Pilot: Keith Duncan
Lancaster: Dragon's Rage
Mission: Canal at Ladbergen
Date: 19/20 OCT 44
After Action Report: Submitted by Keith Duncan
Launch went uneventful for our first mission with the 314th but then we reached zone four and were rocked by machine gun fire from an unnoticed ME-110 which did 2 superficial hits and then a lucky round that took out our middle upper turret. Then after relocated our gunners couldn't seem to get an angle to even take a shot at the climbing fighter, which rocked the pilot compartment with another superficial hit. Then in Zone 5 Cromwell noticed an approaching Tame Boar and opened up ripping the starboard wing off the fighter. Entering the target zone, we are spotted by a searchlight and are attacked by an ME-109 that our nose gunner missed, luckily the attacking fighter also missed us. The Flak was light, but it must have startled our new bomb aimer, as Green dropped early and missed the target. On our way back our we are harased by a Tame Boar that while spotted Cromwell wasn't able to hit the fighter, the 110 then fired into us with the only real damage being to our port rudder. We were free and clear or so we thought until hitting Zone 4, were Cromwell spotted an approaching ME-110 and opened fire taking it out.