392nd Bombardment Group - RAF Wendling

The 392nd Bombardment Group (H) was a B-24 Liberator unit of the 8th Air Force, assigned to the 2nd Air Division during World War II. The group operated from England between September 1943 and April 1945 as part of the Allied strategic bombing campaign against Germany and German-occupied Europe. The group adopted the nickname of the "Crusaders" based on the imagery as part of their group identity patch.

The group arrived in England in July-August 1943 and flew its first combat mission on 9 September 1943, bombing targets at Abbeville, France. From its base at RAF Wendling, the unit participated in the strategic bombing offensive against Germany. Targets included aircraft factories, oil refineries, transportation networks, U-boat facilities, military airfields and industrial centers. The group struck targets such as an oil refinery at Gelsenkirchen, a marshaling yard at Osnabruck, a railroad viaduct at Bielefeld, steel plants at Brunswick, a tank factory at Kassel, and gas works at Berlin. One of its most notable operations occurred during Big Week when the group led part of the attack against the Gotha aircraft factory on 24 February 1944, enduring intense fighter opposition and was subsequently awarded a Distinguished Unit Citation (DUC) for the attack against Gotha.

Like other 8th Air Force units, the group also conducted tactical missions such as pre-invasion attacks against airfields and V-weapon sites in France prior to the Normandy invasion in June 1944. On D-Day, the group struck coastal defenses and choke points and subsequently bombed ground forces at St Lo during the breakthrough in July 1944. Other missions included bombing rail lines and supply routes during the Battle of the Bulge, supply-dropping missions during Operation Market Garden in September 1944 and supply missions supporting the Allied crossing of the Rhine in March 1945. The final combat mission was flown on 25 April 1945, attacking Hallein, Austria.

By the end of the war the group had flown a total of 285 combat missions and destroyed approximately 144 enemy aircraft. The group lost 184 aircraft in combat and non-combat operations.

Campaigns
The 392nd Bombardment Group participated in the following campaigns: Air Offensive - Europe, Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, Ardennes-Alsace, Central Europe.

Decorations
Distinguished Unit Citations (DUC): Gotha, Germany 24 February 1944.

Oversea Burials   392nd Bomb Group Oversea Burials

Group Web Site   http://www.b24.net