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In the space of seven minutes, soon after midday, a force of 156 B-24s dropped more than 30,000 x 20 lb. fragmentation bombs on SG 4’s rear base at Piacenza. If not quite what the Americans believed they had accomplished, the results were nonetheless severe. The SG 4 Restkommando reported that an He 111 had been burnt out; eight Fw 190s had suffered slight to medium damage, 10 medium to heavy damage and one was a total loss. At 23.00 hours, the airfield was still closed by craters and unexploded bombs but was expected to be serviceable for landings on the following day. Coincidentally, Oberkommando der Luftwaffe that day ordered that all personnel on or near airfields were to give 12 rather than eight hours per week outside of normal duty hours for dispersal works due to “urgent need.” German and Italian fighters engaged as the raiding force withdrew to the south east. Three Bf 109s of Stab/JG 77 scrambled at 12.19 hours, then at 12.50 met an estimated 100 Liberators and 40 P-38s at 6,500 m. in map square RB (an area south of Mantua and east of Parma). All of this small group made claims (two Lightnings shot down and a Liberator damaged). In the space of 10 minutes, pilots of II./JG 77 claimed a P-38 and a B-24 shot down plus another four bombers shot out of formation. The ANR’s fighters also claimed a B-24 and three P-38 probables but MASAF’s reported losses were just one P-38. Axis casualties were three Bf 109s of II./JG 77 which made emergency landings while from the ANR a Macchi C.205 and a Fiat G.55 were shot down.
Allied claims of 8–2–8 in the air seem to have been optimistic, just as reports of encounters with Reggiane Re. 2002s and two rocket-firing Fw 190s were probably mistaken. The day’s last combat was probably that in which five Bf 109s of I./JG 77 on a ferry flight were attacked by Spitfires of 87th FW at 20.00 hours, west of Canino. The Allies claimed three Messerschmitts destroyed and one damaged. In fact 2./JG 77 lost two pilots and made one claim in return. The final aspect of the events of 25 May to be unravelled is SG 4’s casualties. This is difficult because several of the day’s actions took place over the same general area north west of Rome where the German tactical air bases were located. What is more, my source did not include the time of each loss. All that can be said at present is that I. and II./SG 4 reported three pilots dead and one wounded and that three of those losses were to Spitfires:
While Jochen Prien’s attribution of these casualties to the Velletri mission of the late afternoon is certainly a possibility, we must also bear in mind the other actions in which claims were made of Fw 190s damaged or destroyed. Knowing the timings of the losses would bring a definitive attribution much nearer. continued on next page…
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