Thursday, 3 February 1944 — War Diary

21 Squadron War Diary

1900 hrs Tortorella, Italy

The National Archives' reference AIR 27/269/2APPENDIX "A"(Part A)Sheet No. | Op/Rep. Ref No. | Date | Squadron|---|---|---|Type of Aircraft | | Captain. |Aircraft No. | | Crew |Aircraft Letter | | |Time Up | 1 | 540 | 3 Feb 44 | 21 SAAFTime Down | 12 Baltimores | (2 Mk. 3A, 10 Mk. 4) | Aerodrome MAJOR DALLING DFC. | LT MCARAVEYTotal Time | Base Over | |Type of Cloud | Formation LeaderAmount of Cloud | 0941 A Hrs 1st a/c | Map or Chart ReferenceBase of Cloud | 1125 A Hrs last a/c | TORTORELLAVisibility | 19.00 Hrs |General Weather | |Task or Duty | | NILTime | Height | Place | Narrative| | | | Hazy en-route. 20-miles target area | ITALY 1:100,000 Sheet 146 SULMONA| | | | Good || | | SULMONA RR STATION (G934817) || 0941 | | TORTORELLA | a/b || 0959 | 2000 | | S/c LUCERA || 1003 | 8000 | LUCERA | XX Circling to Rv || 1010 | | | || 1012 | 8000 | LUCERA | S/c TARGET || 1038 | 10000 | TARGET | Bombed || 1042 | 10000 | TARGET | S/c BASE || 1125 | | TORTORELLA | Last a/c landed |(Signature illegible) Capt.SIG 21 Squadron, S.A.A.F.(Part B (on reverse) to be completed according to relevant pro-forma in H.Q. R.A.F., M.E. Instruction 34. P.T.O.

Transcriber's Notes

Time Up: 0941 A (Alpha = Local Time).
S.A.A.F: South African Air Force.
D.F.C: Distinguished Flying Cross.
L.T: Local Time.
Total Time: 22.00 hours represents the aggregate flight time for all 12 aircraft (approx. 1 hour 50 mins each).
R.R: Railroad.
S/C: Set Course.
Capt: Captain.

Mission Details:

Times:

Navigation Log (Narrative Column):

a/b: Airborne.

XX Circling to Rv: Indicates the time spent circling over Lucera waiting for all 12 aircraft to join the formation.

Personnel:

Historical Context: