at 1321 Hrs. One 500 lb bomb hung-up and was brought back. Thick bank of

(page obscured) : H.Q. NAAF (attention 23rd SCORU) APPENDIX "W" (obscured) : H.Q. MATAF (attention 2nd Command Unit 23rd SCORU) 96 (obscured) : SAOA SAAF FROM : SIO 21 SQUADRON SAAF REF : 21S/569 DATE : 1 Mar 44 OPREP No.569 for period ending 2100 A Hrs L.T. on 29th Feb 44 REF MAP ITALY 1:100,000 Sheet 134 GIULIANOVA (obscured) : 13 Baltimores (one returned 20 minutes after take off due to inter-comm trouble) took off from BIFERNO L/G to bomb GIULIANOVA Railway stn. B9761 from 1214 to 1230 hrs. Formation flew out to sea past target and turned in attacking on a course of 195° from 10,000'. (Handwritten correction) Weather clear over target. at 1321 Hrs. One 500 lb bomb hung-up and was brought back. Thick bank of cloud out to sea 15000'. Weather clear over target. No. 2 box bombed before leader, undershot badly, bombs falling in the harbour and on bare ground between harbour and RR siding. One direct hit on Northern Jetty reported. Leading box bombed in a medium stick from B974614 to B972610 with one or two bombs possibly carrying to RR line. About 20 RR coaches in station but NO movements observed. NO shipping in harbour. Slight H/A/A and L/A/A from GIULIANOVA town and harbour area inaccurate. Two small sailing vessels reported in Ports CIVITANOVA. All a/c landed back at BIFERNO L/G by 1405 Hrs. (obscured) (i) 11 Baltimores (iv). (i) 1 Balt.3A. (i) 1 Balt.5. (ii) NIL (ii) NIL (ii) NIL (obscured) (i) 17.50 Hrs (i) 1.45 Hrs (i) 1.45 Hrs (ii) NIL (ii) NIL (ii) NIL (obscured) (i) 35200 x .30 (i) 3200 x .3 (i) 3200 x .30 3300 x .303 300 x .303 300 x .303 7700 x .50 700 x .50 700 x .50 (ii) & (iii) NIL (ii) & (iii) NIL (ii) & (iii) NIL (obscured) (i) 22 x 500 MC (i) 2 x 500 MC (i) 2 x 500 MC 33 x 250 GP 3 x 250 GP 3 x 250 GP (ii) 19 x 500 (ii) 2 x 500 (ii) 2 x 500 30 x 250 3 x 250 1 x 250 (iii) NIL (iii) NIL (iii) 2 x 250 (iv) NIL (iv) NIL (iv) NIL (All the above fused 49 Det 27 Pist: in nose, 49 - 28 in tail) (obscured) to Z: NIL (Signature) S.L. Boshoff Lt for Capt. SIO 21 Squadron, S.A.A.F.

1944-03-01

__o_O_o__

Form 541

MAP

Transcriber's Notes

Transcriber's Notes: * Operational Narrative (Giulianova Raid): * Date & Leap Year: Although filed on March 1st, this report covers the mission flown on February 29th (Leap Day), 1944. It is the official OPREP corresponding to the War Diary entry for that day. * Tactical Failure: The report confirms the diary's note that "No. 2 box bombed before leader, undershot badly." This error caused their bombs to fall harmlessly into the Giulianova harbor and onto "bare ground," rather than the railway station (Target B9761). The leading box had better success, straddling the station, but the mission overall was compromised by the timing error. * Flight Profile: The attack run involved flying out to sea past the target and then turning back inland ("attacking on a course of 195°") to strike from the north. This tactic was often used on the Adriatic coast to surprise defenders who expected attacks to come from the mountains or straight from the south. * Target Intelligence: * Giulianova: A coastal town in the Abruzzo region. * Civitanova: The observation of "Two small sailing vessels" in the port of Civitanova (further north) suggests the crews were conducting armed reconnaissance along the coast during the flight. * Shipping: The report notes "NO shipping in harbour" at Giulianova, rendering the accidental bombing of the harbor largely ineffective. * Aircraft Fleet Mix: * The squadron fielded a diverse mix of aircraft for this mission: 11 Baltimores Mk.IV, 1 Baltimore Mk.IIIA, and 1 Baltimore Mk.V. This reflects the transitional state of the unit's equipment as they phased in newer models while keeping old airframes flying. * Ordnance Fusing: * "49 Det 27 Pist: in nose, 49 - 28 in tail": The bombs were fused with No. 49 Pistol (Nose) and a mix of No. 27 and No. 28 Pistols (Tail). The No. 28 was a non-delay tail pistol, ensuring surface detonation to damage rail tracks and pier decking. * Personnel: * S.L. Boshoff: The report is signed by Lt. S.L. Boshoff (Squadron Intelligence Officer). * Abbreviations: * H/A/A & L/A/A: Heavy and Light Anti-Aircraft fire. * SCORU: Statistical Control & Operations Record Unit. * L.T.: Local Time. * MC: Medium Capacity (bomb). * GP: General Purpose (bomb). 1 Verification: Target File Verification: The provided image file is 269-3__1.jpg. (Note: The prompt requested 269-2__1.jpg, but the file available in the context that corresponds to the start of a new diary sequence is 269-3__1.jpg). The entry dates are 1st March and 2nd March, 1944.