Operation Tidal Wave was an air attack by bombers of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) based in Libya on nine oil refineries around Ploiești, Romania, on 1 August 1943, during World War II. It was a strategic bombing mission and part of the "oil campaign" to deny petroleum-based fuel to the Axis powers. [4]

Prior to World War II, the U.S. Army Air Corps (Army Air Forces as of June 20, 1941) developed a doctrine of high-altitude, precision, daylight, massed bombing of selected enemy military and industrial targets.

Aug 3, 2020 · Operation Tidal Wave: What Went Wrong With the US Attack on Romania in WWII? A veteran of the B-24 raid on Ploesti tells the real story behind the costly mission. B-24Ds of the 98th Bomb Group fly low near Ploesti, Romania, during the August 1, 1943, raid on Axis oil refineries. (National Archives)

Jul 28, 2020 · The daring raid, known as Operation Tidal Wave, resulted in five men being awarded the Medal of Honor—three of them posthumously—but failed to strike the fatal blow its planners had intended.

On August 1, 1943, the USAAF staged Operation Tidalwave—a daring, surprise low-level B-24 raid against the Axis’ critical source of fuel, the oil fields in Ploesti, Romania. During the unescorted 1,000 mile flight from Libya, clouds broke the formation,

Under the code-name Operation TIDAL WAVE, the mission combined five bomb groups from the Eighth and Ninth Air Forces. Conceived by Colonel Jacob Smart, TIDAL WAVE completely broke with established US Army Air Forces (USAAF) policy.

Jul 10, 2020 · Operation Tidal Wave—one of the most daring, and costly, raids of World War II —had begun. The target of the raid was the oil refineries near Ploesti, Romania, which provided about one-third of...

Aug 5, 2013 · unforgettable: Operation Tidal Wave. Tidal Wave was the code name for the joint Eighth Air Force/Ninth Air Force mission to destroy Germany’s main source of fuel for its military forces, the...

Operation TIDALWAVE On Sunday, August 1, 1943 the Ninth Air Force attempted one of the most daring air raids of WWII, against the oil refineries at Ploesti, Romania. The raiding force was composed of 179 B-24D Liberator bombers from the 44 …

Aug. 1, 1943 air raid on Ploesti, Romania, had an ambi-tious goal: Shorten World War II by knocking out much of Germany’s petroleum production in a single blow. Called Operation Tidal Wave, the attack by five United States Army Air Forces bomber groups on Ploesti was well-planned and well-rehearsed.