This Day in 303rd Bomb Group History: August 6th

glm@303rdbg.com (Gary L. Moncur) — 06 Aug 2026 02:17:04 -0000

August 6, 1943
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS 8th AF: The 352nd Fighter Squadron, 353rd Fighter Group, transfers from Goxhill to Raydon, England with P-47's. The squadron will fly its first combat mission on Monday and will remain at this station until Apr 44.

August 6, 1944
303rd BG (H) Combat Mission No. 221
Target: Aero Engine Works, Genshagen, Germany
Crews Dispatched: 39
Length of Mission: 8 hours, 30 minutes
Bomb Load: 10 x 500 lb G.P. M43 & 38 x 100 lb M47A1 Incendiary
Bombing Altitude: 26,210, 26,650 & 25,100 ft
Ammo Fired: 75 rounds

August 6, 1944
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS 8th AF: Mission 524: 1,186 bombers and 740 fighters are dispatched to attack oil refineries, aircraft, ordnance and other factories in Germany and V-weapon sites in France; 24 bombers and 8 fighters are lost: 1. Of 414 B-17s, 126 hit Brandenburg assembly plants, 74 hit Genshagen, 69 hit Brandenburg munitions industry, 12 hit Stendal Airfield and 8 hit targets of opportunity; they claim 0-0-3 Luftwaffe aircraft; 11 B-17s are lost and 106 damaged; 1 airman is KIA, 4 WIA and 105 MIA. Escort is provided by 168 of 195 P-51s; they claim 19-0-2 aircraft; 2 P-51s are lost and 1 damaged beyond repair; 1 pilot is KIA and 2 MIA. 2. Of 154 B-17s, 83 hit Berlin aircraft engine factories, 45 hit Berlin diesel factories, 7 hit targets of opportunity and 4 hit Nordholz Airfield; they claim 0-2-3 aircraft; 5 B-17s are lost, 1 damaged beyond repair and 103 damaged; 1 airman is KIA, 6 WIA and 45 MIA. Escort is provided by 107 of 144 P-51s; they claim 4-0-0 aircraft in the air and 2-0-4 on the ground; 1 P-51 is lost and 3 damaged; 1 pilot is WIA and 1 MIA. 3. In an Operation FRANTIC mission, 75 of 78 B-17s hit Gdynia/Rahmel aircraft factories in Poland and procedes to bases in the USSR; they claim 0-2-2 aircraft; 23 B-17s are damaged. Escort is provided by 154 of 160 P-51s; they claim 7-2-3 aircraft; 4 P-51s are lost and 1 is damaged beyond repair; 1 pilot is KIA and 5 MIA. 4. Of 445 B-24s, 72 hit Hamburg/Schulau oil refinery, 62 hit Hamburg/Rhenania-Ossag oil refinery, 61 hit Hamburg/Rhenania oil refinery, 58 hit Kiel naval installation, 54 hit Hamburg/Deutsche oil refinery, 33 hit Hamburg/Eband oil refinery, 32 hit Hamburg/Schlieman oil refinery, 23 hit Hemmingstedt and 4 hit targets of opportunity; 8 B-24s are lost, 3 damaged beyond repair and 290 damaged; 13 airmen are KIA, 16 WIA and 83 MIA. Escort is provided by 196 P-38s and P-47s; they claim 1-0-2 aircraft; 1 P-47 is lost (pilot is MIA). 5. 24 of 91 B-24s hit 2 V-weapon sites in the Pas de Calais area; 9 B-24s are damaged. Escort is provided by 24 P-47s. Mission 526: 7 of 7 B-17s drop leaflets in France during the night. 36 B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions in France; 1 B-24 is MIA.

August 6, 1945
An Atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan.