Target Java
By the beginning of February 1942 the position of Java, the most important island in the Netherlands East Indies, was looking extremely precarious. Borneo and Celebes were already in Japanese hands, and Singapore and Sumatra […]
Articles by PE Matt
Mitsubishi Ki-57 Type 100 “Topsy”
The Mitsubishi Ki-57 started life as a design for a new airliner for Nippon Koku, the Japanese airline. It was derived from the successful Ki-21 bomber, which had impressed the airline with its ability to […]
Curtiss-Wright CW-22 Falcon
The Curtiss-Wright CW-22 was an advanced trainer and sometime reconnaissance aircraft, developed from the company’s CW-19 and the CW-21 Demon designs. Unlike these aircraft, however, the CW-22 was a 2-seat machine. Designed as an advanced […]
The Bombing of Darwin
The port town of Darwin, in Australia’s Northern Territory, had become the main staging base for ships and aircraft heading towards Java. Darwin’s airfields had played host to many units and replacement aircraft bound for Java and the Philippines, along what was an increasingly tenuous […]
The Marshalls-Gilberts Raid
Since the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Pacific Fleet’s carrier force had been kept busy. Whilst waiting for the newly appointed Admiral Chester Nimitz to arrive and take control of the situation, three carriers had […]
In Defence of Sumatra
Even before the fall of Singapore in mid-February 1942, British air forces had been concentrating on the Dutch island of Sumatra in the knowledge that the airfields there were safer than those on the fortress […]
Kawasaki Ki-56 Type 1 “Thalia”
In 1939 Kawasaki had obtained a license to manufacture Lockheed 14-WG3 transports as the “Type LO” for the Japanese Navy. However, the Japanese Army was also interested in obtained transport aircraft, so they ordered Kawasaki […]
Fairey Swordfish
A legendary aircraft of World War II, the Fairey Swordfish wrote itself into history by sinking three Italian battleships in an attack on Taranto and playing a significant role in the sinking of the German […]
Into the Makassar Strait
By January 1942, the Allied air forces had suffered a series of setbacks that forced them to retreat south in the face of the Japanese offensive. The American Far East Air Force withdrew its remaining […]
Aichi E11A Type 98 “Laura”
Whilst the Aichi E10A was accepted for service, the Japanese Navy knew that the aircraft was still lacking in outright performance and only just met the requirements for acceptance. Accordingly, new specifications were issued in […]