On the road again.... 

Photo courtesy of Brian & Don Pinnell Copyright © 2003-2005

The last operation from B.9 was a "Ramrod" in the early evening of the 28^th to dive-bomb a large forest a few miles south-east of Gournay. The pattern of bomb bursts covered the section of the woods where an enemy vehicle concentration was believed to be hidden, "but no satisfying results were observed." There was no flak, and for the nine flying-officers concerned the trip was little more than "a very uneventful formation flight." The Battle of Normandy was over. The pursuit of the enemy had crossed the Seine and was moving rapidly eastward across northern frontier and through Belgium towards the Nazi homeland and its Siegfried Line.  The Second T.A.F. had started to advance from its landing fields on the Norman beach-head to keep in touch with the fast-moving armies.  On 27 August 143 Wing was ordered to push forward from B.9 at Lantheuil to B.24, a former Luftwaffe(1) airfield near St. Andre de 1'Eure, about ten miles north of Dreux. The original intention had been to go to B.32 at St. Laurent, near Prey, but the landing strip there was not ready in time to receive the Wing. B.24 was 151 miles by road (about 82 by air) south-west of Lantheuil.

The move was made in two parties, each of which was self-contained so that operations could continue, if necessary, without a break.  "A" party set out on the 30^th - needless to say, it drizzled all day - and "B" followed on 1 September. The aircraft were flown up on the afternoon of 31 August. No. 439 carried out one operation that evening to strafe an accumulation of vehicles on roads around Hornoy to the west of Amiens. Most of the MET had already been knocked out when the Tiffies arrived on the scene and they could add only a couple of flamers and one smoker to the shambles.

Intentionally left blank

In the twelve weeks since D-Day S/L Norsworthy’s pilots had flown 1065 sorties on 123 operations over the battle area in Normandy in the course of which they had dropped 517 tons of bombs and fired about 75,000 rounds of (1) 20 mm. ammunition on enemy targets. Six pilots had been killed in action and another was taken prisoner.  The results of their work can not be expressed statistically, but its value was repeatedly emphasised in congratulatory messages from army units for which the Typhoon dive-bombers had provided close support.

       Note(1) 

Month	Sorties	Operations	Tonnage of Bombs Dropped	Rounds Fired 20 mm
6 – 30 June	337	39	108.5	?
July	272	33	206.5	?
August	456	51	202.0	55,878

 

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