8th Air Force 441

25 June 1944
media-37968.jpeg UPL 37968 A Special Forces Mission to France on 25 June 1944. John O. Thayer

Photographs provided by John Thayer's son, David Thayer, via Paul Fitz-George - [email protected].

Object Number - UPL 37968 - A Special Forces Mission to France on 25 June 1944.

Official Description

During the morning 236 B-17’s bomb Toulouse/Francazal and Toulouse/Blagnac A/F’s and oil dumps at Montbartier. 10 B-17’s bomb scattered T/Os. 107 B-24’s bomb Avord and Bourges A/Fs. 176 B-17’s drop supplies to French interior forces. A total of 8 HBs are lost. VIII FC flies 639 sorties in supporting operations. In addition 5 ftr gps carry out strafing activities, claiming numerous ground tgts including 6 airplanes on a landing ground and the A/F at Bourges. 19 enemy ftrs are claimed destroyed in aerial combat. During midday 153 B-24’s bomb 17 power and transformer stations in effort to disrupt flow of electric power to V-weapon stations. 64 B-24’s, hampered by cloud over primary aiming points, bomb

miscellaneous last resort tgts, including A/Fs at Peronne and Nuncq. Ftr spt is provided by 3 gps. All airplanes return safely. In night mission 300 B-17’s and B-24’s bomb 7 railway bridges and 2 A/Fs in Paris area. 69 HBs attack alternate tgts, including A/Fs of Orly, Romilly-sur-Seine, and Etampes/Mondesir. Ftrs fly 346 sorties in escort and tgt area spt. A P-38 gp strafes ground tgts in Angers, Le Mans-Laval area, and a P-47 gp bombs and strafes an alternate landing ground near Evreux/Fauville A/F. HB losses total 7. Ftrs claim 6 airplanes destroyed against no losses. In USSR, Eighth AF HBs and ftrs are flown, at daybreak, from dispersal bases to Poltava and Mirgorod and loaded and fueled with intentions of bombing oil refinery at Drohobycz and proceeding to base in Italy.

Bad weather cancels the mission until the following day. The aircraft return to dispersal bases for the night as precaution against air attacks.

Mission Details

Description:

Notes: Specific units not correlated in source data.

Mission Statistics

  • Tonnage Dropped: NA

Connections

See how this entry relates to other items in the archive by exploring the connections below.

People

  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 401st Bomb Group 612th Bomb Squadron
  • Service Numbers: 36215923 / O-692248
  • Highest Rank: Second Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Navigator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 94th Bomb Group 331st Bomb Squadron 65th General Hospital
  • Service Numbers: 55619
  • Highest Rank: First Lieutenant
  • Role/Job: Pilot
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron
  • Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Radio Operator
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron
  • Highest Rank: Technical Sergeant
  • Role/Job: Engineer/Top Turret Gunner
  • Military/Civilian/Mascot: Military
  • Nationality: American
  • Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron
  • Highest Rank: Staff Sergeant
  • Role/Job: waist gunner

Aircraft

  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: Ruth-Marie
  • Unit: 467th Bomb Group 790th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: My Wild Irish Rose
  • Unit: 467th Bomb Group 790th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: Niagara Special
  • Unit: 392nd Bomb Group 492nd Bomb Group 578th Bomb Squadron 857th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-24 Liberator
  • Nicknames: Bold Venture
  • Unit: 492nd Bomb Group 859th Bomb Squadron
  • Aircraft Type: B-17 Flying Fortress
  • Nicknames: Old Ironsides
  • Unit: 401st Bomb Group 615th Bomb Squadron

Revisions

Date
ContributorAAM
Changes
Sources

Lee Cunningham, 8th Air Force missions research database / Stan Bishop's 'Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces', the Combat Chronology of the US Army Air Forces and the work of Roger Freeman including the 'Mighty Eighth War Diary'.

8th Air Force 441: Gallery (15 items)