7 February 1945

Target: Vienna Florisdorf Oil Refinery, Austria Mission

Part of a double header mission to the Florisdorf Oil Refinery at Vienna. Rider was the Group leader. Photographs show that two of the three boxes dropped approximately two miles north of the target on the East edge of the Strebersdorf Ordnance Depot. The third box down the Danube within range of all the heavy flak of East Vienna and bombed the Zwolfaxing airdrome. No one can explain how all the planes ran down flak alley without a single one being hit. In the assembly area the plane flown by 2nd Lt. Frank M. Brown stalled out and went into a spin. In pulling out of the spin with his heavy load, Lt. Brown lost one of the horizontal stabilizers. despite this he returned the plane to Base and landed safely. Four of his crew members parachuted safely to the ground after the stabilizer had been lost.