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Operation Tidal Wave 1 August 1943

C

casey jones

Charter Member
On Sunday 1 August 1943 177 B-24D Liberators came in at 50 ft
to attack the Romanian Oil Refineies at Ploesti. One B-24D hit
a chimney of the Astra Refinery, it then glided in for a crash
landing near the village of Trestieni near the refinery, the crew
became POWs, the B-24D-5 41-23782 "Boiler Maker II" was
repaired and flown out of the field where it had crash landed.
It flew with the Romanian Air Force until August 1944. It
will be the 70th anniversity this 1 August 2013. It is hoped
that these men will be remmenbered by America for their
bravery and determination on that day.

Cheers and Salute

Casey:salute:
 
:stop: Oh, please....NO!!! :stop:

Enough with the "Like" stuff. It's not that hard to post a simple message, is it?

- H52
 
I know of no other single incident in WWII, on either side, that so exemplifies the selflessness of men in combat as does this mission.

Most folks don't know the low-level approach was chosen by Col Smart, the mission planner, to not only ensure accuracy but to also (in theory, anyway) boost the odds of survival for the crews involved as well as keep the inevitable civilian casualties low (an attempt that succeeded brilliantly - very few Romanians lost their lives in the attack). A great many of the crews flying this mission had already completed their 25 combat missions and were eligible for rotation to the US. Although one group commander (Kane) volunteered his entire group without asking if anyone wanted to go, the rest of them asked for volunteers and virtually everyone did so. They sincerely believed this target was so important it was worth risking everything to wipe out. One RAF officer, a gunnery expert, volunteered to go as TT gunner with the Norman Appold crew and repeatedly saved their lives that day with his top-notch shooting (he did not receive the blessing of his parent RAF unit and was disciplined for going without permission). The group commanders to a man led their units into battle. This brings to mind Col Baker and Maj Jerstad (both KIA), both suffering from wounds and severe burns, refusing to relinquish group lead and taking their men right in to the target as they had promised them they would do. They died over the target but fulfilled their promise. The commanding general of 9thAF Bomber Command, General Ent, occupied the left seat in the lead bomber and took the same risks as his men. The leaders were right where they should have been. The losses were the greatest ever suffered by any major bombing effort by the USAAF (around 1/3 of the attacking force - heavier than either Schweinfurt), and finished the 9th AF as a heavy bomber outfit.

In this day and age when so many people lack confidence in any kind of governmental leadership, I can't understand why some studio or producer somewhere doesn't make a film out of this effort, similar to "Memphis Belle," but with a slightly different bent. It's an excellent example of leadership by example, and self-sacrifice - two concepts that seem to be foreign to most people nowadays. Gotta remember we're dealing with a lot of "me-first" "gimme-gimme-gimme" mentalities out there. Everything about rights, nothing about responsibilities. The leaders here were sitting behind a control yoke, not a microphone, and there was no 5th Amendment to hide behind. The leaders took the hits right along with their troops, and placed themselves in positions of great danger because they had an obligation to those they led. There's quite a morality play in this story.
 
Thanks for posting that Casey. Those men gave more than most can imagine.

I hope that the original post is more important than posts about the "dislike" of a "Like" button. What in the world does that have to do with the original post and topic?
 
Fortress Ploesti is one of the best and most informative books written on the campaign which lasted several months and was spread over twenty four missions. It comprised of 5,446 bomber sorties and 3,498 protective sorties.

The first mission Tidal Wave was also called the Gunners Dual by some crews that were on that mission. As bad as Tidal Wave was it only got worse the following year as defenses were improved in all aspects of Ploesti. Many more aircrews were lost either shot down and taken POW or KIA or missing. Like many others I thought the Tidal Wave mission was the only mission against Ploesti, but I was wrong.

If anyone wants to read one of the best books written on the entire campaign including the Tidal Wave mission get "Fortress Ploesti by Jay A. Stout.

Right up there with Fortress At War.

Creeps.
 
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