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As the squadrons of both groups became
fully operational, they began flying missions with RAF
units. These included defensive patrols covering convoys
along the coast, flying training exercises, and some escort
of A-20 Bostons and B-17s on bombing missions (2:52; 27:--).
It wasn't long, however, before the 31 FG saw some real
action on 19 August 1942 over Dieppe, France (Figure 1). The
31 FG helped to support an Allied landing by ground troops
which proved to be disastrous on the ground and in the air.
RAF Fighter Command suffered its greatest level of losses in
a single day during the action (2:52).
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Lieutenant Samuel F. Junkin of the 309 FS
became the first 31 FG pilot to down an enemy plane on a
mission with 11 other Spits of his squadron. They took off
from Westhampnett for a rendezvous with RAF 130 and 131
Squadrons. After crossing the Channel to the Dieppe
beachhead, they were attacked by 25 FockeWulf Fw-190s
(FW-190/FW). During the ensuing dogfight, Lieutenant Junkin
was one-versus-one with a FW, which he managed to shoot down
before he was subsequently attacked by a second FW. Wounded
in the shoulder by cannon fire, he momentarily passed out,
but regained consciousness just above sea level. He climbed
to 1,000 feet where he planned to bail out, having to break
through his stuck canopy before he managed to get out at an
altitude of 600-700 feet. Rescued by an Allied torpedo boat,
he was transferred to another ship which had also picked up
Lieutenant Collins, another Spitfire pilot who had been shot
down (21:--).
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|
Colonel Frank A. Hill, USAF (Ret), a
captain with the 308 FS at the time, said this about his
mission over Dieppe (27:--):
|
- "On that day, the 308th took off from
Kenley at about seven o'clock. We arrived over the target
area on time and split into four-ship formations.
Patrolling the area, we were about 8,000 to 10,000 feet.
About that time, 12-plus enemy aircraft were reported by
ground control and they arrived shortly thereafter at
about 12,000 feet. They immediately pressed home the
attack, and a general dogfight resulted, with the
Spitfires staying in sections of four, and the
Focke-Wulfs and 109s mostly staying in pairs. After about
3 minutes of trying to keep my section from being hit, I
finally caught a Fw-l90 and fired about a 4-second burst
of cannon and machine gun shells into it at about 300
yards, at about a 45 degree angle on his port side. He
rolled and spun down with the smoke coming out, and as I
last saw him he was about 2,000 feet still in a steep
dive. The action was much too hot to take time to follow
him all the way down."
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|
When it was all over, the 31 FG had flown
123 sorties for the day. The inexperienced group lost eight
Spitfires, with seven more damaged. Lieutenant Lewis P.
Wells was killed, Lieutenant Robert G. Wright missing, with
three other pilots later reported as prisoners of war.
Lieutenant Junkin had scored the unit's first kill, however,
along with a kill by a pilot in the 307 FS. Captain Hill was
credited with a probable, along with Major Harrison Thyng
and Lieutenant J. H. White, plus two claims by the 31 FG for
enemy aircraft damaged (18:--). Overall, the Allies lost 103
aircraft for the day compared to 48-of the enemy
(26:--).
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|
As the units gained experience, on 24
August 1942 the 307 FS and 308 FS joined the 309 FS at
Westhampnett. The 52 FG, meanwhile, had completed Spitfire
training in Northern Ireland, and the 2 FS and 4 FS moved in
to fill the gap left behind at Biggin Hill and Kenley. The 5
FS remained temporarily in Ireland. Not until 13 September
when the 52 FG Headquarters moved to Goxhill (Figure 1) were
all three squadrons relocated to the same aerodrome (2:55).
For the next several weeks, the missions flown were
relatively uneventful, consisting of coastal patrols and
strafing hops across the English Channel (1:6). Little enemy
air activity was encountered with the exception of Major
Thyng adding to his score by engaging a Ju-88 bomber,
claiming it probably destroyed on 22 September
(18:--).
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|
During this time, the 31 FG was pulled
off operational status for a short while. As Colonel Jerry
D. Collinsworth, USAF (Ret), a member in 1942 of the 307 FS
relates (26:--):
|
- "We were taken off ops. We had no
idea as to why, but we didn't object to it too much
because they told us to go out and practice low-level
navigation. To us young fighter pilots, that was an open
invitation to inspect any and all castles at window
level. And man, I bet I inspected at least 50 of those
castles in England, the southern part of England, from
about 50 feet up, vertically, and horizontally about the
same level as the window I was going by!"
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|
Throughout September and October of 1942,
plans for the invasion of North Africa--Operation
Torch--were being finalized. The 31st and 52nd Fighter
Groups were both to participate, and were transferred to
Twelfth Air Force, XII Fighter Command in October. Due to
the range limitations of the Spitfires, the aircraft were to
be left behind. New Spits were to be assembled from their
crates at Gibraltar (Figure 2) once the two groups arrived.
On 21 and 23 October respectively, the 52 FG and 31 FG
departed the United Kingdom by ship for Gibraltar and
Algeria (17:5; 5:--; 2:55).
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|
After arriving at Gibraltar, desert
camouflaged Spit Vs were assembled, equipped with specially
designed air intakes for desert operations (2:52). The word
was "go" on 8 November 1942 for flights into Algeria behind
the invasion force. Departures were staggered, and the 31 FG
launched for Oran (Figure 2) in the afternoon with the 52 FG
to follow several hours later. With known Vichy French
aircraft in the area, the first Spits of the 31 FG led by
Colonel John R. Hawkins arrived overhead Tafaraoui (Figure
2) aerodrome outside Oran for landings. Colonel Hawkins
landed, however his wingman, Lieutenant Joe C. Byrd, Jr.,
was shot down and killed by a French Dewoitine 520. The
Dewotine, misidentified as a British Hawker Hurricane,
attacked just as Byrd crossed the airfield boundary with his
gear and flaps down. The remaining airborne Spitfires gave
chase, destroying three of the four Dewotines. Major Thyng
and Lieutenants Carl W. Payne and Charles Kenworthy were
each credited with one destroyed enemy aircraft (2:53;
27:--; 1:6)
|
Figure 2 - Northwest
Africa And Gibraltar
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|
It was not until 9 and 10 November that
the 52 FG flew into Oran. All three squadrons landed at
Tafaraoui before moving to La Senia (Figure 2) aerodrome a
few days later. Major Coward, 52nd Group Executive Officer,
had this to say in a situation report ( 6: -- ):
|
- "Landed at Tafaraoui where there was
no food, water and little gasoline and ammunition. The
pilot, slept on the wet ground and serviced and repaired
their planes until the arrival of the ground crews
several days later. The Group soon moved to La Senia in a
few days. Here the difficulties of practically no
transportation, shortage of food existed."
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|
For both groups, there was little
activity for the next several weeks. They flew local defense
and convoy patrols. Most of the heavy ground fighting was
taking place in Tunisia, and the aerodromes were in the rear
area from there. The 308 FS was detached to Casablanca
(Figure 2) for the famous Casablanca Conference, flying
cover for President Roosevelt and Winston Churchill's
meeting, however there was no action (17:7).
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|
What little air activity there was didn't
apply to the 2 FS of the 52 FG. While on loan to the RAF 322
Wing on 27 November, the 2 FS moved to Bone, Algeria (Figure
3), to participate in the Tunisian offensive (2:54). Flying
fighter sweeps, bomber escort, aerodrome and harbor patrol,
the 2 FS got the 52 FG's first kills on 30 November. On that
date, Major Coward destroyed a Messerschmitt Bf lO9G
(ME-109) over Tebourda (Figure 3) while on a sweep of German
positions in Tunisia. At the same time, Lieutenant Harold R.
Warren of the 2 FS got a ME-109 (7:--). Engagements were
numerous throughout the week 30 November - 6 December with
several German aircraft either destroyed, probably
destroyed, or damaged. Captain Arnold E. Vinson claimed the
first FW-190 on 2 December, shared a kill with two British
pilots by downing another FW-190 the following day, and
destroyed a ME-109 which was escorting Ju-88 bombers on 4
December (2:54).- By the end of the week, the 2 FS was
credited with six enemy aircraft destroyed, two probably
destroyed, and six damaged. There were losses also, as
Lieutenant Walter A. Kari became the 52 FG's first combat
casualty, shot down over Tunisia on 4 December Lieutenant
Stephen Freel was shot up by an attacking ME-109 over
Tebourda (2:55), but managed to make it back to Bone, only
to die when his aircraft crashed on landing. Also,
Lieutenant .Jack M. Schuck became a POW after going down
over Tunis (Figure 3) trailing smoke (7:--). Norman
McDonald, a lieutenant with the 2 FS while at Bone, had this
to say about his experiences (29:--):
|
- "For me personally, the most exciting
period of the war occurred from November 27, 1942 to
January 4, 1943 while stationed at Bone, North Africa. We
flew every type of mission conceivable except
dive-bombing. The 2nd Squadron shared the aerodrome with
the British Spitfire 88 Squadron. We helped each other
out in the air and on the ground, sharing the good and
the bad. Our assignments were to protect the Bone harbor,
which was the closest supply harbor to the front, to
protect the Allied front lines against enemy air attack,
to escort medium bombers, dive bombers, attack bombers,
to perform strafing missions, to do high cover for
returning long-range B-17s and their P-38 escort. And we
also flew many tiring, mostly monotonous convoy patrols
over Mediterranean waters, and fighter sweeps into enemy
territory where ME-109 and FW-190 fighter aerodromes were
located. The fighter sweeps, while exciting, were also
frustrating, as we were usually outnumbered and the
German pilot was much better equipped at that time. On
that type of mission, during that period, our losses
exceeded our victories by a large margin. Strangely, at
least to me, the most harrowing experiences occurred on
the ground. The harbor and our aerodrome were subjected
to around the clock bombing, dive-bombing, and strafing,
sometimes all three simultaneously. Not too many Air
Corps ground crews experienced this constant harassment.
At least as pilots, we could get airborne now and then
and vent our frustration."
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|
The 2 FS remained at Bone until 4 January
1943, when it moved to Biskra aerodrome (Figure 3). It was
replaced by the 4 FS. Successful while at Bone, the 2 FS was
credited with 10 1/3 victories, 3 1/3 of them by Captain
Vinson (2:56). Meanwhile, the 5 FS had been moved to Maison
Blanche (Figure 2) to fly aerodrome patrols, harbor patrols,
and transport escort (7:--). The 4 FS saw action at Bone as
well, losing Captain Donald H. Williams on 6 January. Major
Robert Levine claimed a FW-190 victory on 8 January,
Lieutenant Norman Bolle scored on a ME-109 on the 13th, and
Lieutenant Moss K. Fletcher shot down a ME-109 on 14 January
(2:56).
|
Figure 3 - Northeast
Africa And Italy
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|
As heavy fighting continued along the
Tunisian front, the 4 FS and 5 FS of the 52 FG were moved to
Thelepte airfield in Tunisia (Figure 3) on 3 February to
relieve the 33rd Fighter Group (33 FG). The 33 FG was a P-40
unit that had been nearly decimated by the Luftwaffe. The
day after relief arrived, the 52 FG encountered FW-190s
while escorting P-39s. This resulted in the loss of
Lieutenant Harold L. Pederson. A second Spit was shot up so
bad that the-wounded pilot, Lieutenant Hugh L. Williamson,
had to bail out (2:57). The three squadrons of the 31 FG
moved to Thelepte on 6 February. Both groups flew escort and
reconnaissance (recce) missions.
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|
Both groups stayed busy while at
Thelepte. One mission demonstrated a recurring problem
common to all the Spitfires located in North Africa. On 14
February, 12 Spitfires of the 308 FS were escorting nine
A-20s, six P-39s, and six P-40s. After one Spit returned to
base early with a radio problem, the P-40s were attacked by
eight FW-190s. The Spitfires attacked, with five of them
getting firing opportunities. However, none of the guns
fired due to sand Jamming them. There had been two days of
blowing sand, and it was not an uncommon problem (15:5).
Lieutenant Colonel Dean, 31 FG Commander, in a report
discussing early problems in North Africa, wrote the
following about the sand (19:--) :
|
- "Guns frequently clogged by sand. We
now put canvas bags over tail end of cannon. Toilet paper
and cellophane paper over muzzles and on machine guns, we
now use canvas over front and fire through it. This helps
but does not solve problem. It Just helps to keeps guns
from being ruined permanently! Guns get daily
inspection."
|
|
In discussing further the problems of
dust on air filters, he said "Spitfire IX have no desert
filter, so dust is problem here, but Vs are OK. Have built
special filters on IXs which are put on by crew chief on
landing and taken off at end of runway before new takeoff"
(19:--) .
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|
Neither the 31 FG or 52 FG stayed long at
Thelepte. With Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps pushing through
Kasserine Pass (Figure 3), Allied forces were forced to pull
back, along with the fighter units. On 17 February, it
looked like Thelepte was going to be overrun (2:57), so on
very short notice the evacuation began. Of the hurried move,
Frank Hill said:
|
- "We were successful in getting out of
Thelepte even though we had very little warning. You
might say from two o'clock in the morning until nine
o'clock in the morning we had the entire fighter group
packed and on its way. I was one of the last flights to
take off from Thelepte, and as we were taking off shells
were landing in the mess area in the ravine on the side
of the hill (27:--)."
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|
The groups hastily departed, some in
Spitfires, some in trucks, even some on foot, leaving behind
12 burning unserviceable Spits. The 31 FG went to Tebessa
while the 52 FG moved to Youks-les Bains. Both of these
fields were located northwest of Thelepte (2:57). Neither
group stayed in place long, as the 52 FG moved a squadron to
Telergma and a squadron to Chateaudun du Rhumel on the 20th,
both in Algeria. The 31 FG was also moving. On 21 February
the 307 FS and 309 FS transferred to Youks-les-Bains, and
the 308 FS went to Le Kouif. All 31 FG squadrons joined up
at Youks-les Bains on 22 February (2:57), but only until 25
February when they moved one more time to Kalaa Djerda
(Figure 3)(15:15).
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|
Rommel's offensive began to lose its
thrust, and as he retreated towards Tunis, both units were
actively engaged. Only the 31 FG made claims by mid-March:
Captain E. G. Johnson damaged a FW-190 on the 3rd;
Lieutenant Collinsworth destroyed a FW-190 on the 8th;
Lieutenant A. A. Davis downed one FW and damaged another on
the 12th, the same day Lieutenant Mosby damaged a FW-190;
and Lieutenant Cobb claimed a ME-109 three days later
(20:--). Surprisingly, Cobb observed the enemy aircraft
crash land, and the enemy pilot, wearing khaki shorts, got
out and waved (21:--). The Spitfire victories were again not
without loss, however, as at least five Spits were
destroyed, and Lieutenants Thomas and Mitchell were killed
(2:57).
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|
On 20 March, Lieutenant Barber was forced
to crash-land because of several ME-109s; however, the tide
began to turn in favor of the Allies. The 31 FG's turn came
on 21 March when they encountered numerous Ju-87 Stuka
dive-bombers with ME-109 escorts. The result was four Stukas
shot down and four damaged, and one ME-109 damaged. One Spit
flown by Lieutenant Langberg was lost. He bailed out, was
captured by Italian troops, but then was released and
returned on the 23rd (20:--). The 52 FG lost one Spitfire
that day also (2:59). However, on the 22nd, the 52 FG was
very successful near Mezzouna (Figure 3) against ME-109s,
FW-190s, and Ju-88s. The group downed five ME-109s, two
FW-190s and two Ju-88s, losing only one Spit to a crash
landing from flak damage. The 31 FG also lost one to a
crash-landing (2:59).
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|
By April, Axis units were fleeing
northward after being defeated by the Eighth Army at Mareth
(Figure 3). The Luftwaffe did not leave the US II Corps
alone, however, and pressed its attacks only to encounter
Spitfires on most occasions (3:32). During this time, the
Spitfires supported General Patton's army at El Guettar
(Figure 3). The Stukas were wreaking havoc on his troops;
thus, the 31 FG and 52 FG were assigned to fly continuous
patrols overhead. Colonel Collinsworth elaborates on one
particular mission that occurred on 3 April 1943 involving
Captain Arnold Vinson of the 52 FG:
|
- "One squadron relieved another
squadron on station. We were patrolling all daylight
hours - you talk about a waste of time and flying hours,
this was it! But Vinson, his squadron was to replace
another squadron, and at the appointed time, the squadron
that was to leave the patrol didn't see the replacements,
which was Vinson and his squadron. So because of fuel,
they left at the appointed time, but Vinson wasn't there.
Well, what Vinson had done was delay his takeoff 5
minutes intentionally, and maintained low-level flight
across there to El Guettar, and lo, and behold, he caught
13 Stukas doing their business! They shot down, to the
best of my knowledge, 12 of those Stukas and lost one
Spitfire. Now, unfortunately, that one lone Spit-tire was
Arnold Vinson (26:)."
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|
Captain Vinson did become an ace, along
with Captain Norman McDonald who shot down three that day,
to become the first Spitfire aces in the Mediterranean
theater (1:7).
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Not all of the April missions flown were
in direct support of Patton's troops, as there were some
escort missions interspersed among them. Frank Hill, 31 FG,
relates escorting 18 B-25s on 30 April on a sea sweep as
"absolutely one of the most interesting missions I've been
on" (27:--):
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- "Our squadron was close cover, and
Colonel Dean was leading the 308th as top cover. By this
time I was in the 309th squadron, as commander. We flew
from Le Sers to the coast, then up towards Cape Bon
(Figure 3). As we neared the Cape, we could see two large
vessels making large wakes in the water. We were supposed
to go around the Cape, and go into the Gulf of Tunis to
bomb some shipping that was in the harbor, but here were
two very large ships. So the bomber commander decided to
lay their eggs there. Just as we were making the first
bomb run, we saw nine enemy 109s above us and to the
right, and a fight was started between them and the 308th
squadron with Colonel Dean. The boats below were turning
furiously and sending up plenty of flak and the first
bombs did not land too close. The bombers made a slight
turn to the right and headed out to sea, then swung
around in a large left turn and headed right back in
again towards the ships. At this time, the enemy 109s
were really trying to get at the bombers, but every time
they would come in close, we would always be there and
shooting at them. Major Thyng damaged one, and it beetled
on away. The 308th really was tangling in there,- and the
enemy 109s were keeping us busy also. I got burned up
with the rear gunners of the bombers because they were
shooting at us, also. But I guess they couldn't pick us
out from the enemy 109s. The second bomb run was really
beautiful. They flew a straight course, and all the flak
didn't make them flinch a bit. One whole stick of bombs
hit the large cruiser, in a direct hit, and it
practically lifted it out of the water. An explosion
occurred and big black rolls of smoke came up high in the
air. The ship was still burning as we last looked at it
from 20 miles away. The smaller ship, probably a small
cruiser, was heading towards the burning cruiser,
probably to rescue people who might be still alive.
ME-109s continued to fight us most of the way home, but
never hit any of us, and we only claimed a few damaged.
Colonel Dean got one destroyed. He was with the 308th at
that time. It was really a good show!"
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|
The enemy the Allied Spitfires were
facing in the air was a formidable opponent, taking its toll
among the 31 FG and 52 FG pilots. Such Luftwaffe pilots as
Lieutenant Wilhelm Grinius with 114 victories (2:56), MaJor
Joachim Muencheberg with 134 victories (2:59) and Hauptman
Wolfgang Tonne with 122 kills (3:35) were among those the
Spitfire pilots faced and fought.
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|
About this time, newer models of the
Spitfire arrived on the scene, the Spitfire Mark IX and
later the Mark VIII (1: 7). According to Norman McDonald, 52
FG, the Spit IX "was a different breed of cat" (29:--). With
a four-bladed steel propeller, bigger engine, and
maneuvering characteristics similar to the Spit V, the newer
Spit IX was much faster. Colonel Collinsworth, 31 FG,
explained the first time he remembers the Germans
encountering the new Spit IXs, which looked very much like
the Spit Vs:
|
- "But to the German who was up above
us, who'd been used to diving down on these Spits
[Vs], taking a short burst, then zooming back up,
we could do nothing about it but make a frantic break. He
did this one day, and we had four IXs in the formation
with the 12. And those four IXs went [up] with
them. Now I'm sure that was cause for cocktail stories
that night when they [Germans] got home
(26:--)!"
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|
With the German army and the Luftwaffe on
the defensive, both groups were putting on the pressure, the
31 FG producing their first aces in May and setting a new
record for most enemy aircraft downed by that unit in a
single day (3:35; 1:7; 27:--). Frank Hill shares his
experiences becoming one of the first aces of the 31 FG on 6
May 1943:
|
- "On the morning mission, I was
leading the Spit IXs. That was the newer Spitfire with
the bigger engine, and I chased two 109s around the sky,
finally got one which dove head-on into the ground just
north of Tunis. Just a little before this, I followed one
ME-109 north towards Bizerte (Figure 3) and shot at him,
and he continued to dive with black smoke coming out all
the way down. There was another ME-109 on our tail, so we
had to turn to head into it to avoid getting hit. Just as
I turned back, I saw a large explosion Just where the
first 109 was headed, so I believe he went in also. Later
on it was confirmed by my wingman. In the afternoon, we
were up again, and this time we ran into about 16 ME-109s
and Macchi 202s, which was the Italian fighter. There
were six of us in Spit Vs, and four above us in Spit IXs.
I started after this formation, came up from underneath
where they didn't see us and shot at one Macchi which I
hit. He immediately half-rolled and started down. I don't
know if he crashed or pulled out. I just kind of damaged
it. After their whole formation split up, and so did
ours, a general dogfight was a result. MaJor Kelly, who
was a new replacement at that time who I'd known back at
the 40th squadron at Selfridge, was my number two man. He
stayed with me, even though he lagged behind a couple
times, because he was in a much slower plane. When we
sighted some more ME-109s and gave chase, two of them
turned off and climbed into the sun. So we went right
after them, underneath and behind so they didn't see us.
When we were able to close in again, I opened fire on the
lead one when they both half- rolled and the one went
straight down with glycol and smoke coming out. Major
Kelly watched him for a long while, and believed he never
did come out of the dive.
-
- The other one straightened out right
away and I , came up on his tail and fired what little
ammunition I had left at him, and Kelly shot at him, and
we both broke away. The German must have known I was out
of ammunition, because he turned right back and started
after us. He was almost on Kelly's tail when I told Kelly
to break hard left. The ME-109 overshot us and never did
attack us again. We were down to our last few gallons of
gas, so we landed at an emergency field near the front,
reserviced and came on home. For the day's work, I
claimed two enemy 109s destroyed, one probable destroyed,
and one damaged, and one Macchi damaged
(27:--)."
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|
Newly promoted Major Hill became an ace
that day, as did Major Thyng, both getting their fifth
kills. The record set for the 31 FG was 11 destroyed enemy
aircraft, 1 probably destroyed, and 2 damaged that day,
without a single loss. This was the largest number of
fighters destroyed in the North African theater by an
American fighter group in one day to date (20:--). The
number of enemy aircraft destroyed was mounting. The totals
for the two groups at the end of the Tunisian campaign stood
at 88 victories, 45 losses for the 52 FG, and 45 kills and
19 lost aircraft for the 31 FG (1:7).
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|
After a lot of reorganization among the
command, the 31 FG and the 5v FG went separate directions.
The 31 FG became part of the North-West African Tactical Air
Force, while the 52 FG was part of the North-West African
Coastal Air Force. On 15 Hay, the 31 FG moved to Korba North
for operations against Pantelleria, an island between Tunis
and Sicily (Figure 3). The 52 FG was operating out of a
field in Tunis to protect the ports of Tunis and Bizerte
(3:38).
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|
The 52 FG was kept busy, as the Luftwaffe
made several attacks against the ports it was protecting.
The group's pilots scored three victories during the first
week of June, destroying a FW-190 and two ME-109s
(3:38).
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|
The 31 FG had a very busy period in June
as well. One 2-day period produced excellent results. On 10
June, the squadrons were supporting bombers attacking
Pantelleria, flying 72 sorties on 7 missions, in addition to
2 scrambles against enemy aircraft. Although one Spitfire
and pilot were lost, they successfully shot down 12 enemy
aircraft, plus 3 more probables. The one Spitfire lost, a
case of mistaken identity, was flown by Lieutenant
Gooding.'' On that mission, he and his wingman became
separated from the rest of the group and returned to base
alone. Approximately 20 miles from their field, they
observed three P-40s closing from behind, as if to join up,
and one of them shot down Gooding. Lieutenant Gooding
entered a spin and crashed into the sea. The next day, with
the group flying 130 sorties on 9 missions, they downed 11
enemy aircraft and damaged 2 more, losing one Spit, the
pilot bailing out. Lieutenant Rich was the unlucky one,
although he was fortunately picked up by Air Sea Rescue's
Walrus aircraft. During a mission on the 11th, Lieutenant
Collinsworth of the 307 FS got his fifth kill when 18 Spits
of his squadron attacked 15 FW-190s being escorted by 15
ME-109s. He scored on a FW-190, making him the third ace of
the 31 FG. The 31 FG total for the 2-day period 10 - 11 June
was 23 enemy aircraft destroyed, plus others probably
destroyed and damaged, to a single Spitfire lost
(20:--).
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|
Ground forces occupied Pantelleria, an
island surrendered to the Allies from aerial bombardment,
with no opposition on 11 June 1943. The 52 FG was flying
cover for much of the operation as well as the 31 FG. The 52
FG remained at their field in Tunis, where the Luftwaffe
continued to make attacks on the ports, but the 31 FG moved
to a strip on Gozo, a neighboring island to Malta, south of
Sicily on 30 June (Figure 3). The move did not go smoothly,
though, as Lieutenant Stevens of the 308 FG was missing from
the flight. One 309 FS Spit crashed on landing, but the
pilot wasn't hurt. Lieutenant Fardalla of the 308 FS then
crashed into the wreckage when he landed, killing three
British ground personnel and seriously injuring himself (20:
--) .
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|
The next campaign was the invasion of
Sicily which began on 10 July 1943. A large armada of over
300 ships was covered by the 31 FG. The landings at Gela,
Sicily (Figure 3) went relatively unhampered. The group flew
patrols continuously from about 0430 until 2200. Later
missions required flares for landing (2'7:--). Only one
enemy 4-ship was observed all day, and it was too far away
for anyone to engage. The next couple of days brought some
air activity, however, as four enemy fighters and three
enemy bombers were destroyed on the llth. An additional
fighter was destroyed the next day before the 31 FG moved to
Ponte Olivo on the 13th, an airfield located in Sicily. The
group didn't remain there long either, as on the 21st, it
moved to Agrigento aerodrome. The 307 FS relocated to a
Palermo aerodrome, and eventually all squadrons regrouped at
Termini by early August, operating from two aerodromes
called Termini East and Termini West (Figure
3)(20:--).
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Meanwhile, the 52 FG remained active. It
continued to destroy Axis aircraft that were attacking
Tunisian ports and Allied ships at sea. On 30 July, the 52nd
Fighter Group's 2 FS and 4 FS moved to Sicily to operate out
of Bocca di Falco, outside Palermo. They remained there a
short time and soon relocated to Terni to protect landings
on the north coast at Cap Orlando (Figure 3)
(3:40).
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Neither group saw many big aerial
engagements at this time. One exception involved the 31 FG
on 8 August while cover-ing landing operations at Cap
Orlando. On that day, pilots encountered 16 to 20 FWs and
MEs attacking Allied shipping. Three FWs were destroyed, one
damaged, while Captain Williams was wounded by a
20-millimeter cannon shell in his neck and back. The 11th of
August produced three kills for the 31 FG (20:--). With the
fall of Messina (Figure 3), hostilities in Sicily
effectively ceased. Both groups then had a well-deserved
rest with few operational missions or scrambles (20:--;
3:41). This lasted until September.
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The invasion of the Italian mainland
began on 3 September 1943. The 31 FG was heavily involved.
The 52 FG was located in Sicily for September and October,
but was out of range of most of the Axis airfields, and saw
little activity. The game plan on the ground was for the
Eighth Army to cross the Strait, of Messina and land on the
"toe" of Italy, while at the same time the Fifth Army would
beach at Salerno, south of Naples (Figure 3). The day the
forces landed in Italy, the Italians surrendered; however,
the Germans didn't, and heavy fighting continued
(3:41-42).
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The 31 FG supported the landing at
Salerno, operating out of Milazzo, a field on the north
coast of Sicily. Pilots flew support missions for the
invasion, but encountered few enemy aircraft. The group
remained there only a short time before moving on 20
September to Monte Corvino aerodrome on the Italian mainland
(Figure 3). There it found numerous enemy aircraft left
behind by the Germans, most in pretty bad shape, although
some were flyable. Living conditions improved significantly,
as the group was housed in buildings for the first time
since February. It was a nice change from tents
(22:--).
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Although the 52 FG was relatively
inactive, its pilots still did some flying and it wasn't
always uneventful. On 5 September, Lieutenant Dougherty was
attempting to takeoff, but couldn't get airborne for some
reason. When he was almost out of runway and still on the
ground, he cut the engine and aborted. The Spitfire promptly
shot through a gate to the base, startling the RAF gate
guards, and stopped in a soft field. Although Dougherty
wasn't hurt, his aircraft was totaled. A second Spit was
lost when two days later Lieutenant Walton lacked power to
complete his takeoff. He elected to collapse his wheels and,
with the aircraft on its belly, crashed into a stone wall.
Only slightly injured, his aircraft was also a total loss
(8:--).
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While the 31 FG had moved into buildings
at Monte Corvino, quality of life had improved somewhat for
the 52 FG as well. Corporal Charles S. McLaughlin had these
humorous comments from September of 1943 (8 --):
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- "The ability of a soldier to gripe
about everything was evidenced today at the dinner table.
Five days ago fresh butter was viewed with awe. Two days
ago it was accepted without comment. Today the butter was
taken directly from the ice to the table. The first man
put his knife in it, and then asked petulantly, "Where
the hell has this butter been? It's as hard as a
rock!"
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For the month of October, the 52 FG
didn't fly any combat sorties, mostly due to bad weather.
What little flying they did, however, cost the group three
pilots, the first casualties they'd had in months. The first
lost was Lieutenant Ferdinand W. Holzberg, who crashed for
an unknown reason. An eye-witness said the aircraft was in a
steep dive as it came through the clouds, did not recover,
and hit the ground. Lieutenant Donald K. Monks was lost on a
training formation flight when he was caught in the
prop-wash of another aircraft and collided with Lieutenant
Atkins. Atkins was able to land his aircraft, but Monks'
aircraft went out of control and spun into the ground. The
third loss was on another practice mission. When Captain
Edward M. Scott's aircraft developed a glycol leak, he
returned to base. Coming in for a forced landing, he hit a
telephone line and pole and his aircraft cartwheeled and
burned (9:--).
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There was a lighter side during the
month, however, which fortunately didn't result in anyone
getting hurt, although someone could-have. Corporal
McLaughlin reports on an incident that happened on 2 October
(9:--):
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- "A P-38 pilot landed here today and
asked the question of the year. He had been carrying a
1000-pound bomb on safety and had it with him when he
made his approach. "Then", said he, "I accidently
released the bomb. Did anyone see where it fell?" No one
had, and it's probably a good thing. Were not used to
having our own ships dropping thousand pounders on us.
Were thankful he wasn't flying a Fort
[B-17]."
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Lieutenant Colonel Charles M.- McCorkle,
who had replaced Lieutenant Colonel Frank Hill as 31 FG
commander when Hill returned to the States, scored his first
kill on 30 September just before the bad weather began to
affect his group in early October. Although the 31 FG, too,
flew little because of heavy rains, that did not stop it
from moving to another airfield, this time to Pomigliano in
Italy on 14 October 1943. For most of the month, the pilots
flew routine patrols, escort missions, and tighter sweeps,
some in the Naples area (22:--).
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In November, the 52 FS moved to Calvi
aerodrome, located in Corsica (Figure 3). Much closer to the
target areas of northwestern Italy, they still flew only 10
combat sorties during the month, partly due to persistent
bad weather. The unit underwent major conversion, however,
regarding its primary role. During November, bomb racks were
added to the Spitfires. This enabled them to carry two
250-pound bombs, one under each wing. The British had been
conducting tests at Malta, and the 52 FG was the first
American Spitfire unit to convert to the new role of
fighter-bomber (10:--).
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Meanwhile, the 31 FG was starting to face
renewed resistance from the Luftwaffe in Italy. There were
numerous encounters throughout the month, resulting in seven
enemy aircraft destroyed, one probably destroyed, and seven
damaged. There were also four losses: Lieutenant Frost of
the 308 FS on 5 November; Lieutenant Mann of the 307 FS on
18 November; Lieutenant Van Natta on the l9th; and Flying
Officer Shenberger, a British pilot with the 309 FS. on 24
November (22:--).
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December was very much the same for both
groups, with, the exception of the 52 FG beginning to fly
dive-bombing missions. Most dive-bombing training was
conducted on actual combat missions, so the pilots didn't
get a systematic building-block approach to their new
mission. Of interest to the 31 FG was a visit by General
Arnold and Lieutenant General Spaatz on the 10th of
December. General Arnold, among other things, presented a
Distinguished Flying Cross to Lieutenant Weissmueller. In
passing conversation afterwards, Lieutenant Weissmueller got
into hot water with the general by making a comment about
how he thought the Spitfire was the best airplane in the
world (22:--)!
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During the month of January, both groups
were very busy, as the Luftwaffe was encountered often in
the air, and there were many targets on the ground. The 52
FG began its dive-bombing mission in earnest, getting
remarkable results, especially considering all training was
under actual combat conditions. The group conducted attacks
on shipping, railroads and locomotives, and other targets,
plus flew intercepts on German bombers. Bombing results were
impressive, as was often noted by the enemy shipping putting
into the nearest port following an attack by the Spitfires.
A mission on 18 January showed the pilots' skill, when a
recce flight observed a 3,000-ton ship at 1015 and then
promptly planted two direct hits on the ship with its bombs.
At 115t, another flight came in and scored two more direct
hits. At 150(9), the ship was observed burning and sitting
low in the water (11:--). The 52 FG did well in its swing
role from bomber to fighter as demonstrated by a mission on
23 January. On that day, a formation of 50 to 60 German
bombers was intercepted enroute to Rome by a flight of four
Spitfires on a bombing mission. After first radioing the
position of the bombers, then jettisoning their ordnance,
the tour Spits attacked the formation. They fought until all
their ammunition had been expended. In the process they
destroyed six enemy bombers with one probable and no loss to
themselves. It was not until the next day that they found
out the German bombers had turned around without continuing
to their target (11:--).
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The 31 FG was heavily engaged with
Luftwaffe fighters and bombers early in January. Colonel
McCorkle destroyed two enemy aircraft by the end of the
first week, along with the group downing one and damaging
three others. .The fighting was similar to the high level of
activity that had occurred in Tunisia (3:44). On the l9th,
the group moved to Castel Volturno, Italy (Figure 3), a
steel-plank strip near the mouth of the Volturno River. From
there, closer than ever to the enemy, air activity
increased, and the group flew air cover for the amphibious
landings at the Anzio-Nettuno area (Figure 3), southwest of
Rome (23:--). On that day, Colonel McCorkle gained his
fourth victory, and relates a story about one 31 FG pilot
who had to make a forced landing a few days later at
Anzio:
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- "One of my fellas was shot down over
Anzio beachhead, Major Thorsen, one of my squadron
commanders. He had to force land on the beachhead, and as
he was going down with his engine puffing smoke and
pouring oil, and looking for a place to set down, for
some reason he didn't want to bail out. An ME-109 pulled
up alongside him, skidded down to his speed, or
approximately that in sort of a slip, and saw that he was
going to have to land, and saluted him, and flew away,
rather than shooting at him. This is the last piece of
chivalry I ever heard of in air combat
(28:--)."
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He continues with another
incident:
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- "I had on another occasion, Just a
few days following that, chased a German to the deck in a
109, and he was hit many times and was smoking. And going
along, being very slowly overtaken by me, and I was Just
about out of ammunition, too, when suddenly he rocked his
wings, in the old school signal of saying, "OK, you win,
I've had enough", and pulled straight up in the air to a
thousand feet or so, pushed over, and bailed out. I often
wondered, did he really mean to give me, and is that the
same old signal that we used when we were dogfighting
with each other for play? When you'd get on another man's
tail he'd rock his wings and say, "OK, that's enough, I'm
breaking it off". I think it was. I think he was saying,
"OK, no need to shoot any more, I'm bailing out"
(28:--)."
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By the end of the month of January, the
Luftwaffe and enemy ground forces had taken a beating,
although they had made their impression among both groups,
too. Between the 31 FG and 52 FG, a total of 16 Spitfires
had been lost (3:64).
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Like many previous months, February was
an active month for both groups. On the 1st, the 31 FG moved
the 307 FS forward to Nettuno to operate out of a landing
strip there. Under constant attack and artillery shelling,
they pulled out two weeks later, but not before four
Spitfires had been destroyed on the ground. Several events
of significance occurred during the month, the first being
Colonel McCorkle's fifth kill, an ME-109 on 6 February, to
make him an ace (3:64). On the 13th, two 309 FS members were
scrambled by a controller to intercept two bandits, which
they did, and promptly shot down two FW-190s. Typical of a
confident fighter pilot, Lieutenant Fawcett called the
controller on the radio to say, "You know the two bandits
you reported, well, they were here (23:--). Another ace was
produced on 22 February when Lieutenant Leland P. Molland
destroyed two ME-109s on an Anzio beachhead patrol (3:64).
Also on that date, Lieutenant Hackbarth was hit, and went
down streaming glycol and in flames. Attacked by three
ME-109s as he was going down, the attack was thwarted by
Lieutenant Brown, who dove on the enemy aircraft even though
he was out of ammunition. On the humane side of war, a story
reached 31 FG Headquarters on the 27th from the beachhead.
German forces had returned to American forces the bodies of
Lieutenants Haberle and Comstock, pilots that had been
killed on 28 January and 24 February, respectively. Both men
were buried at Nettuno (23:---)
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Although the 52 FG flew 1,067 combat
sorties in 257 missions during the month of February, few of
these were bombing sorties as they only dropped 58 bombs.
The group was operating out of Borgo, Corsica (Figure 3) by
this time, except for the 4 FS, which was still at Calvi. On
9 February, a new modified enemy fighter engaged some 4 FS
members. A Spitfire 4-ship bombing a freighter in Nice
harbor was attacked by four FW-190Ds that had an inline
engine as opposed to the old radial-engine FW-190As. Two
Spits were lost, Lieutenant Hoover bailing out. When six
Spits were sent to search for Lieutenant Hoover, they were
also attacked by the new FW-190Ds, which downed another Spit
before one of them was destroyed. The consensus among the
Spitfire pilots was that the new 190 is much better than the
older 190 with the radial engine (12:3). On the 13th, a
detachment from the 4 FS moved to Ghisonaccia, Corsica
(Figure 3), to work as dedicated escort for the B-25s
stationed there. During a big fighter sweep on the 19th over
the Viterbo area (Figure 3), an engagement took place
involving 24 Spitfires against approximately 45 ME-109s and
FW-190s. The end result was eight enemy aircraft destroyed
and four others damaged, but with a loss of six Spitfires
and pilots (12:6). Bad weather once again cancelled much of
the flying for the remainder of the month.
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The 52 FG flew mostly B-25 and B-26
escort in March, plus some dive-bombing missions against
factories, bridges, aircraft plants, and harbor-
installations. After dropping their bombs, they would often
strafe locomotives and any other targets of opportunity they
could find. March was not a good month statistically. The
group lost six Spits, claiming only one Ju-88 destroyed, one
FW-190 damaged, and one Ju-88 damaged (13:--).
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For the 31 FG, March would be the last
month flying Spitfires. On the 11th, Colonel McCorkle and
Lieutenant Meador brought in the first two P-51B aircraft.
During a mock dogfight over the field on the 14th, Colonel
McCorkel in a P-51 paired up against Lieutenant Williams in
a Spitfire IX. The Spitfire completely outmaneuvered the new
Mustang. On 21 March, Lieutenant Richard F. Hurd of the 308
FS destroyed two ME-109s to become the last Spitfire ace
before the 31 FG was taken off operational status to
transition to the P-51. Colonel McCorkle did get permission
for a farewell 36-ship fighter sweep over Rome on the 29th.
For the most part uneventful, 20 FW-190s were intercepted by
one 4-ship of Spits, forcing the enemy to Jettison their
bombs. Lieutenant Emery destroyed one of the FWs, the last
enemy aircraft downed by a 31 FG Spitfire
(24:--).
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On 1 April 1944, the 31 FG was placed
under the command of Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) for
long-range bomber escort. Moving to a new airfield the next
day, San Severo aerodrome near Foggia, Italy (Figure 3), the
group continued transition training in earnest. On the 16th
of that month, they flew their first P-51 combat mission,
escorting B-24 bombers over Turnu-Severin in Rumania
(25:--).
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The 52 FG, also destined to transition to
the P-51 Mustang, received their first airplanes on 14 April
(14:5). Two squadrons, the 2 FS and the 5 FS, became
non-operational on the 17th to begin their conversion, while
the 4 FS continued flying Spitfires for a few more days. On
20 April, they too were pulled off combat status, the same
day the first operational combat mission was flown in the 52
FG's new P-51 (14:6). Like the 31 FG, the 52 FG became part
of Fifteenth Air Force for long-range bomber
escort.
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Thus ended a chapter in history of the
31st and 52nd Fighter Groups flying Spitfires in the
Mediterranean theater.
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