PACIFIC AIR RAIDS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25239, 31 May 1943, Page 3

PACIFIC AIR RAIDS

SINGLE ALLIED BOMBERS WIDE RANGE OF TARGETS (Rec. 9 p.m.) SYDNEY, May 30. After earlier adverse weather had hindered aerial operations throughout the South-west Pacific, General MacArthur’s reconnaissance aircraft on Saturday ranged over a wide area. Attacks on 15 enemy-occupied areas are reported in the latest communique. Single bombers raided targets from Timor to New Britain. A few ot tpe raids were on a heavier scale. These included attacks against the town area of Dilli and Penfoei aerodrome, in Koepang, Timor, where fires were started. Another bigger raid was on Madang, on the north New Guinea coast, which was also attacked in strength last Wednesday. In the latest raid on the aerodrome heavy bombers started fires in the dispersal area. In Hansa Bay, midway between Madang and Wewak, an Allied heavy bombbr scored two close misses against the bow of a 5000-ton Japanese transport, leaving it smoking. Two of four Zeros were shot down by an earlier reconnaissance bomber in the same area. Alexishafen and Saidor, along the coast, were bombed and strated. North of Australia, in the Banda Sea, one of our reconnaissance units attacked a 1000-ton Japanese cargo ship towing six barges. General MacArthur’s communique reports that “ damaging near-misses were scored with 5001 b bombs, and the entire flotilla was strafed.” In the western New Guinea area reconnaissance aircraft on Saturday raided Timika, Nabire, and' Babo.