Sortie Report (Form 541)
- Date
- - 20th MARCH 1945
APPENDIX "O"C O N F I D E N T I A L . 117FROM :- S.I.O. 21 SQUADRON S.A.A.F.TO :- H.A.A.F. ( ATTENTION OPERATIONS RECORDS.)M.A.T.A.F.( S.C.O.R.U.)3 WING S.A.A.F.REF :- 21S/969.DATE :- 20th MARCH 1945.OPREP NO 969 FOR THE PERIOD ENDING 1300 HOURS ON THE 19th MARCH '45.REF. MAP ITALY 1,100,000 SHEET NUMBER 25 (UDINE)OPERATION NUMBER 171/21S/M.A : 9 MARAUDERS airborne from JESI L/G between 0907 and 1227hours to attack the northern GEMONA M/Y at C 326435, eachA/C carrying a demo load of 6 x 500 and 4 x 250 bombs.From BELLARIA the formation set course at 0953 with aclose escort of 8 Spits, and bombed at 1049 from 11500'on courses between 002 and 020. Result: whole formationstraddled southern half of briefed target with an excellentpattern of bombs. No enemy opposition. Visibility goodand target area clear of cloud. Pamphlets and windowdispensed.B : (1) 9 Marauders. 111 (ii) Nil.C : (1) Nil. (ii) Nil.D : (1) 28.35 Hours. (ii) Nil.E : (1) 30600 x .50 (ii) Nil. (iii) Nil.F : (1) 54 x 500 (ii) as in (1) (iii) & (iv) Nil.36 x 250 270 lbs window.Tail fused 30 - 51 (Demo) 18 Pkts " Front Post".G TO Z. Nil.[Signed] S. L. Boschoff------------------------- CAPTAIN.S.I.O. 21 SQUADRON S.A.A.F.Handwritten Marginalia / Stamps:
Folio Number: 117 (Handwritten, Top Right).
Reference Stamp:The National Archives' reference AIR 27/271/3
Transcriber's Notes
- S.I.O
- Squadron Intelligence Officer. Captain S. L. Boschoff was responsible for debriefing aircrews and compiling OPREP data.
- S.C.O.R.U
- Section for Operational Research and Underlining (or Unit), responsible for analyzing strike precision.
- JESI L/G
- Jesi Landing Ground, Italy; the squadron's primary operational base during March 1945.
- Spits
- Supermarine Spitfire fighter aircraft provided for top-cover and escort.
- Front Post
- A specific type of Allied propaganda pamphlet dropped over enemy territory to degrade morale.
11500: The altitude in feet from which the strike photograph was captured.
MC/GP (Medium Capacity / General Purpose): Standard high-explosive ordnance, typically 500 lb and 250 lb variants, carried by SAAF crews to destroy physical industrial infrastructure and rolling stock.