MORE AIR STRENGTH WANTED
TO STRIKE SWIFT BLOWS CASE TO BE PUT TO ALLIED LEADERS (Rec. 10.0 a.m.) Canberra, This Day. The Australian Government’s aim was to put to Allied leaders a case for increased air strength in the SouthWest Pacific, which would permit swift and massive blows at the enemy, said the Prime Minister, Mr Curtin, last night. Stressing that such air strength did not yet exist, Mr Curtin said the Bismarck Sea victory was achieved by a brilliant concentration rather than by overwhelming numerical superiority. The total weight of bombs used was 226 tons as against 1,500 tons dropped on Essen in less than 40 minutes.
A cable message from America and Britain indicated an inclination on the part of press commentators that the destruction of the Japanese convoy established the fact that overwhelming air superiority had been established north of Australia. The disclosure of the small forces used, however, put the Bismarck Sea victory in its correct perspective.
When the South-West Pacific Command had at its disposal forces for concentrated bombing like the Essen raid, the task of blasting the Japanese out of their ring of northern bases would become immeasurably easier.—P.A.
Permanent link to this item
https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/NEM19430310.2.98.6
Bibliographic details
Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 78, 10 March 1943, Page 5
Word Count
195MORE AIR STRENGTH WANTED Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 78, 10 March 1943, Page 5
Using This Item
Stuff Ltd is the copyright owner for the Nelson Evening Mail. You can reproduce in-copyright material from this newspaper for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 3.0 New Zealand licence. This newspaper is not available for commercial use without the consent of Stuff Ltd. For advice on reproduction of out-of-copyright material from this newspaper, please refer to the Copyright guide.