Lae Captured by Allied forces

Manawatu Times, Volume 68, Issue 223, 20 September 1943, Page 5

Lae Captured by Allied forces

Reduced to Shambles By Air Attacks

(By Telegraph— Press Assn.—Copyright.) Received Sunday, 7.30 p.m. SYDNEY, Sept. 19.

The Australians have captured Lae, the main enemy base on the coast of New Guinea. Scattered remnants of the enemy forces tried to break out to the north but the trails are blocked and their doom is sealed.

To-day’s communique from General MacArthur’s Headquarters says: “Our continuous air bombardments over the past week reduced Lae to a shambles. Our troops have now overwhelmed all the remaining resistance. At the end scattered elements of the enemy attempted to break out to the north where we blcoked the jungle trails leading to the mountainous ridges. The destruction of these remnants is certain. Lae with its airfield has been the enemy’s main base on the coast of New Guinea since its capture early in 1942.

“Coordinating with the final drive of our ground forces heavy and medium bombers struck at the inner ring of enemy installations with 43 tons of bombs and more than 30,000 rounds of machinegun fire. All the remnants of enemy installations in the target area were destroyed.” The advance of the Australians from Nadzab in the Markham Valley to Lae set a record for speed in the jungle campaigning in New Guinea, says an Australian war correspondent. Beginning on Setpember 7 these men forged ahead in a running fight down the valley, sweeping aside the enemy’s well-selected defence zones to reach Lae on Thursday morning after a nine days’ march. They killed at least 50 Japanese and suffered only light casualties themselves.

Scores of twisted and shattered enemy aircraft were found around the dispersal areas of the airfield at Lae. The runway is only slightly damaged and can be put into use immediately. Bout wounded Japanese found in a church used as a hospital pointed to their heads and indicated that they wished to be shot.

Among the equipment found were American rifles and ammunition captured in the Philippines. General MacArthur, in a special message, said: “The Lae victory accomplished in the face of the superior forces available to the enemy represents a serious blow to him. With God’s help, we arß making our way back. ’ ’ Next to the Americans’ capture ol Guadalcanal in the Solomons, where the original garrison was estimated at 40,000, the Japanese Lae-Salamaua garrison is the biggest cleaned out in the Pacific war. The garrison’s strength was i rst estimated at 20,0C0, but later General Blarney said that the estimate had been ‘ * pruned. ’ ’ The Japanese deathroll at Lae has not been compiled, but nearly 1000 killed in the fighting around the base have been counted. BLITZ IN SOLOMONS CONTINUES

The blitz in the Solomons continues and at the south of Bougainville Island nearly 100 Japanese fignters tried to stop Allied air attacks, 16 being shot down for the loss of three Allied fighters. Day and night attacks were made by strong forces of bombers on Ballale, Kahili and Kara aerodromes. The runways, dispersal areas, repair and supply depots were heavily bombed and strafed. Fires and explosions were caused all over the target areas. Two enemy aircraft were destroyed on the ground and many others probably nit. The Japanese have reinforced their garrison on the north end of Arundel Island in the Solomons. A light counterattack on Allied positions during the night was heavily repulsed. A South Pacific correspondent says the Japanese Air Command is strongly reinforcing the Solomons and New Britain in an attempt to counter the Allies’ mounting air offensive. This will mean a heavy drain on the enemy 's limited resources. The strong fighter opposition encountered by our aircraft attacking the aerodromes on Bougainville suggests that the Japanese are possibly using secret airfields constructed in the 350 miles of forest and bush plains on the island. Kara airneld, mentioned in General MacArthur’s communique for the first time, is a secretlybuilt field just made operative. It lies seven miles northeast of Kahili.

It is also clear that despite the hundreds of tons of bombs dropped on the Kahili and Ballale airfields they are still in operation. Since the launching of the Solomons offensive on August 7, 1942, up to last Tuesday, Halsey’s Navy aircraft and Harmon’s Army planes have destroyed 2136 Japanese aircraft.

American troops have repulsed a Japanese attack on Arundel Island between New Guinea and Kolombangara islands in the Solomons. The Japanese made the attack after several hundred troops succeeded at night in reinforcing the enemy garrison holding the nortk eastern corner of the island.