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Originally Posted by Rain Man
Plane #15 – Sack Time
Pilot Special Ed
Copilot KcMizzou
Bombardier Bearcat
Navigator alanm
Engineer gh4chiefs
Radio Op. mcan
Tail Gunner seclark
Ball Turret Gunner Luzap
Right Waist Gunner redhed
Left Waist Gunner ChiefGator
Target: the fighter base at Cherbourg
Mid-formation horizontally, high vertically (moderate vulnerability)
Will Bearcat’s mom get a second telegram?
Zone 1 Out: Britain
No enemy
Zone 2 Out: English Channel
4 Me109s attack – 1 is driven away by fighters
Gh4chiefs fires, misses
Alanm fires, misses
Bearcat fires, misses
1 Me misses, breaks off attack
Me scores 2 hits
-kcmizzou hit, serious wound to back of head
-superficial damage to waist
Me scores 2 hits
-radio room hit – Intercom system knocked out
-superficial damage to port wing
2 Mes circle and attack again. Without the intercom system, the gunners can’t communicate, which makes it impossible to coordinate fire and notify each other of incoming fighters. It is a major handicap.
Bearcat fires, misses
Gh4chiefs fires, misses
1 Me misses, breaks off attack
Me scores two hits
-superficial damage to nose
-superficial damage to nose
Me circles and attacks again
Gh4chiefs fires, misses
Me scores 2 hits, once again aiming into the nose of the aircraft
-Bearcat is hit, light wound to right foot
-alanm is hit, light wound to right hand
-superficial damage to port wing
Me breaks off attack and leaves
Special Ed weighs the situation. He can abort the mission with his copilot severely wounded and the intercom out. However, with lots of fighters in the area, dropping out of formation with no intercom could be very dangerous. Without the intercom, he does not know immediately that his navigator and bombardier are also wounded, so he opts to stay in formation and complete the bombing run to maintain the protection afforded by the other B-17s.
Zone 3 Out: France (Entering Target Zone)
1 FW190 attacks
Mcan fires, misses
FW scores one hit
-superficial damage to tail
FW circles and attacks again
Redhed fires, misses
FW misses and breaks off attack
Entering Bomb Zone
Good Weather
No Flak!
Distracted by his bleeding foot, Bearcat misses the bomb mark – 0% score
Zone 3 Back: France (Leaving Target Zone)
5 FW 190s attack – 3 are driven off by fighters
Alanm fires, misses
Gh4chiefs fires, misses
Both FWs miss and break off attack
5 FW 190s attack – 3 are driven off by fighters
Bearcat fires, misses
Seclark fires, misses
Both FWs miss and break off attack
Zone 2: English Channel
No enemy
Zone 1: England
Good weather
Good landing
Aftereffects
Despite the serious wound, kcmizzou recovers well and can keep flying.
Eligible for next mission
Pilot Special Ed
Copilot KcMizzou
Bombardier Bearcat
Navigator alanm
Engineer gh4chiefs
Radio Op. mcan
Tail Gunner seclark
Ball Turret Gunner Luzap
Right Waist Gunner redhed
Left Waist Gunner ChiefGator
All’s well that ends well.
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