Articles on the 1 August 1943 air raid on Ploiesti

[Carol I]

61 years have passed since the 1 August 1943 air raid on Ploieşti. I thought it would be a good idea to build a database with texts which tell different aspects of the story of that particular raid.

I would appreciate if we could build this topic as some sort of reference list on the Ploieşti air raid, meaning that all comments you may have on these (and future) articles will be posted in separate threads.

[Carol I]

On the homepage of the USAF Museum there are several pages containing information from the original documents of the mission that tell the story of 1 August 1943 from the point of view of the attackers.

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/wwii/ce9.htm

http://www.wpafb.af.mil/museum/history/wwii/ce10.htm

[Carol I]

Also from the point of view of the attackers is an article that has originally appeared in the March 2000 issue of Aviation History and which is built on a report written by the commander of the Vagabond King plane, pilot John McCormick.

QUOTE

Eyewitness to the Raid on Ploesti A pilot's detailed firsthand account describes the mission to bomb Romania's oil refineries in August 1943. by Lyndon Shubert On August 1, 1943, a Consolidated B-24D Liberator bomber named the Vagabond King and its American crew took part in a massive bombing raid on the oil refinery complex at Ploesti, Romania. The B-24s took off from Libya without the benefit of a fighter escort. We know the names and some of the ranks of the 10 men who flew aboard the Vagabond King that day -- 1st Lt. John McCormick, pilot; George Brinton, co-pilot; 1st Lt. Marvin Mosco, bombardier; Marvin Mendelson, navigator; Paul Miller, Alfred Rossi, Gerald Murphy and William Bundai, all of whom were gunners; David Shattles, crew chief; and Martin Van Buren, radioman -- and we know they all survived that mission. But a total of 54 B-24s did not return from Ploesti. Nearly 500 crewmen were either killed, captured or interned in Turkey. The Vagabond King's crew cheated the odds in the August 1943 raid and made it to friendly territory before crash-landing. Many of those same men, however, survived that mission only to lose their lives in subsequent sorties. Following is an excerpt from an account of the August 1, 1943, Ploesti raid written by Vagabond King pilot John McCormick. His report -- a copy of which was apparently later sent to the family of each man who participated in that mission -- paints a vivid portrait of one of the most costly bombing missions in history. ...

The full text of the article can be found at: http://www.historynet.com/ahi/blvagabondra...raid/index.html

[Carol I]

Another article that has originally appeared in World War II is the story of the U.S. 93rd Bomb Group, also known as The Traveling Circus

QUOTE

The Traveling Circus The U.S. 93rd Bomb Group saw action over Western Europe, North Africa, Italy and Rumania. by Sam McGowan While the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses did their share in the air war against Germany, they were far from alone in their efforts. One-third of the U.S. Eighth Air Force's total heavy-bomber strength was consolidated within the three combat bomb wings of the 2nd Air Division, the Consolidated B-24 Liberator division. Those three combat wings grew out of the 93rd Bombardment Group--the first B-24 group and the third U.S. Army Air Forces heavy-bomber group to see combat in the European Theater of Operations. ...

The full text of the article can be found at: http://www.thehistorynet.com/wwii/blthetra...rcus/index.html

[Carol I]

I have also found the story of Kenton McFarland, a pilot in the 93rd Bombardment Group, whose plane was said to be the last to land on the return from Ploieşti.

QUOTE

The last plane back The Memorial Day story of a local World War II hero   by Paul Ferrell Kenton McFarland pointed to a medal, one of nine mounted in a frame, and said, “I got that for flying that airplane back safely and saving the crew and myself--but I was thinking about saving my own ass.” The medal is the Distinguished Service Cross, second in rank only to the Medal of Honor. McFarland earned the medal during World War II for heroism at the Ploesti bombing raid in Romania. Of 178 planes that went out on the mission, only 89 returned; McFarland’s was the last plane back. ...

The full text of the article can be found at: http://www.newsreview.com/issues/sacto/200...-05-27/news.asp