11. The Casablanca Conference of 1943 outlined the bombing offensive over Europe
In January 1943, the Allies met at Casablanca, including FDR and Churchill, their staffs, and Free French Forces represented by Charles de Gaulle and Henri Giraud. The Combined Bomber Offensive against the Germans was decided upon, with industrial targets prioritized. The number one priority was the German aircraft industry. It included not only factories building Luftwaffe fighters, but oil, petroleum, and lubricants, ball bearings, aluminum production, shipping facilities, synthetic rubber and tire manufacturers, and many more facets of German production. The Combined Bomber Offensive began with British bombing raids in the Ruhr.
In July 1943, the first fully coordinated attack between the RAF Bomber Command and the USAAF Eighth Air Force was launched. The RAF bombed Hamburg in a night raid (using wide-area bombing techniques) and the Americans followed with a daylight raid the following day, bombing the shipyards and submarine pens. The arriving Americans found their targets obscured by smoke from the fires started the preceding night, and the bombing was relatively ineffective. Fighting over Germany led, once again, to heavy casualties. The next day the Americans returned and knocked out the Neuhof power station while inflicting considerable damage to the Blohm & Voss Shipyard and supporting shops.
