Saturday
In England, Kenneth E. Cline flew his 9th mission as the pilot of B-24 #169 on April 7, 1945.. The target was an ammunition storage depot at Krummel.1 After a three hour delay, 30 aircraft were launched on the mission at 0900. The crews had been briefed for the mission at 0300. The mission recovered at Wendling by 1600. Flak was light and inaccurate. Although upwards of 15 enemy aircraft were sighted by the mission, none attacked the Group. As was always the case, the 392nd Bombardment Group’s part was but a small part of a much larger mission.
On April 7, 1945, the 8th Air Force dispatched 1,314 bombers and 898 fighters to attack airfields, oil and munitions depots and explosives manufacturing facilities in Central and Northern Germany. Of that number, 128 B-24s were assigned the mission of bombing explosives manufacturing facilities and ammunition storage depots at Krummel. On April 7, the Germans put up over 100 conventional fighter aircraft and over 50 jets, Me-262s. Some of the 8th Air Force units are mauled heavily. Of the aircraft dispatched by the 8th Air Force 117 B-17s are damaged and 14 lost. The B-24s groups suffer 3 lost and 1 damaged.2
Notes & Commentary
1 “Mission #276, Target: Krummel.” WWW.B24.NET (http://www.b24.net/missions/MM040745.htm : accessed 02 April 2015).
2 “Mission 931, 1945-04-07”, Eighth Air Force Operations History (http://www.8thafhs.com/search.php : accessed 04 April 2015)
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