Operation Bodenplatte, launched on 1 January 1945, was an attempt by the Luftwaffe to cripple Allied air forces in the Low Countries during the Second World War. The goal of Bodenplatte was to gain air superiority during the stagnant stage of the Battle of the Bulge so that the German Army and Waffen-SS forces could resume their advance. The operation was planned for 16 December 1944, but was delayed repeatedly due to bad weather until New Year's Day, the first day that happened to be suitable. It resulted in almost 500 destroyed Allied airplanes.
A Fw 190D-9 of 10./JG 54 Grünherz, (pilot Leutnant Theo Nibel), downed by a partridge which flew into the nose radiator near Brussels on 1 January 1945.
Focke-Wulf Fw 190A shot down by a fighter of the USAAF XXIX Tactical Air Command in 1944 or 1945. German losses were very heavy by late 1944.
Destroyed P-47s at Y-34 Metz-Frescaty airfield.
Kurt Tank and Major Günther Specht (left) inspecting the rudder of his Bf 109. Specht's loss was a bitter blow for JG 11.
A fighter-bomber is a fighter aircraft that has been modified, or used primarily, as a light bomber or attack aircraft. It differs from bomber and attack aircraft primarily in its origins, as a fighter that has been adapted into other roles, whereas bombers and attack aircraft are developed specifically for bombing and attack roles.
The Republic P-47D was armed with eight .50-caliber (12.7 mm) machine guns, and could carry a bomb load of 2,500 lb (1,100 kg).
A Supermarine Spitfire Mk. IX in Longues-sur-Mer, Normandy (1944). It carries a 500 lb (230 kg) bomb under the fuselage and a 250 lb (110 kg) bomb under each wing.
The F-series models of the Focke-Wulf Fw 190 were specifically adapted for the fighter-bomber role.