Mission # 176

MISSION SUMMARY

Mission Date	9 August 1944
Eighth Air Force Operations	Show Operations > Mission 533: 824 bombers and 675 fighters are dispatched to strategic targets (aircraft and tank factories, airfields and fuel depots) in SE Germany; weather deteriorated enroute and many bombers were recalled when confronted with a front rising to 28,000-feet (8,534 m) and most units attacked targets of opportunity; only 25 bombers hit their primary (Sindelfingen); 18 bombers and 3 fighters are lost; targets were (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of bombers bombing): >> Air Task Force 1. Of 359 B-17s, 103 hit Pirmasens; 56 hit Elsenborn, 41 hit Karlsruhe, 30 hit Ulm, 8 hit Speicher and marshalling yards at Saarbrucken (34) and Luxembourg (29); they claim 1-1-1 Luftwaffe aircraft; 11 B-17s are lost, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 157 damaged; 1 airman is KIA, 5 WIA and 96 MIA. Escort is provided by 243 P-47s and P-52s; they claim 33-0-10 aircraft in the air and 24-0-15 on the ground; 1 P-47 and 1 P-51 are lost (pilots are MIA); 2 P-47s and 5 P-51s are damaged beyond repair. >> Air Task Force 2. Of 218 B-17s, 16 hit Aachen, 12 hit Eindhoven, 12 hit St Vith marshalling yard and 7 hit targets of opportunity; 3 B-17s are lost, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 94 are damaged; 5 airman are WIA and 18 MIA. Escort is provided by 162 P-47s and P-51s without loss. >> Air Task Force 3. Of 247 B-24s, 147 hit Saarbrucken marshalling yard and 25 hit an aircraft engine plant at Sindelfingen; 4 B-24s are lost, 2 are damaged beyond repair and 126 damaged; 1 airman is KIA, 10 WIA and 39 MIA. Escort is provided by 165 P-38s, P-47s and P-51s; they claim 6-0-4 aircraft; 1 P-38 is lost (pilot is MIA). > Mission 535: 3 of 4 B-17s fly a Micro H test mission against Aubigny, France airstrip. Escort is provided by 16 P-38s without loss. > Mission 536: 6 of 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France and the Netherlands during the night. 116 P-47s, escorted by 40 P-51s, are dispatched on fighter-bomber missions against communications in France without loss. > In England, HQ 325th Photographic Wing (Reconnaissance) is activated at High Wycombe; and HQ 25th Bombardment Group (Reconnaissance) and 652d Bombardment Squadron (Heavy, Weather Reconnaissance) with B-24s, the 653d Bombardment Squadron (Light, Weather Reconnaissance) with B-24s and Mosquito XVIs and 654th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy, Reconnaissance, Special) with B-24s, B-26s and Mosquito XVIs are activated at Watton. Source: Jack McKillop, Rutgers University, used with permission. Hide Operations
Mission	384th BG Mission Number 176, Eighth AF Force Mission Number 533 More Bad Weather Next Mission Previous Mission The 384th Bombardment Group (H) provided all three groups of the 41st B Combat Bombardment Wing - except for three aircraft from the 303rd BG, which formed the high element of the high group - on today's mission. Although the division abandoned operations at the Dutch Coast due to bad weather, the 41st B carried on until after they had passed Aachen, at which point the weather had become impenetrable. The wing leader ordered the wing to attack the briefed target of last resort, which the lead and high groups accomplished. However, the low group's bombsight gyro 'tumbled' just before bombs away, so they went on to bomb a target of opportunity (TOO), a bridge over the River Nahe at Nohfelden, Germany.
Primary Target	Target: Erding Airdrome & Airfield Type: German Air Force (Luftwaffe) Location: Erding, Germany
Target Attacked (Mode)	Last Resort Target (Visual) Target: Shoe Factory Type: Industry Location: Pirmasens, Germany
Sortie/Aircraft Summary	Completed Mission, not including spares - 30 Ground Spare Aircraft, Unused - 1 Scrubbed - 2 Aborted - 2
Mission Personnel	Mission Personnel Roster⇗ or Mission Loading Lists⇗
Mission Documents	Combat Mission Records and Plans obtained from the National Archives⇗
Other Mission Documents	1844-08-08, Wing Lead, Calhoun, Q. Wilson⇗ 1944-08-09, High Group Lead, J. Hines, H. Minor⇗ 1944-08-09, Low Group Lead, E. Lane, F. Allred⇗

35 AIRCRAFT ASSIGNED TO THIS MISSION
Table is sorted by Pilot, and may be sorted by any column: click the column head.
Aircraft	Pilot	Results	Mission/Sortie Information
42‑31484⇗	Brodie, James Joseph⇗	Completed Mission	High group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑32106⇗	Johnstone, William Andrew⇗	Completed Mission	Low Squadron lead, high group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑37788⇗	Proctor, John Richard⇗	Aborted Mission After Taking Off.	Low group hot camera ship. Turned back having lost the formation. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑38013⇗	Goodrick, Gene Robert⇗	Completed Mission	High section deputy, low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑39888⇗	Shwery, Arthur John⇗	Completed Mission	Low Squadron deputy, low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97204⇗	Soester, Wilbur Leroy⇗	Completed Mission	High section lead, lead group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97251⇗	Tracy, Edward Hanks⇗	Completed Mission	Lead group hot camera ship. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97320⇗	Groff, Richard Hubert⇗	Completed Mission	Low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97510⇗	Murchan, Lawrence Aloysius⇗	Completed Mission	Low Squadron lead, low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97557⇗	Vinnedge, Roy Alan⇗	Completed Mission	Wing deputy. PFF ship. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97941⇗	Laboda, Joseph Stanley⇗	Completed Mission	High group deputy. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97960⇗	Allred, Frank Lavon⇗	Completed Mission	Low group. Lead Ground Spare Aircraft; replaced 43‑37822, which was found to have a bad engine after takeoff. Returned to base and took off late, intercepting the formation at the English coast. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑97986⇗	[N/A]	Ground Spare Aircraft, Unused
42‑102430⇗	Carnes, Joe Ross⇗	Completed Mission	Low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑102500⇗	Pranger, Nicholas Vincent⇗	Aborted Mission After Taking Off.	Lead group. Turned back due to a crewman's serious illness; replaced crewman and took off, but could not catch up with formation. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑102518⇗	Kinnaird, William Robert⇗	Completed Mission	High group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑102601⇗	Cepits, Francis Frederick⇗	Completed Mission	Lead group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑102620⇗	Duesler, Donald Barton⇗	Completed Mission	Lead group hot camera ship. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑102933⇗	Minor, Henry W⇗	Completed Mission	High group lead. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑107058⇗	LeDonne, Edward George⇗	Completed Mission	Lead group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
42‑107121⇗	[N/A]	Scrubbed: Did Not Take Off	Lead group. Did not take off. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
43‑37713⇗	Causa, Raymond (NMI)⇗	Completed Mission	Lead group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
43‑37717⇗	Wismer, Richard Glen⇗	Completed Mission	High group hot camera ship. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
43‑37822⇗	[N/A]	Scrubbed: Did Not Take Off	Replaced by Ground Spare Aircraft 42‑97960. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
43‑37843⇗	Brown, Bert Oliver⇗	Completed Mission	Lead group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
43‑37917⇗	Hunt, John Hardy⇗	Completed Mission	High group hot camera ship. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
43‑37971⇗	Hulcher, Donald Lawrence ⇗	Completed Mission	High group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑6080⇗	Lynch, Edward Thomas⇗	Completed Mission	High section lead, low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑6105⇗	Skehan, Joseph Lynne⇗	Completed Mission	Low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑6109⇗	Farra, Robert Leslie⇗	Completed Mission	Low Squadron lead, high group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑6135⇗	Maggart, Richard Lee⇗	Completed Mission	Low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑6149⇗	Buslee, John Oliver⇗	Completed Mission	Low group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑6294⇗	Durdin, Larkin Clayton⇗	Completed Mission	Low group deputy and hot camera ship. SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑8007⇗	Wilson, Quentin (NMI)⇗	Completed Mission	Wing lead. PFF ship. Lt. Col. Calhoun aboard as Wing Commander (possibly from 41st CBW HQ). SORTIE REPORT ⇗
44‑8011⇗	Hicks, Ralph Benjamin⇗	Completed Mission	High section deputy, lead group. SORTIE REPORT ⇗