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STORMY
WEATHER
42-5225
B-17F
91/323-S
OR-S
Mission
No.
22
for
the
91st
Bomb
Group
was
scheduled
for
4th
March
1943
and
it
was
to
be
the
first
time
the
8th
Air
Force
had
struck
at
the
industrial
region
of
the
Ruhr,
deep
inside
enemy
territory.
The
marshaling
yards
at
Hamm
were
the
target,
the
largest
such
yards
in
Germany.
It
was
also
known
to
be
the
most
concentrated
area
of
flak
defenses.
Fighter
escort
was
a
vision
of
the
future,
so
a
carefully
laid
plan
including
a
diversionary
formation
of
B24s
was
devised
to
outsmart
the
German
defense
controllers
but,
over
the
North
Sea,
the
weather
intervened.
From
the
strike
formation
of
four
groups,
one
turned
back
towards
England,
two
headed
for
the
target
of
last
resort
at
Rotterdam
and
only
one,
the
91st,
flew
on
towards
Hamm.
In
the
dense
cloud
and
heavy
contrails
which
shrouded
the
sky,
the
9
1
st
had
lost
visual
contact
with
the
rest
of
the
formation
and
continued
unaware
of
the
fact
it
was
alone.
17
heavy
bombers,
unescorted,
ploughed
on
over
the
continent.
One
of
the
planes
that
day
was
Stormy
Weather,
flown
by
the
crew
of
George
Birdsong.
By
rights
the
ship
should
not
have
been
there
at
all,
Birdsong's
crew
had
taken
off
initially
in
their
regular
ship
Delta
Rebel
II
but
had
returned
immediately
with
one
engine
smoking.
The
crew
quickly
transferred
to
a
replacement
ship,
Stormy
Weather,
and
caught
up
with
the
group
over
the
Channel.
As
the
formation
crossed
the
German
border
the
weather
improved
markedly
and
the
skies
cleared.
Major
Fishburne,
leading
the
group,
became
aware
of
their
predicament
but
decided
to
press
on
alone.
The
antics
of
the
various
formations
heading
in
different
directions
probably
caused
more
confusion
with
the
German
air
defense
control
than
the
planned
tactics
could
have
hoped
to
do
but
eventually
the
Luftwaffe
did
appear
and
attacked
with
a
vengeance.
Stormy
Weather
was
hit
by
20mm
cannon
fire
from
an
ME109
which
shot
out
part
of
its
oxygen
system
and
some
of
the
electrics
which
prevented
release
of
the
load
over
the
target.
As
the
formation
turned
for
home,
continuously
at-
tacked
all
the
way
back
to
the
coast,
Birdsong's
plane
took
more
damage
from
cannon
shells
which
smashed
into
one
engine
and
wounded
the
navigator
and
copilot.
Hydraulic
lines
were
also
cut
and,
to
make
matters
worse,
Birdsong
himself
had
glass
from
the
shattered
cockpit
window
in
one
eye,
which
impaired
his
vision
considerably.
Three
Forts
went
down
and
another,
Excalibur,
was
forced
to
ditch
in
the
North
Sea
but
Stormy
Weather
limped
back
behind
other
survivors
of
the
group.
The
bomb
load
of
sensitive
RDX
explosive
could
not
be
safely
jettisoned
due
to
the
plane's
low
altitude
and
so
a
landing
had
to
be
attempted
with
it
still
on
board.
With
no
hydraulics
the
plane
had
no
brakes
and
overshot
on
landing
at
Bassingbourn.
It
tore
through
bushes,
then
a
fence
and
came
to
rest
blocking
a
road.
Fire
crews
quickly
arrived
on
the
scene
au
extinguished
the
smouldering
engine
but
plane
was
badly
damaged
and
would
not
fly
again
for
some
considerable
time.
For
their
dedication
to
the
task
before
them
the
91st
Bomb
Group
was
awarded
the
coveted
Distinguished
Unit
Citation
for
the
mission
-
but
not
until
years
later.
It
had
been
a
pioneering
action
that
had
earned
the
group
the
earlier
DUC
awarded
to
any
8th
Air
Force
unit.
When
it
was
eventually
repaired
and
returned
4
combat
flying,
Stormy
Weather
acquired
a
new
title:
V-Packette;
A
title
that
would
later
cause
the
authorities
some
misgivings
until
the
Luftwaffe
caught
the
plane
a
second
time
on
17th
August
1943.
"Story
taken
from
Plane
Names
&
Fancy
Noses,
by
Ray
Bowden"
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