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Historic Aerial Bombing Raids

Archival photographs of aerial bombing raids during WWII, depicting bomb strikes on various targets in Europe, showcasing military operations.

The Japaneses At Shihchichwang Rail Yards On The Strategic Supply Line That Runs Through Northeast China To Peiping Cut Loose With Smoke Pots When 14Th Air Force Liberators Of The 308Th Bombardment Group Appeared Over The Target. Nearly 75 Tons Of Bombs Were

Aerial View Of The Bombing Of Cassino, Italy On 15 March 1944 By The 340Th Bomb Group. All Hits Were Well On The Target.

A North American B-25 Mitchell Medium Bomber Of The Tactical Air Force Drops Its Load Of Bombs On The Enemy'S Positions Somewhere On The Southern Coast Of France, Prior To The Landing Of Allied Troops.

F.S. screen as it covers shoreline near Port Moresby, 809th Chemical 5th Air Force. THEATRE 19-Port Moresby, New Guinea-CHEMICAL ACTIVITIES

A B-25 "Mitchell" medium bomber flies on after dropping its bomb load on Japanese position (center of photo) near the beach on Cape Gloucester, New Britain Island. Smoke in the background shows other hits scored by the air & naval bombardment.

NAZI CHEMICAL WORKS DESTROYED--A billowing column of black smoke arises from the shattered S.G. Farbenindustrie A.G. chemical works at Leverkuson, Germany, 30 seconds after attack by P-47 Thunderbolts of the U.S. Army 9th AF. On the

Aircraft, Burma, India & Bombing,

Nazi Ammo Stores Exploded By French Medium Bombers - A 5,000 Foot Column Of Smoke Billows Over A German Ammunition Dump At Ebenhausen 38 Miles Northwest Of Munich, After French-Flown Martin B-26 Marauders Of The France American 1St Tac Af Score Direct Hit

U.S. parachute attack in Markham Valley. 503rd Parachute Infantry.

Strike Attack - Nagoya, Japan - 14 May 1945.

Aerial View Of Bomb Damaged Aircraft Factory In The Waggum District Of Brunswick, Germany. 10 May 1945.

Atom Bomb Burst Over Nagasaki, Japan On 9 August 1945. Two Planes Of The 509Th Composite Group, Part Of The 313Th Wing Of The 20Th Air Force, Participated In This Mission; One To Carry The Bomb, The Other To Act As Escort.

Incendiary Bomb Bursts Burst, Adding To The Display Of Fireworks At A 10Th Air Force Independence Day Celebration On 4 July 1945. India.

Tamet Aerodrome, Libya, Africa, attacked by 3 Blenheims, 82nd Squadron on 27 June 1941. 2 directs on 2 aircraft. 1 JU-88 in foreground.

As U.S. Army Air forces planes roared over Yokosuka Naval Base to bomb Tokio April 18, 1942, this picture was taken from a B-25. Note the Japaneseanese naval vessels in the foreground. Two views of Yokosuka Naval Base taken during the U.S. Army Air forces

This was the last dive for this Consolidated B-24, it had been raked from rudder to nose, and the last triumphant FW 190 swoops away.-AUSTRIA.

Fido Method Of Dispelling Fog At Airfield In England, 16 November 1944. Note Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Of The 493Rd Bomb Group Landing On The Airstrip.

Osaka Mission - 1 June 1945 - Phosphorous Bombs Burst Near B-29S Of The 21St Bomber Command During Their Attack On Osaka, Japan's Second Largest City. Thousands Of Incendiary Bombs Set Fire To The Congested Industrial Areas Of The City.

Bombing Of Florence, Italy By Martin B-26 Marauders Of The 12Th Air Force. Six Of The Marauders Shown Leaving The Target.

The first gun at Chickamauga. Morgan collection of Civil War drawings. Chickamauga, Battle of, Ga, 1863, Cavalry, Union, 1860-1870, Bridges, 1860-1870, United States, History, Civil War, 1861-1865, Campaigns & battles, United States, History, Civil War, 1861-1865, Casualties, United States, Georgia, Chickamauga

BOMBS ON BREMEN--While other U.S. 8th A.F. heavies on 30 March 1945 were bombing Wilhelmshaven's inner dock area and Hamburg's submarine pens and oil storage facilities Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses of the 306th Bombardment Group accompanied

Bursting Bombs Form A Pattern In The Main Business And Industrial District Of Takao, Second Largest City In Formosa.

Photo shows freight cars left in smoke after attack by low level bombers somewhere in southeastern Luzon today. To date, more than 300 freight cars and 26 locomotives have been destroyed by our air force which is continually attacking railroad

A 7TH AAF BASE IN THE PALAUS---7th AAF Liberators drop tons of destruction on dock installations at Cebu. Climaxing a sweep that has, in a little more than a year's time, carried them from the Hawaiian Islands in the Philippines, the 7th AAF heavies

Group Of German Soldiers (With The Lead Man Carrying A Flag Of Truce) Stream Across A Field In France To Surrender To The Allied Troops.

Bombs Dropped Form Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Of The 381St Bomb Group Burst On The Target At Ahlen, Germany, 23 March 1944.

MAYON VOLCANO ERUPTS. This series of photographs, taken from a Douglas C-47 Skymaster of the Army Air Forces' 15th Weather Squadron in the Philippines, graphically depicts the recent eruption of Mount Mayon on Luzon Island, of the Philippines.

U.S. 8th AF bombers on 16 August 44 attacked synthetic oil plants over a wide area in Germany. Here a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress may be seen as it passes over the burning plant at Rositz, located about 21 miles south of Leipzig.

Japanese shipping, which thought itself safe in the haven of Gorontalo Bay, on the Northern neck of the main Celebes Island in the Netherlands East Indies, here goes up in smoke after attack by a solitary pair of B-25 Billy Mitchell medium bombers of the

Shuttle-bombing to Russia. On the historic first mission to their new bases in the Ukraine, 2 June 44, American Heavy Bombers of the 15th Air Force with Lt. Gen. Ira C. Eaker aboard climb over the rugged peaks of Yugoslavia.

The Schwammenauel on the Roer river at Wasenfield, Germany shown a few hours after German engineers had dynamited sluiceway control gates at the foot of the structures, (lower left) loosing thousands of gallons into the Duren battle area in an effort

Anti Invasion Defences - War File. October 17, 1944. (Photo by Commonwealth of Australia).

Consolidated B-24 (Outfit Unknown) In Taking Off From Yonton Strip On A Trip To Luzon Blew A Tire - Crashed Into An Old Japanese Revetment, Exploded And Caught Fire. Okinawa, 12 August 1945.

With dense cloud formations below them, these Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses of the U.S. Army 8th Air Force leave contrails of condensing vapor to mingle with the clouds as they drone toward their objective of Bremen, where Nazi submarine yards were

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses Of The 91St Bomb Group Leave Trails Of Vapor Behind As They Wing Their Way Toward The Target - An Enemy Installation In Brunswick, Germany. 30 Jan 1944.

Aerial view of the Italian Fleet which surrendered at Malta. 1943.

F.S. screen approaching shoreline.

A fire-fighting crew of a Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress Base in Italy fights a blazing fort whose wing tank caught fire just before take-off. Neither fire nor storm keep these heavies from their appointed rounds.

A Phosporus Bomb Dropped By A North American B-25 Mitchell Scatters Its Fingers Of White Smoke During An Independence Day Celebration At A 10Th Air Force Base In India On 4 July 1945.

East coast raod & rail center looked like this on 30 Dec. 1943 when saturated with 74.5 tons of bombs from 21,500 feet by 25 Boeing B-17's. In 2 previous days 631 tons were dropped.

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. Gettysburg from the cemetery | Library of Congress

Blasting Rails Near Rome Mitchell bombers of the 12th USAAF laid down this perfect concentration of bombs in the railroad yards of Foligno, North of Rome. The bombing blocked the railroad, and aided new Allied invasion south of Rome. February 05, 1944. (Photo by Fox).

The Axis fuel refinery near Tortona, Italy, prior to an attack by North American B-25 Mitchells of the U.S. Army 12th Air Force, is seen on right. Left: Giant explosions from below as the Mitchells land their first compact pattern of bombs on the

Martin B-26 Marauders of the Tactical Air force, take off by Dawn's early light, to fly in support of ground troops that invaded the coast of Southern France between Toulon and Cannes.

Unusual Crash Of A Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" (A/C No. 148) Of The 381St Bomb Group, England, 13 July 1944.

Seven miles long, this enormous pall of smoke pours from the burning VKF plant at Erkner, and floats towards the heart of Berlin, 18 miles away. An important ball bearing plant, the factory received this attention from US Army 8th Air Force bombers

Dunkirk 26-29 May 1940 Aerial view of the beach at Dunkirk where some 300-400 men await evacuation. Photograph shows c 700 yards of beach, about 4 miles east of the town.

Sprilling action of a mining and artillery attack.

A week after the Allied landings south of Rome on 22 Jan, the heavy bombers of the Strategic Air Force (15th AAF) were still smashing vital rail centers to cripple the Hun's efforts to concentrate troops and supplies in the area of the bridge-head to

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and their fighter escort heading for their target in Germany. 1 January 1945.

Everest Expedition, 1953 - British Led By Colonel Hunt, First To Climb Mountain - Himalayan Expedition. June 24, 1953.

HAVOC ABOVE AND BELOW. A Douglas A-20 Havoc of the U.S. Army 5th Air Force flies away from the havoc it has just wrought on an oil storage tank at Boela on the Island of Ceram, Netherlands East Indies.

Bombing of bridge near...

BOMBS FROM 9TH AF MARAUDERS MAKE HITS ON A NAZI-HELD SECTION OF THE NORTHWESTERN PART OF THE CHERBOURG PENINSULA.

The Japanese is by no means powerless as the oil dump burning April 12 at Port Moresby shows. FINAL LESSON is that despite defeat, the Japanese is by no means powerless as the oil dump burning April 12 at Port Moresby shows. Out of 100 attacking planes, 26

Bombing Brest, France - U.S. Army Forces. Small craft, gun emplacements and a quay on the Brest Peninsula took a pounding from England-based U.S. Army 8th Air Force bombers several weeks after D-Day, 1944. The camera caught the bombs in various stages of exploding and at the same time recorded the success of the mission. Underwater defences can be seen at the lower right.

Normandy, France, June 10, 1944Assault craft belch their cargo of soldiers onto the invasion beaches at Normandy in France. Small specks seen in the white-capped water are troops wading toward shore. Tanks and other motor vehicles have already started the drive inland. Larger craft wait offshore as the battle for the liberation of Europe proceeds according to plan.

Plane 2, shown burning, likewise is a total loss. It was closest to No. 1. Some witnesses said a heat or shock wave preceded the blast. All reported no smoking.

While attacking German armor and motor transport in Belgium, December 17, 1944, Major Buckingham Dalglish, Ninth Air force fighter-bomber pilot, encountered and destroyed an HE 111, recording the destruction on his gun sight camera. Photo shows smoke

The bomb pattern from Flying Fortresses of the 2nd Bomb Group, 429th Bomb Squadron, the Recco viaduct, located on the Genoa-Spezia road during a raid on November 26, 1943.

Photographs depicting military activities in France, May - June 1940. Included photographs of Rommel, Guderian, Dreuz, Bottcher, Italian General Garaboldi, Lucie Rommel, shots of Rommel with Hitler. Photographs of equipment and troops arriving and in action, from the personal collection of Rommel.

Bridges and communications behind the German lines in northern France were under heavy attacks by U.S. Army 8th AF heavy bombers on June 7th 1944. Here concentrations of bombs erupt on a bridge at Nont Jean in northern France.

A North American P-51 Of The 353Rd Fighter Group, Burns Furiously After Crashing At Its Base In England On 10 January 1945.

2Nd Service Group Radio Briefing Room At An Air Base Somewhere In Iceland. 13 April 1944.

Fido Method Of Dispelling Fog At Airfield In England.

Bombs, Dropped By Consolidated B-24'S Of The 494Th Bomb Group, Burst On The Target Area On Corregidor Island In The Philippines, In February 1945. The Target Was Gun Positions On The Western End Of The Island.

Aircraft, Burma, India &Strafing &Combat War

War Theatre #19 - Raboul, New Britain. Bombing.

Republic P-47 Thunderbolts Attacked These Bridges Near Burgnato, North Of La Spezia, Italy On 4 February 1945. Smoke Rising From One Of The Bridges Covers A Direct Hit Scored By The 12Th Air Force Thunderbolts.

Bombs Dropped By A North American B-25 Explode On Their Target - An Enemy Installation Somewhere In Europe.

On 12 May 1944 Capt. John M. McNicholas of Mannington, W. Va., attached to a 14th AF reconnaissance squadron, flew from an advanced eastern base in China and took this photo of Corregidor, first photo made since the Japs took over in 1942.

The Eruption Of Mt. Vesuvius With A Curtiss P-40 From Capodichino Airfield Flying In The Foreground. March 1944.

RAF Attacks Oil Refinery At Donges A reconnaissance photo of an oil refinery at Donges, near St. Nazaire, France, after a British RAF bomber command attack on the night of July 23 -- the first of two such blows. Smoke rises from a burning storage tank. This is an official British Photo. September 8, 1944. (Photo by Associated Press Photo).

This was the scene as three...

Formosa waterfront Burns After U.S. Bombing -- Smoke rises from a crowded waterfront on Formosa, Jap stronghold, North of the Philippines, as Pacific fleet carrier-based planes battered the Island on Oct. 11 in the first of a series of air assaults. November 20, 1944. (Photo by AP Wirephoto).

On either side of Orvieto, a rail center on the alternate line between Florence and Rome, there is a railroad bridge. Marauders of the Tactical Air Force (12th AAF) were assigned the job of knocking out these two targets before D-day, 22 Jan 1944

Flying Forts Daylight Attack On Renault Plant. The Renault works obscured by heavy smoke as tons of bombs exploded on the target. The Nazi-run renault motor and armaments plant at Billancourt, on the outskirts of Paris, were successfully bombed, by flying, fortresses of the U.S. army eighth air force in daylight raid on April 4. April 5, 1943. (Photo by U.S. Official Photograph).

As Japaneseanese Destroyer-Escort "Frigate" Keels Over, Panicked Japaneses Sprawl Over Its Sides After Bombin Run By North American B-25S Of The Air Apaches Group Off China Coast. April 6, 1945.

The Wreckage Of A Boeing B-17 "Flying Fortress" Burns In A French Field. The Plane Was Forced Down By Enemy Action, But All Of The Crew Escaped Uninjured. France, August 7, 1944.

Anefo photo collection. Japanese bombing Broome (Australia). March 3, 1942. Australia, Broome

Nesting Grounds For Wideawake, Or Sooty Tern, Birds Which Make Ascension Island Their Home. Hundreds Of Thousands Of Them Persisted In Nesting At The End Of The Runway Of 'Wideawake Field,' Constituting A Hazard To Aircraft Operations. 20 September 1945

Paratroopers landing on Corregidor.

Units of a retreating Germany army had their vehicles well concealed under trees of this forest on Lake Garda, Northwest of Verona, but a Republic P-47 Thunderbolt spotted them and results of their attack are seen in this graphic picture. Heavy black

Bombs Explode On Enemy Installations At Cognac, France During A Bombing Raid By Planes Of The 91St Bomb Group On 31 December 1943.

Texas City Fire Aerial.

Air view of S-Class Submarine (SS-136)

Smoke Billows Up Over Nagasaki, Japan After Bombing By Atomic Bomb On 9 August 1945. Two Planes Of The 509Th Composite Group, Part Of The 313Th Wing Of The 20Th Air Force, Participated In This Mission; One To Carry The Bomb, The Other To Act As Escort.

Sky markers and parachute flare designate target over Germany.

08/01/1941. La Palma (Santa Cruz de Tenerife), August 1949. Eruption of the San Juan Volcano. In the image, the black hole crater.

Nagasaki, Japan, Under Atomic Bomb Attack On 9 August 1945. Two Planes Of The 509Th Composite Group, Part Of The 313Th Wing Of The 20Th Air Force, Participated In This Mission; One To Carry The Bomb, The Other To Act As Escort.

American bombers; Photo and collage book 'The Hidden Camera'. Photo: Condensation traces in the air of American bombers. Of the many allied pilots and others were collected by the resistance and approx. 800 could go back to England (info t.v. R.)

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