Operation Strangle was a series of air operations during the Italian Campaign of World War II by the United States Fifteenth and Twelfth Air Forces to interdict German supply routes in Italy north of Rome from March 24, 1943, until the fall of Rome in spring 1944. Its aim was to prevent essential supplies from reaching German forces in central Italy and compel a German withdrawal. The strategic goal of the air assault was to eliminate or greatly reduce the need for a ground assault on the region. Although the initial goal of forcing the enemy to withdraw was not achieved, the air interdiction of Operation Strangle played a major role in the success of the subsequent ground assault Operation Diadem.
Two principal interdiction lines were maintained across the narrow boot of Italy. This meant that no through trains were able to run from the Po Valley to the front line, and that south of Florence substantially all supplies had to be moved by truck. The operation employed medium bombers and fighter bombers over a 150-square-mile area from Rome to Pisa and from Pescara to Rimini.
This post is a tribute to 1st Lt Bill Smith, P-47 pilot, filmed in this movie “Thunderbolt.“ Bill is a neighbor and personal friend living in the Charlotte, NC, area. He is considered a walking encyclopedia of WWll Aviation. Bill is also pictured in our EAA 309 B-17 Album.
