The Wilmington morning star., 1944-05-26
|NewTypeNazii
Roalstts Fired
klanes
TAck EUROPE
kaa 1enters, Air Fields
Get Heavy Pounding
By Allied Ships

AOANA OA>1 A'ASSJ 800 VI
More than 5000 Allied planes
attacked German airdromes
and transportation centers on
the continent with over 5000
tons of bombs today in a
crushing two-way assault du-
ring which American For
tresses and Liberators storm
ing the west wall, ran into an
unprecedented concentration
of exploding rockets thrown
up by suddenly increased
~---~"n1 dafenses.
The tremendous artillery bar
rage sent up in a futile attempt
to block the invading Americans
sent curious rocket puffs bursting
all around the bombers. One re-
turning flier reported it as sort
Of corkscrew effect, leaving a
train of white SMOKE" and explod-
ing into '1ong yellow streak COW
ering the whole height Of the for
nation"
Toulon, Lyon Hit
No reports were available as
yet on the attack by the Mediter-
ranean force on SOUTHERN France,
during which, Liberator crewmen
reported, the Carnoules yards, 10
miles northeast of Toulon, and the
Lyon rail installations, were well
covered with bombs.
Heavies attacking northeastern
France and Belgium were covered
bv between 500 and $50 American
Psi Mustangs and P38 Lightnlngs
of the Eighth and Ninth Air For
ces. Raj and Allied Mustangs OF
the Expeditionary air force also
provided escort and flew support
ing sweeps.
'@~Thg pSmBgrss struck at Marsha1s
ling yards at Mulhouse, BelIort'
Sarreguemines, Metz, Thionville,,
Charleroi and Blainville in France;
Brussels and Liege, in Belgium,
and -airfields near Nancy ana
Bretigny in France and Antwerp
and Brussels in Belgium. AT the
same time fighters attacked more
than SO locomotives and stra1eo
German troops in field AFTER shey
had fled a troop train.
Today's attacks matched the
davis assault for May 20, when
E 600 planes dropped an estimated
3 600 tons of bombs on European
targets. but on that day all the
attacks were made by bomoers
based in Britain. ,e
At least q rail centers and 10
air fields upon which Germany
has been leaning heavily for de-
tense of Fortress Europe were
nounded in this seventh day OF 1u-
rious pre-invasion air onslaugh' d
day in which the attacks ranged
from OulO1l LII oOo1iASAiA
the German capital itself.
From $50 to 1000 American
heavies based in Britain slammed
explosives on four air fields, nine
freight yards and other military
targets in northeastern France ana
Belgium, another American day.
light fleet from Italy attacked the
Mediterranean port Of Toulon and
the rail center of Lyons, 200 miles
farther north, the funnel to the
southeastern French defense zone.
A U. S. strategic air forces com
munique reported that nine enemy
aircraft were destroyed in the
sweep against the west wall,
against a loss of four American
bombers and IL fighters.
No Fighter Opposition
There was no fighter opposition
to this assault, the American
planes going down before the
strong anti-aircraft fire and a
spectacular rocket defense.
The Luftwaffe, frayed from cop
ing with yesterdays simultaneous
assaults on Berlin and Vienna and
last nights Raj armada of 500
heavy bombers, did not risk their
air force to defend today's targets,
but augmented anti-aircraft bat
teries throughout the occupied
lands threw up a terrific barrage
of flax, including green and black
fields of exploding rockets.
A =: - Il