Mike,
Your father and I have been friends for over 10 years. He was there for my wife and I when she was going through cancer. He is always in our hearts.
Like your father, I am a member of the "Devil Dogs". You can find us in AH on the Rooks side and on voice channel 171.
I would like to share a memo your father wrote. This is what we did, and we did it well.
Send by Earl:
Attached is the field order for Sat Night. C U there! (Notice is dated 1-24, and is the correct order)
ET37
Operations Officer
Field Order
7-28-12
8th Army Air Force
Bomb Groups assigned to mission
(Devil Dogs squad night mission reenactment)
34th wing @ Mendel Sham, 95th @ Horsham, 398th @ Nuthampostead, 453rd at Old Buckingham and the 489th at Hales Worth.
Total of 52 B-17G's with 12 500lb bombs
Royal Air Force units are #39 Squadron at Cromwell, #73 Squadron at Digby, #95th Squadron @ Sutton Ridge.
12 Avro Lancaster's MK III's, with 14 1,000lb bombs
Escort Fighter Squadrons of the 20th Tactical fighter wing, stationed at RAF Upper Heyford station, P-51D's. P-47N's, P-47M's of the 17th Fighter-Bomber wing and P-38's of the 44th Fighter-Bomber wing will escort the bombers, and then clean up town at target.
TARGET- SCHWEINFURT BALL BEARIN FACTORIES
During the time period of Feb 20th to the 25th 1944, the operations of the joint RAF and USAAF were so large, it became know as "big week". One of the many missions flown that week was called "Operation Argument", a joint bomber strike consisting of 266 bombers total, of which, 41 bombers and 11 fighters were lost to both services. Part of the joint strike force bombers also hit Regensburg, Germany on the same day. Our strike tonight only concerns the strike on the ball bearing factories at Schweinfurt, Germany.
Just prior to these strikes, General Carl Spaatz and Jimmie Doolittle had decided that the bombing accuracies were so bad from 30 to 32 thousand feet, they lowered the strike altitudes to 17 to 22,000 feet. Above 25,000 feet, the "Jet Stream", located generally over central Europe "blew" the bombs off target so bad, sometimes they would drop on one town and the bombs would hit in the adjoining town. Hence the decision to bomb from a lower altitude.
Luftwaffe flak gun defenses--Reich's division, heaviest south and southwest of Schweinfurt, totals a known 537 flak guns along our ingress route. There are 42 guns directly in the target area.
Air defenses of the Luftwaffe include 21st, 27th, 51st, 103rd, and the 141st, a total of 240 aircraft. The FW-190-8's of the 21st and 27th have proved to be the most dangerous, usually attacking with head on passes at the front of the bomber stream. They have a 37MM gun, along with 20MM cannon, so we will get part of the escort fighters out front to head off these types of attack. ME-110's and ME-410's of the 141st are also very dangerous as they have used rockets in our bomber formation with proximity fuses which explode within 100 feet of our bombers. These are "dumb" rockets and after fired, you can turn slightly one way or the other and the rocket will not touch you.
Pilots will draw standard equipment, parachute, .45 cal. pistol, first aid kits, oxygen masks, flak jackets and helmets, at your respective squadron supply rooms. You will also be issued 10,000 German Marks, in the event you have to bail out or make a forced landing in Germany. The free German underground forces are very active and should you encounter one of them, your pass word is "Strawberry" and their reply should "Ice Cream"
If, during RTB, you are unable to cross the channel without crashing into the sea, try to get to the French coast and 25 miles off shore there are 3 HMS frigates which will assist any crew which has to go into the sea.
Flare signals upon return are: Green, no assistance needed
Red & White--Have KIA on board
Red & Green--have wounded aboard
Red & Red-- Must crash land on runway.
(wait for 3 green flares before attempting landing)
Yellow, condition of landing gear unsure
Good Luck to all in Mission!!!!!!
Gard06
