Mannheim

19 May 1942 — Mannheim

Date
19 May 1942
Target
Mannheim, Germany
Force dispatched
197 aircraft
Aircraft lost
11

Narrative

Mannheim, the great inland port and chemical city at the junction of the Rhine and the Neckar, was a frequent target in 1942, and 197 aircraft were sent against it on this May night — a mixed force of Wellingtons, Stirlings, Halifaxes, Hampdens, Lancasters and a few Manchesters. The attack failed badly. When the bombing photographs were examined, only four were found to lie within five miles of the aiming point; the great bulk of the load had fallen well to the west of the city, in open country. Around eleven aircraft were lost. Sir Arthur Harris, only weeks into his command and determined to prove what a concentrated bomber force could do, was furious at the poor result and warned that crews would be sent back to Mannheim again and again until the job was done properly. The raid was a sharp reminder of how far accuracy still lagged behind ambition in the first half of 1942.

Sortie details (which aircraft from which squadron, which crew flew, the outcome) will populate this page once the TNA AIR 27 squadron-diary importer arrives.

The fallen

107 airmen in this archive died on 19 May 1942 or the day that followed. For a raid of this kind these are overwhelmingly the night's losses, though a death-date match is not by itself proof an individual flew this operation.

See all 107 who died on 19 May →

Source: Wikipedia — Bombing of Mannheim in World War II →