28 JANUARY 1945 · SUNDAY · STATION 104Aborted
Mission 809.Kaiserstuhl.
Kaiserstuhl, Germany
Intended Target
Kaiserstuhl
Kaiserstuhl, Germany
Operating Group
93rd BG
2AD
Takeoff Base
Hardwick
Station 104
Landing Base
Hardwick
Station 104
Aircraft Effective
115 / 225
effective / dispatched
Bomb Tonnage
300.5
tons
The cost.
§ Outcome
0
Ships Aborting
3
Ships Lost
0
Men Bailed Out
30
Men Lost
The route.
§ Takeoff to Target
Bearing Out
135° T
Bearing In
320° T
Route Length
1,000 nmi
Time Aloft
7 h 45 m
Operational data.
§ From the Debrief
Times & Distance
Reveille
03:45
Stations
07:00
Takeoff
08:00
Form-Up
06:45
Time Over Target
09:30
Return Time
15:45
Distance
1,000 nmi
Fuel Aboard
2,500 gal
Fuel Consumed
2,000 gal
Weather
Cloud En-Route to Target
Heavy stratus (8/10) — most of the sky covered by a low, flat cloud layer.
Air Temp at Altitude
-42 °F
Lowest Temp
-42 °F
Wind Speed
51 kt
Wind Direction
350°
Bombing & Defense
Bombing Altitude
22,500 ft
Bombing Run Heading
170° True
Forming Altitude
14,000 ft
Fighter Cover
3 P-51, 1 P-47 groups
Bombing Accuracy
Bombs jettisoned — target not reached
Flak
Intense flak at the Belgian coast struck the outboard engine, which could not be feathered and ran away
The formation.
34 aircraft · tap a ship for its crew
P1Lt Horace Rutledge
CP2Lt James W. Hembree
N2Lt Carlo Forte
E-TTT/Sgt Julliard Hall
ROT/Sgt Troy [unclear]herman
BTGS/Sgt [unclear]illiam Edwards
WGS/Sgt John J. Pichy
NGS/Sgt James Curry
TGS/Sgt Petro Horeshko
Letter suffix reads 'E'. Note 'DID NOT T.O.' appears beside several crew entries, suggesting this aircraft did not take off.
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