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THURSDAY, 30 DECEMBER 1943
EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force): VIII Bomber Command
Mission 169:
The port area and oil refinery at Ludwigshafen, Germany are hit at
1156-1300
hours. 502 of 530 B-17's 145 of 168 B-24's, and 11 of 12 PFF
aircraft attack
the target; they claim 12-4-9 Luftwaffe aircraft; 14 B-17's and 9
B-24's are
lost, 4 B-17's and 1 B-24 are damaged beyond repair and 106 B-17's
and 11
B-24's are damaged; casualties are 11 KIA, 19 WIA and 200 MIA.
The mission is escorted by 79 P-38's, 463 P-47's and 41 Ninth Air
Force
P-51's; they claim 8-3-6 Luftwaffe aircraft; 11 P-47's and 2 P-51's
are
lost, 1 P-47 is damaged beyond repair and 5 P-47's are damaged;
casualties
are 12 MIA.
VIII Bomber Command Mission 170: 5
B-17's drop 1 million leaflets on
Antwerp, Ghent, Lens, Belgium and Cambrai, France at 2319-2340
hours; no
losses.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS (Ninth Air Force): In France, about 100 B-26's
bomb
Saint-Omer Airfield and V-weapon sites on the French N coast. About
100 others
abort missions because of bad weather.
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