Mission No. 21
Date – October 26, 1944
Assigned Target – Marshalling Yard, Munster, Germany
Target Attacked – As briefed
Results – Unobserved (Path Finder Fortress)
Aircraft Number – 8199-R (Path Finder Fortress)
Bomb Load – 6 500 lb. Demo.; 6 500 lb. I. B. [incendiary bombs]
Position in Formation – Division Lead
Time – 5 hrs. 30 min.
Altitude over Target – 27,000'
Casualties – None
Damage – None
Losses – None
Loading List
C.A. – Major Petersen, T. J.
Pilot – Capt. Arlin, A. A.
Nav. – Capt. Pickett, Paul E.
Nav. – 1st Lt. Brass, Ernest H.
Mickey – 2nd Lt. Meyers, Thomas E.
Bomb. – 1st Lt. Baxter, M. V.
Eng. – T/Sgt. Chmielewski, R. J.
Radio – T/Sgt. Ruff, C. F.
R. W. – S/Sgt. Carter, C. M.
L. W. – S/Sgt. Wilson, W. C.
Tail – S/Sgt. Hoffman, A. W.
Mission No. 21
October 26, 1944
It took us five days to get this mission in. The first three days, the group was stood down because of bad weather. Yesterday, we were briefed to go to Hamburg and were made very happy when it was scrubbed just before take-off. Today, we were briefed for this target and were afraid this was going to be scrubbed before we could get off.
At take-off time, it was very foggy, the visibility being down to about 100 yards. A 30 minute delay came through, at the end of which we took off – fog or no fog. We broke out into the clear at 1,000' and didn’t have any more weather trouble until we reached the buncher at assembly altitude, 18,000'. There was an overcast at this level, so we let down 1,500 feet and assembled there.
We left the buncher on time and made all our control points good on the way in. We made the division formation without any trouble and the first thing we knew, we were at the I.P. and on our bombing run. We made the run on PFF and had left the target and were on our way back when we saw our first flak. We made a 180 off the target and, as we came back by it, we could see the flak coming up at the other groups behind us. I don’t believe they fired a single shot at our lead group; if they did, it was way behind us and didn’t hit anyone.
The trip back was entirely without incident. We came back to the field and landed. Two ships aborted out of our low group on the way back and came home alone. They had been hit by flak; one had two engines out and the other had his oxygen shot out. They both made it back O.K. So my record still stands – haven’t lost a ship out of any of my formations.
From the time we took off, we didn’t once see the ground until we were over the field coming to land. It just happened that there was a hole in the clouds over the field when we came back. The only hole we had seen all day.
This was the most perfect mission I have ever been on. Pick and Brass did a wonderful job of navigating. Meyers made the run with the Mickey without a bit of trouble, and everyone flew beautiful formation all day. Everything went exactly according to schedule, and there wasn’t a bit of trouble. This is the first mission I have been on where everything went as briefed. Also, this is the first mission I have made and haven’t been shot at. Sure is a good morale factor.
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