THURSDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 1942
AMERICAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS
CARIBBEAN (6th Air Force): 20th Transport
Squadron, Panama Air Depot, transfers from France Field to Howard Field, Canal
Zone with C-39's, C-47's and C-49's.
32d Pursuit Squadron (Interceptor), 36th
Pursuit Group (Interceptor), transfers from Losey Field to Arecibo, Puerto Rico
with P-36's.
PACIFIC
OCEAN AREA (POA, 7th Air Force): VII Air Force Base Cmmand (AFBC) is activated.
SOUTHWEST
PACIFIC AREA (SWPA, 5th Air Force): In the NEI, A-24's, with P-40 escort, and
B-17's operating out of Malang, Madioen, and Jogjakarta, Java, attack vessels
landing troops on Bali; the attacks, carried out during the aftenoon of 19 Feb
and throughout the morning of 20 Feb, cause considerable damage to vessels but
fail to halt the landings; P-40's shoot down or turn back seversl bombers
sweeping W over Java. Japanese aircraft attack Darwin, Australia, bombing
vessels loaded with troops destined for the defense of Koepang on Timor Island;
10 P-40's sent to Darwin to escort the convoy are almost entirely wiped out by
the attack.
FRIDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 1943
AIRCRAFT
MENTIONED IN THIS REPORT:
A-20, Douglas Havoc
B-17, Boeing Flying Fortress
B-24, Consolidated Liberator
B-25, North American Mitchell
P-39, Bell Airacobra
P-40, Curtiss
Spitfire, Vickers Supermarine
AMERICAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eleventh Air Force)
In the Aleutians, weather cancels all
missions except limited weather reconnaissance.
CHINA-BURMA-INDIA
THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Tenth Air Force)
In Burma, P-40s dive-bomb a Japanese HQ at
Hpunkizup and afterwards strafe a rail defile south of Meza, burying about 100
feet of track. Five B-25s bomb the rail
terminal at Sagaing.
EUROPEAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)
The Spitfire Mk Vs of the 4th Fighter Group
fly 26 uneventful sorties during the day; 2 on defensive patrols and 24 on an
offensive sweep of the St. Omer, France area.
MEDITERRANEAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS
EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN (Ninth Air Force)
In Tunisia, B-25s bomb the Gabes western
area through heavy clouds.
WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN (North African Air
Force)
In Algeria, weather prevents heavy and
medium bomber operations.
In Tunisia, fighters and A-20s of the XII
Air Support Command are grounded and unable to support ground forces as the
enemy opens an attack on Kasserine with infantry and tanks supported by
artillery.
The 93d Fighter Squadron, 81st Fighter
Group with P-39s transfers from Port Lyautey, French Morocco to Berteaux,
Algeria.
SOUTHWEST
PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Fifth Air Force)
In the Solomons, B-17s bomb shipping and a
seaplane base between Buin and Faisi, Bougainville Island and at Ballale Island
and hit the Kahili Airfield on Bougainville.
In New Guinea, A-20s bomb and strafe forces
in the Butibum and Angari areas.
B-24s carry out single-plane attacks agains
shipping at Salamaua, New Guinea, off Cape Gloucester, New Britain Island and
at Gasmata Island.
SATURDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 1944
CHINA-BURMA-INDIA
(CBI) THEATER OF OPERATIONS
BURMA-INDIA (Tenth Air Force): 60+ A-36s and
P-51s and a few B-25s hit a variety of targets in Burma; targets include fuel
and supply dumps at Manywet and in the Shaduzup area, the Tonkin-Kansi road and
a junction W of Manywet, the Mu River bridge at Ye-u, railroad cars and tracks,
locomotives, and river traffic between Monywa and Natyekan and between Alon and
Segyi; rail and road traffic in the Bhamo and Hukawng Valley-Kamaing areas is
also hit.
CHINA (Fourteenth Air Force): B-24s, B-25s,
and P-40s fly sea sweeps over wide-spread coastal areas from the Formosa
Straits to French Indochina, claiming 3 ships sunk and others damaged; railroad
bridges, trains, and other targets of opportunity near coastal areas are also
attacked.
MEDITERRANEAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS (MTO)
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Fifteenth Air Force):
Operations are again limited to reconnaissance flights.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS (Twelfth Air Force):
Colonel Peter S Rask becomes acting Commanding Officer of the XII Troop Carrier
Command (Provisional) until its disbandment on 5 Mar 44.
In Italy, B-25s blast troop concentrations to
the N of Anzio beachhead; A-36s and P-40s keep troops, tanks, and motor
transport in the beachhead battle area under attack, flying 200+ sorties in 20+
missions as an Allied counterattack turns the tide of battle; fighters maintain
control over the N part of the battle area.
PACIFIC
OCEAN AREA (POA, Seventh Air Force): B-24s from Tarawa Atoll and Makin Island
pound Ponape and Kusaie Islands; B-25s from Tarawa hit Wotje Atoll while
Makin-based P-40s bomb and strafe Mille Atoll. US forces land on Eniwetok
Island in Eniwetok Atoll.
SOUTH
PACIFIC AREA (SOPAC, Thirteenth Air Force): On New Britain Island, 20 P-40s and
40+ USN fighters escort about 70 USN dive bombers in an attack on Lakunai
Airfield; fighter cover claims 22 Japanese aircraft shot down; 6 B-24s bomb the
same target immediately afterward; 14 B-24s, with P-38 and USN fighter escort,
hit Tobera Airfield.
12th Fighter Squadron, 18th Fighter Group,
based on Guadalcanal Island with P-38s, begins operating from Treasury Island.
69th Bombardment Squadron (Medium), 42d
Bombardment Group (Medium), moves from the Russell Islands to Stirling Island
with B-25s.
SOUTHWEST
PACIFIC AREA (SWPA, Fifth Air Force): 12 B-25s attack shipping SW of New
Ireland Island, claiming a small freighter and a patrol boat sunk and other
vessels damaged. 7 A-20s hit shipping at Kavieng, New Ireland Island.
Single
B-24s and B-25s carry out armed reconnaissance over wide areas of the Bismarck
Sea.
Movements in New Guinea: 26th Photographic
Reconnaissance Squadron, 6th Photographic Reconnaissance Group, from Dobodura
to Finschhafen with F-5s (a detachment is at Port Moresby); 35th Fighter
Squadron, 8th Fighter Group, from Finschhafen to Cape Gloucester, New Britain
Island with P-40s.
MONDAY, 19 FEBRUARY 1945
AMERICAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS
ALASKA (Eleventh Air Force): In the Kurile
Islands, 6 B-24s fly photo reconnaissance over Shimushu Island and bomb Kurabu
Cape Airfield on Paramushiru Island; 6 Japanese fighters intercept; the B-24s
claim 4 damaged.
4 B-25s
weather-abort a mission to hit targets along the Hayakegawa River.
CHINA-BURMA-INDIA
THEATER
CHINA THEATER (Fourteenth Air Force): In
China, 14 P-51s and P-40s blast rail and river traffic at Chiuchiang, Hsuchang,
Lung Hai, and Tsinpu.
HQ AAF (Twentieth Air Force): Mission 37: In
the Mayalan States, 49 of 59 B-29s bomb the Central Railroad Repair Shops at
Kuala Lumpur, some bombing from only 1,000 feet (305 m); 4 other B-29s hit
alternate targets, the Alor Star Airfield, and the marshalling yard at
Martaban, Burma; they claim 1-0-7 Japanese aircraft; no B-29s are lost.
INDIA-BURMA THEATER (Tenth Air Force): In
Burma, 24 B-25s and 31 P-47s fly close support strikes in the Mongmit-Myitson
area; 70+ fighter-bombers hit troop concentrations, supplies, and villages
behind the battleline in C Burma. Heavy transport operations continue. The
165th Liaison Squadron (Commando), 1st Air Commando Group, moves from Shwebo,
Burma to Asansol, India with UC-64s and L-5s.
EUROPEAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS (ETO)
AIRBORNE OPERATIONS (IX Troop Carrier
Command): The 76th and 78th Troop Carrier Squadrons, 435th Troop Carrier Group,
move from Welford Park, England to Bretigny, France with C-47s.
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force):
Mission 835: 1,135 bombers and 560 fighters are dispatched to hit oil,
industrial and rail targets in Germany; they claim 3-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1
B-24 and 7 P-51s are lost:
1. 196 B-17s are sent to hit the marshalling
yard at Osnabruck (155); 24 hit the secondary target, the marshalling yard at
Munster; 10 hit Haselunne, a target of opportunity; Micro-H and H2X are used; 1
B-17 is damaged beyond repair and 21 damaged; 1 airman is WIA. Escorting are 38
of 42 P-51s.
2. 291 B-24s are dispatched to hit military
vehicle plants at Meschede (97) and Jungenthal (86) and the marshalling yard at
Siegen (94) using Gee-H; 1
B-24 is
lost and 8 damaged; 9 airmen are MIA. 122 P-47s and P-51s escort.
3. 422 B-17s are sent to hit benzol plants at
Bochum (99) and Gelsenkirchen (36), oil refineries at Dortmund (74) and Alm
(37) using Micro H and H2X; 162 hit the secondary target, the Munster
marshalling yard (162) visually; 1 B-17 is damaged beyond repair and 59
damaged; 1 airman is KIA. 91 of 96 P-51s escort; 1 is lost (pilot MIA).
4. 131 of 144 B-17s hit the marshalling yard
at Rheine with Micro H without loss. 48 P-51s escort.
5. 68 of 82 B-17s hit the rail bridge at
Wesel using Micro H; 25 B-17s are damaged. 32 of 37 P-51s escort.
6. 163 of 179 P-51s fly a fighter sweep
against rail and road targets in the Hannover-Magdeburg-Brunswick area claiming
2-0-0 aircraft in the air and
1-0-0 on
the ground; 5 P-51s are lost (pilots MIA).
7. 27 of 28 P-51s fly a scouting misson; 1 is
lost (pilot MIA).
TACTICAL OPERATIONS (Ninth Air Force): In
Germany, B-26s, A-26s, and A-20s, strike the Mechernich prime mover depot, rail
bridges at Pracht, Niederscheld, and Neuwied-Irlich, the Wiesbaden ordnance
depot, and 4 targets of opportunity; fighters escort the bombers, attack
railroads and bridges, fly armed reconnaissance and alerts, and cooperate with
the VIII, XII, and XX Corps E of the Our River, between the Westwall and the
Prum River, and in the Saar-Mosel triangle. The 167th Liaison Squadron, Ninth
Air Force (attached to the Sixth Army Group), is activated at Vittel, France
with L-4s and L-5s.
MEDITERRANEAN
THEATER OF OPERATIONS (MTO)
STRATEGIC OPERATIONS (Fifteenth Air Force):
During the night of 18/19 Feb,
11 B-24s
drop supplies in N Italy. In Austria during the day almost 500 B-24s and B-17s,
escorted by about 220 P-51s and P-38s, bomb 2 marshalling yards and the S
station area in Vienna, marshalling yards at Klagenfurt, Graz, and Bruck an der
Mur; marshalling yards at Maribor, Yugoslavia; shipyards in Fiume, Italy; and
the Pula, Yugoslavia harbor and military installations. In Austria, 51 P-51s
strafe rail and river traffic and airfields between Linz and Vienna and in the
Graz area; other P-51s and P-38s fly escort and reconnaissance missions.
TACTICAL OPERATIONS (Twelfth Air Force): Brigadier
General Edward M Morris takes command of the XII Air Force Services Command
(until 1 Jan 44 designated the III Air Service Area Command). In Italy, bad
weather grounds the medium bombers; fighter-bombers, some bombing by
radar-control because of heavy clouds, attack-communications and dumps in the W
Po Valley and NE Italy, and claim several rail line cuts in the Brenner area.
PACIFIC
OCEAN AREA (POA)
AAFPOA (Seventh Air Force): 44 B-24s from
Saipan Island are sent against Iwo Jima Island; 14 pound defense positions and
bivouac and storage areas little more than an hour before elements of the US
4th and 5th Marine Divisions make an amphibious landing on the SE coast at 0900
hours; the other
30 B-24s
abort because of cloud cover, mechanical trouble, or arrival over target too
late to make a bomb run. 26 B-24s from Angaur Island bomb Likanan Airfield on
Mindanao Island. During the night of 19/20 Feb, 8 Saipan-based B-24s fly
individual heckler strikes over Chichi Jima Island.
HQ AAF (Twentieth Air Force): Mission 37: 150
B-29s are dispatched to hit the Musashino aircraft plant in Tokyo hoping to
draw air reinforcements away from the Iwo Jima invasion; thick clouds
completely cover the primary target so 119 bomb the port and urban area of
Tokyo; 12 others hit targets of last resort and targets of opportunity; they
claim 39-16-37 Japanese aircraft; 6 B-29s are lost.
SOUTHWEST
PACIFIC AREA [SWPA, Far East Air Force (FEAF)]: Major General Paul B Wurtsmith
becomes Commanding General Thirteenth AF. In Formosa, B-24s bomb Koshun, Heito,
and Takao Airfields and B-25s and fighters on sweeps attack a large number of
targets of opportunity including trains, parked aircraft, buildings, and
coastal vessels. In the C Philippine Islands, US Marine Corps
(USMC)
F4Us under the tactical command of the Thirteenth AF fly napalm strikes against
airfields and other targets. On Luzon Island, fighters, B-25s, and A-20s
continue to support ground forces at San Augustin, Carranglen, Balete Pass, and
Bataan Peninsula and bomb Japanese-held sectors on Corregidor Island. B-24s
bomb Miri Airfield on Borneo.
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