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http://www.etherit.co.uk/month/thismonth/28.htm

July 28th, 1944 (FRIDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: The US Eighth Air Force in England flies two missions:

- Mission 501: 1,057 bombers and 753 fighters are dispatched to bomb targets in Belgium, France and Germany; 7 bombers and 2 fighters are lost.
Col. Avelin Tacon (CO of 359th FG) sights an Me 163b Komet, but no combat occurs. (77)

291 B-24s in 2 forces are dispatched to hit signal depots, fuel dumps and V-weapon supply sites and a bridge in Belgium and France but the forces are recalled because of cloud cover over the targets; the first force of 180 B-24s is dispatched to northwest France V-weapon sites, fuel dumps and a railroad bridge; escort is provided by 235 P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs; the second force of 111 B-24s, escorted by 40 P-51s, is dispatched to hit Brussels and Vilvorde fuel and supply depots. 766 B-17s are dispatched to bomb the synthetic oil plant at Merseburg, Germany; 652 hit the primary while 36 hit Leipzig/Taucha oil refinery, 18 hit the Wiesbaden marshalling yards and 8 hit targets of opportunity; 7 B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 386 P-38 Lightnings and P-51s; 2 P-51s are lost.

Personal Memory: New crews that arrived a couple of weeks ago are now ready for their first mission. And I am the guy who is starting them out, taking their pilot as my copilot. FUN!! This is to be my 26th mission and our target is Mersberg, the most heavily defended city in Germany. I don’t expect a milk run! I’m flying the “Betty Jane” today that I have flown several times before including the ill fated glide bomb raid on Cologne. The 303rd put up 37 B-17s that were all in the air in 29 minutes. We formed up over the Harrington Buncher at 9,000 feet with our ten, five hundred pound bombs. During the forming up phase I was approached by another B-17 and to avoid a collision I turned away and did a 360 degree turn. Pulling up or diving would have put too much strain on the wings and tail of this overloaded bomber. I was now not able to catch up with the 303rd so I latched onto the 379th which I knew was going to the same target. My new copilot for this mission was J.A. Dr ewry with all his crew except for his copilot who was flying with another experienced crew. My regular group saw no enemy aircraft on this mission but my new group saw a few. Our top turret gunner, E. H. Koch fired at a FW190 that was trying to tow a bomb on a long wire through our formation. For some reason the bomb didn’t explode. The 190 was about three thousand feet above us and the other German planes were hanging back, evidently waiting for the big explosion which never came. We encountered flak at seven different locations and our “Betty Jane” suffered two minor wounds on this trip. It was overcast at the target and we had been discharging chaff which seemed to work to our advantage as the flak always seemed to be behind us. Evidently we didn’t do such a great job on the Luena synthetic oil plant as we soon learned that this would also be our target tomorrow. This target takes a flight time of eight hours and ten minutes with four hours and twenty minutes over enemy territory. During my PIC training an attempt on Hitler’s life occurred on July 20. Too bad it didn’t succeed as hundreds, if not thousands of lives could have been saved by shortening the war. Score: Milk Runs 13, Others 13. (I did not consider this a milk run.) (Dick Johnson)

- Mission 502: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night.

Hatfield, Hertfordshire: The de Havilland Hornet, long-range fighter makes its maiden flight. It has exceptional performance with a top speed of 485 mph and a range of 3,000 miles. (22)

Destroyer HMS CASSANDRA is commissioned.

FRANCE: The US 4th Armored Division enters Coutances, France. They have achieved the first objective of Operation Cobra.

The USAAF’s IX Bomber Command operates in support of the US First Army, bombing rail bridges, supply dumps and ammunition dumps in the Foret de Conches, Dreux, and Le Mans areas; fighters escort bombers, fly armed reconnaissance in the Le Mans, Laval, and Dreux areas and furnish cover over assault areas and armed columns.

GERMANY: U-2515 is laid down.

ITALY: The US Fifteenth Air Force in Italy dispatches 345 B-17s and B-24s to attack 2 oil refineries at Ploesti, Romaniaand a marshalling yard at Florina, Greece; P-51s and P-38s provide support for the Ploesti raid.

EASTERN FRONT: Brest-Litovsk and Przemysl fall to the Russians.

BALTIC SEA: At 0318, Soviet ASW craft MO-107 was badly damaged by a torpedo from U-475 in Viborg Bay.

GUAM: US forces take Mount Chachao and Mount Alutom in their continuing fight to consolidate their beachheads. Most of Orote Peninsula has been captured.

KURILE ISLANDS: USN aircraft from the Aleutians fly an antishipping mission east of Paramushiru Islands. Participating are a PBY Catalina and 8 PV-1 Venturas. On the surface 6 USN destroyers sweep for enemy pick boats northeast of Shimushu Island.

CAROLINE ISLANDS: Carrier-based aircraft of the USN’s Task Groups 58.2 and 58.3 again attack Japanese installations in the Palau Islands while aircraft of TG 58.1 attack targets Utlihi and Yap Atolls. Four B-24 squadrons of the USAAF’s Far East Air Force attacks targets in Woleai Atoll; the airfield and supply area are well covered.

BIAK ISLAND: Charles Lindbergh flies with the 433d Fighter Squadron, 475th Fighter Group. The 475th, known as Satan’s Angels, was commanded by Colonel Charles H. MacDonald and two of the pilots were Major Richard I “Dick” Bong and Major Thomas B. “Tommy” McGuire, Jr. The 475th and it’s three squadrons, the 431st, 432d and 433d Fighter Squadrons.
The mission that day, Mission 3-407, consisted of a flight of eight Lockheed P-38 Lightnings and they were to bomb and strafe “targets of opportunity” on Amboina Island off the southwest coast of Ceram.

As they approached the target, someone announced over the radio that Japanese aircraft had been spotted nearby. As Lindbergh, Colonel MacDonald and Captain Danforth Miller dove through a white cloud and AA fire, the three encountered a Mitsubishi Ki-51, Army Type 99 Assault Plane, Allied Code Name Sonia, flying towards the Americans head-on. Lindbergh opened fire with his 20mm cannon and 50-calibre (12.7 mm) machine guns and saw hits on the Sonia. Just before the two aircraft collided head-on, Lindbergh pulled back on the controls and pulled up; the Sonia entered a vertical dive and crashed into the sea. Lindbergh never bragged about this; when asked, he just said, “I shot in self-defence.”

Meanwhile US forces destroy Japanese defences at Ibdi.

CANADA: Frigate HMCS Lanark arrived Halifax from builder Montreal, Province of Quebec.
Corvette HMCS Alberni was narrowly missed an aircraft-laid mine when a depth charge laid over an asdic contact set off another mine 200 yards off Alberni’s starboard beam without significant damage.
Frigate HMCS St Stephen commissioned.

U.S.A.: Coast Guard-manned Army vessel FS-391 was commissioned at Los Angeles with LTJG Ted C. Larsen, USCGR, assuming command, relieving LT Thomas A. Buddy, USCGR. He was succeeded by LTJG Henry P. Mistrey, USCGR, who in turn was succeeded on 10 October 10, 1945, by LTJG George W. Litchfield, USCGR. She was assigned to and operated in the Southwest Pacific area.