Marsh Is.#471 Bomber Raids on Scheinfurt - 1993 Imperforate Mint Issue
August 17, 1943 The ball bearing factory at Schweinfurt and the Messerschmitt aircraft factory 180 miles to the southeast at Regensburg lay deep within the borders of the Third Reich, well beyond the range of Allied fighter escorts. To destroy these targets, the Allies planned to send two bomber squadrons ten minutes apart on the same flight path. The Luftwaffe would be forced to divide their fighters to engage both bomber squadrons, thereby diminishing U.S. losses. Unfortunately, foul weather delayed the departure of the second squadron for more than 3 hours, leaving the first group to confront the brunt of the Luftwaffe alone. By the time the second group was over Germany, the enemy was refueled and ready. Out of the 376 bombers which started the mission, 60 were shot down and 172 were badly damaged. Long-range bombing raids were halted until escort fighters were redesigned with extra fuel tanks on the wings to expand their range.
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