What happened today? Part two.

you lost me Martin !

Anyway I have 21 RAF bombers claimed by German night fighters on this 1943 date.....do you have any more for this raid ?

E

 

Not sure about the total of 21, Erich....

As for the usual sources, 'Diaries' gives 10 lost and 'Losses' gives 13 ( of which 2 crashed on takeoff, 1 on landing...) At 'only' 2.2 percent nothing out of the ordinary.

( I was waiting for someone to realise that I'm quoting in this thread straight from the personal logbook of A Well-Known British Pilot, soon to lead a now-Famous Squadron on a Legendary Raid.... )

 

A big problem with some German claims, as a damaged bomber or even a corkscrewing bomber to a German novice pilot would make him think he had scored a victory.....

I wasn't sure where you were going with Lancaster X for a minute but could figure out something was a float for the future......right O !

E

 

Okaaay then, haven't done this in a while since it takes a bit of time. Anyway, here goes.

February 28

1940
- Finnish government meets to decide if the harsh demands from the Soviet Union should be accepted. Most ministers are in favour to do so, due the the serious situation at the front. President Kallio requests that the opinion of Field Marshal Mannerheim be presented before any decision is taken.
- The Swedish Volunteer Corps has assumed positions at Märkäjärvi, allowing a larger force of five experienced Finnish infantry battalions and two artillery batteries to be shifted out of the line and on towards the Karelian Ishtmus. The options for the Corps is narrowed down to either an assault on the Soviet positions, an flanking operation to the left or right, or simply defending Märkäjärvi. The defensive option is discarded for morale reasons, and the Soviet forces are deemed too well dug-in for an assault. Thus, reconnaissance for a flanking move will commence at the earliest possible date.

1942
- The population in the besieged city of Leningrad has suffered an estimated 100,000 deaths from starvation.
- German U-boats have claimed 65 ships off the eastern seaboard of the United States, during the last month.

1943
- While on a reconnaissance flight over Russian lines, the Feisler Storch plane of SS General Theodor Eicke is shot down by rifle fire. Commander of the elite and infamous 3rd Waffen-SS division, the "Totenkopf", Eicke is immediately killed. Eicke had previously served as the first commander at the concentration camp at Dachau, and had initiated a constant exchange of personell between the camps and the "Totenkopf" division.
- The Soviet 3rd Guards Tank Army in the Kharkov area is down to a mere 30 tanks.
- During February, British Bomber Command has flown 2,399 sorties to targets in Germany, while losing 68 aircraft. The US 8th Air Force has flown 74 sorties, losing 7 aircraft.
- In Norway, a daring commando raid by British/Norwegian special forces blow up a facility manufacturing heavy water for the Germans.
- In the Pacific, the Japanese 8th Army sends in a convoy of 8 destroyers and 8 transports to support the battle of Lae on the east coast of New Guinea. The convoy departs Rabaul carrying some 6,000 soldiers, 400 marines, 2,340 crewmen, as well as equipment, provisions, ammunition and aviation fuel.

1944
- Near the town of Huta Pieniacka, the 4th Battalion of 14th Waffen-SS Division "Galizien" surround the town in the early hours of morning. The town, previously the scene of confused fighitng involving Polish and Ukranian guerilla forces as well, is taken under artillery fire. As the Waffen-SS soldiers enter the city, they fire indescriminately on civilians. After taking the town the remaining population, mostly women and children, are rounded up into the church and several barns, which are locked, drenched in gasoline and set on fire. Around 1,000 people perish in the action.
- Hanna Reitsch, famous female test pilot and devoted Nazi, visits Adolf Hitler in Berechtsgaden to receive her Iron Cross, First Class. She suggest setting up a squadron of suicide bombers composed of specially designed V-1s, an idea which fails to impress the Führer.
- In the Pacific, submarine USS Trout is lost with all hands on her eleventh war patrol after sighting a Japanese convoy. She was credited with 23 enemy ships, a total of 87,000 tons.
- In Muroc, California, a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber drops the fist dummy atomic bomb. The test reveals a need for further adaptions and a new suspension mechanism.

1945
- The Red Army ceases offensive operations against Army Group Kurland.
- The besieged city of Poznan, encircled for some time, falls to the Soviet forces.
- In Germany, the Bachem Ba-349 Natter rocket powered fighter lifts off for the first, and probably only time. At the controls are Luftwaffe Leutnant Lother Siebert, who becomes the first human to experience vertical rocket flight, during the takeoff. This experience is short-lived however, as the cokpit bubble is torn off at 100 meters, decapitating Siebert. The Natter continues to climb to some 500 meters altitude before faltering and speeding down to earth, ending the the flight.
- Tanks of the US 3rd Division crosses the river Erft after suffering serious losses in armour.
- The Canadian 1st Army reaches the river Rhine.
- Western Allied forces have taken 81,238 prisoners of war during February.

 

And a quick one for the not too common February 29

1940
- On the north-western shore of Laatokka, the encircled Soviet Rifle Corps split into several smaller pockets by the Finnish forces, suffers further setbacks as the Finns destroy the eastern pocket.
- The Finnish government convenes to discuss the Soviets demands, and receives the view of Field Marshal Mannerheim. Mannerheim states the situation is getting desperate, and the military high command unanimously supports accepting the Soviet terms for peace. After listening to these opinions, all but one of the Finnish ministers agree that the demands should be accepted. A message accepting the Soviet demands as a starting point is sent to Stockholm, to be delivered at a later date.

 

Germans and heavy water

Before an A-bomb could be created scientists had to engineer a controlled and sustained nuclear reaction. They had to bring enough uranium together to cause a reaction, but in a controlled way so as to avoid blowing up everything around it. This required a moderator, a substance that slowed down the neutrons in an atomic reaction, enabling them to split other atoms. The most efficient moderator available at the time was "heavy water," a substance found in ordinary water in very tiny amounts. It is called deuterium, an isotope that has a neutron in addition to a proton in its nucleus. Thus, its atomic weight is heavier. Hence, "heavy water." The only plant in the world capable of creating heavy water in sufficient amounts to conduct nuclear research was the Norsk Hydro Hydrogen Electrolysis plant in Vemork, Norway, a nation occupied by the Germans in 1940.

The Norsk Hydro factory near the town of Vemork was located high on one side of a valley surrounded by minefields and treacherous cliffs. Aerial bombing was considered too dangerous to local Norwegians who worked there. A British commando raid failed when, in November 1942, two gliders towed by Halifax bombers filled with explosives and soldiers got lost and crashed in the snow-covered mountains. The survivors were eventually captured, tortured by the Gestapo, and shot. It was then decided that an advance team of Norwegians sent in to prepare the way for the first raid and who had not been captured should become the core of a much smaller all-Norwegian attempt to blow up the plant.

In late January 1943, five Norwegians parachuted into southern Norway. They hooked up with the advance party, which had barely survived one of the bitterest Norwegians winters in memory, scaled the previously thought impassable slopes, and attacked the plant from below. Taking the German guards completely by surprise they destroyed the equipment and escaped. However, in August 1943 word came from Norwegian underground agents employed in the factory that the Germans, after vigorous repair efforts, were once again producing heavy water at the plant. In desperation Allied bombers attacked the plant and did considerable but not fatal damage. But the bombing raid convinced the Germans that they could no longer rely on the Norsk plant

After the war German scientist Kurt Diebner testified that the elimination of the Norwegian heavy water production was the main factor in the failure of German atomic research. The sacrificial service of the raiders had paid off.
----------

On a moonlit winter night in 1943, nine Norwegian commandoes, trained and equipped in England, infiltrated the most heavily defended structure in occupied Europe. Their objective was to destroy the heavy water production facilities critical to the Nazi atomic bomb project. Four months earlier, three-dozen British soldiers had tried and died on a similar mission, without ever gaining sight of their target. But the Norwegians were destined to have a different fate...

After skillfully climbing the "unscaleable" (and therefore undefended) gorge below Norsk Hydro; they snuck into the facility, set and detonated their demolition charges, and escaped back down into the gorge without having to fire a single shot. This attack was the climax of the Allied efforts to deny Germany the bomb.

It is interesting to remember that Norsk Hydro was primarily a hydroelectric facility designed to create electricity from falling water (notice the large water pipes coming down the mountain). Heavy water production was just an unusual byproduct, unique to this particular facility. In fact, it was the only plant in the world capable of producing the quantities of heavy water sought by the Nazis. This explains the plant's importance during World War II.

http://www.pafko.com/trips/norway/n10/

http://www.norwaypost.no/Np/culture/musvemork.html

 

March 1

1940:
- France makes a declaration that 50,000 men will arrive in Finland by late March, and that France and Britain will take care of transit negotiations with Norway and Sweden. France also makes a request that negotiations with the Soviet Union be broken off. The message sent by the Finnish government to Stockholm earlier, accepting the Soviet demands for negotiations, is rephrased in less accepting terms and sent on to Moscow. Soviet troops are now positioned a few kilometers from Viipuri.
- On the Märkäjärvi front, the Swedish Volunteer Corps start offensive operations by sending out a the Jägar Company of II Group, under lieutenant Grafström as a scouting party.
- In Germany, the Messerchmitt corporation signs a development contract for the Me-262 jet-powered fighter.
- In Berlin, US Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles arrives for talks with German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop. Welles offer US mediation in the current conflict, but von Ribbentrop states that Germany will not accept peace until Britains power is broken.
- Britain suspends trade negotiations with Italy, and orders the Royal Navy to stop German shipments of coal to the Italians. With Italy being dependant on German coal, Britain has suggested exporting coal instead, offering to buy Italian arms in exchange.

1941
- Prime Minister Filov of Bulgaria sign the tripartite pact, allying Bulgaria with the Axis.
In North Africa, Free French soldiers capture Kuffra in Libya.
- The Royal Air Force raids Cologne in a night-raid, using some 100 bombers.
- The US Navy sets up the Support Force, Atlantic Fleet, composed of destroyers, seaplane tenders and patrol aircraft, intended to protect convoys in the Atlantic.

1942
- Since June 22, 1941, the German Wehrmacht has lost 3,424 tanks on all fronts, while the production during the period has been 2,843 tanks. The total tank strength of the Wehrmacht stands at 4,462 tanks, with 2,468 being considered fit for front-line service.
- General Halder of the German General Staff estimates the losses on the Eastern Front to 202,000 killed, 725,000 wounded, 112,000 frostbitten, 300,000 captured and 46,000 missing.
- The Soviet offensive against the Crimea breaks through the northern part of the German lines, only to be slowed to a crawl by the marshes in the area.
- Axis headquarters of the German LXV Corps and Military Command Serbia, is merged.
- In the Pacific, Japanese ships sink the cruiser HMS Exeter and the destroyer USS Pope.

1943
- Soviet units recapture the city of Demyansk north-west of Moscow.
- Soviet attacks against the German forces in the Kuban are slowing to a halt, due to thaw and the spring mud.
- Lilya "The White Rose of Stalingrad" Litvyak, scores her fifth and sixth kill as she brings down a Ju-88 bomber and a Fw-190 fighter in her Yakovlev Yak-1 fighter.
- The 9th Waffen-SS Panzer Grenadier Division is given the name "Hohenstaufen".
- In the Pacific, the Battle of the Bismark Sea begins, with American, British and Australian aircraft attacks on Japanese convoys bound for New Guinea.
- In New York, American Jews hold a rally urging the US government to help the European Jews in the occupied territories.
- US General Spaatz takes over command of the 12th Air Force after Doolittle.

1944
- The 13th Waffen-SS "Handschar" division consisting of Moslem Croat (Bosnian) volunteers, is officially formed.
- During the night, British Bomber Command main force strikes Frankfurt in Germany, flying 544 heavy bomber sorties. Losses are 4 bombers, giving a loss rate of 0.7%. The raid is deemed successful.
- Arthur "Bomber" Harris, commander of the British Bomber Command, is awarded with Order of Suvorov from the Soviet Union, the only western Allied commander so honored to date. The citation states the award is given for "outstanding success in the direction of troops, excellent organisation of military operations, and determination and persistence displayed in their execution resulting in victory in battles".

1945
- There are currently 32 panzer divisions in the east, facing the Red Army, while 6 are stationed in western Europe.

 

March 2
1940
- The Red Army launches a major attack against Finnish positions on the northern side of lake Laatokka towards Kollaa and Aittojoki. After the preceding months of humiliation, the Soviets have brought in better commanders and learned valuable lessons, and the attack is better organized than previous operations. Still, the Finnish line holds.
- Soviet troops enter the outskirts of Viipuri.
A Soviet air raid on Helsinki is turned back by Finnish fighters.
- On the Märkäjärvi front, the scouting company from the Swedish Volunteer Corps are surrounded by a large Soviet detachment. During the day, lieutenant Grafström leads a successful breakout, during which six men are killed and patrol of seven go missing. Unknown to the Swedish forces, the patrol has been captured by Soviet forces, three of the seven men are eventually released from captivity, while four have perished. On the Soviet side, some 200 casualties are inflicted, while the scouting mission has determined that the terrain to the north is suitable for an advance.
- The French government claims that Germany is preparing for an invasion of Denmark and Norway.
- US Undersecreatay of State Sumner Welles meets with Chancellor Adolf Hitler, who outlines the German requirements for peace, these include the British surrender of Gibraltar, Suez and Singapore, as well as the return of German pre-World War I colonies.

1941
- Following the Bulgarian entry into the Axis on the previous day, the German 12th Army crosses into Bulgaria. The 12th Army is composed of five infantry corps and a tank corps. Greece immideately recognizes her danger and urges Britain to land troops as soon as possible.
- Adolf Hitler meets with Yugoslav Prince Paul, offering him Salonika in return for support against Greece and the Soviet Union.
- The British BOAC starts flying night missions to Stockholm, Sweden, ferrying diplomats and agents.

1942
- In a two-day operation, subunits of Einsatzgruppe A kills 3,412 Jews near Minsk, and 2,007 Jews near Baranovichi.
- The Royal Air Force raids the harbour of Palermo, Italy. The Wellington bombers hit the ammunition ship Cuma which explodes violently, damaging 13 other ships.
- Australia declares war in Thailand.
- Aircraft from the carrier USS Enterprise drives off two Japanese submarines.

1943
- German forces evacuate the exposed Rhzev salient in front of Moscow. While the salient has been a thorn in the Soviet side for over a year, it is in constant danger of being pinched off at the narrow "waist". Additionally, the weakened Wehrmacht is in desperate need of units for the upcoming summer offensive, when the initiative must be reclaimed from the Red Army.
- In the counter-offensive near Kharkov the German forces score a resounding success, as armoured units of von Manstein's 4th Panzer Army and Army Detachment Kempf make contact. This move cuts off the majority of Timoshenko's Southwestern Front.
- The Royal Air Force bombs downtown Berlin, dropping some 900 tons of bombs.
- Spitfire fighter surprise 15 Japanese bombers over Darwin, Australia, and proceeds to shoot down 6.

1944
- Luftwaffe pilot Erich Hartmann receives the Oakleaves to the Knights Cross, following his 202nd aerial victory.

1945
- The USAAF raids the remains of Dresden, flying some 406 B-17 and B-24 heavy bomber sorties.
- The US 9th Army captures Roermond and Venlo on the Maas, and reaches the Rhine opposite Düsseldorf.
- General MacArthur raises the US flag on Corregidor.

 

March 3

1940
- The Finnish troops in the Viipuri area come under intense pressure, as the Soviet troops under General Timoshenko launches a powerful thrust in the area.
- Finnish Foreign Minister Tanner and Swedish Foreign Minister Günther discusses the possibility of Finland keeping the cities of Viipuri and Sortavala, and a message to this effect is sent the same day.
- On the Märkäjärvi front, the scouting company under lieutenant Grafström from the Swedish Volunteer Corps, returns to friendly lines with their report. A new patrol is ordered to depart on March 6, to pinpoint Soviet posts and troops, suitable ambush points, and if possible forward bases for fighter aircraft.
- US Undersecretary of State Sumner Welles departs for Paris, having conferred with both Hermann Göring and Rudolf Hess during the day.

1941
- With the new threat from Bulgaria, Greek troops advancing against Italian forces in Albania are ordered to a halt.
- The Soviet Union denounces the Bulgarian entry into the Axis, and lodges a protest about the German troops in the country.
- The members of the German General Staff are presented with a picture of the British Matilda tank by General Jodl. There is a lot of concern when Jodl points out the thickness of the armour, some 80mm.

1942
- During the night, Bomber Command raids the Renault works in the suburbs of Paris, the first raid since "Bomber" Harris took over command. Some 235 aircraft are sortied, with 223 attacking target, accurately dropping some 300 bombs on target in the strike.

1943
- Following the successfully executed German evactuation of the Rhzev salient, the Red Army moves in and claims the city.
- In the area of Kharkov, von Manstein's forces continue to advance, taking the city of Slavyansk on the river Donets.
- The Luftwaffe raids London with 117 aircraft. Some 173 people are suffocated in the subway station of Bethnal Green, following a panic caused by anti-aircraft rockets used in the defence.
- In the Atlantic ocean, Italian submarine Barbarigo sinks American merchant ship SS Staghound.
- In the Pacific, the battle in the Bismarck Sea continues. Allied aircraft sink all eight transports, and four of the escorting destroyers. In addition, 25 Japanese aircraft are shot down. Allied losses are 21 aircraft.

1944
- The USAAF 8th Air Force raids Berlin with 748 B-17 and B-24 bombers. No less than 669 abort due to bad weather.

1945
- Stargard falls to the advancing Soviet forces.
- Following pressure from both the United States and the Soviet Union, Finland declares war on Germany. The declaration is dated retrospectively from September 15, 1944.
- Soviet mixed-power aircraft MiG I-250 flies for the first time, with pilot A.P. Dyeyev at the controls.
- In the Pacific, the fighting for Iwo Jima rages on. No less than five Medals of Honor are awarded for actions during the day.

 

March 4

1940
- The Soviet attacks crashing into the Finnish lines day after day are improving their organization. In a renewed push, Soviet forces capture the Äyräpää bridgehead on Vuosalmi. In a creative move unthinkable at the outset of hostilities, the Red Army also conducts a limited amphibious landing on the western side of the Bay of Viipuri, in an attempt to outflank Finnish defences. They also manage to use the thick ice to attack with tanks across the Bay of Viipuri. The city remains in Finnish hands, but is in serious danger of being surrounded.
- The German command orders the Scandinavian operation to be ready on four days notice.
- Italy issues a strong protest to Britain regarding the coal blockade.

1941
- The Royal Navy raids a German position on Lofoten Island, Norway, with primary goal of seizing an Enigma cipher machine, as well as destroying the armed trawler located there. During the operation, codenamed Claymore, some 14 German sailors are killed. This includes the the commander of the trawler, Liutenant Kupfinger, who is killed as throws the Enigma machine overboard, denying the raiding force their main objective. The trawler is severly damaged, oil stockpiles destroyed, and 25 prisoners taken.
- The British 8th Army under Wavell transfers some units from Egypt to Greece.

1942
- In the Mediteranean, Axis aircarft continue the last two months of raiding, launching the 394th raid in this time.
- In the British House of Commons, Air Minister Sinclair debates the resources spent on Bomber Command, stating that "Well armed, highly trained and inflexibly determined, they are the only force upon which we can call this year, 1942, to strike deadly blows at the heart of Germany."
- In the Pacific, Dutch forces begin destroying facilities on Java, as their situation is becoming untenable.

1943
- Red Army forces recapture Sievsk, south of Bryansk.
- German forces near Kharkov regroup following the counter-attack. The Red Army has lost some 23,000 soldiers, 600 tanks and 400 guns. The lack of infantry prevents the German forces from properly containing the pocketed forces however.
- The Bulgarian government attempts to protect Bulgarian Jews by instead deporting around 4,000 Jews from Greece. The Greek Jews are transferred to Poland via camps in southwestern Bulgaria.
- Off Newfoundland, Canadian destroyer HMCS St. Croix and corvette HMCS Shediac sinks German U-boat U-87
- In the Pacific, the Battle of the Bismarck Sea ends. During the night, patrol boats join the aircraft in their grisly work of machine-gunning and depth-charging the swimmers and life-rafts in the water to prevent them from reaching the shore. Some 7,000 Japanese troops, well over half of those embarked, are killed during the battle. Over the course of several days, allied land-based aircraft have sunk eight transports and four destroyers attempting to resupply Japanese troops on New Guinea. In addition, many Japanese planes are lost attempting to protect their ships.
- King George of England begins working two nights a week in a London munitions factory.

1944
- Defying the spring mud, Marshal Zhukov's 1st Belorussian Front intitiates the Soviet spring offensive. Zhukov has taken over command on short notice, following Vatutin suffering serious wounds in an ambush by Ukrainian nationalists. Designed to work in the staggered fashion of most late-war Soviet offensives, several other Fronts are slated to join over the next few days. German intelligence have picked up some indications of the offensive, but fail comprehend the vast scale on which it will be launched in such an inappropriate season. At 8:00 in the morning, the Soviet artillery preparation blankets the German lines, followed by a successful initial advance by ground troops.
- The USAAF 8th Air Force schedules its first raid on Berlin, with 502 B-17 and B-24 bombers. Poor weather forces 472 to abort before leaving England. The remaining 30 attck Berlin.

1945
- The 1st Belorussian Front under Marshal Zhukov establishes a new bridgehead across the river Oder, south of Frankfurt.
- The US 1st Army reaches the Rhine.

 

hIDEOUS, gERMAN NIGHT FIGHTER PILOTS ENGAGE us FIGHTERS......

geez ! well mr computer caps lock

FjOfw. Yung from I./JG 301 in a Bf 109G-6 in night camo shoots down a P-51 for his 9th victory.
Oberleutnant Seidel in a Bf 109G-6 from I./JG 302 claims 1 B-17 for his third victory.......more to come

E

 

Wow! Really stuff! I do not get tired of being amazed in this forums thank to all the valuable guys here!

Kai, those Iwo Jima pictures were really great. Now, you MUST read the article I wrote about the battle.

Erich and Kai, thank you for the excellent information on night fighters. I only knew a bit about Schnaufer and Lent. Zu Seyn-Wittgenstein I did know him. I have an article on him I might post later.

Martin; did you like the Me-110s?!

 

February 5th 1940, Great Britain and France.

The supreme Allied command decides to intervene in Norway and Sweden to cut off the German iron supplies from Sweden.

February 16th 1940, Norway.

The British destroyer HMS Cossack violates Norway’s neutrality by rescuing 299 British prisoners from the German nurse-ship Altmark who had been captured by the Graf Spee during her Atlantic raids. Germany increases the speed of the planning for an invasion of Norway, thinking that Great Britain has plans upon it.

February 24th 1940, Germany.

The plan named Sichelschnitt (Sickle’s blow) is born. One of the most risky and genius plans for military history places 45 German divisions in front of the Ardennes woods and a gigantic German Kesselschlacht is planned. Hitler is enchanted with this plan, created by Major-general Erich von Manstein. His little plan will bring Germany’s greatest victory.

 

MARCH 11, 1943

Lancaster 'X'
Self
P/O Thompson
S/Lt Muttrie
F/Lt Scrivener
F/Lt Oliver
Sgt Hargreaves
Sgt Hayhurst

My last trip. 71st bombers.
Operations. Stuttgart.
Flew there/back on three engines + 1/4.
Good trip. Flak light. Photo.
Main attack fell SW of main town.

6.30 hours.

SUMMARY OF OPERATIONAL FLYING

1st Tour : Hampdens : 242.2 hrs. 42 sorties.
2nd Tour : Beaufighters : 199.1 hrs. 99 sorties
3rd Tour : Mainly Lancasters : 201.00 hrs. 29 sorties.

Total Operational : 642.3 hrs. 170 sorties.

 

Congrats Martin, Legendary Hero!

Here´s a little present:



' NIGHT WATCH ' (?)

http://aviart.tcel.com/mossy.htm

 

The Winter War lasted 105 days, ending 13.3.1940.



Flags att half-mast in Helsinki on 13 March as the nation mourns those who died in the war.

 

Also this on this day in 1944:

13th March 1944 London suspends travel between Ireland and Britain

On this day, Britain announces that all travel between Ireland and the United Kingdom is suspended, the result of the Irish government's refusal to expel Axis-power diplomats within its borders.

In 1922, an independent Irish republic was established after generations of conflict between Ireland and Britain. One of the conditions of that agreement was that Britain would retain control of three naval bases along the Irish coast in order to continue Ireland's defense. But as war loomed in the late 1930s, Irish Prime Minister Eamon de Valera negotiated an agreement that ended the British occupation of those naval bases; Ireland had declared a pre-emptive state of neutrality in any European war, and the presence of the Royal Navy on independent Irish soil violated that neutrality. De Valera did not want Ireland to become an object of attacks aimed at Britain.

De Valera was willing to bargain away Irish neutrality, though, in exchange for Northern Ireland's being returned to the Irish Republic. The British were not willing to pay that price but did agree to end conscription in Northern Ireland once De Valera denounced conscription--because it forced Irish men to fight in what De Valera believed was an English war--as an "act of aggression."

Irish neutrality was challenged in 1941, with German air raids against Dublin. It was challenged again in 1942, when the United States landed troops in Northern Ireland, under the understanding that it was under the control of its ally, Britain. De Valera protested. President Franklin D. Roosevelt was stunned at this intransigence and applied pressure to the de Valera government, attempting to change Ireland's neutrality stance. De Valera did not relent. Finally, when the Irish prime minister refused to expel from Ireland the diplomats of the Axis powers, Britain retaliated by suspending all travel between the Irish Republic and the United Kingdom. Ireland did not flinch and, when the war ended, developed good relations with all the powers involved.

www.historychannel.com

 

Good stuff guys !

12./13.3.45

Hauptmann Schröder of I./NJG 3 flying his Ju 88G-6 shoots down 3 Lancasters on Gardening ops.

21.16 1 Lanc west of Samsö
21.27 1 Lanc south of Hov
21.45 1 Lanc 75 km North of Bornholm

E

 

march 1945 III./JG 7 is on testing trials with the R4M missile.

Friday, March 16, 1945, Lt. Wulhelm Batel of I./KG 51 claimed a P-47 while Major Theo Weissenberger of JG 7 claimed a P-51 NW of Eberswalde at 16.04 hours. Fw. Böckel and Fhj.Ofw. Recker of III./EJG 2 flew a combat sortie against a Mustang formation but without success.......most probably a shallow dive and then kick it in gear fast to escape.

E

 

17 March 1945

Oblt. Wegmann and Ofw. Göbel of JG 7 each claim a B-17 while Uffz. Koster claimed two during an American incursion against Ruhland, Böhlen and Cottbus (15th air force). 9 US bombers were lost. Lt Kuhn of the 354th F.G (9th A.F.) calimed a jet damaged near Koblenz at 16.15 hours. Fj. Ofw. Wilhelm dikus of 8./KG(J) 54 was killed on a training flight near Ingolstadt, his Me 262 werke nummer 110938, being destroyed. The Remagen bridge finally collapsed under the combined strain of bomb damage and heavy use, but US Army engineers had built several other bridges and the advance over the Rhine continued......