In the Doolittle Tokyo Raid, 15 co-pilots from the 16 B-25B Mitchell medium bombers were in flight school for less than a year. There was no time to waste. B-17 Flying Fortress Bombers Over Eastern Europe (Pinterest via ) #3: Doolittle Crew Were Actually “Newbies” The Germans really dialed in shooting bombers out of the sky with their sophisticated FLAK systems and method. Your chances of completing all 25 missions, at least unscathed, were slim to none. Imagine trying to move around? Kneeling, ducking, trying to shoot down the bad guys…couldn’t feel that comfortable! Preparing for mission (Pinterest via .net) #2: Really Hard To Make It Homeīomber crews needed to complete 25 missions before they were allowed to go home but that number was almost statistically impossible in Europe. You had to have gloves on, or else your hands would stick to just about anything metal. Several of those crews were on their 50th mission.#1: Your Bare Hands Would Freeze Immediatelyīecause temperatures could easily fall 60 degrees below zero, B-17 crewmen had to wear heavy gloves and electrically heated suits (which can possibly short circuit). Six of the ten losses were from a single squadron. Thirty-six planes took off with only 26 returning. It was their first heavy loss in two months of combat.Īlthough meeting severe fighter opposition and losing several of its bombers on 26 June 1944, the group proceeded to attack an oil refinery at Moosbierbaum, receiving another DUC for this performance. In addition to successful target damage, they were credited with 27 enemy aircraft destroyed and 17 probables. The 455th BG received a Distinguished Unit Citation for a mission on 2 April 1944 when the group contributed to Fifteenth AF’s campaign against enemy industry by attacking a ball-bearing plant at Steyr. Several of those crews were on their 50th mission. The other consensus mission was the Moosbierbaum oil refinery at Vienna, Austria on 26 June 1944. It was their first heavy loss in two months of combat. The Group hit the ball bearing plant at Steyer, Austria on 2 April 1944. Most members would probably agree on the two toughest missions. Only about 40% of the original crews returned. On the other hand, the group is credited with 119 enemy aircraft destroyed and another 78 probables. They suffered 147 KIA, 268 MIA, 179 POW, and 169 wounded in action. As time passed, the fighter opposition decreased but the Germans concentrated their anti-aircraft guns around the fewer remaining targets, so the threat from flak remained intense. The figure for combined causes includes causes such as collisions, ditchings, and crashes attributable to fighter or flak damage. The group lost 118 aircraft, 31 directly to fighters, 36 directly to flak, and 51 from all other causes combined. They dropped 13, 249 tons of munitions with the following approximate targeting breakoutĪuthorized personnel strength was over 4,000 personnel. The 455th flew 252 combat missions over France, Italy, Germany, Poland, Hungary, Austria, and the Balkans. Both survived the war but both are now deceased. Cool commanded from July 1943-September 1944.
The group had only two commanders during combat operations. The mission scheduled for the following day was cancelled and the group began preparations to return home. The group flew its last mission (Linz, Austria) 15 months later on 25 April 1945. The group moved to San Giovanni in February 1944 and flew its first combat mission (Anzio) on 16 February 1943 as part of the 304th Bomb Wing, Fifteenth Air Force. They remained in Tunisia until completion of their airfield at San Giovanni, Italy, about five miles west of Cerignola and 20 miles southwest of Foggia. They departed Langley in December 1943 and flew to Tunisia by way of Brazil, arriving in January 1944. They were issued G and H models of the Consolidated B-24 Liberator. After a somewhat nomadic training regimen with dilapidated equipment, the pieces of the group came together at Langley, VA in October 1943.
The group was activated July 1943 with four essentially stand-alone bomb squadrons: 740th, 741st, 742nd, and 743rd.
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