AIR & SEA BLOWS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21151, 20 July 1943, Page 3

AIR & SEA BLOWS

200 ALLIED PLANES JAPAN LOSES 13 PLANES [■'OUR WARSHIPS DAMAGED (By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright.) (Special Australian Correspondent.) (9 a.m.) SYDNEY, July 19. The Allied forces in the Solomons on Sunday struck heavy new blows against the Japanese in the air, at sea arid on land. Allied bombers, following the devastating attack on the Buin and Faisi anchorage on Saturday, 'made another smashing raid in the course of which 13 enemy fighters were shot down. Our surface forces in a night engagement off Kolombangara Island scored hits on three enemy destroyers and at least one of the enemy ships is believed to have been sunk.

American troops are driving closer to Munda aerodrome on New Georgia Island where our bombers continue to pound the enemy defences. These new successes are notified in General MacArthur’s communique, and, following the sinking of seven enemy ships and the destruction of 45 planes at Buin and Faisi on Saturday, firing the Japanese losses in 18 days of die second Solomons campaign to 20 slops sunk, and 310 planes shot down. 'Du- detailed score of shipping losses

Sunk.—-Two light cruisers, nine light cruisers or heavy destroyers, five destroyers, one patrol vessel, seven cargo vessels, one tanker, and one unidentified vessel.

Probably sunk.—Three destroyers. Damaged.—Four destroyers, one cargo vessel, and one unidentified vessel.

Under 50 Allied Losses

Enemy aircraft shot down were 191 Zeros, 25 float Zeros, and 91 bombers. Allied losses in the past 18 days have been four ships and fewer than 53 planes while the pilots of more than half of these aircraft were saved. Sunday’s raid on the Buin-Fai.si area was on almost the same scale as Saturday's record attack in which more than 200 of our bombers and fighters took part. After their loss of 49 fighters the previous day, the Japanese air intervention was appreciably weaker. Thirteen more Zeros were shot down for the loss ol four Allied pianes. 1 The attacks against the Japaneseforward positions at Munda airfield mean that the American troops have made considerable progress. Heavy rains have added to the difficulty of the advance. „ , “This has been like a fight under water,’’ writes a war ron'espo-mo" in the area. “Bullets whistle through the air or bury thrmselve with hardly a sound in the porno e--Ike earth or rot.en wood. Explosions make popping noises in the falling rain.” , Gun Sites Blasted

Supporting the ground operations, Dauntless and Avenger bombers Inn. e dropped 44 tons of explosives'on etumy gun positions at Lambeti plantation about a mile from the airlie.o. General MacArthur’s communique “Bougainville. Buin - Faisi: Our heavy torpedo and dive-bombers, with a strong lighter escort, attacked Kahili aerodrome and the remnants of enemy shipping in the harboin with 90 tons of explosive bonus Anti-aircraft positions, the runway and the dispersal areas were heavily h:i. One cargo vessel was sunk and avo destroyers and another cargo vc:, el damaged. Thirteen intercepting enemy fighters were shot down. •< Four oi om planes are missing. . T , . “New Georgia.—Enogai Inlet: D,n ing the night enemy float-planes ineffectively bombed our positions. “Munda—Our forward elements arc attacking the enemy prepared positions near the aerodrome. Our mr pedo and dive-bombers, in direct support. attacked enemy positions a Lambeti and the aerodrome with 40 ions of high explosive bombs. “Kolombangara. —In a night engagement with three enemy destroyers off the west coast, our surface forces scored hits on all three vessels. At least one is believed to have been sunk. Later, attacking enemy planes were driven off by anti-aircraft fire* one being shot down. We sustained no damage. In another action on. light surface units intercepted a nr. attacked six enemy destroyers coming down the west coast, scoring a torpedo hit on one. The enemy vessels turned back.”