April Snapshot Schedule.
Events begin at 9:30pm Eastern time in SEA II every Wednesday night.
All are welcome to attend. No registration, sign up or squad affiliation needed. Simply show up, read the Arena Message, choose a side and plane then get ready to fight!
Apr 02 14 68Jr
Eighth OverheadBefore the advent of the P-51B Mustang the American Eighth Air Force took the fight to the Germans, in daylight, largely unescorted in large "self-defended" armadas. Several hundred B-17 Flying Fortresses were carefully organized into boxes, then the boxes were stacked into a bomb group with the hope that they would be able to deter the German fighters. They took a lot of casualties, and did a lot of damage. Was it worth it? Time would tell, but they tried their utmost to hurt the enemy.
Apr 09 14 68Raptor/Mojo
Slug FestBy the summer of 1944 the Ninth Air Force had become a massive aerial sledgehammer made up of dozens of medium bomber and fighter-bomber groups that spent every good day making life miserable for the Wehrmacht. Most of the fighter-bomber groups were make up of the P-47. Targets included fuel and ammunition depots, bridges, motor transport, trains, bridges, airfields, and troop concentrations. Most of the work was low down and dirty with approaches at eight to twelve thousand feet followed by fast dives on the target and then a run for home. This Snapshot represents one of the thousands that may have taken place in the summer of 1944.
Apr 16 14 68Jr
First Strike"No bomb shall fall on German soil" was the arrogant claim made by Reich marshal Hermann Goering before the start of World War II. Only a couple of years later Goering said "If an enemy bomber ever appears over Berlin you can call me Meier". This took place on March 6, 1944 when the 8th Air force appeared over the German capital. The losses were high, but these daylight raids took their toll on German morale and disrupted the military machine of the 3rd Reich. This first encounter pitted the 8th's B-17's escorted by P-47's of the 56th Fighter Group against the Fw 190's of JG II. They met head on over 25,000 feet, the 190's tearing through the bomber formations and the Thunderbolts racing to aid their countrymen.
Apr 23 14 68Raptor/Mojo
Targets over LondonFrom the German stand point the Battle of Britain was fought in 3 stages. The 3rd stage was fought between August 8 and September 7, 1940. In this action the bombers returned to the task allocated to them by the first Luftwaffe Chief of Staff, General Wever, 'The enemy air force must be wiped out while still grounded'. Due to the limited range of the German escorts only one tenth of the isle was subject to attack, much of which was near or around London. The rest of the isle was allowed to build squadrons, train men, and ship men and equipment without interference to the war front near London.
Apr 30 14 Mojo/68Raptor
Yamamotos Despair To boost morale following Guadalcanal, Yamamoto decided to make an inspection tour throughout the South Pacific. On 14 April 1943, the US naval intelligence effort, code-named "Magic", intercepted and decrypted a message containing specific details regarding Yamamoto's tour, including arrival and departure times and locations, as well as the number and types of planes that would transport and accompany him on the journey. Yamamoto, the itinerary revealed, would be flying from Rabaul to Ballalae Airfield, on an island near Bougainville in the Solomon Islands, on the morning of 18 April. American pilots flying P-38 Lightenings from the 339th Fighter Squadron were tasked with shooting down Yamamotos aircraft and the aircraft carrying his staff. Launching an early morning the mission the Americans pilots flew 430 miles to the rendezvous point at wave top level.
