6 Group Unavailable
712 aircraft - 457 Lancasters, 252 Halifaxes, 3 Mosquitoes. A long approach route from the south, passing south of the Ruhr and then within 20 miles of Leipzig, together with Mosquito diversions at Diisseldorf, Leipzig and Magdeburg, caused the German controller great difficulties and there were few fighters over Berlin. Bad weather on the outward route also kept down the number of German fighters finding the bomber stream. 20 aircraft - I I Lan casters, 9 Halifaxes - were lost, 2 · 8 per cent of the force.
Berlin was again cloud-covered. The Bomber Command report claiming a concentrated attack on sky-markers is not confirmed by the local report. The heaviest bombing was in the southern and south-eastern districts but many bombs also fell to the east of the city. 388 houses and other mixed property were destroyed but no item of major interest is mentioned. I 82 people were killed, more than 600 were injured and over 10,000 were bombed out.
source: The Bomber Command War Diaries, Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt
Halifax aircraft LK 701 did not return from night operations, an attack against Berlin, Germany. F/Os R.A.Holtby, G.E. Bishop, Sergeants J.J. Whelan, G.D. Kehoe, and FS G. Cummine were killed. There were two 431 Sqdn. aircraft lost in the same area on this date. The following RAF personnel were also killed; Sergeants A.H.R. Fielding, F.G. Goodall, L.C. Nosworthy, P. Walker, and Pilot Officer A.E.F. Banning.
