TORTORELLA LG.

R.A.F. Form 441 A. SORTIE REPORT (Part A) Sheet No. 1 Oprep. Ref. No. 422 Date. 25.10.43 Squadron. 21 SAAF No. of Aircraft. 12 BALTS (4 Mk III, 3 Mk IIIA, 5 Mk IV) Aircraft No. ) see list. Aircraft Letter. ) Captain. Lt.Col. Britz DFC Crew. P/O Smallman other a/c followed on course. Time Up. 1340 A hrs 1st a/c Time Down. 1545 A hrs last a/c Total Time. 24.00 hrs. Aerodrome or L.G. TORTORELLA LG. Type of Cloud. St.Cu over mtns. Cu over target Amount of Cloud. 4/10 4/10 Base of Cloud. 8000' 3500' Tops 6000' Visibility. Fair with glare on water General Weather. Good Map or Chart Reference. ITALY 1:250,000. Sheets 30, 36, 37. Target or Duty. RD BRIDGE AT C4201. | Height | Place | Narrative | |---|---|---| | | Base | Airborne: | | 5000 | | s/c RV point. 4 Spitfires. | | | RV Pt | s/c TERMOLI | | 8000 | Termoli | s/c TARGET | | 10000 | Target | BOMBED | | | | s/c TERMOLI | | 8000 | Termoli | s/c BASE | | 3000 | Base | | | | | Landed. | | | | Last a/c landed. | (Sgd) W. Thompson Capt. SIO. 21 SQUADRON SAAF.

1943-10-25 TORTORELLA LG.

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Form 541

MAP

Transcriber's Notes

Transcriber's Notes * Expanded Abbreviations: * R.A.F.: Royal Air Force. * SAAF: South African Air Force. * BALTS: Martin Baltimore light bombers. * Mk: Mark (designating aircraft version). * Lt.Col.: Lieutenant Colonel. * DFC: Distinguished Flying Cross. * P/O: Pilot Officer. * a/c: Aircraft. * L.G. / LG.: Landing Ground. * St.Cu: Stratocumulus (cloud type). * Cu: Cumulus (cloud type). * mtns.: Mountains. * RD BRIDGE: Road Bridge. * s/c: Steered course. * RV Pt / RV point: Rendezvous Point. * SIO: Senior Intelligence Officer. * Observations on Individuals: * Lt.Col. J.F. Britz, DFC: The Commanding Officer of 21 Squadron. Britz was a "hands-on" leader who personally led this 12-aircraft strike on a critical road bridge. * Capt. W. Thompson: Serving as the Senior Intelligence Officer (SIO). He was responsible for debriefing the crews and compiling these tactical reports upon their return to base. * P/O Smallman: Noted as part of the lead crew with the Commanding Officer. * Location and Historical Context: * Tortorella Landing Ground: A vital forward airbase near Foggia in Southern Italy. Occupied by Allied forces in late September 1943, it was a primary hub for the Desert Air Force (DAF). Today, the site remains largely agricultural, located near the modern Foggia "Gino Lisa" Airport. * Termoli: A strategic coastal town used here as a navigational waypoint. It had been the site of significant combat earlier in the month during the Allied advance up the Adriatic coast. * The Target (Road Bridge at C4201): Tactical bombing of infrastructure was essential to "interdiction"—the systematic destruction of German supply lines to prevent reinforcements from reaching the Bernhardt Line. * Operational Tactics: The narrative notes a rendezvous with four Spitfires. Fighter escort was a standard requirement for light bomber operations to protect against Luftwaffe interception. The "glare on water" mentioned in the visibility section would later be noted as a factor in misidentifying the primary target during the bomb run. 27 The target file 276-2__27.jpg is the reverse side (Part B) of a Sortie Report. While this specific page does not contain a "Date" column, it is verified as the correct image corresponding to Part A of the report (found in image 276-2__26.jpg), which is dated 25.10.43.