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Summary:
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For the 401st Bomb Group, this was the most important mission to date. The Group put up 60 aircraft--by far the most for any one mission--and the Group, led by Col. Bowman, led the entire 8th Air Force. Moreover, it was one of the Group's most successful missions from the standpoint of bombing accuracy. The Group flew in five boxes of 12 aircraft each, and each box, bombing individually, hit its MPI. The five lead bombardiers, Major Julius Pickoff, Captain Henry R. Briarton, Captain Harry W. Meadville, Captain William W. Dolan and Lt. Ralph R. Wolfe, received personal letters of commendation from the Commanding General of the 94th Combat Wing.
Flak at the target was moderate and accurate, and the Group was also attacked by two German Me-109's just before reaching the target, resulting in the loss of Lt. Russell H. Schroeder and his crew, flying "Dry Run" (42-37843). The German fighters were immediately bounced and shot down by U.S. fighter aircraft.
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