SUBMARINES' SCORE

New Zealand Herald, Volume 81, Issue 25053, 17 November 1944, Page 5

SUBMARINES' SCORE

BRITISH IN_FAR EAST ; 158 SHIPS THIS YEAR (Reed. 6.10 p.m.) LONDON, Nov. 16 Since the beginning of the year British submarines in the Far East have sunk a Japanese cruiser and 157 other craft, ranging from large supply vessels to anti-submarine craft. In one of these attacks a 7000-ton Japanese aircraftcarrier was hit by a torpedo and is believed to have sunk. The latest Admiralty communique reports that 23 supply ships and one antisubmarine vessel have been sunk by British submarines operating against the Japanese in Far Eastern waters. The supply vessels were engaged in coastal traffic and in order to carry out successful attacks the submarines had in many cases to approach close to enemy-occupied territory within range of shore batteries. All the vessels were heavily laden. Many were carrying oil fuel and blew up. The anti-submarine vessel was intercepted in the east Java Sea, south of the Celebes. It wa2> sunk by a torpedo. . . During these patrols British submarines damaged three small supply vessels by gunfire. Two of these ships were left in such an unseawortliy condition that their crews had to run them ashore. Bombardments were carried Qut against the harbour on Car Nictfbar Island, in the Bay of Bengal. Buildings and installations were damaged and several craft lying alongside the Jetty were sunk. The Press Association naval correspondent points out that these sinkings are in addition to the 45 which the Admiralty announced on Saturday, making a total of 69 Japanese vessels announced to have been destroyed within a period of five days,

CRIPPLED ENEMY NAYY VULNERABILITY TO BOMBING (Reed. 8.15 p.m.) NEW YORK, Nov. 15 Recent events have convinced the Air Force that United States bombers can reach substantially every Japanese shipyard where the remnants of the enemy fleet are being repaired after the disaster off the Philippines, said the New York Times' Washington correspondent. However, strategists question whether the prize is worth the. effort. They explain that the broken ships are so dispersed at various ports that it might be poor policy to divert giant bombers merely to hit a cruiser, perhaps, or two or three smaller craft. Therefore, the value of any undertaking against the crippled Japanese navy will be carefully weighed. LEYTE CAMPAIGN AMERICAN ADVANCES WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 The American 24th Division in the Tenth Corps sector on Leyte Island, by a double envelopment, _ has practically severed Ormoc Road in the rear of enemy defence positions at Limon, says General Mac Arthur's latest communique. Elements of the First Cavalry Division, sweeping westward and southwestward from Jaro, overcame numerous scattered enemy defensive positions and seized two heights on Mount Manban. In the 24th Corps sector forward elements of the Seventh Division, in bloody fighting, repulsed an enemy counter-attack at Balogo, ten miles south of Ormoc. Fighters strafed enemy barges and shore targets near Ormoc. Single enemy planes made several ineffective harassing raids against American ground installations. Eive were shot down. PACIFIC AIR SERVICE COMMANDO'S ROUND TRIP MONTREAL, Nov. 15 Monday's New Zealand morning papers were distributed in, Montreal at oreakfast time today to the servicemem Civilians who were in the Antipodes on Monday morning were in Washington and Ottawa before noon today. Air passengers from Australia, after having breakfast in Montreal, were en route across the Atlantic to Britain, where they were due to arrive soon after midnight. Letters posted in Australia on Sunday were delivered in Ottawa, Montreal and Washington this afternoon. A ton of troop mail from Australia will be delivered in Britain tomorrow. These were the results of the conclusion of the first round trip in the new R.A.F. Pacific air service when the Liberator Commando arrived at Montreal after covering 23,500 miles < in four days 16 hours 10 minutes' flying time. The homeward run took 55 hours 13 minutes' flying time, compared with an outward run of 56 hours 57 minutes. It was spring when the plane left Fiji, summer at the Equator, autumn at Honolulu and early winter in Canada. THREAT IN CHINA ENEMY COMMUNICATIONS (Reed. 6.30 p.m.) LONDON. Nov. 18 A Chinese communique admits that Liuchow, in Southern China, was abandoned last Saturday, and Chienkiang, on the highway between Liuchow and Yungning, fell the same day. The Associated Press says that if Yungning falls the Japanese will have to go only 110 miles further to establish a link between Manchuria and Indo-China. One Japanese column is moving to the north-west, on the Kwangsi-Kwei-chow railway, in a thrust aimed against Locheng, 45 miles north-west of Liuchow. It is not yet clear whether this advance represents the beginning of a drive toward Kweichow Province, or whether it is merely intended to screen the enemy's right flank. CHIANG'S COMMAND (Reed. 5.35 p.m.) CHUNGKING, Nov. 15 A Chinese Cabinet spokesman, Mr P. H. Chang, replying to questions at a press conference concerning, the scope of Marshal Chiang Kai-shek s command, said: "He is the supreme Allied commander. in China, French Indo-China ■ ' • ■ - ■ -