Operation Tidal Wave - The disastrous US raid against the Romanian oil fields - 1st August 1943
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- Опубликовано: 29 сен 2024
- On 1st August 1943, 178 B-24 Liberators of the USAAF took off from Benghazi, Libya to attack the Romanian oil fields centred around Ploiești as part of Operation Tidal Wave. Coming in at low level, the American bombers were hit with devastating fire causing the destruction of dozens of bombers. The five bombardment groups hit some of their targets with mixed success. Over 50 bombers were ultimately lost, causing the day to be remembered as Black Sunday by US aircrews, with 5 Medals of Honor being awarded for acts of bravery and determination under fire, and over 300 aircrew killed in action.
Thanks to Henry Lamshed for the improved audio!
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Patreon members: David from Czechia, Ren, Zach Collins, Copperclock
Sources
When Heroes Filled the Sky web.archive.or...
Fortress Ploesti: The Campaign to Destroy Hitler's Oil Supply by Jay A. Stout
www.gblume.com/...
media.defense....
PLOESTI: German Defenses and Allied Intelligence by James Dugan and Carroll StewartThe Air Power Historian, Vol. 9, No. 1 (JANUARY, 1962), pp. 1-20.
ww2aircraft.ne...
fineartofdecal...
Music: 'Forging an Empire' by Christoffer Moe Ditlevsen and 'The Final Cut' by Hampus Naeselius. Licensed from Epidemic Sound, ‘Pathfinder’ by Scott Buckley - released under CC-BY 4.0. www.scottbuckley.com.au.
Visuals: IL-2 Sturmovik: 1946 with BAT mods and graphics extender
#sotocinematics #history #il2
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Reuploaded due to some rendering issues. Most paintschemes are accurate while others are only representative
A man I grew up knowing was a B24 pilot in 3 different raids on this refinery. His plane was so shot up he crash landed after 2 of them. 1 in the Mediterranean and another in North Africa near his base. He flew this raid. He died about 15 years ago. A very intelligent man.
hmmm ... your pilot must have strong nerves, like piano wire.
I know a man that flew this mission too. He said he flew so low that they had corn stalks in the bomb bay. Flying in shorts and tshirts
RIVETTING stuff!
WE owe it to these brave American airmen to continue the war against the Globalist 21st century tyrants (The successors of Nazism & Communism)of the WEF, the WHO, & the United Abominations!
I met a man who said he was one of the commanders on these raids he was a pilot. I think it must have been around 2003-4 he was at a local airshow signing his book he wrote about his experience he was in his 90's. I thought I had bought his book can't find it wife might have gotten rid of it. This was in Phoenix, AZ I got the impression he lived here at that time. I asked lot of questions his daughter was with him she got irritated with me taking up his time eventually said he had to rest but it seemed to me he wanted to continue taking to me. No one else was even talking to him. I thought at the time it was rare to talk to an officer most who I had met after 2000 were non commissioned officers the commissioned officers were generally little older passed on by mid 2005.
August 1, 1943, 178 B-24's of 9. USAAF takes off from Benghazi and takes a course over the Mediterranean to Romania... Radio messages to the units have been captured and have already decrypted. The air defense is on alert and received information on approximate transit times and courses. Jäger units in Balkan area are being prepared to scramble...
THE GATES OF HELL HAVE JUST OPENED
That's correct, and you can find the reason for USAF radio messages broadcast in "Codebreakers" (David Kahn) :
When the Allies landed in Sicily, many transport planes were downed by "friendly" anti-aircraft fire, because they had been routed over the fleet, and though this danger was well-known.
The Germans had a very good interception unit in North Africa, and broke warning messages that announced the bombing raid in advance.
Îs not real
There was also a P-38 Lightning action over Romania where P-38s acted as fighterbombers/strike aircrafts and also as escort fighters. The result was chatastrophic too, many were shot down buy German and Romanian fighters (Americans were deceted on time and Axis fighters waited for them). Lightning pilots misidentified the IAR.80s, IAR.81s as a Fw-190s. The lower powered IARs (~1000HP engines that time was not much) actually did a very good job and hold themselves very well against the Lightnings, claimed many victories too. This event is also a great video theme.
Thanks I will check it out
An even worse idea since each P-38 could only carry a single 1000 lb bomb in addition to a large external fuel tank that they needed to make it to the target and back. The damage they would have done, even if completely successful, would have been minimal.
Yes, and that was the worst dog fighting defeat P-38 Lightnings have suffered in the entire war.
@@gs637Not surprising since the P-38s in that position were deprived of all their advantages as fighter aircraft, and they couldn't outrun their pursuers.
@@thegreatdominion949 Very true. Also, it didn't help that and the Romanian IAR-80 pilots were told that their own airbase is the target, as the P-38's were flying directly towards it... talking about motivation, and poor planning.
Anyway, digressing from the subject.. again, GREAT work in putting together this episod
My late Father-in-Law was bombardier on the Strawberry Bitch, but the Bitch had sustained significant damage on the previous raid and was grounded for this one. He never spoke much of his service, but once told of the extreme anxiety the other crews had in the hours leading up to the raid. They knew the losses would be tremendous. He said almost everyone he knew in other B-24s failed to return. I suspect he suffered from "survivor's guilt".
At least the 190 Americans POW had a great time in Roumania. Food was great and people were freandly. They were allowed to room freely around the camp. Before being sent back to the Americans, pilots and Roumanian peasants traded their cloths. Some Roumanian peasants still have american pilotes gear and photos. And Americans have roumanian sheep skin traditional vests and gloves and boots.
My Greatuncle Vance Taylor was KIA in that mission. He was with the 93rd and his plane was Pudgy. He was a gunner. He shot down three German fighters that day including Wilhelm Steinmann. Steinmann survived being shot down but died August 1 1966 on the anniversory of the mission. Steinmann was given credit for shooting down Vances Plane.
On the Tactical side, the raid made the German military tap into their strategic reserves during the months that it took to get refineries back into operation. And this would come back to haunt them during later campaigns,including The Battle of the Bulge.
Well researched and assembled video, even down to the accuracy of RAF tail markings, which I’d never heard of before on USAAF aircraft. Keep up this backbreaking task - it’s worth it 👍🏼🇬🇧
Incredibly well done. I'll bet this was a major effort. Many thanks.
well done? you know how many civilian and cildren they are kil's in this raid? im from romania and i know . ,, many tanks''
A fine example of how the element of surprise was already lost (the Germans already expected the raid), loss of the lead mission navigator in the Ionian Sea, and how two big wigs (COL. Jacob Smart and COL. Keith K. Compton) must be held accountable for the mess.
That does make me think - if you're flying with radio silence, there's no way to confer with other leaders. You'd have to be the one to break radio silence, which takes a chance that a raid that other leaders thought was worth carrying out, is no longer worth carrying out BECAUSE YOU ALERTED THE GERMANS. Talk about no good plan ...
Also, depending on how close you were when you punted the mission, turning bombers around when you're under 250 mph and enemy fighters are at least 100 mph faster takes a chance that you'll give up the chance to bang up your objective and STILL get run down from behind. That would seriously suck.
@@spencerdawkins I am pretty sure the Germans expected something. Those were not dummies.
Nice but also sad cinematic. Loss of bombers means greater exponential loss of the men who had crewed them. Low altitude ditching I presumed was a death sentence if they had the chance.
To the brave men who lost their lives in this raid over Romania
(and those on the ground who were killed by bombs and falling debris)
11% of the Americans crashed at the end of the run way during the take off in Bengazy because they were over loaded with extra fuel and bombs.
They did it or died trying.
What a trip to Hell and back... as from Roumanian descent I met a long time ago Roumanian pilots who flew against the Allies in different places around the world. My uncle got a lung drilled flying with the Vichy French over Syria and Lebanon against the Britts and the Free French. How the Hell a Roumanian pilot got there ? We will never know. I was too young to ask precise questions about details. I figured out there was something wrong with him fighting for the Germans as a kid but the familly showed always great respect for the veterans.
Both my grand-parents fought for both sides. First they fought with the Germans against the Soviets then they fought the Nazis. They both survived Stalingrad, captivity and then they enlisted with the First Roumanian Army and fought with the Russians until they liberated Budapest. Oh boy they've been lucky. They told me the only time they were scared was when the Russian Regiments were fighting each other over plunder when they arrived in Ukraine Roumania and Hungary. Nothing was off limits. They said at some point, Russians killed more Russians over the spoils of war than the Germans could ever take down.
The older I grow,, leads me to understand, sometimes as any action that initially goes wrong, it’s a warning ⛔️ and should be heeded! To disregard and proceed ahead is foolishness! Rest In Peace all the souls lost on this mission! Great job Soto Cinematic! Another 1❤️❤️
What a waste of good airmen and bomber air craft. 😞
Since its objectives were accomplished, it is correct to call it a disaster?
One of the famous bombers that went down was "Brewery Wagon". I don't remember the name of the crewman who went to school with my Grandpa. All I know is that he didn't come home.
Me ha encantado. Descansen en Paz esos héroes pero un grave error la operación en sí.
Gracias por tu esfuerzo
People point to Operation Chastise, the RAF raid to destroy the Ruhr dams in 1943 by 617 Squadron ('The Dambusters') as a successful low-level attack by heavy bombers, but when you take a closer look at the raid the awful cost is apparent. 19 Lancasters set out to strike six German dams: the Sorpe, Mohne and Eder (primary targets, the Sorpe most of all), plus the Ennepe, Lister and Diemel dams (secondary targets). That's a big ask for only 19 planes and 8 of them never came home, having either been shot down by flak on the way to, over, or on the way back from the targets, or else due to collisions with power lines. So that's almost a 50% loss rate right there. Additionally two Lancasters (piloted by Geoff Rice and Les Munro) aborted and returned early due to damage, Rice from a very close call when his Lancaster struck the sea and his bomb was torn off, and Munro when his Lancaster was hit by flak and the intercom (vital for a low-level precision attack) was destroyed. So for this success over half of the attacking force was lost. The Mohne and Eder dams were breached but both were repaired fairly quickly and neither was ever attacked again. For 617 there was a brutal postscript in the form of Operation Garlic, another low-level attack that was intended to destroy the Dortmund-Ems shipping canal. Nine Lancasters made two attempts (14th and 16th September 1943) to destroy the canal and a total of six were destroyed, again due to a combination of flak and terrain. Both Dambuster pilots, (David Maltby and Les Knight) who had breached the Mohne and Eder dams, died during Operation Garlic, as did both of the reserve crews who had been stood down on the night of the Dams raid, and the crew of Wing Commander Guy Gibson VC who had led the attack on the dams. Gibson himself wasn't with 617 for Garlic and his crew was fliying with Squadron Leader George Holden, his replacement. Unused to low flying, Holden flew too high on the first Garlic raid and was shot down. It was his first and only operation with 617, which gained a reputation as a suicide squadron. As a result of this carnage the RAF never again attempted a low-level raid.
According to official sources Kane and the 98th group took off with 47 b24s and not 39 as mentioned in the video
Hello, my name is Kevin Landers and I'm a news reporter with 10tv in Columbus, Ohio. We are doing a story about a missing airmen who was part of Operation Tidal Wave. I wanted your permission to use some of your animation to help to tell our story. Please let me know if we have your permission, and we will courtesy your work. Thank you
From the war's start, the Germans' Achilles Heel was not ball-bearings, nor strategic metals, it was oil. They were terrified the Allies would figure this out and focus their strategic bombing efforts against petroleum refining. The fact that the Allies felt the Ploesti raid was a failure, likely extended the war by a 12 months or more.
i think this video is getting recommended cause i play 1946 and im glad it did cause i just struck youtube gold
Plus, The lufwaffe commander if the Pliestis defenses was a genius
A bold attempt that cost the USAAF dearly. And if I recall correctly the Germans were impressed by the audacity of the raid, even that wrong turn threw them off slightly.
A very well done and informative cinematic.
Wow this is like the footage but just in a game. Nice work!
perhaps a night raid would have been more suited but the cost in accuracy , would have diminished further the effect of the raid . A high price was paid and it did call in to question the policy of attacking deep into enemy held locations given they had little to defend themselves against . But the bravery was never in question just the planners of the mission lack of foresight and poor oversite
Read about this mission
Only time in United States Military aviation history the FOUR count them FOUR Gongresssional Medals of Honor were awarded for a singe day of combat.
My best friends step dads brother was in a B24 that made BOTH trips to Ploiesti
Five
Yes Sir. Baker, Jerstad, Hughes and Kane. I believe Kane was the only survivor of the four.
At the 10:42 mark I know the info on the crashing B-24 do you want me to post it.
thank you my brother for this amazing video. Keep up the good work.
Good research and brilliantly put together.
84 years ago tomorrow! RIP in peace all!
Hallo.
No disaster. Perfect bombing inspite of all odds.
1+
Can't really understand, why the Germans did not attack the incoming, heavy loaded, slow bombers. What's the point going after when all the damage is done.
Reprise attack
That was fantastic. Great work. I really appreciate all your hard work with this. Thank you!
Compton toggled his bombs from the cockpit without opening the bomb bay doors, disregarding his bombardier. Compton was a coward for not attacking the refineries because he saw how deadly the flak was.
Unless you have been in combat like this, aswell as flying a complex aircraft with no automation or powered controls its not for you to say.
Wow a costly raid for us for sure! Fascinating to read and watch. Thank you for this wonderful presentation 👏
thx for making such great videos 👍👍
The planes in this animation are too high. The B24s in Operation Tidal Wave came at 60 FEET.
This single mission produced 5, count 'em, 5 Medal of Honor winners. The whole time over the target was approx. 30 minutes sheer chaos. This mission was completed because of the hard work, dedication, determination, and above all the bravery of the air crews involved. Happy 4th of July!
"... roaring at derrick - top level", reportedly. I too was surprised by the documentary rendition, but I myself would be at a loss, if I had to make it better. Adopting the pilot's point of view would be realistic, but unfortunately would make the video hardly readable, I'm afraid.
Amazing video. One of if not the most riveting so far.
Excellent video mate. Many thanks.
Another excellent video! Thank you VERY MUCH! I subscribed a long time ago and I pass your videos to my friends who are WW2 buffs. Their English is not very good but it doesn´t matter, your visuals are stunning! Greetings from Argentina! 🤩👌🤩
Well done. 80 years ago last Tuesday
My Grandfather was a B17 tailgunner and was brought down over Romania, captured, escaped, and made it home.
The bravest of The Brave those bomber crews.
should have used the B-17
I read a book LOW LEVEL MISSION, about the Ploesti raid.
It is significant to note that:
1. It was well-planned.
2: Using B-24s as low level bombers took the enemy by complete surprise.
3: The mission was actually going according to plan up to near the final turn going to Ploesti.
4: Up to that point, the bombers have not been fired upon.
5: The bomber of the lead navigator started spinning down and crashed.
Gen. Lewis Brereton's bomber took over as lead.
Then the most crucial error.
6. Gen. Brereton determined that they were at the turning point going to Ploesti. The young navigator protested that it was too early but was quickly overruled.
7. The turn meant the bombers were now going to Budapest.
When Gen. Brereton realized this, he warned the following groups and he turned towards Ploesti, thus screwing up the carefully timed arrival of each successive wave of bombers.
8: Some of the groups DID make the correct turn and now were heading towards Ploesti from the proper direction and arrived first.
9. As a result, instead of succeeding waves coming from one direction, there were bombers coming from the Northwest, some from the South-East and some from the Northeast.
10: Worse, the bombers carried delayed fuse bombs so the first groups would bomb but not obscure the targets with explosions and smoke until the final group had finished their bomb run.
11: But now, the final group's bombs were starting to explode while the earlier groups were arriving from different directions. The result was the bombers were going through smoke and explosions as they made their bomb runs.
The exit was generally every man for himself though some bombers tried to form up into protective groups.
12: Gen Brereton was awarded a Medal for the action.
Very educational and great to watch !!
Thanks for share.Great job and a lot of researce.But I am from Romania so no offence we only defended our country against the invadors.
I’ve been watching WW2 documentaries… but this is a spectacular effort. Really takes you to the battlefield like nothing else!
My uncle Fritz Kohlstedt flew this mission with the 98th (Liberandos). He wrote their fight song. I don't know the name of his plane? It was scrapped after the mission.
God these men were brave. Another worry for the crews was the tendency for B24s to burn at a ferocious rate, a feature that led to surviving crewmen being horrifically burned after bailing out, and eventually leading to the B24 being taken off the most dangerous raids.
Yeah read up on this... Lord above bomber crews in WW2 was super brave!!!
Fabulous effort, history that needs to be remembered, and remembered so well. Excellent. Remarkable effort by Command to have a go at these vital oil fields. It would not be long before, perhaps but days, and all Rumanian engineers, ground staff, pilots, all, would be classed as enemies of Germany and sent to camps, many to spend there days in Germany retrieving Dead Germans from German Cities Bombed to Bits. Oh the horror of War. And the Pity of War. RIP Fine Aircrews.
How many planes and AA units did the axis engage? How high were axis fighter losses?
Remember my friend that flew on that mission, co-pilot on a B-24… shot down and became a p.o.w.
The correct account is that most of the American bombers fell by German fighters and did not try again.
Using high-aspect-winged bombers for a low level raid was a big mistake.
Our uncle was there- a B-24 tail gunner. He said he was "very busy"........
Thanks Soto. =)
Low level bombing in daylight , what a great idea ! Me thinks Mozzies at might would have been better.
Should have actually sent in RAF photo-recon Mosquitoes to check the target areas.
@@raymondyee2008 Pathfinders.
Then why didn't they? The way you Limeys shit on America's war efforts, we should've stayed neutral on our side of the Atlantic and let you handle it all by yourselves, seeing as you'd done such a great job in 1939-1940.
False information, the refineries were all brought up to full operational status after operation tidal wave
Another great video which is very interesting and well done. Thanks for sharing 👏👏👍
Frieden für alle Menschen
O custo em vidas e aeronaves foi bastante alto, tria valido a pena ???
The Liberators have USAAF wing markings,but RAF tailplane markings..is this an error on your part..??
No, this is correct for the time period
Awesome video and comments on this important history! Wow!
Excellent video, both informativ and emotional level
Another Masterpiece. Regards Soto
The best video i have seen of this attack. Great job.
Excellent and Informative , *****😊
Greatly enjoyed your presentation , Many thanks
7:38 this aircraft was part of the 93 and had the name "Jose Carioca" along with the image of the character painted on the right side of the fuselage, the name was probably a tribute to Brazil since the plane had a brief passage through Natal on the way to Europe .
RIP Nicholas Stampolis and crew.
And 61 womens who die when Jose Carioca crash over women prison building in Ploesti city - 1.aug.1943.
did they really fly this low? hmmmm.
72 B-24s were lost or Write off.
Gratitude for this awesome video!
Multumesc mult pentru video!
Well done....interesting.
Awesome 👌 👏 👍
No fighter escort.
great vid
iar 80
Thank you.
What a mess
Great video!
The Liberators were pitifully underpowered by the 1,200 hp R1830.
What they should have used was the turbocharged, water injected 2,800 hp R2800-57W.
This was really well done. Great job, man.
Awesome work as usual Soto! Great story telling
Liberators burn better than Fortresses,My uncle told me.A veteran Luftwaffee Me 109 and Ju 88 night fighter ace.
All that just for it to be rebuilt in 6 months for the majority and production only grew...shame such a bad general was given the right to throw away these brave men's lives for naught. Fantastic reenactment, the work in this is clear, you deserve all the praise and more.
bullshit b24 gunners did not shoot that many enemy fighters down
It’s a refreshing change from the usual pro-western propaganda we get drip fed. I mean saturated with like D-day, and pearl harbour as if they were the the battles ever conducted.
I’ll never understand why Germany didn’t expand its armaments factories into Rumania, Hungary, Finland; allowing for increased production and out of range of most Western air assets.
Fantastic way of presenting aviation history!
Just subscribed. 👍
The RAF would have got a better result using planes with more range, more speed and heavier bombs with less crews. This sounds like a mosquito job.
Then why didn't they? Listening to you Limeys shit all over America's war effort, it sounds like you didn't need us at all. We should've just stayed on our side of the Atlantic and let y'all do it all by yourselves, see as you were doing such a great job up to then!
Game animation, so boring
B-24's are crap
VLR Liberators were the major factor in finally winning the battle of the Atlantic. Plenty of merchant seamen wouldn't agree with you.
Indeed, IAR's are the best
You're wrong, but you're full of crap!