Elke Wing hield een "Operational Record Book" bij van dagelijkse gebeurtenissen en missies. Dat de informatie in zo'n 'ORB' interessant is, hoef ik U niet te vertellen, temeer het ook geheime informatie betrof. Onderstaand vindt U het (onvertaalde) Operational Record Book van de 125ste Wing Royal Air Force, tijdens hun verblijf op Airstrip B.82 Grave in de periode 2 t/m 29 oktober 1944. Als er in de tekst wordt gesproken over gisteren (yesterday) dan bedoelen ze de datum die voor het bericht staat aangegeven. Men start immers steeds om 23.59 uur en tegen de tijd dat het bericht volledig is uitgetypt, is het al weer na middernacht, vandaar dat er af en toe over gisteren (yesterday) wordt gesproken. OPERATIONAL RECORD BOOK 125 WING - 2/4 6/10/44 23.59 "TEMPS LEAVE". After only a few days stay with 125 Wing the two Tempest Squadrons, 80 and 274 left us to join the other Tempest Squadron at 122 Wing. We instead are to have three Spit XIV Squadrons. With only two Squadrons here to do the work, quick turn rounds were essential after each show, and the crews are to be congratulated on getting the refuelling and rearming done each time with most commendable rapidity. There was always a Squadron ready to take the air from first to last light. "LOCO BUSTERS". Trains came in for a caning yesterday. 130 started the Blitz by blowing up and completely destroying a long goods train carrying petrol, ammo and guns to the front. After 130's attack the rain was enveloped in smoke and flames while the engine blew its top off. The flak that came from the train to start with was soon silenced. On the same mission 130 attacked and damaged the Engine and six wagons of another train, and finished the trip by damaging 12 of thirty barges they saw moored on a canal. When 402 went out a little later they clobbered a further three engines - one blew up and the others were damaged - and nine wagons. Haze made visibility very poor, but a train takes some hiding. By the time 130 went out again, the weather had deteriorated quite a lot and there was very little movement seen (possibly the hun was keeping his head down while 3.000 bombers dropped dirt and corruption on him). At any rate, all 130 could get was one half tracked vehicle in flames, one lorry left smoking and another damaged. The heads were still down when 402 went out half an hour later. The sky was full of bombers - but there was no movement seen on the roads. "HIGHER AND HIGHER". The day's flying finished with both Squadrons doing two patrols each at the uncomfortable height of 30.000 ft. Huns - even "Squirt planes" - were conspicuously absent. "END OF A TOUR". Wing Commander Page D.F.C., and Bar has returned to England on completion of his Ops tour. The Wing will miss him. Wing Commander J. Wray D.F.C. becomes the new Wing Commander Ops in W/Cdr Page's place. 7/10/44 23.59 Only four sorties were flown yesterday, ground mist and fog making it impossible for the aircraft to get on the ground. Even the four aircraft that did get off just after lunch when the weather showed signs of improving had to be recalled owing to worsening conditions at base. "DOING THE CONTINENTAL". Any time now ground personnel are going to be granted 7 days leave - but it can only be spent on the Continent - and no transport facilities will be available... We can recommend Grave Lido ---- unless you want to thumb your way to Antwerp. "V - SIX". We had V-One. The newspapers and the German Radio have talked about V-two, V-three, V-four and V-five. Now comes V-six. This is a Cigar shaped object, about four inches long, brown in colour. When set alight it emits a lethal malodorous smoke guaranteed to kill at close quarters. The original plan was to drop them by parachute over 125 Wing each time the cigarette ration ran out, but so rapid has been 125's advance to (the) Grave that they are issued instead with the weekly cigarette and chocolate ration. You have been warned. 8/10/44 23.59 Sixteen sorties were flown on High Patrol at 20.000 ft between 06.30 and 08.30 hours yesterday in spite of a ten tenths layer at 5000 ft. But then the weather closed in at the Strip and the cloud base lowered. No further sorties were flown. 9/10/44 23.59 No air activity 10/10/44 23.59 No air activity 11/10/44 23.59 Although 14 missions were flown in all involving some 65 sorties, only two had anything of interest to report. One of these - a patrol of 4 aircraft flown by 130 Squadron - witnessed the attack on the airfield by two ME 262's. After some very accurate vectoring by the ground Controller our Spits, at 22.000 ft. saw the 262's just finishing the N-S dive at about 10.000 ft over the airfield. The bombs fell wide to the east of the strip. One of the e/a then turned to port and 130's section cut across to intercept him as he was climbing away eastwards. They were approaching at an angle of 90 degrees but the e/a spotted them above him and turned in towards and underneath them. The Spit did practically a 180 degrees turn to get on his tail and managed to get in a short burst at about 600 yards Range. By now they had lost their height advantage and the ME 262 flying straight and level had about 30 mph advantage in speed and began to pull away. They fired a couple of more bursts at gradually increasing range but the e/a pulled out of range and out of sight. An even briefer encounter was experienced by the next patrol who sighted a 262 at 7.000 ft flying east 10-15 miles East of Grave. The 130 Aircraft at 8.000 ft got on his tail but the 262 spotted them and dived smartly into cloud. The section followed - closed to 500 yards and had a short burst, but finally lost contact in cloud. It was the general consensus of opinion of the pilots that given a bit more luck and some height advantage the 262 will not always be able to rely on its speed to avert combat. Other patrols were uneventful, but it will obviously impede the freedom of action of the ME 262's when they realise there is always a Spit XIV Patrol on the look out for them. There were three encounters yesterday between our patrols and ME 262's. In each case our Aircraft got near enough to have a squirt at the Hun's Jet Jobs though no apparent damage resulted. In the first encounter a section of four Aircraft of 402 Squadron were very accurately vectored by the Controller on to the tails of the e/a and seemed all set for a perfect bounce. The 262's however saw them in time and by taking evasive action in the nature of quick - though rather wide turn, offset the advantage our aircraft had over them in the dive. As the Spits dived down at something like 400 plus m.p.h. the 262's turned away and by the time our aircraft were on their tails again they were able to pull away in a shallow dive. The next duel occurred in the vicinity of the airfield. Six of 130 Squadron aircraft at 15.000 feet sighted a 262 at 20.000 ft. They climbed to intercept and attack but the e/a had seen them and pulled very smartly up into cloud. About twenty minutes later the same section of 130 Squadron flying at 10.000 ft saw a 262 carrying three bombs 2.000 ft above them over NIJMEGEN and flying toward them. If their intention had been to bomb the bridge they were thwarted for they jettisoned their bombs on sighting the Spits and shot into cloud. The last encounter of the day came nearer to success than any other. F/Lt. Sleep of 402 Squadron saw two bomb carrying 262's drop out of cloud at 15.000 ft. when he was at 14.000 ft. They were flying towards him about one mile away on his port side and when he turned tightly to get on their tails he got within 800 yards and fired a quick burst. Again they dropped their bombs well away from the airfield and went into a shallow dive. F/Lt Sleep went after them all out and closed to 600 yards when he gave another burst. No strikes were seen but white trails appeared from the jet propulsion units as if the e/a had switched on their jets. Unfortunately F/Lt. Sleep had to break off the action since the guns at NIJMEGEN opened up on him and the e/a. Just after 15.30 hours yesterday there was the familiar whistle as an ME 262 swooped down over the airfield and dropped a couple of bombs on the 127 side of the strip. As a result four were killed, seven injured and a Spit IX was burned out. Six other Spits received minor damage. Met dank aan/many thanks to John (aka Jack) Hillman voor het beschikbaar stellen van de 125 Wing ORB.