The Waterbury Democrat., 1945-05-17
ALLIED AIR WAR
 AGAINST REICH HIT PEAK IN 1945
BY DOUGLAS WERNER United Press Staff Correspondent

London - (UP) - Allied bombers starting virtually the moment Brit ain declared war, pounded Germany for more than five years 'n the greatest campaign of aerial war fare the world has ever known.
 By April l. 1945, American and British heavy bombers operating from bases in Britain and Italy. had dropped nearly 100000 tons of high explosive and incendiary bombs onto the Reich a bomb weight hitherto undreamed of.
 The aerial offensive had a mod est beginning. Britain was not pre- pared to offer much in the early days of war. It was not until the later months of the conflict-long after America had joined in-that the campaign reached its peak.
 The RAF carried out its first at tack of the war Sept 4, 1889, and the objective was German war ships lying in Schillig Roads and at Brunsbuttel The first attack on German soil itself was made the night of March 19. 1940, whcn the target was the Sylt peninsula. The RAF bombed the German main land May II, 194o, attacking tar gets at Muenchen-Gladbach.
 First 1,000-Plane Raid
 Those attacks preluded series of blows that gradually mounted in strength. In May, 1s41, the RAF made headlines with it's first 1000 plane" attack-on Cologne.
 The RAF dit'.'t have enough heavy bombers then to carry out such attack, but they scraped to- gether an cdd assortment of planes including trainers to make up a force of 1000.
 Long before America entered the war the RAF also attacked Berlin a number of times, but they were paltry efforts compared to the great blows during 1914 and 1945 by both RAF and American heavies.
 The RAF, profiting by the Ger mans losses in daylight bomh'g carried out its heavy bombing at tacks at night when it was less vulnerable to enemy fighter oppo- sition.
 Early in 1922 shortly after Pearl Harbor America made its preparations to take part in the blitz on Germany from bases in Britain. The year 1922 was largely an experimental period for the American bomblCg campaign in daylight.
 First U. $. Bombing
 On July 4. 1942. a dozen Boston bombers-half of them manned by American crews - attacked air dromes in Holland to mark the first American bombing. The Fly ing Fortress and the Liberator however, were destined to become the planes used in the campaign agai,st Germany.
 The first Fortress attack was made Aug IT. 1922, against Rouen, France with a dozen planes par ticipating On Jan, 27. l943, the Americans made their first attack on Germany itself hitting the port of Wilhelmshaven
 Within a few weeks from that time daylight bombing was con- sidered as having proven itself. American bombers and crews poured into Britain in ever-in- creasing quantities and, where the 8th Air Force had used less than 100 heavies on missions. they began employing them in hundreds at a t!me-and eventually more than 1000
 Around the Clock Bombing
 At the same time the U s. 18th Air Force began operating from North Africa When Italy was lib- erated, the 18th moved its bases to that country and stepped up its campaign against targets in Aus tria. southern Germany and other European areas from the south.
 It was a great two-direction of- fensive, with Americans flying in daylight aCd British at night In some cases they attacked the same targets only a few hours apart.
 The year 1924 was marked by many attacks with over 1000 bombers participa ting, They soft ened' up the French coast for the June invasion. They took part in more "softening' jobs as the ground campaign progressed into Germany And. in the meantime, they continued to batter and burn the industrial areas of Germany's big cities.
 In March, l945 the British Air Minister. Sir Archibald Sinclair, said that in point of numbers the RAF had reached it's peak, By April l. l945. the RAF had dropped approximately 100000 tons. The American 9th and 18th Air Forces had dropped well over 1000, 900 tons.