1. A mission to Frankfurt was scrubbed, Field Order #120.

2. T/Sgt Thomas R. Moore, listed MIA on the first Schweinfurt raid, was re-assigned to this squadron today, having escaped from France via the Underground channels.

2nd Lts Malcom Van Hise, navigator, MIA; William H. Bartlett, Jr., Charles A. Enos and Harold F. Henslin, pilots, and Eugene Arning, bombardier, all promoted to 1st Lts.

3. Covered by a perfect canopy of Thunderbolts, Lightnings and Mustangs, encountering no enemy fighters and only the most meagre flak, this squadron's forts formed part of a stream of heavy bombers 10 miles long which pounded Wilhelmshafen with hundreds of tons of explosives through a 10/10th undercast today. There were no claims or casualties.

Our pilots today were: Lts Putek, Urban, Liddle, Meyers, Smith, Pluemer, Downey, Henslin and Tyson.

4. For the second consecutive day the squadron participated in PFF bombing through 10/10th undercast, this time hitting Frankfurt. No enemy fighters were encountered, and flak over the target was light. However, the 91st BG, leading the Wing, led the formation over Hannover and some of the heaviest flak met by the men in many missions, on the return trip. This was strict an off course SNAFU.

Participating pilots today were: Lts Henslin, Putek, Urban, Hustedt, Enos, Ridley and Tyson.

5. The squadron returned to visual bombing today and bombardiers were given an opportunity to see their target for a change, and did a thorough job on workshops and hangars on the German airfield at St Avord, France.
Highlight of the bombing for most of the gunners, free, in the almost complete absence of enemy fighters, to watch the bombing results, was the German ground crews' attempts to disperse planed parked on the perimeter and runways of the blasted field. They watched blast from hangar hitting 500-pounders destroy or badly damage several such planes. There was no flak fired at our formation nor did any of the Forts undergo fighter attack, thus there were no claims or casualties.

Taking part were: Capt Jones (with Lt Col Hall), Lts Hustedt, Downey, Henslin, Ridley, Enos and Putek.

Sgt Emery Y. Naha flew with the 534th.

6. The squadron got credit for a sortie to an airfield near Nancy, France, although 10/10th undercast prevented bombing. No enemy fighters appeared but the Fort met with intermittent flak over the continent. The feature story of this mission was told by the crew of "Touch-the-Button Nell" when they landed a US Navy B-24 patrol base in southwest England, Dunkeswell.

With 1st Lt Hank Putek at the controls, "Nell" was eastbound with the formation when a blast over the fuel transfer pump completely shattered to top turret, broke or cracked all cockpit windows and started a fire under the top turret platform. Lt Putek's chute was destroyed by the flames.

While top turret gunner S/Sgt Lifford E. French fought the flames, Putek gave the order to bail out, and the ship's three officers, Lts Coffman, Blalock and Christensen, beside himself did so, while the gunners lined up at the waist door preparing to hit the silk.

However French brought the fire under control and signalled the others to return to their posts. Putek, determined to bring "Nell" home, at 4,000 ft altitude, her flares destroyed, oxygen system shot out and bomb bay doors open after the bomb lead salvo. Almost immediately the crippled Fort was hit from the rear by the ME109's. Sgt George Vinovich, tail gunner, probably destroyed the first. The second sent four 20mm's smashing into Sgt Herbert J. Burgasser's ball turret, wounding him so severely about the face that he may lose his left eye. Radioman S/Sgt James Bomar destroyed the third Jerry.

During this time, "Nell" had no gun that would bear from 9 to 3 o'oclock. Coming over a city, believed to be Paris, most of the Fort's instruments were left useless by the still unexplained blast, heavy flak batteries opened up on her, blew off the plexi-glass nose, jammed the bomb bay doors open for all time, and filled the big bomber with holes from stem to stern.

French rode as co-pilot, and both he and Putek were forced to protect themselves from the terrible blast rippling through the virtually open compartment by breathing through their oxygen mask. When land was sighted, "Nell" slid in low, bomb bay doors open, no radio or flares available, to be met by fire from a British AA battery when she failed to respond to the latter's challenge. After a full circle sweep, Putek finally brought her in at the Navy field, near where French, severely burned, and Burgasser were hospitalized.

Pictures show the Fortress to be damaged beyond repair, the most battled-scarred ship in the squadron's history since "Tinkertoy" took her unmerciful pounding last October over Bremen.

Pilots on the mission were: Lts Hustedt, Meyers, Enos, Henslin, Smith, Bartlett, Liddle and Putek.

8. The following promotions were announced today: to 1st Lts, George A. Hoffman, Thomas L. Honahan, William P. Piekarski, Henry Putek, Nicholas Faby and James T. Shore.

To T/Sgt: James W. Bomar, Buren G. Cook, Carroll L. Fischel, Stephen M. Gasper, John Hariton, J.W. Padgett and Melvin Samuels.

To S/Sgt: Harold D. Bankston, Deverett D. Bickston, Samuel G. Bird, Hoyt C. Burkhalter, John J. Burke, Adolph V. Carini, Miller P. Chauvin, Bud R. Church, Valentine DiNicola, Lee W. Dudgeon, Wallace B. Heckman, Earl E. Matheson, Charles D. Middleton, Emery Y. Naha, Wayne B. Pegg, Norman E. Phillips, Abelardo L. Rodriguez, Israel A. Salazar, Kenneth W. Schmitt, Kermit F. Sessons, Vincent D. Shortell, Joseph G. Sorbino, Robert J. Smith and George Vinovich.

Major Halsey went to 1st Bomb Division on DS today. M/Sgt Charles P. Stern, recently transferred in, was assigned to this squadron. He trained for more that a year in RAF Beauforts, in the first enlisted navigator in this group. Eventually he expects to be promoted to F/O or 2nd Lt.

8. A mission to Leipzig was scrubbed today.

11. Briefed for a target in Frankfurst, our Forts followed a PFF ship to what later proved to be Ludwigshafen, where a fair bombing was accomplished through broken clouds. Both flak and fighters were heavy for other groups, but this squadron, like the group as a whole, caught very little enemy opposition of any kind, and there were no losses.
Pilots taking part were: Capt Jones, Lts Liddle, McIntosh, Meyers, Enos and Pluemer, while Bartlett aborted.

Major Halsey returned from DS at 1st Bomb Division.

12. S/Sgt Floyd N. Terry, escapee, re-assigned to the squadron today and promoted T/Sgt. He followed T/Sgt Myers out of France via Underground channels.

14. A mission to the French rocket coast was scrubbed.

Sgt Herbert J. Burgasser, wounded on the Nancy mission, promoted S/Sgt; Earl B. Schiek, formerly in Ridley's crew, has re-volunteered for combat operations, after asking to be grounded some moths ago. He has been accepted, re-placed on flying status and promoted to Sgt.

17. Another attempt to hit the French rocket coast was again called off.

18. Seth A. Armstead, squadron operations officer, promoted to captain; Major Halsey left for the rest home.

19. W/O Albert G. Mosher, Jr., joined the squadron today, assigned from the 533rd. He will be assistant engineering officer to Capt Clayton R. Greenwood.

20. Forty-three group Fortresses took off this morning, flying as two group formations, with aircraft plants at Leipzig and Aschersleben as their targets. Two ships aborted.

This marks the outfit's greatest effort, and was part of an all out Eighth Air Force attempt to smash German aircraft production beyond hope of repair.

The Leipzig group, under command of Lt Bill Ridley, accomplished an excellent bombing under clear weather conditions. Only about a dozen enemy aircraft came up to meet the Forts, and such opposition was well taken care of by superior P-47 and P-51 fighter escort. Flak was meagre during the bomb run, and Jerry succeeded in getting up a full barrage only after our Forts had come off the run. There were no claims or casualties in this squadron.

The group headed for Aschersleben, encountered extremely unfavourable cloud conditions throughout the entire course of the mission, ended up at Oschersleben and accomplished a poor bombing. They met no enemy air opposition.
Our squadron pilots were: Lts Ridley, Enos, Pluemer, Evans, McIntosh, Downey and Hustedt.

21. The airfield at Achmer, Germany, became a target of opportunity when this group's Forts found the briefed target, at Gutersloh, hidden under a solid cloud overcast.

Gen. William M. Gross, 1st Combat Wing Commander, led the 381st's 38 Forts over the target for a good bombing of hangars, runways, workshops and dispersal areas. Out of the weak fighter opposition in the target area, this squadron's gunners ran up 1-1-1. Intermittent flak caused the bombers no trouble.

Participating: Capt Jones (with Gen Gross), Lts Bartlett, McIntosh, Downey Smith, Hustedt, Tyson and Urban.

22. Today the group learned what the true meaning of tight formation, large numbers of bombers and a full fighter escort.

Thirty one Forts took off this morning but some of the filthiest weather conditions over not a high altitude prevented the majority of them from bombing. Nineteen of them aborted, three of them out of the six sent by this squadron.
Twelve, including Lts Smith, Hustedt and Downey followed Major John Fitzgerald of the 532nd, to a rendezvous with 15 Forts from the 91st BG. These 27 ships, late for their escort, proceeded over the German coast alone, headed for Oschersleben.

About an hour inside Germany they were hit by more than 200 German fighters of high calibre. Major Fitzgerald had two sets of wingmen shot down. The group lost six, three from the 535th . The target bombed was Bunde, after more that 40 minutes of constant attack from enemy fighters, mostly FW190's.

MIA crews: 1st Lt Lee W. Smith, 2nd Lts Rowland H. Evans, Leonard P. Meier, Harold Kaufman; T/Sgts Harold C. Kemper, John C. Zappala, S/Sgt Lester P. Larson, Sgt Reginald C. Solway, S/Sgts Andrew F. Manning and Lawrence V. Eden.

2nd Lts Henry Hustedt, Keith S. Mauzey, Oral H. Hert, Stanley B. Inglis; Sgt Arthur R. Tell, S/Sgt Abelardo Rodruiguez, Sgts Rocco F. Russo, Vito R. Kuracina, Leslie J. Hanna and Robert C. Pingel.

2nd Lts Charles H. Downey, Donald Herdlicka, John D. Hicks, James C. Evans; S/Sgts Miller P. Chauvin, Earl E. Matheson, Earl B. Scheik, Sgt Norman E. Phillips, S/sgts Adolph V. Carini and Joseph G. Sorbino.

Sgts R. W. Smith and R. J. Powell, flying with other squadrons were each credited with an e/a damaged.

24. The squadron made its third trip to Schweinfurt today, but the city didn't seem the same to the veterans on August 17 and October 14 raids. In the face of almost no flak and the most meagre fighter opposition, the same old ball-bearing plant was smothered in a tight pattern.

This looked like the knockout blow to Major Shackley, 533rd CO, who has led all three of the group's Schweinfurt runs, and who is of the opinion that the factories must have been knocked out this time. Strike photos show, however, that although the bombing of the main plant was very good, vital portions still remain untouched. Although other groups in the mission underwent light fighter attacks, our group met nothing at all.

Participating pilots were: Pluemer, Liddle, Tyson, Bartlett, Urban, Enos and Meyers.

T/Sgts Otto F. Bruzewski and Thomas R. Moore, evaders, today were transferred to HQ, 1st Air Force, Mitchell Field, NY.

25. Today's mission to Augsburg, saw only one German fighter, and that was shot down by 2nd Lt Michael Buschbaum, of Lt Sellers' crew, as it attacked the Forts returning from a perfect bombing of the Messerschmitt assembly plant in this city close to the Swiss Alps. Flak was fairly heavy over the target, while visibility was a bombardier's dream.
Today's mission pilots: Lts Urban, Pluemer, Enos and Tyson; Liddle and McIntosh aborted.

26. T/Sgt Kenneth D. Lester, radio operator, who recently completed his tour, was transferred to the 12th RCD Casual Pool, Chorley, near Liverpool;T/Sgt Floyd H. Terry, evader, has been ordered on DS at the Eighth Air Force Intelligence Office, London.

Three new crews assigned today were: 1st Lt Ralph E. Freese, 2nd Lts Roy H. Pendergist, Edward Molenda, (no bomb'r); Sgts Samuel C. Periman, S/Sgt Hugh F. Riesdorph, Sgts Andrew J. Williamson, Ernest L. Waldow and Pvt Tyke K. Kaupppila.

2nd Lts Harlan D. Soeder, Phillip E. Mulhall, F/O Jerome D. Becker, 2nd Lt George C. Crote; Sgts Harry C. Sedoryk, Robert L. McGee, John J. Boland, Allen D. Hawkinson, Frank J. Marushack and Milton G. Bailes.

2nd Lts George W. Wilson, John O. English, Roy J. Fayard, Boyd K, Hamilton; Sgts Lewis J. McGuire, Robert D. Helmer, S/Sgt Arthur P. Andrzejewski, Sgt Ralph E. Price, Lennace J. Boudreaux and David G. Gildin.

27. Two new crews were assigned, the first to 1st Lt Thomas D. Sellers (a pilot with several mission with 534th): 2nd Lts James F. Mullane, Michael Buschbaum, William F. Hotaling; S/Sgts Edward A. Stahlke, Thaddeus J. Tarczynski, Lewis F. Sparrow, Robert E. Kettlety, Walter E. McFadden and Frank G. Troxler.

F/O Robert A. Haring (CP), 2nd Lt Joseph R. Scott, F/O Robert G. Hecker; S/Sgt Bertram D. Williams, Joseph A. Bearer, Sgts Ralph C. West, Bruce M. Tabor, William D. Ingram and Julius M. Micek.

Lt Sellers was never formally transferred to the 535th, but only an actual transfer of paper work was lacking, thus he is now back with a full crew.

Major Halsey returned from the rest home.

28. A mission to Jever airfield, Germany, was scrubbed today. 1st Lt Ridley and S/Sgt Reynolds, tours complete, left for the 12th RCD casual pool, Chorley, Lancs.