The skies over the Netherlands darkened as a force of over 376 B-17 Flying Fortresses soared in somber formation towards the German border.
The strategic bombing mission was of unparalleled scale and reach; the bombers were to pierce the very industrial heart of Germany and pummel the Luftwaffeโs manufacturing capabilities in preparation for D-Day.
Squadrons of P-47 Thunderbolts ascended from nearby airfields to escort the big bombers as they entered German airspace, and as if called on cue, droves of German Messerschmitt Bf 109s swooped down from the clouds and clashed against them.
As one Flying Fortress fell from the sky after another, the smaller fighters swarmed each other amid fire, bullets, and smoke.
After what seemed like an eternity, the Germans finally retreated. But minutes later, more German fighters appeared on the horizon. By then, the Thunderbolts had reached their fuel limit, and they could not escort the bombers any further.
With a heavy heart, the P-47 pilots turned back and reluctantly abandoned the Flying Fortresses as they plunged into one of the darkest chapters of World War 2โฆ
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Some of the film shows Geman Messerschmitt 109 E.That was in service in 1940.The 8th fought against 109G and FW190.When heavily armed with Cannon they were effective bomber destoyers but became vunerable to the more numerous P47 and P51.
I find it interesting that a good 75% of the footage in this video was originally shot in colour. Why all B/W here?
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Let's talk about the darkest chapters of WW2. The bomber losses on this single mission aren't even a blip on the radar. Shall we consider the Holocaust, firebombings of Tokyo and other Japanese cities, nuking of H. and N., firebombing of Dresden, and Japanese atrocities in China. the list goes on. As a side note, including the dresden raid, US and British bombing missions destroyed about 60 German cities, killing some 500,000 Germans civilians – at a cost of some 80,000 airmen (wow). Atrocities were committed by all sides. Apparently two wrongs don't make a right – except in war.
I do wish one day a film or tv series about the Bloody 100th will be made ,along similar lines to band of brothers/the Pacific etc' it would be a stunning film
The infuriating difference between the Germans and the Allies inflicted casualties was that every death and/or injury inflicted by Germans and Germany was murder or felonious criminal assault. And every death and/or injury inflicted by the Allies against Germans and Germany was justified self-defense, or justified in the defense of others.
The combat box was a good idea and if tightly held could be effective but the problem was holding the formation and then if a plane was lost the box became much less effective. Bomber doctrine at the start of the war never really took the threat that interceptors held too realistically. It was only after these raids that the need for a truly long range fighter was acknowledged.
It would be nice to see a video on the missions that were flown very late in the war to drop food and other necessities to the civilians in both France, Belgium and even Germany before the war ended. Both B-17โs and B-24โs took part in the missions along with the transport aircraft.
I ran into a veteran of the 100th. "You're a member of the Bloody 100?" I asked.
He was surprised, "Not many know that name."
The casualty figures are much higher than presented, 7 dead, 21 wounded, 557 either captured or missing.
Being German-American Iโm always torn about bomber history over Europe. Ending Naziism; yes. The death of Germans, no. That said, Naziism was an integral ideology of many Germans at the time.
Just because you call the B17 a Flying Fortress doesn't mean it is one in practice.
By January 1945 the Germans had plenty of Me262s, but not enough fuel to fly them, and the training of pilots had also been handicapped by lack of fuel. Hitler had rescinded his order that all 262s were to be built as bombers the previous September. Because of a shortage of special alloys, the Jumo jet engines wore out very quickly.
Both sides put some very brave men into battle. May they rest in peace those who lost their lives.
Earlier in the war, the RAF suffered such huge losses in daylight raids that only bombing at night was feasible, and even then, losses were heavy.
My father, who served in the RAF as a radio mechanic in 2nd Tactical Airforce, many years after the war said to me that without the Americans, the war would have been lost, and that's a fact.
Oh yeah, the schweinfert plan that was a failure from the start
What if the Allies knew of that me262 factory all along? And chose to sacrifice 100 bombers than lose 100,000 troops in Dday invasion if the jets went to production?
Sounds directly from a chapter in the book "Masters of the Air"
i was born when ww2 was half a decade in memory. one president. one congressman. another war (korea). i grew up to war stories, and a nation still economically devastated. i see what we have now, and realize it's a matter of a blink of the eyes and we'll be back in it. and next time i sincerely feel we won't be as fortunate against our adversaries. i told my father on his deathbed, that we owed his generation the price of america's freedom, as the best generation america ever had, and doubted we'd ever see the like again. that was 15 years ago. i'm old, i may die soon, and hopefully before i see the end of the home of the free and the brave. god bless america
Does the name of that German town translate to "Pork Sausage". My German is not great but could have sworn he said swinewurst
I want to put all the whiny right-wingers who pretend to be perpetual victims of everything into a B17 in WWII so they can learn the hard way what a real "Patriot" is.
Sorry, assholes, you're not a patriot just because you hate half the people who live in your own country.
Actually, the "Allies" did not "discard nighttime operations" (2:30). The RAF curtailed daylight raids after 1940 due to losses and recommended that the US 8th Air Force do the same in 1942. The U.S. persisted, and it was decided at the Casablanca conference (Jan. 14-24, 1943) to carry out a "round-the-clock" bombing campaign, the 8th during the day, the RAF at night. The first 8th AF raid against Germany occurred three days later.
tell how many bombs landed on civilians there in netherlands
Typo in the title?
My grandfather was a belly gunner in a B17. His plane was among those lost that day. He was taken as a POW.
The British kept up their night attacks. Without escorts it was daylight that was given up. Arthur Harris of the RAF resisted every effort and only paid lip-service to American tactics of concentrating on transport links, fuel supply and armament/component factories, in favour of his belief that de-housing German citizens would crush their morale.
Giant balls to get into one of those.
Itโs important to note that the Mustang only came good after the British installed the Rolls Royce Merlin engine.
Most wonderful coverage & explained of that successful Luftwafa operation against allies air raid bombarding..during WW2. Thanks( Dark skies) channel for sharing this informative video
Why unescorted bombers!!! Yet you say Mustangs were fighter cover! WTF bro! You are so confusing!!
I SERIOUSLY QUESTION THE ACCURACY OF HIGH LEVEL BOMBING
Some of the most successful Fighter Escorts for American Bombers flying raids on Germany during WW II were the Red Tails in P-51s. They stayed close to the Bombers and didn't chase the German Fighters.
P47 fighters were perfectly capable of carrying drop tanks but the 8th AF top brass refused to import them.
British Mustangs were regularly used with drop tanks so the USAF brass couldnโt avoid the option. Drop tanks mysteriously appeared for Thunderbolts around the same time.
I've met a few B-17 crewmembers who said their craft would be covered with FLAK shrapnel, 20mm strikes and many bullet holes and STILL made it back to base! That speaks to the toughness of the crew and aircraft. Fortunately the P-51s came along. They developed external drop fuel tanks. This would enable the escorts to support the Bombers all the way to Berlin and back.
30% casualty rates were the norm for the Bombers before the long distance escorts came along.
it was determined in later study , daylight bombing was NEVER worth losses – – –
Damn good channel. Doesn't muck around, gets straight into it, nice fast clear narration, and always interesting. Oh, and he doesn't feel the need to show his face like some "influencer, in-it-for-the-likes, I spend too much money on beard oil" type.
It did not knock out an airforce. The 8th alone had thousands of planes. 60 bombers were lost. Granted it was a heavy cost.
It's also worth mention that a German squadron made the run all the way from Berlin to attack the streams.
A map of the flight plan would help show the scale and risk involced but overall your "non-sensationalized and unbiased recollection of these bloody events Dark SKies. Always a pleasure to watch" as tommis1985 said
What a stupid fkn waste of good American lives ! Big is not better !
A Mission Worth Sacrificing an Entire US Air Force?………………………………….. DAMN THE USA SENT ALL THEIR PLANES ?
This video is strangely sloppy for this channel. @2:30 the Allies did not discard night time bombing. Britain flew night bombing missions throughout the war, Only US would do daytime operations… @5:55 "B-17 defensive cannons." B-17s never carried cannons, only .50 cal machine guns… @8:15 the "Second fighter group" should be the "second bomber group"…
Bro ๐คฌ๐คฌ๐บ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ฑ๐คฌ๐คฌ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐๐ป๐๐ป๐๐ป๐๐ป๐๐ป๐๐ป
I hate the p51 over hype about its escort abilities. P47 could have done it the whole time. It was bomber commanders that refused the escorts. And to cover up thier blunder they created the p51 myth. That and the unity aspect of using a British engine. That's the real dark doc.
So…what is the difference of THIS and the RUSSIAN INVASION AND DAILY AERIAL BOMBARDMENT OF THE UKRAINE!?
I call that INDUSTRIAL SCALE TERRORISM & INDISCRIMINATE SLAUGHTER by the petty small (PUTIN) and petty lame(FDR) (LITERALLY!!!) politicians trying to prove they are taller than they are!