NOTES:

Night pre-operation cross country.

NOTES:

Night pre-operation cross country and bombing

NOTES:

Air test, circuits and landings

NOTES:

'Y' cross country; formation flying.

NOTES:

German Navy base, canal, and harbour Load: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’, 8x 500lb bombs, 5x 500lb ‘J’ Type incendiary cluster or, 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’, 16x 500lb bombs UL-I2 carried 1x 2000lb bomb and 18x ‘J’ Type incendiary clusters (Mason diary) One Squadron aircraft (unidentified) had engine problems and had to jettison just before reaching target Sgt E R James: ‘In the same old J2. Medium to light flak, very few searchlights; never saw a fighter. Quite a nice trip took 5:30 hrs. Receiver in wireless went u/s but OK after changing valve. Used emergency working. No damage to aircraft at all. Saw no kites shot down, although a few were. Good prang; saw fires through thick clouds.’

NOTES:

Built-up area Load: 1x 2000lb bomb, 12x cluster bombs, each containing 14x 30lb ‘J’-Type incendiaries COMBAT – Attacked by Fw190 ORB gives UL-D2 ME854

NOTES:

Bombing, air to air firing

NOTES:

Engineering workshops Load: MkIII a/c: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’, 11x 500lb bpmbs. H2S a/c: 1x 4000lb ‘Cookie’, 10x 500lb bombs (N2, and…) Several aircraft damaged by flak and night fighters. Combat - attacked by Ju88.

NOTES:

Harbour installations, shipping & U-Boat pens Load: 11x 1000lb, 4x 500lb bombs Engine failure. Diverted Lindholme due weather. E R James: ‘1st daylight raid. Target: port installations and U-Boat pens. Bags of predicted flak; saw kite in front shot down in flames – that shook me. No fighters. Afterwards learned that two destroyers were sunk in the harbour. Actually saw bombs raining down on the target. We suffered no damage at all; starboard outer had to be feathered going out. We were diverted to Lindholme because of bad weather. Trip lasted 4:30.’

NOTES:

Lindholme to base.

NOTES:

V1 flying bomb supply depot Load: 11x 1000lb, 4x500lb bombs E R James: ‘2nd daylight raid. Flying bomb main depot. Bags of predicted flak. Saw two kites shot down. No fighters. Had Spitfires escorting us. Had good view of France; went quite a way in, just North of Paris actually. BA saw one kite knocked out of the air with someone else’s bombs. Not a very good prang. It took 4:40 hrs, Kite was R2. (Smith also records the aircraft as R2)’ Operational Record Book lists aircraft as UL-G2 LM594.

NOTES:

Oil storage depot Load: 9x1000lb, 3x 500lb bombs E R James: ‘Back again in J2. Target was an oil refinery. Escorted by Mosquitoes and Spitfires. Real good trip and a real smashing prang. Smoke up to 10,000ft. Not one burst of flak and no fighters. Saw huge flames after oil tanks had been hit. Two tankers were hit. Went out about 100ft above the sea. Altogether the best trip up to now, although it took 8:15 hrs.’

NOTES:

Oil storage depot. Mosquito and Spitfire escort Load: 9x 1000lb, 3x 500lb bombs E R James: ‘In J2. Target another oil refinery; escorted by Spitfires and Mosquitoes. Quite a decent trip similar to Pauillac, just opposite side of the river. Just a bit of flak. One Ju88 got into the stream but was last seen heading East with a few Mosquitoes on its tail. Not quite as good a prang as yesterday’s but a nice trip. It took 8:25 hrs. Diverted to Worksop.’

NOTES:

Return from diversion.

NOTES:

Concentration of enemy armour in battle area S of Caen Load: 11x1000lb, 4x 500lb bombs Flown in support of Operation TOTALISE Five Squadron aircraft in the final phase of the attack were instructed not to bomb and to retturn to base (RTB) with bombload – aiming point obscured by smoke & dust. All other aircraft bombed. E R James: ‘Target: German defences holding up our troops. Just light flak. A few enemy night fighters. Rear gunner saw one but it didn’t see us, thank the Lord. Very unsatisfactory raid. PFF ran out of target indicators. We brought all our bombs back. Trip took 4:10 hrs. Kite was J2. PS That was our last trip from 576 Squadron and as PFF had boobed on the trip, we thought we would try our hand at it!’