What was a bombers moon

In the combat situation facing them, both Air Chief Marshal Arthur Harris and General Henry Arnold, commander of the American Army Air Force, expressed a concern that if aircrew suffering combat fatigue were allowed to leave combat operations, it would open up the floodgates and thousands of crewmen would request to be taken off flying duties.

Among former aircrew interviewed was a bomb aimer named Arthur Smith, who began to develop a growing fear of flying. When he was found to be physically fit, he was sent to a centre where a psychiatrist interviewed him.

It was clearly spelt out to him that if he refused to fly, he would be dealt with harshly, along the lines recommended by Harris. Arthur Smith was informed that his family, girl friend, and his colleagues would be told that he was considered a coward. Rather than face the degradation, Smith chose to return to flying. The fears continued and a few missions later his aircraft crashed, some of the crew were killed but he survived, albeit with severe burns. Another aircrew member interviewed was John Wainwright, a rear gunner.

On his 72nd mission his aircraft crashed on landing, injuring him. After recovering in hospital he found he was unable to return to flying. Having completed 72 missions and been wounded in battle, he thought his removal from combat flying would be an easy process.

In , American heavy bombers entered the air war. They were ordered to undertake deep penetration daylight raids, which the RAF had given up a year before because of the high attrition rate. Within the next two years some 50, American aircrew were killed. The average number of missions before death was likely was computed to be only seven and a crew was expected to fly 25 missions on a single tour. By mid , only one crew in three could expect to complete a tour. In the autumn of rumours began to circulate about American bombers heading for neutral countries and in it was revealed that some were landing in Sweden and Switzerland.

Some cases, where the aircraft was crippled, were genuine — but a lot were not. From his interviews with internees, Cochrane found that the option of landing in neutral countries, especially for crews feeling unable to continue flying combat missions, was being discussed at British bases. A bizarre footnote to this story came from Major Urban Drew, a fighter ace whose squadron flew long range Mustangs to escort the heavy bombers on their missions. Drew recalled a briefing in , where Mustang pilots were asked to note the markings of any bomber which peeled off formation to head for Switzerland or Sweden.

If the bomber seemed to be without battle damage, fighter pilots were to do their best to persuade the defecting crew to return to base. He was badly burned, but evaded the Germans for several months. After capture, he was interrogated by the Gestapo and detained as a prisoner of war. He continued to get into trouble of his own making, involving violence or alcohol.

The train reduced speed so that very little steam in the locomotives exhaust. By now we were on the viaduct above Brightside. Peering through the window blinds we could see flares and hear explosions as the raid progressed. Passengers began to get very anxious, we were moving only slowly, and they were concerned that the bombers overhead could see us.

We eventually arrived at Rotherham and as no air raid warning had been given there, when the train left it proceeded at a normal speed towards York. Also the coach lighting was restored. Had the warning sounded whilst we were stopped in Sheffield we could have been advised to use the Shelters, and the train stayed there till the raid was over.

When we returned from holiday 14 days later, of the four railway lines on the viaduct we had crossed, two were out of use. Brightside station had been hit and our train ran at slow speed over temporary decking on the viaduct on the two in use. The question remains unanswered, were they hit that night? Or on a subsequent night, we will never know? Pilots also appreciated the great visibility because it allowed them to confirm kills in the air, as opposed to murky conditions, which would obscure the fate of a plane after it was shot up in battle.

The German Luftwaffe and British Royal Air Force both took advantage of the bomber's moon in numerous raids over the holdings of the enemy. Citizens learned to fear the full moon, and many would take shelter in bright conditions before the air raid sirens went off, rightly assuming that bombing was probably going to occur at some point during the night. Ever since she began contributing to the site several years ago, Mary has embraced the exciting challenge of being a InfoBloom researcher and writer.

Mary has a liberal arts degree from Goddard College and spends her free time reading, cooking, and exploring the great outdoors. Mary McMahon.