Kenneth DeLong Mission February 20, 1943

***MISSION #33

Sat. 2/20/43 HOME BASE LG 139 Libyan desert

TARGET NAPLES. Italy

COMBAT FLYING HOURS--this mission 10:00 tour total 353:10

BRIEFING 0945 TAKE OFF 1220 LANDING 2220

CREW Capt. T. D. Brown PLANE #55

BOMB LOAD 9-500 lb. TARGET TIME Dusk BOMBING ALT. 18000'

NO. OF PLANES 9-B24's (ours) plus 18 (98th group) and 12 (93rd group).

BOMBING RESULTS Good hits ... fires were observed

ENEMY ACTION Light, but accurate anti-aircraft fire ... no fighters.

OTHER REMARKS Climbed to 22000' just before reaching toe of Italy ... Met 98th and 93rd planes near Naples, for a total of 39 planes in formation ... Primary target, Naples, had solid cloud cover. The planes turned back south and dropped bombs on secondary target, Croton2 (a chemical factory)after crossing snow capped mountains and coming down to 18000' ... target on toe of Italy.

Flew back over the Mediterranean in bright moonlight and landed safely (all crews). At interrogation, we were told German bombers had hit Tobruk earlier that evening ... exploding bombs could be heard here ... Three German bombers were reported shot down.