THOUSANDS OF SORTIES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25717, 13 December 1944, Page 5

THOUSANDS OF SORTIES

NEW ZEALAND AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS IN PACIFIC (R.N.Z.A.F. Official News Service) BOUGAINVILLE, (Rec. 9.45 p.m.) Dec. 10. Official statistics covering the operational flying by fighter-bombers of the R.N.ZA.F. during the eight months up to November show that Bougainvillebased aircraft carried out 15,356 sorties against the enemy involving 32,000 flying hours. In these operations the New Zealanders piled up an extensive score of damage against the enemy. The score shared by New Zealand and American fighter-bombers in this period includes the destruction of 714 huts, 201 motor vehicles and transports, 174 boats and barges, 114 large buildings, and 56 bridges. In addition, gun emplacements have been damaged, the roads cratered, and airfields, landing strips, and vegetable gardens extensively damaged. In addition to many Japanese probably killed by bombs falling on bivouac areas, the New Zealanders’ machine guns are credited with a confirmed count of 305 enemy dead. The feature of recent months was the location and effective bombing of a strong enemy bivouac concentration centre in southern Bougainville, where ’Japanese naval personnel have lived since they occupied the island in 1942. Clever . use of camouflage and the natural cover of the jungle kept them immune from observation until September. Corsairs then attacked with 10001 b bombs, as many machines as could be mustered being flown on these sorties until the whole target area was satisfactorily blasted. The intensiv: use of Corsairs on another occasion blasted an enemy bivouac area at Numanuma, a few miles outside the Allied perimeter, preventing the enemy from establishing himself in that area.