CRIPPLING PLOWS

Timaru Herald, Volume CLIII, Issue 22469, 2 January 1943, Page 5

CRIPPLING PLOWS

RABAUL HARBOUR BOMBED Three Transports Destroyed Z p A.—Special Australian Correspond?!) (10 p.m.) SYDNEY, January 1. Crippling blows against Japanese shipping and air strength are being struck by the Allied air force in the South-west Pacific. In a brilliantly executed attack on Lae aerodrome on Thursday. 20 enemy planes were destroyed in the air and on the ground. At Rabaul on Wednesday, Flying Fortresses scored direct hits with 5001 b bombs on three transports, each between 8000 and 10,000 tons. All three ships were left burning. These attacks were only part of widespread Allied air activities during the past two days. Our planes raided from Timor to the Solomons in a series of highly successful sweeps. The latest attack on Rabaul was made at dawn and in spite of intense anti-aircraft fire all our planes returned. The total of enemy shipping damaged in the harbour during the past week is eight large vessels, including a heavy cruiser. The first phase of Thursday’s heavy attack on Japan’s main New Guinea air base was a sweep by reconnaissance planes, which caught the enemy aircraft unprotected on the ground and destroyed six. Later 11 400 mile an hour Lockheed Lightnings swept 12 protecting Zeros from the skies when they clashed over the aerodrome. At the end of 25 minutes of dogfights nine Zeros had been shot down and two of the remaining three were damaged. None of the Lightnings was lost, although two received slight damage. With the enemy fighter cover wiped out, Havocs wrecked four Mitsubshi bombers and one Zero on the ground. Mitchells and Marauders followed up by "snowing” bombs over the runways and instaiiations. Liberators’ have maintained the Allied efforts to retard enemy activities at Gasniata, where four attacks have been made on the aerodrome during the past week. A twin-engined plane was destroyed on the ground in the latest raid. At the nearby Jacquinot Bay, an Allied medium bomber strafed and damaged an enemy schooner. Alter almost a month’s respite, South-west Pacific Command Catalinas again raided the Japanese aerodrome at Buka. Wewak and Madang on the north coast of New Guinea were both bombed, while in north-eastern Timor two flights of Beaufighters raided Builoro. Since December 22 Australian-based aircraft have made 10 separate raids in this section of Timor, where the enemy has been busy developing aerodromes. The Japanese made one raid, employing 18 bombers to attack Merauke, an Allied port on the south shore of Dutch New Guinea. A navy communique says:— on December 29 and 30 Catalina patrol bombers made several harassing attacks on enemy installations at Munda. The results were not reported. A force, of Airacobra and Wildcat fighters at 2 a.m. on December 30 attacked and destroyed five enemy barges on Vangunu Island. At dawn a Dauntless dive-bomber destroyed a large calibre enemy gun on Guadalcanal. Dauntless dive-bombers, with a Wildcat escort, at 6 a.m. attacked enemy installations at Rekata Bay. Buildings on the east side of the bay were bombed and strafed. Three float-type planes were strafed on the water.”