Brodrick, William Everett (Flight Lieutenant)

Lubeck

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234 aircraft-146 Wellingtons, 41 Hampdens, 26 Stirlings, 21 Manchesters. 12 aircraft - 7 Wellingtons, 3 Stirlings, I Hampden, 1 Manchester lost

This famous raid took place on the night of Palm Sunday and was the first major success for Bomber Command against a German target. The attack was carried out in good visibility, with the help of an almost full moon and, because of the light defences of this target, from a low level, many crews coming down to 2,000 ft. The force was split into 3 waves, the leading one being composed of experienced crews with Gee-fitted aircraft; although Lubeck was beyond the range of Gee, the device helped with preliminary navigation. More than 400 tons of bombs were dropped; two thirds of this tonnage was incendiary. The aiming point was the centre of the Altstadt, which was built of narrow streets and old, half-timbered houses. It was a heavy, fire-raising attack on pure area-bombing lines.

191 crews claimed successful attacks. Aerial photographs and German reports confirmed the outstanding success of the raid. Information is available from many sources.* In Bomber Command's new terminology, approximately 190 acres of the old town were assessed on the basis of photographs as having been destroyed, mostly by fire; this was reckoned to be 30 per cent of Lubeck's built-up area. German sources show that 1,425 buildings in Lubeck were destroyed, 1,976 were seriously damaged and 8,41 I were lightly damaged; these represented 62 per cent of all buildings in Lubeck. Of the 3,401 buildings classed as destroyed or seriously damaged, 3,070 were residential buildings, 70 were public buildings, 256 were industrial or commercial and 5 were agricultural. Among the public buildings destroyed were many of architectural importanco Including the Rathaus and Marienkirche, described by Rumpf as the mother church of Northern Germany'. Among the lndustrial buildings damaged was the Dragerwerke factory which made oxygen equipment for U-boats, Brunswig sates that the cost of the damage caused was 200 million Reichsmarks (£20 million),

The casualties in Lubeck were 312 or 320 people killed (accounts conflict), 136 seriously and 648 slightly injured. This was the heaviest death toll in a German mkl .o far in the war, exceeding the 185 killed in Hamburg on 8/9 May 1941 but still less than the 367 French people killed at Billancourt earlier in this month.

Lubeck was not raided by the full strength of the R.A.F. again during the war·. A Swiss diplomat who was president of the International Red Cross later negotiated an agreement with Britain that the port would not be bombed again because it was being used for the shipment of Red Cross supplies.

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6 Group Unavailable

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234 aircraft-146 Wellingtons, 41 Hampdens, 26 Stirlings, 21 Manchesters. 12 aircraft - 7 Wellingtons, 3 Stirlings, r Hampden, r Manchester - lost.

This famous raid took place on the night of Palm Sunday and was the first major success for Bomber Command against a German target. The attack was carried out in good visibility, with the help of an almost full moon and, because of the light defences of this target, from a low level, many crews coming down to 2,000 ft. The force was split into 3 waves, the leading one being composed of experienced crews with Gee-fitted aircraft; although Lubeck was beyond the range of Gee, the device helped with preliminary navigation. More than 400 tons of bombs were dropped; two thirds of this tonnage was incendiary. The aiming point was the centre of the Altstadt, which was built of narrow streets and old, half-timbered houses. It was a heavy, fire-raising attack on pure area-bombing lines. 191 crews claimed successful attacks. Aerial photographs and German reports confirmed the outstanding success of the raid. Information is available from many sources.* In Bomber Command's new terminology, approximately 190 acres of the old town were assessed on the basis of photographs as having been destroyed, mostly by fire; this was reckoned to be 30 per cent of 'Lubeck's built-up area. German sources show that r,425 buildings in Lubeck were destroyed, r,976 were seriously damaged and 8,41 r were lightly damaged; these represented 62 per cent of all buildings in Lubeck. Of the 3,401 buildings classed as destroyed or seriously damaged, 3,070 were residential buildings, 70 were public buildings, 256 were industrial or commercial and 5 were agricultural. Among the public buildings destroyed were many of architectural importance including the Rathaus and Marienkirche, described by Rumpf as the 'mother church of Northern Germany'. Among the industrial buildings destroyed was the Dragerwerke factory which made oxygen equipment for U-boats. Brunswig states that the cost of the damage caused was 200 million Reichsmarks (£20 million).

The casualties in Lubeck were 312 or 320 people killed (accounts conflict), 136 seriously and 648 slightly injured. This was the heaviest death toll in a German raid so far in the war, exceeding the 185 killed in Hamburg on 8/9 May r94r but still less than the 367 French people killed at Billancourt earlier in this month.

Lubeck was not raided by the full strength of the R.A.F. again during the war. A Swiss diplomat who was president of the International Red Cross later negotiated an agreement with Britain that the port would not be bombed again because it was being used for the shipment of Red Cross supplies.

source: The Bomber Command War Diaries, Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt

Wellington aircraft X 3477 was enroute to the target Lubeck, Germany when it was attacked and seriously damaged by two German ME-110 fighter aircraft. The bombs were jettisoned and the aircraft dived toward the sea shaking off the remaining fighter, this took the Wellington in range of intensely concentrated light flak. The aircraft sustained further damage and crashed, at about 300 mph, in a coastal marsh near Wilhelmshaven, Germany.

6 Group Bomber Command

RAF Commands