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The locomotive depot in Rakovnik, approx. 20 miles west of Prague, suffered heavy losses to U. S. fighters in the second half of April and in early May 1945. On April 20, 1945 at 1.25 p.m., for instance, seven locomotives were put out of service and other three and seven diesel railroad cars were damaged in a strafing run performed by what is very likely to be 395th Squadron of the 368th Fighter Group. On one of the group's nine armed recce missions on that day the pilots found 13 to 15 locomotives (some of them without steam) and 100 plus cars of various type in "M/Y Rokevnik". Claims of the flight led by 2/Lt Gradon E. Mongar were slightly lower than those mentioned in the report of the Railroad Directorate in Pilsen: four destroyed and five damaged locomotives:
Lt. Onusseit (1+1) Lt. Lawrence Marsch (2+1 and he also left one box car burning in the yard) Lt. William Ponton (0+2) 2/Lt. Mongar (1+1)
Sources:
Národní archiv, fond Ministerstvo železnic, karton č. 4767, inv. č. 1380-45
Air Force Historical Research Agency, 368th Fighter Group – 395th Fighter Squadron, OPSFLASH No. 2 – April 20, 1945 (courtesy of Tim Grace, the 368th FG Association)
