06 Oct 1944, WW2 Air Raids over Hong Kong & South China

DATE OF AIR RAID: October 06, 1944

OBJECTIVE: Destroy river traffic east of Pingnam and fly staggered single-aircraft night raids to harass airbases at Canton and prevent JAAF pilots from flying night bombing missions against American airbases in China.

RESULTS: One aircraft bombs Tien Ho airbase, one aircraft bombs White Cloud airbase, one aircraft bombs Wuchow, one aircraft bombs Samshui, and one aircraft bombs Pingnam.   Damage is unknown.  Two aircraft bomb and strafe small craft.

TIME OVER TARGET: ~10:00 p.m. on October 6 to 2:00 a.m. on October 07

AMERICAN UNITS AND AIRCRAFT: Four B-25s from the 491^st Bomb Squadron (341^st Medium Bomb Group)

AMERICAN PILOTS AND AIRCREW:

• B-25D #43-3288: 1^st Lt. F.E. Weimer; 1^st Lt. W.H. Briggs; 1^st Lt. R.J. Kacik; 1^st Lt. J.L. Wolfe; Staff Sgt. A.E. Jones; Tech Sgt. J.E. Starling; Staff Sgt. W.R. Green
• B-25H #43-4361: 1^st Lt. J.M. Musgrove; 1^st Lt. E.J. Cook; Staff Sgt. D.E. Murphy; Staff Sgt. W.C. Cheverie; Sgt. H.R. Lehmann
• B-25H #43-4319: 1^st Lt. T. Biswell; Flight Officer H.S. Olson; Staff Sgt. W.J. Copeland; Tech Sgt. R.W. Hirtle; Staff Sgt. M. Bogel
• B-25H #43-4096: Captain R.G. Rice; 1^st Lt. F.O. Dice; 1^st Lt. W.P. Dougan; 1^st Lt. A.J. White; Staff Sgt. M.E. Vollmer; Tech Sgt. J.W. Silvernail; Sgt. G.D. Tanchum
• B-25J #43-4088: 1^st Lt. F.O. Cullen; 2^nd Lt. G.G. Mann; 1^st Lt. H.R. Edelman; 1^st Lt. S.D. Brown; Staff Sgt. W.S. Faulkner; Tech Sgt. K.E. Norris; Staff Sgt. A.L. Matos
• B-25J #43-3954: 1^st Lt. E.M. Hexberg; 2^nd Lt. H.H. Templin; 1^st Lt. G.L. Velan; 1^st Lt. W.W. Merrill; Staff Sgt. F.W. Konkolics; Tech Sgt. H.P. Albro; Staff Sgt. E.E. Routon
• B-25H #43-4159: 1^st Lt. J.E. Andrews; 1^st Lt. J.R. Herdic; Staff Sgt. L.F. Concannon; Staff Sgt. C.E. Henderson; Staff Sgt. C.E. Henderson; Staff Sgt. W.R. Wahl

ORDNANCE EXPENDED: 88 x 100-pound bombs (22 each on White Cloud and Tien Ho airbases); 24 x 250-pound bombs

JAPANESE UNITS, AIRCRAFT, AND PILOTS: None

AIRCRAFT LOSSES: None

SOURCES: Original mission reports and other documents in the Air Force Historical Research Agency archives at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.

Information compiled by Steven K. Bailey, author of Bold Venture: The American Bombing of Japanese-Occupied Hong Kong, 1942-1945 (Potomac Books/University of Nebraska Press, 2019).