August
17, 1943, 13th victory August
17, 1943, 13th victory 
Searches concerning this victory :
| progress of the search | 4 | Last update |
January 1, 2004 |
Evaluation quality of information | 4 |
The mission of the USAAF
COMBAT CHRONOLOGY OF THE US ARMY AIR FORCESTUESDAY, 17 AUGUST 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
Mission 84 :
On the first anniversary of US heavy bomber operations from the UK, a
two-pronged attack into Germany is launched, marking the deepest penetration of German territory to date. The critical targets are the Messerschmitt complex at Regensburg, and the anti-friction-bearing factories at Schweinfurt.
1. 230 B-17's are dispatched to Schweinfurt; 188 hit the target at 14.59-15.11 hours;
they claim 148-18-63 Luftwaffe aircraft;
36 B-17's are lost, 3 are damaged beyond repair and 118 damaged;
casualties are 3 KIA, 12 WIA and 352 MIA;
there are 80 high explosive hits on the 2 main bearing plants.
2. 146 B-17's are dispatched to Regensburg; 127 hit the target at 11.48-12.07 hours;
they claim 140-19-36 Luftwaffe aircraft;
24 B-17's are lost, 1 is damaged beyond repair and 50 are damaged;
casualties are 4 KIA, 9 WIA and 200 MIA; every important building in the complex is damaged;
the surviving aircraft continue on to bases in North Africa.
60 B-17's are lost in the fierce air battle that extends to the targets and continues after the bombing.
During the night of 17/18 Aug the Royal Air Force (RAF) begins Operation CROSSBOW, massive attacks on German V-weapon sites. About 570 aircraft drop 2,000 tons of bombs on Peenemunde, Germany.
B-17 declared lost on August 17, 1943 (current result of my works) :
Source : Books "The B-17 Flying Fortress Story" & "Forteresses sur l'Europe"
|
serial number |
plane name |
squadron |
code |
reason |
mission lost on |
pilot / crew |
|
42-3222 |
Boeing B-17F-DL "Dueces Wild" |
384 BG 545 BS |
JD-P |
fighter |
Schweinfurt |
F. Mattes, |
|
42-3230 |
Boeing B-17F-DL "Yankee Powerhouse II" |
384 BG 545 BS |
JD-U |
fighter |
Schweinfurt |
D. Wofford, |
|
42-29956 |
Boeing B-17F-BO "Vertical Shaft" |
384 BG 544 BS |
SU-B |
fighter |
Schweinfurt |
J. Hausenfluck, |
|
42-30139 |
Boeing B-17F-BO "Snuffy" |
384 BG 545BS |
JD-O |
flak |
Schweinfurt |
O. Swenigsen, |
Source : 351 BG http://freespace.virgin.net/ken.harbour/index.htm
Source : 381st Bomb Group - Lost Crew Roster http://www.jvlnet.com/~paradise/381st/lc3.htm#msn3
serial number
plane name
squadron
code
reason
mission lost on
pilot / crew
42-29839
Boeing B-17F-BO "Cherokee Girl"
351 BG
? BS?
fighter
14:14Schweinfurt
mission #13
Crash Location
Reifferscheid -Schleiden (G)
KoblenzLt. Helmuth F. Hansen POW
F/O J. Z. Comfort POW
Lt. Dale P. Van Brunt POW
Lt. John W. Dytman POW
S/Sgt. Tuite H. A. Ambrose KIA
T/Sgt. Adam G. Gazek Jnr. POW
T/Sgt. Donald G. Boss POW
S/Sgt. Elwin C. Smith POW
S/Sgt, Paul Hennessy POW
S/Sgt. August F. Warden POW
MACR 30342-5812
Boeing B-17F-VE "Cannon Ball"
351 BG 511 BS
?
fighter
16:00Schweinfurt
mission #9
Crash Location
Bad Godesberg (G)
Bad EmmsLt. Max A. Pinkerton POW
Lt. Herbert F. Berreau KIA
Lt. Charles R. Rosewall POW
Lt. Lee A. Santi POW
S/Sgt. Clifton A. Langseth POW
T/Sgt. Paul J. Gallipeo POW
S/Sgt. Joseph P. Roman POW
S/Sgt. Clifford D. Hall POW
S/Sgt. Howard J. Licht POW
T/Sgt. Howard W. Marvin POW
MACR 302
serial number
plane name
squadron
code
reason
mission lost on
42-30028
Thanks to Philippe
DufrasneBoeing B-17F-80-BO "Sweet - Leiani”
on the other side
“Great in Leiani”381 BG
534 BSGD-H
fighter
near
14:22Schweinfurt mission #20
Crash Location
Simmern (G)
présumed
Düren55Kms from Eiffel 417/n3
2nd Lt. Wright, Neil.H.
2nd Lt. Rogers,J.W.
2nd Lt. Haverkamp, C.M.
2nd Lt. Stracotenko, J.M.
S/Sgt. Sowell, W.F.
T/Sgt. Allen, E.R.
S/Sgt. Egliski, P.J.
S/Sgt. Bingenheimer, R.F.
S/Sgt. Hill, J.R.
S/Sgt. St. Michael, W.
10 POW,
MACR 380
Elements to direct searches :
Source : "journal of combat missions page 2.htm"
Extrait de Mission No. 8 -- Schweinfurt B-17 96th BGThe first raid there had taken place on August 17, 1943, the same day as the infamous Regensburg raid, which shuttled to North Africa. Our losses were great on that first raid to Schweinfurt, but damage to the ball bearing plant was crippling to the German war effort.
Extract from PIECES OF NOSTALGIA by Bill Turcotte (contributed by Dave Hanst)So it was when the 322nd led the 91st Group on the first Schweinfurt mission, August 17, 1943, our 4th with all original aircrew.
ME-109s and FW-190s attacked head on, wings blazing, peeling off belly up below us.
Repeated passes wing to wing and the Hargis aircrew on our left wing in "Dame Satan" (42-2990) was hit by a 109 that came barely over our left wing. I watched as it left formation.
Over the ball-bearing factories at Schweinfurt, bombs raked the target area, and great columns of brown smoke and dust were rising.
I hardly noticed the flak in the absence of fighters. They met us again and again on the way out. All ammunition in the nose was expended. Hot cartridge cases were 3 inches deep and burned your ankles.
We made it, but 4 of the 322nd crews went down, including "Dame Satan".
Fifty years later, I learned their fate, although I had heard that some of the crew were P.O.W.s. ...
Source : The 303rd Bomb GroupOn the I7th of August 1943, while one task force hit Regensburg and flew on to Africa, the 303rd struck at one of Germany's most important and vulnerable industries: the ball bearing plant at Schweinfurt. It was rough. More than 300 German fighters came up to contest the mission for more than two hours. Our gunners used up over 120,000 rounds of ammunition. Thirty German fighters went down. The group went on and bombed the target. All of our aircraft returned.
No losses for the 303BG this day .
Description of this victory by Heinz Knoke and different information :
Heinz Knoke Informations
Personal comments
Source
Date
Type of claimed plane
Place of the interception
Crash Location
In a pine forest
in Eiffel Mountains
Same point transfered on
an actual map at same scalePresumed mission USAAF
Presumed route USAAF
First mission of Knoke : Anvers, heading south-east, Schweinfurt.
Schedule
First alert at 13.15 :
Gilze Rijn in Holland Take off.
Bonn-Hangelar Landing
Second mission (improvised) of day :
Bonn-Hangelar's takeoff at 17. 00.
Gilze Rijn in Holland Take off at 13.15.
Bonn-Hangelar Landing at 15.30.
Second Mission #224 (improvised) :
Bonn-Hangelar's takeoff at 17.00.
Belly landing near Rheinbach at 17.35
Hour of his victory about 17.25 / 17.30.Weather report
Knoke's Unit
Even twin-engined planes Me 110 and 210 ?Description of the fight
A sure victory.
Estimate crash location from Heinz Knoke's hand pointed map is in the red circle.
Current hypothesis...
1 B-17 Serial 42-29853 (cf table) is shot by a fighter over Euskirchen. From Knoke, the bomber is on home way, probably heading North-West, swerving off to the left as it drops away below the formation.
2 This bomber is reported to have crashed in the massif of Eiffel in the red circle (cf previous map)
square PO - 1.
3 Knoke, with his own plane shot by bomber fire tried to join Bonn in the Northeast but was forced to make a belly landing near Rheinbach.
Problem : schedules do not correspond, but the possibilities of errors when in documents drafted a posteriori, MACR or Flugbuch, are numerous...Detail 1
Mission on Regensburg made its bombardment from 11.48 till 12.07.
5. / JG11 took off only after 13.15.
B-17s having participated in the mission on Regensburg were not attacked by Knoke'unit and should be ignored.Detail 2
Me-109s of the 5. JG11 are equipped with 2 rockets of 210mm.
Fuhrmann and Fest obtains two victories on direct hits.
Some B-17s crew can legally believe to have been touched with Flak and not by these rockets, fact was still rare at the time and difficult to identify !
A part of the crew survived probably.
The completely disappear crews are to be ignored.Detail 6
He is on the West of valley of the Rhine probably in the axis of Bonn because he can see from 12 000 feet the city.
In his Flugbuch Knoke note is "Notlandung bei Rheinbach"
His plane was 50% destroyed.
