Expensive Raid

The R.A.F. made its greatest bombing attack of the war last week. When the returns came in for the 24-hour attack, by night over Germany, by day over northern France, the effort proved costly. On its own count the R.A.F. lost 52 planes; on Berlin's count, 60 planes. Thirty-seven of them were bombers, four more than the highest German night-bomber losses during last May's air battle of Britain. But the figures told nothing of the relative profit & loss of the British raids.

Britain's Air Ministry had waited a long time for favorable weather to strike deep into Germany and Occupied Europe. One night the weather seemed just right: not too good to expose the flights to antiaircraft on the coast, not too bad to prevent accurate bombing. The Bomber Command dispatched more than 500 bombers to blast towns from Norway to southern Italy. New heavy Halifaxes, Stirlings, Wellingtons and Whitleys, loaded with Britain's powerful new bombs, sought out Berlin for special treatment.

But the weather took a turn for the worse. Low clouds covered the capital. To drop their bombs the big ships had to break through the clouds, then face heavy anti-aircraft fire. Neither was it good over Cologne and Mannheim. On their way home the planes ran into still worse weather. Sudden storms ripped into the large flights of heavy bombers. Of those assigned to attack Berlin, Cologne, Mannheim, 37 failed to return.

The Air Ministry's claim that most losses were caused by bad weather was supported at week's end. Reports of forced landing by British planes came in from France, Norway, Sweden.

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