Greatest Strategic Air Missions?

In article ,
(BUFDRVR) writes:
Keith Willshaw wrote:

I'd suggest the oil campaign against Germany in WW2
was rather more significant.


Had POL been a top priority beginning in 1942 I think the POL campaign would be
an obvious choice, but the fact that POL was not a high priority until 1944
kind of blurs its importance. According to Speer, had we systematically
attacked Germany's electricity (production and distribution) beginning in 1942,
the war in Europe would have ended 6-8 months sooner.

There's some evidence that POL was seen as a weak point in the early
days of WW 2. IIRC, there was a British attempt to get bombers over
Ploesti and the Dessarabians oil facilities in what was then the
Soviet Union. (Let's not overlook the fact that the Soviets didnt
throuw in with the Allies until June 1941, and had been perfectly
happy helping Hitler carve up Europe before that)

The raids got as far as forward-basing bombers in, I believe, Greece,
but the plan was cancelled at the last minute.

--
Pete Stickney
A strong conviction that something must be done is the parent of many
bad measures. -- Daniel Webster

Pete Stickney wrote:

There's some evidence that POL was seen as a weak point in the early
days of WW 2.

Absolutely it was. Even after the U.S. jumped in POL was considered a good
payoff target...the problem was (IIRC) that the entire POL system (from
production to distribution) was so dispersed that only the production node was
seen as vulnerable to air strike and the effects of hitting production much too
delayed. After Ploesti, no serious strikes on POL facilities took place again
until the Spring before D-Day.


BUFDRVR

"Stay on the bomb run boys, I'm gonna get those bomb doors open if it harelips
everyone on Bear Creek"

On Sat, 21 Aug 2004 22:01:35 +0100, "Keith Willshaw"
wrote:


"Ed Rasimus" wrote in message
.. .
On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 21:23:23 -0700, "Leadfoot"
wrote:


Biggest strategic campaign, of course, would be Linebacker II.


I'd suggest the oil campaign against Germany in WW2
was rather more significant.

Keith

Context, ol' buddy. Context! You've snipped the location of that
single line away--it was following the listing of the Doumer Bridge
LGB attack as a great strategic event, and my comments were strictly
related to the SEA unpleasantness of we colonials.

When we're talking strategic campaigns, WW II has got some huge ones.
Vietnam, on the other hand, simply ground on until every one got tired
and went home.


Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
"When Thunder Rolled"
"Phantom Flights, Bangkok Nights"
Both from Smithsonian Books
***www.thunderchief.org

"Ed Rasimus" wrote in message
...
On Sat, 21 Aug 2004 22:01:35 +0100, "Keith Willshaw"
wrote:


"Ed Rasimus" wrote in message
. ..
On Fri, 20 Aug 2004 21:23:23 -0700, "Leadfoot"
wrote:


Biggest strategic campaign, of course, would be Linebacker II.


I'd suggest the oil campaign against Germany in WW2
was rather more significant.

Keith

Context, ol' buddy. Context! You've snipped the location of that
single line away--it was following the listing of the Doumer Bridge
LGB attack as a great strategic event, and my comments were strictly
related to the SEA unpleasantness of we colonials.

Actually my intent in using the word "strategic" was to avoid the listing of
missions such as "most aircraft shot down" or "most tanks busted" type
missions which while important to any war effort wasn't what I was looking
for. "Mission" could be numerous sorties on different days such as
"dambusters" but wouldn't include something like "Point Blank". I could
have been clearer but since this is Usenet it probably wouldn't make a
diffence anyway as people tend to post whatever they want.





When we're talking strategic campaigns, WW II has got some huge ones.
Vietnam, on the other hand, simply ground on until every one got tired
and went home.


Ed Rasimus
Fighter Pilot (USAF-Ret)
"When Thunder Rolled"
"Phantom Flights, Bangkok Nights"
Both from Smithsonian Books
***www.thunderchief.org

Subject: Greatest Strategic Air Missions?
From: "Leadfoot"
Date: 8/21/2004 5:51 PM Pacific Standard Time
Message-id:

Actually my intent in using the word "strategic" was to avoid the listing of
missions such as "most aircraft shot down" or "most tanks busted" type
missions which while important to any war effort wasn't what I was looking

How about missions that changed the world? Battle of Britain comes to mind.


Arthur Kramer
344th BG 494th BS
England, France, Belgium, Holland, Germany
Visit my WW II B-26 website at:
http://www.coastcomp.com/artkramer

Ed Rasimus wrote:

Vietnam, on the other hand, simply ground on until every one got tired
and went home.


The great Strategic campaigns in Vietnam were the ones that never happened.


BUFDRVR

"Stay on the bomb run boys, I'm gonna get those bomb doors open if it harelips
everyone on Bear Creek"

"Leadfoot" wrote in message
news:KYBVc.118201$sh.114795@fed1read06...
What are some of the greatest strategic air missions?

Some candidates

Yamamoto shootdown
Hiroshima
Paul Doumer bridge LGB
Dambusters
Tirpitz
Norwegian heavy water
Midway
Doolittle raid

You would surely have to include the 11th September attacks on New York and
Washington. For an outlay of well under $1M, and some volunteers suicide
attackers with box cutters, whoever executed it massively damaged the US
economy, and so spooked the US that they started not one but two unwinnable
wars (in Afghanistan and Iraq) in response. Surely that has to place it up
there with Hiroshima?

John

"John Mullen" wrote in message
...
"Leadfoot" wrote in message
news:KYBVc.118201$sh.114795@fed1read06...
What are some of the greatest strategic air missions?

Some candidates

Yamamoto shootdown
Hiroshima
Paul Doumer bridge LGB
Dambusters
Tirpitz
Norwegian heavy water
Midway
Doolittle raid

You would surely have to include the 11th September attacks on New York
and
Washington. For an outlay of well under $1M, and some volunteers suicide
attackers with box cutters, whoever executed it massively damaged the US
economy, and so spooked the US that they started not one but two
unwinnable
wars (in Afghanistan and Iraq) in response. Surely that has to place it up
there with Hiroshima?

I think the Doolittle raid is a much closer parallel to 9-11 than Hiroshima



John

"Leadfoot" wrote in message
news:TUMVc.122627$sh.67356@fed1read06...

"John Mullen" wrote in message
...
"Leadfoot" wrote in message
news:KYBVc.118201$sh.114795@fed1read06...
What are some of the greatest strategic air missions?

Some candidates

Yamamoto shootdown
Hiroshima
Paul Doumer bridge LGB
Dambusters
Tirpitz
Norwegian heavy water
Midway
Doolittle raid

You would surely have to include the 11th September attacks on New York
and
Washington. For an outlay of well under $1M, and some volunteers suicide
attackers with box cutters, whoever executed it massively damaged the US
economy, and so spooked the US that they started not one but two
unwinnable
wars (in Afghanistan and Iraq) in response. Surely that has to place it
up
there with Hiroshima?

I think the Doolittle raid is a much closer parallel to 9-11 than
Hiroshima

Fair point.

Churchill's raid on Berlin in 1940 as well?

John

"John Mullen" wrote in message
...
"Leadfoot" wrote in message
news:TUMVc.122627$sh.67356@fed1read06...

"John Mullen" wrote in message
...
"Leadfoot" wrote in message
news:KYBVc.118201$sh.114795@fed1read06...
What are some of the greatest strategic air missions?

Some candidates

Yamamoto shootdown
Hiroshima
Paul Doumer bridge LGB
Dambusters
Tirpitz
Norwegian heavy water
Midway
Doolittle raid

You would surely have to include the 11th September attacks on New York
and
Washington. For an outlay of well under $1M, and some volunteers
suicide
attackers with box cutters, whoever executed it massively damaged the
US
economy, and so spooked the US that they started not one but two
unwinnable
wars (in Afghanistan and Iraq) in response. Surely that has to place it
up
there with Hiroshima?

I think the Doolittle raid is a much closer parallel to 9-11 than
Hiroshima

Fair point.

Churchill's raid on Berlin in 1940 as well?


Proved they could do it. Probably not much damage to the German war effort
except for the MAJOR damage to Hermann Meyers (goering) reputation.


John