Eager Eagles 1941–Summer 1943 by Martin W. Bowman

Author:Martin W. Bowman [Bowman, Martin W.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Military, Aviation, World War II
ISBN: 9781473843059
Google: ZQdtBQAAQBAJ
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Published: 2012-10-17T16:04:39+00:00

The B-17 gunners put up stiff resistance in the face of overwhelming odds but three B-17s were shot down.11 Lieutenants Alan Brill and his co-pilot, Allan W. Lowry, both drowned after ditching Excalibur. They were posthumously awarded the DFC. Major Fishburne and Captain James Bullock, his navigator, were both awarded the DFC for successfully leading and completing the mission. The Germans did not escape unscathed. American gunners claimed thirteen destroyed, three probables and four damaged.12

Schmidt-Barbo sums up:

This was the only daytime mission of the IIIrd Gruppe in this period which resulted in an encounter with the enemy. Losses: Unteroffizier crew Heintszch-Hendel; possibly they were one of the Me 110s that had approached the formation from behind on their own. As the proceedings had clearly shown, our Me 110, which was specially equipped for night fighting duties, was much too slow and cumbersome for daytime missions. And especially our crews, apart from the double burden of daytime and night-time missions, were completely inexperienced in daylight air combat. Thus, it was practically suicidal to attack such a formation of Boeings from behind as we were used to do at night. Still, only the death of Hauptmann Ludwig Becker during such a daylight attack on 26 February, slowly led to the insight by the ‘powers that be’ that the losses amongst the highly skilled night fighter crews were much too high in comparison to the possible, meagre results. So, after this day, we were not called upon to combat these formations of bombers penetrating our airspace at daytime.13

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