Bomber Command raids and routes

[mongoose44]

I am looking for online/book info which gives routes of BC raids; inparticular from July '43 to March '44. Any Ideas? I have ordered "Battle over the Reich, A. Price" but I don't know if that solves this problem. I am not near a convenient librsry source being in the middle of the US of A. ( Although I will be in Devon visiting family June/July.)

[Nick Beale]

"Pathfinder Force" by Gordon Musgrove has a number of examples but (IIRC) the best source could well be the official history by Webster and Frankland, "The Strategic Air Offensive Against Germany" (in four volumes as far as I remember)

[mongoose44]

When I go to Amazon that is the same as the Price book (full title = Battle Over the Reich: The Strategic Bomber Offensive Against Germany 1939-1945 Volume 1 August 1939-October 1943: Vol 1 etc) Possible??

[Nick Beale]

Originally Posted by mongoose44

When I go to Amazon that is the same as the Price book (full title = Battle Over the Reich: The Strategic Bomber Offensive Against Germany 1939-1945 Volume 1 August 1939-October 1943: Vol 1 etc) Possible??

No, totally different book.

[Juha]

Hello
in Middlebrook's books there are several examples and IIRC there are some in Price's "Battle over the Reich". I have at least one other book in which there are several routes mapped out but I'm now at work. I'll give exact info later on when I'll get to home.

Juha

[Juha]

Hello mongoose44
In Martin Middlebrook's The Berlin Raids. RAF Bomber Command Winter 1943-44 there is appr. 18 maps on routes used by BC during raids during Your timeframe. There are different editions on the book, mine is the Viking's 1988. Middlebrook has also wrote books on Hamburg raids in late July 43, on Peenemünde raid in Aug. 43 and on Nuremburg raid in March 44.
In Ken Merrick's By Day & By Night. The Bomber War in Europe 1939-45 (1989)there is appr. 6 maps on routes used by BC during raids during Your timeframe.
There seems to be only one route map of the raids made inom Your timescale in Alfred Price's Battle over the Reich. But I have an old edition (1973).

HTH
Juha

[Ju88G1]

What days/nights do you need ??

[mongoose44]

Thanks Juha for the info. I'm spending too much on books!!! I will check it out or if necessary go to a library when in Devon.

Ju88

Actually I am going through all the major raids from the 1st Hamburg one 24-25/7 '43b to Nuremberg March '44! At the moment I am looking at this period http://www.allensrule.com/TOWmissPlanner070843.zip

LATER: OK! placed orders for delivery in Devon for the Middlebrook books. Good 2nd hand prices!!!

[RodM]

Originally Posted by mongoose44

I am looking for online/book info which gives routes of BC raids; inparticular from July '43 to March '44. Any Ideas?

Hi,

if you really want the information straight from the horse's mouth, rather than buying a book, trying ordering the relevant reports from the British National Archives:

AIR 14/3374 Interception and tactics: night reports 1942 June-1943 Jan.

AIR 14/3375 Interception and tactics: night reports 1943 June- Dec.

AIR 14/3376 Interception and tactics: night reports 1944 Jan.- May

These files contain the Bomber Command Operational Research Section reports relating to the Bomber Command effort vis-a-vis the German Defense.


A report was made for each day/night of operations and each contain:


(a) a statistical summary of all Bomber Command raids in a night, identified by target, total number of sorties, number that claimed to have attacked the target, number of aircraft missing, time on target and height bands used.

(b) the geographical co-ordinates of the routes used on the main raids

(c) details of the weather forecast and weather encountered

(d) details of the German defensive effort

(e) a route map


If you are interested in particular raids between July 1943-March 1944 then by visiting the National Archives Website (http://www.catalogue.nationalarchives.gov.uk/), you can order online paper copies of documents from these files.


The copies are usually A3 size and each report will run from 2-5 pages. It costs GBP10 to make the initial request (but this cost is deducted from the total amount of your order) and they will provide a quotation for the copies that you want. Admittedly, this can be expensive if you require a lot of reports but, to be honest, you could buy fifty books and still not get the information in these reports...


In the National Archives ordering system, you can specify the file and then write down what information you want off the file (i.e. reports for raids on such-and-such a date).


'hoping that this is of some help and good luck


RodM

[mongoose44]

That was toooo simple! I ordered some for when I arrive in Uk next week.
Many thanks! ( The books will be good anyway!)