Bombing raid on ploesti, 1943 eyewitness to history. Smart, the principle architect and planner for operation tidalwave, proposed, in complete antithesis of usaff bombing policy, a lowlevel massed raid on the nine most important ploesti refineries by five b24 bomb groups, two from north africa. The raid was not part of any campaign, but stood alone as a singular blow to an important component of german warmaking capability. By lyndon shubert on august 1, 1943, a consolidated b24d liberator bomber named the vagabond king and its american crew took part in a massive bombing raid on the oil refinery complex at ploesti, romania. A mission to ploesti was a double credit mission until the latter part of july 1944 when it was removed from the list of doublecredit mission targets the rationale being that the enemy fighter threat had by then become almost negligible. Eisenhower, and executed by five specially trained american bomber units, the attack on the oil refineries of ploesti, romania, was among the most daring and dangerous missions of world war ii.
The great raid on hitlers romanian oil refineries air. May 17, 2018 on august 1, 1943, the usaaf staged operation tidalwavea daring, surprise lowlevel b24 raid against the axis critical source of fuel, the oil fields in ploesti, romania. Posted on july 26, 2017 march 1, 2018 by john miller. Jul 04, 2007 45 aircraft and 310 airmen lost in the polesti raids various shots of the members of the 9th usa air force being briefed prior to raid. Raid 1 also called safe mode in some lacie devices is a secure raid mode that requires at least 2 drives. Nov 18, 2004 on 1 august 1943, when the second usaf air raid over ploesti took place, the german and romanian aaa consisted of 36 heavy flak batteries 164 88 mm guns and 16 light batteries 210 20 or 37 mm guns, which fired 3,552 88 mm shells and 56,271 20 mm shells that day. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. The august 1 raid on ploesti was codenamed tidal wave. Our target was the railroad yards, ferry slips, and bridges.
It was a strategic bombing mission and part of the. Planned by winston churchill, authorized by dwight d. The actual flights were mapped to avoid unnecessary interaction with german strongpoints. The bombing of the ploesti oil fields was one of the most famous missions of world war ii. The two nose art sets together cover 28 liberators that attacked the oil refineries at ploesti, campina, and brazi, romania, on 1 august 1943. Operation tidal wave american air museum in britain. On 1 august 1943, when the second usaf air raid over ploesti took place, the german and romanian aaa consisted of 36 heavy flak batteries 164 88 mm guns and 16 light batteries 210 20 or 37 mm guns, which fired 3,552 88 mm shells and 56,271 20 mm shells that day. It required 24 highaltitude missions and cost many lives.
Operation tidalwave, the attack on the oil refineries at ploesti on 1 august 1943 was the most famous bombing mission performed by the consolidated b24 liberator. Operation tidalwave, the low level attack on ploesti, 1. We talk of missions to ploesti, but actuality they were missions to different parts of the ploesti area. It was the third most heavily defended target in europe, and the most heavily defended target outside of germany. Dragged through the mouth of hell at ploesti tidal wave 1. Raid in ruins ploesti raid america in wwii magazine. Cutting off nazi oil production the incredibly costly ploiesti mission pictures. According to the 2011 romanian census, there were 201,226 people living within the city of ploie. Operation tidal wave was an air attack by bombers of the united states army air forces usaaf based in libya and southern italy on nine oil refineries around ploie. Aug 02, 2016 highly decorated wwii combat pilot robert sternfels provides a first hand account of piloting his b24 sandman bomber in a raid on oil refineries in ploesti that was one of the single most. Its force included 210 b17 flying fortress and 90 b24 liberator bombers escorted by p38 lightning, p47 thunderbolt, and p51 mustang fighters. To further my knowledge on ploesti i decided to pick up mr.
After the raid, the refineries were repaired and upgraded. The exploits of the fifteenth air force in stunning. The authors could find, during 195961, no complete official roster of the approximately 1,733 men who took off for ploesti on 1 august 1943. Model paint solutions provides the tools and supplies for handling, storing, spraying, and finishing model paints. The bombers flew low to avoid radar detection and dropped time delayed bombs. During the unescorted 1,000 mile flight from libya, clouds broke the formation. Took part in operation tidal wave, the raid on ploesti on 1 august 1943,in b24 liberator 4240803. A real campaign against ploesti was not mounted until the following year. As young boys back in the late 50s my friend told me many second hand stories that i always considered as half truths.
My father was on the ploesti raid with chuck merrill. Daring world war ii raid on ploesti, the kindle edition by william r. In short, the men who undertook tidal wave had attempted the impossible. Among the combat crew members this bugaboo target awakened many from their sleep this was the way the 449th war diary recorded the effect of ploesti at the early morning mission briefs. Ploesti, the most fateful mission of world war ii, duane schultz recreates this great battle, combining original research and interviews with survivors in order to capture the tension, drama, and heroics of the warring sides. The ploesti raid stood apart from the rest of the war in the air. My intent is mainly to relate the stories of the individual aircraft and crews lost this day as well as those returning with dead or injured crewmembers. Five congressional medals of honor were awarded for the mission three posthumously. Ploesti definition of ploesti by the free dictionary. In april, general eisenhower ordered the usstaf to attack german fuel production centers by striking both the oil refineries and the factories producing synthetic fuels. When one heads north out of bucharest by either road or rail, it takes a considerable amount of time for the city to fall away. This is the most awarded for a single combat mission. Floyd coffield bombed german oil refineries at ploesti. Operation tidal wave was an air attack by bombers of the united states army air forces usaaf on nine oil refineries around ploie.
Out of the 177 b24s that took part in the raid 167 managed to attack their targets. It is the first raid, however, that is better rememberedas the bloodiest and most gruesomely fought bomber raid in history. This roster originated with the publication of ploesti by james dugan and carroll stewart in 1962. B24 liberators over their targets in ploesti, 1 august 1943. This new study examines the raid in detail, exploring the reasons why its dubious success came at such a high price. Consolidated b24d lil deicer veteran of the ploesti. Ploesti was the chief petroleum producing center for the axis. Contains a map of the city of ploesti, romania during world war ii. Our main planes were defiants and hampdens, but later was transferred to. Ploesti air raids on romania oil fields world war ii. Close up of a map of the area around ploesti, rumania. The ploesti raid of august 1943 was devised to destroy the oil refineries at ploesti, romania, which produced almost 40 percent of the german fuel and oil requirement. Dragged through the mouth of hell at ploesti tidal wave.
It was one of the largest producers in europe and ploiesti was a major part of that production. Partial bibliography dragged through the mouth of hell. The campaign against the ploesti oil refineries, distribution system and infrastructure was one of the epic battles of the war. Op 6 ploesti, xenia oil refinery ploesti, romania is one of the more infamous targets in wwii as well as one of the most dangerous. Into the fire describes the 1943 raid on ploesti the low level attack, not the later raids. The page numbers in this roster pertain to random house and brasseys printing. This was the only location that hitler got his avgas aviation fuel from. Ploesti into the fire and fury by bill phillips only 1.
As suzy q emerges from the maelstrom, with 44th bomb group commander leon johnson clearly visible in the copilots seat, the gripping spectacle of. It was a usaaf operation with the codename tidal wave. Unlike previous books on ploesti, jay stout goes well beyond the famous big and bloody raid of august 1943 and depicts the entire 1944 strategic campaign of twentyplus missions that all but knocked ploesti out of the war and denied the german war machine the fuel and lubricants it so desperately needed. The mission report from august 1, 1943 attack on the oil fields in ploesti, romania, code word tidal wave, is missing from the army air corps 44th bomb group mission report. Ploesti synonyms, ploesti pronunciation, ploesti translation, english dictionary definition of ploesti. The most notable of these for us was the third one, on monday, july 12 to reggio dcalabria. Skip to main content this banner text can have markup. Something thats been lacking in my reading of the bomber raids was on ploesti.
In a moving 50th anniversary tribute to the 1700 intrepid aircrew who flew the epic ploesti raid, the worlds foremost aviation artist, robert taylor, has created a masterpiece in air combat art. Osprey air campaign book 12 ploesti 1943 the great raid on. The 15th started the offensive on 5 april when it dispatched 235 b17s and b24s from italy to transportation targets in the vicinity of the ploesti oilfields in romania. More medals of honor were awarded for this mission than any other aerial combat enterprise in the. There would be many raids on ploesti during ttre war, but none more famous or costly than the. Some 600 b24s and b17 flying fortresses bombed ploesti in an attempt to knock out the refineries. One logical volume mounts on the computer and the combined available capacity of both drives is limited to the capacity of the lowestcapacity disk. Bombing raid on ploesti, 1943, eyewitness to history. Eyewitness to the raid on ploesti a pilots detailed firsthand account describes the mission to bomb romanias oil refineries in august 1943. This wellwritten fast paced account of the 1943 raid on the old field at ploesti, romania, is a classic example of how bad a military operation can be. Losses were heavy and the refineries were rebuilt, but the ploesti raid stands as a magnificent example of a bold plan, wellexecuted. Leon johnson became the group commander on 15 january 1943. The idea for it, and the unusual tactics employed, came from the top.
A usaaf b24 liberator flies over an oil refinery at ploesti, romania on august 1, 1943. Edward jablonski summed up the ploesti raid this way. Army air corps raid on ploesti, romania, one of the most heroic episodes in the history of military aviation. The ploesti raid at the casablanca conference in january 1943, the allied leaders agreed on goals for a strategic bombing offensive against german industry and its population. Superimposed on the bottom half of the map is a photograph of american bombers flying over the city. Cutting off nazi oil production the incredibly costly. Awards received by enlisted personnel during ploesti raid.
To quickly jump to a page in the document click on. When that finally does happen, you find yourself out on the wallachian plain which is very flat, now nearly treeless, and in summer very hot. Mar 15, 2011 smart, the principle architect and planner for operation tidalwave, proposed, in complete antithesis of usaff bombing policy, a lowlevel massed raid on the nine most important ploesti refineries by five b24 bomb groups, two from north africa and three borrowed from eighth air force in england. Several years ago i was on a work related trip that took me to ploesti. Operation tidal wave was one of the boldest and most controversial air raids by the united states. At the time, the romanian ploesti oil fields produced about a third of all axis oil, and was germanys single. My father flew on thar she blows with chuck merrill. The many raids against ploesti are ideal for the study of doctrinal. Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the infamous ploesti raid of august 1st 1943, b24s attacked the rumanian oil fields that supplied one third of the fuel used by nazi germany this dramatic image by robert taylor shows the danger of this vital mission. A prior raid in june of 1942 the halpro crew was performed at high level and with targets obscured by. Originally printed by random house, ploesti was reprinted by brasseys in 2002, a revised edition. Operation tidal wave was an air attack by bombers of the united states army air forces usaaf based in libya on nine oil refineries around ploie. Schultz opens his story by describing conditions prior to the war, an earlier raid on a love of mine is aerial warfare, particularly the bomber raids of wwii.
Consolidated b24d lil deicer veteran of the ploesti raid august 1943. This is a very big deal, and previously unknown or inaccurately reported. The doolittle raid, 1942 the battle of midway 1942 attack on an arctic convoy, 1942 reconnaissance patrol, 1943 bombing raid on ploesti, 1943 the bloody battle of tarawa, 1943 a gis trip to london, 1944 the nazi occupation of poland loose lips sink ships life and death aboard a b17, 1944 shot down over france, 1944 sunk by submarine, 1944. The ploesti raid earned leon johnson the medal of honor. Full online access to this resource is only available at the library of congress. The following item is missing from the national archives. Aug 01, 2009 the damage at ploesti was rapidly repaired, and the complex remained in operation until it was overrun by advancing soviet troops in august 1944, a year after the american raid. Partial bibliography dragged through the mouth of hell at. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading daring world war ii raid on ploesti, the.
The ploiesti raid 1943 operation tidal wave youtube. It was a strategic bombing mission and part of the oil campaign to deny petroleumbased fuel to the axis. During the unescorted 1,000 mile flight from libya, clouds broke the formation into two groups and a wrong turn caused even more confusion. The focus of this paper will be on the 1 august 1943 bombing raid on the ploesti oil field and refineries by an american task force composed of bombardment groups of the eighth and ninth air forces. The direct flight path from benghazi to ploesti was 980 miles.
The mission resulted in no curtailment of overall product output. B24d liberators attack the oil refineries at ploesti, romania. Background paper on awards received by enlisted personnel. The father of a school aged friend was a copilot on a b24 that was shot down during the ploesti raid. We were on the first 1,000 bomber raid against targets in. Operation tidal wave was an air attack by bombers of the united states army air forces. Kitchens iii on the bombing of auschwitz was circulating through. In the summer of 1943, the usaaf decided to stage a major raid on ploesti from air bases in libya. On august 1, 1943, the usaaf staged operation tidalwavea daring, surprise lowlevel b24 raid against the axis critical source of fuel, the oil fields in ploesti, romania. My father is in the picture of the men standing beside thar she blows again. In the following months, strategic targets were assessed and prioritized according to their. The complex of oil facilities at ploesti was the largest individual supplier of oil and petroleum to the german war economy. Founded in 1596, it is the center of a major oilproducing region.
Operation tidal wave 1 august 1943 a b24 liberator serial number 4240402 nicknamed the sandman of the 98th bomb group banks low over a factory during the ploesti raid 1 august 1943. Two of our engines were shot out, a third was damaged by antiaircraft fire over our target. Onethird of the b24s were lost on this missionand the 98th bomb group lost onehalf of its crews and planes. On 5 april 1944, the target was the my and oil refineries at ploesti, roumania, the main purpose of this raid was to knock out the transportation system so badly needed fuel could not reach the german line to the east. Miller also points out that the ploesti raid was one of the only air strikes of the war in which more airmen were killed than civilians 116.
Throughout the war in europe, american and allied air power struck heavy and repeated blows at strategic nazi industries, curtailing production and forcing the nazi government into a costly program of industrial maintenance, reconstruction, and rebuilding underground. The ploesti raid was one of the most famous and difficult raids of world war ii and bill has depicted the fire and the fury that those b24 liberator pilots faced as they bombed the oil fields of ploesti. Supported by maps, diagrams, and fullcolour artwork including battlescenes and birdseye views, this is the full story of the audacious ploesti raid of 1943. If the raid succeeded, the nazi war machine would suffer a devastating blow. Floyd coffield underwent his baptism of fire on a bombing raid over ploesti, romania, flying a b24 liberator fourengine bomber on may 18, 1944. Supported by maps, diagrams, and fullcolor artwork including battlescenes and birdseyeviews, this is the full story of the audacious ploesti raid of 1943. Officially known as operation tidal wave, the ploesti raid occurred on 1 august and because it marked the second highest loss suffered by the united the indus region during the mature harappan period,including the domains of the indus civilization,the best known settlements and. The german war machine derived onethird of its oil supply from ploesti. Liberator on ploesti raid september 1943 operation tidal wave officially known as operation tidal wave, the ploesti raid occurred on 1 august and because it marked the second highest loss suffered by the united in the midst of on august the ploiesti oil raid took place over romania.
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