1 - The Black Vault

ESTABLISHMENT OF COMBAT TALON
colocated with the British RAF’s Halifax-equipped
Special Duties Flight. 4
As OSS/Algiers acquired its meager allotment
of B-17s and B-25s, OSS/London continued to refine
its requirements and seek USAAF support.
On 6 February 1943 OSS/London dispatched a
message to OSS/Washington, establishing its requirement
for “at least 12 specially modified B-24
Liberators.” In Washington, as he had done since
the previous fall, General Donovan continued to
work, albeit unsuccessfully, to convince the JCS to
dedicate aircraft for OSS/London (and also increase
aircraft allocations for OSS/Algiers). 5
Not until the fall of 1943 did the OSS break the
logjam, and only then by a quirk of fate. The War
Department and the Navy Department agreed
that the Navy would be the sole service respon -
sible for airborne antisubmarine warfare. The 9
July 1943 agreement released the USAAF from
the antisubmarine mission, which was being performed
in Europe by Eighth Air Force’s 479th Antisubmarine
Group with four squadrons of B-24
Liberators. Navy aircraft were scheduled to arrive
in Europe to replace the 479th in October 1943.
The USAAF antisubmarine B-24s had been heavily
modified for their naval warfare role and were
unusable as conventional bombers. In addition,
479th aircrews were not trained in high-altitude
precision bombing. 6
Maj Gen Ira C. Eaker, the Eighth AF commander,
quickly worked out a plan to employ the
479th B-24s and their crews for OSS support.
With JCS approval of OSS/London’s operational
plan arriving on 17 September 1943, General
Eaker directed Eighth AF to implement the air
portion of the OSS plan. The initiative was designated
the Carpetbagger Project. In November two
new special operations squadrons were activated
as the 36th and 406th Bombardment Squadrons
(Special) and were stationed at Royal Air Force
(RAF) Alconbury. 7
Through the remainder of the year, aircrews
from the disbanded 479th Group were trained for
their new low-level mission by RAF special duty
crews. Thirty-two B-24s were concurrently modified
at Eighth AF maintenance depots, and by the
first of January 1944, initial aircrews and aircraft
were certified combat ready. 8
Modifications to the aircraft included measures
to improve their night-flying capabilities and
modifications to allow personnel to parachute
from the aircraft. Engine exhaust flame dampers,
muzzle flash suppressers for defensive guns, and
blackout curtains throughout the aircraft were all
designed to reduce the possibility of visual detection
by the enemy. For personnel airdrops, the
ball turret and its supporting structure were removed
from the floor of the aircraft, thus leaving
a large circular hole through which agent drops
could be made by parachute. Many other minor
modifications were also made: OSS/Algiers B-17
and B-25 aircraft were painted black under the
wings and under the fuselage, while the Carpetbagger
B-24s were painted solid black. 9
The first Carpetbagger mission was flown into
France on 4 January 1944, followed by 16 other
missions throughout the month. In February and
again in March, the Carpetbaggers moved loca -
tions, finally settling at their permanent location
of Harrington Airdrome. The Carpetbaggers flew
56 missions in February and 69 in March. By the
end of March, all 32 B-24s were modified and
combat ready, resulting in 99 missions being
flown in April. In May the number of missions
jumped to 200. 10
As missions increased and OSS/London’s air
operations matured into a first-rate force,
OSS/Algiers continued its operations with its
three original B-17s and six B-25s assigned during
the previous fall. While the B-25s supported
operations in Italy and the Balkans, the B-17s
made up the higher priority OSS/Algiers commit -
ment to France. From October 1943 through
January 1944, however, the three B-17s had
flown 26 missions, with only 11 resulting in successful
airdrops. 11
General Eaker was promoted to lieutenant
general in January 1944 and was transferred to
the Mediterranean as commander, Mediterranean
Allied Air Forces (MAAF). His success with the
Carpetbagger B-24s motivated him to seek similar
capabilities for OSS/Algiers. For the next
USAF Photo
Carpetbagger B-24, circa 1945.
3