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Those would be claims, reported Japanese fighter losses were only 4 Zeroes and one Army Type 1 (Oscar) in the whole 1943 Darwin campaign, March-September 1943. Those losses, as given in Senshi Sosho ('War History Series' the Japanese official history), have also appeared in print in a number of non-Japanese books. One example is "Spitfire V Aces" by Alfred Price in the Osprey series, and another recent excellent book on all air ops over and on the peripheries of Australia, with full two sided accounts, is "Soleil Levant sur L'Australie" by Bernard Baeza. Also the English translation of "Japanese Naval Fighter Unit and Aces of WWII" and the abridged English version of "Japanese Army Air Force Fighter Units and Their Aces", both by Hata and Izawa, give the names of pilots lost in that campaign.One raid seems to indicate the loss of eight spits, to what I later found, tentatively, to be the loss of just 3 Zekes/Haps. Another dogfight later that month (May), saw the loss of three Zekes to just one Spit, but I have not researched the Zeke losses as thoroughly for this engagement, so they may just be claimed losses, and not confirmed losses.
What makes you think the Spitfire Mk.V is more maneuverable than the Zero at low speedsThe Spitfire Mk.V is more maneuverable than the Zero at low speeds... but the Spitfire is heavier than the Zero... how is this so? I would think lighter means less maneuverable in a fight.
Parsifal, this is what I have for Spitfire losses due to enemy action in this period.
Mar 15 :- 452 sqn - 2 spits
54 sqn - 2 spits
May 2 :- 457 sqn - 1
452 sqn - 2
54 sqn - 1
Plus a further 10 a/c lost due to fuel or engine problems.
May 10 :- 457 sqn - 1 (hit the ground whilst dogfighting)
May 28 :- 457 sqn - 2
Jun 20 :- 452 sqn - 2
Jun 30 :- 452 sqn -1
54 sqn -4
July 6 :- 457 sqn - 3
452 sqn - 1
54 sqn - 1
Sep 7 :- 452 sqn - 2
54 sqn - 1
Babo is in Irian Jaya, ie. western New Guinea in the then Dutch East Indies. The raids to the Darwin area were flown from Timor, only place within reach of the Darwin area by even the long legged Japanese single engine fighters. There was more than one thing going on, elements of the 202nd were also used in Western NG before and after the Darwin operations.For example, you mention that the sdsole resistance was the 202nd Kokutai. This is not the case, In fact an analysis of just one airfield in the area, Babo (at the end of the VogelKop peninsula), reveals the presence of the following units at various times
Japanese Units Based At Babo
202nd Kokutai (formally 3rd Kokutai - Zeros) early 1943 - March 1944
311th Hikotai of the 153 Kokutai - (A6M3-5 Zeros)
753rd 732nd Kokutai - Betty (possibly based)
JAAF 7th Air Division
61st Sentai (Ki-49 Helen)
24th Sentai, 1st Chutai (Ki-43-II Oscar) Sumatra May 1943 to Dagua
34th Sentai (Ki-48 Lily) 1943
59th Sentai (Ki-43-II detachment) Malang 3-43 - 4-43 to But maybe longer
70th 73rd Dokuritsu Chutai (Ki-45 Nick)
45th Sentai (Ki-45 Nick) 16 arrive February 19, 1944 to Wakde
75th Sentai (Ki-48 Lily)
25th Special Base Unit (Betty Topsy Transports)
I am suspecting that the losses you are quoting are just those that relate to the 202nd, when in fact there were a lot of other units in the area. If there were a lot of other formations, it follows that there were a lot of other losses as well.
Determining Jap losses is an extremely difficult affair...
No, I haven't looked into that as of yet.Thanks Wilcat. Your figures are pretty close to mine. Do you have total figures for the Darwin theatre (ie all types).
Again no, the only losses I have are the ones JoeB provides! I'm hoping that French book gets translated and becomes available here.Also do you have any estimates on Japanese losses in this period a well. Thats the $64 question really, and one that nobody wants to tackle.
I was always under the impression that most of the Darwin raids were only staged through Timor, the a/c coming from bases further away, such as Babo. I think this is what Parsifal was gettin at.JoeB said:Babo is in Irian Jaya, ie. western New Guinea in the then Dutch East Indies. The raids to the Darwin area were flown from Timor, only place within reach of the Darwin area by even the long legged Japanese single engine fighters. There was more than one thing going on, elements of the 202nd were also used in Western NG before and after the Darwin operations.
Apparently, the Spitfire outfit thought it could apply the lessons learned in the Battle of Britain, and they were not ready to listen to the pilots who already had experience fighting the Zero. They seem to have favoured radar over coast watcher reports though radar was unreliable and did not have the range of the coast watcher network, and along with the delay caused by assembling their formations, this usually left them in a poor position for an intercept.
I guess we'll never know, when RAAF P40 squadrons defended Darwin from Aug 42-Jan 43 they never encountered Zero's and all the Japanese raids were conducted by night during this period. Dick Cresswell from 77 sqn downed a Betty during one of these night raids. However when the 49th FG defended Darwin with P40's I have the following claims.Parsifal said:Would they have done better if equipped with the other RAAF mainstay of the time, the Kittyhawk?