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Operation No. 238

ENEMY STRONGPOINTS IN SUPPORT OF NEW ZEALAND DIVISION IN SQUARE TY 91 (REF.MAP : TUNISIA 1 :…

Thursday, 25 March 1943

Over target: 0207 hrs Landed: 0640 hrs Time: 04:10 hrs

Sortie Report (Form 541)

Duty
Medium level bombing attack on enemy strongpoints in ~~support of NEW ZEALAND DIVISION in Square TY 91.~~ Time Height. Place
R.A.F. Form 441 A. SORTIE REPORT 173 ( Part A. ) "Z 4" NIGHT OPERATION.
Sheet No. 1 Oprep. Ref. No. 238 A Date. 24.25/3/43 Squadron. 21 SAAF. 8 Baltimores Mk. 111
Type of Aircraft See attached list. Captain Maj. M. Barnby D.F.C. Aircraft No. " " " Crew. Lt. G. Evans Aircraft Letter (See attached list)Time Up 0410 hrs. (1st. A/C) Time Down 0640 hrs. (Last A/C) Aerodrome or L.G. ZUARA. Total Time 18 hrs. 40 mins.Type of Cloud. --- Map or Chart Amount of Cloud. Nil. Reference. Base of Cloud. --- TUNISIA Visibility. Good. 1 : 500,000 General Weather. Good. GABES.Task or Duty. Medium level bombing attack on enemy strongpoints in ~~support of NEW ZEALAND DIVISION in Square TY 91.~~Time Height. Place. Narrative.0410 ZUARA Airborne0417 1000 S/C RAS EL TALGA. 301 M.0437 RAS EL 321 M S/C RASS-TAGUERNESS Co. 321.TALGA0517 8000 RASS- S/C RAS EL DJERF Co. 260.TAGUERNESS0531 8000 TZ 4822 S/C Target and letter 'O' TY 9103. Co. 260. Climbingto 12,000.0538 12000 'O' Right hand turn on to target: run S/N losing ht.0543 12000 TARGET Dropped long stick and photographic flare.0550 11000 Left hand turn off target.0610 10000 'O' S/C for DR position YD 9660. Co. 180.0623 7500 DR Posn. S/C BEN GARDANE. Co. 100.YD 96600630 1000 GARDANE S/C ZUARA. Co. 116. ZUARA 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 Enemy strongpoints, in support of NEW ZEALAND DIVISION inSquare TY 91. (Ref. Map : TUNISIA 1 : 500,000 GABES.)BB From 0510 to 0538 hrs.BC Medium level bombing attack from 8000 to 11000 ft.48 x 250 lb. GP 43 Det. (Rods)BD All bombs fell in Square TY 91, across road (running NE to ELHAMMA) and wadis. A quick stick of 6 bombs dropped among artil-ery guns firing. One fire started NE of fire already burningat TY 9515 on entering target.BE Very slight inaccurate L.A.A. over target.3 H.A.A. guns at TZ 4524.3 H.A.A. guns at TZ 3417.BF Nil.BG Night photography apparatus fitted from one of the A/C, butflare did not explode.BH Enemy beacon flashing a series of white 'Dits' from TZ 3727.One searchlight pointing out to sea SW of GABES. (Handwritten Signature: [Illegible]) for 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.
A/C
Aircraft.
A/C
Aircraft.
L.G. ZUARA
Landing Ground Zuara, a forward operational airfield in Tripolitania supporting the Tunisian offensive.
NEW ZEALAND DIVISION
The 2nd New Zealand Division, executing the "left hook" outflanking maneuver around the Mareth Line.
S/C
Set Course.
H.Q. R.A.F. M.E
Headquarters, Royal Air Force, Middle East. Operational Context: The Sortie Report for the night of 24–25 March 1943 documents the second wave of night-bombing sorties conducted by No. 21 Squadron S.A.A.F. during Operation Supercharge II. Strategically, the mission targeted Axis "strongpoints" in Square TY 91 to support the 2nd New Zealand Division as it executed a "left hook" outflanking maneuver toward El Hamma. This period was critical as Allied forces sought to bypass the static defenses of the Mareth Line. Led by Major Barnby, eight Martin Baltimores departed Zuara at 04:10 hours, navigating a complex route via Rass-Taguerness to reach the target area. The aircraft climbed to a significant altitude of 12,000 feet before commencing a South-to-North bombing run. The formation delivered a "long stick" of 48 General Purpose bombs and utilized photographic flares to confirm the impact zone, which focused on the road northeast to El Hamma. Intelligence results from this wave confirmed that the strike was delivered among active artillery batteries and started a fire northeast of existing blazes at grid TY 9515. The Axis defensive response was noted as "very slight" and "inaccurate". This archival entry, recorded as Folio 173, provides primary evidence of the unit's sustained 24-hour operational cycle during the decisive Allied breakthrough into central Tunisia. 211
EL HAMMA
A strategic Tunisian oasis town serving as the objective for the Allied outflanking movement.

R.A.F. Form 441 A.: Royal Air Force Form 441 A, the standardized document utilized for formal Sortie Reports, specifically Part A, the operational narrative.

Oprep. Ref. No. 238 A: Operational Report Reference Number 238 A, the standardized daily summary of mission results for the early morning wave on 25 March 1943.

RAS EL TALGA / RASS-TAGUERNESS / RAS EL DJERF: Navigational waypoints and coastal geographical features utilized to guide the formation to the target.

DR position: Dead Reckoning position, a navigational point calculated based on previously known position, time, speed, and heading.

'O' TY 9103: A specific military grid coordinate utilized as a tactical reference point.

stick: A linear release sequence of multiple bombs dropped in rapid succession.

GP 43 Det. (Rods): General Purpose bombs fitted with No. 43 Detonators and extended nose fuzes ("rods" or "daisy cutters"). These were designed to trigger detonation upon surface contact to maximize lateral fragmentation against unarmored targets like personnel and soft-skinned vehicles in the desert.

stick: A linear release sequence of multiple bombs dropped in rapid succession.

'Dits': Morse code notation for short signals ("dots"), indicating an enemy navigational or identification beacon at grid TZ 3727.