6 Bomber Group July 13/14, 1943
48 Halifaxes from 408, 419, 427, and 428 Squadrons were joined by 21 Wellingtons from 429 and 432 Squadrons on an attack at Aachen. The crews were over the target at between 15,000 and 20,500 feet, releasing 224,000 lbs of incendiaries and 94,000 lbs of high explosives. According to reports, bombing was accurate and severe damage was caused. Richard Koval (6bombergroup.ca)
374 aircraft - 214 Halifaxes, 76 Wellingtons, 55 Stirlings, 18 Lancasters, 11 Mos-quitoes; 5 Group did not take part in this raid. 20 aircraft+ 15 Halifaxes, 2 Lancasters, 2 Wellingtons, 1 Stirling - lost, 5ยท3 per cent of the force
.A strong tail wind brought the first waves of the Main Force into the target area before Zero Hour with the result that, when the first Pathfinder markers were released, an unusually large number of aircraft bombed in the first minutes of the raid. The visibility was good and large areas of Aachen appeared to burst into flame at once. In the words of the report from Aachen, 'A 'Terrorangriff" of the most severe scale was delivered.'* 2,927 individual buildings were destroyed. These contained 16,828 flats/apartments and there was the familiar list of public and cultural buildings hit. Among those classed as severely damaged were the cathedral, the Rathaus, the town theatre, the police headquarters, the local prison, the main post office, two infantry barracks and an army food depot, and 8 large industrial premises including an aero-engine factory, a rubber factory, a tyre factory and a wagon works. 294 people were killed and 745 injured and 28,500 people appear to have fled the town and were still absent when new ration cards were issued nearly 7 weeks later.
source: The Bomber Command War Diaries, Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt
419 Moose Squadron RCAF (Moosa Aswayita) RAF Middleton St George. Halifax B MK II aircraft BB 323 VR-R named "Per Flak Ad Nauseum" was shot down over the Netherlands by night fighter pilot Leutnant Heinz Struning of 3/NJG1flying a Bf 110 G-4 during an operation against targets in Aachen, Germany. The Halifax crashed near the railway station in Venlo, Limburg, Netherlands with the loss of one crew member
Flight Sergeant William Charles Batkin (RAF) was killed in action
Warrant Officer 1st Class Murray Cottenden (RCAF), Warrant Officer 1st Class John Campbell Gilchrist (RCAF), Warrant Officer 1st Class Kenneth Lasalle (RCAF), Sergeant James Shaw Carmichael (RAF), Sergeant Gilbert Colin Perrett (RAF) and 2nd Lieutenant Bertram Joseph Furey (USAAF) all survived to be taken as Prisoners of War
Nachtjagd Combat Archive 1943 Part 2, 23 June - 22 September by Theo Boiten page 29
RAF & RCAF Aircraft Nose Art in World War II by Clarence Simonsen, page 51
Metal Canvas, Canadians and World War II Aircraft Nose Art by Stephen Fochuk page 109
Royal Air Force Serial and Image Database
Daily Operations 6bombergroup.ca
Bomber Command Museum Monthly ORB
