Friendly fire WWII

[Laurent Rizzotti]

On 21 September 1944 the Soviet submarine ShCh-402 was sunk off Norway, probably by Soviet Bostons.

http://www.uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/5073.html

[Laurent Rizzotti]

It's just one of these days... a third case for today:

1st Lt Joseph Andrew Dugan of 310th FS, 58th FG was killed on 10 January 1945 when his P-47D-15 42-23220 was shot down over Lingayen Gulf, Luzon, Philippine Islands by friendly fire from U.S. Navy fighters.

Sources:
"No Glamour. No Glory! The Story of the 58th Fighter Group of World War II", by Anthony J. Kupferer
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg...&GRid=56775450
MACR 12201

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Uffz. Heinz Luginger of 4.(F)/123 was killed on 24 May 1944 when his Bf 109 G-5 WNr. 27108 was shot down in error by German Flak, near Lison (south east of Carentan).

Source:
http://www.ghostbombers.com/recon/bf109h_2.html
http://www.volksbund.de/graebersuche...EF6CA726BE45CC
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lison
http://www.maplandia.com/france/bass.../bayeux/lison/

[Six Nifty .50s]

I came across this information back in 2010 but never got around to posting it because life has gotten in the way of visiting the forums.

According to the author, the 747th Tank Battalion was working with the 175th Infantry Regiment on 8th June 1944 when RAF Typhoons misidentified their column and attacked, with tragic results. Lieutenant Homer Wilkes, a tank platoon commander, remembered:

" … The column formed up at Vierville in terrain curiously free of hedgerows. We started out in column on the road with Company C leading. I know not what the others thought, but I thought we were marching to the front. This impression was corrected minutes later by the appearance of an infantry skirmish line. Although it was my first taste of battle, I knew what that meant ... One strong point was Osmanville. And there on a clear day this village was attacked by a dozen British fighter-bombers. The Company C platoon leader of the advance guard was killed trying to display his identification panel. Other officers threw out smoke grenades. But the strike was pressed home until the pilots had dropped all their bombs and expended all ammunition. As a result, thirty-two infantrymen were slain, plus our officer, and Company C lost an entire platoon of tanks … "

See p.149
Yeide, Harry. The Infantry's Armor: The U.S. Army's Separate Tank Battalions in World War II (Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, 2010).

There was a similar incident noted by Joe Balkoski when he wrote Beyond The Beachhead which is possibly connected to this one.


***

On 10th November 1942, 
RAF Hudson V9253 (53 Squadron) was shot down by flying debris from its own depth charges; one of which scored a direct hit on the German submarine U-505 that was surfaced at the time. The U-boat was heavily damaged but returned to base at Lorient. The four-man RAF aircrew was lost along with one U.S. Navy passenger, including: Flight Sergeant R. R. Sillcock, RAAF; Sergeant P. G. Nelson, RNZAF; Sergeant W. Skinner, RAF; Sergeant T. R. Millar, RAF; and Seaman 1st Class H. L. Brew, USN.

(Source: U-Boat vs. Aircraft by Franks/Zimmerman, p.15)

[Laurent Rizzotti]

You probably have already much on the Typhoon attack on HMS minesweepers in the Channel on 27 August 1944, but the site below has much about this tragedy, including reports and testimonies:
http://www.halcyon-class.co.uk/frien...of_1st_msf.htm

One day later, the Soviet did exactly the same, attacking their own minesweepers with their ground-attack aircraft: off Narva, Il-2 of 35 ShAP attacked a Soviet flotilla and damaged 8 ships, killing 5 men and wounding 11. Two Russian sources on this:
http://www.navy.su/daybyday/july/05/index.htm
http://www.bgudkov.ru/?page_id=396

Best regards

[Brian]

Hi guys

Thanks for the latest - sorry I'm late in acknowledging - had a PC crash!

Cheers
Brian

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Think it is a new (at least for me): on 20 September 1944 an Allied battle group including part of 654th TD Bn was attacked in error by Allied fighter-bombers:

"At 1700 hours our fighter-bombers, through error, bombed and strafed positions held by the CP Group, Headquarters Company and Company "C". Also the 448th AAA Battalion. One AA gun was destroyed and the crew killed when a bomb made a direct hit on the gun. Sergeant Walston and Corporal Lehman of Company "C" were slightly wounded in this action.
"

Source: http://654th.com/1944_sep_20.htm

The next day, units of 35th US Division were attackezd by P-47s:

"CCB 4th AD was attached to division at 211000A, moving from Luneville to assembly area in the vicinity of Jallaucourt. The 35th Division QM Company was bombed and strafed by our P47's in the vicinity of Harancourt. The same planes dropped one bomb in the vicinity of the division command post. "

Source: http://654th.com/1944_sep_21.htm

[Observer1940]

Hello All, especially Brian

RN Shipping Damaged or Lost due to Friendly - Air and Other Actions

I was away in June and came across an HMSO Admiralty publication "Ships of the Royal Navy Statement of Losses" 3rd September, 1939 to 2nd September, 1945, 70 pages, for £20 in a s/h shop.

Some were damaged or sunk by:-

1. friendly air fire and other friendly firing.
2. friendly Mines
3. our own Blockships
4. collision or being rammed

Now I can see why our Royal Navy were so keen to open fire on all unidentified aircraft which came within the exclusion zone around HM ships, which sometimes resulted in engaging our own aircraft, or the shooting down of our own aircraft over the sea.

Mark

[Darius]

Hello Mark,

did you buy this publication?

Regards

Darius

[Observer1940]

Darius

Yes, at £20 I did buy the 1947 HMSO publication.

Brian, I have sent a PM (your inbox was full when trying to send a second PM), so sent an email with pdf (3 page) attachment.

The book is bigger than A4 and after several attempts moving it on the scanner, I managed to scan the two analysis pages by ship type. However, you need the rest of the book to get the names of the ships and "How lost" column. My copy was impossible to scan due to pressing against the tight hinge / binding and the book trying to move.

According to files in TNA, Kew, even our own aircraft sent to escort our ships were occasionly engaged by the ship that they were sent to protect!

Mark