AUSTRALIA IN THE WAR OF 1939-194 5 SERIES THRE E AIR VOLUME I I AIR WAR AGAINST JAPAN 1943-1945 AUSTRALIA IN THE WAR OF 1939- 194 5 SERIES 1 (ARMY ) I. To Benghazi . By Gavin Long . II. Greece, Crete and Syria. By Gavin Long . III. Tobruk and El Alamein. By Barton Maughan . IV. The Japanese Thrust . By Lionel Wigmore. V. South-West Pacific Area—First Year. By Dudley McCarthy . VI. The New Guinea Offensives. By David Dexter. VII. The Final Campaigns. By Gavin Long. SERIES 2 (NAVY ) I. Royal Australian Navy, 1939-42 . By G . Hermon Gill . ' II. Royal Australian Navy, 1942-45 . By G . Hermon Gill. SERIES 3 (AIR ) I. Royal Australian Air Force, 1939-42 . By Douglas Gillison . II. Air War Against Japan, 1943-45 . By George Odgers. III. Air War Against Germany and Italy, 1939-43 . By John Herington . IV. Air Power Over Europe, 1944-45 . By John Herington . SERIES 4 (CIVIL) I. The Government and the People, 1939-41 . By Paul Hasluck. II. The Government and the People, 1942-45 . By Paul Hasluck.* III. War Economy, 1939-42 . By S . J. Butlin . IV. War Economy, 1942-45 . By S . J. Butlin. * V. The Role of Science and Industry . By D . P. Mellor . SERIES 5 (MEDICAL ) I. Clinical Problems of War . By Allan S. Walker. II. Middle East and Far East. By Allan S. Walker . III. The Island Campaigns . By Allan S . Walker . IV. Medical Services of R .A.N. and R .A.A.F. By Allan S. Walker and others. Not yet published . The writers of these volumes have been given full access to official documents , but they and the general editor are alone responsible for the statements and opinion s which the volumes contain . AIR WAR AGAINST JAPAN 1943-194 5 by GEORGE ODGER S CANBERRA AUSTRALIAN WAR MEMORIA L n r , n- Er,! AUSTRAHA All First published in 195 7 Reprinted 196 8 HOGBIN, POOLE (PRINTERS) PTY. LTD ., SYDNE Y REGISTERED AT THE G .P .O . ADELAIDE FOR TRANSMISSION THROUGH THE POST AS A BOOK. CONTENT S Page Preface . xi Chapter 1 THE PACIFIC WAR, APRIL 1943 1 2 THE LIMITED OFFENSIVE . 2 0 3 AIR FIGHTING IN NORTH-WESTERN AREA, APRI L AND MAY 1943 3 8 4 "A SHOW OF FORCE " FROM THE NORTHERN TERRI - TORY 5 5 5 AIR SUPPORT DURING THE LAE-NADZAB-FINSCH - HAFEN OPERATIONS 6 8 6 AIR ASSAULT ON RABAUL . 8 8 7 THE NORTH-WESTERN FLANK, AUGUST-DECEMBE R 1943 10 4 8 THE BISMARCKS BARRIER BROKEN . 12 2 9 ANTI-SUBMARINE OPERATIONS IN 1943 14 0 10 WHICH ROAD TO TOKYO? 16 0 11 THE ADMIRALTIES 17 0 12 No . 10 GROUP AT NADZAB . 18 2 13 AIR SUPPORT AT HOLLANDIA AND AITAPE 20 2 14 OVER WAKDE AND BIAK 22 0 15 To NOEMFOOR AND MOROTAI 23 4 16 AUSTRALIANS IN BURMA 25 6 17 REDEPLOYMENT 28 8 18 FIRST TACTICAL AIR FORCE AND THE PHILIPPINES 30 0 19 BOUGAINVILLE AND NEW BRITAIN 31 7 20 FROM AITAPE TO WEWAK . 33 5 21 ANTI-SUBMARINE PATROLS, 1944-45 34 9 22 MINELAYING BY THE CATALINAS 35 5 23 MINDORO AND LUZON 37 4 24 FIRST T.A .F. AND NORTH-WESTERN AREA, JANUARY - APRIL 1945 . 391 V 25 VICTORY IN BURMA . 26 MOROTAI—APRIL 194 5 27 TARAKA N 28 LABUA N 29 BALIKPAPA N 30 THE WAR END S APPENDIX : Abbreviations INDEX . ILLUSTRATION S Page Gurney Airfield : Milne Bay . 1 8 Bostons of No. 22 Squadron . 1 8 A Spitfire : Darwin . 1 9 Spitfire pilots at a dispersal base . 1 9 Japanese Betty bombers over Fenton Field, July 1943 . 5 0 No . 31 Squadron : Beaufighters attacking Larat, July 1943 5 0 Troops parachuting into Markham Valley, September 1943 5 1 The old Nadzab airfield, November 1943 5 1 Rabaul ablaze, November 1943 6 6 No . 30 Squadron : "debriefing" crews, October 1943 6 6 American No. 380 Group : attacking a freighter-transport, August 1943 6 6 Nos. 6, 8 and 100 Squadrons : Beauforts bombing a camp area, January 1944 6 6 Nos. 1, 18 and 31 Squadrons : raid on Su, Dutch Timor, April 1944 6 6 A ground crew at Kiriwina, February 1944 . 6 7 No. 24 Squadron : Vultee Vengeance dive bombers returning, February 1944 . 6 7 No . 30 Squadron : Beaufighter refuelling mid-1944 . 8 2 No . 73 Wing : ground staffs in the Admiralties, March 1944 . 8 3 R .A.A.F . personnel at Aitape landing, 22nd March 1944 . 11 4 R.A.A.F . and American commanders at Aitape 11 4 No. 75 Squadron : damaged Kittyhawk at Noemfoor, August 1944 . 11 5 No . 76 Squadron : servicing a Kittyhawk, late 1944 . 11 5 No . 30 Squadron : rocket-carrying Beaufighter, November 1944 . 14 6 Hurricanes : Burma campaign, March 1944 . 14 7 Spitfire being refuelled at a Burma airfield, in 1944 . 14 7 No. 31 Squadron : strafing a Japanese transport aircraft, July 1944 . 17 8 No . 18 (Netherlands) Squadron : North-Western Area, July 1944 . 17 8 No . 2 Squadron : attacking a "Sugar Charlie", Alor Island, August 1944 17 9 No . 24 Squadron : Liberator over Ambesia airstrip, October 1944 . 17 9 No . 31 Squadron : destruction of a bridge, Celebes, December 1944 . 21 0 Australian senior officers at Torokina, 19th January 1945 . 21 1 No . 5 Squadron : Boomerangs preparing for a sortie, January 1945 . 21 1 No . 17 Flight : preparing to spot for artillery, Bougainville, February 1945 24 2 No . 36 Squadron : dropping supplies, Bougainville, February 1945 . 242 vii No. 5 Squadron : strafing attack, Bougainville, June 1945 . 24 3 No . 71 Wing : bombing beach positions, Wewak area, 1945 27 4 Dagua airfield : after capture by the Australians, March 1945 274 No. 43 Squadron : preparing for minelaying operation, May 1945 . 27 5 No . 3 Airfield Construction Squadron : Mindoro landing, December 1944 30 6 Australian and American servicemen at Mindoro . 306 No . 24 Squadron : raid on Kali Konto power station, February 1945 30 7 No . 43 Squadron : air-sea rescue, January 1945 33 8 No . 457 Squadron : formation flying, January 1945 . 33 8 Beaufighters : attacks on Japanese supply lines, 1944 33 9 Flying Officer Crombie and Wing Commander O'Neill . 37 0 Rangoon railway station, April 1945 37 0 Air force leaders at Morotai, April 1945 . 37 0 Fighter strip, Morotai, April 1945 . 37 0 First T.A.F. : Kittyhawks bombing Ternate Island, April 1945 37 0 Attack with para-frag bombs on a Japanese anti-aircraft post 37 0 First T .A.F . and Thirteenth Air Force : pre-invasion bombing of Tarakan 37 1 Tarakan airstrip : before the invasion 37 1 No . 24 Squadron : Liberator on fire, April 1945 . 40 2 No . 12 Squadron : Liberator strafing a lugger, June 1945 40 2 Brunei, North Borneo, June 1945 40 3 Labuan: radar station, mid-1945 . 40 3 First T .A.F.: Liberators bombing oil wells at Balikpapan, June 1945 43 4 No . 3 Bomb Disposal Unit : Noemfoor Island, November 1944 43 5 No . 452 Squadron : at Halmahera Island, December 1944 . 43 5 R .A.A.F. Medical Air Evacuation Unit : Senior Sister E. Bray . 46 6 The W .A.A.A.F . : Aircraftwomen Mavis Quinn, Jean Hewens and Patricia Mason 46 6 No 61 Airfield Construction Wing : repair of Sepinggang airfield, July 1945 46 7 Morotai fighter strip, 1945 : Kittyhawks returning from a sweep . 467 MAP S Page The War in the Pacific : area boundaries . 5 Wau-Salamaua area . 28 Eastern New Guinea, New Britain and the Solomons . 3 4 North-Western Area : location of squadrons, April 1943 4 0 North-Western Area : Japanese air raid, Darwin, 2nd May 1943 4 6 North-Western Area : Japanese air raid, Fenton, 6th July 1943 6 4 Finschhafen-Sattelberg area 8 5 Rabaul . 9 0 North-Western Area 9 8 The isolation of Rabaul, November 1943-March 1944 12 4 Western Australia : airfields . 13 7 Japanese submarine operations, 1943 14 3 Japanese air defence lines, March 1944 164 Los Negros Island . 17 2 Admiralty Islands . 17 5 Nadzab Airfield . 18 5 Shaggy Ridge . 18 8 No . 10 Group : area of operations, January-March 1944 19 6 Hollandia 21 2 North-Western Area : location of squadrons, March 1944 . 21 4 Biak airfields . 220 Noemfoor Island . 23 6 No . 10 Operational Group : Driniumor River Battle, July 1944 25 2 Burma airfields 26 2 Halmahera Island . 31 0 Bougainville : showing perimeter 32 0 First Tactical Air Force : area of operations 32 2 New Britain . 33 3 Aitape-Wewak operations 33 9 New Hanover and New Ireland 35 7 South-West Pacific Area : operational commands 39 3 Ceram and Ambon Islands 39 8 Burma Operations . 41 1 Tarakan Island . 45 1 Brunei, North Borneo, and Labuan Island 46 7 Balikpapan 48 0 Allied and enemy air activities . 49 2 Southern Japan 497 iR PREFACE HIS volume of the history of the Royal Australian Air Force in T World War II begins with the first offensive against Japan and ends with the return of the R .A.A.F. to Australia after the surrender of th e Japanese forces . The earlier period of the war against Japan will b e described in the first volume of the air series, yet to be published . While the primary aim of the volume is to tell the story of the R .A.A.F. it has been necessary to deal, although in a less detailed way, with other force s engaged, and to sketch in the over-all picture from time to time . Failure to indicate clearly the proportion of the R .A.A.F. effort in relation to other forces would be a distortion of history . It has been necessary therefore to outline the operations of the Fifth and Thirteenth American Air Forces with which the R.A.A.F.