<text id=00he0810><title>Failure at Schweinfurt: Success at Regensburg</title>
<history>US Air Force: Events History</history>
<article><hdr>Failure at Schweinfurt: Success at Regensburg</hdr><body>
<p>Schweinfurt had been hit, but not destroyed; its production was off during the following weeks, but a shortfall of ball bearings never developed in the German industry. They had dispersed the industry, and also had developed other sources in neutral countries. Regensburg, on the other hand, was badly hit. A postwar survey of the Messerschmitt complex conducted by a USAAF Air Technical Intelligence team, reported thus: "... up to the time of the first air raid on 17 August 1943, [Regensburg} was able to stay consistently ahead of its schedule. Through July 1943 it had produced 2,545 Me 109s against 2,089 scheduled. After this raid, and during the period of dispersal which followed it, the group was unable to get back to scheduled monthly production until January 1944."
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<p>The double raid had decimated four bomb groups. Sixty B-17s had been lost and, more importantly, 600 crewmen were gone. Thirty planes were abandoned in North Africa because of battle damage, and 28 of the planes that got home received major damage. The Luftwaffe had, in effect, put 100 bombers out of action, for a loss of 25 fighters. The raids were not followed up, either by the AAF or the RAF. Combat crews received no extra time off after their mauling, and their morale sank. It was time to fall back and dress the deep wounds inflicted by the German defenders.
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<p>Fortunately, the weather cooperated. On 18 of the 30 days of September, German targets were almost obscured by heavy cloud. On 12 of those days, the meteorologists predicted clearing conditions; twice it actually cleared. Only 11 missions were flown in September, and only one of them went to Germany. That was a shallow penetration against Emden, in the first tentative use of a radar bombing system by the VIII BC. All the rest of the targets were considered 'easy'.
