This Day in 303rd Bomb Group History: September 3rd

glm@303rdbg.com (Gary L. Moncur) — 03 Sep 2026 06:26:43 -0000

September 3, 1943
303rd BG (H) Combat Mission No. 66
Target: German A/F Aircraft Repair Depot,
Romilly-Sur-Seine, France
Crews Dispatched: 19
Length of Mission: 5 hours, 25 minutes
Bomb Load: 12 x 500 lb H.E. M-43 G.P. bombs
Bombing Altitude: 22,000 ft
Ammo Fired: 15,056 rounds
Enemy Aircraft Claims: 1 Destroyed

September 3, 1943
8th AF: VIII Bomber Command Mission 90: Luftwaffe air installations in France are the target. 1. 168 B-17's are dispatched to the Romilly sur Seine air depot; 100 hit the target at 0903-0911 hours; 28 hit the secondary target, the airfield at St Andre de L'Eure at 0947-0949 hours; and 12 hit a target of opportu-nity, the Evreux/Fauvill Airfield at 0955 hours; they claim 11-1-10 Luft-waffe aircraft; 4 B-17's are lost and 55 damaged; casualties are 2 WIA and 40 MIA. 2. 65 B-17's are dispatched to Mureaux Airfield; 38 hit the target at 0843-0844 while 18 hit a dummy airfield near Dieppe; 2 B-17's are damaged; no casualties. 3. 65 B-17's are dispatched to an industrial area at Caudron-Renault near Paris; 37 hit the target at 0925 hours; they claim 15-4-8 Luftwaffe air-craft; 5 B-17's are lost and 18 damaged; casualties are 4 WIA and 40 MIA. The B-17's are escorted by 160 P-47's; they claim 4-1-0 Luftwaffe air-craft; 1 P-47 is lost and 2 damaged; no casualties. VIII Air Support Command Mission 44: 36 B-26's are dispatched to the Beaumont le Roger Airfield and 31 hit the target at 1007 hours; 36 are dis-patched to Beauvais/Tille Airfield and all hit the target at 0907 hours; and 69 are dispatched to the Lille/Nord Airfield and 31 hit the target at 0828 hours; 20 B-26's are damaged; casualties are 1 WIA.

September 3, 1944
303rd BG (H) Combat Mission No. 235
Target: I.G. Farben Plant at Ludwigshafen, Germany
Crews Dispatched: 39
Length of Mission: 8 hours, 20 minutes
Bomb Load: 4 x 1,000 lb G.P. M44 & 4 x G.P. M17 bombs
Bombing Altitudes: 26,600, 25,000 & 24,500 ft
Ammo Fired: 2,570 rounds

September 3, 1944
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS 8th AF: 2 missions are flown. 1. Mission 601: 393 of 404 B-17s make a visual attack on 16 gun batteries and defensive installations in the Brest, France area; 2 B-17s are lost and 13 damaged; 16 airmen are MIA. Escort is provided by 15 of 16 P-51s without loss. Bad weather cancels fighter-bomber mission by 50 P-38s against strongpoints in the Brest area. 2. 345 B-17s are dispatched to bomb the Ludwigshafen/Opau synthetic oil plant in Germany (325); 1 hits a target of opportunity and 5 drop leaflets; 1 B-17 is lost and 103 damaged; 9 airmen are MIA. Escort is provided by 233 of 254 P-51s; they claim 7-0-1 aircraft; 1 P-51 is lost (pilot MIA) and 2 damaged. 125 of 127 P-47s strafe transportation targets in the Tilburg, the Netherlands, Namur, Belgium and Cologne, Germany areas; they claim 0-0-1 aircraft on the ground; 1 P-47 is lost (pilot MIA), 1 damaged beyond repair and 18 damaged; 1 pilot is WIA. 40 B-24s and 4 C-47s fly CARPETBAGGER missions during the night.