Great Fires Raging After Heavy Blow At Sourabaya Naval Base

Northern Advocate, 22 May 1944, Page 4

Great Fires Raging After Heavy Blow At Sourabaya Naval Base

(Special) SYDNEY, This Day. Co-ordinated attacks by aircraft from the Three Allied commands dealt a powerful blow at the Japanese naval base at Sourabaya, Java, on Wednesday. About 100 carrier-borne planes from the South-east Asia and Central Pacific areas co-operated with Australianbased Liberators of General MacArthur's South-west Pacific Command. This was the first time that forces ol the three commands have joined in a combined strike.

An ojjlcial announcement of the raid came from headquarters of General MacArthuv, in whose command area Sourabaya is situated. A special communique issued last night lists the following destruction: The important Braat naval engineering works demolished; two floating dry docks heavily damaged; 10 ships in the harbour totalling 35,000 tons directly hit (they included a tanker and possibly a destroyer); Wonokroma oil refinery destroyed; 21 Japanese planes destroyed. 19 on the ground and two in, the air; heavy damage in railway marshalling yards. Complete Surprise One of the ships hit blew up and others prabably sank. A hospital ship close to the target area was carefully avoided. When the power station was blown up and oil storage tanks at Wonokroma refinery were set on fire, smoke rose 5000 ft. A complete surprise was effected, and Allied losses were only three planes. Japanese ground fire was weak. Escorting naval units for the car-rier-based planes were British. American, Australian, French and Dutchmanned ships. These naval forces suffered neither damage nor casualties. Following the first blow by British and American carrier-based' planes at dawn on Wednesday, a follow-up raid by American-manned Liberators from an Australian base was made about midnight. These heavy bombers found huge fires from the daylight attack still burning, and concentrated their bombs on the same general target area causing further extensive damage. All the planes returned from the round flight of 2500 miles. Co-ordinated Strike

This devastating Mir strike against Sourabaya. is of first importance, as demonstrating clearly the co-ordinated nature of the plans of the separate Allied commands in the war against the Japanese. Such a daring thrust into Java waters gives farther convincing proof of Allied initiative, and discloses new possibilities of aggressive moves.

While General Mae Arthur's forces have been leap-frogging along the Dutch Xi>v Guinea coast closer to the Philippines and Netherlands East Indies, Lord JViountbaften’s forces recently attacked Sumatra from the sea. At the same time, Admiral Nimitz has been making a series of bold thrusts through the Central Pacific. Seventh Air Attack This was the seventh Allied air attack on Sotirabuya. Earlier raids were by Australian-based bombers, the most recent being on March JO. Sourabaya is about 1.250 miles north-west of Darwin, and it is 1370 miles south-east of Sahang, which was raided by British carrier-borne aircraft, from the Indian Ocean on April 20. Allied fleets which participated in the battle of the Java Sea on February 2.7, 11*42, assembled at Sourabaya. The Japanese seized the port on March 7, 11*42, and rebuilt, the installations destroyed by thc Dutch.

Sourabaya's wharves and anchorages can accommodate 80 warships. Its firstclass naval installations, including docking facilities, have been extensively used by the Japanese. Sourabaya is also one of Java's most: important oil-refining and distribution centres. Before the war it was a centre of administrative and cultural life in the Judies, having a population of 330,000 Indonesians and 2t;,(*00 Furopca ns. Churchill's Congratulations Mr. Churchill has sent the following message 1o Admiral .Somerville: ”1 cordially congratulate you and ynnr licet, and especially aircraft crews, upon the skilful execution and happy results of Your operation against Sourabava. please re-

peal my thanks to Pnited Stales am Dutch units which participated."