CUTICCHI.

R.A.F. Form 441 A. SORTIE REPORT (Part A.) Sheet No. 1 Oprep. Ref. No. 391 Date. 1/9/43 Squadron. 21 SAAF Type of Aircraft. BALTIMORES. 3 Mk.3., 7 Mk.3A., 2 Mk.4. Aircraft No. As per list. Aircraft Letter. do. Leader of Formation. Captain Capt. Ord. Crew. Lt. Hodges. Time Up. 0810 Hrs. LT. 1st Aircraft. Time Down. 1016 Hrs. LT. Last aircraft. Total Time. 23 Hours. Aerodrome or L.G. CUTICCHI. Type of Cloud. S/Cu & Cu. Amount of Cloud. 9/10 - 10/10 Base of Cloud. ? Tops 10,000 feet Visibility. Good through cloud gaps. General Weather. Good. Map or Chart Reference. 1/100,000 MESSINA-REGGIO CALABRA Sheet 254. Task or Duty. MEDIUM LEVEL BOMBING TROOP CONCENTRATIONS. D842843 (SINOPOLI) | Time | Height. | Place. | Narrative. | |---|---|---|---| | 0810 | — | CUTICCHI | Airborne. | | 0830 | 3000 | CUTICCHI | S/C VIZZINI | | 0835 | 3000 | VIZZINI | Circled to wait for other Baltimores. | | 0840 | 4000 | VIZZINI | S/C LENTINI | | 0845 | 4000 | LENTINI | S/C RASOCOLONA (Picked up Escort, 6 Spitfires) | | 0900 | 6000 | S. TERESA | S/C BARCELLONA | | 0910 | 6000 | BARCELLONA | S/C RASOCOLONA | | 0915 | 8000 | RASOCOLONA | S/C PALMI | | 0925 | 12000 | BAGNARA | Crossed Coast. | | 0928 | 11000 | TARGET AREA | Dropped Bombs | | 0930 | 11000 | TARGET AREA | S/C RASOCOLONA | | 0940 | 11000 | RASOCOLONA | S/C ADRANO | | 0955 | 10000 | ADRANO | S/C CUTICCHI | | 1010 | 2000 | CUTICCHI | Over Base | | 1014 | — | CUTICCHI | Landed | | 1016 | | | Last Aircraft Landed | (Signature: illegible) S.I.O. 21 Squadron, SAAF.

1943-09-01 CUTICCHI.

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Form 541

MAP

Transcriber's Notes

TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES Abbreviations and Technical Terms Expanded * Oprep. Ref. No.: Operational Report Reference Number. * SAAF: South African Air Force. * Mk.: Mark (referring to the aircraft version/model). * Hrs. LT: Hours Local Time. * L.G.: Landing Ground. * S/Cu & Cu: Stratocumulus and Cumulus cloud formations. * S/C: Set Course. * S.I.O.: Squadron Intelligence Officer. Personnel and Operational Observations * Captain Ord and Lieutenant Hodges: This crew led a formation of 12 Baltimores on a high-altitude daylight strike. Their leadership required navigating through heavy cloud cover (up to 10/10) to find gaps for visual bombing. * Mixed Formation: The strike force utilized a mix of Baltimore marks (3 Mk.III, 7 Mk.IIIA, and 2 Mk.IV), demonstrating the squadron's reliance on various versions of the Martin Baltimore medium bomber during this transition period. * Escort Coordination: The report notes a precise rendezvous over Lentini to pick up an escort of 6 Supermarine Spitfires, a standard precaution when operating over the heavily defended Italian mainland. Location and Tactical Reality * Cuticchi (Aerodrome): Located in central-eastern Sicily, near Enna. By September 1943, this landing ground served as the primary forward base for 21 Squadron as they shifted operations from Malta to Sicily. Modern name remains Cuticchi. * Vizzini and Lentini: Essential assembly waypoints in eastern Sicily used for formation building and fighter escort pick-ups. Modern names unchanged. * Sinopoli (Target Area): Located in the province of Reggio Calabria, Italy. The grid reference D842843 pinpointed troop concentrations within the rugged terrain of the Calabrian "toe". Modern name: Sinopoli. * Navigational Waypoints: The route took the formation over Santa Teresa di Riva (S. TERESA), Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (BARCELLONA), and Capo Rasocolmo (RASOCOLONA) before crossing the coast into Italy near Bagnara Calabra. Historical Context: The Eve of BAYTOWN * September 1, 1943: This mission took place exactly two days before Operation BAYTOWN, the Allied invasion of mainland Italy. * Strategic Softening: The task of bombing troop concentrations at Sinopoli was a critical component of the final "softening up" process for the Italian mainland. By targeting Axis divisions in the mountains of Calabria, the Desert Air Force aimed to prevent reinforcements from reaching the coastal landing zones near Reggio Calabria. * Operational Challenges: Bombing from 11,000 feet while contending with 9/10 to 10/10 cloud cover highlights the technical difficulty of medium-level bombing in late summer 1943. The reliance on "visibility through cloud gaps" underscores the visual nature of the Baltimore's bombing tactics before the widespread use of advanced radar aids. 184 The date written in the header of the associated Sortie Report (Part A) for this mission is 1/9/43.