faster than the Allison-engined P-51A at that altitude. John Keema of the 390th Bomb Group said, No matter the target they were defending, they were balls to the wall. The Eighth's units played a key role in the 42-day Gulf War in 1991. VIII Bomber Command, after redesignation as Eighth Air Force, was assigned VIII Fighter and VIII Air Support Commands under its command. Eighth Air Force was relieved from assignment to Strategic Air Command and assigned to the new Air Combat Command (ACC) on 1 June 1992. Warbirds in flight, tanks on parade, PT-305 in the water. At all heights, the rate of climb was approximately doubled. Activated in the US on I Feb 1942. The wing served in combat with Fifth Air Force from February 1944 to August 1945, operating as a task force with various groups and squadrons that were . } In late 1943, the P-51B Mustang was introduced to the European Theater by the USAAF. Then in April 1970, SAC moved the Eighth without personnel or equipment to Andersen AFB Guam, absorbing resources of the 3d Air Division. As the new commander of the Eighth Air Force from January 1944 onwards, Major General Jimmy Doolittle's major influence on the European air war occurred early that year when he made a critical change to the policy requiring escorting fighters to remain with the bombers at all times. However, it was believed that a strong strategic air arm equipped with B-29s would deter a possible aggressor from attacking the United States for fear of massive retaliation with nuclear weapons. 29 Apr 2023 22:23:59 These bomb wings were drastically undermanned and under equipped. } Practice was another. Stuttgart was at the very limit of the B-17 in 1943, and fuel was a precious commodity on this particular mission. Some of the German pilots had been flying in combat since 1936. The enemy fighters, so determined in their mission to deter the B-17s, remained in attack mode over the flak field and flew through their own anti-aircraft fire in order to deliver their assaults. Under ACC, the Eighth received control over active duty, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units in the central U. S. and two overseas locations. Download Hi-Res As a result, Eighth Air Force was incorporated into the new SAC. On 6 June 1944 itself, the Group bombed coastal defences before the landings. However, fewer accounts exist of Operation Flashpoint, Ninth US Armys assault crossing of the Rhine, which began on March 24. This was largely so that the Air Force could perpetuate the names of groups that had distinguished themselves in World War II. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. As they approached the initial point, or IP, the fighters pressed even closer. } German anti-aircraft fire, or flak, was one of those deadly threats. General Carl Spaatz returned to England to command the USSTAF. Fifteen Allied bombers were attacked, eight were successfully destroyed. The initial cadre of personnel had been transferred from the 44th Bomb Group. The command staff and all personnel of the 58th Bomb wing were eliminated on 1 November 1946 and the organization was reduced to a paper unit. } The American theory on daylight bombing lay in the aircraft the crewmen flew: the rugged Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress, the main heavy bomber of the Eighth Air Force. getDownloadURL($(this).parent()) + By December, the head-on attack was the preferred method of assailing American heavy bombers by Luftwaffe fighter pilots. return '

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