Bombing of Bremen in World War II
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This article is about the actual bombing of Nazi Germany targets. For the combat flight simulator/video game[1], see The Bremen Bombing Mission.
Nazi Germany targets in the state of Bremen such as those at Wesermünde/Bremerhaven/Farge were bombed by the Royal Air Force and the Eighth Air Force. The targets included the following:
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- AG Weser shipyard
- Atlas Werke shipbuilding company
- Bremer Vulkan shipyard
- Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau AG shipyard
- Focke-Wulf aircraft factory
- August Korff AG oil refinery
- Norddeutsche Hütte AG steel mill
- Uboot-Bunker Valentin
Bremen was captured in April 1945.
| Bombing of Bremen during World War II | |||||
| Date | Result | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| December 21/22, 1940 | No. 15 Squadron RAF used converted Wellingtons for the first time to bomb the dockyards at Bremen[2] | ||||
| January 1-3, 1941 | 141 aircraft raid the Bremen Focke-Wulf aircraft factory in the south of the city on the very first night of the month. Smaller attacks are made against the city on the following two nights.[3] | ||||
| March 12/13, 1941 | Heavy bombing raids were conducted on Hamburg, Bremen and Berlin | ||||
| July 4, 1941 | Twelve British Blenheim bombers attack Bremen, bombing an aircraft factory and a minesweeper. Four planes are shot down.[1] | ||||
| January 17/18, 1942 | 83 aircraft; only 8 aircraft claimed to have bombed the primary target at Bremen. Some of the aircraft attacking alternative targets reached Hamburg, which reports 11 fires and casualties of 5 dead and 12 injured. 3 Wellingtons were lost and 1 Stirling crashed England after being fired at and damaged by a British convoy.[3] | ||||
| June 3/4, 1942 | 170 aircraft attacked on the first large raid to Bremen since October 1941. 11 aircraft - 4 Wellingtons, 2 Halifaxes, 2 Lancasters, 2 Stirlings, 1 Manchester - lost. Bremen recorded this as a heavy attack, the results of which exceeded all previous raids. Housing areas were heavily hit with 6 streets affected by serious fires. Damage to the U-boat construction yards and the Focke-Wulf factory is described as 'of no importance' but there were hits in the harbour area which damaged a pier, some warehouses and the destroyer Z-25.[clarify] 83 people dead, 29 seriously and 229 slightly injured (Bremen's third heaviest casualty toll in the war).[3] | ||||
| June 25/26, 1942 | 1,067 aircraft, including every type of aircraft in RAF Bomber Command (472 Wellingtons, 124 Halifaxes, 96 Lancasters, 69 Stirlings, 51 Blenheims, 50 Hampdens, 50 Whitleys, 24 Bostons, 20 Manchesters and 4 Mosquitos), 102 Hudsons and Wellingtons of RAF Coastal Command, and 5 RAF Army Cooperation Command aircraft were sent to Bremen. The No. 5 Group RAF effort - 142 aircraft -- bombed the Focke-Wulf factory; 20 Blenheims were allocated to the AG Weser shipyard; the RAF Coastal Command aircraft were to bomb the Deutsche Schiff- und Maschinenbau AG shipyard; all other aircraft were to carry out an area attack on the town and docks. The tactics were basically similar to the earlier Thousand bomber raids except that the bombing period was now cut to 65 minutes. The bomber crews found the target completely covered by cloud for the whole period of the raid, and the limited success was entirely due to the use of Gee, which enabled the leading crews to start fires, on to the glow of which many aircraft of later waves bombed. 696 Bomber Command aircraft were able to claim attacks on Bremen. 572 houses were completely destroyed and 6,108 damaged. 85 people were killed, 497 injured and 2,378 bombed out. At the Focke-Wulf factory, an assembly shop was completely flattened, 6 buildings were seriously damaged and 11 buildings lightly so. The Atlas Werke, the Bremer Vulkan shipyard, the Norddeutsche Hütte, the Korff refinery, and 2 large dockside warehouses were also damaged. 48 Bomber Command aircraft were lost (a new record, 5% of those dispatched), including 4 which came down in the sea near England from which all but 2 crew members were rescued. This time, heaviest casualties were suffered by the OTUs of No. 91 Group RAF , which lost 23 of the 198 Whitleys and Wellingtons provided by that group, a loss of 11.6 per cent. 5 of the 102 Coastal Command aircraft were also lost.[3] | ||||
| June 27/28, 1942 | 144 aircraft - 55 Wellingtons, 39 Halifaxes, 26 Stirlings, 24 Lancasters. 9 aircraft - 4 Wellingtons, 2 Halifaxes, 2 Lancasters, 1 Stirling - lost. 119 aircraft bombed blindly through cloud after obtaining Gee fixes. Bremen records that two of the large firms hit in the recent Thousand raid - the Atlas Werke and the Korff refinery - were damaged again, as well as several smaller firms and dockside warehouses. A hospital and an unrecorded number of houses were also hit. 7 people were killed and 80 injured.[3] | ||||
| April 17, 1943 | VIII Bomber Command Mission Number 52:[2] 115 B-17's are dispatched against the Focke-Wulf factory at Bremen, the Eighth Air Force's largest mission to date. 63-15-17 Luftwaffe aircraft claimed; 15 B-17s downed by fighters, 1 by flak, 39 damaged; 2 KIA, 4 WIA and 159 MIA.[4] Bombs destroyed at least half of the hit the Focke-Wulf factory buildings.[3] | ||||
| October 8, 1943 | The 381st Bombardment Group was awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation for it's performance 8 Oct 1943 when the Bremen shipyards were bombed accurately in spite of persistent Luftwaffe fighter attacks and extremely heavy and accurate flak.[4][www.web-birds.com/8th/100/100.html] | ||||
| November 13, 1943 | VIII Bomber Command Mission 130: 79 of 159 B-17's, 61 of 109 B-24's and 3 of 4 B-17 PFF aircraft hit the port area at Bremen and targets of opportunity in the Kiel-Flensburg area at 1120-1145 hours; 100+ aircraft abort the mission due to weather; they claim 20-14-13 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-17's and 13 B-24's are lost; 3 B-17's and 3 B-24's are damaged beyond repair and 12 B-17's and 10 B-24's are damaged; casualties are 21 KIA, 26 WIA and 162 MIA. The bombers are escorted by 45 P-38's (all the way to the target) and 345 P-47's; they claim 10-3-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; 7 P-38's and 3 P-47's are lost; 2 P-38's are damaged beyond repair; 5 P-38's and 2 P-47's are damaged; casualties are 9 MIA.[4] | ||||
| November 26, 1943 | VIII Bomber Command Mission 138: 350 of 390 B-17's, 77 of 101 B-24's and 13 of 14 B-17 PFF aircraft attack the port area of Bremen at 1145-1228 hours; they claim 16-3-10 Luftwaffe aircraft; 22 B-17's and 3 B-24's are lost; 3 B-17's and 1 B-24 are damaged beyond repair and 139 B-17's, 19 B-24's and 7 PFF B-17's are damaged; casualties are 10 KIA, 35 WIA and 215 MIA[4] | ||||
| November 29, 1943 | VIII Bomber Command Mission 140: 154 of 360 B-17's hit the port of Bremen and targets of opportunity in the area at 1429-1450 hours; unfavorable cloud conditions and malfunction of blindbombing equipment cause 200+ B-17's to abort; they claim 15-11-10 Luftwaffe aircraft; 13 B-17's are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 43 damaged; casualties are 2 KIA, 13 WIA and 131 MIA. The B-17's are escorted by 38 P-38's and 314 P-47's; they claim 15-4-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; 7 P-38's and 9 P-47's are lost; 1 P-47 is damage beyond repair and another damaged; casualties are 1 WIA and 16 MIA.[4] | ||||
| June 29/30, 1944 | 253 aircraft - 108 Wellingtons, 64 Lancasters, 47 Stirlings, 34 Halifaxes - dispatched, the first time that 4-engined bombers provided more than half of the force on a major raid. 11 aircraft - 4 Stirlings, 4 Wellingtons, 3 Halifaxes - were lost. Bremen reported that 48 houses were destroyed and 934 damaged, mostly lightly. Extensive damage occurred in 5 important war industries, including the Focke-Wulf factory and the AG Weser U-boat construction yard, and at the local gasworks, a museum and a merchant-navy college, mostly fire.[3] | ||||
| July 29, 1944 | Torpedo boat T2 (type 35) was bombed and sunk at Bremen | ||||
| September, 1944 | Schichau Seebeckwerft Unterseeboot 3509 was damaged during a Bremerhaven bombing raid.[5] | ||||
| October 12, 1944 | Mission 674: 262 Eighth Air Force B-17s are dispatched to aviation industries at Bremen (267) bombing visually; 1 other hits a target of opportunity; 1 B-17 is lost, 1 damaged beyond repair and 59 damaged. 7 airmen are KIA, 1 WIA and 9 MIA. Escort is provided by 273 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 17-2-1 aircraft; 5 P-51s are lost (pilots MIA).[4] | ||||
| March 27, 1945 | 115 Lancasters of No. 5 Group RAF attacked an oil-storage depot (95 aircraft) and a U-boat shelter (20 aircraft of No. 617 Squadron RAF) at Farge. Two Grand Slam bombs penetrated two metres and detonated,[5] which rendered the shelter unusable. No aircraft were lost.[3] | ||||
| March 30, 1945 | 303rd BG (H) Combat Mission No. 348: 38 aircraft were dispatched to bomb Bremen. The submarine building yards were the first priority target.(PDF) | ||||
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[edit] References and notes
- ^ The Bremen Bombing Mission. WWII Europe Series. Microsoft game studios. Retrieved on 2008-05-26.
- ^ No. 15 Squadron. Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary. UK Crown. Retrieved on 2008-05-14.
- ^ a b c d e f g Campaign Diary. Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary. UK Crown. Retrieved on 2008-05-26. 1941 1942: January June 1945: March
- ^ a b c d e 8th Air Force 1944 Chronicles. Retrieved on 2008-05-26. 1943: April 1944: October, December, January 1945: March
- ^ Grube, Christel (February 28, 2006). Submarine-Valentin, Bremen-Farge (html -- German language). Interessengemeinschaft für historische Militär-, Industrie- und Verkehrsbauten. lostplaces.de. Retrieved on 2008-05-13.
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