General, Eighth Air Force during World War II in the European Theater of Operations conducted a myriad of operations beyond what was expected to be performed at the time by a Numbered Air Force with a prime example being special air operations.

26-27 April 1945, Operation Carpetbagger: Eighth Air Force (8 AF) Mission #970 was a special air operation over German-occupied Norway flown by two modified B-24 Liberator aircraft on the night of 26 April into the morning hours of 27 April. Both B-24s were no longer bomber aircraft but had been heavily modified to conduct this air mission that proved to be the last Carpetbagger special air mission flown by the Eighth in World War II.

The inaugural Carpetbagger air mission by 8 AF was Mission #174 conducted 4-5 January 1944 over German-occupied France and dropped propaganda leaflets. From this beginning towards D-Day on 6 June 1944 at Normandy, the tempo of Carpetbagger air sorites ramped up tremendously. The peak month for the Eighth's Carpetbagger operations was July 1944 with 597 aircraft sorties dispatched with 437 effective. The special air operations in July 1944 included 100 agents parachuted behind enemy lines as well as parachuting 5,103 weapons containers and 3,122 other aid packages to partisan forces. After D-Day and as France became liberated by Allied ground forces, the number of Carpetbagger sorties began to decrease with the last such mission in France conducted on the night of 16 September 1944 (8 AF Mission #636) by 32 B-24 and C-47 cargo aircraft with one aircraft, a B-24 lost.

After September 1944, the Eighth's Carpetbagger air missions scaled back to concentrate on German-occupied Denmark and The Netherlands and beginning in Spring 1945, on Norway. For Nazi Germany itself, on 19 March 1945 (8 AF Mission #891) used Carpetbagger B-24 aircraft to infiltrate 82 agents to key locations within Germany.

Operational Aspects of Carpetbagger Missions: Before America's formal entry into World War II, the British had established a support network to encourage resistance movements in German-occupied countries. The Special Operations Executive (SOE) formed by the British used Royal Air Force (RAF) aircraft to fly agents and supplies to France, Belgium, and The Netherlands.

Once America entered the war, a counterpart to the SOE was established on 13 June 1942 and named the Office of Strategic Services (OSS). The RAF's liaison section called the Special Projects Operations Center was the coordination point between the RAF and Eighth Air Force in England as well as other United States Army Air Force special air operations conducted in the Mediterranean region.

Once 8 AF was established in England and with collaboration with the RAF, the Eighth began to support resistance forces and partisan groups under the code name of "Carpetbagger." As well, the Eight began creating flying units and modifying aircraft to conduct special air operations with these modifications utilizing specialized technology devices transferred from the RAF.

The American made B-24 Liberator bomber aircraft with its long range and carrying capacity was well suited to be adapted for Carpetbagger air operations. These modifications included removal of 20 factory installed systems - replaced by 48 technology items - and the removal of the aircraft's waist gunner and ball turret machine guns. The circular opening left by the removal of the ball turret underneath the fuselage was used for parachuting agents. Plywood was placed throughout the converted B-24 for flooring. The B-24s original bomb shackles were replaced by British-made shackles to allow supply canisters / containers with parachutes to be carried and then dropped. Overtime other a few other aircraft - B-17 bombers, C-47 cargo aircraft, A-26 fighter-bomber aircraft, and some RAF provided Mosquito aircraft were all used during by the 8 AF in its Carpetbagger special air operations.

Besides the Mosquito aircraft; other technology borrowed from the RAF included: "Red Stocking" and "Skyway" recording devices to received radio transmissions from deployed agents; "Gee" radio altimeter for accurate navigation; the "Rebecca" system to locate drop zones; the "Eureka" ground beacon supplied to partisan groups; and the "S-phone" a two-way radio for vocal communications with persons on the ground especially at drop zones. Also RAF special operations personnel assisted 8 AF Carpetbagger units to conduct night flying training in modified B-24s since the vast majority of Carpetbagger operation conducted by the Eighth was conducted at night with very few daylight missions.

Both SOE and OSS collaborated closely on request for an agent or supply drop and once the delivery point was agreed upon; the request was then formally approved by the Eighth's headquarters. Once approved, OSS officials directly interfaced with the Carpetbagger unit (initially the 492d Bomb Group then with the 801st Bomb Group-Provisional) to conduct an intelligence analysis of the specific drop zone. Once this detail was approved, the OSS then notified the agents in the occupied territory. Uniquely the notification to dispatch a partisan reception party to a specific drop zone was accomplished through coded references given in commercial radio programs aired by the British Broadcasting Company.

For Carpetbagger sorties parachuting an agent - with all agents nicknamed "Joe" - the agent was under constant OSS supervision and driven directly to the aircraft. The aircrew was under instructions not to engage the agent in conversation. The agent was parachuted from the B-24 through the "Joe Hole" that was created underneath the B-24 by removing the gunner ball turret.

For supply drops, an OSS officer at the Carpetbagger airbase organized and supervised the delivery of requested items. The aircraft - normally a converted B-24 - was given a short test flight before being loaded. Depending on the specific item to be delivered - munitions, guns, radios, medical supplies, specialized tools, clothing, foodstuff, forged documents, and as a specific country's money - different drop containers were utilized. Specifically for radios, delivery was done in shock-absorbing containers. The typical container used was the C-3, that could hold up to 300 pounds and was normally dropped by parachute. A fully loaded Carpetbagger B-24 could carry 15 C-3 containers. Another special air operation item dropped was propaganda leaflets - where some 4,000 sheets were bundled together to be airdropped. The Carpetbagger B-24 normally carried six to ten leaflet bundles along with containers.

All loaded Carpetbagger aircraft was inspected by the OSS liaison officer, with the aircraft navigator having several hours to plan the route and gain its approval so to provide details during the flight brief to the aircrew.

Carpetbagger B-24s normally were dispatched individually but if several aircraft were on the same mission, their respective take-offs were staggered over several hours. Once airborne, altitudes varied between 5,000 to 10,000 feet with descent to 500 to 700 feet over drop zones with airspeed reduced to 130 mph by lowering the aircraft's flaps. Carpetbagger aircrews using specialized radio and prearranged light signals directly contacted the reception party on the ground. If direct contact or positive identification with the reception team could not be accomplished, then the Carpetbagger aircraft with its load would return to home station. All Carpetbagger aircraft returning to England from a mission, used planned specific air corridors and once landed, the aircrew was debriefed by the OSS liaison officer.

Post-Mission Breakfast Tradition: A Carpetbagger sortie mostly conducted at night or in the early morning hours, could last four to eight hours. After the return to home station and once the aircrew was debriefed, the traditional reward for the aircrew members was a breakfast featuring real (not powered) eggs and a two-ounce "slug" of whisky.

Carpetbagger Heritage: Eighth Air Force is credited with successful completion of 1,860 Carpetbagger special air operations out of 2,587 attempted. Carpetbagger sorties delivered 20,495 canisters / containers and 11,174 packages to resistance fighters in France, The Netherlands, Norway, and Denmark and dropped some 7,956 propaganda leaflet bundles. Some 1,043 agents (primarily OSS) were parachuted into German-occupied countries and into Germany itself. But there was a price to pay, in that Eighth Air Force lost 25 Carpetbagger-configured B-24s with another eight so battle damaged they could not be savaged. Personnel losses totaled 208 missing and killed - although many of the missing-in-action Carpetbagger aircrews parachuted to safety and with partisan assistance escaped Europe and eventually returned to England.