We Remember:
1939: Albania: HM King Vittorio Emanuele III comes to the throne after his
predecessor, King Zog I, flees the country. (Andy Etherington)
France: France beat Wales 16-10 in the Rugby Union European Championships in Bordeaux. (Andy Etherington)
U.K.: RAF Chessington in Surrey is officially opened by HM King George VI, as RAF No. 2 Barrage Balloon centre for the defence of London. (Andy Etherington)
U.S.S.R.: The Soviet Union suggests a three-power military alliance with Great Britain and France. (Andy Etherington)
1940: Iceland: The government of Iceland appeals to the US for aid and recognition. (Andy Etherington)
Norway: The submarine HMS Porpoise makes a torpedo attack on U-3 southwest of Stavanger in position 58.18N, 05.47E, U-3 is unharmed. (Andy Etherington)
The British force which landed north of Narvik at Harstad is now in place to begin an attack on Dietl's 4,600 strong occupation force which it has surrounded and cut off from the sea. But their commander, Major General Pierse J. Macksey, wants the weather just right before he attacks, and a series of blizzards has begun, filling the valleys with 8 foot deep snowdrifts. To pass the time, the Guards officers give ski lessons to their men. When there are not enough skis to go around, some of the men switch to tobogganing. To the guards who have never been on toboggans and might need them now for transport in a strange terrain, tobogganing was serious business, to the local Norwegians, it seems that they're just playing in the snow. (Andy Etherington)
U.K. RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - Stavanger, Fornebu, Kjeller and Trondheim Airfields. 10 Sqn. Six a/c to Stavanger. Only one bombed due to weather. Hits claimed causing fires. One a/c to Fornebu and one a/c to Kjeller. Both unable to locate targets due to weather. 77 Sqn. Four a/c from Kinloss to Trondheim. All attacked. One crash landed on return after four crew abandoned a/c.
2 Group: 107 Sqn (Blenheim). 6 a/c to Stavanger to bomb. Only one reaches target due to bad weather. (Andy Etherington)
The FAA:
Gibraltar/Atlantic:
As HMS Ark Royal departs Gibraltar at 1700 in company with the destroyers HMS Vortigern (local escort), HMS Westcott, and HMS Bulldog bound for the Clyde. HMS Glorious, in company with the destroyers HMS Velox and HMS Watchman continue towards the Clyde.
At RNAS Hatston:
Acting Captain C. L. Howe, RN decides that the squadrons should fly an armed reconnaissance mission to Bergen. 803 Squadron was selected and dispatched two Skuas, each armed with a single 250 lb. SAP bomb and 8 x 20 lb. Cooper bombs, with orders to proceed to Bergen and then separate and approach the fjords from the North and South.
The aircraft took off at 0500, separated at 0650, and crossed the coastline at 0705 at 4,000 feet. Each aircraft made a high-speed run, descending to below 1,000 feet as they reconnoitered the surrounding fjords. On the way in, one aircraft sighed, attacked, and badly damaged the patrol vessel Tarantel N. B. 19. On the way out, the other sighted and attacked U-58 that was proceeding up the fjord on the surface, though little damage was caused.
Off Norway:
HMS Furious, now seriously short of fuel, was ordered to Tromso to refuel, anchoring there at 0630. She was thereafter to report to Flag Officer Narvik. (Mark Horan)
Great Britain issues a mobilization order for all men who turn 27 years old during April and May. (Jack McKillop)
1941: Egypt: Wavell stops the Polish Brigade and 7th Australian Division sailing for Greece from Eqypt. He also orders those ships on the way to Greece to turn back, those in Greek ports not yet unloaded should return with their cargoes and those still loading to stop and unload. (Andy Etherington)
Greece: The New Zealand Anzacs battle the German 5th Panzer Division in a stopping action at the Platamon Ridge in Greece. The Germans have problems getting the panzers over the ridge. The cliffs jut out past the beach so that cliffs drop straight into the sea. The railway tunnel running through at the base of the cliffs in this area was sabotaged by the British but the explosion did not close the tunnel. The Germans sent a Panzer through the tunnel where on the other end it met the Anzacs who promptly disabled it at the tunnel exit They were forced to fight for the narrow elevated pass which at that time was the only way past this area. (Steve Stathros)
Italy: Rome: The Italian High Command reports: In Yugoslavia, motorised columns of the Italian 2nd Army, after overcoming enemy resistance, have occupied Split 240 miles from their original positions.
On the Greek front our troops have advanced from the lake district to Vijosa. After violent fighting we occupied and overran Erseka (Albania). In North Africa we are continuing operations at Sollum and the encirclement of the fortress of Tobruk, where the enemy, supported by naval forces, is resisting tenaciously. (Andy Etherington)
Tunisia: In action off Sfax, Tunisia, Capt P. J. Mack with destroyers HMS Janus, HMS Jervis, HMS Mohawk and HMS Nubian from Malta intercept a German Afrika Korps convoy of five transports escorted by three Italian destroyers off Kerkenneh Islands, east of Tunisia. All Axis ships are sunk including the destroyers Baleno (foundered next day), Lampo (later salvaged) and Tarigo. In the fighting HMS Mohawk is torpedoed by Tarigo and has to be scuttled. (Andy Etherington)
U.K.: 685 German aircraft raid London in the biggest raid yet. (Andy Etherington)
The last remaining tower of the Crystal Palace, in London, is demolished
because it makes too clear a landmark. (Andy Etherington)
Al Bowlly, a top dance-band singer, is killed in a London air-raid on
Jermyn Street. (Andy Etherington)
RAF Bomber Command: 2 Group, flying Bristol Blenheim Mk. IV a/c: 107 Sqn straddle a submarine with bombs off Prestkjac in Norway. 110 Sqn bomb Heligoland, but lose one a/c on take-off. 105 Sqn, attacked and hit a 5,000- ton vessel, but lost one a/c to fighters. (Andy Etherington and Jack McKillop)
U.S.: An Associated Press dispatch quotes Ko Ishii (the spokesman for the
Japanese cabinet board of information) as denying absolutely and flatly
that "Japan intended to send an army or navy force against Singapore."
Ishii added:
Premier Prince Konoye already stated that Japan's southward intentions
are clearly and entirely peaceful and economic. This report (about
Singapore) is entirely groundless and the propaganda of war mongers. (Andy
Etherington)
The heavy cruiser USS Vincennes (CA-44) arrives in New York from Simonstown, South Africa. The ship had taken on a large shipment of gold bullion in South Africa to pay for arms purchased in the U.S. by the U.K. (Jack McKillop)
Yugoslavia: German forces enter Sarajevo, Yugoslavia and demolish the main synagogue. (Andy Etherington)
1942: ATLANTIC: The unarmed U.S. freighter SS Alcoa Guide is shelled by German submarine U-123 (which expended her last torpedo on 12 April) east of North Carolina; Alcoa Guide tries to ram the U-boat without success. U-123 pauses to allow the crew to abandon ship and then sinks the freighter with gunfire once the merchant sailors (two of whom die of wounds suffered in action) have gotten away safely. (Jack McKillop)
BURMA: Yenangyaung: Britain's largest oil field in the Far East is a
sheet of flame. The 500-foot high flames silhouette the men of "Burcorps", the remnants of the 17th Indian and 1st Burma Divisions, who have been fighting a delaying action up the Irrawaddy valley and trying to hold on to the oil field.
Three days ago they began to destroy the oil wells to prevent them from
falling into Japanese hands. The oilfields here came under attack after the Japanese forces took Migyaungye on 12 April.
During the night of 16/17 April, 10th Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses take off from Dum Dum Airfield near Calcutta, India to bomb Rangoon. 6 B-17's, guided by flares, bomb the target; numerous searchlights make it impossible to estimate the bombing results. (Jack McKillop)
FRANCE: Under German pressure, Marshal Petain appoints Pierre Laval head of government and himself becomes a ceremonial head of state.
Admiral William D. Leahy, USN (Retired), Ambassador to France, receives a cable from Washington with information that his recall "for consultation" will be announced shortly after the formation of a new Vichy government. (Jack McKillop)
School students stage a demonstration after their history teacher is arrested. (Andy Etherington)
Germany: Germany: Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt, the veteran of the invasion of France and the USSR is appointed C-in-C of the Atlantic Wall
defences. (Andy Etherington)
PACIFIC: The submarine USS Tambor (SS-198) torpedoes and sinks a Japanese stores ship 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Kavieng, New Ireland, Bismarck Archipelago. (Jack McKillop)
PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: The Japanese Kawamura Detachment (41st Infantry) lands unopposed at Iloilo and Capiz on Panay Island. (Jack McKillop)
U.K. King George VI awards Malta the George Cross for collective
heroism isn the face of the Axis air attacks. Lieutenant-General Sir William Dobbie, read: "To honour her brave people I award the George Cross to the Island Fortress of Malta, to bear witness to a heroism and a devotion that will long be famous in history."
Since Hitler ordered that the island be "neutralized" in preparation for invasion four months ago, it has suffered 1,000 air-raids - an average of seven a day. The Maltese people have gone underground, burrowing deep into the soft limestone to build shelters, communications centres and first aid centres, racing for cover when the alert sounds and emerging into the sunlight to carry on a near normal life - given that many Maltese are on desperately short rations - when they hear the "all clear".
The capital, Valetta, is devastated beyond recognition; the Grand Harbour, once the home of the British Mediterranean Fleet, is under such constant bombardment that submarines are forced to remain submerged during daylight. The submarines are an essential part of the island's lifeline. They
bring fuel for the few Spitfires and Hurricanes available to defend Malta from airfields which are bombed daily, with ground crews working round the clock to service the aircraft, often "cannibalizing" wrecked planes for spares.
HMS WELSHMAN, one of the fastest ships in the navy, makes regular dashes from Gibraltar, bringing in food and ammunition to help the island resist a bombardment which - the Germans say - has become the "most accurate in the world." (John Nicholas)
1943: .ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: Kiska Island is bombed and strafed 13 times. A total of 13 Eleventh Air Force B-24 Liberators, 12 B-25 Mitchells, 32 P-40s,
29 P-38 and 2 F-5A Lightnings cover targets which include installations
in the Holtz Bay area and gun positions on North Head. (Jack McKillop)
BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: From his HQ at Rabaul on New Britain Island, Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku orders that Operation I-GO against the Allied forces in the Solomons and New Guinea be halted. He mistakenly believes that the Japanese air offensive has severely destroyed Allied air and naval forces. (Jack McKillop)
BURMA: Tenth Air Force P-40s, bombing a railroad bridge near Mogaung, score a direct hit on the target and blow up both approaches, leaving the bridge temporarily unserviceable. Later in the day the bridge near Pinbaw is demolished by direct hits. Eight B-24s hit the Rangoon Marshaling Yard, 9 B-25s bomb the Thazi rail junction, while 9 more, weathered out of Maymyo, hit rail targets in Mandalay. (Jack McKillop)
CHINA: Fourteenth Air Force P-40's strafe a group of buildings east of Tenchung. (Jack McKillop)
EAST INDIES: RAAF No. 18 (NEI) Squadron B-25s bomb Vila Salazar on Timor. (Jack McKillop)
FRANCE: The VIII Bomber Command flies Mission Number 51: 25 B-24s are dispatched against the Brest U-Boat base while 83 B-17's are dispatched against the Lorient U-Boat base. 19 B-24s drop 52 tons on Brest at 1337-1338 hours; the B-24s claim 2-3-1 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-24s are lost. 59 B-17s bomb Lorient at 1412-1414 hours dropping 147 tons of bombs; they claim 9-4-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 B-17 is lost. The attack is hindered by an effective smoke screen and strong fighter opposition. (Jack McKillop)
The evacuation of all children and non-essential civilians from
the Channel ports of Le Havre, Dieppe, Cherbourg, St Malo and Brest is
announced. (Andy Etherington)
Mediterranean: Destroyer HMS Pakenham in company with HMS Paladin
encounter the Italian torpedo boats Cigno and Cassiopea. Pakenham sink Cigno with gunfire and a torpedo, but not before Cigno has put a shell into her engine room which brings her to a stop. Paladin takes Pakenham in tow, but it is later decided to scuttle Pakenham since air attacks can be expected, and the destroyers are outside the envelope of air cover from Malta. Location 12 miles off Cape Granitola, Sicily at 37 26N 12 30E. (Alex Gordon)
Mexico: Mexico City: Jacques Monard is sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment for the murder of Leon Trotsky, including six-months for carrying an ice-pick. (Andy Etherington)
NEW GUINEA: Fifth Air Force B-24s bomb Kaimana, Wewak, Madang, and Lae. B-17s pound shipping at Wewak damaging the destroyer HIJMS Tachikaze. (Jack McKillop)
SICILY: Ninth Air Force B-24's attack a tanker in Catania harbor, scoring several hits on the target and in surrounding areas.
Northwest African Air Force B-17s bomb the dock area at Palermo. (Jack McKillop)
SOLOMON ISLANDS: Thirteenth Air Force B-17s bomb Kahili Airfield on Bougainville. (Jack McKillop)
TUNISIA: The British Eighth Army abandons their attempts to force a German retreat from Enfidaville by quick jabs and prepares to launch a full-scale assault during the night of 19/20 April.
Ninth Air Force fighters fly sea patrol.
Northwest African Air Force fighters strafe trucks during the night of 15/16 April and during the following day. A-20s and fighter-bombers bomb Djqobel el Raar and concentrations located in various wadis in the battle area. Aircraft maintain sea reconnaissance and patrols while B-25s and B-26s hit the Oudns landing ground and P-38s bomb vessels near Cape Zebib and at Cape el Ahmar. (Jack McKillop)
U.K. The Polish Government requests a Red Cross investigation of the Katyn Massacre. (John Nicholas)
1944: ATLANTIC: The armed U.S. tanker SS Pan Pennsylvania, in United
Kingdom-bound convoy CU 1, is torpedoed by German submarine U-550 150 miles (241 km) east of Ambrose Light, New York. Later, destroyer escort USS Gandy (DE-764) is damaged when she intentionally rams U-550 off Nantucket Shoals, and teams with destroyer escorts USS Peterson (DE-152) and USS Joyce (DE-317) to sink the U-boat. Twelve of the 56-man U-boat crew survive. During the action, shells from the destroyer escorts set afire Pan Pennsylvania's abandoned wreck. (Jack McKillop)
BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: On New Britain Island, 24 Thirteenth Air Force B-25s hit the Ratawul supply area and alternate target of Raluana; at Rabaul 30+ fighter-bombers attack area inland from Toboi wharf. (Jack McKillop)
BURMA: 1 2 Tenth Air Force B-25s hit a bridge over the Mogaung River while 9 others, along with 12 P-51s, hit a warehouse and railroad station at Mohnyin; 9 P-38s destroy 3 medium bombers at Zayatkwin near Rangoon while 2 P-51s in the Mandalay area hit Anisakan Airfield, destroying 2 airplanes. (Jack McKillop)
Air Commando Combat Mission N0. 44 Ê3:00 Flight Time Hailakandi, Assam to Mahnyin, Burma. Bombed supply dump. (Chuck Baisden)
CAROLINE ISLANDS: Seventh Air Force B-25s, staging through Eniwetok Atoll, strike Truk Atoll.
15 Thirteenth Air Force B-24s bomb the runway at Satawan Atoll.
RAAF Catalinas mine the principal entrances to Woleai Atoll to prevent the Japanese from using them during the projected Hollandia operations. The evolution is repeated on 18 and 19 April. (Jack McKillop)
EAST INDIES: Fifth Air Force B-25s bomb Koepang on Timor Island. (Jack McKillop)
ITALY: Twelfth Air Force B-25s bomb approaches to Ficulle and Todi railway bridges; A-20 Havocs hit fuel supplies; P-40s, P-47 Thunderbolts and A-36 Apaches hit the Capranica viaduct, town of Zagarolo, railway at Spigno Monferrato, marshalling yard at Orte-Terni, tunnel at Capranica and tracks, vehicles, railway cars, ammunition dump, bridge, and targets of opportunity at various points in central Italy. (Jack McKillop)
MARSHALL ISLANDS: Seventh Air Force B-25s, from Abemama Island hit Maloelap and Mille Atolls, using Majuro Atoll as a rearming base between the strikes. (Jack McKillop)
NEW GUINEA: 170+ Fifth Air Force B-24s, B-25s and A-20s bomb Hollandia town and airfield and numerous other targets in the area; P-39 Airacobras hit a wooded area and communications targets along Hansa Bay and attack villages and supply dumps from Bogia to Uligan Harbor; P-38s hit the Madang area; B-24s and PB4Y Liberators and PBY Catalinas fly a light strike against Wakde Island; other aircraft, operating singly or in pairs, attack targets of opportunity on the northern coast of New Guinea and southeastern coast of New Britain Island in the Bismarck Archipelago. (Jack McKillop)
PACIFIC: The submarine USS Paddle (SS-263) attacks a Japanese convoy and sinks an army transport and a merchant cargo ship in the Ceram Sea.
The submarine USS Redfin (SS-272) continues to pursue the convoy attacked the previous day, sinking an army cargo ship in Moro Gulf, southwest of Mindanao, Philippine Islands.
The movement of Japanese convoy TAKE No.1, carrying elements of the Imperial Army's 32d and 35th Divisions to reinforce garrisons in the Halmaheras and in northwestern New Guinea, gets underway as four transports, and escorts, depart Pusan, Korea. (Jack McKillop)
RUMANIA AND YUGOSLAVIA: 432 Fifteenth Air Force B-17s and B-24s hit targets in Rumania and Yugoslavia; B-17s bomb the industrial area at Belgrade, Yugoslavia and an aircraft plant at Brasov,Rumania; B-24s hit marshalling yards at Brasov and Turnu Severin, Rumania; 90+ fighters fly escort while 50+ others, failing to rendezvous with the bombers, strafe trains on the Craiova line east of Turnu Severin. (Jack McKillop)
U.S. The U.S. Navy's last battleship, USS Wisconsin (BB-64), is commissioned at the US Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.S.R. Soviet General Eremenko's Independent Maritime Army has taken Yalta in the Crimea. This is the last port apart from Sevastopol through which the Germans can escape the Crimea. Sevastopol's airfield at Kacha has also been captured and, as fighting rages across the old battlefields of Balaklava and Inkerman, the position of Germany's 17th Army looks hopeless. (John Nicholas and Andy Etherington)
A terrible toll is being taken of the Germans as they try to escape. A German correspondent describes how "bombers, dive-bombers and fighters in endless procession are raining their bombs on our ships and riddling them with cannon fire." Sevastopol harbour is choked with sunken ships and the bodies of drowned men. (Andy Etherington)
In the Ukraine, Marshal Rodion Malinovsky's troops cross the Dniester at
Tiraspol. (Andy Etherington)
1945: ATLANTIC: The German submarine U-1235 is sunk in the North Atlantic by destroyer escorts USS Frost (DE-144) and USS Stanton (DE-247). All 57 crewmen on the U-boat are lost. (Jack McKillop)
German submarine U-880 is sunk in the North Atlantic by depth charges
from the destroyer escorts USS Frost (DE-144) and USS Stanton (DE-247).
All 49 crewmen on the U-boat are lost. (Jack McKillop)
Minesweeper HMCS Esquimalt is attacked and sunk by U-190 (Oberleutnant Hans-Edwin Reith) off Halifax, Nova Scotia at 44 28N 63 10W. There are 44 casualties. (Alex Gordon)
Frigate HMS Ekins strikes a mine at 2115 which causes her boiler room to
flood, and she lies dead in the water. At 2140 she drifts onto another mine and this causes further flooding. The shipâs company are able to get the ship moving again, and she returns to the Medway under her own power, but after survey is paid off and not repaired. Location: 24 miles NW Ostend. (Alex Gordon)
Baltic Sea: The Goya, another German ship similar to the Wilhelm Gustloff
(see January 30, 1945), was sunk in the Baltic taking with it 6,000 lives,
making these two ships the worst naval disasters of all time (John Nicholas)
Belgium: RAF Meteor III jets make their first operational sortie on the
Continent. (Andy Etherington)
BORNEO: Far East Air Force P-38s attack the Lingkas Tank Farm and other targets at Tarakan. (Jack McKillop)
Burma: Allied advances are continuing in Burma, with the capital, Rangoon, now firmly in General Slim's sights. Today it was the turn of Taungup, in the Arakan peninsula, to fall to XV Corps, while inland IV Corps is chasing General Honda's 33rd Japanese Army down the Sittang Valley towards Pyinmanna. The Japanese forces are also in retreat along the Irrawaddy, where XXXIII Corps is driving south to oil-rich Yenangyaung.
62 Tenth Air Force) P-38s and P-47s attack troop concentrations and supply areas at Loi-Mwe, Lawksawk, Thongdan, and near Laihka; 312 transport sorties are flown to forward areas. (Jack McKillop)
22 Tenth Air Force fighter-bombers attack troop concentrations in the
Ke-hsi Mansam vicinity; 19 others attack road bridges behind enemy lines, claiming a bridge destroyed; air transport operations to forward areas continue on steady basis. (Jack McKillop)
CHINA: 18 Fourteenth Air Force B-24s pound a storage area at Linfen; 3 bomb targets of opportunity in the Bakli Bay, Hainan Island and Canton areas; 10 B-25s bomb Yungfengshih, Kweilin, and Shanhsien, knocking out a bridge and hitting buildings, river shipping, and rail traffic. About 120 fighter-bombers over southern and eastern China hit river, road, and rail traffic, town areas, troops, and general targets of opportunity at many scattered locations. (Jack McKillop)
FORMOSA: Far East Air Forces B-25s hit Taien Airfield, while B-24s and P-51s bomb Giran and Matsuyama Airfields and nearby areas. During the night of 15/16 April, B-24s bomb Taihoku. (Jack McKillop)
FRANCE: The Eighth Air Force flies Mission 955: During the morning, 485 B-17s bomb the tank ditch defense line at Pointe de Grave on the south side of the Gironde estuary in the Bordeaux area in support of the ground assault in that area. (Jack McKillop)
GERMANY: The final great offensive of the Red Army against Germany, the Berlin operation begins with Gen. G.K. Zhukov's 1st Belorussian Front attacking west of the Oder near Kuestrin, and Gen. Konev's 1st Ukrainian Front attacking south across the Neisse to envelop Busse's 9th Army and drive on to the southern flanks of the doomed German capital. The Russians meet initial stiff resistance at the Seelow Heights, a fortified defensive position which dominates the flood-plain of the Oder(Oderbruch), and controls access to the main land route to Berlin. After 3 days bitter fighting, and nearly 30,000 casualites, the Russians continue toward Berlin,less than 50 miles to the west. (Russ Folsom)
The US 7th Army reaches Nuremburg. (John Nicholas)
The Colditz POW camp is liberated. (John Nicholas)
The Eighth Air Force flies Mission 954: In the afternoon, 1,252 bombers and 913 fighters are dispatched to attack rail targets; they claim 727-0-373 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 B-24 and 31 fighters are lost.
- 273 B-24s bomb the marshalling yard at Landshut; a B-24 is lost. Escorting are 299 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 228-0-109 aircraft on the ground; a P-47 and 16 P-51s are lost.
- 148 B-17s bomb the Regensburg marshalling yard, 72 bomb the Regensburg East rail bridge and 74 bomb the Regensburg West rail bridge; 77 hit the Platting marshalling yard; and 76 attack the rail bridge at Straubing. The escort is 240 P-51s; they claim 2-0-0 aircraft in the air and 86-0-66 on the ground; 3 P-51s are lost.
- 286 P-51s fly a freelance mission in support of the bombers attacking 40+ landing grounds in Germany and Czechoslovakia; they claim 1-0-1 aircraft in the air and 410-0-198 on the ground; 9 P-51s are lost.
About 450 Ninth Air Force A-20s, A-26 Invaders and B-26s bomb the Zerbst communications center, Gunzenhausen marshalling yard, Kempten ordnance depot, and Wittenberg marshalling yard and gun positions; the IX Tactical Air Command's fighters claim 25 air victories during the day as they escort the bombers, fly patrols, area cover, and armed reconnaissance, attack airfields and other targets, and support the US 3rd Armored Division
southwest of Dessau, the 9th Armored Division in the Bennewitz-Colditz area along the Mulde River, the XX Corps which remains at the Zwickauer Mulde River bridgehead northeast of Chemnitz, the VIII Corps crossing the Weisse Elster River between Gera and Plauen, the 2d Armored Division on the Elbe River near Magdeburg, the XIX Corps east of Barby, and the V Corps near Leipzig.
36 Fifteenth Air Force P-51s sweep areas south of Munich; Pie, Czechoslovakia; and Linz, Austria, and 4 strafe an airfield east of Munich. (Jack McKillop)
258 Ninth Air Force B-26s and A-26 Invaders bomb marshalling yards at
Gunzburg and Ulm (primary targets) and several other targets including 3
marshalling yards; fighters escort the bombers, fly patrols and armed
reconnaissance, and support the US 3d Armored Division near Dessau and
across the Mulde River near Torten, the 9th Armored Division along the
Mulde northwest of Borna, the VIII Corps along Weisse Elster River
between Gera and Plauen, the XX Corps astride the Mulde NE of Chemnitz
(where the 6th Armored Division awaits Red Army forces), and the 2d
Armored Division on the Elbe River near Magdeburg. (Andy Etherington)
ITALY: During the night of 15/16 April, Twelfth Air Force A-20s and A-26s hit Po River crossings, the towns of Vignola, Zoeca, and Sass, and several targets of opportunity in the Po Valley; during the day B-25s and B-26s bomb bridges on the Reno River near Bologna, blast troop reserve areas southeast of Portomaggiore on the British Eighth Army front, and attack troop concentrations south of Portomaggiore; fighters and fighter- bombers concentrate most of their effort on close support targets in the US Fifth Army battle area south and southwest of Bologna.
98 Fifteenth Air Force B-24s, escorted by 102 P-51s, bomb positions southwest of Bologna; almost 700 B-24s and B-17s abort due to bad weather.
The Fifteenth Air Force dispatches 36 P-38s and 36 P-51s strafe rail communications in the area bounded by Munich, Germany, Salzburg and Linz, Austria, Plzen, Czechoslovakia, and Regensburg, Germany; 12 of the P-38s skipbomb rail targets in the Salzburg-Linz, Austria area, including the Vocklabruck marshalling yard; 8 P-38s furnish top cover for the strafing missions. (Jack McKillop)
JAPAN: In the Kurile Islands, Eleventh Air Force B-25s abort a mission to bomb Hayakegawa because of weather front; 6 B-24s radar bomb the Kataoka naval base on Shimushu Island; another B-24 flies a radar-ferret sortie.
The VII Fighter Command flies Mission 3: In the first very long range
fighter operation from Iwo Jima, P-51s with XXI Bomber Command B-29Superfortress navigational escorts, strafe and bomb targets at Kanoya Airfield on Kyushu Island; 4 P-51s are lost; B-29s continue to furnish navigational escort in all subsequent VII Fighter Command strikes (through 14 August) on Japan from Iwo Jima. (Jack McKillop)
MARIANA ISLANDS: 2 Seventh Air Force P-61 Black Widows from Saipan bomb and strafe Pagan Island. (Jack McKillop)
Okinawa: The U.S. Army's 77th Infantry Division, less the 307th Infantry Regiment, lands on the south and southwest coast of Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands. The island of Ie Shima is located off the northwest coast of Okinawa at 26.43N, 127.47E. (John Nicholas and Jack McKillop)
PACIFIC: 18 Guam-based Seventh Air Force B-24s bomb Marcus Island in the North Pacific.
Japanese ships sunk at sea:
- Submarine USS Sea Dog (SS-401) sinks a merchant cargo ship off Mikura
Jima.
- Submarine USS Sunfish (SS-281) attacks a convoy emerging from Yamado Harbor, Honshu, and sinks a coast defense vessel and a transport. (Jack McKillop)
PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: Far East Air Forces fighter bombers hit northern Luzon bivouacs and other targets and support strikes and sweeps are flown over Cebu, Negros, and Mindanao Islands with B-25s hitting highways on Mindanao Island and B-24s hit defenses on Carabao Island. (Jack McKillop)
The 1st Battalion, 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division, makes an unopposed landing on Carabao Island in Manila Bay. The landing had been supported by the light cruiser USS Phoenix (CL-46), two destroyers and two infantry landing craft (rocket) [LCI(R)s]. The Phoenix had blown a hole in the seawall and the only thing encountered by the soldiers was "one badly shaken pig." (Jack McKillop)
Ft. Frank, a "concrete battleship", in Manila Bay is attacked with fuel oil
and allowed to burn. Ft. Drum had been similarily attacked on the 14th.
This completes the capture of Japanese positions in Manila Bay. (John Nicholas)
RYUKYU ISLANDS: Off Okinawa, kamikazes sink destroyer USS Pringle (DD-477); and damage battleship USS Missouri (BB-63); aircraft carrier USS Intrepid (CV-11); destroyer USS Bryant (DD-665); destroyer escort USS Bowers (DE-637); high speed minesweepers USS Hobson (DMS-26) and USS Harding (DMS-28); and oiler USS Taluga (AO-62). (Jack McKillop)
VOLCANO ISLANDS: Iwo Jima is declared secure.
Center Field (Motoyama Airfield No. 2 to the Japanese) is declared operational. The airfield will be used by damaged B-29s returning from missions to Japan. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.: The federal government tacked another year on to the term of one of Roosevelt's key pieces of wartime legislation, the Lend-Lease Act. All told, the U.S. funneled US$50.6 billion (US$496 in year 2001 dollars) worth of Lend-Lease aid to the Allies during the war, the majority of which went to Britain and the USSR. (Jack McKillop)
Top popular hits on the music charts are "My Dreams are Getting
Better All the Time" by The Pied Pipers; "I'm Beginning to See the
Light" by Harry James and his Orchestra with vocal by Kitty Kallen;
"Candy" by Johnny Mercer and Jo Stafford; and "Smoke on the Water" by
Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. (Jack McKillop)
1939: Albania: HM King Vittorio Emanuele III comes to the throne after his
predecessor, King Zog I, flees the country. (Andy Etherington)
France: France beat Wales 16-10 in the Rugby Union European Championships in Bordeaux. (Andy Etherington)
U.K.: RAF Chessington in Surrey is officially opened by HM King George VI, as RAF No. 2 Barrage Balloon centre for the defence of London. (Andy Etherington)
U.S.S.R.: The Soviet Union suggests a three-power military alliance with Great Britain and France. (Andy Etherington)
1940: Iceland: The government of Iceland appeals to the US for aid and recognition. (Andy Etherington)
Norway: The submarine HMS Porpoise makes a torpedo attack on U-3 southwest of Stavanger in position 58.18N, 05.47E, U-3 is unharmed. (Andy Etherington)
The British force which landed north of Narvik at Harstad is now in place to begin an attack on Dietl's 4,600 strong occupation force which it has surrounded and cut off from the sea. But their commander, Major General Pierse J. Macksey, wants the weather just right before he attacks, and a series of blizzards has begun, filling the valleys with 8 foot deep snowdrifts. To pass the time, the Guards officers give ski lessons to their men. When there are not enough skis to go around, some of the men switch to tobogganing. To the guards who have never been on toboggans and might need them now for transport in a strange terrain, tobogganing was serious business, to the local Norwegians, it seems that they're just playing in the snow. (Andy Etherington)
U.K. RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - Stavanger, Fornebu, Kjeller and Trondheim Airfields. 10 Sqn. Six a/c to Stavanger. Only one bombed due to weather. Hits claimed causing fires. One a/c to Fornebu and one a/c to Kjeller. Both unable to locate targets due to weather. 77 Sqn. Four a/c from Kinloss to Trondheim. All attacked. One crash landed on return after four crew abandoned a/c.
2 Group: 107 Sqn (Blenheim). 6 a/c to Stavanger to bomb. Only one reaches target due to bad weather. (Andy Etherington)
The FAA:
Gibraltar/Atlantic:
As HMS Ark Royal departs Gibraltar at 1700 in company with the destroyers HMS Vortigern (local escort), HMS Westcott, and HMS Bulldog bound for the Clyde. HMS Glorious, in company with the destroyers HMS Velox and HMS Watchman continue towards the Clyde.
At RNAS Hatston:
Acting Captain C. L. Howe, RN decides that the squadrons should fly an armed reconnaissance mission to Bergen. 803 Squadron was selected and dispatched two Skuas, each armed with a single 250 lb. SAP bomb and 8 x 20 lb. Cooper bombs, with orders to proceed to Bergen and then separate and approach the fjords from the North and South.
The aircraft took off at 0500, separated at 0650, and crossed the coastline at 0705 at 4,000 feet. Each aircraft made a high-speed run, descending to below 1,000 feet as they reconnoitered the surrounding fjords. On the way in, one aircraft sighed, attacked, and badly damaged the patrol vessel Tarantel N. B. 19. On the way out, the other sighted and attacked U-58 that was proceeding up the fjord on the surface, though little damage was caused.
Off Norway:
HMS Furious, now seriously short of fuel, was ordered to Tromso to refuel, anchoring there at 0630. She was thereafter to report to Flag Officer Narvik. (Mark Horan)
Great Britain issues a mobilization order for all men who turn 27 years old during April and May. (Jack McKillop)
1941: Egypt: Wavell stops the Polish Brigade and 7th Australian Division sailing for Greece from Eqypt. He also orders those ships on the way to Greece to turn back, those in Greek ports not yet unloaded should return with their cargoes and those still loading to stop and unload. (Andy Etherington)
Greece: The New Zealand Anzacs battle the German 5th Panzer Division in a stopping action at the Platamon Ridge in Greece. The Germans have problems getting the panzers over the ridge. The cliffs jut out past the beach so that cliffs drop straight into the sea. The railway tunnel running through at the base of the cliffs in this area was sabotaged by the British but the explosion did not close the tunnel. The Germans sent a Panzer through the tunnel where on the other end it met the Anzacs who promptly disabled it at the tunnel exit They were forced to fight for the narrow elevated pass which at that time was the only way past this area. (Steve Stathros)
Italy: Rome: The Italian High Command reports: In Yugoslavia, motorised columns of the Italian 2nd Army, after overcoming enemy resistance, have occupied Split 240 miles from their original positions.
On the Greek front our troops have advanced from the lake district to Vijosa. After violent fighting we occupied and overran Erseka (Albania). In North Africa we are continuing operations at Sollum and the encirclement of the fortress of Tobruk, where the enemy, supported by naval forces, is resisting tenaciously. (Andy Etherington)
Tunisia: In action off Sfax, Tunisia, Capt P. J. Mack with destroyers HMS Janus, HMS Jervis, HMS Mohawk and HMS Nubian from Malta intercept a German Afrika Korps convoy of five transports escorted by three Italian destroyers off Kerkenneh Islands, east of Tunisia. All Axis ships are sunk including the destroyers Baleno (foundered next day), Lampo (later salvaged) and Tarigo. In the fighting HMS Mohawk is torpedoed by Tarigo and has to be scuttled. (Andy Etherington)
U.K.: 685 German aircraft raid London in the biggest raid yet. (Andy Etherington)
The last remaining tower of the Crystal Palace, in London, is demolished
because it makes too clear a landmark. (Andy Etherington)
Al Bowlly, a top dance-band singer, is killed in a London air-raid on
Jermyn Street. (Andy Etherington)
RAF Bomber Command: 2 Group, flying Bristol Blenheim Mk. IV a/c: 107 Sqn straddle a submarine with bombs off Prestkjac in Norway. 110 Sqn bomb Heligoland, but lose one a/c on take-off. 105 Sqn, attacked and hit a 5,000- ton vessel, but lost one a/c to fighters. (Andy Etherington and Jack McKillop)
U.S.: An Associated Press dispatch quotes Ko Ishii (the spokesman for the
Japanese cabinet board of information) as denying absolutely and flatly
that "Japan intended to send an army or navy force against Singapore."
Ishii added:
Premier Prince Konoye already stated that Japan's southward intentions
are clearly and entirely peaceful and economic. This report (about
Singapore) is entirely groundless and the propaganda of war mongers. (Andy
Etherington)
The heavy cruiser USS Vincennes (CA-44) arrives in New York from Simonstown, South Africa. The ship had taken on a large shipment of gold bullion in South Africa to pay for arms purchased in the U.S. by the U.K. (Jack McKillop)
Yugoslavia: German forces enter Sarajevo, Yugoslavia and demolish the main synagogue. (Andy Etherington)
1942: ATLANTIC: The unarmed U.S. freighter SS Alcoa Guide is shelled by German submarine U-123 (which expended her last torpedo on 12 April) east of North Carolina; Alcoa Guide tries to ram the U-boat without success. U-123 pauses to allow the crew to abandon ship and then sinks the freighter with gunfire once the merchant sailors (two of whom die of wounds suffered in action) have gotten away safely. (Jack McKillop)
BURMA: Yenangyaung: Britain's largest oil field in the Far East is a
sheet of flame. The 500-foot high flames silhouette the men of "Burcorps", the remnants of the 17th Indian and 1st Burma Divisions, who have been fighting a delaying action up the Irrawaddy valley and trying to hold on to the oil field.
Three days ago they began to destroy the oil wells to prevent them from
falling into Japanese hands. The oilfields here came under attack after the Japanese forces took Migyaungye on 12 April.
During the night of 16/17 April, 10th Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses take off from Dum Dum Airfield near Calcutta, India to bomb Rangoon. 6 B-17's, guided by flares, bomb the target; numerous searchlights make it impossible to estimate the bombing results. (Jack McKillop)
FRANCE: Under German pressure, Marshal Petain appoints Pierre Laval head of government and himself becomes a ceremonial head of state.
Admiral William D. Leahy, USN (Retired), Ambassador to France, receives a cable from Washington with information that his recall "for consultation" will be announced shortly after the formation of a new Vichy government. (Jack McKillop)
School students stage a demonstration after their history teacher is arrested. (Andy Etherington)
Germany: Germany: Field Marshal Gerd von Rundstedt, the veteran of the invasion of France and the USSR is appointed C-in-C of the Atlantic Wall
defences. (Andy Etherington)
PACIFIC: The submarine USS Tambor (SS-198) torpedoes and sinks a Japanese stores ship 50 miles (80 km) southeast of Kavieng, New Ireland, Bismarck Archipelago. (Jack McKillop)
PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: The Japanese Kawamura Detachment (41st Infantry) lands unopposed at Iloilo and Capiz on Panay Island. (Jack McKillop)
U.K. King George VI awards Malta the George Cross for collective
heroism isn the face of the Axis air attacks. Lieutenant-General Sir William Dobbie, read: "To honour her brave people I award the George Cross to the Island Fortress of Malta, to bear witness to a heroism and a devotion that will long be famous in history."
Since Hitler ordered that the island be "neutralized" in preparation for invasion four months ago, it has suffered 1,000 air-raids - an average of seven a day. The Maltese people have gone underground, burrowing deep into the soft limestone to build shelters, communications centres and first aid centres, racing for cover when the alert sounds and emerging into the sunlight to carry on a near normal life - given that many Maltese are on desperately short rations - when they hear the "all clear".
The capital, Valetta, is devastated beyond recognition; the Grand Harbour, once the home of the British Mediterranean Fleet, is under such constant bombardment that submarines are forced to remain submerged during daylight. The submarines are an essential part of the island's lifeline. They
bring fuel for the few Spitfires and Hurricanes available to defend Malta from airfields which are bombed daily, with ground crews working round the clock to service the aircraft, often "cannibalizing" wrecked planes for spares.
HMS WELSHMAN, one of the fastest ships in the navy, makes regular dashes from Gibraltar, bringing in food and ammunition to help the island resist a bombardment which - the Germans say - has become the "most accurate in the world." (John Nicholas)
1943: .ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: Kiska Island is bombed and strafed 13 times. A total of 13 Eleventh Air Force B-24 Liberators, 12 B-25 Mitchells, 32 P-40s,
29 P-38 and 2 F-5A Lightnings cover targets which include installations
in the Holtz Bay area and gun positions on North Head. (Jack McKillop)
BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: From his HQ at Rabaul on New Britain Island, Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku orders that Operation I-GO against the Allied forces in the Solomons and New Guinea be halted. He mistakenly believes that the Japanese air offensive has severely destroyed Allied air and naval forces. (Jack McKillop)
BURMA: Tenth Air Force P-40s, bombing a railroad bridge near Mogaung, score a direct hit on the target and blow up both approaches, leaving the bridge temporarily unserviceable. Later in the day the bridge near Pinbaw is demolished by direct hits. Eight B-24s hit the Rangoon Marshaling Yard, 9 B-25s bomb the Thazi rail junction, while 9 more, weathered out of Maymyo, hit rail targets in Mandalay. (Jack McKillop)
CHINA: Fourteenth Air Force P-40's strafe a group of buildings east of Tenchung. (Jack McKillop)
EAST INDIES: RAAF No. 18 (NEI) Squadron B-25s bomb Vila Salazar on Timor. (Jack McKillop)
FRANCE: The VIII Bomber Command flies Mission Number 51: 25 B-24s are dispatched against the Brest U-Boat base while 83 B-17's are dispatched against the Lorient U-Boat base. 19 B-24s drop 52 tons on Brest at 1337-1338 hours; the B-24s claim 2-3-1 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-24s are lost. 59 B-17s bomb Lorient at 1412-1414 hours dropping 147 tons of bombs; they claim 9-4-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 B-17 is lost. The attack is hindered by an effective smoke screen and strong fighter opposition. (Jack McKillop)
The evacuation of all children and non-essential civilians from
the Channel ports of Le Havre, Dieppe, Cherbourg, St Malo and Brest is
announced. (Andy Etherington)
Mediterranean: Destroyer HMS Pakenham in company with HMS Paladin
encounter the Italian torpedo boats Cigno and Cassiopea. Pakenham sink Cigno with gunfire and a torpedo, but not before Cigno has put a shell into her engine room which brings her to a stop. Paladin takes Pakenham in tow, but it is later decided to scuttle Pakenham since air attacks can be expected, and the destroyers are outside the envelope of air cover from Malta. Location 12 miles off Cape Granitola, Sicily at 37 26N 12 30E. (Alex Gordon)
Mexico: Mexico City: Jacques Monard is sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment for the murder of Leon Trotsky, including six-months for carrying an ice-pick. (Andy Etherington)
NEW GUINEA: Fifth Air Force B-24s bomb Kaimana, Wewak, Madang, and Lae. B-17s pound shipping at Wewak damaging the destroyer HIJMS Tachikaze. (Jack McKillop)
SICILY: Ninth Air Force B-24's attack a tanker in Catania harbor, scoring several hits on the target and in surrounding areas.
Northwest African Air Force B-17s bomb the dock area at Palermo. (Jack McKillop)
SOLOMON ISLANDS: Thirteenth Air Force B-17s bomb Kahili Airfield on Bougainville. (Jack McKillop)
TUNISIA: The British Eighth Army abandons their attempts to force a German retreat from Enfidaville by quick jabs and prepares to launch a full-scale assault during the night of 19/20 April.
Ninth Air Force fighters fly sea patrol.
Northwest African Air Force fighters strafe trucks during the night of 15/16 April and during the following day. A-20s and fighter-bombers bomb Djqobel el Raar and concentrations located in various wadis in the battle area. Aircraft maintain sea reconnaissance and patrols while B-25s and B-26s hit the Oudns landing ground and P-38s bomb vessels near Cape Zebib and at Cape el Ahmar. (Jack McKillop)
U.K. The Polish Government requests a Red Cross investigation of the Katyn Massacre. (John Nicholas)
1944: ATLANTIC: The armed U.S. tanker SS Pan Pennsylvania, in United
Kingdom-bound convoy CU 1, is torpedoed by German submarine U-550 150 miles (241 km) east of Ambrose Light, New York. Later, destroyer escort USS Gandy (DE-764) is damaged when she intentionally rams U-550 off Nantucket Shoals, and teams with destroyer escorts USS Peterson (DE-152) and USS Joyce (DE-317) to sink the U-boat. Twelve of the 56-man U-boat crew survive. During the action, shells from the destroyer escorts set afire Pan Pennsylvania's abandoned wreck. (Jack McKillop)
BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: On New Britain Island, 24 Thirteenth Air Force B-25s hit the Ratawul supply area and alternate target of Raluana; at Rabaul 30+ fighter-bombers attack area inland from Toboi wharf. (Jack McKillop)
BURMA: 1 2 Tenth Air Force B-25s hit a bridge over the Mogaung River while 9 others, along with 12 P-51s, hit a warehouse and railroad station at Mohnyin; 9 P-38s destroy 3 medium bombers at Zayatkwin near Rangoon while 2 P-51s in the Mandalay area hit Anisakan Airfield, destroying 2 airplanes. (Jack McKillop)
Air Commando Combat Mission N0. 44 Ê3:00 Flight Time Hailakandi, Assam to Mahnyin, Burma. Bombed supply dump. (Chuck Baisden)
CAROLINE ISLANDS: Seventh Air Force B-25s, staging through Eniwetok Atoll, strike Truk Atoll.
15 Thirteenth Air Force B-24s bomb the runway at Satawan Atoll.
RAAF Catalinas mine the principal entrances to Woleai Atoll to prevent the Japanese from using them during the projected Hollandia operations. The evolution is repeated on 18 and 19 April. (Jack McKillop)
EAST INDIES: Fifth Air Force B-25s bomb Koepang on Timor Island. (Jack McKillop)
ITALY: Twelfth Air Force B-25s bomb approaches to Ficulle and Todi railway bridges; A-20 Havocs hit fuel supplies; P-40s, P-47 Thunderbolts and A-36 Apaches hit the Capranica viaduct, town of Zagarolo, railway at Spigno Monferrato, marshalling yard at Orte-Terni, tunnel at Capranica and tracks, vehicles, railway cars, ammunition dump, bridge, and targets of opportunity at various points in central Italy. (Jack McKillop)
MARSHALL ISLANDS: Seventh Air Force B-25s, from Abemama Island hit Maloelap and Mille Atolls, using Majuro Atoll as a rearming base between the strikes. (Jack McKillop)
NEW GUINEA: 170+ Fifth Air Force B-24s, B-25s and A-20s bomb Hollandia town and airfield and numerous other targets in the area; P-39 Airacobras hit a wooded area and communications targets along Hansa Bay and attack villages and supply dumps from Bogia to Uligan Harbor; P-38s hit the Madang area; B-24s and PB4Y Liberators and PBY Catalinas fly a light strike against Wakde Island; other aircraft, operating singly or in pairs, attack targets of opportunity on the northern coast of New Guinea and southeastern coast of New Britain Island in the Bismarck Archipelago. (Jack McKillop)
PACIFIC: The submarine USS Paddle (SS-263) attacks a Japanese convoy and sinks an army transport and a merchant cargo ship in the Ceram Sea.
The submarine USS Redfin (SS-272) continues to pursue the convoy attacked the previous day, sinking an army cargo ship in Moro Gulf, southwest of Mindanao, Philippine Islands.
The movement of Japanese convoy TAKE No.1, carrying elements of the Imperial Army's 32d and 35th Divisions to reinforce garrisons in the Halmaheras and in northwestern New Guinea, gets underway as four transports, and escorts, depart Pusan, Korea. (Jack McKillop)
RUMANIA AND YUGOSLAVIA: 432 Fifteenth Air Force B-17s and B-24s hit targets in Rumania and Yugoslavia; B-17s bomb the industrial area at Belgrade, Yugoslavia and an aircraft plant at Brasov,Rumania; B-24s hit marshalling yards at Brasov and Turnu Severin, Rumania; 90+ fighters fly escort while 50+ others, failing to rendezvous with the bombers, strafe trains on the Craiova line east of Turnu Severin. (Jack McKillop)
U.S. The U.S. Navy's last battleship, USS Wisconsin (BB-64), is commissioned at the US Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.S.R. Soviet General Eremenko's Independent Maritime Army has taken Yalta in the Crimea. This is the last port apart from Sevastopol through which the Germans can escape the Crimea. Sevastopol's airfield at Kacha has also been captured and, as fighting rages across the old battlefields of Balaklava and Inkerman, the position of Germany's 17th Army looks hopeless. (John Nicholas and Andy Etherington)
A terrible toll is being taken of the Germans as they try to escape. A German correspondent describes how "bombers, dive-bombers and fighters in endless procession are raining their bombs on our ships and riddling them with cannon fire." Sevastopol harbour is choked with sunken ships and the bodies of drowned men. (Andy Etherington)
In the Ukraine, Marshal Rodion Malinovsky's troops cross the Dniester at
Tiraspol. (Andy Etherington)
1945: ATLANTIC: The German submarine U-1235 is sunk in the North Atlantic by destroyer escorts USS Frost (DE-144) and USS Stanton (DE-247). All 57 crewmen on the U-boat are lost. (Jack McKillop)
German submarine U-880 is sunk in the North Atlantic by depth charges
from the destroyer escorts USS Frost (DE-144) and USS Stanton (DE-247).
All 49 crewmen on the U-boat are lost. (Jack McKillop)
Minesweeper HMCS Esquimalt is attacked and sunk by U-190 (Oberleutnant Hans-Edwin Reith) off Halifax, Nova Scotia at 44 28N 63 10W. There are 44 casualties. (Alex Gordon)
Frigate HMS Ekins strikes a mine at 2115 which causes her boiler room to
flood, and she lies dead in the water. At 2140 she drifts onto another mine and this causes further flooding. The shipâs company are able to get the ship moving again, and she returns to the Medway under her own power, but after survey is paid off and not repaired. Location: 24 miles NW Ostend. (Alex Gordon)
Baltic Sea: The Goya, another German ship similar to the Wilhelm Gustloff
(see January 30, 1945), was sunk in the Baltic taking with it 6,000 lives,
making these two ships the worst naval disasters of all time (John Nicholas)
Belgium: RAF Meteor III jets make their first operational sortie on the
Continent. (Andy Etherington)
BORNEO: Far East Air Force P-38s attack the Lingkas Tank Farm and other targets at Tarakan. (Jack McKillop)
Burma: Allied advances are continuing in Burma, with the capital, Rangoon, now firmly in General Slim's sights. Today it was the turn of Taungup, in the Arakan peninsula, to fall to XV Corps, while inland IV Corps is chasing General Honda's 33rd Japanese Army down the Sittang Valley towards Pyinmanna. The Japanese forces are also in retreat along the Irrawaddy, where XXXIII Corps is driving south to oil-rich Yenangyaung.
62 Tenth Air Force) P-38s and P-47s attack troop concentrations and supply areas at Loi-Mwe, Lawksawk, Thongdan, and near Laihka; 312 transport sorties are flown to forward areas. (Jack McKillop)
22 Tenth Air Force fighter-bombers attack troop concentrations in the
Ke-hsi Mansam vicinity; 19 others attack road bridges behind enemy lines, claiming a bridge destroyed; air transport operations to forward areas continue on steady basis. (Jack McKillop)
CHINA: 18 Fourteenth Air Force B-24s pound a storage area at Linfen; 3 bomb targets of opportunity in the Bakli Bay, Hainan Island and Canton areas; 10 B-25s bomb Yungfengshih, Kweilin, and Shanhsien, knocking out a bridge and hitting buildings, river shipping, and rail traffic. About 120 fighter-bombers over southern and eastern China hit river, road, and rail traffic, town areas, troops, and general targets of opportunity at many scattered locations. (Jack McKillop)
FORMOSA: Far East Air Forces B-25s hit Taien Airfield, while B-24s and P-51s bomb Giran and Matsuyama Airfields and nearby areas. During the night of 15/16 April, B-24s bomb Taihoku. (Jack McKillop)
FRANCE: The Eighth Air Force flies Mission 955: During the morning, 485 B-17s bomb the tank ditch defense line at Pointe de Grave on the south side of the Gironde estuary in the Bordeaux area in support of the ground assault in that area. (Jack McKillop)
GERMANY: The final great offensive of the Red Army against Germany, the Berlin operation begins with Gen. G.K. Zhukov's 1st Belorussian Front attacking west of the Oder near Kuestrin, and Gen. Konev's 1st Ukrainian Front attacking south across the Neisse to envelop Busse's 9th Army and drive on to the southern flanks of the doomed German capital. The Russians meet initial stiff resistance at the Seelow Heights, a fortified defensive position which dominates the flood-plain of the Oder(Oderbruch), and controls access to the main land route to Berlin. After 3 days bitter fighting, and nearly 30,000 casualites, the Russians continue toward Berlin,less than 50 miles to the west. (Russ Folsom)
The US 7th Army reaches Nuremburg. (John Nicholas)
The Colditz POW camp is liberated. (John Nicholas)
The Eighth Air Force flies Mission 954: In the afternoon, 1,252 bombers and 913 fighters are dispatched to attack rail targets; they claim 727-0-373 Luftwaffe aircraft; 1 B-24 and 31 fighters are lost.
- 273 B-24s bomb the marshalling yard at Landshut; a B-24 is lost. Escorting are 299 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 228-0-109 aircraft on the ground; a P-47 and 16 P-51s are lost.
- 148 B-17s bomb the Regensburg marshalling yard, 72 bomb the Regensburg East rail bridge and 74 bomb the Regensburg West rail bridge; 77 hit the Platting marshalling yard; and 76 attack the rail bridge at Straubing. The escort is 240 P-51s; they claim 2-0-0 aircraft in the air and 86-0-66 on the ground; 3 P-51s are lost.
- 286 P-51s fly a freelance mission in support of the bombers attacking 40+ landing grounds in Germany and Czechoslovakia; they claim 1-0-1 aircraft in the air and 410-0-198 on the ground; 9 P-51s are lost.
About 450 Ninth Air Force A-20s, A-26 Invaders and B-26s bomb the Zerbst communications center, Gunzenhausen marshalling yard, Kempten ordnance depot, and Wittenberg marshalling yard and gun positions; the IX Tactical Air Command's fighters claim 25 air victories during the day as they escort the bombers, fly patrols, area cover, and armed reconnaissance, attack airfields and other targets, and support the US 3rd Armored Division
southwest of Dessau, the 9th Armored Division in the Bennewitz-Colditz area along the Mulde River, the XX Corps which remains at the Zwickauer Mulde River bridgehead northeast of Chemnitz, the VIII Corps crossing the Weisse Elster River between Gera and Plauen, the 2d Armored Division on the Elbe River near Magdeburg, the XIX Corps east of Barby, and the V Corps near Leipzig.
36 Fifteenth Air Force P-51s sweep areas south of Munich; Pie, Czechoslovakia; and Linz, Austria, and 4 strafe an airfield east of Munich. (Jack McKillop)
258 Ninth Air Force B-26s and A-26 Invaders bomb marshalling yards at
Gunzburg and Ulm (primary targets) and several other targets including 3
marshalling yards; fighters escort the bombers, fly patrols and armed
reconnaissance, and support the US 3d Armored Division near Dessau and
across the Mulde River near Torten, the 9th Armored Division along the
Mulde northwest of Borna, the VIII Corps along Weisse Elster River
between Gera and Plauen, the XX Corps astride the Mulde NE of Chemnitz
(where the 6th Armored Division awaits Red Army forces), and the 2d
Armored Division on the Elbe River near Magdeburg. (Andy Etherington)
ITALY: During the night of 15/16 April, Twelfth Air Force A-20s and A-26s hit Po River crossings, the towns of Vignola, Zoeca, and Sass, and several targets of opportunity in the Po Valley; during the day B-25s and B-26s bomb bridges on the Reno River near Bologna, blast troop reserve areas southeast of Portomaggiore on the British Eighth Army front, and attack troop concentrations south of Portomaggiore; fighters and fighter- bombers concentrate most of their effort on close support targets in the US Fifth Army battle area south and southwest of Bologna.
98 Fifteenth Air Force B-24s, escorted by 102 P-51s, bomb positions southwest of Bologna; almost 700 B-24s and B-17s abort due to bad weather.
The Fifteenth Air Force dispatches 36 P-38s and 36 P-51s strafe rail communications in the area bounded by Munich, Germany, Salzburg and Linz, Austria, Plzen, Czechoslovakia, and Regensburg, Germany; 12 of the P-38s skipbomb rail targets in the Salzburg-Linz, Austria area, including the Vocklabruck marshalling yard; 8 P-38s furnish top cover for the strafing missions. (Jack McKillop)
JAPAN: In the Kurile Islands, Eleventh Air Force B-25s abort a mission to bomb Hayakegawa because of weather front; 6 B-24s radar bomb the Kataoka naval base on Shimushu Island; another B-24 flies a radar-ferret sortie.
The VII Fighter Command flies Mission 3: In the first very long range
fighter operation from Iwo Jima, P-51s with XXI Bomber Command B-29Superfortress navigational escorts, strafe and bomb targets at Kanoya Airfield on Kyushu Island; 4 P-51s are lost; B-29s continue to furnish navigational escort in all subsequent VII Fighter Command strikes (through 14 August) on Japan from Iwo Jima. (Jack McKillop)
MARIANA ISLANDS: 2 Seventh Air Force P-61 Black Widows from Saipan bomb and strafe Pagan Island. (Jack McKillop)
Okinawa: The U.S. Army's 77th Infantry Division, less the 307th Infantry Regiment, lands on the south and southwest coast of Ie Shima, Ryukyu Islands. The island of Ie Shima is located off the northwest coast of Okinawa at 26.43N, 127.47E. (John Nicholas and Jack McKillop)
PACIFIC: 18 Guam-based Seventh Air Force B-24s bomb Marcus Island in the North Pacific.
Japanese ships sunk at sea:
- Submarine USS Sea Dog (SS-401) sinks a merchant cargo ship off Mikura
Jima.
- Submarine USS Sunfish (SS-281) attacks a convoy emerging from Yamado Harbor, Honshu, and sinks a coast defense vessel and a transport. (Jack McKillop)
PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: Far East Air Forces fighter bombers hit northern Luzon bivouacs and other targets and support strikes and sweeps are flown over Cebu, Negros, and Mindanao Islands with B-25s hitting highways on Mindanao Island and B-24s hit defenses on Carabao Island. (Jack McKillop)
The 1st Battalion, 151st Infantry Regiment, 38th Infantry Division, makes an unopposed landing on Carabao Island in Manila Bay. The landing had been supported by the light cruiser USS Phoenix (CL-46), two destroyers and two infantry landing craft (rocket) [LCI(R)s]. The Phoenix had blown a hole in the seawall and the only thing encountered by the soldiers was "one badly shaken pig." (Jack McKillop)
Ft. Frank, a "concrete battleship", in Manila Bay is attacked with fuel oil
and allowed to burn. Ft. Drum had been similarily attacked on the 14th.
This completes the capture of Japanese positions in Manila Bay. (John Nicholas)
RYUKYU ISLANDS: Off Okinawa, kamikazes sink destroyer USS Pringle (DD-477); and damage battleship USS Missouri (BB-63); aircraft carrier USS Intrepid (CV-11); destroyer USS Bryant (DD-665); destroyer escort USS Bowers (DE-637); high speed minesweepers USS Hobson (DMS-26) and USS Harding (DMS-28); and oiler USS Taluga (AO-62). (Jack McKillop)
VOLCANO ISLANDS: Iwo Jima is declared secure.
Center Field (Motoyama Airfield No. 2 to the Japanese) is declared operational. The airfield will be used by damaged B-29s returning from missions to Japan. (Jack McKillop)
U.S.: The federal government tacked another year on to the term of one of Roosevelt's key pieces of wartime legislation, the Lend-Lease Act. All told, the U.S. funneled US$50.6 billion (US$496 in year 2001 dollars) worth of Lend-Lease aid to the Allies during the war, the majority of which went to Britain and the USSR. (Jack McKillop)
Top popular hits on the music charts are "My Dreams are Getting
Better All the Time" by The Pied Pipers; "I'm Beginning to See the
Light" by Harry James and his Orchestra with vocal by Kitty Kallen;
"Candy" by Johnny Mercer and Jo Stafford; and "Smoke on the Water" by
Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. (Jack McKillop)
It's a Magical World, Hobbes, Ole Buddy, Let's go Exploring!!
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