Death of the Ball Turret Gunner

WWII: European Front

B-17 Flying Fortress1942 8th Air Corps

Bombers arrive in BritainBegin bombing campaigns

1943Change bombing

British Night: DisruptionUS Day: Precission

Way more dangerous14 Oct. 1943 “Black

Thursday”Of 2,900 crew, 650 are

killed in two separate runs117 B-17’s lost

P-51 Mustang1943-1944 Mustang

IntroducedFaster and can

travel with bombers longer

Gen. Doolittle switches objectivesDestory German

fightersBombers

unprotectedMore destruction of

both German and US planes

Tuskegee Airmen332 Fighter Group

all African-AmericaJuly 1944

Begin escorting bombers

Not one bomber lost that they escorted

Opening the 2nd FrontAmerica and Britain

prepare for European invasionGen. Dwight

Eisenhower put in overall command

American soldiers and supplies begin piling up

Operation OverlordTwo attack

1st: 24,000 airborne troops dropped night beforeTake out coastal

defenses and secure roads

2nd: Troop LandingsFive different beaches

American: Utah and Omaha

British: Sword and GoldCanadian/Polish: Juno

DeceptionBritish Intelligence

capture German spies in LondonBegin sending

communication that attack will be at CalaisShorter route

Patton placed in charge of First Army GroupFictional forceFools Germans

badly

German DefensesRommel placed in

chargeAtlantic Wall

Massive protective frontLarge gunsBeach defenses

Wants reserves closer to NormandyHitler sure attack is

coming at Calais

D-Day -1Supposed to go June 5th

1944Weather Delayed

June 5th

Get go aheadAirborne is sent

Miss marksFlack a fear causes

may pilots to let troops go earlySome land in ChannelOther way off objectives

D-Day5,000 ships take troopsBattleships and

Bombers lay down fireSmoke fired to cover

landingsBritish

Sword and Gold taken fairly easy

Set off towards port city of Caen

Canadian: Take Juno

Hitler’s MistakesOrders were not to

awake HitlerWord comes in of D-

Day landingsNo one wakes up Hitler

Finally wakes upRommel requests

reserves to be sent to Normandy

Hitler denies requestStill believes Calais is

objective

Utah BeachUS 2nd Rangers Heavy firing but take

beachesMust climb cliffs to

Pointe Du HocTake guns

protecting Utah and Omaha beaches

Will lose 60% holding the Pointe

Omaha BeachThe hardest Beach of

the fiveGerman troops were

Eastern Front veteransStrongest defenses

of Initial landing

Troops bogged down

Second and thridFinally break lines

and head inlandBy 4pm beach is

takenOver 3,000 killed

Advances SlowInitial penetration

inland is very slowHedgerows make it

hard for tanksTroops bogged

downGerman

reinforcement Panzer divisions finally arrive

Pushing outAddition of Cullin

hedgerow cutter allows break

St Lo liberated 20 July 1944Allows US troops to

break out in Northern France

Push to Paris

Operation ValkyrieJuly 20, 1944Attempt on Hitler’s

life by German Officers

Bomb goes offHitler saved by table

Conspirators caught and killedRommel implicated

Forced to take cyanide

Viva la FranceFrance liberated on

Aug. 25, 1944Allies begin Push

into Northern Belgium and East towards Germany

Russians break German lines and begin push towards Poland

Operation Market GardenSept. 17-25, 1944Montgomery plan to

take 5 bridges leading into GermanyIf successful end

war by ChristmasGerman

reinforcements block taking of key bridges

Montgomery slow to act

Operation failed

Battle of the BulgeGerman offensive

Push allies backTake Antwerp and

push allies back into the English Channel

Surprise Dec. 15, 1944Allies caught off

guardPoor weather

ground air supportGermans push is

expansive

End GameRussians finally

advance into BerlinApril 30, 1945

Hitler and wife Eva Braun kill themselvesBody is burnt

US and British forces advance through West GermanyEagle’s Nest taken

BastogneKey city

If falls Germans have clear path to Antwerp

Surrounded by GermansUS 101st Airborne

hold-outRelieved by Gen.

PattonMakes 100 mile

push through German lines in 48 hrs

Weather opensGermans retreat

V-E DayMay 8, 1945

German high command surrender

Focus now turns to Japan