Circled P indicates lead/command pilot
29 DECEMBER 1944 · FRIDAY · STATION 104Aborted
Mission 769.Schleiden.
Schleiden, Germany
Intended Target
Schleiden
Schleiden, Germany
Operating Group
93rd BG
2BD
Takeoff Base
Hardwick
Station 104
Landing Base
Hardwick
Station 104
Aircraft Effective
9 / 262
effective / dispatched
Bomb Tonnage
24.5
tons
The cost.
§ Outcome
0
Ships Aborting
0
Ships Lost
0
Men Bailed Out
0
Men Lost
The route.
§ Takeoff to Target
Bearing Out
119° T
Bearing In
303° T
Route Length
800 nmi
Time Aloft
5 h 20 m
Operational data.
§ From the Debrief
Times & Distance
Reveille03:00
Stations07:45
Takeoff08:30
Time Over Target09:30
Return Time13:50
Distance800 nmi
Fuel Aboard2,500 gal
Fuel Consumed1,500 gal
Weather
Cloud En-Route to TargetBroken cloud — overcast covering roughly half the sky (5/10), with intervals of clear sky.
Air Temp at Altitude-31 °F
Lowest Temp-35 °F
Wind Speed48 kt
Wind Direction350°
Bombing & Defense
Bombing Altitude22,000 ft
Bombing Run Heading95° True
Forming Altitude17,000 ft
Fighter Cover3 P-51, 1 P-47 groups
Bombing AccuracyFair
Flak
Mostly from front lines — meager
The formation.
§ 10 Aircraft Dispatched
Each ship that lifted off, and the men aboard her.
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot; note entry '1[illegible] 2nd Lt. Milton Q. Alper' and 'Lt. Mitcel 448th' — possibly attached observer or additional crew from 448th BG; transcription unclear
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot; Bombardier position row has no name — blank entry added
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot; Bombardier position row has no name — blank entry added
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot
Circled P indicates lead/command pilot; Bombardier position row has no name — blank entry added
On December 29th the target was a railroad bridge near Kirchweiler. Crossing the coast at Ossoe, Belgium, an antiaircraft battery found them and put flak through the aircraft. Within minutes the oil pressure on the number two engine dropped and the head temperature climbed. They feathered the engine and turned back. The group was still climbing and they couldn't keep up. Back at the base, an inspection found that a piece of flak had clipped the oil line between two cylinders. All eight gallons of oil had pumped out. The quick shutdown had prevented any further damage, and a five-cent length of hose had Ship A-Able ready to fly the next morning.
Sources.
§ Provenance
Hughes Memoir - A Bomber Pilot in World War Two
Walter Hughes · 1990
Personal memoir
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