Operation 22 FEB 1944 - Aalborg Updated: 28 MAY 2019
|  4 planes were lost that day. Hot 
    Rock and  Pot O'Gold were shot down by Oberleutnant
    Hans Hermann 
    Müller in his Ju-88 over the North Sea. Ball Turret Gunner Lester Schrenk and the other airmen of B17 42-31377 were escorted to landfall by the German Pilot! In 2012 they became friends! 
    B17 42-31377 (AirmenDK)
    Pot O'Gold    Pilot  2nd Lt
    William R. Lavies     See
    Sgt Schrenk and Obl Müller in 2012 and 
    many links from there. Paul Allonby, the author of the book COURAGE ABOVE THE CLOUDS: TIMELINE FEBRUARY 22ND 1944 – MISSION 230 – AALBORG DIVERSIONARY RAID 23.15 21.02.44 MAXIMUM 
    EFFORT orders forwarded to 
	305th Bombardment Group at
    Chelveston and the 
    92nd BG at Podington.
     01.15 22.02.44 ORDERS 
    arrive via teleprinter from FIRST BOMBARDMENT DIVISION HQ at Brampton Grange 
    for specialist staff at Chelveston and  03.15 AIR raid sirens sounded at both bases – Luftwaffe bombers detected operating in the area. Work continues to prepare the aircraft for the raid. 04.00 CREWS destined to fly on the mission are woken. 04.31 ALL-CLEAR. Air raid siren sounded to signify Luftwaffe bombers have now left the area. 05.00 CREWS at both bases 
    are briefed on the forthcoming mission, which is intended to divert 
    Luftwaffe fighters from heading southwards to intercept   08.00 AIRCRAFT begin taking off from Chelveston and Podington. The main force heading to Germany departs an hour later. 09.06 THE amalgamated 
    formation, with the 92nd BG leading, gathers then finally departs from its 
    rendezvous point above Louth in Lincolnshire, heading  13.01 LUFTWAFFE fighters 
    are scrambled to meet the formation of B17s, tracked 
    heading towards Denmark. They are on a route which could see  13.08 THE B17s sight the 
    Danish coast – but the country is covered in solid cloud, with the cloud 
    topping out at 8,000 feet. The formation is flying  13.25 ENEMY fighters 
    encountered for the first time over the Danish coast. The interceptors are 
    deterred from pressing home their attack by strong  13.38 GERMAN pilots 
    confirm to ground control that not only is the mission, given the number of 
    aircraft, a diversion but reveal that some of the aircraft  13.55 LUFTWAFFE ace Hans 
    Müller is vectored to the American formation. Flying a
    JU-88, he is told 
    to observe the bomber formation, particularly  14.13 THE bomber formation 
    arrives at Aalborg (here 
    - zoom), but visual bombing is not possible. The crews 
    circle the city, twice. Radio messages  14.26 LUFTWAFFE fighters, though limited in number, began attacking the B17s with vigour, with further anti-aircraft fire at 14.43 14.42 HANS Müller attacks, 
    and shoots down, ‘HOT ROCK’. The aircraft is last seen heading out to sea 
    heading in the direction of Sweden, but  14.45 WITHIN minutes, Lt. 
    Müller engages ‘POT O’GOLD’ causing severe damage.  
    He takes a position behind and to one side of the stricken bomber  14.55 – 15.20 ALL bombs carried by the B17s are jettisoned into the North Sea. 15.00 DEFENDING fighters 
    again engage the American bombers, with Herbert Christmann claiming ‘’ace’’ 
    status with the downing of ‘’LIBERTY RUN’’ –  15.02 ERICH Naujokat, 
    flying his first interception mission and operating as wingman to Herbert 
    Christmann, engages ‘MI-AMIGO’ in what his colleagues  15.10 THE Luftwaffe fighters begin heading back to base as the B17s head towards home across the North Sea, now travelling at 19,000-feet. 15.15 ‘MI-AMIGO’ – trailing smoke from her wings and at least one engine – begins lagging behind the formation and eventually is lost from sight. 16.10 RADIO transmission 
    from ‘MI-AMIGO’  using call-sign LIFTBOY VICTOR is received and answered. 
    The badly damaged bomber is still airborne,  16.28 THE B17s travelling 
    ahead of ‘MI-AMIGO’ make landfall over the English coast only to find heavy cloud 
    blanketing much of central England.  16.53 AIRCRAFT begin landing at Chelveston and Podington. 16.59 ‘MI-AMIGO’ emerges from low cloud over Sheffield, South Yorkshire, with engines faltering. 17.02 NO survivors as ‘MI-AMIGO’ crashes into Endcliffe Park. See also Sheffield Bomber Crash: Flypast on 75th Anniversary. |