October 1943 was a crucial stage in the air war. The Luftwaffe was on the cusp of stopping the USAAF daylight offensive. On 10 October, Münster was the target. I. and II. "Gruppe". 30 B-17s were shot down along with one escort fighter, but the RLV lost 25 fighters and 12 pilots. The Second Raid on Schweinfurt took place four days later. All three "gruppen", plus two from JG 26 formed a 150-fighter attack force over Düren. The attack on the US 305th Bombardment Group destroyed 13 out of 16 B-17s prior to the bomb run. German tactics aided the single-engine fighters. The "Zerstörer" aircraft lobbed their 221-cm rockets into the formations from the rear, destroying a few bombers, damaging others, but whose main objective was to break up the cohesiveness of the combat box. In three hours and 14 minutes, 60 B-17s were destroyed by the RLV. The Eighth Air Force recognised the era of unescorted daylight bombing raids into Germany "was dead." On 3 November the Eighth returned to coastal targets at Wilhelmshaven. III. "Gruppe" broke up the escorting 4th Fighter Group, but the other seven carried out an effective escort operation; including the US 55th Fighter Group, flying the P-38.