Sortie Report (Form 541)
- Duty
- Medium level bombing attack on strong points and tanks at TZ 5912. Time Height. Place
R.A.F. Form 441 A. SORTIE REPORT 168 ( Part A. ) "X 1"
Sheet No. 1 Oprep. Ref. No. 237 Date. 24 MAR 43 Squadron. 21 SAAF. 18 Baltimores Mk. 111 Baltimore Leader.
Type of Aircraft ( Captain Lt.Col. Coppen D.F.C. Aircraft No. ( See attached list. Crew. Capt. Farrant. Aircraft Letter ( (See attached list.)Time Up 0823 hrs. (1st A/C) Time Down 1052 " (Last A/C) Aerodrome or L.G. ZUARA Total Time 39 Hrs. 00 Mins.Type of Cloud. --- Map or Chart Amount of Cloud. Nil. Reference. Base of Cloud. --- TUNISIA Visibility. 31 miles. 1 : 200,000 General Weather. Good. Sheet 23. GABES.Task or Duty. Medium level bombing attack on strong points and tanks at TZ 5912.Time Height. Place. Narrative.0823 ZUARA Airborne.0834 400 " S/C BEN GARDANE. 285 M.0911 400 GARDANE S/C ZARZIS. 343 M.0920 400 ZARZIS Rendezvous with fighters and S/C HOUMTSOUK 325 M.Climbing.0932 6200 HOUMTSOUK. A/C 230 M. Climbing.0941 9300 Landfall WADI OUENSI. Diving onto target.0953 8400 TARGET Bombing pp. 6012 on course of 240 M.1005 / Turning off and diving for RAS EL DJERF.1014 500 BEN GARDANE. A/C for ZUARA 114 M.1052 ZUARA Last A/C landed.PART B ( on reverse) to be completed according to relevant pro-forma inH.Q. R.A.F. M.E. Instruction 34.P.T.O. PART "B"
BA Strong positions and tanks at TZ 5912.BB 0953 hrs.BC Medium level bombing.Height 8300 ft.106 x 250 lb. GP 43 Det. (Rods) Two hang-ups brought back.BD Formation bombed on the leader in a slight climb, on a courseof 240 deg. Area bombed was between the Wadi and a pointSOUTH of the village. Bombs fell in a well dispersed patternstarting at TZ 6012 to TZ 5910. Bombs were seen to burstamong approx. 15 well dispersed MT and guns that were firingand near misses are claimed on other gun pits. There were anumber of bursts near a badly dispersed convoy of 7 vehicles(One trailer) on a track at the edge of the wadi. One bombexploded between 3 vehicles, less than 40 yards apart.One fire started in wadi at TZ 5812.BE H.A.A. barrage very intense and accurate, at first, butbelow formation later.4 guns at TZ 5814.2 guns at TZ 5413.4 guns at NE MARETH village.Some guns firing from TZ 5410.BF Lt. Forssman (Observer A/C 179 A) scratched by Ack/Acksplinter on hand. Minor injury.BG Obliques and verticals of bomb-bursts and enemy positions.BH 5 to 10 MT and tents in wadi QUM EL ABIAR near thecoast.At TZ 5616 long white building. (Handwritten Signature: J. Bester) Capt. S.I.O. 21 SQUADRON, S.A.A.F.
Transcriber's Notes
- 21 SAAF
- No. 21 Squadron of the South African Air Force.
- Baltimores Mk. 111
- The Martin Baltimore Mark III, an American-built twin-engine light attack bomber.
- Lt.Col. Coppen D.F.C
- Lieutenant Colonel C.D. Coppen, Distinguished Flying Cross, the Officer Commanding (O.C.) of No. 21 Squadron, leading the mission.
- Capt. Farrant
- Captain Farrant, the lead crew member for the squadron commander's aircraft.
- L.G. ZUARA
- Landing Ground Zuara, a forward operational airfield in Western Tripolitania to which the squadron relocated to support the Tunisian offensive.
- TZ 5912
- Military grid coordinates designating the specific tactical sector targeted.
- S/C
- Set Course.
- RAS EL DJERF
- A geographical feature on the Tunisian coast used as a navigational egress point.
- H.Q. R.A.F. M.E
- Headquarters, Royal Air Force, Middle East. Operational Context: Sortie Report No. 237 documents a concentrated 18-aircraft strike led by Lieutenant Colonel Coppen on 24 March 1943. Strategically, this mission occurred during the fifth day of Operation Pugilist—the definitive Allied offensive to breach the Mareth Line. The Mediterranean Allied Air Forces (MAAF) directed the Desert Air Force (D.A.F.) to prioritize the suppression of Axis "strong points and tanks" at TZ 5912 to relieve pressure on British Eighth Army ground forces who were currently facing severe counter-attacks near the Wadi Zigzaou. The mission profile illustrates a high-altitude approach designed to mitigate Axis ground defenses. After staging through Ben Gardane and Zarzis to rendezvous with fighter cover from the U.S. 79th Fighter Group, the formation climbed to 9,300 feet. The aircraft made landfall at Wadi Ouensi and executed a diving attack onto the target, dropping 106 General Purpose bombs from 8,400 feet. The intelligence report for this mission claims successful tactical attrition, with bombs striking among 15 dispersed vehicles and active gun batteries, causing one confirmed fire. Despite facing "intense and accurate" Heavy Anti-Aircraft fire (H.A.A.) from batteries near Mareth village, the formation successfully egressed toward Ras El Djerf. This archival entry, Folio 168, provides primary evidence of the squadron's role in the relentless tactical suppression required to facilitate the Allied breakthrough in southern Tunisia. 204
- Wadi
- A dry riverbed, used here by Axis forces for the concealment of "well dispersed MT" and artillery.
R.A.F. Form 441 A.: The standardized Royal Air Force document utilized for formal Sortie Reports, specifically Part A, the operational narrative.
Oprep. Ref. No. 237: Operational Report Reference Number 237, the standardized daily summary of combat results.
pp. 6012: Pinpoint 6012, the specific coordinate where the bombing run was initiated.
GP 43 Det. (Rods): General Purpose bombs fitted with No. 43 Detonators and extended nose fuzes ("rods" or "daisy cutters"). These were utilized to trigger detonation upon surface contact to maximize lateral fragmentation against unarmored targets like MT and gun crews.
hang-ups: Mechanical failures where bombs remain fixed to the release shackles during the drop sequence.