I was the navigator on Samuel Palant’s crew that day and my major regret is that I didn’t keep my log to prove my story. The winds were about 100 miles per hour and I knew it. I also knew we were being blown off course to Dresden. Unfortunately, we were not the lead aircraft that day and had to play “follow the leader”. I called our position to Sam and he radioed it to the lead. No action was taken and we bombed Prague instead of our primary target – Dresden. If memory serves me correctly, our 601 squadron dropped incendiaries. On our return to base at approximately 20,000 feet and 90 miles from that city, we could still see the fires and smoke pouring out of Prague.

During our usual de-briefing after each mission, I pointed out the bombing error and presented my log. It was not until the following day, after aerial photos were reviewed, that the error was quietly announced. I don’t know if I was the only navigator to report the error. I do know that no top-brass ever thanked me for being right!


Article transcribed by Lee Anne Bradley, 398th Group Historian, October 2007.