Tuesday, 1 September 1942

US NAVY

JAPAN—Japanese Prime Minister Tojo Hideki also becomes Foreign Minister as Togo Shigenori resigns.

PACIFIC—Air Force, Pacific Fleet (Vice Admiral Aubrey W. Fitch) is established.

            Sixth Naval Construction Battalion (Seabees), the first to serve in a combat area, arrives at Guadalcanal.

            USAAF B-17s bomb and damage Japanese flying boat support ship Akitsushima and destroyer Akikaze off BukaIsland, Solomons.

ATLANTIC—PBY (VP 73) bombs and sinks German submarine U-756, 57°30'N, 29°00'W.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—B 24’s attack harbor at Candia, Crete, scoring several direct hits on 1 vessel and hitting 2 others. 2 squadrons of 57th Fighter Group fly escort missions and sweeps with AF. B 25’s, in conjunction with RAF Lbs, hit trucks and tanks in battle area of Alam-el-Halfa.

FIFTH AF—P 40’s hit Japanese HQ at Wagga Wagga on Milne Bay while P 400’s strafe Kokoda and Kokoda Pass in the Owen Stanley Range. Australian ground forces continue slow retreat over the range but make progress in Milne Bay offensive.

ELEVENTH AF—US forces complete occupation of Adak.

US ARMY

JAPAN—Foreign Minister Shigenori Togo resigns and Premier Hideki Tojo is asked to assume duties of Foreign Ministry.

SOLOMON ISLANDS—USS Betelgeuse lands 200 men of 6th Naval Construction Battalion in Lunga area. Throughout September, Americans on Guadalcanal lack adequate fighter strength, although carrier planes that can be spared are employed at Henderson Field. Trickle of supplies to the garrison increases only slightly.

NEW GUINEA—Australians continue to make progress in Milne Bay area and to fall back slowly along trail over Owen Stanley Range. As diversion for Milne Bay forces, Japanese from Salamaua attack Australian Kanga Force guarding Bulolo Valley and seize Mubo.

MAURITIUS, RODRIGUEZ, AND SEYCHELLES ISLANDS— Transferred from command of British Army Hq, India, to East Africa Command. These, with Madagascar, are formed into “Islands Area” under Maj General G. River. Smallwood.

EGYPT—British Eighth Army repels further enemy attempts to reach W end of ‘Alam el Halfa ridge and prepares for counterattack to close gap in mine field on S flank. 30 Corps is thinned out to reinforced 13 Corps; 10 Corps is ordered forward.

USSR—Army Group B continues to batter defense ring about Stalingrad. Anapa, important Black Sea port, falls to Army Group A.

US MARINE CORPS

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Monday, 31 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Eight Japanese destroyers put ashore 1,000 troops of the Kawaguchi Detachment on Guadalcanal.

           Carrier Saratoga (CV-3) is torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-26, 260 miles southeast of Guadalcanal, 10°34'S,164°18'E.

           Destroyer Reid (DD-369) and PBYs (VP 42, VP 43) sink Japanese submarine RO-61 off Atka, Aleutians, 52°36'N,173°57'W.

           Submarine Growler (SS-215) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Eifuku Maru in Formosa Strait, 25°43'N, 122°38'E.

ATLANTIC—Storm separates the two lifeboats with survivors from U.S. tanker Jack Carnes, torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-705 at 42°00'N, 28°05'E (see 5 September 1942).

US ARMY AIR FORCE

TWELFTH AF—XII Bomber Command is assigned to Twelfth AF with HQ at High Wycombe.

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—B‑25’s attack aircraft on a landing ground, and B‑24’s raid harbor at Tobruk. P‑40’s of 66th Fighter Squadron, 57th Group, escort RAF bombers during raid on Maryut. B‑25’s, in conjunction with RAF Bostons, attack troop concentrations and military vehicles as battle of Alam-el-Halfa begins along the El Alamein line.

TENTH AF—Medium Bombers from China bomb Myitkyina for second consecutive day.

FIFTH AF—B‑26’s and A‑20’s bomb airfield at Lae; B‑17’s bomb ammunition dump at Buna; P‑400’s strafe positions at Wairopi; and P‑40’s bomb landing barges and strafe gun positions in Milne Bay area where Australian ground forces now take the offensive.

ELEVENTH AF—Of 2 B‑24’s flying weather, reconnaissance and patrol missions over Tanaga, 1 returns due to weather.

US ARMY

SOLOMON ISLANDS—USS Helm (DD) tows 3 harbor patrol boats to Tulagi. USS Saratoga (CV) is damaged by enemy torpedo while patrolling W of Santa Cruz Islands. and is forced to retire to Tongatabu for emergency repairs; on 12 September leaves there for Pearl Harbor where she remains until November.

NEW GUINEA—Australians take the offensive in Milne Bay area against demoralized enemy. 18th Brigade drives E to K. B. Mission. While tide has turned against enemy in Milne Bay area, other forces continue across Owen Stanley Range toward Port Moresby. General Horii is ordered to go on the defensive upon crossing the range.

INDIA—General Stilwell agrees to Services of Supply proposal that main base in India be established at Calcutta rather than Karachi.

EGYPT—Axis forces, against strong opposition, breach mine field on S flank of 13 Corps, British Eighth Army, and German armor then drives through and attacks W toward W end of ‘Alam el Halfa ridge until halted short of it with heavy losses. Air and artillery are employed against enemy with good effect. Heavy attacks by U.S. and British planes throughout August have seriously affected Rommel’s supply position.

USSR—Although Soviet resistance along Terek River has stiffened considerably, German Army Group A secures foothold across it in Mozdok area.

US MARINE CORPS

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Sunday, 30 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—TG 8.8 lands Army occupation forces on Adak, Aleutians, to begin construction of an air and naval base.

           High speed transport Colhoun (APD-2) is bombed and sunk by Japanese planes off Kukum Point, Guadalcanal,09°24'S, 160°01'E.

           Small reconnaissance seaplane from Japanese submarine I-19 reconnoiters Santa Cruz Island, Solomons.

ATLANTIC—U.S. tanker Jack Carnes, bound for Aruba, is shelled by German submarine U-705. After Armed Guard gunfire compels the Germans to submerge, U-705 torpedoes the tanker, 42°00'N, 28°05'E; 24 merchant seamen and four Armed Guard sailors man one lifeboat, while 18 merchant sailors (including the ship's master) and 10 Armed Guard sailors take to the other (see 31 August and 5 September 1942).

           U.S. freighter Star of Oregon, bound for Trinidad, is torpedoed by German submarine U-162, and abandoned; one workaway sailor is killed in the attack. U-162 then shells and sinks the freighter, 11°48'N, 59°45'E, before questioning the crew and then leaving the area. The entire 38 man crew and 14 man Armed Guard sailors survive the loss of the ship; a U.S. patrol craft rescues them.

           U.S. freighter West Lashaway is torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-66 approximately 375 miles east of Trinidad, 10°30'N, 55°10'E; the rapidity with which the ship sinks prevents boats from being launched. Some 42 of the 56 souls on board (including a woman missionary and four children among the passengers) manage to reach four rafts (see 2, 13, 18 and 24 September 1942).

US ARMY AIR FORCE

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—B‑24’s bomb docks and jetties in Tobruk Harbor.

TENTH AF—Myitkyina, northernmost Japanese supply depot and airfield in Burma, from which fighters could hit Dinjan (terminus of Assam-Burma Ferry), is bombed for first time by 8 China-based B‑25’s.

FIFTH AF—B‑17’s attack shipping in Saint George Channel.

ELEVENTH AF—US troops occupy Kuluk Bay, amidst a terrific storm and start building a runway. 5 B‑24’s photograph Kiska but do not bomb due to overcast, and then fly patrol and photo reconnaissance over Amchitka and Tanaga. P‑38’s fly patrol between Great Sitkin and Little Tanaga.

US ARMY

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS—U.S. occupation force lands on Adak without opposition.

GUADALCANAL—Japanese bombers attack shipping off coast and sink Colhoun (APD). Rear echelon of MAG 23 (12 dive bombers and 18 fighters) arrives at Henderson Field.

NEW GUINEA—After quiet day, Japanese attack at night in effort to secure No. 3 airstrip but are repulsed and retreat at dawn of 31st, leaving many dead. Enemy continues to gain ground in overland drive on Port Moresby.

EGYPT—During night 30–31, Axis forces open offensive against El ‘Alamein Line, making main effort against 13 Corps, British Eighth Army, on S while conducting a unsuccessful diversionary thrusts against 30 Corps.

US MARINE CORPS

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Saturday, 29 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Transport William Ward Burrows (AP-6) is damaged when she runs aground on Sylvia Reef off Tulagi, Solomons,09°07'S, 160°10'E.

           Australian destroyer HMAS Arunta sinks Japanese submarine RO-33 ten miles southeast of Port Moresby, New Guinea, 09°36'S, 147°06'E.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

EIGHTH AF—12 B‑17’s attack Courtrai/Wevelghem airfield, an FW-190 base.

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—B‑24’s fail to locate shipping near Crete and return without bombing. B‑25’s bomb landing ground during 29/30 Aug.

TENTH AF—B‑25’s pound Lashio, scoring numerous hits on the airport and starting 3 large fires in warehouse area SE of the city.

FIFTH AF—B‑26’s and P‑400’s hit airfield at Buna; B‑17’s pound airfield at Rabaul, and P‑40’s hit facilities in Milne Ray area as enemy ground forces continue drive over the Owen Stanley Range toward Port Moresby.

ELEVENTH AF—A Navy Catalina reports force of 3 cruisers and 4 destroyed s NW of Umnak. Thereupon all aircraft of the Eleventh go on attack alert. Surface force then identifies itself as friendly.

US ARMY

NEW GUINEA—Orders for Australian 18th Brigade to clear N shore of Milne Bay are revoked when another enemy convoy is detected approaching that area. 775 Japanese reinforcements are unloaded from the convoy. Fighting continues along overland trail to Port Moresby, but because of situation at Milne Bay and in the Solomons, South Seas Detachment is ordered to halt upon reaching S foothills of Owen Stanley Range. Australian 21st Brigade relieves 39th Battalion and elements of 53d Battalion.

US MARINE CORPS

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Friday, 28 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—USMC and Navy SBDs (VMSB 232, VS 5) bomb and sink Japanese destroyer Asagiri off Santa Isabel, Solomons, and damage destroyers Shirakumo, Yugiri, and Amagiri, preventing reinforcements (elements of the Kawaguchi Detachment) from landing on Guadalcanal.

           Light minelayer Gamble (DM-15) sinks Japanese submarine I-123 near Guadalcanal, 09°21'S, 160°43'E.

ATLANTIC—U.S. freighter Topa Topa, bound for the Gold Coast, is torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-66 at 10°16'N,51°30'W; 18 of the 42 man crew perish, as do seven of the 15 man Armed Guard. All three passengers survive. British merchantman Clan MacInnes rescues the 35 survivors and transports them to Trinidad.

           Freighter Harjurand rescues some of the survivors from U.S. freighter Arlyn, torpedoed by U-165 the day before; the rest row to shore. A total of 22 merchant sailors, the 14 man Armed Guard, and the sole passenger survive Arlyn’s loss. U-517 finishes off the abandoned Arlyn with a torpedo at 51°53'N, 55°48'W.

CARIBBEAN—PBY (VP 92) and Canadian corvette HMCS Oakville sink German submarine U-94 at 17°54'N, 74°36'W. Destroyer Lea (DD-118) and Oakville pick up survivors.

           U.S. tanker Esso Aruba, in convoy TAW 15, is torpedoed by German submarine U-511 approximately 120 miles south-southeast of Guantanamo Bay, 17°54'N, 74°47'W; U-511 also torpedoes British tanker San Fabian and Dutch tanker Rotterdam, both of which sink. Esso Aruba, however, suffers no casualties (convoy commodore and his five man staff, 41 man merchant complement and 13 man Armed Guard), remains in convoy and reaches her destination the same day without further incident.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

EIGHTH AF—11 B‑17’s bomb airplane factory of Avions Potez at Meaulte, an important repair depot for German fighters.

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—2 B‑24 squadrons bomb docks, shipping, and jetties in Tobruk harbor.

TENTH AF—8 B‑25’s hit barracks and ammo dumps at Hoang Su Phi and a fuel dump at Phu Lo. This is the largest force of Medium Bombers used by CATF to date, and the first Medium Bomber mission flown without escort.

FIFTH AF—B‑26’s pound forces at Milne Bay.

ELEVENTH AF—Of 3 B‑17’s bombing Kiska, 1 fails to return. All available B‑24’s and 2 flts of P‑38’s fly naval cover at Nazan Bay. An attack mission to Attu is canceled due to weather.

ZONE OF THE INTERIOR—Lt Col Harold L Neely takes command of Twelfth AF.

US ARMY

GUADALCANAL—1st Battalion of 5th Marines, in flanking movement without enemy contact, returns with Company I of 3d Battalion to Kukum area.

NEW GUINEA—Milne Force withstands determined frontal assaults against No. 3 airstrip. Australian 7th Brigade, reinforced by Americans of 709th Airborne AA Battery and of 43d Engineers, staunchly defends the strip. Other Australians continue fighting withdrawal across Owen Stanley Range.

USSR—German Army Group A begins assault on Novorossisk, on Black Sea.

US MARINE CORPS

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Thursday, 27 August 1942

US NAVY

ATLANTIC—German submarine U-165 attacks convoy SG 6 off Belle Isle Strait, torpedoing oiler Laramie (AO-16) at 51°44'N,55°40'W; four sailors are killed. U-165 also torpedoes U.S. freighter Arlyn at 51°53'N, 55°48'W; 12 of the 34 man crew die (see 28 August).

           German submarine U-517 attacks convoy SG 6F off Belle Isle Strait, torpedoing Army transport Chatham at °51'N,55°49'W; seven of the 106 man crew perish, as do seven of the 428 passengers. There are no casualties among the 28 man Armed Guard. The majority of the men who survive the sinking pull to shore in a dozen life boats; the remainder, who embark in nine rafts, are rescued by destroyer Bernadou (DD-153), Coast Guard cutter Mojave (WPG-47), and Canadian corvette HMCS Trail.

CARIBBEAN—German submarine U-511 attacks convoy TAW 15 (see 28 August 1942).

US ARMY AIR FORCE

EIGHTH AF—7 Heavy Bombers attack Wilton shipyards on outskirts of Rotterdam. These yards, the most modern in the Netherlands, are fully employed by the Germans for servicing vessels. 92d Bomb Group completes nonstop flight of the last of its 4 squadrons from Newfoundland to UK without a loss. A Combat Crew Replacement Center, the first in Eighth AF, is established at Bovingdon.

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—B‑24’s bomb a convoy, hitting 1 merchant ship which is reported sinking.

FIFTH AF—B‑26’s and P‑400’s bomb airfield at Buna while P‑40’s strafe beachhead and fuel dumps at Milne Bay.

ELEVENTH AF—4 B‑17’s, 6 B‑24’s, and 2 P‑38’s fly weather, reconnaissance and patrol missions over Kiska and Atka. Enemy begins to transfer Attu garrison to Kiska, which is completed on 16 Sep 42.

US ARMY

GUADALCANAL—1st Battalion of 5th Marines lands about 1,000 yards W of Kokumbona and starts E along shore while Company I of 3d Battalion pushes W from Kukum by overland trail to intercept enemy withdrawal inland. 1st Battalion is halted by enemy fire about 1,500 yards E of Kokumbona. 9 more P–400’s of 67th Fighter Sq arrive at Henderson Field.

NEW GUINEA—Fresh AIF troops (2/10th Battalion of 18th Brigade) advance unopposed to K. B. Mission during day. After nightfall, Japanese, with tanks, renew attack and split defending force, which withdraws. Japanese overland drive on Port Moresby continues, with Australians falling back gradually. Reinforcements (21st Brigade) are moving to forward area to assist Australians.

USSR—German Army Group B continues battle for Stalingrad; Army Group A presses closer to oil prize of Grozny, seizing Prokhladny and reaching Terek River.

US MARINE CORPS

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Wednesday, 26 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Japanese land at Milne Bay, New Guinea; USAAF B-17s, B-25s, B-26s, P-40s, along with RAAF Hudsons, attack beaches and transports while Australian troops attack the invaders.

           SBDs (VS 71) from carrier Wasp (CV-7) damage Japanese submarine I-17, Solomons area, 09°25'S, 162°47'E.

           Japanese occupy Ocean Island.

           Submarine Haddock (SS-231) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Teishun Maru off China coast, about 100 miles north-northwest of Keelung, Formosa, 26°27'N, 121°23'E.

           Seaplane tender (destroyer) Williamson (AVD-2) is damaged by explosion of bombs jarred loose from PBY being towed by the ship.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

USSR—Russians make 7 counterattacks NW of Stalingrad.

TENTH AF—B‑25’s, which have moved temporarily from C China to Yunnani, bomb Lashio, an important rail center, highway junction, and air base. Covering P‑40’s strafe numerous targets of opportunity and shoot down at least 2 fighters.

FIFTH AF—P‑40’s, B‑25’s, B‑26’s, and B‑17’s, plus RAAF Hudsons, pound forces in Milne Bay. A large transport is damaged and most of the supplies on the beachheads E of Rabi are destroyed. P‑400’s strafe airfield at Buna.

ELEVENTH AF—Photo mission aborted over Atka due to weather.

US ARMY

GUADALCANAL—5th Marines, 1st Marine Division, prepares for limited attack to eliminate resistance on W flank of Lunga perimeter.

NEW GUINEA—Planes from Milne Bay and Port Moresby attack Japanese in Milne Bay, destroying most of their supplies on shore and damaging large transport. After nightfall, enemy convoy bringing rest of 1,170-man force from New Ireland arrives safely in Milne Bay. Japanese make another night attack, 26–27, to W, forcing Australian militia back to Gama River line; at dawn of 27th Japanese retire once more to landing point. Meanwhile, Japanese forces in Isurava area renew overland drive on Port Moresby at dawn and force Australians (depleted 39th Battalion, 30th Brigade Hq, 2 companies of 53d Battalion) back steadily by overwhelming pressure. Japanese supply lines, which are becoming overextended, are frequently attacked by air.

INDIA—Training center for Chinese troops is activated at Ramgarh, Bihar Prov, with Col Frederick McCabe as commandant.

US MARINE CORPS

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