Posted on 08/27/2014 4:15:31 AM PDT by Homer_J_Simpson
The News of the Week in Review
The Battle of France: An Allied Triumph (map) – 13
Fifteen News Questions – 14
Hope Springs Eternal (cartoon) – 15
Germany Reduced to Strategy of Desperation (Baldwin) – 16-17
“The Wild West Front” (cartoon) – 17
‘Superforts’ Put Japan in Line for Reich Fate (Shalett) – 18-19
Nazis Keep Repeating Claims for V-2 Weapon (Axelsson) – 19
Reassurance (cartoon) – 20
“First Aid” (cartoon) – 20
Security Plan Poses a Basic U.S. Decision (by James B. Reston) – 21-22
Answers to Fifteen News Questions – 22
http://www.onwar.com/chrono/1944/aug44/27aug44.htm#
RAF bombing in daylight
Sunday, August 27, 1944 www.onwar.com
Over Germany... RAF Bomber Command raids the oil plant at Homberg-Meerbeck in its first daylight attack with heavy bombers since the early months of the war.
On the Western Front... British 21st Army Group and US 12th Army Group continue to advance beyond the Seine River. The US 3rd Army, on the right wing of the army groups, captures Chateau Thierry on the Marne River as well as reaching the Seine River at Troyes, farther inland.
On the Eastern Front... Soviet forces capture Focsani and Galati, with most of their respective garrisons. The advance continues toward Bucharest and Ploesti.
In Washington... At Dumbarton Oaks, senior Allied representatives meet to discuss postwar security.
http://www.etherit.co.uk/month/thismonth/27.htm
August 27th, 1944 (SUNDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: Escort carrier HMS Nabob made port under her own power. Declared a constructive total loss.
The US Eighth Air Force in England flies two major missions against Berlin and strategic targets in northern and central Germany; 3 bombers and 10 fighters are lost:
- Mission 583: 426 B-17s are dispatched but encounter very high clouds over Denmark and northern Germany and are recalled; 5 hit Ausum Airfield, 4 hit targets of opportunity and 1 hits Flensburg marshalling yard; 2 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 180 P-51 Mustangs; 3 P-51s are lost.
- Mission 584: 777 bombers and 351 fighters, in 2 forces are dispatched.
(1) B-17s bomb Esbjerg Airfield (60), Emden marshalling yards and docks (37), Wilhelmshaven (34), Heligoland Island (11), Island of Fano (1) and Island of Sylt (1); 1 B-17 is lost; escort is provided by 156 P-51s; they claim 2-0-0 aircraft; 7 P-51s are lost.
(2) 34 B-24s hit Heligoland Island; escort is provided by 169 P-38s and P-51s.
- Mission 585: 6 B-17s drop leaflets in France and the Netherlands during the night.
- 316 P-47 Thunderbolts fly fighter-bomber missions against transport in eastern France; they claim 14-0-4 aircraft on the ground; 1 P-47 is lost.
FRANCE: In northern France, the Canadian 4th Armoured and 3d Divisions begin crossing the Seine River between Elbeuf and Pont de l’Arche and clear Tourlaville. The French 2d Armored Division and the U.S. 4th Infantry Division drive northeast to the outskirts of Paris, the French overcoming strong opposition at Le Bourget Airfield. The U.S. VIII Corps completes the encirclement of Brest while Third Army armoured units reach the Marne River at Château-Thierry, secure crossings, and overrun the town. The U.S. 12th Army Group allocates priority in supply to the U.S. First Army rather than Patton’s Third Army. Supplies are becoming increasingly short.
In southern France, the French 2d Corps continues to clear the environs of Toulon but halts when the Germans agree to surrender the peninsula tomorrow. At Marseille, Fort St. Nicolas surrenders, but scattered opposition remains. In the evening, the German command requests an interview to discuss surrender terms.
While in combat at the town of Montelinar in the Rhone Valley. Sergeant Stephen R. Gregg, 143rd Infantry, 36th Infantry Division (US), and his platoon advance toward a German position on a hill. The Germans react with hand grenades which fell seven G.I.’s and heavy enemy fire prevents medics from reaching them. “We were close by, and you could hear the men that were hit calling for medics,” he told the New York Times in 2000. “I said, God! I’ve got to do something here.’ I don’t know what got into me, but I picked up this gun. “I kept firing and firing. I was just thinking, ‘I’ve got to get as many as I can before they get me.’ I never thought I’d come out of this thing alive, to be frank with you. The Lord was with me.” Sergeant Gregg had picked up a machine gun, and with a medic following him, he headed up the hill toward the Germans, firing from the hip in the face of a hand-grenade barrage. His covering fire enabled the medic to remove the wounded. After he used up his ammunition, he was confronted by four German soldiers who ordered him to surrender. Platoon members opened fire on the Germans, and as they hit the ground, Sergeant Gregg escaped to an American machine-gun position. He fired away once more, routing the Germans and enabling the Americans to take the hill. The next day, when the Germans counterattacked with tanks, Sergeant Gregg directed a mortar barrage, and then he charged a mortar position the Germans had overrun, capturing it by hurling a hand grenade. (MOH) (John Collins)
In northern France, the USAAF Ninth Air Force’s IX Bomber Command attacks troop concentrations in the Rouen area, Rouen bridge, the Boursin navigational beam station at Boulogne-sur-Mer, and Bucy-les-Pierrepont and Foret de Samoussy fuel dumps; fighters cover ground forces and fly sweeps and armed reconnaissance in the Senlis area and south of the Loire River claiming 16 aircraft (11 in the air) destroyed, and losing 6.
In south-eastern France and Italy, the USAAF Twelfth Air Force sends B-25s and B-26s to hit gun emplacements in the Marseille area. In Italy, medium bombers attack bridges at Berceto; fighter-bombers continue armed reconnaissance in the Po Valley and over roads leading north from the battle line north of the Arno River; A-20 Havocs bomb targets of opportunity in the Po Valley during the night of 26/27 August, fly armed reconnaissance and during the day hit ammunition stores in north central Italy.
Provins: Retreating German soldiers massacre 22 villagers. Two days ago 126 civilians were murdered by the SS at Maille, Indre-et-Loire.
Paris: Eisenhower promises to supply de Gaulle with food, uniforms and military supplies.
Whilst attempting the clearance of a German minefield 5 miles off the coast between Fecamp and Cap d’Antifer, Minesweeper HMS Hussar of the 1st Minesweeping Flotilla is sunk by rockets fired by RAF Typhoons of 263 and 266 (Rhodesia) Squadron. There are 55 casualties.
In the same incident, Minesweeper HMS Britomart is also sunk with 22 casualties.
MS Salamander was so seriously damaged that she was beyond repair, and 2 other ships were damaged. In all 78 officers and ratings were killed and 149 wounded, in what was the most serious “friendly fire” incident involving RN ships of WW2. (Alex Gordon)(108)
In northern France, the US Ninth Air Force’s IX Bomber Command attacks troop concentrations in the Rouen area, Rouen bridge, the Boursin navigational beam station at Boulogne-sur-Mer, and Bucy-les-Pierrepont and Foret de Samoussy fuel dumps; fighters cover ground forces and fly sweeps and armed reconnaissance in the Senlis area and south of the Loire River claiming 16 aircraft (11 in the air) destroyed, and losing 6.
In south-eastern France and Italy, the US Twelfth Air Force sends B-25s and B-26s to hit gun emplacements in the Marseille area.
Two hundred twenty one RAF Bomber Command aircraft bomb the Mimoyecques V-1 site at Marquise while 24 Lancasters bomb two ships in Brest Harbor and claimed hits on both.
GERMANY: 216 Halifaxes, 14 Mosquitoes and 13 Lancasters, made a daylight attack on the Rheinpreussen synthetic oil refinery at Meerbeek in the Ruhr today. This raid was escorted by nine squadrons of Spitfires on the outward flight and seven squadrons on the withdrawal. One Me110 is seen; the Spitfires drove it off. There was intense flak over the target but no bombers were lost. The bombing was based on Oboe marking but 5-8/10ths cloud produced difficult conditions, though some accurate bombing was claimed through gaps in the clouds. This is the RAF’s first large-scale daylight raid on Germany since 12 August 1941, and emphasises the importance of these targets. Germany is running out of oil. The Panzers, whose Tiger tanks gobble fuel at two gallons a mile, are running dry, while the Luftwaffe which needs 160,000 tons of high-octane fuel a month, is getting only 10,000 tons a month. The factories are still making planes and tanks in record numbers, but they cannot move without fuel.
Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb eight targets: 45 bomb Heligoland Island using H2X radar, 37 bomb the port area at Emden, 35 bomb the airfield at Brondom, 34 bomb the Wilhelmshaven port area using H2X radar, five bomb the airfield at Husum, and six aircraft bomb individual targets of opportunity. Only two aircraft are lost.
The USAAF’s Fifteenth Air Force, based in Italy, bombs two I.G. Farben synthetic oil refineries at Blechhammer: 213 B-24 Liberators bomb the Blechhammer South facility (28 using H2X radar) and 137 B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb the Blechhammer North facility.
During the night of 27/28 August, 27 RAF Mosquitos bomb Mannheim using H2S radar while four visually bomb Duisburg.
U-3515 laid down.
U-2509 launched.
ITALY: The British Eighth Army makes steady progress northward toward the main Gothic Line positions.
Medium bombers attack bridges at Berceto; fighter-bombers continue armed reconnaissance in the Po Valley and over roads leading north from the battle line north of the Arno River; A-20 Havocs bomb targets of opportunity in the Po Valley during the night of 26/27 August, fly armed reconnaissance and during the day hit ammunition stores in north central Italy.
The US Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy dispatches 530+ fighter-escorted bombers to attack targets in Germany and Italy; the B-17s hit an oil refinery in Blechhammer, Germany; the B-24s also hit an oil refinery in Blechhammer; a railroad bridge at Ferrara, and viaducts at Avisio and Venzone, Italy; and a viaduct at Borovnica, Yugoslavia.
One hundred fifty five B-24 Liberators of the USAAF’s Fifteenth Air Force bomb four targets: 56 bomb the railroad bridge at Ferrara, 52 bomb a railroad viaduct at Aviso while 46 a second railroad viaduct at Aviso, and one bombs a railroad bridge at Latisana.
During the night of 27/28 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force aircraft fly armed reconnaissance in north central Italy while 54 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb troop concentrations at Pesano.
ROMANIA: Focsani and Galati are captured by the Soviets.
BURMA: The British 36th Division, continues down the Mogaung-Mandalay railroad corridor and captures Pinbaw.
CAROLINE ISLANDS: A USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberator based in the Mariana Islands, flies a photo reconnaissance mission of Woleai Atoll, and then bombs Yap Island.
KURILE ISLANDS: 5 US Eleventh Air Force B-24s bomb and photograph Kashiwabara on Paramushiru Island in 2 raids; and 4 B-25s on a shipping sweep east of the northern Kurile Islands bomb and strafe picket boats damaging 1 and leaving another sinking; and a USN PV-1 Ventura sinks a Japanese ship. Another PV-1 attacks a Soviet tanker firing 50 calibre (12.7 mm) shells from stem to stern.
A US Seventh Air Force Saipan Island-based B-24 bombs Iwo Jima Island while another, after photo reconnaissance of Woleai Atoll, bombs Yap Island.
COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: The submarine USS Stingray (SS-186) lands men and supplies on Luzon to support guerrilla operations against the Japanese.
U.S.A.:
Light cruiser USS Little Rock launched.
Submarine USS Cabezon launched.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: F/O Roderick Borden Gray (b.1917), RCAF, helped two wounded crewmen into a dinghy; knowing it would hold no more, and despite his own wounds, he insisted on clinging to the side. He died some hours later. (George Cross)
U-534 shot down British Wellington aircraft, Squadron 172/B.
U-92 sank USS LST 327.
Today, they say the USA was "late to the party" and suggest they would not all be speaking German (or Japanese).
Mmmmmm...French kisses....
I liked the photo of the girl pouring “Cider” into the Tommy’s cup while he works his Bren gun. What a party!
Lucky we let them speak French.
Hard cider. Tastes very similar to beer.
Miscellaneous observations:
As much as I look forward to your posts every day, I can only imagine what it must have been like to pick up the newspaper every day back then and read about the previous day's conquests. It's surely something like reading about your baseball team when it's on a winning streak, only way better.
It's continually surprising to me how seemingly candid German news agencies were about Allied victories in France.
That "She Pours Cider While He Pours Lead" picture on your page 4 was prize-worthy.
That’s why I put “cider” in quotes.
Yeah, give me a few glasses of that and let me play with the machine gun. What could possibly go wrong?
(Page 9): Parachute dresses for the ladies. Cool.
“two gallons a mile”
That is pretty bad gas mileage and that is for diesel which is supposed to be better on fuel. So if they have a 40 gallon tank, they can go 20 miles. I wonder if this is more of an hours of operation thing like construction equipment which is rated this way because the mostly don’t do much actual driving.
Page 20:
Sweden’s Nobel Prize winning chemist Theodor Swedberg...says: “The atom bomb is so much hooey...”
Good to know...at least in the case of the German atom bomb. Not so true in the case of the V-2.
Atomic weapons mentioned in two articles today. Once, Baldwin says the Germans can’t win unless they can come up with atomic weapons or something similar. The other is the report from Sweden on the V-2, and Goebbels’ hint that the Germans may be developing atomic bombs.
But I am reassured by the distinguished Swedish scientist that talk of atomic weapons is a bunch of “hooey.” Still, it would be nice if we could build such a thing.
Some interesting takes here:
1. Back in the late 1930s, the NYT was following atomic research, and the possibility of atomic weapons was discussed.
2. Starting sometime in 1940, the Times “went dark” on all reporting regarding atomic research, and have reported nothing since then.
3. Hanson Baldwin has twice or three times now in the past month made reference to atomic weapons, without making much other reference to their potential destructiveness. On all occasions he’s talked about the possibility of the Germans building such weapons. He hasn’t even hinted that we might be doing the same.
4. The Swedish article is the first time I’ve seen the concept of atomic weapons paired with intercontinental ballistic missiles.
5. Once again I strongly suspect that Baldwin has deduced we are building atom bombs.
6. When we do use the bombs a year from now, astute Americans should not be surprised. In fact, during the flight to Hiroshima, Tibbets finally discussed some of the nature of the bomb without specifically telling the crew what it was. One of the crew said “that thing sounds like a chemist’s nightmare.” To which Tibbets replied “more like a physicist’s nightmare.” The crew member thought for a moment and then asked Tibbets “Sir; are we splitting atoms today?” It was then that Tibbets decided to tell the crew exactly what was in the bomb bay.
But the astute people who had been current with scientific developments were not surprised.
One minute apart...
“As Time Goes By”
music and words by Herman Hupfeld
“This day and age we’re living in Gives cause for apprehension with speed and new invention And things like fourth dimension.
Yet we get a trifle weary With Mr. Einstein’s theory. So we must get down to earth at times Relax relieve the tension
And no matter what the progress Or what may yet be proved The simple facts of life are such They cannot be removed.
You must remember this A kiss is just a kiss, a sigh is just a sigh. The fundamental things apply As time goes by.”
The verse of “As Time Goes By” which most people don’t know because it was not used in the movie Casablanca references Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. It was originally written in 1931. I don’t think Herman Hupfeld would have used the line if it wasn’t common knowledge.
I think there is another 1930s song that directly references atomic weapons but I cannot think of what it is.
You need to find the Rudy Valle version to hear the verse (there are other versions with the verse).
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
