Paul Bellamy
5/11/2011 6:14:20 PM | Target Berlin: Mission 250, 6 March 1944
By Jeffrey L. Ethell and Alfred Price
256 pages
ISBN: 1854091646
Arms & Armour publishers - 1992
A blow-by-blow narrative of the 8AF's Mission #250 (401BG Mission #32), where over 800 bombers from all three divisions of the 8AF, supported by nearly 1000 escort fighters, were led by the 1st Air Division, with the 1st Combat Wing and the 94th Combat Wing led by the 401st in the vanguard, to hit targets in Berlin. The Luftwaffe flew over 500 fighter sorties to intercept the force, bolstering the 414 heavy and 313 light Flak guns defending Berlin alone.
Plenty of first-hand accounts from both sides, photos and clear explanatory diagrams describe this mission, where small errors built up into terrible unforseen circumstances, technical failures meant bombs were dropped all over the place, and the 8AF suffered it's highest losses on a single mission.
Special mention must be made of the personal accounts and direct mentions of the following men from the 401st during this mission:
Captain Ed Curry, Bombardier on 42-40002 Breezing Home
Lt. Dan Knight, Pilot of 42-31983 Mary Alice
Lt. "Rusty" Rustand, Copilot of 42-31983 Mary Alice
Charlie Archer, Radio Operator on 42-31983 Mary Alice
Lt Edward Jones, Bombardier on 42-38136 which was lost on this mission
Highly recommended, and available for less than a dollar at some places in the USA.
All the best,
Paul
Paul Bellamy
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