Lead aircraft (circle-1 marker on Pilot)
12 SEPTEMBER 1944 · TUESDAYBombed Primary
Mission 626.Kiel.
Kiel, Germany
Intended Target
Kiel
Kiel, Germany
Operating Group
93rd BG
2BD
Aircraft Effective
58 / 241
effective / dispatched
Bomb Tonnage
149.5
tons
The cost.
§ Outcome
0
Ships Aborting
0
Ships Lost
0
Men Bailed Out
0
Men Lost
Operational data.
§ From the Debrief
Times & Distance
Reveille03:00
Stations07:00
Takeoff07:35
Form-Up06:45
Time Over Target08:30
Return Time13:25
Distance1,200 nmi
Fuel Aboard2,700 gal
Fuel Consumed1,700 gal
Weather
Cloud En-Route to TargetLow stratocumulus clouds along the route; skies cleared at the target, allowing visual bombing.
Lowest Temp-2 °F
Wind Speed35 kt
Wind Direction140°
Bombing & Defense
Bombing Altitude23,000 ft
Bombing Run Heading182° True
Forming Altitude7,000 ft
Fighter Cover3 P-51 groups
Bombing AccuracyComplete destruction of 5 of 6 buildings at target
Flak
A few bursts from Heligoland; otherwise none
The formation.
§ 29 Aircraft Dispatched
Each ship that lifted off, and the men aboard her.▸ 1 ship carrying your selection
The third mission came the very next day, September 12th. The target was a small oil refinery at Hemmingstedt in Schleswig-Holstein. Pete Scott didn't fly; he had been assigned Officer of the Day. The route took the crew up the North Sea, bombing south to north, which put them heading toward the Frisian Islands on the way home. A few bursts came up from Heligoland, but no flak reached them and no fighters appeared. All aircraft returned without damage. Five of the six refinery buildings were assessed as destroyed. It was, by the crew's own reckoning, the easiest mission of the early tour.
Commanding officer 1st Lt. Richard Baginski listed at top of block; left-side pilot entry marked with strikethrough and illegible
Marked with Ø symbol.
Marked with Ø symbol.
Marked with Ø symbol.
Marked with Ø symbol.
Marked with Ø symbol.
Marked with Ø symbol.
Lead aircraft (circle-1 marker on Pilot)
Lead aircraft (circle-1 marker on Pilot)
Lead aircraft (circle-1 marker on Pilot)
Lead aircraft (circle-1 marker on Pilot)
Lead aircraft (circle-1 marker on Pilot)
Additional CP entry 'Maj Hoare, J. W.' listed below this aircraft block at bottom of page — may be an observer or formation command pilot added post-listing.
Sources.
§ Provenance
2nd Air Division · 2nd Air Division Digital Archive · 1944
Official record
Mighty Eighth War Diary
Roger A Freeman · Jane's Publishing Company Limited · 1981
Published