Monday, 17 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Companies "A" and "B," 2d Marine Raider Battalion (Lieutenant Colonel Evans F. Carlson, USMC), transported in submarines Nautilus (SS-168) and Argonaut (SS-166), raid Makin Island in the Gilberts; Nautilus's gunfire supports marines ashore. The relative ease with which the assault is carried out, however, inspires the Japanese to bolster defenses in the region.

            Submarine Gudgeon (SS-211) damages Japanese oilers Shinkoku Maru and Nichiei Maru northwest of Truk, 07°43'N,151°13'W.

ATLANTIC—U.S. tanker Louisiana is torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-108 approximately 200 miles from Paramaribo, Dutch Guiana, 07°24'N, 52°33'W; although U-108 sees three men escape from the burning ship, they are never found. There are no survivors from the 41 merchant sailors and the 8 man Armed Guard.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

EIGHTH AF—12 B‑17’s of 97th Bomb Group, escorted by Spitfires, launch first AAF Heavy Bomber attack from UK against W Europe. Target is Rouen-Sotteville marshalling yard. Sgt Kent River West shoots down German fighter, thus becoming the first Eighth AF gunner to receive credit for a combat kill. VIII Ground Air Support Command opens its HQ at Membury.

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—HQ USAMEAF announces designation of General Strickland as CG IX Fighter Command. B‑25’s of 81st Bomb Squadron hit stores, depot and tank repair shops at Matruh. This marks debut of the MPs of the 12th Bomb Group in ME.

FIFTH AF—A single B‑17 bomb’s Kavieng.

ELEVENTH AF—1 B‑24 flies photo reconnaissance over Buldir, Kiska and Amchitka Islands despite heavy rain.

US ARMY

GILBERT ISLANDS—Lt Col Evans F. Carlson’s 2d Marine Raider Battalion, consisting of 221 marines, moves by 2 submarines to Makin and begins 2-day raid on Butaritari Island., during which scattered enemy forces are engaged and radio station is destroyed. Enemy planes attack the Raiders on both days. 30 marines are lost in the action.

GUADALCANAL—Admiral Ghormley shifts responsibility for establishing line of communications to Guadalcanal from TF 63 to Admiral Turner’s TF 62. Henderson Field becomes operational. Japanese land reinforcements near Taivu Pt and in Kokumbona area, night 17–18.

USSR—German Army Group A establishes bridgeheads across Kuban River.

FRANCE—U.S. Eighth Air Force conducts first attack against Europe. Sq of B–24’s, escorted by RAF Spitfires, bombs rail center at Rouen.

US MARINE CORPS

2d Raider Bn lands from submarines at Makin Island. Raid is completed following day.

Sunday, 16 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Submarine S-39 (SS-144), irreparably damaged by striking reef off Rossel Island, on 14 August, is abandoned.

            Airship L 8 (ZP-32) is damaged upon return from patrol off California coast, landing at Dale City, California. The airship, however is unmanned; the fate of its two man crew remains a mystery.

ATLANTIC—Surviving 38 merchant seamen and the 13 man Armed Guard of U.S. freighter Cripple Creek, sunk by German submarine U-171 on 13 August, are rescued by British armed trawler HMS St. Wistan and transported to Sierra Leone.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—Personnel strength is greatly increased and supply and maintenance prospects are much improved by arrival of ground echelons of 57th Fighter, 12th and 98th Bomb, and 323d Service Groups.

ELEVENTH AF—A B‑24 aborts photo reconnaissance flight over Adak because of mechanical failure.

US ARMY

EGYPT—Enemy installations on Egyptian front are bombed for first time by U.S. medium bombers in support of British Eighth Army.

US MARINE CORPS

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Saturday, 15 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Naval Air Station, Whidbey Island, Washington, is established.

            Marine Aircraft Wings, Pacific (Major General Ross E. Rowell, USMC) is established at San Diego, California.

CARIBBEAN—Patrol Wing 11 (Commander Stanley J. Michael) is established at San Juan, Puerto Rico, for operations in Caribbean Sea Frontier.

            Naval Auxiliary Air Facility, Jamaica, British West Indies, is established.

ATLANTIC—U.S. freighter Balladier, in convoy SC 95, is torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-705 (one of 13 boats deployed to intercept Allied transatlantic convoys) approximately 550 miles southeast of Iceland at 55°00'N, 25°00'W; eleven of the 34 man crew and two of the 11 man Armed Guard die in the attack. Merchantman Norluna rescues survivors.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

US ARMY MIDDLE EAST AIR FORCE—B‑24’s bomb Tobruk harbor during 14/15 Aug.

FIFTH AF—B‑17’s attack shipping off Gona.

ELEVENTH AF—A B‑24 trying to fly photo reconnaissance over Tanaga and Adak aborts over Kiska due to weather.

ZONE OF THE INTERIOR—AAF Foreign Service Concentration Command is redesignated I Concentration Command.

US ARMY

GUADALCANAL—Marine rations are cut. First destroyer-transports arrive with supplies and aviation ground crews.

MIDDLE EAST—General Alexander takes command of MEF from General Auchinleck.

EGYPT—General Montgomery is rapidly reorganizing and strengthening British Eighth Army, for which 10 Corps is to serve as reserve. Considering ‘Alam el Halfa ridge, far in rear of El ‘Alamein Line, of vital importance, 44th Division and 10th Armored Division (—9th Brigade) are ordered to this area from Delta region, where they have been training. 132d Brigade of 44th Division is attached to New Zealand 2d Division.

USSR—Germans report capture of Georgievsk.

US MARINE CORPS

Marine Aircraft Wings, Pacific, established at San Diego, California, under Major General Ross E. Rowell

Friday, 14 August 1942

US NAVY

PACIFIC—Submarine S-39 (SS-144) is damaged when she strikes submerged reef off Rossel Island, Louisiade Archipelago.

            Submarine Seawolf (SS-197) sinks Japanese merchant passenger-cargo ship Hachigen Maru (ex-British Wenchow) in Sibitu Passage, 05°07'N, 119°37'E.

EUROPE—Lieutenant General Dwight D. Eisenhower, USA, Commanding General, European Theater of Operations, is appointed Commander in Chief of Allied Expeditionary Forces; Admiral Sir Andrew B. Cunningham, RN, is appointed Allied Naval Commander.

ATLANTIC—Unarmed U.S. freighter California is torpedoed, shelled and sunk by Italian submarine Reginaldo Giuliani at 09°24'N,33°02'W; all hands (38 men) abandon the sinking ship under fire (see 4, 5 and 14 September).

US ARMY AIR FORCE

ICELAND—2d Lt Joseph D Shaffer (33d Fighter Squadron) and 2d Lt Elza E Shahan (27th Fighter Squadron) jointly shoot down FW- 200 off coast of Iceland. This is first aerial victory of AAF in ETO.

US ARMY

UNITED STATES—Directive is sent to General Eisenhower as CinC TORCH.

US MARINE CORPS

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Thursday, 13 August 1942

US NAVY

GULF OF MEXICO—U.S. tanker R.M. Parker, Jr., en route to Port Arthur, Texas, is torpedoed, shelled, and sunk by German submarine U-171 at 28°37'N, 90°48'W. There are no casualties, and Coast Guard auxiliary cutter Pioneer rescues all 37 merchant seamen and the seven man Armed Guard.

ATLANTIC—U.S. freighter Cripple Creek is torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-171 at 04°55'N, 18°30'W; one crewman is killed. The survivors take to three lifeboats (see 16 August).

            U.S. freighter Delmundo, in convoy TAW 12, is torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-600 in the Windward passage, 19°55'N, 73°49'W; five of the 41 man crew perish, as do three of the eight passengers. The survivors, including the 9 man Armed Guard, are rescued by British destroyer HMS Churchill [ex-U.S. destroyer Herndon (DD-198)].

MEDITERRANEAN—Operation PEDESTAL: German and Italian motor torpedo boats attack Malta-bound convoy before dawn; German S30 and S 36, and Italian MAS 554 and MAS 557 torpedo and sink British merchantman Wairangi and damage Rochester Castle (which will eventually reach Malta although she is damaged further by Luftwaffe JU 87s and JU 88s). U.S. freighter Almeria Lykes is torpedoed and is abandoned, 36°40'N, 11°35'E. The ship remains afloat, but is sunk by scuttling charge after daybreak. British destroyer HMS Somali rescues all hands: 51 merchant seamen, 15 man Armed Guard, and 39 passengers. Freighter Santa Elisa is torpedoed in the same attack, approximately 20 miles southeast of Cape Bon, 36°48'N, 11°23'E, and is abandoned when her cargo of aviation gasoline catches fire. Four of the 33 embarked army passengers are killed, but the 56 man merchant complement and the 11 man Armed Guard suffer no fatalities. British destroyer HMS Penn rescues the survivors and transports them to Malta; three Armed Guard sailors will be hospitalized there for burns suffered in the attack that leads to the ship's abandonment. Santa Elisa is finished off by bombs later that day. Three surviving British transports and the one tanker will reach Malta later this day; a fourth transport will reach the island on 14 August.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

FIFTH AF—Convoy, headed toward Basabua near Gona, with 3,000 construction troops, is attacked first by B‑17’s 76 mi NE of Gona, followed by B‑26’s 20-25 mi N of Gona, and another B‑17 attack as the convoy approaches landing position. Japanese ground forces attack at Deniki, driving Allied forces back about 5 mi and firmly securing Buna-Kokoda trail.

ELEVENTH AF—1 B‑24 flies photo reconnaissance over Kiska.

US ARMY

NEW GUINEA—Japanese convoy, with 3,000 construction troops embarked, reaches Basabua, a short distance from Gona. Japanese attack Maroubra Force at Deniki in strength, forcing it back beyond Isurava, 5 miles from Deniki. After this victory, which firmly secures Buna-Kokoda track, enemy pauses to consolidate.

JAPAN—Imperial General Headquarters orders 17th Army at Rabaul to take responsibility for ground operations on Guadalcanal.

MIDDLE EAST—Col Shingler becomes CO of Persian Gulf Service Command.

EGYPT—General Montgomery takes command of British Eighth Army.

USSR—Germans claim capture of Elista, in Kalmyk district S of Stalingrad.

US MARINE CORPS

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Wednesday, 12 August 1942

US NAVY

ATLANTIC—Light cruiser Cleveland (CL-55), on her shakedown cruise in Chesapeake Bay, tests the newly developed proximity fuzed antiaircraft projectiles for the first time under simulated combat conditions; she destroys all three target drones with four proximity bursts.

            Seven survivors of U.S. schooner Wawaloam, sunk by German submarine U-86 on 6 August, are rescued by steamship Irish Rose, which transfers them subsequently to British corvette HMS Campanula.

MEDITERRANEAN—Operation PEDESTAL: attacks by German and Italian aircraft continue on large British convoy (which includes within its composition U.S. freighters Almeria Lykes and Santa Elisa), bound for Malta (see 13 August).

PACIFIC—Submarine Pickerel (SS-177) is damaged by depth charges off the Marianas, 16°19'S, 145°23'E, but remains on patrol.

            USAAF B-17s damage Japanese oiler Matsumoto Maru.

US ARMY AIR FORCE

INTERNATIONAL—Churchill and British COS, along with Harriman of US, arrive in Moscow for conference with Stalin. Stalin is told about plan for TORCH. Talks, which end on 16 Aug, also include discussion of Second Front in Europe.

EIGHTH AF—31st Fighter Group at Westhampnett is declared fully operational and ready for combat operations under RAF—control until it gains enough experience to be able to fight as a group. This is first US fighter unit in UK to reach this operational status.

FIFTH AF—B‑17’s bomb shipping at Rabaul, scoring damaging hits on 3 vessels.

ELEVENTH AF—1 B‑24 flies photo reconnaissance over Amlia and Atka.

US ARMY

NEW HEBRIDES—Elements of original Guadalcanal invasion force (1,390 of 2d Marines) debark at Espiritu Santo.

GUADALCANAL—TF 63, under Admiral McCain, is given responsibility for getting aviation supplies, ammunition, and ground crews from Espiritu Santo to Guadalcanal. First U.S. plane, a PBY, lands on airfield, called Henderson Field after Midway hero Maj Lofton Henderson. Patrol led by 1st Marine Division Intelligence Officer embarks at Kukum to make contact with enemy in Matanikau area; upon landing, night 12–13, is wiped out, except for 3 persons, by enemy.

EGYPT—Lt General Sir Bernard L. Montgomery, who is to head British Eighth Army, arrives from U.K.

USSR—Prime Minister Churchill arrives in Moscow where, during a 4-day visit, he discusses the subject of a second front in Europe with Marshal Joseph Stalin. On central front, local Soviet attacks against Rzhev reach their climax without achieving a decisive victory. Elements of German Army Group A, driving toward the Kuban in region E of Sea of Azov, reach Slavyansk.

US MARINE CORPS

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Tuesday, 11 August 1942

US NAVY

MEDITERRANEAN—Operation PEDESTAL: large British convoy (which includes in its composition U.S. freighters Almeria Lykes and Santa Elisa), bound for Malta, its presence determined by Axis aerial reconnaissance, comes under attack from Luftwaffe JU 88s and HE 111s (see 12-13 August).

US ARMY AIR FORCE

EIGHTH AF—Referring to TORCH, General Spaatz informs General Arnold that, in his opinion, UK remains the only base from which air supremacy over Germany can be established.

TENTH AF—P‑40’s hit airfields at Yoyang and Nanchang from which the enemy has been attacking Hengyang.

ELEVENTH AF—1 B‑24 flies photo reconnaissance over W Semichi Islands and N Attu coast.

US ARMY

UNITED STATES—Admiral Leahy makes the first of many suggestions that Burma Road be reopened.

NEW GUINEA—U.S. Advanced Base in New Guinea, a logistical agency, is established by USASOS with HQ at Port Moresby, which is to become a large supply and communications center. Maroubra Force abandons Kokoda airfield, night 11–12, since it is untenable.

MEDITERRANEAN—Enemy U-boats heavily attack Malta-bound convoy and sink HMS Eagle (aircraft carrier).

MIDDLE EAST—Iran-Iraq Service Command is redesignated Persian Gulf Service Command (PGSC); remains directly under Hq USAFIME.

USSR—Threat to Stalingrad increases as German Army Group A eliminates Soviet bridgehead in Don bend near Kalach.

US MARINE CORPS

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