Hi Reader, welcome back to our weekly coverage of what happened in the skies and on the ground during World War II. This week, we cover the Eighth's fierce battle with the infamous German jet fighter, the Me-262, and an airman who survived an incredible freefall from 18,000 ft. Join us as we delve into the history of one of the most pivotal conflicts ever and remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice.
The Last Great Air Battle
This week in history, the United States Army Air Force (USAAF) conducted one of the largest raids of the war on March 18, 1945, when a combined force of over a thousand B-17s delivered more than 3,000 tons of explosives over Berlin. The massive bombing raid was intended to support the Soviet advance by attacking the city's rail stations and tank factories. As the war in Europe approached its final chapters, Allied bombing raids became more frequent, and German resistance in the sky dwindled. But on this fateful day, Nazi Germany would unleash their latest development in aerial warfare - the Messerschmitt Me 262.
In the spring of 1945, the Allies increased their bombing raids in terms of frequency and scale. Between September 1944 and April 1945, the USAAF dropped over 600 tons of explosives targeting German rail yards. The Bombing of Dresden on February 13-15, killed more than 25,000 civilians, and on March 11, the RAF dropped over 4,700 tons of explosives on the German city of Essen. By this point, the Luftwaffe seemed all but destroyed, as these bombing raids went unchallenged.
On the morning of March 18, as members of the US Eighth Air Force prepared for their bombing mission over Berlin, intelligence officers warned crews of a new deadly German aircraft that was capable of speeds faster than the best American fighters. In total, 1,329 American B-17 bombers, escorted by 733 P-51 Mustang fighters, departed for their mission to Berlin. In the weeks before, Allied bombers had gone uncontested, but on this fateful day, they encountered Germany’s newly formed Jagdgeschwader 7 (JG 7), a fighter wing consisting of their latest Me-262 jet fighters. American bombers clashed against 70 jet fighters with speeds 100mph greater than the P-51 fighters. Despite being outnumbered, JG 7 used cloud cover and speed to evade American fighters and to quickly engage B-17 bombers, piercing through the formation and destroying seven B-17s within 30 minutes alone. The German jets each carried two dozen rockets slung under their wings, capable of bringing down one bomber with a single hit.
During the fateful mission, American bombers also encountered German flak, resulting in even more casualties. More than half of the bombers, 714 planes, sustained damage from German anti-aircraft fire, with 16 suffering hits so severe that they had to crash land behind Soviet lines. In total, 24 bombers and six fighters were lost on the mission, and 178 Americans were killed, wounded, or captured. In contrast, the German Luftwaffe lost just three pilots.
Despite the carnage, the Luftwaffe was unable to prevent the American bombers from accomplishing their mission. Over 1,000 B-17s delivered their payload of over 3,000 tons of explosives across Berlin, causing irreparable damage to the city’s railway and factories. In the final days of the war, the formidable Me-262 managed to shoot down over 60 American bombers, but even Germany’s first jet fighter was unable to shift the tide of the war. American and Soviet forces soon surrounded Berlin and Allied bombers ran out of targets to destroy.
Surviving A Freefall.
Nicholas Alkemade was an RAF aviator who survived an 18,000 ft freefall without a parachute after bailing out from his aircraft during WWII. Serving as a tail gunner aboard a British Avro Lancaster, his aircraft sustained heavy damage during a bombing mission over Germany, forcing him and his crew to bail out. Remarkably, Alkemade landed in a thick layer of snow, which cushioned his fall and prevented serious injuries. He was subsequently captured by German forces and spent the remainder of the war as a POW.
Alkemade was born on December 10, 1922, in North Walsham, Norfolk, England, and worked as a gardener before enlisting in the RAF at the age of 17 as war broke out. After completing his training as a gunner, he was posted to RAF 115 Squadron as a tail gunner aboard an Avro Lancaster Mk II bomber nicknamed "Werewolf". Alkemade flew 14 successful night-raid missions with the crew of Werewolf before they participated in a large-scale bombing raid over Berlin alongside over 300 RAF bombers.
On the night of March 24, 1944, Alkemade and the crew of Werewolf departed from RAF Witchford, Cambridgeshire to begin their assault on the German capital. The mission was successful and they delivered their payload without resistance. However, it wasn’t until their journey back that the aircraft experienced trouble. Severe winds drifted the Werewolf off course into the heavily defended Rhurh region where they were intercepted by German night-fighters. A Ju-88 attacked the bomber with rockets and machine gun fire, causing the Werewolf’s fuselage to erupt into flames. The aircraft was deemed unfit to fly and pilot Flight Sergeant James Newman gave the order to bail out. Alkemade’s turret position was blown out and fully exposed to the night sky and as he attempted to grab his parachute, he made the grim discovery - his parachute was alight. The fire inside the aircraft was growing with heat was so intense, that it scorched his clothing and melted his rubber oxygen mask onto his face.
18,000 feet in the sky, inside a burning aircraft, Alkemade, just 21 years old, was given two simple options - burn to death or jump to his death. In a split second, he chose to jump from the flaming wreckage, hoping for a quicker and cleaner end. Recalling the moment, he stated “... I decided to jump and end it all as quick and clean as I could. I rotated the turret to starboard, and, not even bothering to take off my helmet and intercom, did a back flip out into the night. It was very quiet, the only sound being the drumming of aircraft engines in the distance and no sensation of falling at all. I felt suspended in space.” Alkemade lost consciousness shortly after his freefall and woke up three hours later, lying on a pile of snow in a small pine wood. Remarkably, he was intact, suffering only burns from the aircraft and bruises from tree branches that cushioned his crash. The pine woods shielded the snow below from the sun, preventing it from melting and providing a soft landing for Alkemade.
In freezing conditions and unable to walk due to a sprained leg, Alkemade weighed his options and blew his emergency whistle, hoping to be captured. Local German civilians heard the signal and located the injured airman, bringing him in for treatment at a nearby hospital. He was subsequently interrogated by German officials who were skeptical of his story about surviving a freefall from such altitudes, suspecting him of being a spy. However, the recovery of wreckage from his aircraft, including his damaged parachute, confirmed his story, that he did in fact, bail out without a parachute and survived. After his full recovery, Alkemade was transferred to a POW camp where he gained celebrity status for his incredible tale of survival. He was photographed by local press, met with Luftwaffe officers who wished to hear the story for themselves, and signed fellow POWs diaries.
Nicholas Alkemade survived the war and returned home to a relatively normal life. He began to work for a chemical plant, where he cheated death several more times, in one instance, he was accidentally doused with industrial-grade acid but survived with minor burns by diving into a 40-gallon drum of limewash that neutralized the acid. He eventually retired, focusing on his wife and children. Nicholas Alkemade passed away on June 22, 1987, at the age of 64, having cheated death in several instances.
Did You Know?
Despite being revolutionary, the Me 262's development was hampered by Hitler's initial insistence that it be used as a bomber, not a fighter.
This delayed its deployment as an interceptor, which was its most effective role. Furthermore, because of this delay, and the focus on bombing, many of the first pilots trained on the aircraft were bomber pilots, not fighter pilots, who were far more experienced in air-to-air combat.
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Thank you for tuning in to this week's coverage of what happened on the ground and the skies during World War II. We hope to see you again next week for even more incredible true stories. And as always, see you in the skies.
-TJ
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"The jet flew through our already tight formation so close that we could see the pilot...The wing of our lead aircraft was cut free from the rest of the aircraft almost as if by a giant chain saw, and the aircraft began its lethal tumble to earth. We saw no parachutes." - Eugene T. Jensen, American airman recounting the first encounter with the German Me-262
