Bombing Birmingham

[Old Boy]

Hi All,

In this Forum there are many threads respecting the blitz.m In many of them the poster says that the bombers were aiming at such and such a target. There is even one suggesting that a bomb that hit houses was actually aimed at an anti aircraft gunsite nearby. The truth is that it was impossible to aim a bomb or bombs at a particular target. The Germans and, indeed ourselves, employed carpet bombing. i.e dropping their bombs on a particular area that contained factories , railway sidings etc. Any bombs that did not hit a worthwhile target but demolished houses etc was justified on the grounds that the houses in industrial areas were occupied by the factory workers etc.. Do not forget that the aircraft were flying high because of the barrage balloons and weaving to avoid searchlights. When there was a specific target such as the dams in Germany for instance it took months of training and the invention of the bouncing bomb.

Bombs that hit purely residential areas were usually dropped by aircraft avoiding night fighters etc or purely to avoid flying over the heavily defended cities.

Old Boy

 

[Brumi61]

I read somewhere on another site that houses in Stechford Road were bombed, specifically 74 & 72 ( semi). I was born in 74 and someone told me they were bombed thats why they looked diiferent to the neighbours houses. In the late 70's the next door neigbour at 76 found an unxeploded bomb when digging in his garden. Army came to take it away!