May God Welcome him Home and comfort his family and friends.
I am sorry for your loss drivera462
Posted on 08/03/2003 11:12:06 AM PDT by NonValueAdded
[Posted in honor of the 60th anniversary of the great raid on the Ploesti oil fields]
The Combined Bomber Offensive (Operation Pointblank) evolved beginning with the entrance of the United States into World War II. The Army Air Forces (AAF) were committed to "destruction of selected vital elements of the German military and industrial machine through precision bombing in daylight." The Royal Air Force was to concentrate upon "mass air attacks of industrial areas at night, to break down morale" and thus limit German production.
When this division of work was firmly established at the Casablanca Conference in January 1943, the AAF did not have sufficient crews or aircraft for sustained strategic operations. By the summer of 1943 priority targets were worked out and some ambitious AAF raids scheduled. Priorities for the offensive were aircraft manufacturing plants, anti-friction bearings factories (on the theory that stopping key industries would have large effects on the Germany war effort), petroleum refineries, and other targets.
B-24s over Ploesti with bombs bursting over targetThe most inviting oil target was at Ploesti which was thought to produce a third of Germany's liquid fuel requirements. The Rumanian targets were at the limit of the range of American aircraft and could not be reached from England. The oil fields and refineries had been ineffectually attacked by the Russian Air Force and, in January 1942, by American bombers from the Middle East.
Planning for a major mission began in earnest when the Germans in Tunisian were close to defeat. Five groups of B-24 Liberators were assigned to the task, three of them borrowed from the Eighth Air Force in the United Kingdom. Under command of the Ninth Air Force, the groups practiced low-level formation flying and bombing at bases near Bengazi, Libya.
After dawn on 1 August 1943, 177 B-24s under the command of Brigadier General Uzal G. Ent, who flew with the lead group, the 376th Bombardment Group, the most experienced heavy bomber unit in the Mediterranean area approached Ploesti. The route was past Corfu Island and northeast over the mountains of Albania and Yugoslavia.
The formations, somewhat disorganized by the loss of the lead navigator, descended to 500 feet at Pitesti, 65 miles from the targets. Halfway to the initial point where the final turn was to be made into Ploesti, the 376th Group, followed by the 93rd Bombardment Group, made an erroneous turn southeast toward Bucharest. The other bomb groups, the 389th, 98th, and 44th, continued as briefed. When Ent discovered the error, both groups headed back toward Ploesti. The 376th was told to strike targets of opportunity, and the 93rd attacked the original targets from the opposite direction as briefed.
The return flight to Libya was disorganized and under heavy German fighter attack for much of the way. In all, 54 planes were lost, but the bombing destroyed up to 42 percent of Ploesti's cracking capacity. The AAF's 30 percent losses meant that a follow-up mission was not practical, and with no opposition, the Germans were able to repair the facilities rapidly. Five officers received the Medal of Honor for bravery on this mission.
Perhaps, you'll find your dad here.
My dad was a Seabee on Guadalcanal. And, like yours, he never spoke of his experiences there. We and the country were blessed to have such fathers.
Your dad must be tough as a boot. He must be one of the few surviving WW I veterans anywhere. Bless him.
My wife became involved in geneaology research several years ago. And, to her surprise, she discovered that one of her forebearers had been the last surviving veteran of the Revolutionary War.
John Barham (1764-1865).
Open letter to the family of Mike Sullivan, B-17 tail gunner 97th Bombardment Group, 15th Air Force, killed in action 23 June 1944 in air raid on Ploesti, Rumania.
Please contact me again in this forum for an urgent communication.
One of the other crewman (Thomas Lovett) passed away after bailing out from the crippled plane (Never a Dull Moment). The Serbian underground not only picked up the survivors, but also provided Lovett with a proper Christian burial among several hundred locals, Royal Yugoslav military and USAAC personnel. A YouTube video about the underground leader (Gen Mihailovich) has a picture of the funeral.
I have been priviledged to know in my lifetime, many older American men associated with the daylight precsion bombing of German military targets. It has taken decades to understand that they were the fortunate few who survived a noble effort to keep America clean,. as their rate of return was grim. They kept Americas war effort noble by their manifold deaths. I am proud to be an American once and for ever because of their unesessary sacrificees to rule in the dogs of war.
My Dad, Mallie Harper was with the 389BG 566 squandron. Stories state all members of the raid received at least the Silver Star, but I cannot find a record of that. Of course he never spoke of this raid, but he was at Benghazi at that time. Could you look in the book and see if his name is there or he may have missed this raid for some reason.
Thanks,
Steve
cpgl@bellsouth.net
According to my info, every man who flew the mission was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross.
I couldn’t find your father’s name in my (very informal) list of men of the 389th who flew the mission, but I salute him and the others for their almost superhuman bravery. They were all heroes.
Their is no official list of everyone on the mission.Dugan and Stewart pieced together and verified an extensive list for their book.I could not find a Harper on that list.
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