Third mission: Frankfurt

(I'm not putting the daily summaries from the USAAF chronology on these posts. Only put it on the first one to give you an idea of what Daddy was in the midst of. If you want to read them, go here and scroll down to find the date you want.)

Today Sgt Glen Wallace tried out for the base softball team. According to the current issue of WAR WEARY, "Softball coach Lt John J Wojewodski is ready to build up a team of champs from the boys showing up for daily practice." And the base newspaper reported that T/Sgt Dave Colgan, who had been trying for home leave for a long time, was pleasantly surprised. He was going to the States for sure. His appointment to West Point came through. But for the flyboys it was Frankfurt's military establishments and airfields rather than its marshalling yards which constituted today's target. Bombardiers did well. Peder Larsen considered the raid well-planned as evidenced by orders to make a sharp turn to the right after "bombs away." As far as Lt Larsen was concerned, that pre-planned turn to the right thwarted every flak battery in the target area. -- Snetterton Falcons

Hut installations at Feldhausen made up our target on March 22 for the Group's 275th mission. Our 37 aircraft, under command of Capt. Gotthardt, found good weather to the target, but ground haze and smoke screen and the smoke of previous bombings made the objective difficult to pick up. There was moderate and accurate flak defending the place. The formation made a Gee-H approach and shifted to a visual run when the target came in sight. Results were reported as excellent. We lost the lead ship which was hit immediately after bombs away and started going down in flames. Neighboring aircraft reported there was a hole right through the cockpit. Two to three 'chutes were observed clearing the ship. Capt. Gotthardt, who had only recently been promoted (last Sunday) was highly regarded in the Group, as were other members of the crew. Capt. Ackerman took over the lead for the return to base. -- 381st BG Medical Detachment

This was another long haul down into southern Germany. We led the 3rd squadron again today. Our bombing was not very good. We saw Lake Constance, Switzerland- also Zurich and the Alps. It was really beautiful country down there. The best thing is the mission was flak free but we did see several ME 262s in the distance. P51s chased them though. On the way home we saw large smoke screens above Coblenz laid down by our armies. Heavy bombers of the 8th Air Force and the RAF again lent their crushing weight to the great tactical blitz on Nazi military and communications zones in the Ruhr. More than 1,300 Fortresses and Liberators of the 8th, with a cover of some 700 Mustangs, lashed out in excellent weather at nine Wehrmacht administration and supply centers ringing Essen in the Ruhr and continued to blast enemy airfields, striking four more near Frankfurt-on-Main and Stuttgart and one at Ahlhorn, near Bremen, which had been pummeled in Wednesday’s big blow. The specific targets for 8th heavies around Essen were at Bottrop, Gladbeck, Barminghotten, Dorsten, Westerhold, Mulheim, Hinsbeck, Hattingen and Geresheim. Ack-ack over these objectives was particularly heavy but over the four airfields in the Frankfurt and Stuttgart areas- Kitzengen, Giebelstadt, Rhein-Main and Schwabisch-Hall - there was only light opposition. -- Bombardier John Shirk, 467th BG

This mission would see one of the most regrettable and tragic mishaps which occurred in the closing days of the Group’s combat operations. A Squadron Commander and a Lead crew would be lost as the bombers returned to base, both of whom had long experience in the 392nd. The strike for this day was the jet airfield located on the high plateau just east of the city. At 0530 hours, (30) crews were briefed and all began launch at 0800 hours on schedule. Enroute and target weather were excellent making visual bombing successful. Of the (1366) 100 # bombs impacted in the target, (93) percent hit within 2000 feet of the MPI. There were no enemy fighters confronting the formation and flak was negligible. However, as the bombers coasted in and were letting down toward Wendling, an unfortunate accident occurred in the lead ship from the 579th. Captain Grettum’s crew flying lead with Major Barnes, Commander of the 576th, acting as Command Pilot and on his 44th mission of a second tour, had their ship set afire by flares which exploded on the flight deck of the bomber. About (12) miles east of base, a loaded flare gun jostled loose from the ceiling mounting, discharged, and apparently set off a box of pyrotechnic flares located just behind the pilot’s seat. Smoke and fire erupted immediately blinding the pilots and causing the bomber to go into a steep dive from about 2000 foot altitude. Four crewmembers managed to bail out safely, one of whom was Captain Good, the veteran bombardier of the famous Gotha raid. His old crew Navigator from that mission, Captain Swangren, was killed in the crash. Lieutenants Beder and Peters also managed to escape as well as Sergeant Munder. Captain Grettum’s body was found in the crash along with that of Major Barnes. It was believed that Captain Grettum had managed to egress out the side pilot’s window, but was struck by the bomber’s props. On this tragic note, the remaining force landed at base around 1600 hours. -- 392nd BG