Le Mans
13 March 1944 — Le Mans
- Date
- 13 March 1944
- Target
- Le Mans, France
Narrative
Le Mans, an important junction on the lines running south and west from Paris, was among the first batch of Transportation Plan targets attacked in March 1944. The raids on its marshalling yards were part of the deliberate, methodical destruction of the French rail system that would leave the Germans unable to move reserves quickly to Normandy after the landings.
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
73 airmen in this archive died on 13 March 1944 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.
- Leading Aircraftman Frederick William John Adams (32)
- Sergeant Douglas Clayhurst Adamson (20)
- Air Pupil Jack H. Baker
- Aircraftman 2nd Class Thomas Henry Baker (38)
- Pilot Officer Malcolm Eber Palmer Barriball (22)
- Wing Commander Donald Scrimgeour Bateman (39)
- Pupil Pilot Arthur Bates (19)
- Sergeant Herbert Beck
- Sergeant Sidney Thomas Bishop (22)
- Sergeant William Blumire (20)
- Flight Sergeant Colin Arthur Bradford (21)
- Sergeant Jack Bramwell (21)
- Sergeant Ernest Buckland (20)
- Flight Sergeant Alexander Vernon Charles Campbell
- Sergeant Allan Cantle-jones (23)
- Flying Officer Donald Ian Cruickshank (21)
- Sergeant Andrew Currie (19)
- Sergeant Raymond David Davies (21)
- Pupil Pilot Malcolm Dick
- Sergeant Alan Clarence Edwards (19)
- Warrant Officer Paul John Fairclough (21)
- Flying Officer Alwyne James Galvin (23)
- Squadron Leader William Henry Gregory Geake (64)
- Lieutenant John Glasse
See all 73 who died on 13 March →
Source: Wikipedia — Transport Plan →