Land On Main Jap. Island In Admiraltys

Northern Advocate, 17 March 1944, Page 4

Land On Main Jap. Island In Admiraltys

(Rec. 3 p.m.) SYDNEY, This Day American troops on Wednesday morning landed on Manus Island, main Japanese stronghold in the

Admiralty Group. By nightfall they had advanced within half a mile of Lorengan air field.

The landing was covered by artillery fire from Hauwel and Butjuiuo Islands which had been captured the day previously. Assault troops got ashore with only minor losses and immediately concentrated to attack the big enemy base of Lorengau and its neighbouring aii’field.

On Bougainville Island, Northern Solomons, the Japanese suffered further severe losses when they again attacked the American beachhead at Empress Augusta Bay. The attack was decisively repulsed. Rabaul, New Britain, and Wewak, New Guinea, have again been principal targets for Allied air attacks in the South-West Pacific, 173 teas of bombs being dropped on Rabaul and 140 tons on Wewak. At the latter base, five defending enemy fighters were shot down, with a sixth probably destroyed. Two of our planes were lost.

A concenti’ation of Japanese barges near Muschu Island suffered heavily, 23 being destroyed or damaged. The enemy’s barge losses in attacks reported by General MacArthur's latest communique totalled 41. Blasting of Wewak

Wewak, once the strongest Japanese base in New Guinea, lias been a target for heavy Allied aerial pounding on four consecutive days. The latest raid was made on Tuesday, 174 tons of bombs being dropped on Boram airfield and Brandi plantation. Of 30 intercepting Zeros, eight were destroyed. This brings Japanese fighter losses over Wewak to 73 planes shot out of action in four days. The base has been blasted with more than 600 tons of bombs in that time.

Smoke from fuel dumps set on fire in Tuesday's attack, blanketed the entire target area. Our bombers and fighters expended 50,000 rounds of ammunition in low-ievel strafing runs, silencing a number of anti-aircraft guns.

Altogether, General MacArthur's bombers on Tuesday dropped nearly SGG tons of explosives on enemy bases throughout the South-West Pacific. Liberators delivered 88 teas on Rabaul. New Britain. Although Japanese fighters had been in evidence there on Monday and Tuesday, the raid was uninterrupted. Nearly 70 tons of bombs were dropped on Tadji airfield, at Aitape. beyond Wewak, on the north-east New Guinea coast, where a parked plane was destroyed and a yumvay damaged.

More than 200 bombers attacked Japanese positions north-east of the American beachhead at Empress Augusta Bay on Bougainville Island. Northern Solomons, wilh 120 tons of bombs.

There are no further reports of ground fighting in tills area since a strong Japanese attack was repulsed a few days ago. The enemy lost 1000 killed. The Americans employed flamethrowers with deadly effect. New Guinea Drive In New Guinea. Australian troops driving through the Mintjim Valley are now astride the motor road to the Japanese coastal base of Bogadjim. at a point 400 yards beyond Daumoina, terminus of the road. They met with no serious opposition to their advance and it is evident that pressure from the Americans moving along the coast front Saidor, as well as from tlie Australians, is forcing the Japanese to withdraw back to Bogadjim. There arc no further reports of the ground situation in the Admiralty Islands, but it is revealed that American naval coiy,(ruction units which went ashore with tlie first reinforcements to recondition Momote airstrip played an important part in holding enemy counter-attacks which followed the landing.

By night, they defended a section of the front and during the day they worked on the air strip as well as building roads and ramps for landing craft. Captain Jay Robbins, of Texas, a Lightning fighter-pilot, has destroyed 13 Japanese planes in four successive engagements. Kis score—S-4-4-2 —is believed to be the highest number ot enemy aircraft destroyed in combat by any southwest Pacific lighter-pilot in tlie same number of encounters.