November 18, 1944 - 386th Bomb Group Mission Number 46.

Monday, November 29, 1943 - 386th Bomb Group Mission number 46:
Target, Airdrome located at Chievries, Belgium.

Briefing was underway at 0600 hours: IX Bomber Command Field Order Number 147, and 386th Bomb Group Field Order Number 48, directs the 322nd, and 386th Bomb Groups to attack the airdrome located at Chrievies, Belgium. Target number ZB50. Both Groups will supply thirty-six bombers plus four extras. Each aircraft will carry six 500 pound general purpose demolition bombs - each of which is fused for one-tenth second nose and one-one- hundredth second tail. RAF II Group will furnish Spitfire escort and support for both Bomb Groups. The fighter escort is made up of the following: One squadron of Spits close escort for the 386th. The 322nd and the 386th Groups will share two squadrons of escort cover, three squadrons of high cover, and two squadrons of top cover.

The 386th will rendezvous with the 322nd Bomb Group on Assemble Line, Bradwell to North Foreland at 11,000 feet. The 322nd will leave Bradwell at 0905 hours with the 322nd Group in the lead. Rendezvous with fighter escort will come about at position 51 Degrees 20 Minutes North, 02 Degrees 00 Minutes East at Zero Hour.

The route out: Base to Bradwell to North Foreland, to 51 Degrees 20 Minutes North, 02 Degrees 00 Minutes East to four miles northwest of Furnes, to four miles northeast of Courtrai, to Leuze (Initial Point) to target. You will bomb from 11,500 feet. Return route: Target turn left to four miles northeast of Courtrai (the rally point) to four miles northwest of Furnes, Cross enemy coast out at 10,500 feet, across channel to North Foreland, and back to base. Our emergency airdromes will be Manston and Gravesend.

Communications: VHF bombers to fighters on Channel B. Bomber call sign is CANON TWO - fighter call sign is Costa. Ground Sector call sign is AILSOM. Bomber to bomber will be, Group Command frequency. Weather forecast: Take off, eight-tenths to ten-tenths cirrus at 18,000 feet, no low or medium clouds - visibility four miles. Base to target: Eight-tenths cirrus over England decreasing to four-tenths to five-tenths over the channel, visibility six miles. Five-tenths to six-tenths over French Coast, breaking to nil twenty miles inland and visibility improving to eight miles over France.

The target will have four-tenths to five-tenths cirrus, no low or patchy medium clouds. The return will be similar to route out except six-tenths to eight-tenths cumulus over base with a cloud base of 1600 feet, and tops to 6,000 feet, with light rain and showers over Southeast England. There is the possibility of icing conditions at mid level. Two-tenths to three-tenths medium cloud at 14,000 feet. There should not be any icing conditions, however you could encounter frost conditions on your windshields during climb out; and again during let down upon return to base! After a time hack to synchronize watches the flight crews departed the briefing room, and headed out to their assigned aircraft, time was 0706 hours.

Major Hankey, the formation leader flying, “HONEY CHILE II” 131636 RU-B was into the air at 0800 hours. His high flight leader was Major Lockhart flying in his ship called, “WINNIE” 131617 RG-A. Low flight lead was Major White with, “YE OLDE CROCK” 131755 RU-F. Soon to follow in the take off procedure was Major Beaty heading up the second box of eighteen planes with his ship, “SON OF SATAN” 131613 YA-Y. His high flight leader was Captain Sands flying his regular plane known as, “MR FIVE BY FIVE” 131612 YA-Z. Major Harris was flying lead in the low flight with 131965 AN-T. Ship 131805 AN-D that was assigned to fly the number six position in the low flight, second box, piloted by Lieutenant Klimovich was unable to take off. That spot was filled by an extra ship,: DINAH MIGHT” 13111576 AN-Z flown by Lieutenant Scott. “BOMB BOOGIE” 131587 AN-W was to be piloted by Lieutenant Fansler, he also failed to make take off. Lieutenant Porter scheduled to fly, “LADY FROM HADES” 131685 YA-J was another pilot that did not make take off.

The formation of thirty-six planes plus one spare left over base at an altitude of 12,000 feet at 0850 hours on a course of 90 degrees. The Group flew over Colchester heading in the direction of Ipswitch, then took up a heading of 190 degrees true for Bradwell, where they arrived five miles east of Bradwell at 0908 hours. From there a heading of 160 degrees true was followed to North Foreland where rendezvous was made with the 322nd Group, time was 0915 hours. The seventy-two-plane formation plus spares headed out over the North Sea. Five miles off the English Coast, Lieutenant Kingsley’s plane called, “SPAM BURGER” 131970 YA-F developed a bad case of windshield icing, the crew took the ship home.

During bomber test firing Lieutenant Burgess flying, “PANSY YOKUM” 131638 RG-N was to learn that the tail guns in his plane were inoperative--he aborted and returned to base. His position had been number three in the lead flight of the first box. Two other pilots aborted due to icing of their windshields. Number six man Lieutenant Higgins was flying a plane named, “MISS CARIAGE” 134961 RG-M. He had two other problems as well. There was a fuel-leaking situation with a fuel booster pump - and it seems his navigator had committed a cardinal sin - he had forgotten to take his parachute harness! Also the number five-position plane flown by Lieutenant McNutt was 131945 RG-W. Both pilots had been flying in the high flight in the first box of eighteen. The only spare ship left was, “THE BAD PENNY 2nd” 131832 RU-U flown by Lieutenant Mayfield, he was forced to return to base because of icing on his windshield.

The rendezvous point had been reached and the formation joined up with the RAF fighter escort. Lieutenant Young was flying, “BLAZING HEAT” 131585 AN-J when its left engine failed approximately three-fourths of the way across the channel. The pilot was forced to return to base on single engine. The aerial armada was now on a heading of 124 degrees true, two more planes were compelled to return to base prior to making enemy landfall. Lieutenant Scott turned, “DINAH MIGHT” homeward because his left main wing tank gage indicated only fifty gallons of fuel left. His number six spot in the low flight in the second box was filled in by Lieutenant Callahan flying a ship named, “4 F” 131771 RU-R.

One other plane failed to cross the enemy coast - that was flown by Lieutenant R. Hoffman in, “BUZZ-N-BITCH II” 131953 RG-T - its windshield had become coated with ice. He took the plane and its bomb load back to base where he landed safely. Then Lieutenant Aberson flying, “HELL’S-A-POPPIN II” 131987 YA-G also returned because of ice forming on his windshield.

Enemy landfall was made four miles northeast of Courtrai, Belgium at 0927 hours. A single balloon flying between 6,000 and 8,000 feet was observed five miles southeast of Furnes, Belgium, as the formation entered enemy territory. Soon after entry, the Spitfire escort was observed to engage enemy fighter planes. The RAF shot down three German planes, and damaged two others during the aerial dogfight! However three Spitfires were destroyed in the air action! The bomber formation had taken up a course of 152 degrees heading for the I.P. (Initial Point) located at Leuze, Belgium.

Enemy aircraft were observed in the distance a few minutes before they would attack. Suddenly they came boring into the formation with twenty-five to thirty fighters. The enemy aircraft, the large majority being FW-190’s and the balance were Me-109’s. A black FW-190 headed in on, “THE DEACON” 131637 RG-B piloted by 552nd Captain Aultman from 5 o’clock level, and no firing was seen coming from the enemy ship. Altman’s waist gunner fired 25 ineffective rounds at 500 yards as the enemy slipped under the Marauder. Two FW-190’s approached the, “THE DEACON” from 4 o’clock high, but apparently did not fire. A FW-190 with white cowling and some yellow on its tail along with black Maltese Crosses on its wings--it approached the bomber from 11 o’clock very low. It passed under the Marauder making a “Split S” maneuver, and then attacked from 6 o’clock low. Not a single Spitfire escort plane was to be seen anywhere!

A burst of fire from the enemy aircraft did not cause damage to the bomber. The waist gunner and tail gunner opened fire, the latter Staff Sergeant P.P. Kaczor scored hits in the engine. The fighter went down spinning and pouring out black smoke until it was lost from view near the ground! The reason for concentration of enemy attacks on, “THE DEACON” was due to the fact that the number five and six ships in the high flight had aborted the mission. That left the number four plane hanging out on the end of the high flight alone! The waist gunner observed a Me-109 flying a couple thousand feet below, he fired a few rounds at the German pilot, just to let him know he was being watched! Two FW-190’s approached, “THE DEACON” from 4 o’clock high, but apparently did not fire. The top turret gunner fired five to six bursts at 300 yards, the enemy aircraft passed down under the tail at 9 o’clock low.

The formation made a left turn at the I.P. to begin the bomb run on a heading of 110 degrees. A heavy type flak battery was now engaging the bomber formation and scoring hits. The air speed was 190 m.p.h. with bomb bay doors open at 11,500 feet. One aircraft salvoed six bombs in safe condition when the bombardier accidentally pushed the control handle through the open position setting, and into salvoe! That plane was named, “SHADRACK” 131586 RG-S, piloted by Lieutenant Romney Spencer.

As the formation was nearing the target a dark gray Me-109 approached the high flight in the first box from 4 o’clock high, then flew a parallel course out about 400 yards. The enemy pilot waggled his wings, and kept changing height, all the while edging in on a Marauder named, “SLIGHTLY DANGEROUS” 134941 RG-D--was being flown by Lieutenant Jean Blackwelder. His top turret and waist gunners fired at the enemy ship. Staff Sergeant A.E. DiBianca flying in the waist position of, “THE DEACON” joined in the battle, he zeroed in on the Me-109 and fired several bursts - the enemy plane burst into flames, entered a spin until it crashed into the ground and exploded! It was “bombs away” at 0942 hours as the enemy fighters closely pressed their attacks. A very large explosion was observed and photographed in the northwest corner of the target airdrome. A Staff Sergeant Air combat photographer; by the name of William F. Scanlan was flying in ship 131827 AN-G with pilot Lieutenant Adams in number three position, low flight, second box.

Just after bombs were dropped, a FW-190 with a greenish belly along with dark brown and green topside attacked ship 131965 AN-T flown by Major Harris as he was flying lead in the low flight in the second box. The enemy came out of the sun from 2 o’clock high. Top turret gunner Staff Sergeant John Lebanik fired at a range of 300 yards scoring hits in the wing and cowling - at which time the enemy plane dove down and away behind the bomber. Another FW-190 with the same paint scheme attacked the Harris ship from 6 o’clock low and broke away up and to the right, making its attack directly in reverse of attack by the previous FW-190. The Major’s tail gunner, Staff Sergeant Hugh D. Laurens fired 50 rounds at 200 yards and observed his tracers bouncing off the belly of the enemy plane.

In the target area, an enemy plane flew under, “LITLJO” 131622 RU-D flown by Lieutenant Hillis, number three position of the low flight in the first box. The enemy ship flew toward 1 o’clock receiving some 200 ineffective rounds of fire from the tail gunner who lost sight of it as it passed underneath. Just after leaving the target, three FW-190’s again approached, “THE DEACON” singly from 6 o’clock low. No fire from any of the enemy planes was observed. The waist gunner fired a number of rounds at all three of the enemy, and may have hit one of them - all broke away to the right, and under control.

Yet another attack on, “THE DEACON”, the German pilot came in from 1 o’clock low, waist gunner Staff Sergeant S.H. Light fired 75 to 100 rounds from 600 yards down to 300 yards obtaining hit in the center fuselage, at which time the enemy dove away. A plane named, “SEXSATION” 131707 AN-R being flown by Captain LaFramboise, number four in the low flight, second box, which had been hit by flak, was straggling some 600 yards behind his normal position. Both of his wingmen, number five and six had returned early due to problems with their ships.

That made Captain LaFramboise extremely vulnerable because he had nobody covering him from either side. Now six FW-190’s lined up abreast, below and behind this Marauder taking turns attacking from 6 o’clock below. Fire from those enemy ships was 20mm canon and machine guns. The first enemy plane with silver belly, brownish camouflage, and yellow stripes along the cowling attacked by slow rolling - and receiving approximately 100 rounds of 50 caliber fire from the tail gunner, Staff Sergeant William Norris. He observed strikes between the engine cowling and cockpit. The ship burst into flames and headed straight for the ground where it crashed and burned!

A FW-190 was seen sitting out to the left and below the Marauder; it turned in to attack from 7 o’clock below. That fighter plane knocked out the left engine of the Marauder. Staff Sergeant Norris fired 200 rounds and hit the enemy aircraft in the engine and wing, then the plane turned to the right, at which point the FW-190 disintegrated in the air!

Six more enemy aircraft most if not all FW-190’s, some yellow, some silver with pale green bellies, queued up behind the low flight. They made their attacks singly from 7 o’clock at a 20-degree angle, then breaking away to the left and down. Repeated attacks were made, probably eighteen to twenty of them, so they can not be clearly defined or set apart. The bomb rack mechanism in ship 134821 AN-F was shot full of holes during these attacks. The pilot was Lieutenant Stanley R. Lovell. The tail gunner and waist gunner from that ship and the tail gunner from Major Harris’s plane hit one of enemy ships. Part of its wing was shot off which caused it to go into a dive smoking heavily until it crashed into ground.

The formation made a left turn off the target to a heading of 310 degrees en route to the rally point - however this maneuver carried them to the right of their prescribed course! The sun was now at the rear of the formation. A flak fragment pierced the nose section of, “SON-OF-SATAN” striking the helmet of Lieutenant William Leirevaag. It was the standard GI steel helmet with cutouts on each side to facilitate the use of headphones. The flak made a deep cut in the helmet and tore up the headphones, leaving the bombardier with a cut on his head. Navigator Lieutenant Edward O’Neill gave him first aid, and then bandaged the wound. Lieutenant Leirevaag insisted that he was all right, so O’Neill returned to the navigator’s compartment.

Seconds later two enemy planes were seen off to the left and slightly ahead. The two yellow rudder Me-109’s were flying 500 yards off the left wing of, “SON-OF-SATAN” flown by Major Sherman Beaty; who was now out of formation, and slowly losing altitude while flying on single engine-- due to flak damage which occurred during the bomb run. He had been leading the second box. The two Me-109’s with yellow rudders pulled ahead, and then turned in at 12 o’clock low - but did not attack. Lieutenant William Leirevaag in the nose position fired a long burst at 500 yards and obtained hits. The first enemy plane caught on fire and was seen to crash into the ground. The second enemy plane went into a dive emitting smoke as it broke down and away at 2 o’clock low.

Four FW-190’s with light green bellies attacked Lieutenant Blackburn’s ship, “HELL’S BELLE” 131623 YA-T from 6 o’clock low, but no damage to the Marauder as his tail and waist gunners commenced firing. No definite hits were observed when the enemy aircraft peeled down to the left. Another FW-190 flew underneath the bomber from 3 to 9 o’clock - it received ten rounds from the waist gunner at 600 yards, but no damage was in evidence. A FW-190 with light gray under surfaces and almost black upper surfaces approached, “YE OLDE CROCK” from 11 o’clock low, the enemy plane passed under the Marauder then turned sharply to the right, and again passed underneath, breaking away toward 2 o’clock low without firing a shot.

The nose gunner and top turret gunner in, “HONEY CHILE III” 131812 RU-J was being Piloted by Lieutenant Robert Spencer - both his gunners fired at the intruder. Tech Sergeant E.R. Howard flying in, YE OLDE CROCK” also joined in the melee scoring hits on the enemy plane, which was smoking as it flew away. A gray FW-190 with a silver belly attacked, “LITLJO” from 4 o’clock low, but its bursts were wide of the bomber. The waist gunner opened fire as well as waist gunner flying with Lieutenant Petit in, “BAR FLY” 131877 RU-V. Petit’s gunner, Tech Sergeant C.R. Ruth scored hits in the engine, it headed straight down. An unidentified enemy plane flew under a ship called, “LITLJO” toward 1 o’clock receiving 200 ineffective rounds of fire from the tail gunner who lost sight of it as the enemy passed beneath his plane.

A FW-190 headed in on Major White’s ship from 5 o’clock low, but did not fire at, “YE OLDE CROCK” as it was flying in low flight lead position in the first box. The Major’s tail gunner fired 40 to fifty rounds at the exposed armor plated belly of the enemy fighter plane, as it broke away toward 7 o’clock low. A slate gray FW-190 approached the low flight of the first box from 5 o’clock low. Staff Sergeant J.E. Laboranti tail gunner, flying with Lieutenant Robert McCallum in ship, “?” 131635 RU-H, and waist gunner Staff Sergeant A.F. Tomassi, ship number six, “CLOUD HOPPER 2nd “ 1311763 RU-O. The pilot was Lieutenant Roe; the enemy flier opened fire, as the gunners made hits on his FW-190. The engine of the German plane began to smoke, as it broke away toward 7 o’clock. The left wing seen to fold up, and then the canopy came off. The enemy ship spun down, and was observed to crash on the ground.

Closely following astern, a FW-190 came in from 6 o’clock; no fire coming from it was reported. The tail gunner in ship five, “?” fired 40 rounds at 200 yards, no hits were obtained, and the enemy banked away sharply to the left. Two additional FW-190’s approached ship number five from 5 o’clock slightly below in line astern, and broke away to the left, first at 200 yards, and the second at 300 yards. The tail gunner fired at both, and the turret gunner fired at the second ship, but no hits were scored. Four more FW-190’s approached, “WINNIE” 131617 RG-A flown by Major Charles Lockhart. They came in from 6 o’clock level but apparently did not open fire. One gunner fired at two of them, and probably scored hits on the enemy planes, as two dove away to the right and the other two broke off to the left. A minute or so later two FW-190’s were observed maneuvering at 600 yards from 4 o’clock low, Tail gunner Staff Sergeant Norris fired 25 rounds at them; no hits were noted as the enemy planes broke away from the attack.

The Marauders had cleared the target area, as four enemy aircraft variously described as FW-190’s and Me-109’s attacked the lead flight in the first box from 5 o’clock position approximately level. No bombers were damaged from that attack, the German fighter plane frenzy continued - three of the enemy fighters passed to the right of the lead flight, and received fire from the waist gunners of ships, “HONEY CHILE II” flown by Major Hankey. The other B-26 named, “BLACK MAGIC” 131629 RG-R was piloted by one Lieutenant Gerald Wendt. “HONEY CHILE II” was hit in the fuselage near the tail plane area. The fourth enemy ship passed directly behind and under the flight of bombers, and then broke away to the left. It was fired upon by the waist gunners of that particular flight. Hits were obtained in the nose and cockpit of the enemy plane, which went into a wobbly dive, burst into flames, and was seen to crash into the ground. Tail gunner Staff Sergeant Harry Dickerson managed to damage one of the FW-190’s. The fourth FW-190 was destroyed by the efforts of Staff Sergeants: N.H. Drury, T.B. Henry, and J.P. Pakulski.

Five minutes beyond the target area a dark colored FW-190 fighter was ineffective with an attack on, “YANKEE DOOLES DANDY” 134947 YA-D. Lieutenant Robert S. Morr was flying the Marauder. The enemy ship came down from 3 o’clock, and then turned away behind the bomber. The waist gunner fired some 25 rounds which struck the German plane near the cockpit area. The waist gunner flying in a plane called, “STAR DUST” 134637 YA-N being flown by Lieutenant J.E. Miller; also fired at that plane. Both gunners ceased firing as they observed a RAF Spitfire bore in on the German. A withering blast of 20mm canon fire shook the FW-190, and it fell to earth in a big crumpled smoldering mass of wreckage! That was the only friendly fighter the bomber crews saw since they first crossed into enemy territory!

On the return route over Courtrai, three FW-190’s encountered a Marauder known as, “LITLJO”, in quick succession. The first with light green camouflage was firing off from the right and a little below, in the direction of 6 to 12 o’clock. The waist gunner, Staff Sergeant G.D. Bergeron fired 50 to 60 rounds at 500 yards scoring hits in the engine of the enemy aircraft, which spiraled down in smoke with its engine on fire, which probably destroyed the plane. The second enemy plane came in from 5 o’clock a little high, firing ineffectively from 500 yards down to 300 yards. At the same time the waist gunner got off 60 rounds, tracers were seen going into the engine of the enemy plane; it dove away under the Marauder toward 10 o’clock smoking. The third FW-190 was flying below the bomber in the direction 6 to 8 o’clock, and was fired upon by the waist gunner who expended 60 to 70 rounds at 600 yards. He obtained hits in the fuselage behind its engine and cockpit area. The enemy ship spiraled down trailing smoke.

A FW-190 approached a ship named “4F”-- an extra ship that filled in number six spot in the low flight, of the second box. Its pilot was Lieutenant Duane Callahan. A FW-190 approached his plane from 7 o’clock low, but apparently did not make an attack. The tail gunner and waist gunner fired at the enemy, but no hits were observed. The German plane broke away to the left at 600 yards.

The formation was in the process of clearing the enemy coast on the way home. To the rear some Marauders could be seen struggling to make it across the channel. Major Beaty was flying on single engine heading for the emergency landing strip at Manston. Likewise for Captain LaFramboise flying on single engine, his crew was throwing out everything they could pull loose to lighten the ship! Lieutenants Morr and Flight Officer Bolling landed their planes at the 322nd Airfield located at Great Saling, England. 553rd Squadron Captain LaFramboise had lost all of his hydraulic system due to battle damage, and had to belly in his plane at Manston.

The formation reached Great Dunmow air base and began the landing sequence. Soon trucks and a few Jeeps were picking up flight crewmembers out on the hard stands and delivering them to the interrogation room for debriefing process. Some crews reported seeing a B-26 at 0943 hours - just after the bombing run with its left engine on fire. Was at 6,000 feet and losing altitude. When last seen it was four miles northeast of Furnes en route home-- at an estimated altitude of 1,000 feet. It appeared that the engine fire had been extinguished. Another report stated the enemy aircraft, which followed the Group’s formation to the coast, were seen to land at Coxyde Airdrome. Difficulties experienced during the bomb run; Plexiglas nose frosted, and upon removing frost - it would immediately reappear. The length of the bomb run was 25 seconds. Seventeen aircraft aborted due to windshield icing and or technical failures, including one that aircraft failed to get into formation. Upon return, “SON-OF-SATAN” 131613 YA-Y ran off the pavement into the mud while attempting to taxi with a dead engine. The engineer in “Spam Burger” 131970 YA-F mashed his fingers somehow in the top turret mechanism. A plane with the name of “HELL’S-A-POPPIN” 131614 YA-X had its right engine surge to 2700 r.p.m because of a faulty propeller governor.

“HOT PISTOL” 131633 RG-P did not make take off due to back play in the impeller section, which caused loss of power in the right engine. One ship called, “SLIGHTLY DANGEROUS” 134941 RG-D upon return had its nose wheel strut collapse when a crack occurred in the strut. Only twenty-four of our planes were able to bomb the target, with results rated only fair with 138 bombs dropped. One ship returned its bombs because the bomb doors were opened too late!

The interrogation room became a noisy place as a multitude of gunners began reporting the 55 enemy encounters. It seemed everybody was trying to talk at the same time, while making hand gestures to describe how the Jerry pilot’s fighter planes maneuvered for their attacks. The S-2 Officers had their work cut out for themselves? They asked questions like: how many enemy ships attacked, were the attacks made singly or in multiple fashion? How were the planes painted? That would be an aid in determining the locations where they might have been based.

At what point in the mission were you attacked. Was mission planning antiquate, and was the weather forecast accurate? Was the bombing successful? Then the tough part came, making enemy fighter attack diagrams to determine the tactics used by the German fliers, and which gunners were in the best position to shoot down the attacking planes. Usually a three-man air combat board would determine that. They would decide which of the combatants should receive credit and to what degree. The following list shows the board’s findings.

The 386th Bomb Group gunners made a very good accounting for themselves. They expended a total of 9,213 rounds of 50 Caliber ammunition with the following results. Seven of the enemy aircraft were destroyed, three probably destroyed, and five damaged. Individual credit was established as follows:

Staff Sergeant William Norris destroyed two FW-190’s.
Staff Sergeants J.E. Laboranti and A.E. Tomassi destroyed one FW-190.
Staff Sergeants N.H. Drury, T.B. Henry and J.P. Pukulski destroyed one FW-190.
Tech Sergeant John E. Good, Staff Sergeants D.J. Adams, and Hugh Laurens destroyed one unidentified enemy type plane.
Lieutenant W.L. Leirevaag, one Me-109 destroyed.
Staff Sergeant G.D. Bibianca, one Me-109 destroyed.
Staff Sergeant G.D. Bergeron, one FW-190 probably destroyed, and one FW-190 damaged.
Tech Sergeant C.R. Ruth, one FW-190 probably destroyed.
Staff Sergeant P.P. Kaczor, one FW-190 probably destroyed.
Staff Sergeant Harry Dickerson, one FW-190 damaged.
Staff Sergeant S.H. Light, one FW-190 damaged.
Tech Sergeant E.R. Howard, one FW-190 damaged.
Tech Sergeant John LeBanik, one FW-190 damaged.

The 386th had ten Marauders with battle damage. Three of them made crash landings, but no serious injuries to the crewmembers as a result. A small number of crewmen were wounded by flak, to what extent is not known. A pilot and his tail gunner were awarded The Silver Star Medal, which is the third highest award for heroism in combat. Their citations can be found at the end of this narrative.

While attacks were made on both boxes, the low flight in the second box sustained the greatest amount of them. The enemy planes came in flights of three and four, peeling down below the bombers, then pulling up under the tails of our aircraft between 5 and 8 o’clock position at approximately 20 degrees elevation. The German pilots also carried out single attacks. The total number of enemy fighters attacking the 386th Group was estimated to be somewhere between twenty-five and thirty. Today the Martin B-26 Marauder proved its sturdiness once again - bringing all of its flight crews safely back to England, and no losses over enemy territory! It delivered much more punishment to the German Air Force, than they could give to us!

Award Of The Silver Star Medal
Irving T. La Framboise, Captain 553rd Bombardment Squadron - for distinguished and meritorious service while participating in aerial flight against the enemy on November 29, 1943. Shortly before the B-26 type aircraft, which Captain La Framboise was, piloting in an attack upon enemy installations in occupied Europe reached the target area. It was subjected to heavy anti-aircraft fire, which badly crippled the ship, destroying the hydraulic system, damaging the right engine, and causing the aircraft to fall out of formation. It was immediately attacked by enemy fighter aircraft, which shattered the rudder, wounding the waist gunner, and causing the plane to go into several uncontrollable dives. Showing unusual dexterity and flying skill, Captain La Framboise succeeded in righting the aircraft, and despite further damage, which entailed the loss of the left engine, destruction of compass and other instruments. He was successful in bringing the aircraft back over the channel, jettisoning unnecessary equipment, and crash landing the plane with the landing gear jammed and the bomb bay doors still open. By his heroic action in bringing back to base an aircraft so badly damaged as to have warranted abandoning it, Captain La Framboise has brought great credit to both himself and to the armed forces.

Award Of The Silver Star Medal
William H. Norris, Staff Sergeant, 553rd Bombardment Squadron - for gallantry in action while participating in aerial operations against the enemy on November 29, 1943. During the bombing run over an objective in enemy occupied Europe, the B-26 type aircraft in which Staff Sergeant Norris was serving as the tail gunner was struck by a heavy concentration of flak, which destroyed the hydraulic system, and one tail gun; and crippled the right engine. Immediately afterwards the plane was attacked by six enemy fighter aircraft, which shattered the top turret, disabled the rudder, and incapacitated the waist gunner. With the top turret gunner firing blind through lack of visibility and the waist guns unmanned, Staff Sergeant Norris firing his remaining gun, shot down one fighter that was attacking the crippled aircraft from the rear. As the aircraft with rudder damaged lurched downward Staff Sergeant Norris was violently thrown into the waist of the plane, where seizing a gun he warded off two fighters maneuvering for position. Then returning to his tail gun, he successfully shot down another enemy fighter, and alternately firing the tail gun and waist guns, he kept the remaining aircraft out of effective range until fighter cover was reached. By his almost single-handed defense of the airplane, Staff Sergeant Norris was directly responsible for the safe return of the aircraft and crew. His heroic action and gallant devotion to duty reflect the highest credit upon himself and the armed forces.

Chester P. Klier
Historian, 386th Bomb Group