Help?

This is coolbert: In the international Jewish community [sometimes referred to as World Jewry] there has been a long standing grudge against the allied militaries and the leaders of same from World War Two [WW2].

The argument is made by the Jews that nothing was done to save the condemned Jews being sent to the death chambers and crematoria of Auschwitz. The feeling among world Jewry is that the Allies did not care, could have done more, but did not. And perhaps one reason, according to world Jewry, is that this slaughter of the Jews was not all unpleasant in the eyes of the allies. That somehow by their inaction they gave tacit approval to what the Germans were doing.

One suggestion that world Jewry has made is that the railroad tracks leading to Auschwitz could have been bombed. Impeding the process of the trains taking tens of thousands to death. The failure of the allies to bomb the tracks is cited as proof that the allies just did not care.

Is this argument plausible?

Not very! If the decision had been made to bomb the railroad tracks leading to Auschwitz, it would have had to have been during the daytime by a mass of bombers. Precision bombing just did not exist except in rare cases during World War Two. This mass of bombers could have all dropped their bomb loads at once on a stretch of track, but probably with less than satisfying results.

These types of bombing missions during the war almost without exception met with limited and less than satisfactory results. And the Germans were very good at repairing this sort of damage, and quickly too. The trains would be rolling again in no time. The Germans had put a high priority on sending trainloads of Jews to Auschwitz for extermination and this would not have deterred them. And what is worse is that the losses to the allied aircraft would have been prohibitive.

There would have only a few months out of the year to do this sort of mission [considerations of daylight], because of the length of the mission [pushing the bombers to the furthest of their range], and flying through the most densest part of the German air defenses to do so too [without escort].

Once when going to the target the bombers would be subject to fighter interceptor attack, and once again when returning to base they would have been hit a second time.

The losses would have been unacceptable for the gain.

As cruel as it may sound, the military gain would be nil, and actually impeded the furtherance of damage to the German war machine [defeating the German military was the paramount goal of the war].

An alternative approach would have been to destroy the crematoria at Auschwitz. This would have stopped the burning of the dead bodies and left the Germans with no recourse but to stop the executions of the Jews.

Not being able to burn the bodies would have created a monumental disposal problem that could not be solved.

Could this have been done?

Yes!

One of the pilots from the famous "Dam Busters Squadron" was asked how the bombing could have been done. He suggested flying a four engine Lancaster to the target and dive bombing the crematoria with a huge bomb that would destroy the target. This would have been the only way.

Again, units such as the Dam Busters had more important agendas and target during the war. Sad to say, this would have not been a useful mission for such an elite unit.

Now, there is another alternative bombing that could have been done that may have had an even great effect on saving the condemned Jews.

In the nine hour documentary "Shoah", an interview was made with an American professor who had been an officer in the Polish Home Army [the underground guerilla force left over after the conquest and occupation of Poland by the Germans] during the World War. This officer, a Christian, toured a Jewish ghetto just prior to leaving for a mission to England. The Jews wanted this man to see for himself what was happening to them. And this officer recounts a conversation he had with two leading members of the surviving Jewish community. He asked the two men what could be done to save the Jews. Here is the response:

"First, the allies must announce to the German people what is happening to the Jews, using all the means at their disposal. Perhaps the German population does not know. Tell the Germans to stop or there will be consequences. Give them one month for the slaughter to stop."

"Then [secondly] if it [the killing] does not stop, the allies must mass their air force and on one specific day, they must then obliterate a German city from the face of the earth. Again, then announce to the German people what has happened and why. And tell them to stop. And once again, give them one month. And if the slaughter does not stop, once again, mass the allied air force and obliterate another city. And continue to do so until the slaughter stops".

This officer did relay his intelligence and personal observations to the authorities in London. But what was proposed did not happen.

Would it have stopped the Germans from slaughtering the Jews?

I bet it would not have. By that time the Germans were hell bent on their policy of slaughter and would have just continued without blinking an eye. Persons of the ilk that would carry out such a slaughter in the first place are not phased by threats.

Here is something further to consider with regard to bombing the railroad tracks leading to and the crematoria at Auschwitz.

There was a book published some decades ago now called "Poland, SOE, and the Allies". Recounts the various attempts of the British SOE [Special Operations Executive] to air drop supplies to the Polish Home Army.

All throughout the war this was a priority for the British. And yet, these air drops were almost uniformly unsuccessful.

And the reasons were very similar from what was previously described as being reasons for not bombing the railroad tracks leading to Auschwitz.

Long range bombers would have to be used, flying through the worst part of the German air defenses both ways, in day time so the drops would be on target, unacceptable losses for the gain, etc.

Even during the Battle of Warsaw in 1944 were the allies for the most part unable to air drop supplies to the Home Army troops. Long range bombers several times tried to drop supplies to the embattled Poles. The only successful drop was by the South African air force, and that was only once done successfully. If the allies could not help by air their fellow Christians, how could anyone assume they could have done better by air operations to help the Jews?

coolbert.