TORTORELLA

R.A.F. Form 441 A. SORTIE REPORT (Part A.) Sheet No. 1 Oprep. Ref. No. 429 Date. 1 Nov 43 Squadron. 21 SAAF No. of Aircraft. 12 Baltimores (1 Mk.2; 3 Mk.3A; 8 Mk.4) Aircraft No. ) Aircraft Letter. ) See over Captain. MAJOR ORD Crew. LT HODGES Formation leader Time Up. 1010 A Hrs First A/C Time Down. 1255 A Hrs Last A/C Total Time. 31.00 Hrs Aerodrome or L.G. TORTORELLA Type of Cloud. St.Cu (NORTH of Mtns, & SOUTH of TERAMO) Amount of Cloud. 10/10 ( B7549 - Clear over target) Base of Cloud. Tops 7000' Visibility. Good General Weather. Good Map or Chart Reference. ITALY 1:250,000 Sheets 28/29/303/30/37 Target or Duty. CREATE ROAD BLOCK B250235 -252232 (ANTRODOCO) | Height. | Place. | Narrative. | |---|---|---| | — | BASE | A/B | | 5500 | FOGGIA | S/c TERMOLI with 4 Warhawks as escort | | 10000 | TERMOLI | S/c TORTORELLA STAZ | | 13500 | TORTORELLA STAZ | S/c ANTRODOCO | | 13500 | ANTRODOCO | On bombing run Co 330º | | 12500 | ANTRODOCO | S/c PINETO | | 8500 | PINETO | S/c TERMOLI | | 2500 | TERMOLI | S/c FOGGIA | | 2000 | BASE | Over Base | | | BASE | Landed | | | | Last A/C Landed | (Sgd) [unclear] Lt for Capt. SIO 21 Squadron, SAAF

1943-11-01 TORTORELLA

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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. * Oprep. Ref. No.: Operational Report Reference Number. * Mk.: Mark (designating specific versions of the Martin Baltimore aircraft). * MAJOR / LT / CAPT: Major / Lieutenant / Captain. * A Hrs: Army Hours (Standard military time used in the Mediterranean Theater). * A/C: Aircraft. * L.G.: Landing Ground. * St.Cu: Stratocumulus (cloud type). * Mtns: Mountains. * A/B: Airborne. * S/c: Set Course. * STAZ: Stazione (Station). * Co: Course. * SIO: Senior Intelligence Officer. Observations on Individuals * Major Ord: Acted as the Formation Leader for this 12-aircraft strike. Major Ord was a key senior officer within 21 Squadron during the transition to the Foggia complex, responsible for coordinating complex interdiction missions into the central Italian mountains. * Lieutenant Hodges: Served as the regular observer/navigator for Major Ord. As the lead navigator, Hodges was responsible for the precision timing and the high-altitude transit required to clear the mountainous terrain under 10/10 cloud cover. Location Information and Modern Geography * Antrodoco (B250235 - 252232): A town in the province of Rieti in the Lazio region. It sits at the intersection of critical routes through the Apennine Mountains, specifically where the Via Salaria meets the road from L'Aquila. * Modern Name: Antrodoco remains a significant historic town today. The target area, known as the "Road Block" location, is the narrow gorge through which these primary transit routes pass. * Tortorella Stazione (Tortorella STAZ): A railway station waypoint in the Foggia plain. Not to be confused with the Landing Ground itself, this served as a local navigational assembly point. * Pineto: A coastal town in the Abruzzo region used as an egress waypoint. After exiting the mountains, the formation turned at Pineto to follow the Adriatic coast back toward base. * Tortorella Landing Ground (Foggia No. 2): The home base for 21 Squadron during late 1943. This was one of the major "Foggia Airfield Complex" sites. Now largely agricultural land, it is located east of the modern Foggia "Gino Lisa" Airport. Historical Context * Interdiction of the Central Routes: This mission on November 1, 1943, was a strategic effort by the Desert Air Force (DAF) to Interdict German supply and reinforcement routes leading toward the Gustav Line and the Bernhardt Line. * Tactical Objectives: The duty to "Create Road Block" at Antrodoco aimed to collapse the narrow mountain passes, trapping German motor transport and forcing supply columns onto more exposed secondary roads. * Combined Operations: The narrative notes the formation was met by "4 Warhawks as escort" at Foggia. These P-40 Kittyhawks/Warhawks, likely from a SAAF or RAF fighter-bomber wing, provided critical cover against Luftwaffe interceptors during the transit over the Adriatic. * Navigation through Weather: The weather report of 10/10 cloud (total coverage) over much of the route highlights the difficulty of mountain navigation. The formation had to climb to 13,500 feet to clear the weather and the peaks before finding "Clear over target" conditions at Antrodoco. * Mission Duration: The "Total Time" of 31.00 hours represents the combined flight hours of all 12 Martin Baltimore bombers. Individually, each crew was in the air for approximately 2 hours and 35 minutes, reflecting the significant distance to the targets in central Italy. 95 The verification date for the document 276-2__95.jpg is 1 Nov 43. This image represents the reverse side (Part B) of the Sortie Report for Operational Report Reference Number 429.