Black day for the 44th

8th April 1944: An account from the sole survivor from one plane, as the 'Flying Eightballs' suffers the worst losses in any single raid in the war

A pilot’s view of B-24s at altitude.

B-24s in formation en route to the target.

On 8th April the 8th Airforce went to attack targets in Bremen. Both Bremen and a secondary target were obscured by smoke so the whole force switched attention to Langenhagen Airdrome. As they approached the new target they were attacked by German fighters which swept through the formation.

2nd Lt. Robert A. Mayes' plane was badly hit and on fire and out of control when he gave the order to bail out over the intercom at about 1410. There remained a precious few minutes for the crew to get out if they could. It was no easy matter.

Sgt. Archie M. Thomas¹ survived to give this dramatic account of the last few minutes of the bomber #42-110083 as it plunged to earth:

That Fateful Easter Eve, April 8, 1944

Our take off time was delayed from 07:00 a.m. to 09:00 a.m., due to a very heavy fog. While waiting for take off the officers were gathered at the front end of the B-24 whereas the six enlisted men were gathered at the tail end of the aircraft.

During this wait, one of the enlisted men stated that, ‘If it is my time to die, I am ready to die for my country.’ One by one, four of the remaining crew made the same statement. I, alone, had not spoken, and at this time I stated, ‘I am not ready to die for my country, but rather I am ready to LIVE for my country.’