http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1944/jul44/25jul44.htm#
Operation Cobra
Tuesday, July 25, 1944 www.onwar.com
On the Western Front... The US 1st Army begins “Operation Cobra”. The main attack is made west of St. Lo by the US 7th Corps with 8th Corps on the right flank and 13th Corps on the left flank. A massive bombardment precedes the assault. More than 3000 planes are involved, including 1500 heavy bombers of the US 8th Air Force. Some American casualties result from the bombers releasing their loads short of their target. Regardless, the American forces make good progress. Attacks by the British 2nd Army around Caen have drawn away German armored forces and reserves. To the south of Caen, Canadian troops are attacking along the road to Falaise but meet heavy German resistance.
On the Eastern Front... Soviet forces penetrate Lvov and partially surround it.
In Berlin... Goebbels is appointed Reich Plenipotentiary for Total War and new decrees are issued canceling vacations for women involved in war-related work.
In Washington... British and American representatives begin talks concerning the control of oil production and trade in the postwar world.
In the Occupied Dutch East Indies... The British Eastern Fleet (Admiral Somerville) attacks Sabang Island. Aircraft from the carriers Victorious and Illustrious are sent against the airfield and then 4 battleships as well as cruisers and destroyers move closer to shell the harbor and oil installations.
In the Mariana Islands... On Guam the American marine forces are still unable to link up the two beachheads. On the southern landing, there is also fighting on the Orote Peninsula. On Tinian, the forces of US 5th Amphibious Corps advance cautiously southward after repulsing Japanese counterattacks.
In the Caroline Islands... Two carrier groups from Task Force 58 (Admiral Mitscher) attack Palau while a third attacks Yap, Ulithi, Ngulu, Tais and Sorol.
In Occupied Poland... A dismantled German V2 rocket is flown out on a Dakota transport plane and arrives London seven weeks before the first rocket attack occurs. The missile was captured by Polish resistance members on May 20th.
http://www.etherit.co.uk/month/thismonth/25.htm
July 25th, 1944 (TUESDAY)
FRANCE: US Operation Cobra begins. The main attack is west of St. Lo by the US VII, VIII, and XIII Corps. 3000 planes from the 8th and 9th USAAF are involved in the pre-attack bombardment. Many of the bombs fall short and cause many casualties, including a general, Lt. Gen. Leslie J. McNair, former Commander of Army Ground Forces and currently “commander” of the fictional “1st Army Group”. He was killed in his foxhole by a direct bomb hit as he waited to observe the follow-up ground attack.
There were three more friendly bombings, all by B-24s. First, a lead bombardier failed to synchronize his bombsight properly, so that when he dropped-and eleven other bombers dropped on his signal-a total of 470 100-lb high- explosive bombs fell behind the lines. Then a lead bombardier failed to properly identify the target and took the easy way out- bombing on the flashes of preceding bombs. A total of 352 260-lb fragmentation bombs fell in friendly lines. In the third case, a command pilot overrode his bombardier and dropped on previous bomb flashes; previous bombs had been off target but within a safe “withdrawal” zone. The pilot’s bombs fell within friendly territory.
All of the above errors were incidental to the real causes of the tragic bombings-the restricted size of the bomb zone and confusion over whether the air attack would be flown perpendicular or parallel to the front lines. The Army wanted a parallel attack so that short bombs would not land in friendly territory. (Actually, this approach would not guarantee an absence of friendly casualties.) The AAF, concerned about the run-in to the target and enemy antiaircraft fire, preferred to fly a perpendicular approach. AAF bomber commanders also recognized that the “heavies” were not as precise as the fighter-bombers. They asked Bradley to keep friendly troops at least 3,000 yards from the bomb line; Bradley compromised on a minimal distance of 1,200 yards, with a preceding fighter bomber attack to cover the next 250 yards so that, in fact, the heavy and medium bombers would strike no closer than 1,450 yards-a distance a heavy bomber would cover in approximately fifteen seconds. A distinct aiming point and a split-second precise drop were thus critical. (Drew Philip Halevy)
A speaker at the Liaison Pilots Reunion at the National Museum of the US Air Force (2006) described flying at about 300 feet and watching in horror as the initial target markers dropped short (toward the US lines) and a wind shift came up which started to blow the marker smoke over American forward positions. Even though they screamed over their radio to their ground control, he noted they had no way to radio, nor did the ground controllers, to notify the Air Force to abort the bomb drop. Clear indication of the cost of lack of interoperability in airborne and ground communications. (Perry Stewart)
The VII and VIII Corps make good progress. British attacks around Caen contribute to the success.
The US Eighth and Ninth Air Forces in England flies tactical missions to attack tactical targets in the vicinity of Saint-Lo in support of the US First Army assault (Operation COBRA):
The USAAF’s Eighth Air Force in England flies two missions.
Mission 494: 1,581 bombers and 500 fighters are dispatched to support a US First Army assault (Operation COBRA) with saturation bombing in the VII Corps area in the Marigny-Saint-Gilles region, just west of Saint-Lo; 5 bombers and 2 fighters are lost; 843 of 917 B-17s and 647 of 664 B-24s hit the Periers/St Lo area and 13 B-17s hit targets of opportunity; a B-17 and 4 B-24s are lost. Escort is provided by 483 P-38 Lightnings, P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs and also provide escort for Ninth Air Force B-26s; they claim 12-1-3 Luftwaffe aircraft in the air and 2-0-0 on the ground; 2 P-51s are lost. Due to a personnel error, bombs from 35 bombers fall within US lines; 102 US troops, including Lieutenant General Lesley J McNair, are killed and 380 wounded.
Mission 295: Late in the afternoon 106 B-24s are dispatched to bomb the Brussels/Melsbroek Airfield, Belgium but they are recalled because of heavy cloud formations. Escort for this mission is provided by 26 P-38s and 110 P-51s.
A P-38 and 78 P-47s fly a fighter-bomber mission against the Fournival/Bois de Mont fuel dump; they claim 0-0-1 aircraft.
Seventeen B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions during the night.
In France during the morning 11 Ninth Air Force B-26 and A-20 Havoc groups attack tactical targets in the vicinity of Saint-Lo in support of the US First Army; in the afternoon 4 groups bomb bridges on the Seine and Loire Rivers; 42 B-26s, repeating errors of the previous day, short-bomb behind US lines and casualties again are concentrated in the 30th Infantry Division; fighters strafe and bomb military targets in the Saint-Lo area in support of Operation COBRA, fly area patrol and sweeps south of the battle area, and carry out armed reconnaissance against installations in the Laval-Ghent-Amiens areas.
South of Caen, Canadian forces attack along the road to Falaise and meet heavy resistance.
GERMANY: Goebbels is appointed “Reich Plenipotentiary for Total War”. New decrees are issued which cancel vacations for women involved in war work.
AUSTRIA: The US Fifteenth Air Force in Italy attacks targets in Austria; 420 B-17s and B-24s
bomb the Hermann Goring tank works in Linz while other bombers hit the Villach marshalling yard and targets of opportunity in Austria and Yugoslavia; fighters provide escort and carry out sweeps; 175-200 enemy fighters oppose the attacks; 21 USAAF aircraft are lost. Operating from USSR Operation FRANTIC bases, 34 P-51s and 33 P-38s attack the airfield at Mielec, Poland and return to the USSR.
FINLAND: Marshal Mannerheim informs the political leadership that the German help is not enough. He wants that measures are taken to free Finland from the obligations of the Ribbentrop-pact. In practice this would mean that the President of the Republic Risto Ryti should resign. There has already been a tacit agreement between the military and political leadeship that if and when the Ribbentrop-pact becomes a liability (i.e. when the time comes to make peace with Soviet Union) Ryti should resign (as he was *personally* bound by the pact) and he will be replaced by Mannerheim.
Soviet warplane sinks sweepers Vilppula and Mercurius in Porkkala, Träskö.
POLAND: Russian units enter Luvov.
SOUTHEAST ASIA: The British Eastern Fleet, Admiral Somerville, attacks Sabang in the Indian Ocean. Carriers HMS Victorious and Illustrious are involved.
GUAM: The US forces are still battling to join their beachheads.
Louis Wilson, company commander of the 9th Marines, Third US Marine Division will be awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions today.
Captain Wilson leads his men up rugged open terrain in the face of heavy Japanese machine-gun and rifle fire, enabling them to capture a crucial position. That night, despite having been wounded three times, he repeatedly exposed himself to Japanese fire during a Japanese counterattack, at one point dashing 50 yards into the open to rescue a wounded marine. He led his men through 10 hours of combat, including hand-to-hand encounters, and headed a patrol that seized a second objective, a strategic slope.
TINIAN: The 2nd and 4th Marine Divisions advance on Tinian after stopping Japanese counterattacks.
Three carrier groups from TF 58 attack Japanese positions on the Caroline Islands. Carrier-based aircraft of Task Force 58 attack ground targets and shipping; Task Group 58.1 attacks targets and flies photo reconnaissance missions at Yap, Ulithi, Fais, Ngulu and Sorol while Task Groups 58.2 and 58.3 attack targets in the Palau Islands. Far East Air Force (FEAF) B-24s again hit supply areas, communication, and other targets on Woleai Atoll.
The USAAF joins the attacks with Seventh Air Force B-24s, based at Kwajalein Atoll, bombing Truk Atoll and Far East Air Forces B-24s bombing the airfield and other targets in Woleai Atoll.