Sortie Report (Form 541)
BA. INTERRUPT ROAD COMMUNICATIONS BY DROPPING FLARES, INCENDIARIES AND BOMBING IN AREA B5228, C3305, H 0677 CENTRAL SICILIA.BB. 2307 hrs to 0028 hrs LT.BC. MEDIUM LEVEL. 2500/5000' above ground level.42 x 250 GP 43 Det. (Rods).9 x 4.5 Recce Flares No. 6.150 x 4 lb Incendiaries.28000 Pamphlets (Mussolini 28 NOV 40).250 x .5BD. Aircraft searched the roads and wadis at times from 200' above ground level for enemy transport. Flares were dropped. Little movement was seen. 7 bombs and incendiaries were aimed at ROADS between LEONFORTE to PETRALIA.9 bombs and incendiaries were aimed at ROADS between SERRADIFALCO to ENNA.24 bombs and incendiaries were dropped from VALLELUNGA to ENNA.2 bombs were dropped near ROAD at RAFFADALI.Incendiaries started a fire giving off explosions and bombs straddled 10 MT at CALTANISSETTA VILLAGE.A near miss was scored on 6 MT in bend of road at LEONFORTE and a direct hit on road at ENNA.6 bombs burst across a cutting at G9055.Top gunner of one aircraft straffed large trucks at RAFFADALI and started a fire.BE. LAA slight and inaccurate from CALTANISSETTA.1 Blue S/L inaccurate from C3805.BF. NIL.BG. NIL.BH. The pamphlets were thrown out over the entire target area.LIST OF AIRCRAFT AND CREW.903 B Maj. CORMACK, Lt. LOMBAARD, 2/Lt. VILJOEN & F/Sgt. FINBERG.930 K Lt. HAMILTON, Lt. WHITTLE, 2/Lt. HODGKINSON & F/Sgt. PHELAN.271 F Lt. GUARD, Sgt. SMALLMAN (Rhod) F/Sgt. GREEN & 2/Lt. de VILLIERS.195 G Lt. A’BEAR, Lt. OWEN-HUGHES, 2/Lts. HARRISON & PICKUP.291 U Lt. HARGRAVE, Lt. REES, Sgt. JENSEN (Can) F/Sgt. BEDFORD.167 S Capt. SMIT, Lt. KAY, 2/Lts. TOMS & WRIGHT.957 W Lt. WOOD, Lt. GOULD, 2/Lts. PURDON & GROENEWALD.
Transcriber's Notes
- LT
- Local Time.
- GP
- General Purpose (bombs).
- Recce
- Reconnaissance (flares).
- MT
- Motor Transport.
- LAA
- Light Anti-Aircraft artillery.
- S/L
- Searchlight.
Abbreviations and Technical Terms Expanded:
Det. (Rods): Detonator (referring to 6-inch standoff rods used to trigger lateral blast).
lb: pound (weight of incendiaries).
Route and Timing Analysis:
Ordnance and Strike Observations:
Observations about Individuals Mentioned:
Sgt. Smallman (Rhod) and Sgt. Jensen (Can): These entries highlight the international makeup of 21 Squadron, featuring personnel from the Southern Rhodesian Air Force and Royal Canadian Air Force serving alongside SAAF crews.
Information about the Locations: