"I shall exploit these lands to the absolute limit. I have not come here to make people happy... The population will have to work, and work, and go on working... We are a superior race, and we must remember that, on the racial and biological plane, the least of the German workers is worth more than any one of the population of these lands." - Erich Koch, German Commissioner for the Ukraine >From military@att.att.com (Bill Thacker) Friday, 5 March, 1943 RAF Bomber Command begins an aerial campaign against the Ruhr, sending over 400 bombers against Essen. The bombers are guided to the target by the new "Oboe" navigation equipment. The raid lasts 40 minutes, during which time 150 four-thousand-pound bombs are dropped. Attacking the Soviet Voronezh Front near Kharkov, German forces cut off a portion of the Soviet Third Tank Army, smashing two tank corps and a cavalry corps. Fourth Panzer Army is unable to cross the Donetz, however, because the warming weather has begun melting the frozen surface of the river; pontoon bridges cannot hold up against the drifting ice packs. The German submarine U-130 attacks Convoy XK-1, sinking 4 ships. -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- Bill Thacker military@att.att.com Send submissions for "50 Years Ago" to military@cbnews.att.com