Posted on Jul 24, 2017
Operation Gomorrah - Bombing of Hamburg
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OPERATION GOMORRAH
by Kennedy Hickman
OPERATION GOMORRAH - CONFLICT:
Operation Gomorrah was an aerial bombing campaign that occurred in the European Theater of Operations during World War II (1939-1945).
OPERATION GOMORRAH - DATES:
The orders for Operation Gomorrah were signed on May 27, 1943. Commencing on the night of July 24, 1943, the bombing continued until August 3.
OPERATION GOMORRAH - COMMANDERS & FORCES:
Allies
Air Chief Marshal Arthur "Bomber" Harris, Royal Air Force
Major General Ira C. Eaker, US Army Air Force
British: approx. 700+ bombers per raid
Americans: approx. 50-70 bombers per raid
OPERATION GOMORRAH - RESULTS:
Operation Gomorrah destroyed a significant percentage of the city of Hamburg, leaving over 1 million residents homeless and killing 40,000-50,000 civilians. In the immediate wake of the raids, over two-thirds of Hamburg's population fled the city. The raids severely shook the Nazi leadership, leading Hitler to be concerned that similar raids on other cities could force Germany out of the war.
OPERATION GOMORRAH - OVERVIEW:
Conceived by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Air Chief Marshal Arthur "Bomber" Harris, Operation Gomorrah called for a coordinated, sustained bombing campaign against the German port city of Hamburg. The campaign was the first operation to feature coordinated bombing between the Royal Air Force and the US Army Air Force, with the British bombing by night and the Americans conducting precision strikes by day.
On May 27, 1943, Harris signed Bomber Command Order No. 173 authorizing the operation to move forward. The night of July 24 was selected for the first strike.
To aid in the operation's success, RAF Bomber Command decided to debut two new additions to its arsenal as part of Gomorrah. The first of these was the H2S radar scanning system which provided bomber crews with a TV-like image of the ground below.
The other was a system known as "Window." The forerunner of modern chaff, Window was bundles of aluminum foil strips carried by each bomber, which, when released, would disrupt German radar. On the night of July 24, 740 RAF bombers descended on Hamburg. Led by H2S equipped Pathfinders, the planes struck their targets and returned home with a loss of only 12 aircraft.
This raid was followed up the next day when 68 American B-17s struck Hamburg's U-boat pens and shipyards. The next day, another American attack destroyed the city's power plant. The high point of the operation came on the night of July 27, when 700+ RAF bombers ignited a firestorm causing 150 mph winds and 1,800° temperatures, leading even the asphalt to burst into flames. Strung out from the previous day's bombing, and with the city's infrastructure demolished, German fire crews were unable to effectively combat the raging inferno. The majority of German casualties occurred as the result of the firestorm.
While the night raids continued for another week until the operation's conclusion on August 3, the American daytime bombings ceased after the first two days due to smoke from the previous night's bombings obscuring their targets.
In addition to the civilian casualties, Operation Gomorrah destroyed over 16,000 apartment buildings and reduced ten square miles of the city to rubble. This tremendous damage, coupled with the relatively small loss of aircraft, led Allied commanders to consider Operation Gomorrah a success.
https://www.thoughtco.com/operation-gomorrah-firebombing-of-hamburg-2360535
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/world-war-two/the-bombing-campaign-of-world-war-two/the-bombing-of-hamburg-in-1943/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Hamburg_in_World_War_II
@ col mikel COL Mikel J. Burroughs @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen C. @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen F. @ ltc frank LTC (Join to see) @ ltc john LTC John Mohor @ maj william Maj William W. "Bill" Price @ capt marty Maj Marty Hogan @ smsgt doc SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas @ tsgt joe TSgt Joe C. @ ssgt larry SSgt (Join to see) @ sra christopher SrA Christopher Wright @ sra chris SrA Chris "Shadow" McGee @ msg andrew MSG Andrew White @ sfc joe SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL @ ssg pete SSG Pete Fleming @ sgt david SGT (Join to see) @ sp5 mark SP5 Mark Kuzinski SCPO Morris Ramsey Alan K. Cynthia Croft
by Kennedy Hickman
OPERATION GOMORRAH - CONFLICT:
Operation Gomorrah was an aerial bombing campaign that occurred in the European Theater of Operations during World War II (1939-1945).
OPERATION GOMORRAH - DATES:
The orders for Operation Gomorrah were signed on May 27, 1943. Commencing on the night of July 24, 1943, the bombing continued until August 3.
OPERATION GOMORRAH - COMMANDERS & FORCES:
Allies
Air Chief Marshal Arthur "Bomber" Harris, Royal Air Force
Major General Ira C. Eaker, US Army Air Force
British: approx. 700+ bombers per raid
Americans: approx. 50-70 bombers per raid
OPERATION GOMORRAH - RESULTS:
Operation Gomorrah destroyed a significant percentage of the city of Hamburg, leaving over 1 million residents homeless and killing 40,000-50,000 civilians. In the immediate wake of the raids, over two-thirds of Hamburg's population fled the city. The raids severely shook the Nazi leadership, leading Hitler to be concerned that similar raids on other cities could force Germany out of the war.
OPERATION GOMORRAH - OVERVIEW:
Conceived by Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Air Chief Marshal Arthur "Bomber" Harris, Operation Gomorrah called for a coordinated, sustained bombing campaign against the German port city of Hamburg. The campaign was the first operation to feature coordinated bombing between the Royal Air Force and the US Army Air Force, with the British bombing by night and the Americans conducting precision strikes by day.
On May 27, 1943, Harris signed Bomber Command Order No. 173 authorizing the operation to move forward. The night of July 24 was selected for the first strike.
To aid in the operation's success, RAF Bomber Command decided to debut two new additions to its arsenal as part of Gomorrah. The first of these was the H2S radar scanning system which provided bomber crews with a TV-like image of the ground below.
The other was a system known as "Window." The forerunner of modern chaff, Window was bundles of aluminum foil strips carried by each bomber, which, when released, would disrupt German radar. On the night of July 24, 740 RAF bombers descended on Hamburg. Led by H2S equipped Pathfinders, the planes struck their targets and returned home with a loss of only 12 aircraft.
This raid was followed up the next day when 68 American B-17s struck Hamburg's U-boat pens and shipyards. The next day, another American attack destroyed the city's power plant. The high point of the operation came on the night of July 27, when 700+ RAF bombers ignited a firestorm causing 150 mph winds and 1,800° temperatures, leading even the asphalt to burst into flames. Strung out from the previous day's bombing, and with the city's infrastructure demolished, German fire crews were unable to effectively combat the raging inferno. The majority of German casualties occurred as the result of the firestorm.
While the night raids continued for another week until the operation's conclusion on August 3, the American daytime bombings ceased after the first two days due to smoke from the previous night's bombings obscuring their targets.
In addition to the civilian casualties, Operation Gomorrah destroyed over 16,000 apartment buildings and reduced ten square miles of the city to rubble. This tremendous damage, coupled with the relatively small loss of aircraft, led Allied commanders to consider Operation Gomorrah a success.
https://www.thoughtco.com/operation-gomorrah-firebombing-of-hamburg-2360535
http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/world-war-two/the-bombing-campaign-of-world-war-two/the-bombing-of-hamburg-in-1943/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Hamburg_in_World_War_II
@ col mikel COL Mikel J. Burroughs @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen C. @ ltc stephen LTC Stephen F. @ ltc frank LTC (Join to see) @ ltc john LTC John Mohor @ maj william Maj William W. "Bill" Price @ capt marty Maj Marty Hogan @ smsgt doc SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas @ tsgt joe TSgt Joe C. @ ssgt larry SSgt (Join to see) @ sra christopher SrA Christopher Wright @ sra chris SrA Chris "Shadow" McGee @ msg andrew MSG Andrew White @ sfc joe SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL @ ssg pete SSG Pete Fleming @ sgt david SGT (Join to see) @ sp5 mark SP5 Mark Kuzinski SCPO Morris Ramsey Alan K. Cynthia Croft
WWII World War Two
Military History
World History
Aviation
Hamburg
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 10
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Thanks for reminding us of the days when some operation names meant something concrete SGT John " Mac " McConnell. Carpet and fire bombing operations on cities were meant to (1) destroy military capability; (2) destroy the capability to fabricate, repair or maintain military equipment and materiel; and (3) break the will of the people to want to fight anymore.
Operation Gomorrah rained "fire and brimstone" on Hamburg for week or so in 1943 and was effective within Total war parameters: "Operation Gomorrah destroyed a significant percentage of the city of Hamburg, leaving over 1 million residents homeless and killing 40,000-50,000 civilians. In the immediate wake of the raids, over two-thirds of Hamburg's population fled the city. The raids severely shook the Nazi leadership, leading Hitler to be concerned that similar raids on other cities could force Germany out of the war."
Total war is the best way to prosecute a war and was the only type of warfare for millennia until benighted "leaders" opted for political purposes instead of reason when prosecuting wars in the later half of last century - in our case beginning with the Korean War.
FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC Greg Henning LTC Ivan Raiklin, Esq. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown CW5 (Join to see) SGM David W. Carr LOM, DMSM MP SGT MSG Andrew White SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx SP5 Mark Kuzinski SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Cpl Joshua Caldwell LTC Bill Koski LTC Wayne Brandon
Operation Gomorrah rained "fire and brimstone" on Hamburg for week or so in 1943 and was effective within Total war parameters: "Operation Gomorrah destroyed a significant percentage of the city of Hamburg, leaving over 1 million residents homeless and killing 40,000-50,000 civilians. In the immediate wake of the raids, over two-thirds of Hamburg's population fled the city. The raids severely shook the Nazi leadership, leading Hitler to be concerned that similar raids on other cities could force Germany out of the war."
Total war is the best way to prosecute a war and was the only type of warfare for millennia until benighted "leaders" opted for political purposes instead of reason when prosecuting wars in the later half of last century - in our case beginning with the Korean War.
FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC Greg Henning LTC Ivan Raiklin, Esq. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown CW5 (Join to see) SGM David W. Carr LOM, DMSM MP SGT MSG Andrew White SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx SP5 Mark Kuzinski SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Cpl Joshua Caldwell LTC Bill Koski LTC Wayne Brandon
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when the ROE was to kill enemy and those who supported them... ahhh memories
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Since WWII the US has not been totally committed to win a war. During War you do what it takes to win. That means bombing civilian populations. We did it both in the European and Pacific campaigns in WWII. If we would have done it in Vietnam at the beginning of the war, we would have ended it quickly.
War is ugly as hell which is why it should be avoided at all costs. The sad thing is that only the military seems to know this.
War is ugly as hell which is why it should be avoided at all costs. The sad thing is that only the military seems to know this.
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