21.03.1944 Beckum (Germany) USAAF raid

[Stig Jarlevik]

Hi Frankie Geffrey Sinclair wishes to add the following

The 8th Air Force only sent a small raid to Watten on 21 March 1944, on 23 March 1944 according to Richard Davis it attacked the following targets in Germany, bombs in short tons.

target \ sighting \ attacking \ missing \ HE \ IB \ Frag \ total \ Location
A/Icomp Me 110 \ H2X \ 205 \ 16 \ 327.8 \ 71.4 \ 77.3 \ 476.5 \ Brunswick/Wilhelmitor
M/Y \ H2X \ 87 \ 3 \ 149.0 \ 85.7 \ - \ 234.7 \ Osnabruck
I/A \ H2X \ 65 \ 1 \ 75.5 \ 58.8 \ - \ 134.3 \ Munster
City \ Vis \ 26 \ 0 \ 60.0 \ 12.6 \ - \ 72.6 \ Beckum
City \ Vis \ 25 \ 0 \ 53.5 \ 12.6 \ - \ 66.1 \ Drensteinfurt
City \ Vis \ 19 \ 0 \ 56.7 \ - \ - \ 56.7 \ Neubeckam
M/Y \ Vis \ 102 \ 6 \ 185.0 \ 79.8 \ - \ 264.8 \ Hamm
I/A \ Vis \ 88 \ 0 \ 155.5 \ 66.0 \ - \ 221.5 \ Ahlen
A/F \ Vis \ 68 \ 2 \ 106.0 \ 82.1 \ - \ 188.1 \ Munster/Handorf
T/O \ Vis \ 14 \ 0 \ 5.0 \ 30.1 \ - \ 35.1 \ Misc., Ge
T/O \ Vis \ 3 \ 0 \ 7.5 \ - \ - \ 7.5 \ Bramsche
T/O \ Vis \ 1 \ 0 \ - \ 2.6 \ - \ 2.6 \ Bohmte
T/O \ Vis \ 1 \ 0 \ 2.5 \ - \ - \ 2.5 \ Grosgrof
T/O \ Vis \ 1 \ 0 \ 2.5 \ - \ - \ 2.5 \ Hildersheim

The 8th AF monthly report says 301 aircraft to Beckum target of opportunity, of which 26 bombed it, the rest of the raid bombed Neubeckam (19 a/c), Ahlen (88 a/c), Hamm (102 a/c), Drensteinfurt (25 a/c), Munster (34 a/c), unknown 1 a/c all T/O There were 142 aircraft sent to Handorf primary target, 100 to Osnabruck secondary target and 225 to Brunswick, secondary target.

All up 768 sent, 705 attacking, 33 enemy aircraft destroyed, 28 bombers lost. Cross referencing to Mighty Eighth War Diary indicates the 301 aircraft raid was 1st BD sent to Munster, presumably 1 of the 11 groups flying that day attacked Beckum.

The targets and sighting methods of the 8th AF 21 March 1945 raids,
Achmer A/F Vis
Alhorn A/F Vis
Essen/Mulheim A/F Vis
Hesepe A/F Vis
Hopsten A/F Vis
Ijmuiden EB/Base Disney
Marx A/F Vis
Munster/Handorf A/F Vis
Oberursel Radar Test MH
Plauen AFV Vis
Reichenback I/A Vis
Rheine A/F Vis
Vorden A/F Vis
Wittmundhafen A/F Vis
Zwischenahn A/F Vis

In addition WR Chorley has Lancaster ND672 EA-U of 49 squadron crashing at Beckum, 6 KIA, 1 PoW, funerals held at Beckum, bodies now at Reichswald Forest.
Sgt PD Velasco PoW, the KIA were F/O DG Turner, Sgt E Lee, Sgt SJ Upton, F/O W Pearce, Sgt LH Nightingale, Sgt JNE Bennett, all were RAF except Bennett who was RCAF.

Geoffrey Sinclair

[FrankieS]

thank you Geoffrey,

so 21.03. possibly mixed up
by the book author.

thanks
FrankieS