Alan W. Cooper - Bombers Over Berlin: The RAF Offensive, November 1943–March 1944

By the same author:

The Men Who Breached the Dams

Beyond the Dams to the Tirpitz

First published in Great Britain in 1985 by

William Kimber & Co. Limited, 100 Jermyn Street, London, SW1Y 6EE

Published in paperback format in 2003

by Airlife Publishing Ltd, Shrewsbury

Re-printed in this format 2013 by

P EN & S WORD A VIATION

An imprint of

Pen & Sword Books Ltd

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Copyright Alan W. Cooper, 1985, 2003, 2013

ISBN 978 1 78159 065 2
eISBN 978 1 78303 651 6

The right of Alan W. Cooper to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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Contents

List of Illustrations

Line Illustrations

The diagrams are reproduced with permission from documents held at the Public Record Office.

Acknowledgements

To enable me to write this book, I have had to rely on many people and organisations, and to the following I offer my grateful thanks:

M J. Allen, Ralph Barker, Len Barnes, Les Bartlett DFM, Ken Bate, T. Beckett, Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Michael Beetham GCB, CBE, DFC, AFC, Air Marshal D.C.T. Bennett CB, CBE, DSO, Steve Bethell, Robert Boots, O. Brooks DFC, C. Bryant, Alan Bryett, W/C G. Cairns, E. Cole, A. Cordon, H. Coverley, A. Crowley-Smith, Hal Croxson, Ernie Cummings DFM, Reg Davey, Jim Davis, Albert Dicken DFC, Norman Digwell, John Douglas, B. Downs, B.S. Downs, Eddie Edmunds DFC, Eddy Edwards, M.M. Emery, John Evans (for his great help with photographs), Chris Evett, G. Fairless, Jimmy Flynn, John Flynn, Alan Forsdike, Michael Foster DFC, R. Gardner, John Grett, Fred Hall, Jack Hambling DFC, Roland Hammersley DFM, Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir Arthur Harris Bt GCB, OBE, AFC, LLD, R. Hartley DFC, Albert Hepworth, Bill Howarth DFM, A. Hughes, Mrs. Olivia Hughes (Pathfinder Association), Jimmy Hughes DFM, C. Hutchinson, Ron James, Dan Kelsh, Mrs. Noreen King, Nick Knilans DSO, DFC, Arthur Lee, Basil Leigh DFC, Norman Ling, Alf Lorimer, H. Mackinnon, Group Captain Hamish Mahaddie DSO, DFC, AFC, Ken Maun, John McDougall, J. McQuillan DFC, Martin Middlebrook, Bernard Moorcroft DSO, DFC, Reg Moore DFM, Peter Moran, E. Mulholland, Eric Nelson DFC, J.E. Nicholas, W. Ogilvie, William Parker DFC, Harry Pitcher DFM and Mrs Pitcher, Harry Prendergast, Alf Price, Syd Proctor, John Remmington, Gordon Ritchie DFC, Owen Roberts MBE, Bill Rust, A.J. Smith, J.R. Spark DFM, Norman Storey DFM, Arthur Tindall, Derek Tulloch DFC, DFM, John Tyler, Danny Walker DFC*, Syd Waller, Donald Westerman, W/C Stephen Whetham DSO, DFC, Ian Willsher, H.D. Wood.

Last, but not least, my thanks to Horst Muller for all his great support, Norman Franks for his help in the presentation of this book and to all the members of the staff of William Kimber & Co.

CHAPTER ONE

Target Berlin

Berlin. The Big City. Big B. Whatever the Royal Air Force or American Air Force called it during the Second World War, it was an awe-inspiring target. In their minds the mere mention of Berlin conjured up a myriad of thoughts and fears. Some targets did that. Hamburg, the Ruhr Valley, Frankfurt, Hannover Berlin

For one thing, it was a long way away, deep inside Germany. So deep that to reach it and get back while it was still dark, attacks could only really be mounted during the winter when the nights were long. The RAF bombers knew from experience for they had been there before. It was the German capital, the very heart of the Nazi Germany they were fighting. As such it was well protected: flak, searchlights, and enemy night-fighters defended it tooth and nail. It was no Milk Run, no easy trip to add to ones tour of operations. To have flown to Berlin, and more importantly, to have got back, meant something. Something to tell the folks at home, perhaps to feel good about, it looked impressive in the log book, nice to drop into the conversation with a girl friend. Once done, the tour could continue with other targets, perhaps no less dangerous, but certainly less heart-stopping when the curtain that covered the map of Germany in the briefing room was pulled aside.

Yet in the winter of 1943-44, RAF Bomber Command went to Berlin on no less than sixteen occasions. Between November 1943 and March 1944, the curtains were swept back to reveal the red ribbon reaching out from home base to Berlin sixteen times. Many bomber crews who were just starting, were mid-way, or even nearing the end of their tours had to add Berlin to their log books almost repeatedly. Many others did not. They did not get home. They failed to return, were missing from air operations over Germany or just missing which could mean they were dead, prisoners of war and even wounded, or bobbing about in a rubber dinghy in the deadly cold North Sea awaiting rescue or chilling death.