MARCUS ISLAND

Manawatu Standard, Volume LXIII, Issue 236, 3 September 1943, Page 5

MARCUS ISLAND

TOKIO ADMITS DAMAGE. (Rec. 9.5 a.m.) NEW YORK, Sept. 2 The Tokio radio says: One hundred and sixty United States bombers and fighters participated in the raid on Marcus Island, of which 12 were shot down. We suffered casualties and damage to ground installations and grounded planes.

Pearl Harbour observers express the opinion that the Marcus Island attack signified the opening of a phase of the long-awaited real offensive in the Pacific, says the New York Times. There are indications that further blows inside Japan's defensive perimeter may.be expected. The destruction of Marcus Island deprives Japan of an important air base, which served the dual purpose of a relay point to the Marshalls and a defensive airfield. It is recalled that Marcus Island was attacked on March 4, 1942, by carrier-based aircraft, but yesterday's announcement of both shelling and bombing operations shows that the Pacific Fleet now intends to remove Marcus Island permanently as a Japanese base, whereas last year's operation was merely harassing. So far there is no indication of the size of the attacking forces or from where they struck, but it is believed, that an Allied naval concentration of considerable power is at sea.