This day in the war in the Pacific 65 years ago.

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BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: On New Britain Island, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25s bomb Gasmata while a lone B-24 Liberator bombs the wharf area at Rabaul.

BURMA: The amphibious operation against Akyab is cancelled by General Archibald Wavell, Commander-in- Chief India.. He then orders an advance by the 14th Indian Division which is more limited. It will advance down the Mayu Peninsula.

EAST INDIES: Six Australian Beaufighter Mk ICs of No. 31 Squadron based at RAAF Coomalie Creek, Northern Territory, Australia, attack Moabisse and Bobonaro in Portugese East Timor with the loss of one aircraft.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: Four USAAF Fourteenth Air Force P-40s hit construction equipment at Dong Cuong Airfield.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, Australian and U.S. forces continue toward the Japanese beachhead in the Buna-Gona area. The Australian 16th Brigade, Maroubra Force, spends the night between Isivita and Sangara, about 10 miles SW of Popondetta. The U.S. 32d Infantry Division's Task Force Warren suffers another setback as Japanese planes put two more supply luggers out of action, leaving only one serviceable and necessitating supply of vital items by air until more luggers become available. The Wairopi Patrol (units of the U.S. 32d Infantry Division) reports to the Australian 7th Division at Wairopi.
Japanese destroyers land the III/229th Battalion and 300 reinforcements for the 144th Regiment at Basabua, 2 miles E of Gona in the evening.
The strong fortifications built by the Japanese since September now have a full complement of defenders.
In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-26s hit Gona Mission as the US 32d Infantry and Australian 7th Divisions continue to move toward the Buna-Gona beachhead. B-25s bomb airfields at Lae, Northeast New Guinea.

 

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BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses attack Japanese warships 50 miles (80 kilometers) southwest of Gasmata, New Britain Island.

AUSTRALIA: The 28th Bombardment Squadron, 7th BG (Heavy), begins a movement from Mareeba to the US (squadron will return to Guam in Jan 45 with B-29s).

JAPAN: A Central Agreement between the Chief of Staffs of both the Japanese Army and Navy is issued. A scaled down order after setbacks in November, this plan calls for securing "important areas" in New Guinea to prepare for future operations. The 8th Area Army command is created including the 17th Army for Guadalcanal and the 18th Army for New Guinea.
Previously both islands had been covered by the 17th Army. The 8th Area Army receives the 6th Division from China, the 65th Brigade and the 6th Air Division of the Japanese Army Air Force. An attack for 20 January to retake Guadalcanal is included.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Australian 16th Brigade, Maroubra
Force, reaches Popondetta, where airfield construction is immediately begun, and continues toward Soputa without making contact with the Japanese. In the Gona area, the Australian 2/33rd Battalion, 25th Brigade, takes Jumbota and continues on towards Gona.
The U.S. 32d Infantry Division's 126th Infantry Regiment is ordered to establish contact with the Australians. Because of supply problems, Task Force Warren remains in place.
In Northeast New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25's bomb the airfields at Lae Aerodrome and Salamaua Airstrip while B-26's bomb and strafe the area between Cape Endaiadere and Buna.
B-17's attack Japanese Navy ships near Buna, Gona and Cape Ward Hunt, Papua New Guinea, damaging two destroyers.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Brigadier General Edmund Sebree, Commanding General
of the Western Sector, begins moving forces toward the line of departure west of the Matanikau River (from Point Cruz southward along the ridge containing Hills 80, 81 and 66) in preparation for a full-scale westward offensive. 2d Battalion, 182d Infantry Regiment, covered by the 8th Marine Regiment, which remains east of the Matanikau River, crosses the river about 700 yards (640 meters) from its mouth and takes Hill 66, southernmost point of the line of departure.
Eleven USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17's and four B- 26's with eight P-38 Lightning escorts sink a Japanese merchant cargo ship off Kahili Airfield on southern Bougainville Island.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: USAAF Eleventh Air Force reconnaissance aircraft over Attu and Agattu Islands sight two unidentified float monoplanes east of Buldir Island.

PACIFIC: The 12th Fighter Squadron, 15th Fighter Group, moves from Christmas in the Line Islands to Efate in the New Hebrides with P-39s.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, forward elements of the Australian 25th Brigade, Maroubra Force, encounter the Japanese 1 mile S of Gona while the Australian 16th Brigade, Maroubra Force, makes contact with the Japanese just outside Soputa. After establishing contact with Australians near Popondetta, the 126th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, heads for Buna hut, since the Japanese appear to be concentrated west of the Girua River, and is directed to assist Major General George A. Vasey's Australian 7th Division instead. Major General Edwin Harding, Command General 32d Infantry Division, thus loses half his assault force; the left flank of Task Force Warren is left exposed. The 1st and 3d Battalions of the 128th Infantry Regiment, Warren Force, attack in parallel columns, the 1st Battalion from Boero and the 3d Battalion from Simemi. Both meet accurate Japanese fire from concealed positions and suffer heavy casualties; a maximum gain of 200 yards is made on right along the coast.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, the 1st Battalion, 182d Infantry Regiment, crosses the Matanikau River and moves west along the shore with Company B, 8th Marine Regiment, covering the left flank; they dig in just east of Port Cruz. A gap of over 1,000 yards separates the 1st and 2d Battalions of the 182d Infantry Regiment west of the Matanikau River. During the of night 19/20 November, the Japanese move forward from Kokumbona and open fire on the 1st Battalion.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A USAAF Eleventh Air Force reconnaissance aircraft over Japanese-held Kiska Island draws heavy antiaircraft fire from Gertrude Cove.

BURMA: Eight USAAF Tenth Air Force India Air Task Force (IATF) B-24's bomb the marshalling yard at Mandalay as IATF bombers intensify their campaign against Burma and Thailand.

CANADA: Through trucks start rolling from Dawson Creek, British Columbia, toward Fairbanks, Territory of Alaska, along the 2 1,323 mile Alcan Military Highway, or Alaska Highway; built to supply the Pacific North West and Alaska in case of a Japanese invasion. An opening ceremony for the highway is held at Soldiers Summit, Yukon Territory, in -35F (-37C) degree weather.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, advance elements of the Australian 25th Brigade, Maroubra Force, enter Gona but are driven out after nightfall. The 126th Infantry Regiment. U.S. 32d Infantry Division, upon reaching Popondetta, is sent on to Soputa to assist the Australian 16th Brigade, Maroubra Force. The Australian 16th Brigade clears the Japanese rear guard from Soputa and continues along the Sanananda track to its junction with the main trail to Cape Killerton but is halted at the Japanese forward defense line.
Task Force Warren continues to meet heavy fire, which pins down the 3d Battalion, 128th Infantry Regiment, on the left; the 1st Battalion is halted after a 100-yard advance in the coastal area. Lieutenant Colonel Edmund Carrier's detachment (elements of the 1st Battalion, 126th Infantry Regiment) and the 2/6th Independent Company, Maroubra Force, arrive at the front and prepare to join in attack along coast.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, the Japanese attack the left flank of the 1st Battalion, 182d Infantry Regiment, early in the day and forces it back, but the battalion recovers lost ground with the assistance of air and artillery and drives forward until stopped by Japanese fire just west of Point Cruz. The Japanese retain Point Cruz itself. The 164th Infantry Regiment moves forward during the night of 20/21 November to bridge the gap between assault battalions of the 182d Infantry Regiment.

 

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Nov 21st 1942

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: USAAF Eleventh Air Force reconnaissance is flown over Agattu and Japanese-held Kiska and Attu Islands.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the 126th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, upon reaching Soputa, is attached to the Australian 16th Brigade, Maroubra Force, which continues their costly and fruitless efforts to advance toward Sanananda. The 2d Battalion, 128th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, begins a drive on Buna Mission, moving from Ango along the Dobodura-Buna track; upon reaching the trail junction, called the Triangle, where the trails to Buna Mission and Buna Village converge, they are halted by well-organized bunker positions that are made more formidable by swampy terrain on both sides of the Triangle.
Since no further progress can be made with the forces present, the 2d Battalion, 126th Infantry Regiment is ordered to cross the Girua River and assist. The attack of the Warren Force is delayed by a series of mishaps, but gets under way by 1630 hours after air and artillery preparation, which is of little benefit. Casualties are again heavy and gains negligible.
The 3d Battalion, 128th Infantry Regiment, attempting to take the bridge between airstrips, is pinned down by Japanese fire. The Australian 2/6th Independent Company, Maroubra Force, tries to secure the eastern end of New Strip by infiltration and knocks out a few machine gun positions in the area.
Along the coast, 1st Battalion of the 128th Infantry Regiment and Colonel Carrier's detachment of the 1st Battalion, 126th Infantry Regiment, attack abreast, gaining a few yards and destroying some machine gun nests. The situation improves somewhat as additional guns are brought forward and the airstrip at Dobodura becomes operational.
In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20's and B-25's attack the airfield, antiaircraft positions, and a bridge at Buna and hit the village of Sanananda in support of Allied ground forces.
The Australian-U. S. force is advancing from Soputa toward Sanananda but U.S. forces driving on Buna are halted by strong bunker positions at The Triangle where trails to Buna mission and Buna village meet.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, the 1st Battalion, 182d Infantry Regiment, Americal Division, clears the Japanese from Point Cruz but is unable to advance any farther. To the south, the 164th Infantry Regiment attacks from the Hills 80-81 ridge line but is halted after negligible gains by the Japanese, whose defenses are skillfully organized in depth and mutually supporting. The Japanese defenders are the 700 remaining men of the 16th Regiment and the 228th and 224th Regiments, with Major General Ito Takeo, commander of the 38th Division, in command.

 

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Nov 22nd 1942

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A USAAF Eleventh Air Force B-24 flies reconnaissance over Agattu and Japanese-held Kiska and Attu Islands; bombers and fighters are alerted for a mission tomorrow to find and destroy a reported five vessel convoy.

BURMA: Six B-24's of the USAAF Tenth Air Force's India Air Task Force inflict heavy damage on the railroad center at Mandalay.

NEW GUINEA: The Australian 25th Brigade, Maroubra Force, continues toward Gona, Papua New Guinea; two battalions move in to attack and are forced to withdraw with heavy casualties. The U.S. 126th Infantry Regiment (-) attacks through the Australian 16th Brigade, Maroubra Force, toward Sanananda; the 16th Brigade will not attempt any forward moves until the Americans have secured the Soputa-Sanananda- Killerton Track junction. Major Richard Boerem's detachment, elements of the 1st Battalion moves along the road as the 3d Battalion advances on the flanks along secondary trails. After nightfall, fresh Japanese forces attack Company L, flanking on the right, to insure safety of food supply dump in line of advance and are driven off. From Soputa, the 2d Battalion of 126th Infantry Regiment moves forward to assist the 2d Battalion of 128th, crossing to the east bank of the Girua River on rafts during the evening.
On the Warren Force front, the 3d Battalion of 128th Infantry Regiment secretly pulls back to positions just behind the 1st Battalion, though Company I holds former position astride trail just west of New Strip.

PAPUA NG: USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20's attack trails around Sanananda while B-26's hit the Buna area; B-17's and B-25's bomb the airfield at Lae and barges between Lae and Salamaua.

PACIFIC OCEAN: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17's and B-25's attack warships 68 nautical miles (126 kilometers) southwest of Arawe, New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago and elsewhere in the Solomon Sea. USAAF 14th Air Force aircraft on a shipping strike sink a Vichy French ship east of Haiphong harbor, French Indochina.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: The attempt to build an airfield at Aola Bay on Guadalcanal is ended. The units involved in Rear Admiral Richmond K. Turner's brainchild are shifted to Koli Point, east of Lunga, where they will successfully complete an airfield.
On Guadalcanal, the 182d and 164th Infantry Regiments again meet strong resistance while attempting to push west and are unable to advance. The 8th Marine Regiment prepares to attack through the 164th Infantry.

 

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Nov 23rd 1942

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: USAAF Eleventh Air Force aircraft fly a reconnaissance mission over Japanese-held Kiska and Attu Islands and Agattu, and Amchitka Islands.

AUSTRALIA: Japanese bombers attack targets in the Northern Territory. At around midnight on the night of 22/23 November, a formation of high-flying bombers attack RAAF Coomalie Creek Airfield. All the bombs fall in the scrub and do no damage to the airfield. At least two Japanese bombers are shot down. Between 0300 and 0439 hours, the bombers attack the Darwin town area and RAAF Darwin.

CHINA: Six B-25's and 17 P-40s of the USAAF Tenth Air Force's China Air Task Force attack Tien Ho Airfield at Canton claiming 40+ aircraft destroyed on the field. These strikes follow three weeks of missions in support of Chinese forces along the Siang-Chiang River.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: Nine B-25's and seven P-40s of the USAAF Tenth Air Force's China Air Task Force feint at Hong Kong, then fly to the Gulf of Tonkin and sink a freighter and damage two others near Haiphong.

INDIAN OCEAN: In the Arabian Sea, the 10,006 ton British India SN Company passenger/cargo liner SS Tilawa is torpedoed and sunk by Japanese submarine HIJMS I-29 about 809 nautical miles NNE of the Seychelles Islands in position 07.36N, 61.08E.
The ship is en route from Bombay, India, to Mombassa, Kenya, and Durban, South Africa, with 6,472 tons of cargo. The explosion creates great panic among the native passengers who rush the lifeboats.
The ship is carrying 222 crewmen, four gunners and 732 passengers. Of the 958 people on board, 252 passengers and 28 crew are lost. The British light cruiser HMS Birmingham rescues 678 survivors.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the main body of the Australian 25th Brigade, 7th Division, arrives at the front and begins an assault on Gona against determined resistance. The 3d Battalion, 126th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, continues toward Sanananda; Company L, on the right, is pinned down by fire at edge of food dump. The airfield atPopondetta becomes operational, and four guns are flown in and emplaced just south of Soputa. The 2d Battalions of the 126th and 128th Regiments are combined to form the Urbana Force under command of the commanding officer, 128th Infantry Regiment. The 2d Battalion of the 128th Infantry Regiment is slowed by extremely difficult terrain as it advances against the Triangle along the main track and swamps on either side of it.
After ineffective preparatory fire against Japanese bunkers, the 1st Battalion of the 128th Infantry Regiment and the detachment of the1st Battalion, 126th Infantry Regiment, attack along the coast toward Cape Endaiadere, gaining some 300 yards against intense fire.
The Australian 2/16th Independent Company makes limited progress toward the eastern end of New Strip.
In Papua New Guinea, Fifth Air Force A-20's and B-26's bomb Sanananda Point as Australian forces begin their assault on Gona and U.S. forces approach Sanananda.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: The frontline companies, west of the Matanikau River on Guadalcanal, withdraw about 300 yards this morning. Three battalions of artillery pound the Japanese lines for 30 minute and then the 8th Marine Regiment passes through the 164th Infantry Regiment to continue the attack westward but is unable to advance.
Since the offensive has proved too costly to be continued for the time being, the attack is halted along Hills 66-80-81-Point Cruz line to await reinforcements. This halt will result in a stalemate for the next six weeks. The Cactus Air Force also provides support and wounds Lieutenant General Seikichi Hyakutake, commander of the 17th Army, and his Chief of Staff.
Japanese mortar fire wounds Lieutenant Colonel Hall of the 3rd Battalion, 164th Infantry Regiment.
Six Cactus Air Force SBDs attack the Munda area on New Georgia Island.

Nov 24th
ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: An Eleventh Air Force B-24 flies reconnaissance over Japanese held Kiska Island but weather precludes the westward continuation of reconnaissance. A scheduled mission of eight B-24s and four B-26's to Kiska Island is called off due to icing conditions.

BURMA: Lieutenant General Joseph Stilwell, Commander in Chief US China-Burma-India Theater of Operations, Chief of Staff to Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek, and Commander in Chief Northern Area Combat Command (NCAC) is informed by the U.S. War Department that little more aid, aside from existing commitments, can be provided for the northern Burma offensive.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Japanese continue to repel efforts of the Australian 25th Brigade, 7th Division, to take Gona. The 3d Battalion of the 126th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, pushes on toward Sanananda: Two Australian companies join Company L in a battle for the food dump on the right; on the left, Companies I and K reach a clearing west of Killerton trail, some 1,200 yards N of the original starting point, but are driven back into a swamp by Japanese infiltrators.
The Urbana Force launches a co-ordinated assault on the Triangle at 1428 hours after ineffective air and a brief mortar preparation. While Company F of the 126th Infantry Regiment makes a frontal assault in which Company H of the 128th Infantry Regiment joins, Company E of the 126th Infantry Regiment takes over the left flank positions along the Entrance Creek and Companies E and G of the 128th Infantry Regiment attack on the right flank.
The attack, although carefully planned, is a failure. The Warren Force front along coast is quiet.
In Papua New Guinea, Fifth Air Force A-20s, B-25s, B-26s, B-17s, P-40s, and P-39 and P-400s Airacobras, hit Sanananda Point, the Buna area, the Sanananda-Soputa trail south of Sanananda, and the area between Cape Killerton and Sanananda Point as Allied forces launch a ground assault on The Triangle; the attack is repelled by fierce resistance.
USAAF B-17s and B-25s and RAAF Beaufighters sink Japanese destroyer HIJMS Hayashio in Huon Gulf between Lae and Finschafen and damage torpedo boats Otori and Hiyodori east of Lae.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Search aircraft over the Buin, Bougainville Island area report a large number of destroyers and cargo vessels in the harbor. By this date elements of the Americal Division have pushed along the N coast of Guadalcanal Island to a position S of Point Cruz where they wait until a general offensive can be prepared following the arrival of reinforcements. Throughout these operations P-39 Airacobras have continually hit ground positions and troops all along the coast, flying as many as 11 strikes on some days.

Nov 25th
ALASKA: After eight months of work, the Alcan Highway is completed.

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: USAAF Eleventh Air Force aircraft fly reconnaissance is flown over the Semichi Islands and Japanese-held Kiska and Attu Islands.

CHINA: USAAF Tenth Air Force's China Air Task Force B-25s and P-40s cripple three freighters on the Pearl River near Canton.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, firm Japanese opposition on the entire front has resulted in a virtual stalemate. Artillery fire is exchanged and patrols are active in some sectors. In the air, USAAF Fifth Air Force P-38s hit the airfield at Lae.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Japanese submarine HIJMS I-17 lands 11 tons of supplies at Kamimbo Bay, Guadalcanal. Submarine missions to supply the beleaguered Japanese garrison on Guadalcanal will continue through the end of November.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A B-24 reconnoitering Holtz Bay harbor on Japanese held Attu Island spots shipping targets which are subsequently hit by four B-26s escorted by four P-38s; one cargo ship is damaged. Reconnaissance is flown over Rat Island, Agattu and Semichi Islands and the Japanese-held Kiska Island shipping and the north coast of Attu Island; two P-38s and a B-26 sustain minor damage.

AUSTRALIA: At 0320 hours local, Japanese bombers attack the Darwin town area and the Strauss and Hughes Airfields.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Japanese Lieutenant General Imamura Hitoshi formally assumes command of the 8th Area Army at Rabaul, New Britain Island. (The 8th Area Army is responsible for the 17th Army in the Solomon Islands and the 18th Army in New Guinea.) Colonel Sugita presents a paper outlining the current situation on Guadalcanal and suggesting withdrawal but General Imamura refuses to formally accept the paper because it is defeatist. Major Hayashi arrives from Guadalcanal with the news that all rice and barley there would be entirely consumed that day.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the stalemate continues on Gona front. Further frontal and flanking attacks of 126th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, toward Sanananda makes limited progress: The 1st Battalion (-) is pinned down on the Soputa- Sanananda track after a 100-yard advance; on the left, the 3d Battalion (-) drives east to within 700 yards of the Killerton trail; on the right, Company L and the Australians finally overrun the bitterly contested
food dump.
The Urbana Force halts frontal and right flank attacks on the Triangle and prepares to make a strong effort on left, since the Japanese are disposed in less strength west of Entrance Creek and the terrain is more favorable. The Warren Force, under personal observation of Major General Edwin Harding, Commanding General 32d Infantry Division, makes a determined effort to advance after strong air and artillery preparation.
The Japanese retire into bunkers during the bombardment and emerge afterward to meet the attack. The 3d Battalion of the 128th Infantry Regiment (-) and 1st Battalion of 126th Infantry Regiment (-)
advance abreast, the latter on the left followed by the 1st Battalion of the 128th. Little is accomplished by the attack. Company I of the 128th Infantry Regiment and the Australian 2/6th Independent Company, Maroubra Force, charged respectively with securing the west and east ends of New Strip, are unable to advance. The Japanese retain air superiority over Buna front and sink a lugger bound for Hariko with ammunition. The 127th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, reaches Port Moresby from Australia.
In Northeast New Guinea, Fifth Air Force P-40s, A-20s, and B-25s attack airfields and antiaircraft positions in the Buna area while B-26s strike the Salamaua area.

UNITED STATES: President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders nationwide gasoline rationing, beginning 1 December.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: USAAF Eleventh Air Force photo reconnaissance covers Kiska, Amchitka and Attu Islands. A ship attacked in Holtz Bay on Attu Island yesterday is observed lower in the water and still burning.

AUSTRALIA: In the early hours of the morning, a flight of heavy Japanese bombers drop a large number of bombs on RAAF Coomalie Creek Airfield in the Northern Territory. Most of them land in the bush adjacent to the airfield. Only two or three bombs hit the runway, but the holes are easily filled in after the raid.

HONG KONG: Ten B-25s and 20+ P-40s of the USAAF Tenth Air Force's China Air Task Force, the largest CATF effort in China to date, hit shipping and harbor installations at Hong Kong, firing warehouses and claiming two freighters and numerous barges sunk; a large force of fighters intercept during the return trip but are driven off by the escort; the Americans claim several airplanes shot down.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, Japanese reinforcements reach Buna losing one destroyer during the night. A three-day lull begins as preparations are made for renewing the attack.
Thirteen Zeke's bomb and strafe an Australian medical dressing station and a U.S. casualty clearing station at Soputa. Twenty two Australians and six Americans are killed.
In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-26s pound the Buna area, hitting buildings, the airfield, and other targets, as Allied ground forces prepare to renew attacks in the Buna-Gona area.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A B-24 photographs a beached freighter at Holtz Bay, Attu Island and draws no antiaircraft fire during ten runs over the bay, and flies reconnaissance over Kiska Island.

(CBI) THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Tenth Air Force): CHINA AIR TASK FORCE (CATF): In China, the detachment of the 11th Bombardment Squadron, 341st BG (Medium), operating from Nanning with B-25's, returns to base at Kunming (another detachment is operating from Karachi, India).

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-26s bomb the airfields at Lae and Buna; elements of the 126th Infantry Regiment, US 32d Infantry Division arrive on the Sanananda front from Wairopi.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: The 14,125 ton USN cargo ship USS Alchiba is damaged by Japanese midget submarine Ha.10 (from submarine HIJMS I-16 ) while she is anchored 3,000 yards northeast of Lunga Point, Guadalcanal. Her hold is loaded with drums of gasoline and ammunition, and the resulting explosion shoots flames 150 feet in the air. The commanding officer orders the ship to get underway to run her up on the beach and this action undoubtedly saves the ship. Hungry flames raged in the ship for over five days before weary fire fighting parties finally bring them under control. This leaves only four undamaged cargo ships in the South Pacific Force.

THAILAND: In the first USAAF air raid on Thailand, nine Tenth Air Force B-24s fly 2,760 miles from Gaya, India, to bomb Bangkok.

USA: The first production Ford-built B-24 Liberator rolls off the assembly line at Ford's massive Willow Run plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. In February 1942, the last Ford automobile rolled off the assembly line for the duration of the war, and soon afterward the Willow Run plant was completed.
Built specifically for Ford's war production, Willow Run is the largest factory in the world. Using the type of assembly line production that has made Ford an industrial giant, Ford hopes to produce 500 B-24s a month. After a gradual start, that figure is reached in time for the Allied invasion of Western Europe, and by July 1944, the Willow Plant is producing one B-24 every hour. By the end of the war, the 43,000 men and women who work at Ford's Willow Run plant have produced over 8,500 bombers, which unquestionably has a significant impact on the course of the war.
The Air Forces Proving Ground Command at Eglin Field, Valpariso, Florida, is redesignated Army Air Forces Proving Ground Command.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A B-24 over Holtz Bay, Attu Island, reports the vessel bombed and damaged on 26 November as still sinking; a B-26 flies an uneventful reconnaissance over the south shore of Kiska Island.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: B-25s of the USAAF Tenth Air Forces China Air Task Force bomb Hongay and Campho on the coast.

SOUTH PACIFIC AREA (SOPAC, Joint Chiefs of Staff): A detachment of the 33d Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group, ceases operating from New Caledonia (another detachment is operating from Cairns, Australia; the squadron is enroute from the US to Australia).

NEW GUINEA: Colonel Yazawa Kiyomi and part of the Japanese force that has withdrawn along the west bank of the Kumusi River to positions north of Gona reach Giruwa from there by barge. Australian troops attack in the Gona area attack from the south and east but are halted by determined Japanese troops.
In New Papua Guinea, B-17s, P-40s, and A-20s attack the Gona area while B-25s and a single A-20 bomb the airfield at Lae.

NEW HEBRIDES ISLANDS: Following the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 12-15 November, all plans to recapture that island were abandoned by the Japanese, and all their efforts were directed instead toward making its final capture by the Americans as expensive as possible. For a period of approximately three weeks, only air raids and the appearance of minor naval vessels broke the lull for U.S. forces. However, towards the end of November, Japanese shipping in the Shortland Islands, Solomon Islands, area increases as supplies are loaded upon fast transports, and it becomes apparent that a Japanese move in force to supply their the Guadalcanal garrison is imminent.
In order to deny the Japanese the much needed food, ammunition and technical personnel, the USN established Task Force 67 is formed on 27 November at Espirtu Santo Island to intercept the rejuvenated "Tokyo Express" before it could effect a landing.
TF 67, under the command of Rear Admiral Carleton H. Wright, is composed of the heavy cruisers USS Minneapolis, New Orleans, Northampton and Pensacola, light cruiser USS Honolulu, and destroyers USS Drayton, Fletcher, Lamson, Larder, Maury and Perkins. At about 2300 hours, TF 67 got underway to intercept the Japanese landing which was expected to take place at Tassafaronga.

PACIFIC OCEAN: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17s intercept a force of four troop carrying destroyers proceeding through Vitiaz Strait between New Britain Island and New Guinea without air cover; the B-17s damage the Japanese destroyers HIJMS Shiratsuyu and Makigumo and cause the others to turn back, thus preventing reinforcement of Gona with fresh troops from Rabaul on New Britain Island.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, the 3d Battalion, 147th Infantry Regiment, elements of the 246th Field Artillery Battalion, part of the Marine 9th Defense Battalion, and additional Seabees are landed in the Koli Point area, where an airfield, Carney, is to be constructed; the Aola Bay area has been rejected as unsuitable for an airfield site.
During the night of 29/30 November, Japanese Destroyer Squadron Two, consisting of eight destroyers under the command of Rear Admiral Tanaka Raizo, departed Buin on the southern coast of Bougainville Island en route to Guadalcanal. The destroyers divided into two forces were: Strike Force consisted of HIJMS Naganami and Takanami; Transport Force consisted of HIJMS Kagero, Kawakaze, Kuroshio, Makinami, Oyahio and Suzukaze.
Aircraft from Henderson Field, Guadalcanal sink Japanese cargo ships SS Azusa Maru and Kiku Maru, in Wickham Anchorage, New Georgia Island.

UNITED STATES: Coffee joins the list of items rationed. Despite record coffee production in Latin American countries, the growing demand for the bean from both military and civilian sources, and the demands placed on shipping, which is needed for other purposes, required the limiting of its availability.
In a major reorganization, all Bombardment Squadrons assigned to the USAAF Antisubmarine Command are redesignated Antisubmarine Squadrons.
Lieutenant Colonel Boyd D. "Buzz" Wagner, America's first WWII fighter ace, is killed in a P-40 accident 25 miles north of Eglin Field, Valpariso, Florida. In December 1941, Lieutenant Wagner was assigned to the 17th Pursuit Squadron in the Philippines and shot down five Japanese aircraft in four days. He was evacuated to Australia in January 1942 and then went to New Guinea in April 1942 with two P-39 squadrons.
On 30 April, he was credited with three Japanese fighters bringing his total to eight. By late summer, he had returned to the U.S. in a combat-training assignment. He is on a routine flight from Eglin Field to Maxwell Field, Montgomery, Alabama when his aircraft crashes.

 

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ANDAMAN ISLANDS: B-24 Liberators of the USAAF Tenth Air Forces India Air Task Force attack shipping at Port Blair, claiming damage to one vessel by near misses; this strike begins a series of raids on this water approach to Burma. The Andaman Islands are located in the eastern part of the Bay of Bengal; Port Blair is located about 472 nautical miles (874 kilometers) west-southwest of Bangkok, Thailand.

BURMA: The British 123rd Brigade's advance reaches Bawli Bazar in the Arakan Valley. The weather, which is normally clear during November, has not cooperated thus making the advance extremely difficult.

INDIA: The 9th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, Tenth AF, moves from Karachi to Chakulia, India with F-4s (a flight is operating from Kunming, China).

ALASKA (Eleventh Air Force): A B-24 flies reconnaissance over Semichi and Attu ; other flights are prevented by weather.

JAPAN: The German tanker SS Uckermark, the former supply ship SS Altmark that had replenished the German armored ship Admiral Graf Spee, is at anchor at Yokohama when a huge explosions rips the vessel apart while the crew is having lunch. The cause of the explosion is thought to be a spark from tools used by a repair gang working near the fuel tanks. Forty-three crewmen from the Uckermark die. Anchored nearby and also sunk by the explosion is the Australian freighter SS Nankin and the German
auxiliary cruiser HK Thor (Ship 10 also known as Raider E by the British) which had captured the Nankin on 5 October while she en route from Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia, to Colombo, Ceylon. During her two cruises, HK Thor had sunk or captured 20 ships totaling 152,125 tons.

NEW GUINEA: U.S. Lieutenant General Eichelberger, Commanding General I Corps, flies from Australia to Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. The Australian 21st Brigade, Maroubra Force, having rested and
reorganized after action in the Owen Stanley Range, takes over the attack on the Gona front, relieving the Australian 25th Brigade. In the Sanananda sector, the left flank elements of the 126th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, establish a block behind the Japanese on the Soputa-Sanananda trail, but a frontal attacks along the trail in the center and flanking attacks on the right make little headway. The Urbana and Warren Forces each make concerted attacks but gain little ground. The
Urbana Force fails in three attempts to take Buna Village; elements protecting the flank and rear seize a crossing over Siwori Creek and the outpost region between there and Buna Creek, but are unable to clear Coconut Grove or advance beyond the Triangle. Warren Force, attacking toward Cape Endaiadere on the right and the northeastern edge of New Strip on the left, encounters the Japanese main line of resistance in Duropa Plantation and is unable to breach it. Bren gun carriers that are to have spearheaded assault in this sector fail to arrive.
In Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25s and B- 26s attack the airfield, AA positions, and defenses in the Buna area.

PACIFIC OCEAN: In the Arafura Sea between Australia and New Guinea, Australian Beaufighters drive off 14 Japanese aircraft that were attack the Australian minesweepers HMAS Armidale and Castlemaine.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: During the night of 30 November/1 December, the BATTLE OF TASSAFARONGA is fought. In an attempt to resupply the Japanese troops on Guadalcanal, the Japanese Navy has devised a scheme of loading gasoline and oil drums with food, medicine and whatever else would be needed, chaining the drums together and dump them overboard. The chain would be brought ashore by ships boat and the drums would be dragged ashore by the Army.
Today, eight destroyers under Rear Admiral Tanaka Raizo, six of them carrying 440 drums, set sail from the Shortland Islands. The eight destroyers are HIJMS Kagero, Kawakaze, Kuroshio, Makinami, Naganami, Oyashio, Suzukaze and Takanami. The USN has been warned by an Australian coastwatcher on Bougainville and sends Task Group 67.2 under Rear Admiral Carleton H. Wright to intercept and sink the Japanese force.
TG 67.2 consists of the heavy cruisers USS Minneapolis, New Orleans, Northampton and Pensacola; the light cruiser USS Honolulu; and the destroyers USS Drayton, Flethcer, Lamson, Lardner, Maury and Perkins. The USN ships surprise the Japanese off Tassafaronga Point, Guadalcanal.
The Japanese press on to jettison the drums to sustain the troops while Long Lance torpedoes launched from destroyers HIJMS Kagero, Kawakaze, Kuroshio, Naganami and Oyashio wreak havoc
on the USN's heavy cruisers: USS Minneapolis is hit by two torpedoes, one on the port bow, the other in her number two fireroom, causing loss of power and severe damage: her bow is gone back to the chain pipes, her port side badly ruptured, and two firerooms open to the sea; USS New Orleans next astern of USS Minneapolis, is forced to sheer away to avoid collision, and runs into the track of a torpedo which rips off her bow.
Bumping down the ship's port side, the severed bow punches several holes in the hull. A fifth of her length gone, the ship slows to 2 knots; the next ship in line, USS PENSACOLA, turns left to prevent
collision with the two damaged ships ahead of her and silhouetted by the burning American cruisers, she came in the Japanese line of fire. A torpedo hits her below the mainmast on the portside. Her engine room floods, three gun turrets go out of commission, and her oil tanks rupture to make a soaked torch of her mast.
The next ship in line is USS Honolulu but she escapes the trap but the last ship in the column, USS
Northampton, takes two torpedoes that tore a huge hole in her port side, ripping away decks and bulkheads. Flaming diesel oil sprays over the ship, she takes on water rapidly and begins to list and the abandon ship order is given three hours later and the ship sinks about 35 nautical miles NNW of Henderson Field, Guadalcanal.
With the sinking of Northampton, the USN has only 13 heavy cruisers in commission. The only Japanese casualty is the destroyer HIJMS Takanami which is sunk by gunfire about 28 nautical miles NNW of Henderson Field. There are only 33 survivors of the 212 men aboard the ship.

 

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SOLOMON ISLANDS: The 8th Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division, is withdrawn from forward positions west of Matanikau River, leaving Americal Division units to hold the western sector.

CBI (Tenth Air Force) The 9th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron flies its first combat mission with F-4s from its base at Karachi, India with a detachment at Kunming, China; the squadron arrived at Karachi on 24 Jul.

AUSTRALIA: HQ 33d Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Group with C-47s is established at Brisbane upon arrival from the US. A detachment has been operating from Cairns since 1 Nov and will remain there until 10 Dec.

SOUTH PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS: Headquarters 5th BG (Heavy), and its 23d Bombardment Squadron with B-17s transfers from the Territory of Hawaii to Espiritu Santo Island, New Hebrides Islands.

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A B-24 Liberator flies reconnaissance over the Semichis and Attu Islands. Weather prevents any other flights.

BURMA: The Japanese, having rested and refitted, start back into the battle line Tengchung-Myitkyina- Kamaing Kalewa-Akyab.

INDIA: The airlift from India to China is removed from the authority of Lieutenant General Joseph Stilwell, Commander in Chief U.S .China-Burma-India Theater of Operations, Chief of Staff to Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek, and Commander-in-Chief Northern Combat Area Command (NCAC), and made part of the USAAF Air Transport Command's India- China Wing.

SW PACIFIC: In the Timor Sea, the Australian minesweeper HMAS Armidale is hit by two torpedoes dropped by Japanese torpedo bombers and sinks within five minutes about 103 nautical miles SSE of Dili, Portugese Timor, in position 10.00S, 126.30E.
The ship was on her second voyage to Timor to evacuate refugees and bring relief personnel from Port Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia.
There are 149 people aboard the ship and 40 crewmen and 58 Dutch soldiers and civilians are lost. Some survivors endure eight days at sea before being rescued while 29 manage to cling to a makeshift raft but drift away and are never seen again.

NEW GUINEA: U.S. Lieutenant General Robert Eichelberger, Commanding General I Corps, flies to Dobodura, Papua New Guinea, and takes command of all troops in Buna area. The Australian 21st Brigade, 7th Division, after turning back from Giruwa three barge loads of Japanese attempting to reinforce Gona, attacks and captures Gona, forcing the Japanese back to Gona Mission for a final stand. Elsewhere, the Japanese show no signs of weakening and they exert heavy pressure against a roadblock (called "Huggins" after Capt Meredith M. Huggins) on the Soputa-Sanananda trail
and withstands frontal and flanking attacks toward it. The Urbana Force (two battalions of the U.S. 126th and 128th Infantry Regiments, 32d Infantry Division) makes another futile attempt to reach Buna Village after artillery and mortar preparation with all available weapons.
The Warren Force (based on U.S. 128th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division) continues attacks toward Cape Endaiadere on the right and New Strip on the left with little success; the 1st Battalion of the 126th Infantry Regiment gets elements to the northeastern edge of New Strip.
In the air, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20s, B-25s, B-26s and P-400 Airacobras attack the Buna area damaging a destroyer.

PACIFIC OCEAN: As a result of damage received in the Battle of Tassafaronga, heavy cruiser USS Northampton sinks about 35 nautical miles NNW of Henderson Field, Guadalcanal, in position 09.12S, 159.50E.
Japanese destroyer HIJMS Takanami goes down off the north coast of Guadalcanal about 28 nautical miles NNW of Henderson Field, in position 09.18S, 159.56E.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: The 8th Marine Regiment, 2d Marine Division, is withdrawn from forward positions west of Matanikau River, leaving Americal Division units to hold the western sector.

UNITED STATES: The U.S. government imposes gasoline quotas to conserve fuel. The armed forces overseas have fuel aplenty, but in the U.S., gasoline becomes costly and hard to get. People start using bicycles and their own two feet to get around.
At major league baseball meetings in Chicago, Illinois, travel restrictions are the order of the day. Owners decide to restrict travel to a three-trip schedule rather than the customary four. Spring training in 1943 will be limited to locations north of the Potomac or Ohio Rivers and east of the Mississippi River.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A B-24 finds Semichi and Attu Islands unchanged during a reconnaissance run; a B-26 on reconnaissance finds Kiska Island closed by fog.

SOUTH PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Army Forces in South Pacific Area) Headquarters 17th Photographic Reconnaissance Squadron, 4th Photographic Group with the air echelon of A and B flights arrives Noumea, New Caledonia Is. The air echelons of C and D flights will remain in the US until Jan 44.

GUADALCANAL - American bombers based at Henderson Field, Guadalcanal begin almost daily attacks on Munda Point, New Georgia to prevent the Japanese from constructing an airfield there.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Japanese try to reinforce their bridgehead. Four destroyers, with about 800 men embarked, reach Basabua early in the morning, but are forced by Allied aircraft to move on and land troops near the Kumusi River mouth, about 12 miles north of Gona. The Japanese maintain pressure on the roadblock on the Soputa- Sanananda trail, which the supply party reaches, and whittle down its perimeter. Efforts to reach the block frontally and from the right flank are again unsuccessful.
The Urbana Force (two battalions of the U.S. 126th and 128th Infantry Regiments, 32d Infantry Division) attacks again toward Buna Village, in greater strength and after increased preparatory fire, but is halted short of the objective.
Since simultaneous attacks against Cape Endaiadere and the New Strip have proved unfeasible, Warren Force (based on U.S. 128th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division) concentrates on New Strip, leaving a holding force (Company B, 128th Infantry Regiment) on the coastal track, where it fails to deceive the Japanese with a feint toward Cape Endaiadere. Warren Force attacks after air and ground bombardment, which does little damage to the Japanese, but results are negligible.
Lieutenant General Robert Eichelberger, Commanding General I Corps, visits the Urbana front while his staff officers inspect the Warren front. Afterwards, Eichelberger relieves Major General Edwin F. Harding of command of the U.S. 32d Infantry Division and designates Brigadier General Albert W. Waldron as his successor.
USAAF A-20s, B-17s, B-25s and P-400s attack four destroyers off Buna and Gona, and the airfield and positions in the in the Buna area and between
Watutu Point and Cape Killerton. As a result of this attack, the destroyers, originally bound for Gona with 800 reinforcements, lands the troops near the mouth of the Kumment River 12 miles to the north.

UNITED STATES: At the University of Chicago in Chicago, Illinois, the first manmade, self-sustaining atomic chain reaction is achieved. In a squash court under the university (American) football stadium a group of scientists led by the Italian physicist, Enrico Fermi, allows the "pile" of uranium, insulated by graphite rods, to run for 4.5 minutes, which produces just one half-watt of power, but proves man can control atomic power.
Scientists wait in awe as the neutron counter clicked faster. Then Fermi raises his hand. "The pile has gone critical," he said. Someone telephoned Dr. James Conant, the head of defense science in Washington. "Jim," he said, "the Italian navigator has just landed in the new world."

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: The Japanese light cruisers HIJMS Abukuma and Kiso and destroyer HIJMS Wakaba, land 1,115 troops of the 302nd Battalion on Kiska.
Two USAAF bombers and several fighters fly reconnaissance over Semichi Islands and the Japanese held Kiska and Attu Islands. There is a constant air alert for US forces on Adak.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the situation of the U.S. 126th Infantry Regiment roadblock on the Soputa-Sanananda trail remains precarious as the Japanese continue to attack it repeatedly from all sides and to prevent the forward movement of Allied units attempting to reach it.
On the Urbana Force (two battalions of the U.S. 126th and 128th Infantry Regiments, 32d Infantry Division) and Warren Force (based on U.S. 128th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division) fronts, troops are being rested and regrouped in preparation for all-out attack on 5 December. U.S. Lieutenant General Robert Eichelberger, Commanding General I Corps, requests that the 126th Infantry Regiment headquarters be moved east of the Girua River and is promised Australian troops and tanks. The Japanese are successfully supplied by air.
In Papua New Guinea, Fifth Air Force A-20s, B-25s and P-40s bomb and strafe Sanananda Point and the Buna areas and attack a small torpedo boat in Dyke Acland Bay. During the night of 3/4 December, B-17s bomb airfields at Lae and Salamaua.

PACIFIC OCEAN: In the Solomons Sea, a lone USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17s attacks a submarine 75 miles SE of Rabaul, New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, the movement of the Aola Force, less 2d Marine Raider Battalion, to Koli Point, where an airfield is to be constructed, is completed. The Aola Force is joined by the 18th Naval Construction Battalion and the rest of 9th Marine Defense Battalion.
On New Georgia Island, the Japanese are discovered to be constructing an airfield at Munda Point, which becomes a target for almost daily air attacks.
Eight USMC SBDs, seven USMC TBFs and USAAF P-39s and USMC F4Fs attack the Tokyo Express in New Georgia Sound; the destroyer HIJMS Makinami is slightly damaged. The Japanese throw some 1,500 supply canisters overboard for their troops on Guadalcanal, but only 310 reach the intended recipients. In the air, ten Pete seaplanes are shot down, six by USMC F4F pilots and four by USAAF P-39 pilots at 1830 hours local. U.S. losses are one TBF, one SBD and one fighter.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: Seven B-24s and nine B-26s escorted by 16 P-38s takeoff based on a Navy PBY Catalina report of a surface force southeast of Amchitka Island. At the interception point, the area is searched without results. The PBY pilot later reports he saw "clouds." Reconnaissance is flown over Attu, Agattu, Semichi, Kiska and Amchitka Islands.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Japanese maintain pressure against the block on the Soputa-Sanananda trail. Advance elements of the 127th Infantry Regiment, U.S. 32d Infantry Division, reach Dobodura. Lines on Urbana Force (two battalions of the U.S. 126th and 128th Infantry Regiments, 32d Infantry Division) and Warren Force (based on U.S. 128th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division) fronts are rearranged to permit units operating under battalions other than their own to return to parent battalions.

SOUTHWEST PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Fifth Air Force) A-20s, B-25s and P-400s bomb and strafe Sanananda Point and the Buna areas and attack a small torpedo boat in Dyke Acland Bay. During the night of 3/4 Dec, B-17s bomb airfields at Lae and Salamaua. Lost is B-17F "Dumbo" 41-24429. On the ground, the US roadblock on the Soputa-Sanananda trail remains precarious as the Japanese maintain attacks from all sides and hold off US reinforcements. In the Bismarck Archipelago, a lone B-17s attacks a submarine 75 miles southeast of Rabaul. Lost on a training flight is P-38F "Synchronized Sal" 42-12646.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, Carlson's raiders (2d Marine Raider Battalion) reach the Lunga perimeter, having marched west from Aola Bay.
During the month-long journey, more than 400 Japanese dead have been counted for the loss of 17 raiders.

UNITED STATES: Two hundred forty four US Congressmen present a petition for the establishment of a Jewish homeland in Palestine to President Franklin D. Roosevelt.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: Reconnaissance missions over Attu, Agattu, the Semichis, Amchitka and Kiska Islands turns up nothing. Seven B-24s and nine B-26s escorted by 16 P-38s take off upon a Navy PBY report of a surface force southeast of Amchitka Island. At the interception point, the area is searched without results. The PBY pilot later report he saw "clouds."

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: B-24s bomb Kavieng Airfield on the east coast of New Ireland Island.

SOUTH PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Army Forces in South Pacific Area) The following Seventh Air Force units are transferred to the Army Forces in South Pacific Area: 5th BG with its 23d, 31st, 72d and 394th Bombardment Squadrons with B-17s. The 394th is enroute from Hawaii to Fiji; all others are on Espiritu Santo Island, New Hebrides Islands with the 72d Bomb Sq operating from Guadalcanal. 11th BG with its 26th, 42d, 98th and 431st Bombardment Squadrons with B-17s. The 26th is on Efate Is while the 42d and 98th are on Espiritu Santo Is, all in the New Hebrides Islands. The 431st is on Viti Levu on Fiji. 12th Fighter Squadron, 15th FG with P-39s and the 44th Fighter Squadron, 318th FG with P-40s, both on Efate Island, New Hebrides Islands.

NEW GUINEA: In the Australian 7th Division Gona area of Papua New Guinea, the Australian 21st Brigade, maintains pressure on the Japanese; the 25th Brigade withdraws for Port Moresby. A battalion of the 21st Brigade, supported by elements of the 39th Battalion, 30th Brigade, moves east to keep the Japanese from Basabua anchorage while the rest of the the 39th Battalion advances west because of Japanese landings at the Kumusi River mouth.
A roadblock on the Soputa- Sanananda trail remains under severe pressure, and food and ammunition of the garrison are dwindling rapidly. The Japanese turn back a supply party attempting to reach the block and again repel frontal and flanking attacks toward it.
After an air and artillery preparation, the Urbana Force and Warren Force launch all-out attacks. A company of the Urbana Forces U.S. 126th Infantry Regiment drives to within 50 yards of Buna Village; others break through to the sea; still others invest the west bank of Entrance Creek except for Coconut Grove. Buna Village is completely isolated.
The Warren Force attack, although preceded by five Bren-gun carriers which are destroyed, is a total failure except on the left, where slight progress is made toward the bridge between the airstrips. The Warren Force suffers heavily from the Japanese as well as intense heat.
In the air over Papua New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20s and B-25s pound the Buna area.

UNITED STATES: Japanese-American Fred Tayama, an informant for the FBI, is attacked and seriously injured by a group of inmates at the Manzanar Relocation Camp For Ethnic Japanese, located 50 miles south of Bishop, California. The arrest of the popular Harry Ueno who was accused in the attack on Tayama, triggers a mass uprising.
Headquarters USAAF inactivates the I Concentration Command. This unit was tasked for the final preparation for unit movements overseas and this task is now assigned to the First through Fourth Air Forces and the Air Transport Command.
The Selective Service System is placed under the War Manpower Commission by Presidential executive order.

 

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ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: USAAF Eleventh Air Force aircraft fly reconnaissance over Attu, Agattu, Amchitka, Kiska and the Semichis Islands. The 18th Fighter Squadron, 343d FG with P-40s transfers from Alaska to Adak.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17s bomb Lakunai Airfield and the town of Rabaul on New Britain Island.

FIJI ISLANDS: USN tug USS Grebe grounds while attempting to float SS Thomas A. Edison at Vuata Vatoa. Salvage operations are broken up by a hurricane that destroys both ships on 1/2 January 1943.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Japanese frustrate an effort to supply the beleaguered roadblock on the Soputa-Sanananda trail with rations and ammunition. The garrison is near the end of its resources.
The Urbana Force prepares for another attack on Buna Village and places the first "time on target" fire of the campaign on Buna Mission. Since frontal attacks by the Warren Force have been futile and costly, it is decided to soften Japanese positions by attrition and infiltration while awaiting the arrival of tanks. In the Gona area, three Australian battalions attack the town but the attack bogs down and one company is virtually wiped out.
Fifth Air Force B-25s bomb Lae Aerodrome, Papua New Guinea. Amelia Earhart took off from this airfield in 1938.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: USAAF P-39 Airacobras strafing Munda on New Georgia Island discover trucks, steam rollers and other construction equipment, and evidence of two airfields under construction. B-17s
will bomb Munda 21 times in December and continue to hit it in January 1943, as the Japanese continue to work at building the airstrips despite the constant air strikes.

UNITED STATES: At the Manzanar Relocation Camp For Ethnic Japanese, located 50 miles south of Bishop, California, the arrest of prisoners accused of beating informer Fred Tayama leads to a protest and violence. Military police fire into the crowd, killing two protesters and wounding at least ten more.

 

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U.S.A.: The USS New Jersey BB-62 is launched from the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. This battleship is one of the Iowa class. One year after the "day of infamy" at Pearl Harbor, the US Navy today launched 15 ships, including the biggest battleship ever built. The huge USS New Jersey slid down the ways at the Philadelphia Navy Yard almost on the hour of last December's attack.
Elsewhere in America, an aircraft carrier, two destroyers, a submarine, six minesweepers, two escort craft, a destroyer tender and what the navy called a "special" ship were launched. All this was a tangible demonstration of Franklin D. Roosevelt's message to the people: that the day of surprise
was a year ago, the period of defence is over and the offensive is under way.
"Coral Sea, Midway, the Solomons, New Guinea and North Africa are shining examples of [our] power," the president said. Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, the chief of the Pacific Fleet, said that victory has been assured over the Japanese because the "sea lane across the greatest of oceans has been made safe.
The optimism is tempered by official statistics: 58,307 casualties in the year, a massive 35,822 of which occurred in the Pacific theatre. Many are classified as missing and presumed to be prisoners of war. More than one million US servicemen are now in action.

NEW GUINEA: US forces hold against stiff Japanese counterattacks at Bun. George Welch, who is credited with shooting down four Japanese planes during the attack on Pearl Harbor shoots down two Vals and a Zeke flying a P-39, becoming an ace exactly one year after his first victories. Welch was credited with shooting down 4 Japanese planes during the attack on Pearl Harbor . He would go on to score 16 victories and become a test pilot for North American Aviation.
All of Welch's victorys were multiples: 7 Dec. 41: 4; 7 Dec. 42: 3; 21 Jun 43: 2; 20 Aug 43: 3; 2 Sep 43: 4.

SINGAPORE:Changi: A beautiful shinto shrine, built by PoWs is unveiled in the camp.

GUADALCANAL: Captain Sato leads a Tokyo Express run to Guadalcanal tonight. US PT Boats force his destroyers to retire. In the Solomons, 13 SBDs attack the Tokyo Express; three destroyers are damaged for the loss of one SBD.

Anniversary of Pearl Harbor) (Eleventh Air Force) A reconnaissance mission is flown over the Semichis and Attu Islands; reconnaissance of Kiska Is is aborted due to weather.

SOUTH PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Army Forces in South Pacific Area) The 69th Bombardment Squadron, 38th BG with B-26s moves from New Caledonia Island to Efate Island, New Hebrides Islands.

 

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GUADALCANAL: Captain Sato leads a Tokyo Express run to Guadalcanal tonight. US PT Boats force his destroyers to retire. In the Solomons, 13 SBDs attack the Tokyo Express; three destroyers are damaged for the loss of one SBD.

American forces on Guadacanal mark the first anniversary of Pearl Harbor by shelling Japanese positions from dawn to dusk in what they term a 'Hate Shoot'.