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Welcome to a page of "Mare Nostrum" of July 1945
For over a year, it
can now be disclosed, pathfinder technique was used
by 205
Group of RAF heavy night
bombers to lead attacks
on special targets in
southern Europe.
Much of the brilliant success achieved by the Group
- operating
from airfields in the Foggia
area, was due
to 614 PFF Squadron, the only pathfinder squadron
in the Mediterranean
war zone.
From small beginnings in the spring of 1944, when the nucleus of the force was sent to Italy after training in Pathfinder technique in England, it steadily increased its efficiency in target finding until navigational errors at the end of the war reduced to nil, even though targets were sometimes small and difficult to locate. When the pathfinder force first began its operations from Italy the losses were considerable, owing in part to weather conditions over the mountainous regions and to the strong defences covering the strategic targets selected. APPALLING
WEATHER
It flew its first mission on March 15, 1944, to the marshalling yards at Sofia, capital of Bulgaria.Five aircraft did not return,one being shot down near the target and the other four were lost in appalling weather conditions on the return journey.
July 1945 |
In a normal
raid, over
300 white-flares on
parachutes illuminated the
area, followed
by the coloured ground target indicators.
The position
of these markers was
then checked ready for
final instructions to be given to the bomb aimers by the master bomber.
SIX
MINUTES |