Gelsenkirchen — Coking Plant

Mission Narrative

On February 16, 1945, the 351st Bomb Group struck the Nordstern synthetic benzol plant at Gelsenkirchen — one of the most important synthetic oil facilities in the Ruhr, with a capacity of 400,000 tons. The 351st flew as the high box in the 94th Combat Wing formation, with the 457th BG supplying the lead and low boxes. Lt. Col. Francis served as Air Commander for the wing.

Dense, persistent contrails from preceding formations combined with fog to make visual sighting impossible, forcing the bombardiers to rely entirely on G-FI radar for their bomb run from approximately 27,000 feet. Despite these conditions, post-strike assessment determined that both batteries of coke-ovens at the Nordstern complex had been heavily damaged and would likely be out of operation for at least a month.

The Ruhr's formidable flak defenses took their toll — at least one 351st aircraft sustained sufficient damage that its crew was forced to ditch in the North Sea approximately 10 miles off the Dutch coast. Flying into the Ruhr was dreaded by 8th Air Force crews; the concentration of flak batteries defending the industrial complexes was the densest in Europe.

Strategic Context

By mid-February 1945, the Western Allies were preparing for Operation Veritable and Operation Grenade — the operations to clear the Rhineland and reach the Rhine. The systematic destruction of Ruhr industrial capacity was essential to ensuring that even if Germany managed to hold the Rhine temporarily, its ability to produce weapons and fuel was being permanently destroyed. The Soviet advance in the east had reached the Oder River, just 40 miles from Berlin.