Navigator's Diary: 487th Bombardment Group, B17 by Norman K. Andrew
	Dick Giles, McDougall, and Remaklus finished 30 today. Dick said that for the first time he was really scared and wanted to turn out. We were in flak for 12 minutes. It was classified as intense, accurate, barrage type. Evasive action was no good - it was everywhere and not just a few puffs. After landing the boys said Big B was a milk run compared to it. The Leipzig area has 450 guns and I think they had had a chance at us. Load 10 500-lb GPs. My figures: 874 B-17s over target. 4,370,000 lbs of bombs. Our escort was 850 P-51s and P-38s. They tangled with the Luftwaffe at the I.P. at 12:30 - we were over the target. They hit the group behind us at the R.P at 1330. 19 E/A were shot down over the target - one P-51. We led the low squadron. What a day! Planes shot up - planes aborting - planes all over the deck coming home. Coming over the North Sea we saw a B-17 with no horizontal stabilizer. We had one small hole in our stabilizer. 11/9/44 Mission #11 Up at 2:00 for 3:00 pre-briefing. Target: a honey right behind the lines. Some forts holding up Gen. Patton. We were group deputy lead. For a while I thought we were going to lead. The primary was visual - secondary PFF. We couldn't see the primary until we were right over it - so we hit the secondary, the marshalling yards at Saarbrucken, Germany. We had flak in the high and low squadrons - one ship in the low caught on fire and blew up. Three chutes seen - 2 were on fire. 11/11/44 Mission #12 The CQ woke Bob and Chuck at 3:50 for target study. Then he woke Jack and me at 3:55 for 4:30 pre-briefing. Target: marshalling yard just south of Coblenz, Germany (Oberlaunstein). We flew deputy group lead until just before the IP. We then took over the lead for a Micro H bomb run. I called Whittnell just before the IP to see if he had it. He said yes, then, as we turned we slid into the Trier flak area. No damage. I got a Gee fix from the Ruhr chain at Bombs Away. We were right on course and 3-1/2 miles from the target. Load 11 500-lb GPs. Called at 4:30. T/O at 0840. Target: marshalling yard at Hamm, in Happy Valley. Had to do some fancy weaving to get in the bomber stream. They had 3 groups over Buncher #13 at the same time - stacked. We were leading the 487th. We had trouble all the way in over-running the group ahead. On the bomb run one lonesome B-17 nearly cut us out. Whitt got Chuck started at 70 deg. when Jack took off 10 deg. to the left. By the time we got back on the run all the check points had gone by. Chuck dropped on the indices and I got a Rheims Chain "gee" fix. 2-12 NM short of target on course. Estimated that we missed the MPI but hit the yards. Click to continue		11/26/44 Mission #13 Saw one plane down in flames at RP. The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Divisions used the same corridors coming out. Never saw so many planes in my life. The field socked in 15 minutes after we landed. 11/27/44 Mission #14 Was really surprised to be awakened at 4:45 am for 5:30 pre-briefing. It was a micro-H run on the marshalling yard at Bingen, Germany - on the Rhine. Looked like a milk run but there was quite a bit of battle damage from flak. Kramer was leading the group. They had their bombsight, electrical system, and oxygen shot out. Aborted at the target. We led home, but only got credit for a squadron lead. I was sure glad to get the lead - we were really skirting three flak areas. We are due to lead the low tomorrow if it's PFF. Saw two V-2s taking off for London - they were still within 10 deg. of vertical when they passed out of sight at at least 55 to 60,000 ft. Traveling from 500 to 800 mph. Navigator's station from B17 II 11/30/44 Mission #15 Rough! Target: Merseberg. We were flying deputy lead. Had a fighter escort of 26 groups. Estimates ranged from 850 to 1250 planes. We went in south of Coblenz and right through the Luftwaffe's back yard and out the front yard. Right over the IP (after they had over-shot) the lead told us to take over for the bomb run for a visual run. Then they held the lead for about 80 miles and we couldn't get in. Then - this hot (?) pilotage navigator we had didn't have a map to help Chuck. I grabbed one and gave it to him and he was just in Chuck's way. Chuck had to set up the AFCE. Also - the 100th Group were going in abreast of us about 1/2 mile right. The smoke screen was in full swing and the flak was everywhere. Chuck couldn't pick up the Leund refinery through it - so we bombed a refinery (?) vicinity of Zeist. After landing the Air Leader tried to say he called for a PFF run. What a mess! We lost Kursran - direct hit in #3 - flamer and blew up. The 100th Group lost 3 or 4. Go to Page 5 For more military history related articles see our Military History Index. For more on the coming B17 simulation from Microprose/Wayward design see our Air Combat Previews Index.
Copyright © 1997 - 2000 COMBATSIM.COM, INC. All Rights Reserved. Last Updated July 27th, 1999