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• » 17 Jul 1944

• 44 Barracuda dive bombers, 18 Hellcat fighters, and 30 other fighters from carriers HMS Formidable, HMS Indefatigable, and HMS Furious attacked the German battleship Tirpitz in Norway in Operation Mascot, scoring no hits. ww2dbase [Tirpitz | CPC]
• Erwin Rommel was injured when his staff car was attacked by a British fighter in Sainte-Foy-de-Montgommery, Calvados, France at 1830 hours. The aircraft was piloted by Squadron-Leader J. J. Le Roux of No. 602 Squadron RAF. Rommel was en route from Bourguébus Ridge to his headquarters at La Roche-Guyon. The unconscious Rommel would be sent to the hospital at Bernay for treatment. ww2dbase [Erwin Rommel | CPC]
• USS Caiman was commissioned into service with Commander J. B. Azer in command. ww2dbase [Caiman | CPC]
• In the morning, 670 B-17 and B-24 bombers of the US Eighth Air Force, escorted by 433 fighters, attacked targets in France (1 B-17 bomber and 1 P-47 fighter were lost); in diversion, B-26B bombers of the US VIII Air Support Command attacked Cayeux, France to draw away German fighters. At Coutances, napalm was used for the first time. On the ground, American troops entered Saint-Lô. In the evening, 34 B-17 and 106 B-24 bombers, escorted by 209 P-51 fighters, attacked 12 German V-weapon launching sites in the Pas de Calais, France area. After sundown, 5 B-17 bombers dropped propagadan leaflets in France and the Netherlands while 16 B-24 bombers flew in support of French resistance activities. ww2dbase [Normandy Campaign, Phase 1 | CPC]
• Destroyer HMS Cambrian was commissioned into service. ww2dbase [CPC]
• Destroyer HMS Leamington was transferred to the Soviet Union and was renamed Zhguchi. ww2dbase [CPC]
• In southern France, 162 B-24 bombers of the US Fifteenth Air Force based in Italy attacked targets in southern France, including the rail marshalling yard at Avignon and railroad bridges at Arles and Tarascon. ww2dbase [CPC]
• Soviet First Ukrainian Front encircled 40,000 German troops at Brody, Poland (now in Ukraine). Across the wider region, Soviet troops crossed the Bug River on a 40-mile front. ww2dbase [CPC]
• 57,600 German prisoners of war were paraded through the streets of Moscow, Russia. ww2dbase [CPC]
• US Navy underwater demolition teams began destroying beach obstacles at Guam, Mariana Islands. ww2dbase [Mariana Islands Campaign and the Great Turkey Shoot | CPC]
• Corvette HMCS Peterborough arrived at Bermuda. ww2dbase [CPC]
• HMS/M Seawolf arrived at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States for refitting. ww2dbase [CPC]
• Frigate HMCS Loch Morlich was commissioned into service. ww2dbase [CPC]
• US President Roosevelt announced that he would allow the Democratic Convention to select a running mate for him rather than naming one himself. ww2dbase [Franklin Roosevelt | CPC]
• Submarine USS Sea Owl was commissioned into service. ww2dbase [Sea Owl | CPC]
• A British Catalina aircraft of No. 210 Squadron RAF flown by Flying Officer John Alexander Cruickshank attacked German submarine U-742, which fought back with her deck gun. One crew member aboard the Catalina aircraft was killed and three others were wounded, including Cruickshank. Despite his wounds, he brought the aircraft around for a second attack run with depth charges, which successfully sank the submarine. He would later win the Victoria Cross for this action. ww2dbase [CPC]
• Off Narvik, Norway, a Liberator aircraft of No. 86 Squadron RAF sank German submarine U-347 (all 49 aboard were killed) and a Catalina aircraft of No. 210 Squadron RAF sank German submarine U-361 (all 52 aboard were killed). Off Bergen, No. 333 Squadron RAF (Norwegian pilots) damaged German submarine U-994 off Norway, wounding 5 men. U-994 would be able to sail to Bergen, Norway for repairs later on the same day. ww2dbase [Conclusion of the Battle of the Atlantic | CPC]
• An inspection of the Indian 111th Infantry Brigade, a Chindit formation, found that only 118 were completely fit for active service; many of the remaining about 2,200 men suffered from malaria, foot rot, septic sores, typhus, or other ailments related to the Burma jungles. Joseph Stilwell withheld the brigade to guard a Chinese artillery battery for two weeks until conditions improved. ww2dbase [Operation Thursday | CPC]
• USS Gabilan sank a Japanese minesweeper south of Japan, hitting her with 1 of 4 torpedoes fired; the victim was logged as a destroyer in a case of mis-identification. ww2dbase [Gabilan | CPC]
• USS Bailey arrived at Saipan, Marianas Islands. ww2dbase [Bailey | DS]

• Corvette HMCS Barrie completed refitting at Liverpool, Nova Scotia, Canada. ww2dbase [Liverpool, Nova Scotia | CPC]

• Yamato arrived at Lingga, Dutch East Indies where she was to remain in the following three months for training. ww2dbase [Yamato | Lingga | CPC]

• The Soviet offensive near Vuosalmi, Finland ground to a halt. ww2dbase [Battle of Tali-Ihantala and Battle of Vuosalmi | CPC]

• Bombers of British No. 617 Squadron attacked the German V2 rocket site at Wizernes, France. ww2dbase [V-Weapons Campaign | La Coupole | Wizernes, Nord-Pas-de-Calais | AC]
• The USAAF 306th Bomb Group flying from RAF Thurleigh launched a bombing raid against railroad bridges over the River Sommes east of Amiens, France. ww2dbase [Bombing of Cities in France and Low Countries | RAF Thurleigh | Amiens | DS]

• USS New Mexico arrived in waters off Guam. ww2dbase [New Mexico | CPC]
• USS St. Louis took station off Apra Point, Guam covering forces conducting reconnaissance and underwater demolition. During this time, a diver inspected St. Louis's propellers and found the No. 3 propeller and 39-feet of the shaft were missing. ww2dbase [St. Louis | Mariana Islands Campaign and the Great Turkey Shoot | Facpi Point | DS]
• USS Honolulu arrived at Guam and began supporting pre-invasion operations with shore bombardments. ww2dbase [Walden Ainsworth | Honolulu | Mariana Islands Campaign and the Great Turkey Shoot | DS]

• Submarine USS Growler arrived at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii for a refit after completing her ninth war patrol. ww2dbase [Growler | Pearl Harbor Navy Base and Ford Island Naval Air Station | Pearl Harbor, Hawaii | DS]

• The Royal Navy submarine HMS/m Telemachus (Commander William King) torpedoed and sank the large Japanese submarine I-166 in the Malacca Strait. ww2dbase [Malacca Strait | AC]

• Allied troops attacked toward Ancona, Italy, with Polish armored units capturing Monte della Crescia and Casenuove, and supporting British units capturing Montecchio and Croce di San Vincenzo. ww2dbase [Advance to the Gothic Line | Marche | CPC]

• Task Group 17.16 (USS Guardfish, USS Piranha, and USS Thresher) sank a freighter and a cargo ship in the South China Sea. ww2dbase [Guardfish | South China Sea | CPC]
• USS Cabrilla made a night time attack against a Japanese convoy in the South China Sea, sinking an oiler and two transports, hitting them with 5 of 9 torpedoes fired. ww2dbase [Cabrilla | South China Sea | CPC]
• USS Preston arrived off Guam. ww2dbase [Preston (Fletcher-class) | CPC]
• The 4,916-ton Japanese merchant ship Sainei Maru, damaged by a torpedo from American submarine USS Thresher on the previous day, sank in the South China Sea. ww2dbase [South China Sea | HM]

• A major incident was declared when at 0530 hours a V-1 bomb blew up in Suffield Road, Walworth, south-east London, England, United Kingdom; 17 residents were killed, 40 houses demolished and 150 damaged by the blast. Many houses were damaged beyond repair to the south west in Brixton when another V-1 bomb landed in the middle of Brassey Square. The new defence system announced earlier on in the week came into effect at dawn, it was welcomed by the fight pilots who had been troubled by friendly fire whilst diving on the bombs. 41 Squadron at RAF Lympne lost two of its pilots in a collision above the airfield. ww2dbase [Vergeltungswaffe 1 | V-Weapons Campaign | Lympne, England | HM]

• The Liberty ship A. E. Bryan exploded whilst loading ammunition and explosives at Port Chicago, California, United States, taking with her the Victory ship Quinalt Victory berthed nearby. Ninety-seven men on the two ships were vapourised and even a 12 ton locomotive on the dockside vanished without trace. In total, 320 men were killed and 390 injured. More than 200 of the dead were black sailors being used as loaders. Later many sailors refused to work until safety was improved. Fifty were court martialed, convicted of mutiny and jailed. A public outcry led to their release but they were still deprived of all veteran's benefits for the rest of their lives. The last surviving "mutineer" Freddy Meeks was finally pardoned by President Bill Clinton in 1999. Four years later he died, aged 83. ww2dbase [Victory-class | Liberty-class | Port Chicago Naval Munitions Explosion | Port Chicago, California | AC]

17 Jul 1944 Interactive Map