AIR ASSAULT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25661, 9 October 1944, Page 5

AIR ASSAULT

GREATEST OF WAR 750# HEAVY BOMBERS OUT REICH CITIES POUNDED * (Rec. 9.30 p.m.) LONDON, Oct. 7. More than 5000 American warplanes, 3000 of which were heavy bombers, hammered Germany to-day in the most devastating daylight air assault of the war, says the Press Association’s aviation correspondent. These stunning blows, which were struck from Britain, France and Italy, came as the climax to 60 hours of bombing of unsurpassed fury, in which at least 7500 heavy bombers struck time after time against the Reich. They cascaded probably over 30,000 tons' of high explosive and fire bombs on vital target areas. The Americans to-day sent out from British bases ovC?.’ 1400 Fortresses and Liberators—the greatest fleet of heavy bombers ever over. Germany in a single operation. R.A.F. Bomber Command sent out more than 800 Lancasters and Halifaxes, and fighter escort formations aggregated 1500 plapes. These figures do not take into account the thousands of medium, light and fighter-bombers acting in close sup- . port of the land forces. Bomber Command last night began a new offensiva against Germany. From 3 p.m. until midnight wave after wave of heavies were in the air. Over 1200 aircraft took part in the operations, and by midnight three German towns were reported ablaze. Well over 1500 tons were dropped on Dortmund, and the crews reported huge fires spreading, while Bremen, where Lancasters dropped over 1000 tons, seemed to be ablaze from end to end. Saarbrucken, which was attacked the night before, was still on fire, and the crews found an area with a radius of two miles and a-half swept with fires.