The Royce Mission
On the 9th of April, American and Filipino soldiers on Bataan peninsula surrendered. For the last few weeks the troops had subsisted on starvation rations, despite attempt by blockade runners and submarines to bring supplies […]
History
The Indian Ocean Raid: Bay of Bengal and Trincomalee
The second force involved in the Japanese attack on Ceylon was Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa’s Malay Force, centred on the light carrier Ryujo. This vessel had provided close support for the attacks on Palembang and […]
The Indian Ocean Raid: Colombo
On March 26th, 1942, the Japanese Kido Butai departed from its anchorage at Staring Bay and set course for the Indian Ocean. Five of the six carriers under the command of Admiral Chuichi Nagumo were […]
The Lae-Salamaua Raid
After the attempted raid on Rabaul by Task Force 11 was turned back when the Lexington was spotted by Japanese patrol aircraft, Admiral Wilson Brown retired and considered his next move. He radioed Admiral Nimitz […]
Operation K
The Japanese, keen to press back against the Americans in the Central Pacific as well as keeping up-to-date with developments at Pearl Harbor, planned an audacious mission to conduct a combined bombing/reconnaissance attack on the […]
The Wake-Marcus Raids
The US Navy’s carrier fleet in the Pacific continued to flex its muscles even after the abandoned attempt to attack Rabaul on February 20th. Admiral King in Washington and Nimitz in Hawaii were keen to […]
In Defence of the Lexington
The relatively easy capture of Rabaul in 1942 gave the Japanese a useful base of operations to support offensive moves in the South Pacific. Plans were prepared for landings on the northern coast of New […]
The Evacuation of Rangoon
During their advance southwards, the Japanese had undertaken a limited air offensive against the British colony of Burma, aimed at neutralising the small RAF force based in and around the capital of Rangoon. After inflicting […]
The Fall and Surrender of Java
What has become known as the Japanese ‘Centrifugal Offensive’ had delivered the Empire’s troops to the shores of Java, which was the ultimate objective of the entire strategy. Major facilities in the Philippines and at […]
The Pincer Grip on Java
With Sumatra having fallen, British squadrons regrouped in western Java. The collection of fighter squadrons that had seen action in Malaya and Sumatra were re-organised – most were disbanded, and all remaining pilots and aircraft […]