Posted on 06/06/2014 3:55:02 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
B4l
I miss him.
http://www.8thafhs.org/combat1944a.htm
6 June 1944
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force): The Eighth Air Force reaches its top strength as the 493d Bombardment Group (Heavy) becomes operational, making a total of 40 heavy bomber groups now operational. Heavy bombers fly 4 missions in support of the Normandy invasion:
1. Mission 394: At first light, 659 of 882 B-17s and 418 of 543 B-24s hit coastal targets in the area of the invasion beaches between Le Havre and Cherbourg; overcast and inability of the bombers to locate (or absence of) PFF leaders causes failure of some units to attack; 1 B-24 is lost, 1 B-24 is damaged beyond repair and 14 B-17s and 1 B-24 are damaged; 12 airmen are KIA, 2 WIA and 13 MIA.
2. Mission 394: The second mission strikes at transportation chokepoints in towns immediately around the assault area; total cloud cover causes 84 B-17s and 259 B-24s dispatched to return with their bombs but 37 B-24s manage to bomb secondary target of Argentan; 2 B-24s are lost and 1 B-17 is damaged; no casualties.
3. Mission 395: The third mission is dispatched against the important communications center of Caen; 58 of 73 B-24s bomb through overcast skies without loss.
4. Mission 395: Transportation chokepoints in towns immediately S and E of the assault area are the objectives of the fourth mission; 325 of 409 B-17s and 125 of 300 B-24s hit targets including Vire, Saint-Lo, Coutances, Falaise, Lisieux, Thury-Harcourt, Pont-l’Eveque, Argentan, and Conde-sur-Noireau; 1 B-24 is lost, 1 B-24 is damaged beyond repair and 11 B-24s and 5 B-17s are damaged; 10 airmen are KIA.
In all, 1,729 bombers drop 3,596 tons of bombs during D-Day. The VIII Fighter Command has the threefold mission of escorting bombers, attacking any movement toward the assault area, and protecting Allied shipping. The fighters fly 1,880 sorties including fighter-bomber attacks against 17 bridges, 10 marshalling yards, and a variety of other targets including convoy, railroad cars, siding, rail and highway junctions, tunnel, and a dam. Very little air opposition is encountered. The fighters claim 26-0-8 Luftwaffe aircraft in the air and 4-0-9 on the ground. Also destroyed are 21 locomotives and 2 carloads of ammunition. Numerous targets are damaged including locomotives, trucks, tank cars, armored vehicles, goods carriers, barges, and tugboats. Targets attacked with unreported results include warehouses, radar towers, barracks, troops, artillery, staff cars, 85 trains, and a variety of other targets. 25 fighters are lost.
The 493d Bombardment Group records this day in their official history:
Began operations on June 6, 1944 – 25 days after Col. Elbert Helton arrived at AAF’s Station 152 with the first B-24 Liberators of his command.
The events in the Pacific will be largely ignored in the coming days, but June 6, 1944 was also the first day of combat for the 6th Infantry Division in New Guinea. Their official history is available online:
http://6thinfantry.com/downloads/6th-Infantry-Division-in-World-War-II/
From their account:
By this time the whole of the Australina-mandated New Guinea except for the isolated pockets at Rabaul and Wewak had been liberated and the Hollandia area in Dutch New Guinea had been secured. Still held by the Nips were Noemfoor, Biak and the Voglekop Peninsula, constituting the northwestern end of the island of New Guinea. The Wakde-Toem-Maffin Bay area was to provide the air bases and staging areas from which assaults could be made on the remaining Jap-held territory on the island.
The 1st Infantry arrived on 6 June and immediately relieved the troops defending the main beachhead in the Toem area. On 11 June Division Headquarters and the 20th Infantry arrived, and General Sibert assumed command of the sector. Three days later, while the 63d Infantry, 80th Field Artillery Battalion, 6th Reconnaissance and the rest of the Division were steaming into the harbor, the 20th Infantry relieved the 158th RCT along the Tirfoam River and the 51st Field artillery Battalion occupied gun positions on the east bank of the Tor River.
I had the privilege of commanding a battalion of the 16th Infantry Regiment. It was many years after the events of today, but many of those veterans were still alive and active and paid us visits at Ft. Riley. One of them was Captain Joe Dawson who commanded Company G on D-Day and whose company, together with Lt. Spaulding’s boat section from Company E, were the first to gain the tops of the bluffs on Omaha Beach. They were remarkable men and Joe still had vivid memories of the day. A few years after he told a group of soldiers at Ft. Riley about his experiences, he wrote them down. They can be found here.
Normandy is just a feint, The real invasion is coming at Calis. Patton is still in England.
Been waiting for this one, and once again, many thanks for seeing this project through! Apropos of a comment made yesterday, yes, the fall of Rome was relegated to Page 16. That has to be the biggest upstaging of all time.
Bad link, try this one for 1st Division D-Day resources
Clark wanted to take Rome, and get the headlines, so bad he diverted forces that instead could have pocketed several German divisions. Instead, they were allowed to escape. In the end he was totally upstaged.
Clark was a poor commander, and I have a very low opinion of him.
Normandie uberhaupt! Wie dumm von mir!
Felix Kersten had quite an influence on Himmler. I wondered if he might have had some role in the attempted trade of jews for trucks?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Felix_Kersten
Kersten also revealed that Himmler had a great admiration for Islam.
The article about the Italian campaign is still page 1, above the fold, and continued on page 2. That it starts on page 14 on this thread is due to the way I try to group related stories together when I rearrange them for posting. Still, we won't see the Italian campaign leading the news for a while. Something like 21 of the last 24 headlines have featured the new Italian offensive. That just ended.
Thanks again for this entire series. June 6 was indeed a golden day for the Allies.
The artists sketch of the landings on p.9 reminded me of the only artwork myself and most of the boys in my junior high school almost 60 years ago ever created.
Our drawings also featured tanks and dogfights and AA shells bursting in air. That’s what red pencils were for!
They’d have us all on drugs and in counselling in today’s Grade 7 classrooms...
Kudos again on the entire Series, particularly on this pivotal Day in history…
REICH ‘RUIN BROKERS’ BUSY
Thriving Trade Rises from the Wrecks Caused by Bombers
STOCKHOLM, June 5 - “Ruin brokers” has become a business in Germany. Many firms, particularly in Berlin and Hamburg, have been set up as buyers and dealers in ruins of all types caused by Allied bombers.
The following is a sample of display advertising in the newspapers by these firms:
“Any ruins for sale? We buy all types of ruins, however badly they are broken up and of whatever type, whenever the damage was done. We pay top prices. Speedy transactions.”
Many ruins are supposed to sell for substantial prices, particularly where ironwork and wrecked factory machinery are likely to be burred beneath them.
For what it is worth, ruins are still a business opportunity:
http://hitlernews.cloudworth.com/ww2-ruins-battlefields.php
Gotcha. It really was a big deal. My Dad, who was in Italy at the time, was always mildly annoyed at the thing... ;-)
Audie Murphy had a low opinion of Gen. Clark, too.
Nonsense! My money is still on Norway.
1. Remarkable from 2014 that the brother of a paratrooper has to go all the way to Times Square to find out if the invasion is really happening ("City Reacts...").
2. Love him or hate him (and IMHO he damaged the country irreparably in many ways) FDR had a gift for saying the right thing at the right time, as in his radio prayer (post 9).
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