Pointblank Directive
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The Pointblank directive authorised the initiation of Operation Pointblank, the code name for the part of the Allied
Combined Bomber Offensive The Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) was an Allied offensive of strategic bombing during World War II in Europe. The primary portion of the CBO was directed against Luftwaffe targets which was the highest priority from June 1943 to 1 April 1944. ...
intended to cripple or destroy the German aircraft fighter strength, thus drawing it away from frontline operations and ensuring it would not be an obstacle to the invasion of Northwest Europe. The Pointblank directive of 14 June 1943 ordered RAF Bomber Command and the U.S. Eighth Air Force to bomb specific targets such as aircraft factories, and the order was confirmed when the Allies met at the
Quebec Conference, 1943 The First Quebec Conference, codenamed "Quadrant", was a highly secret military conference held during World War II by the governments of the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States. It took place in Quebec City on August 17–24, 1943, at ...
. Up to that point, the RAF and USAAF had mostly been attacking the German industry in their way – the British by broad night attacks on industrial areas and the US in "precision attacks" by day on specific targets. The operational execution of the Directive was left to the commanders of the forces. As such, even after the directive, the British continued their night attacks. The majority of the attacks on German fighter production and combat with the fighters were conducted by the USAAF. In practice, the USAAF bombers made large-scale daylight attacks on factories involved in fighter aircraft production. The Luftwaffe was forced into defending against these raids, and its fighters were drawn into battle with the bombers and their escorts. It was these battles of attrition that reduced the Luftwaffe fighter pilot strength despite increases in German aircraft production.


Casablanca directive

At the January 1943
Casablanca Conference The Casablanca Conference (codenamed SYMBOL) or Anfa Conference was held at the Anfa Hotel in Casablanca, French Morocco, from January 14 to 24, 1943, to plan the Allied European strategy for the next phase of World War II. In attendance were ...
, the Combined Chiefs of Staff agreed to conduct the
Combined Bomber Offensive The Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO) was an Allied offensive of strategic bombing during World War II in Europe. The primary portion of the CBO was directed against Luftwaffe targets which was the highest priority from June 1943 to 1 April 1944. ...
(CBO), and the British
Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...
issued the
Casablanca directive The Casablanca directiveChurchillp. 458/ref> was approved by the Combined Chiefs of Staff (CCOS) of the Western Allies at their 65th meeting on 21 January 1943 and issued to the appropriate Royal Air Force and United States Army Air Forces command ...
on 4 February with the object of: On 14 June 1943, the Combined Chiefs of Staff issued the Pointblank directive which modified the February 1943 Casablanca directive. Along with the single-engine fighters of the CBO plan, the highest-priority Pointblank targets were the fighter aircraft factories since the Western Allied invasion of France could not take place without fighter superiority. In August 1943, the First Quebec Conference upheld this change of priorities. Among the factories listed were the Regensburg Messerschmitt factory, the ''Schweinfurter Kugellagerwerke'' ball-bearing factory and the Wiener Neustädter'' ''Flugzeugwerke'' (WNF) which produced Bf 109 fighters.


Fighter Command declines to engage

As part of the Pointblank plans, the USAAF repeatedly pressed the RAF to contribute to the daytime effort by providing fighter escorts, and even suggesting daylight bombing if sufficient escorts were available. Long-range fighter operations are at a natural disadvantage; friendly ground assets like spotters and
radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
are not available and even radio support can be difficult. The penetrating aircraft have to carry much more fuel, reducing their performance, and the long flight times fatigue the pilots. This led RAF Fighter Command to conclude that their assets should be used purely defensively, and in the years leading up to Pointblank this had never seriously been reconsidered. Although escorts had been requested on several occasions by both Bomber Command and
Coastal Command RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force (RAF). It was founded in 1936, when the RAF was restructured into Fighter, Bomber and Coastal Commands and played an important role during the Second World War. Maritime Aviation ...
, Fighter Command repeatedly returned dubious reports stating the Supermarine Spitfire simply could not be converted. This was especially curious considering the D-model photoreconnaissance versions of the Spitfire were available from 1940 and offered the required range and performance. For Pointblank, USAAF General
Henry H. Arnold Henry Harley Arnold (June 25, 1886 – January 15, 1950) was an American general officer holding the ranks of General of the Army and later, General of the Air Force. Arnold was an aviation pioneer, Chief of the Air Corps (1938–1941), ...
requested that allocations of the
North American P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...
to the RAF be directed to provide escort for daytime raids and that British Mustangs be put under Eighth Air Force command. Chief of the Air Staff
Charles Portal Marshal of the Royal Air Force Charles Frederick Algernon Portal, 1st Viscount Portal of Hungerford, (21 May 1893 – 22 April 1971) was a senior Royal Air Force officer. He served as a bomber pilot in the First World War, and rose to become fi ...
, responded that he could provide four squadrons, not nearly enough for the mission. Arnold wrote back, clearly upset, and stated:
"As presently employed it would appear that your thousands of fighters are not making use of their full capabilities. Our transition from the defensive to the offensive should surely carry with it the application of your large fighter force offensively" ... "We have put long range tanks in our P.47's. Those P.47's are doing some offensive action several hundred miles from England. In their basic design, our P.47's were shorter range aircraft than your Spitfires.
Arnold's letter said that he felt the fighters should have been fitted with additional fuel tanks and bombs and used against the German aircraft on the ground at their airfields. Portal responded saying that the day-force strength averaged 1,464 fighters and that it had "consistently been employed offensively... mainly in conjunction with medium and light bombers". His subordinate, Air Chief Marshal
Trafford Leigh-Mallory Air Chief Marshal Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory, (11 July 1892 – 14 November 1944) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force. Leigh-Mallory served as a Royal Flying Corps pilot and squadron commander during the First World War. Remaining in th ...
, added that the RAF fighter force was designed for air superiority over Northern France in the coming invasion USAAF General
Barney M. Giles Barney McKinney Giles (September 13, 1892 – May 6, 1984) was an American military officer who helped develop strategic bombing theory and practice. Giles stepped outside established bomber doctrine during World War II to develop long-range cap ...
met with Portal and offered to convert two Spitfires entirely at the USAAF's expense. Two Mark IXs were shipped to Wright Field in January 1944 and modified, demonstrating their newfound range by flying back to England across the Atlantic. Tests at
Boscombe Down MoD Boscombe Down ' is the home of a military aircraft testing site, on the southeastern outskirts of the town of Amesbury, Wiltshire, England. The site is managed by QinetiQ, the private defence company created as part of the breakup of the Def ...
were equally successful, but by the time the conversions had been approved in August, Pointblank had concluded and the ''Luftwaffe'' had been conclusively defeated.


Notes

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References

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Further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pointblank, Operation World War II strategic bombing Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving the United Kingdom Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving the United States Military history of France during World War II Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving Germany 1943 in Germany 1944 in Germany 1943 in military history 1944 in military history 1943 documents