Today in World War II History—March 9, 1943

US Army Air Forces Recruitment Poster, WWII
80 Years Ago—Mar. 9, 1943: US Eighth Air Force Central Medical Establishment in Britain recommends 25-mission combat tour for bomber crewmen and 200 hours or 50 missions for fighter pilots.
Field Marshal Erwin Rommel returns to Germany for sick leave & to plead for a decreased bridgehead in North Africa; Col. Gen. Jürgin von Arnim succeeds him over Army Group Africa, but this is kept secret.
In lieu of Mardi Gras, New Orleans holds Carnival Day Bond Drive for 25,000 people, sells $1 million in bonds. (Read more: “World War II War Bonds”)
In neutral Portuguese Goa in India, British SOE agents damage German freighter Ehrenfels, which was transmitting sailing times to U-boats (ship is scuttled).

British poster, World War II