August 1st, 1943 - The Ploesti Raid

Conflict: World War II

Combatants: Americans vs. Germans

Location: Romania

Outcome: American victory

On this day in 1943, 178 American B-24 bombers flew 1,000 miles to strike the oil fields in Romania supplying vast amounts of fuel to German air and ground forces. The Americans lost 57 aircraft and, though causing extensive damage, failed to seriously impact the flow of oil to Axis forces.

B-24 Liberators bombing the Ploesti Field, Romania, 1943 by an unknown photographer (National Museum of the U.S. Navy)

Points of Interest:

• Launching from the vicinity of Benghazi, the Ploesti Raid was the longest air raid attempted at the time.

• German radar based in Greece, Bulgaria, and Romania picked up the B-24 squadrons on their approach to Ploesti.

________________________________________________________________________________________________

Sources:

Dupuy, R. Ernest & Dupuy, Trevor N. (1993). The Harper's Encyclopedia of Military History. New York: HarperCollins.

Eggenberger, David (1985). An Encyclopedia of Battles: Accounts of Over 1,560 Battles from 1479 B.C. to the Present. New York: Dover Publications, Inc.