Undated — War Diary — Onoorwinlik

21 Squadron War Diary

1427 hrs

R.A.F. Form 441 A.War Diary 74SORTIE REPORT(Part A.)Sheet No. 1Oprep. Ref. No. 350Date. 25.Jul.43Squadron. 21 SAAFType of Aircraft. 12 BALTIMORES (2 Mk III and 10 Mk IIIA)Aircraft No. ) as per listAircraft Letter. )Captain Major JANDRELL.Lt. CHRISTIE.Crew.Leader of Formation.Time Up. 1427 Hrs LT 1st aircraftTime Down. 1712 hrs LT Last aircraftTotal Time. 32 hrsAerodrome or L.G. HALFARType of Cloud. S/CuAmount of Cloud. 1/10Base of Cloud. 14000 ftVisibility. 15 milesGeneral Weather. GoodMap or Chart Reference.SICILIA1:500,000NE 36/12Task or Duty. ADRANO VILLAGE AND CROSS ROADS.| Time | Height | Place | Narrative ||---|---|---|---|| 1427 | | Halfar | Airborne || 1511 | 2000 | Malta | Set course PALAZZOLO || 1533 | 5300 | Sicily | Crossed coast of SICILY. || 1541 | 5100 | Palazzolo | Circuited rendezvous point || 1552 | 5150 | | Picked up 8 Spitfires. Set course 3 miles S CORRIDORE. || 1558 | 9000 | 3 miles | || 1600 | 10200 | S Corridore | Set course CATENANUOVA || 1611 | 12600 | Catenanuova | Set course ADRANO || 1614 | 11500 | Adrano | Bombed course 345° || 1615 | 10500 | | Set course PALAZZOLO || 1624 | 5000 | Palazzolo | Set course MALTA || 1631 | 5000 | Sicily | Crossed coast || 1650 | 1500 | Malta | || 1700 | | Halfar | Landed. || 1712 | | | Last aircraft landed. |(Signature: J.S. Bester) Capt.SIO. 21 SQUADRON. SAAF.BA. ADRANO VILLAGE AND CROSS ROADS.BB. 1614 hrs LT.BC. Medium level; 11500 ft Course 345°72 x 250 GP 47 Det 28 Pistol (Tail fused)BD. Formation bombed too far WEST of village, but bursts straddled buildings and Railway station NE of target. Some bursts were seen SOUTH of target among what appeared to be large yellow boxes stacked in a square. NO results observed.BE. Isolated HAA bursts from target area, good for height only.BF. NIL.BG. Obliques and Verticals of bomb bursts 210 IAS 11500 ft.BM. 1. Occupied Gun position 2 miles NORTH of CATENANUOVA.2. Dug in positions SW of ADRANO on River banks.3. 4 Trucks in ADRANO Station.4. Mirror flashing "V" from NORTH of MISTERBIANCO.5. M.T. on roads.LIST OF AIRCRAFT AND CREW.(The following section is heavily struck through in the original document)~~903 B Major JANDRELL, Lt. CHRISTIE, 2/Lt. PEARCE, 2/Lt. Le ROUX~~~~136 M Lt. DUGMORE & MASTERS, F/Sgt MAASDORP & ROGERS.~~~~341 L Lts. WILLNOTT & BORCHERDS, F/Sgts. LOOTS & WALBRIDGE.~~~~290 C Lts. BLIEDEN & ROSE, F/Sgts. JARVIS & PERKINS.~~~~179 A Lts. ASKEW & LAMBERT, F/Sgt. GELDENHUYS, Sgt. CRANHALL.~~~~195 G Lts. FROST & WHITE, F/Sgt. CARTER, Sgt. ALLAN.~~~~108 O Capt. SMIT, Lt. KAY, 2/Lt. TOMS & WRIGHT.~~~~173 P Capt. SAUNDERS, Lt. BOOYSE, F/Sgt. MOORE, Sgt. EARP-JONES.~~~~344 X Major COULL, Sgt. SMALLMAN (RhoA), 2/Lt. SHAW, F/Sgt. STRYDOM.~~~~181 T Lts. SIMPSON & HARLE, F/Sgt. ROBERTS & SHEPPERSON.~~~~221 Y Lts. RICHARDS & de CONNICK, F/Sgt. ROBERTSE, Sgt. McGRINDLE.~~~~951 V Lt. SMYTH & MANNING, F/Sgt. de PIESANIE, Sgt. LEISCHING.~~(Corrected List Below)176 YY Major JANDRELL, Lt. CHRISTIE,, 2/Lts. PEARCE & LE ROUX291 U Lt. HARGRAVE & REES, F/Sgts. JENSEN (RCAF) & BEDFORD.181 T Lts. SMYTH & MANNING, F/Sgts. de PIESANIE, Sgt. LEISCHING.108 O Capt. SMIT, Lt. KAY, 2/Lts. TOMS & WRIGHT.221 Y Lts. RICHARDS & de CONNICK, F/Sgt. ROBERTSE, Sgt. McGRINDLE.344 X Major COULL, F/Sgt. SMALLMAN (RhoA), 2/Lt. SHAW, F/Sgt. STRYDOM.226 H Capt. ORD, Lt. HODGES, F/Sgts. WALKER & DEVENISH.341 L Lts. WILLNOTT & BORCHERDS, F/Sgts. LOOTS & WALBRIDGE (RAF).271 F Lts. GUARD & WEBBER, F/Sgt. GREEN, 2/Lt. de VILLIERS.290 C Lts. BLIEDEN & ROSE, F/Sgts. JARVIS & PERKINS.136 M Lts. ASKEW & LAMBERT, F/Sgt. GELDENHUYS, Sgt. CRANHALL.195 G Lts. WOOD & NEL, F/Sgt. JAMES, Sgt. BUCHLER.

Transcriber's Notes

R.A.F: Royal Air Force.
S.A.A.F: South African Air Force.
L.T: Local Time.
Time Up: 13:48 A (Local).
Total Time: 22.00 hours represents the aggregate flight time for all 12 aircraft (approx. 1 hour 50 mins each).
L.G: Landing Ground.
S/Cu: Stratocumulus (cloud type).
N.E: North East.

Abbreviations and Technical Terms Expanded

ft: feet.

Major A.C. Jandrell and Lieutenant Christie: Serving as the "Leader of Formation," this crew was responsible for the tactical coordination of the 12-aircraft strike. Jandrell was a prominent leader in 21 Squadron's transition from nocturnal intruder missions to high-altitude daylight formation bombing following the move to Malta.

Navigational Waypoints:

Flown on July 25, 1943 (D+15), this mission occurred during a moment of profound political upheaval. As the formation was bombing Adrano, the Grand Council of Fascism in Rome voted to remove Benito Mussolini from power.

On the battlefield, the Allied strategy had shifted to "isolating the battlefield" around the Etna massif. By striking the Adrano crossroads from 11,500 feet, 21 Squadron targeted the vital flow of reinforcements to the German paratroopers holding the British 8th Army at bay on the Catanian plain.