KNOCK-OUT PUNCH

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25803, 26 March 1945, Page 5

KNOCK-OUT PUNCH

DELIVERED AT JAPAN

TASK FORCE’S GREAT ACTON

(Rec. 11 p.m.) NEW YORK Mar. 25. Vice-admiral Mitscher said that a task force did a very good job of delivering a knock-out punch against the Japanese Air Force and Fleet in the two-day attack against Kyushu, Shikoku. and south-western Honshu on March 19 and 20. says the United Press correspondent aboard Admiral Mitscher’s flagship off Japan. As the guns of Admiral Spruance’s Fifth Fleet drove off the heaviest Japanese counter-attacks for seven months, navy and marine pilots sank or damaged 30 ships, including 17 warships, and destroyed or damaged at least 229 planes. Admiral Mitscher said: “ The war may continue for another five years, but the Japanese are licked and they know it. If they disappoint me a couple of times more by a refusal to fight I might become sorry for them.” Nearly 1500 American bombers, fighters, and torpedo planes decimated the last large concentrations of Japanese planes, and wrecked aircraft supply, repair, and pilot training centres. The checking of enemy attempts to rebuild an air force has rendered most of Japan’s remaining capital ships inoperable The aircraft we lost were mostly knocked down by the heavy curtain of flak guarding the enemy ships, planes, and airfields. Japanese planes struck in force persistently. Considerable opposition was encountered over the Kobe and Kure naval bases. Minor damage was suffered by a few of our ships and casualties are reported to be low. In the first 36 hours the fleet’s guns shot down over 30 Japanese planes. Navy fighters and bombers concentrated against the Yyushu airfield and aircraft on March 19, causing heavy damage, particularly to the Omura air arsenal. During the day 125 Japanese planes were shot down and 200 were destroyed on the ground. At least 100 more were probably damaged. Kure was attacked on March 20. Despite a wall of flak, described by pilots as "so thick you could taxi a plane across it.” bombers dropped over 100 tons. Japanese ships being built were struck, in addition to warships in the harbour. The hulls of two newly-launched carriers were hit, and an escort-carrier in the fitting stage was also damaged.