B-17 CC Additional Material by Robert M Stitt

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Pair of Junkers Ju 88 R-2s of 13/KG 40, led by Oblt Hermann Horstmann (via Kelvin Youngs, Aircrew Remembered) 13./KG 40 pilots, left to right: Ltn Gerhard Blankenberg, Oblt Hermann Horstmann and Oblt Dieter Meister. (via Kelvin Youngs, Aircrew Remembered) Hermann Horstmann The air war over the Bay of Biscay, fought mostly over the passage of German U-boats and Allied aircraft transiting to and from the Atlantic from 1942 to 1944, was among the most unforgiving of the Second World War. Encounters between Luftwaffe and Allied airmen tended to be intense and, for those unlucky enough to be shot down over the cruel waters of the Bay, final. V Group/Kampfgeschwader 40 (V/KG 40) was the Luftwaffe’s only long range maritime fighter unit. Equipped with the formidable Junkers Ju 88C and latterly the Ju 88 R-2 twin-engined heavy fighter, or Zerstörer, it was tasked with protecting U-boats from the attentions of attacking Allied aircraft which, until mid-1942, had experienced little opposition. Success came quickly with a Wellington of 311 Squadron shot down on July 15 and two more from 15 OTU on July 20, although the attacking Ju 88 was in turn shot down during the latter engagement. Twenty-four-year-old Oblt Hermann Horstmann joined 13/KG 40 on January 20, 1943. He had no previous fighter experience but quickly achieved his first aerial combat success on February 5, shooting down a Bell P-39 Airacobra from a flight of 346 th Fighter Squadron, 350 th Fighter Group aircraft that had become lost en route from Cornwall to Gibraltar. His next two victims came a day apart. On March 23, Horstmann shot down Fortress IIA FK209 ‘J’ of 59 Sqn (see profile for Richard John Weatherhead and main text) while on the following day he brought down Halifax II BB277 ‘H’ of 58 Sqn – in each case, all on board were lost. Horstmann was promoted to Staffel Kapitän of 13/KG 40 the same day after just two months with KG 40. Air activity over the Bay continued to increase with the Ju 88s attempting to intercept Coastal Command’s Liberators, Fortresses, Wellingtons, Whitleys and Sunderlands as well as aircraft of the USAAF and USN. They in turn were hounded by superior but nonetheless vulnerable Beaufighters of Coastal Command. On June 3, 1943, Grossadmiral Dönitz announced that U-boats transiting the Bay of Biscay would now do so in daylight in groups of two or three and, in the event of an attack by Allied aircraft, stay on the surface and fight back. Starting June 1, V/KG 40 ramped up its missions in support of this change, resulting in a greater number of encounters with Allied aircraft. In one of several combats that day, Horstmann shot down a Wellington of 420 Sqn. His next two victories took place less than a week apart. On August 18, he dispatched Wellington HZ407 ‘K’ of 547 Sqn while on August 24 he was credited with the destruction of Halifax DT636 ‘J’ of 58 Sqn during an attack by no fewer than 14 Ju 88s. On November 29 he shared with three other pilots in the demise of Sunderland JM676 ‘P’ of 461 Sqn. By the end of 1943, Allied combat strength over the Bay of Biscay was in the ascendancy with Mosquitos starting to take an increasingly heavy toll on the German long-range fighters. On December 12, the respected and popular Hermann Horstmann was part of a six-aircraft group tasked with protecting aircraft returning from a reconnaissance operation. Less than 30 minutes into the sortie, one Ju 88 suffered an engine failure and had to be escorted back to base by a second. Ninety minutes later the four remaining Junkers ran into eight Beaufighters from 143 Sqn led by Wg Cdr Edric H McHardy. Outnumbered two to one, they nevertheless attacked, shooting down two Beaufighters, including one by Horstmann. The Allied pilots then regained the upper hand, sending three of the Ju 88s plunging into the water. Like so many other Luftwaffe and Allied airmen, Hermann Horstmann was lost forever in the Bay of Biscay. With special thanks to Chris Goss. 10
Anthony James Pinhorn Anthony James ‘Tony’ Pinhorn was born on September 3, 1915, in Hamiota, Manitoba, the only son of Harold and Maud Pinhorn – he had one sister, Gwendolen ‘Wendy’ Pinhorn. Tony Pinhorn was an ardent fisherman and hunter from an early age and pursued these interests after the family moved to Victoria, British Columbia in 1920. Here he attended what was then known as University School, now known as St. Michaels University School, followed by some four years working in logging camps on Vancouver Island and the Mainland coast. His sister Wendy takes up his story: When Tony finished University School the Depression was in full swing. His options were either working in the logging camps, with the idea of eventually getting to the management level, or following a business course in Victoria. Either way, there were no jobs with any future at the time and as Tony was aware of the possibility of a four-year Short Service Commission in the RAF, our parents agreed he should follow this opportunity. Dad wanted him to gain some knowledge of flying first so off Tony went to take some training with Hal Wilson of the Aero Club of British Columbia on Sea Island [now Vancouver International Airport]. Almost immediately after that, he set out for England ‘on spec’ and in anticipation of passing his RAF entrance exams. I was already in England, training as a physiotherapist, and well recall meeting him as he arrived on the Queen Mary. The ship was quite outstanding in those days… it was comparatively new and so huge. Tony passed his RAF exams with flying colours and was accepted in the spring of 1939. Tony Pinhorn began his formal flight training at the de Havilland School of Flying at Hatfield in Hertfordshire on June 12, 1939, flying civilian Tiger Moths. He soloed on June 24 and completed his training early in early August with an ‘Above average’ rating. A course of multi-engine training followed at 6 SFTS, Little Rissington in Glouscestershire, based on Avro Anson Is and this he completed on March 23, 1940, again with an ‘Above average’ grade. Now an Acting Pilot Officer destined for service with Coastal Command, he moved to the 3 School of General Reconnaissance at Blackpool for two weeks of navigation training. Pinhorn’s first posting was to 269 Sqn on Hudsons, based from July 10, 1940, at Wick in Scotland and, from June of the following year, Reykjavik in Iceland. Notable operations in which he took part included a reconnaissance sortie on November 10, 1940, in Hudson I T9337 to search for the German heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer during its first cruise and arriving on-scene in Hudson III T9452 ‘G’ just as the battleship HMS Hood blew up after being hit by a salvo from the battleship Bismarck on May 24, 1941. Pinhorn Anthony Pinhorn with a Fleet 7B of the Aero Club of British Columbia while taking private flying lessons. Trainees at the de Havilland School of Flying, Hatfield, June 1939. Anthony Pinhorn is second from the right in the front row. 11
Page 1 and 2: Boeing B-17 Fortress in RAF Coastal
Page 3 and 4: could fight their way to and from a
Page 5 and 6: manding officer of the 28 th BS, de
Page 7 and 8: Medium-altitude attack on ships in
Page 9 and 10: onto the northern Solomons, New Bri
Page 11 and 12: The Hudsons flew 13 missions into W
Page 13 and 14: 41-9234 in 1955, 12 years after the
Page 15: Boeing B-17 Fortress in RAF Coastal
Page 18 and 19: 13-7-44 Dakota III KG771 Montreal -
Page 20 and 21: 27-8-44 Liberator VI KH160 Montreal
Page 25 and 26: This sample Crew Member/ Aircraft T
Page 30 and 31: Fortress II FA700 ‘R’. Beaty an
Page 32 and 33: Sgt Joseph Edouard Roch Boudreault.
Page 34 and 35: Aviator’s certificate issued to C
Page 38 and 39: Anson Is and Harvard Is at No. 6 SF
Page 40 and 41: Anthony Pinhorn’s sister, Wendy,
Page 42 and 43: Richard Weatherhead with the six ot
Page 44 and 45: Inscription commemorating Richard J
Page 47 and 48: Fortress Aircrew Casualties Eighty-
Page 49 and 50: Sgt Garfield Charles Wilson, age: 2
Page 51 and 52: Panel 130, Runnymede, Surrey. F/Sgt
Page 53 and 54: Son of Leslie George and Kathleen B
Page 55 and 56: Sergeant Robert Fabian, age 24. Roy
Page 60 and 61: MKS. III, IV, V and VI A.S.V. There
Page 62 and 63: good chance of being effective if d
Page 64 and 65: Pilots and W/T operators must be fu
Page 67 and 68: Take-off Across the Steel Planked R
Page 72 and 73: Extract from Cle Lamb’s logbook f
Page 75 and 76: Ken Brailsford’s War This photo e
Page 77 and 78: Logbook page documenting the forced
Page 79 and 80: Brailsford’s logbook for February
Page 81 and 82: Unidentified Martin Maryland at LG.
Page 83 and 84: Air tests and ferry flight to Habba
Page 85 and 86: Return of AN518 to Karachi over Aug

B-17 CC Additional Material by Robert M Stitt

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