http://www.etherit.co.uk/month/2/07.htm
March 7th, 1945 (WEDNESDAY)
IRISH SEA: U-1302 (type VIIC/41) is sunk in St. George’s Channel in position 52.19N, 05.23W, by depth charges from the Canadian frigates HMCS La Hulloise, Strathadam and Thetford Mines. 48 dead (all hands lost). U-1302 was “made” by radar by HMCS Strathadam then by Asdic, and followed by a sighting of a periscope and Schnorkel. While La Hulloise and Thetford Mines held sonar contact, Strathadam made a Hedgehog bomb attack which produced a definite hit, there was a “spectacular underwater flash” a huge air bubble and wreckage, followed moments later by a submarine breaking the surface. Further attacks produced sufficient material to confirm the end of U-1302.
U-246 (type VIIC) reported for the last time from position 56.20N, 12.50W while enroute for its operational area in the Irish Sea. Lost during April 1945 in the Irish Sea south of the Isle of Man, in position 53.40N, 04.53,5W.
Listed as missing on 5 April, 1945. No explanation exists for its loss. 48 dead (all hands lost). On 25 October, 1944 an escort attacked U-246 with depth charges and damaged her so seriously that she had return to base.
(Alex Gordon)
GERMANY: The US III Corps reaches Remagen and send advance units across the Ludendorff Bridge. This is the first crossing of the River Rhine.
The US First Army under General Courtney Hodges reached the Rhine at Cologne today and found all the bridges down. Some 30 miles to the south, however, Second Lieutenant Emmet J Burrows came out of the woods above Remagen to find the disorganized German troops fleeing across the intact Ludendorff railway bridge.
Soon a platoon of US tanks was charging down to the bridge. As it approached a German engineer detonated charges which created a small crater. The Americans pushed on, shelling the German on the east bank. One shell knocked out the engineer responsible for firing the demolition charges. When he came to and turned the key, nothing happened. He tried again and still the detonators failed. An army sergeant raced onto the bridge and amid a hail of American gunfire, ignited a fuse. A powerful explosion lifted the bridge up; it settled back and, incredibly, still stood. General Bradley (C-in-C of the 12th Army Group) exclaimed to Hodges: “Hot dog, Courtney! This’ll beat him wide open. Shove everything you can across it.”
U-2543 commissioned.
NORWAY:
U-548 sailed from Norway on her final patrol.
U-1023 sailed from Norway on her first and final patrol.
POLAND: The Germans start to evacuate Danzig.
HUNGARY: Budapest: Hitler, in a desperate attempt to recapture Budapest and the Hungarian oilfields, launched Operation Spring Awakening yesterday with two Panzer armies attempting an encircling movement around Lake Balaton. The southern arm has the extra task of disrupting the Russian advance on Vienna.
First reports from the battlefield tell of minor German gains as their tanks flounder in a sea of mud. It is also obvious the Russians knew of the attack and prepared deep defensive positions.
EASTERN FRONT: Marshal Zhukov, striking north to the Baltic, has smashed the 3rd Panzer Army and has cut off Stettin from the sea. According to German reports Zhukov is mounting heavy attacks along a 100-mile stretch of the Oder running from the south-east of Berlin to the approaches to Stettin.
One of the main points under attack is the fortress of Kustrin, 40 miles due east of the German capital. A communiqué from the German high command says that the Russians intend to eliminate it before attacking Berlin.
Meanwhile, Marshal Rokossovsky continues to clear Pomerania. His men captured the German stronghold of Grudziadz, outside Danzig, yesterday.
BURMA: Chinese forces capture Lashio.
CANADA: Frigate HMCS Wentworth arrived Shelburne , Nova Scotia for refit.
Fire tug HMCS Nashwaak assigned to Sydney, Nova Scotia.
Frigates HMCS Charlottetown, Springhill and Stettler departed Halifax for EG-16 Londonderry.
5th Marine Division Daily summaries
http://www.recordsofwar.com/iwo/Div/aa500307.txt
SECRET 7 MAR 45
FROM: 5TH MAR DIV
TO : VAC INFO: EXTROPAC X 3D AND 4TH MAR DIVS
DISPATCH SUMMARY FOR THE PERIOD 061700 TO 071700 FOLLOWS X THE NIGHT WAS
RELATIVELY QUIET ALONG THE ENTIRE DIVISION FRONT X LIMITED QUANTITIES OF
GRENADES AND SMALL ARMS FIRE WERE USED BY SMALL PARTIES OF JAPS IN FRONT
OF OUR LINES X A TOTAL OF 7 JAPS WERE KILLED DURING THE NIGHT X OUR KING
HOUR ATTACK MET WITH CONSIDERABLE SUCCESS X CT 28 ADVANCED RAPIDLY BY-
PASSING MANY CAVES IN THE VICINITY OF 233M Q R X MOP-UP OF THESE CAVES IS
UNDERWAY X
THE ADVANCE ON THIS AREA WAS MADE ACROSS THE MOST DIFFICULT TYPE OF
ROCKY GORGES BORDERED BY PRECIPITOUS CLIFFS X HILL 215 IS NOW SOLIDLY
WITHIN OUR
LIMITS X IN FRONT OF CT 26 FOLLOWING A LIMITED OBJECTIVE NIGHT ATK THE
OPPOSITION WAS PROVIDED BY SMALL GROUPS OF ENEMY IMPLACED IN ROCKY
CRAGS AND CREVICES
FROM WHICH ALL TYPES OF INFANTRY WEAPONS WERE BROUGHT TO BEAR X THE
JAPS STILL APPEAR TO HAVE PLENTY OF MEN AND LIGHT WEAPONS BUT THE
QUALITY OF DEFENSIVE
ORGANIZATION BEING ENCOUNTERED REFLECTS the EFFECT OF CASUALTIES AND
CONTINUAL POUNDING FROM OUR WEAPONS X A LARGE AMMO DUMP WAS
DESTROYED IN 234X
AT 1100 X CT 27 ON THE RIGHT IS BUTTING INTO ONE OF THE STRONGEST REMAINING
POSITIONS O THE ISLAND X BUNKERS ARE BEING BY-PASSED FOR FUTURE
DESTRUCTION
WHILE GRENADE BATTLES ARE BEING FOUGHT UP A SERIES OF ROCKY LEDGES X THE
SHORE LINE ON THE NORTHEAST COAST IS WITHIN SIGHT OF LT 2/27 X TANKS
WERE UNABLE TO GIVE THE MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF SUPPORT BECAUSE OF the
NATURE OF THE TERRAIN THERE ARE 37 TANKS OPERATIONAL OF WHICH 3 ARE
FLAME THROWERS X
VMO-5 MAINTAINED TWO PLANES ON STATION AS LONG AS WEATHER PERMITTED
THROUGHOUT THE DAY X ARTY OBSERVERS ALOFT BROUGHT THE ARTY TO BEAR ON
TARGETS OF
OPPORTUNITY X IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE TO DETERMINE THE EXACT NUMBER OF
WEAPONS DESTROYED BY AERIAL PRECISION ADJUSTMENT X HOWEVER ONE MORTAR
WAS DEFINITELY
TROYED AT 1245 IN TA 235H WEST X DIRECT HITS WERE MADE ON AND IN
OPENINGS OF CAVES X AS OF 1700 OUR FRONT LINES WERE AT 233I WEST TO 233O
SOUTH
WEST TO 234P CENTER TO 234Q CENTER TO 234M SOUTHWEST TO 234S NORTHEAST TO
234T CENTER TO 234P SOUTH CENTER TO 235Q CENTER TO 235W NORTH CENTER TO
235X
NORTH CENTER TO 235T SOUTHWEST X OUR CASUALTIES TO DATE AS OF 1500 X KIA
60 OFF 1000 ENL X WIA
185 OFF 3891 ENL MIA 1 OFF 189 ENL X SK 10 OFF 375 ENL X TOTAL 256 OFF 5455 ENL X
INTERRED IN DIV CEMETERY 32 OFF 1033 ENL 15 UNIDENTIFIED X
TO BE INTERRED 55 X ENEMY CASUALTIES 6489 POW 26 X CASUALTY EVACUATION TO
VAC EVACUATION HOSPITAL X 30 AIR EVACUATION DURING LAST 24 HOURS X 1920
RDS 75MM HE AND 5242 105MM HE RECEIVED DURING LAST 24 HOURS X AT 1500
FOLLOWING NUMBER OF RDS OF HE AMMO ON ARTY POSITIONS X 1ST BN 6185 RDS
75MM
2D BN 2400 RDS 105MM X 3RD BN 2706 RDS 105MM X 4TH BN 2306 RDS 105MM X 24
DISTILLATION UNITS IN OPERATION X 26030 GALS WATER PRODUCED DURING LAST
24 HOURS X 40,000 GALS WATER IN DIV DUMP X SLIGHTLY OVER 2 UNITS OF FIRE
81MM HE WITHIN DIV X LVTA’S 27 SERVICEABLE 8 LOST OR DESTROYED X LVT’S
124 SERVICEABLE 8 UNDER REPAIR 61 LOST OR DESTROYED X DUKW’S 29
SERVICEABLE 7 UNDER REPAIR 64 LOST OR DESTROYED X WEASELS 9 SERVICEABLE 1
UNDER REPAIR
8 LOST OR DESTROYED X NO CHANGE IN LOCATION OF COMMAND POSTS X
RAY A. ROBINSON,
COLONEL, USMC
Anybody heard from Der Furhuer lately?