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August 10, 1944, was a sad day for the 492nd Bomb Group when it was officially disbanded after 89 days of combat service. Three days later, their unit designations and identity were given to the OSS (formerly known as 801st Provisional Group) to use as a working cover for their covert Carpetbagger activities. Thus, there were two separate 492nd Bomb Group organizations during WWII. Quite literally, they were as different as night and day. The original 492nd BG that this website documents flew daylight bombing raids, while the 801st/492nd BG flew covert missions at night.

Their first mission was flown on the 18th of April, 1944 against the Marshalling Yards at Mulhouse, France. Sixty-seven missions later, they flew their final against Ostend, Germany on August 7th.

An official quote regarding the 492nd:

"No other bombardment group in U.S. history ever lost as many aircraft in combat in so short a time."

Not counting losses to accidents or crash landings, the 492nd lost 52 aircraft in almost exactly three months of combat operations. Killed in Action (KIA) were 530 personnel and Missing in Action (MIA) 58 personnel. A total of 3,643 tons of bombs were dropped during their missions.

The personnel of the 492nd Bomb Group were transferred to other bomb groups within the European Theater, including some to the 801st/492nd.

David Arnett 492ndBombGroup.com