Bombing of Wilhelmshaven in World War II

The Wilhelmshaven World War II bombings by the Allies of World War II destroyed two thirds of the port's buildings. From spring 1943 until November 1943 slave labourers of the SS-Baubrigade II from the Neuengamme camp were transferred to Wilhelmshaven to clear up after air raids.^[1]

Wilhelmshaven World War II bombings

Date	Mission
September 4, 1939	Unsuccessful RAF bombing of Wilhelmshaven[2]
December 18, 1939	Battle of the Heligoland Bight. The first combat success of radar used a German "experimental Freya radar" to detect unescorted RAF bombers approaching the German Bight en route to Wilhelmshaven. As the bombers approached their targets, they were ordered not to attack so as to avoid civilian casualties. German fighters inflicted heavy casualties on them as they headed home.[2]
December 28/29, 1941	217 RAF sorties bombed (Wilhelmshaven, Hüls, and Emden were the main targets).[3]
January 27, 1943	The first World War II US mission flown against the German homeland bombed warehouses and industrial plants at Wilhelmshaven. This, the first USAAF daylight bombing raid over Germany, was flown by elements of the 369th Bomber Squadron (H) of the 306th Bomber Group (H).[4]
February 26, 1943	On a Wilhelmshaven bombing mission, footage for the documentary film Memphis Belle: A Story of a Flying Fortress was filmed from the B-17 Flying Fortress Jersey Bounce.
June 11, 1943	VIII Bomber Command Mission Number 62: 252 B-17's are dispatched against the U-boat yard at Wilhelmshaven and the Cuxhaven port area. The raid on Wilhelmshaven demonstrated the difficulty of operating beyond range of fighters escort as enemy fighters attacks prevent accurate bombing of the target.[5]
November 3, 1943	The 384th Bombardment Group attacked the Wilhelmshaven harbour.
February 3, 1944	The 384th Bombardment Group attacked the Wilhelmshaven port area.
February 27/28, 1945	Mission 851: 23 of 26 B-24s bombed Wilhelmshaven oil storage using a Pathfinder Force (PFF).

References

1. List of working locations SS-Baubrigade II by the Memorial Neuengamme
2. Galland, Adolf (1968 Ninth Printing - paperbound) [1954]. The First and the Last: The Rise and Fall of the German Fighter Forces, 1938-1945. New York: Ballantine Books. pp. 20,105. Check date values in: |date= (help)
3. "Campaign Diary". Royal Air Force Bomber Command 60th Anniversary. UK Crown. Archived from the original on 7 December 2008. Retrieved 2009-03-19.
4. Lang, Walt (1998) [1989]. United States Military Almanac. London: Salamander Books Ltd. p. 102. ISBN 0-517-16092-7.
5. McKillop, Jack. "8th Air Force 1944 Chronicles". Archived from the original on September 12, 2007. Retrieved 2007-05-25.