Today In History:  14 September  [1942]   --  The USAAF undertakes the first combined zero-altitude strike by fighters and bombers

In the first U.S. strike from Adak, the U.S. Army Air Forces fly the first combined zero-altitude strike by fighters and bombers of World War II. Twelve Consolidated B-24 Liberators, 14 Lockheed P-38 Lightnings, and 14 Bell P-39 Airacobras attack Japanese forces at Kiska. Flying 240 miles (390 km) at wave-top level and attacking at an altitude of 50 feet (15 meters), they sink two Japanese ships and set three on fire and destroy three midget submarines, several buildings, and 12 Japanese floatplane fighters, and kill over 200 Japanese soldiers.

PHOTO: P-38J 42-68008 flying over Southern California

See the Historical Aviation Film Unit website at http://www.aviationfilm.com to get a new history tidbit every day.


Photo Attribution:  Public Domain  via Wikimedia.