Not all U.S. forces were fighting their way into Italy from North Africa and Sicily from 1943 to 1944. U.S. forces stationed in Britain began a bombing campaign against Germany in the summer of 1942 that did substantial damage to the German war effort.
In 1943, Germany was invading the Soviet Union in the east, fighting the Allies in North Africa, and occupying Europe in the west. Its resources were stretched thin to cover all this territory—an entire continent plus more. Relatively few fighter planes were left in Germany to defend the homeland. The U.S. Air Force took advantage of this German weakness. Learn how by viewing this slideshow.
Target: Germany
In mid-1943, the U.S. took command of the bombing campaign in Germany. The first goal was to bomb German factories--especially ones producing fighter planes like this one--so that they could not produce war supplies for the German army. The second goal was to weaken Germany so that an invasion of northern Europe could be launched in 1944. Britain had begun limited bombing of German targets in 1942, but the U.S. took the campaign to a new level. U.S. Air Raids Begin
The U.S.-led air raids forced the German army to defend German factories. This photo shows U.S. fighters dropping bombs on a factory in Dresden, Germany. The Germans moved thousands of men and anti-aircraft weapons to factory sites. This was a waste for Germany for two reasons: First, those weapons were needed to fight in the Soviet Union and Italy, and second, the move used up a critical amount of ammunition. Tens of thousands of shells (the "bullets" that shot down planes) had to be fired to bring down one U.S. fighter plane. German Production Losses
The U.S.-led bombing raids hit German war production hard: When the raids started in the summer of 1943, Germany was producing over 1,200 fighter planes a month, but by the end of the year, it was producing fewer than 700. Here U.S. planes bomb an aircraft factory in Marienburg, Germany. Germany had to bring back even more soldiers and weapons from the eastern and Italian fronts to defend the homeland. Big Week
In February 1944, the U.S. launched Operation Argument, a series of bombing raids over Germany that featured one six-day campaign called "Big Week." U.S. pilots made over 3,000 raids and dropped thousands of tons of bombs on German factories. It was a success: Running lower and lower on planes and pilots, anti-aircraft weapons, and supplies, Germany could no longer fight off the U.S. air raids with maximum men and weapons. The U.S. now controlled the skies over Germany. Turning Off the Power
After hitting German industry hard, the U.S. shifted the raids to attack German oil and coal supplies. This photo shows oil storage tanks on fire after a U.S. bombing raid. Germany had to try to defend its fuel supply, but it lost critically important men, planes, and ammunition in the attempt. U.S.-led raids continued through the summer of 1944. |
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Check your understanding of the U.S. fight in northern Europe by completing this activity. Put each event on the left in the correct order on the right by dragging it to the right place.
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Germany is forced to move men and weapons from the front back to Germany.
German war production drops dramatically.
The U.S. gains control of German airspace.
The U.S. begins intense bombing of German factories.
The U.S. leads air raids on oil depots.
"Big Week" includes over 3,000 air raids over Germany.
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