Posted on 01/21/2007 6:11:53 PM PST by snippy_about_it
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are acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated.
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On 6, November 1944 the Germans were holding the high ridges in the Northern Apennine mountains they called THE GOTHIC LINE. This defense line ran through the mountain ranges that reached, almost unbroken, from La Spezia on the north west coast of Italy to the City of Rimini on the Adriactic. Near the center and behind the German lines was the important transportation center of Bologna. Rail lines bringing war supplies from Germany, were for the most part routed through the Brenner Pass. Other rail lines from Austria were further east and led south into Venice and then into Bologna. These were the two main transportation lines that fueled the German machines in Italy. It was estimated that 24,000 tons of supplies was flowing to the German troops each day. That was five times the minimum daily requirements needed to support the German troops that were locked in a winter stalemate with our Allied forces. On the 6th. of November 1944, Operation BINGO was put into effect. It's objective was to stop the flow of German goods coming to the fighting front by closing off the Brenner Pass. The four B-25 bomb groups belonging to the 57th. Bomb Wing were to carry the bulk of the load. Fighter bombers of the 12th. Air Force's Tactical Air Command and the Desert Air Force (British) would assist. Some help would come from B-17's and B-24's of the 15th. Air Force. Bombs Away. A load of white phosphorous bombs heading down toward the gun emplacements protecting the the Orr Bridge at Brenner Pass. Photo courtesy of Dave Mershon, 487th. It was estimated that if electrical power could be denied the electrical driven locomotives that were used on the steeper grades, it would force the Germans to use more inefficient steam locomotives that would require part of the transportation effort to supply coal for these trains and also pull locomotives and rolling stock from their present activities. If this could be accomplished, it was estimated that it could reduce the carrying capacity in the Brenner Pass to around 10,000 tons a day. On 6 November, the B-25's struck targets in the Brenner; the electrical transformer stations between San Ambrogio - hit by the 310th., through Ala - hit by the 321st., and Trento - hit by the 340th. The targets were all hit and destroyed or damaged to the extent that electrical power was denied to trains as far north as Balzano. The 319th., newly changed from B-26's to B-25's, hit railroad bridges in the lower end of Brenner. The defense of the pass fell to the 2nd. Fighter Group of the Italian Facist Republic Air Force. These were Italian pilots flying Me-109's with German markings. With only about 50 planes these would not be the most effective deterrent. The primary defense fell to the German 5th. and 127th. Flak Regiments that manned the 366 heavy, anti-aircraft guns that were stationed from Verona, in the south, to Innsbruk, in the north. By the end of that day more heavy guns moved in around Ala and Rovereto. In addition to the German gunners there were still Italians fighting along with the Germans. However the batteries were manned independently by either Germans or the Italians. The Italian gunners used an Italian cannon coupled with the German Radar. 319th Bomb Group The German's main defensive weapon was the 8.8cm. Fliegerabwehrkanone, shortened to Flak. The 88 fired a 9.24KG (20.34 pound) shell to over 49,000 feet. It was coupled with the KG 40 gun director and the 41D gun laying radar. The gun director was a mechanical calculator with a stereoscopic height finder incorporated, capable of predicting a rectilinear or curvilinear course. The radar was capable of furnishing present azimuth, angular height and radar range to the gun director. Usually the gun batteries used radar tracking for range and optical tracking for direction. In cases where clouds or smoke obscured the bomb formations, radar controlled or barrage firing was used although it was not considered as effective as visual sighting. Other guns were used also. The Italians made 90mm cannon, with a range of 26,000 feet and their 102mm cannon that reached to 40,000 feet were used to guard the Brenner Pass targets. While the larger guns were require to reach high flying B-17's and B-24's, lighter guns such the German and Italian 37mm cannon would reach up to 15,000 feet and the Italian 75mm ranged to 27,000 feet, were all effective against our B-25 Bombers who rarely flew above 13,000 feet. This meant any gun from a 37mm up could reach the medium bombers altitude. From the reports of the combat crews - they all did. As the attacks increase on the Brenner Pass, targets of rail and road bridges, tracks and fills, the amount of flak guns increased. Batteries were added as far north as Bressanone. On the 11th. of November a flight of B-25's had 18 aircraft holed and one crash due to flak damage. Of the 16 attacks made during November, 11 had drawn flak. Of 300 sorties 20 B-25's were holed and one B-25 crashed. In December 69 more guns were moved into the Brenner Pass by the Germans, making a total of 435. Anti-flak operations became standard practice by the 57th. Fighter bombers dropping general purpose bombs and the bombers dropping 20 pound fragmentation bombs and twisted pieces of tin foil called Chaff or Window (to confuse the radar) were tried. Returning from a mission. 7T, 7Z and other aircraft of the 487th peeling off to land. August 1944 Alesan, Corsican Photo courtesy of Dave Komigsberg, 487th. At the end of December the 319th. Bomb Group flew it's last mission, over Italy, and returned to the U.S. in January of 1945. This left the 310th., the 321st., and the 340th. Groups the only medium bombers in the theater.
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I will be doing this next week.
Thanks again!!
Wow, way cool PE and family!!
I'm jealous!!
Tomorrow:
The Alamo!
More pictures we took coming soon.
Egads, PE we are having a blizzard and you were wandering around the Alamo!
Love the picture.
Cool.
Dear snippy_about_it,my late MOTHER(Doreen Moran Riddle)worked at North American Aviation during 1941-42(Los Angeles).Her job was the "main-jig"on the B-25(bombay-doors).She was very proud that NONE of her work was rejected!!Glad to be back!!!I recently moved to Vermont and had to have a Hughes Net satellite installed.
Oh my. I haven't been able to scrape up the bucks for monthly satellite so we're on DIAL UP, it really, really is awful. We aren't on much because it's just too darn slow!!!!
I know you're proud of the work your mother did. I'll send a prayer up thanking her.
Glad to see you back.
I just noticed your tagline. Oh no PE, don't drink the Kool-Aid!!!!
Too late. I'm an anti-Rudy-bot.
oh, that kool-aid. My dial up is too slow to get out much these days.
Go ahead then, drink away.
I'm waiting for a candidate I can feel good about voting for to come along.
Dear snippy_about_it,ThankYou,and GOD BLESS YOU!Glad to be back!!I have needed eyesight assistance for all of my life.My eye-doctor(since I was 19-months)was a man named John Gilmore.As we grew to know one another(and I expressed my interest in WWII history),he revealed to me that he had served in General Kenny's 5th Air Force,and had been co-pilot in a"Super-Strafer"B-25.He told me all about his exploits in"skip-bombing"Japanese transports,"para-fragging"etc.He is gone...........
Biitygirl just came to me saying her book is broken. (it has a kitty chewed corner)
She says to me, "daddy fix it. With a hammer."
LOL and she told you which tool to use. What a girl.
Daddy can fix everything!
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