Mission 102 - 445BG

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Mission 102

Mission Summaries > June 1944
SATURDAY, 17 JUNE 1944
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (ETO)
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):


Targets in France, primarily airfields, are hit; 2 B-17s are lost; fighters fly 1,027 sorties during the day and destroy 15 locomotives, train cars, trucks and other vehicles.

Mission 418:
232 of 332 bombers attack targets in France:

Of 174 B-17s, 52 hit Monchy-Breton Airfield, 31 hit a railroad bridge at Noyen, 18 hit Château dun Airfield and 18 hit Villiers / L'Eveque Airfield; 2 B-17s are lost and 22 damaged; 22 airmen are MIA; escort is provided by 43 P-38s, 39 P-47s and 90 P-51s; they claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 P-51 is lost (pilot is MIA).

Of 158 B-24s, 28 hit Laval Airfield, 26 hit Guyancourt/Caudron Airfield, 18 hit Le Mans/Arnage Airfield, 17 hit Brétigny Airfield, 12 hit Brunnelles, 9 hit Melun Airfield, 1 hits Dreux, 1 hits St Valery and 1 hits a target of opportunity; escort is provided by 87 P-47s and 170 P-51s; they claim 2-0-1 Luftwaffe aircraft in the air and 3-0-0 on the ground; no losses or casualties.

99 P-38s fly fighter-bomber missions against railroad bridges at Corbie and Peronne; 4 P-38s are lost (pilots are MIA).

Mission 419:
Of 312 B-24s dispatched, 80 hit Angers Airfield, 75 hit Laval Airfield, 55 hit Tours Airfield, 38 hit Essay airstrip, 25 hit Lonray airstrip and 1 hits Le Mans; 1 B-24 is lost and 35 damaged; 10 airmen are MIA. Escort is provided by 122 P-47s and 148 P-51s; 1 P-51 is lost (pilot is MIA).
49 P-38s and 39 P-47s, escorted by 47 P-38s, make fighter-bomber attacks on Corbie-Peronne railroad bridges; 2 P-38s are lost (pilots are MIA).
Mission 420:
9 of 10 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night.
Target:  Brétigny, France - German Occupied French Airfield
8th Air Force Mission No:
418
Aircraft Taking Off:
22
Aircraft Dispatched:
20
Aircraft Aborts:
5
Aircraft Over Primary:
15
Aircraft Over Secondary:
0
Aircraft Over Last Resort:
0
Aircraft Bomb Load:
12 x 500 lb. AN-M43 General Purpose bombs
Group Bomb Load:
180 x 500 lb. AN-M43 General Purpose bombs
Results:
Unobserved due to cloud cover
Tactical Mission Report:
445th Bomb Group Mission Report

    1.             A/C Scheduled -----------------------
                    A/C Airborne -------------------------
                    A/C Dispatched ----------------------
                    A/C Returned Early -----------------  
                    A/C Over Target ---------------------
                    A/C Returned ------------------------

    2.   Assembly:  

     3.   Route In:  

     4.   Bomb Run:  

     5.   Route Out:  

    6.   Enemy Fighters:  

     7.   Fighter Support:  

    8.   Flak:  
Losses:
     None.
Note:
     None.
Brétigny Airdrome
Image courtesy of the National Archives and Records Administration ©
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