[Juha]

Hello Tony
That is what I have been saying
what Harris thought doesn’t matter, what mattered was what above him thought. Now, was it USA, GB , Germany or Soviet Union, the ultimate decision power was in the hand of the civilian leader, FDR, WC, AH etc. In WC’s case as long as he had the backing of the majority of MPs. So what matters was what WC thought, that’s why I mentioned earlier Lindeman, WC’s chief scientific adviser and Committee of Imperial Defence or whatever which was the highest civil-military organisation, which laid down strategic guidelines.

That’s why BC used so much effort for ex on naval targets, Scharnhorst, Gneisenau, Tirpitz, Hipper, U-boat pens. Do you really think that Harris and his predecessor did that from theirs free will? No, when WC was worried on KM he ordered BC to concentrate much of its efforts on naval targets. Harris was even right in his opinion that pre Tallboy period bombing U-boat pens wasn’t very cost-effective way to use BC, even if collateral damage hampered U-boat arm.

And contrary what Kennedy writes there was bombers in Middle-East, Wellingtons (at that time 6 sqns, 7th had just completed its conversion to a torpedo-bomber sqn), one of the main targets of Wimpys were just the ports, and lighter have been there already a long time and Halifaxes (2 sqns) were just about to arrive, first Hali losses happened in early July 42 in Med. During the summer 42 there were also 2 Liberator sqns and the USAAF B-24s of HALPRO. At that time even BC had not very many heavy bombers. The first Hali combat loss in MTO was during an attack on a port.

Juha