Today in the History of the Pacific Theater

Fried, what may be even scarier is the fact that I still have 3 more months until I get to the back to the date when I started this. (November 23)

 

Aug 30, 1940
-Rear Admiral Charles S. Freeman relieves Rear Admiral Edward B. Fenner as Commandant Thirteenth Naval District and Commandant Puget Sound Navy Yard.
-Vichy France consents to Japanese military occupation of ports, airfields, and railroads in northern Indochina.

Aug 30, 1942
-TG 8.8 lands Army occupation forces on Adak, Aleutians, to begin construction of an air and naval base.
-High speed transport Colhoun (APD-2) is bombed and sunk by Japanese planes off Kukum Point, Guadalcanal.
-Small reconnaissance seaplane from Japanese submarine I-19 reconnoiters Santa Cruz Island, Solomons.

Aug 30, 1943
-Submarine Halibut (SS-232) sinks Japanese cargo ship Taibun Maru.

Aug 30, 1944
-Submarine Narwhal (SS-167) lands men and supplies on east coast of Luzon.

Aug 30, 1945
-Landings by the occupation forces begin in the Tokyo Bay area under cover of guns of the Third Fleet plus Naval and USAAF aircraft.
-Rear Admiral Robert B. Carney and Rear Admiral Oscar C. Badger accept surrender of Yokosuka Naval Base. Headquarters of Commander Third Fleet is established there.
-Conference is held on board destroyer Stack (DD-406) at Truk to discuss the surrender of that Japanese base. Brigadier General Leo D. Hermle, USMC, is the leader of U.S. representatives.
-Four motor torpedo boats transport 50 Japanese troops from Miti Island to Morotai, to contact scattered units there to effect a complete surrender.
-U.S. freighter Peter White is damaged by mine 50 miles from Mauban, Luzon; only four men of the ship's total complement (52 merchant sailors, one passenger, and 17 Armed Guards) are injured, and the ship reaches Leyte.

 

I was going to make some snappy come back to celebrate the 100th post, but was overtaken by mournful events on the home front. Haven’t really felt up to posting since, but am slowly coming back up to speed. So . . .

20 August 1942 – Two SBDs from VS-71 combine to shootdown an H6K 45 miles east-southeast of Su'utaluhia Island on the eastern fringe of the Solomons.
20 August 1944 - A PV from VB-135 shoots down a Ki-43 east of Asashigawa in the Kuril Islands

21 August 1942 – A patrolling SBD from VS-72 shoots down an H6K searching for the US carriers.

22 August 1942 – F4Fs from VF-6 shoot down an H6K south of Guadalcanal.

23 August – Nothing to report

24 August 1942 – Battle of the Eastern Solomons – Squadrons were credited with shoot downs as follows: F4Fs from VF-5 with 2 A6M, 13 D3A, and 1 H8K and from VF-6, with 11 A6M, 3 B5N, 8 D3A, and 1 E13A. SBDs from VB-3 with 1 D3A; from VS-3, with 1 A6M and 1 D3A; and a TBF from VT-3 with 1 D3A.

25 August 1942 – Battle of Eastern Solomons aftermath - SBDs from VS-71 are credited with 2 E13A and 1 H8K.

26 August 1942 - a PBY from VP-14 is credited with 2 A6M.

27 August 1942 – F4Fs from VF-71 down an H8K about 80 miles southwest of the Santa Cruz Islands.

28 August 1943 – A VB-104 PB4Y shoots down 1 H6K 125 miles north of Tatau in the Bismarcks.
28 August 1944 – A VP-44 PBY shoots down 1 E13A 15 miles southwest of New Ireland.

29 August – Nothing to report.

30 August – Nothing to report.

31 August 1944 – In action around Iwo Jima and the Bonins – F6Fs from VF-13 are credited with 8 A6M, 2 B5N, and 1 Ki-46.

Regards,

Rich

 

Yes it seems to get worse by the day ! I wish they would just shoot the looters on site, makes me angry to see them on TV.

 

TA, I know what you mean. Would have a harder time if they were just getting food and water, but no, they are LOOTERS, plain and simple. One of the people I work with referred to them as IOD's, Involuntary Organ Donors. It would probably be the only decent thing a lot of them ever did.

 

Aug 31, 1940
-President Roosevelt calls 60,000 National Guardsmen into federal service.

Aug 31, 1942
-Eight Japanese destroyers put ashore 1,000 troops of the Kawaguchi Detachment on Guadalcanal.
-Carrier Saratoga (CV-3) is torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-26, 260 miles southeast of Guadalcanal.
-Destroyer Reid (DD-369) and PBYs (VP 42, VP 43) sink Japanese submarine RO-61 off Atka, Aleutians.
-Submarine Growler (SS-215) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Eifuku Maru in Formosa Strait.

Aug 31, 1943
-TBFs, SBDs, and F6Fs from TF 15 (Rear Admiral Charles A. Pownall), consisting of two carriers, one small carrier, one battleship, two light cruisers, and 11 destroyers, supported by an oiler, bomb Marcus Island in the prototype fast carrier strike. TBFs from small carrier Independence (CVL 22) sink three Japanese small craft. Submarine Snook (SS-279) operates in support of TF 15.
-Submarine Seawolf (SS-197) damages Japanese torpedo boat Sagi and sinks army cargo ship Shoto Maru and merchant cargo ship Kokko Maru.
-U.S. tanker W.S. Rheem is torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-20 near Espiritu Santo, but reaches port under her own power; there are no casualties to either the 49-man merchant complement or the 25-man Armed Guard.
-USAAF aircraft sink small Japanese coastal vessel Shirogane Maru off coast of south China between Amoy and Hong Kong.

Aug 31, 1944
-TG 38.4 (Rear Admiral Ralph E. Davison) attacks Iwo Jima and Chichi Jima (strikes will be repeated on 1 and 2 September) to neutralize Japanese installations there and provide a diversion in advance of planned operations in the Palau, Morotai, and Philippine areas. Off Iwo Jima, F6Fs from Franklin (CV-13) sink auxiliary minesweeper No.8 Toshi Maru and merchant cargo ship Suruga Maru.
-U.S. submarines attack Japanese convoy bount for Manila. In Luzon Strait south of Formosa, Barb (SS-220) sinks auxiliary minesweeper No.20 Hinode Maru and army cargo ship _kuni Maru. Queenfish (SS-393) sinks army tanker Chiyoda Maru and damages army tanker Rikke Maru. Sealion (SS-315) sinks minelayer Shirataka.
-Submarine Redfish (SS-272) lands supplies and evacuates people from Palawan Island.
-PBYs sink small Japanese cargo vessels No.2 Kairyu Maru and Kabuchi Maru off Ceram.
-RAAF Mitchells sink small Japanese cargo vessel No.8 Sanko Maru off north coast of Alor Island.
-Other Japanese casualties include guardboat No.2 Kyoshin Maru sunk by U.S. aircraft off Halmahera; merchant cargo ship Suruga Maru sunk by aircraft off Iwo Jima; and merchant cargo ship Hoyo Maru damaged by aircraft, Tayeh, Yangtze River.

Aug 31, 1945
-Rear Admiral Francis E. M. Whiting accepts surrender of Marcus Island on board destroyer Bagley (DD-386).
-Marines (Company "L," Third Battalion, Fourth Marines) land at Tateyama Naval Base, Honshu, on the northeast shore of Sagami Wan, and accept its surrender. They will reconnoiter the beach approaches and cover the landing of Army's 112th Cavalry.
-Japanese submarine I401 surrenders to submarine Segundo (SS-398) at entrance to Tokyo Bay.
-U.S. freighter Joseph Carrigan is damaged by mine in Brunei Bay, Borneo.
-Japanese merchant vessels sunk/damaged during August 1945 (exact dates indeterminate): refrigerated cargo ship Banshu Maru, agent unknown, location unspecified. Cargo ship Eito Maru, by aircraft, off Murozu. Cargo ship No.1 Taikai Maru, by aircraft, location unspecified.
-Japanese merchant vessel damaged during August 1945 (exact date indeterminate): cargo ship Shincho Maru, by mine, off Ube.

 

Sept 1, 1939
-World War II begins as Germany invades Poland with a power and rapidity that convincingly demonstrates to the world the blitzkrieg, or "lightning war." Italy announces its neutrality. Ultimately, the global conflict set in motion on this late summer day will engulf much of the globe and wreak far-reaching changes in the world order.
-Office of the Chief of Naval Operations (OpNav) sends dispatch to commanders in chief of Asiatic Fleet, United States Fleet, Atlantic Squadron, Special Service Squadron and Squadron 40-T: "Reliably informed [that] German submarines are set to operate on Atlantic trade routes and that a dozen German merchant vessels will operate as armed raiders [and that] neutral merchantmen may expect Great Britain may institute may expect Great Britain may institute similar practices as in last war." Additional addressees to this warning include the three new warships on shakedown cruises: light cruiser St. Louis (CL-49) (at Punta Delgada, Azores), destroyer Anderson (DD-411) (at Montreal, Canada) and submarine Spearfish (SS-190) (en route from New York City to Bahia, Brazil).
-Light cruiser Marblehead (CL-12) transports marines from Chinwangtao, China, to Shanghai. The emergency movement is to bring the Fourth Marine Regiment to full strength in the event that the Japanese take advantage of the European war to force an incident at Shanghai.

Sept 1, 1941
-U.S. Consul General in Shanghai, China (Clarence Gauss), Commander Yangtze Patrol (Rear Admiral William A. Glassford) and Commanding Officer Fourth Marine Regiment (Colonel Samuel L. Howard, USMC) recommend that all naval forces in China (river gunboats and marines) be withdrawn.

Sept 1, 1942
-Japanese Prime Minister Tojo Hideki also becomes Foreign Minister as Togo Shigenori resigns.
-Air Force, Pacific Fleet (Vice Admiral Aubrey W. Fitch) is established.
-Sixth Naval Construction Battalion (Seabees), the first to serve in a combat area, arrives at Guadalcanal.
-USAAF B-17s bomb and damage Japanese flying boat support ship Akitsushima and destroyer Akikaze off Buka Island, Solomons.

Sept 1, 1943
-Naval Air Station, Kahului, Maui, T.H., is established.
-Army occupation troops (804th Aviation Battalion) land on Baker Island, supported by TF 11 (Rear Admiral Willis A. Lee, Jr.), formed around small carriers Princeton (CVL 23) and Belleau Wood (CVL 24). Ashland (LSD 1) in this operation pioneers the use of the dock landing ship.
-Destroyer Wadsworth (DD-516) sinks Japanese submarine I-182 off Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides.
-Submarine Pompano (SS-181) sinks Japanese merchant vessel Nankai Maru off Miyako.

Sept 1, 1944
-Naval Operating Base, Saipan, is established.
-Heavy cruiser New Orleans (CA-32), light cruiser Biloxi (CL-80), and four destroyers drawn from TG 38.4, bombard Japanese installations at Iwo Jima and Chichi Jima (the bombardment will be repeated the following day). The ships draw no return fire and U.S. gunfire damages landing ship T.105 off the latter place.
-Submarine Narwhal (SS-167) lands men and supplies on east coast of Luzon.
-Submarine Pilotfish (SS-386) sinks Japanese auxiliary vessel Ina Maru north-northwest of Chichi Jima.
-Submarine Tunny (SS-282) is damaged by aerial bombs, Luzon Strait, and is forced to terminate her patrol.
-Other Japanese casualties include merchant cargo ship Sekino Maru sunk by aircraft in Celebes Sea; and merchant cargo ship Tientsin Maru sunk by mine off Woosung, China.

Sept 1, 1945
-Two civilian internment camps are located in Tokyo area; internees are evacuated in hospital ship Benevolence (AH-13).

 

1 September 1943 – A VF-6 F6F shoots down 1 H8K north of Munda.
1 September 1944 – A VF(N)-77 shoots down 1 H8K 40 miles southeast of Iwo Jima.

2 September – Nothing to report.

Rich

 

Sept 2, 1942
-Transport William Ward Burrows (AP-6) is damaged by grounding on Southern Cross Reef, off Tulagi, Solomons.
-Submarine Flying Fish (SS-229) is damaged by depth charges off Truk and ends her patrol.
-Submarine Guardfish (SS-217) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Teikyu Maru (ex-Danish Gustav Diederickson) 13 miles southeast of Chikyu Mizaki, Hokkaido, Japan.

Sept 2, 1943
-Destroyer Kendrick (DD-612) is damaged by aerial torpedo.
-Submarine Bowfin (SS-287) delivers supplies and evacuates certain people from Binuni Point, Mindanao.
-Submarine Seawolf (SS-197) sinks Japanese army cargo ship Fusei Maru.
-Submarine Snapper (SS-185) sinks Japanese escort vessel Mutsure, 85 miles north-northwest of Truk, Carolines.
-USAAF B-25s and P-38s pound Japanese convoy off Wewak, sinking army cargo ships Nagato Maru and Hankow Maru, and damaging Nagano Maru.

Sept 2, 1944
-Submarine Guardfish (SS-217) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Shirakami Maru north of Chichi Jima.
-Submarine Finback (SS-230), while lifeguarding for Chichi Jima strike, rescues Lieutenant (jg) George H.W. Bush, A-V(N), USNR, of VT 51; Bush will eventually become the 41st President of the United States.
-British submarine HMS Sirdar sinks Japanese guardboat No.5 Kaiyo Maru off northwestern Sumatra and submarine HMS Strongbow sinks Japanese army cargo ship No.1 Toso Maru off west coast of Siam.
-TG 38.4 aircraft damage Japanese landing ship T.104 damaged by aircraft off Chichi Jima.
-Japanese auxiliary submarine chaser No.2 Misago Maru is sunk by aircraft north of Mindanao.

Sept 2, 1945
-Japanese surrender documents are signed on board battleship Missouri (BB-63) at anchor in Tokyo Bay. General of the Army Douglas MacArthur signs for the Allied Powers; Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz signs for the U.S.
-TF 33 (Rear Admiral John L. Hall) lands army forces at Yokohama.
-Japanese surrender Palau Islands in ceremony on board destroyer escort Amick (DE-168).
-Japanese surrender Truk in ceremony on board heavy cruiser Portland (CA-33).
-Japanese surrender Pagan Island northern Marianas, on board destroyer Rhind (DD-404).
-Japanese surrender Rota, Marianas, in ceremony on board destroyer escort Heyliger (DE-510).

 

Sept 3, 1942
-Japanese minelayer Tsugaru is damaged by aircraft, Solomons area after delivering troops and field artillery (120mm AA) to Guadalcanal.
-Submarine Seal (SS-183) damages Japanese merchant passenger-cargo ship Kanju Maru southeast of Cape Padaran, French Indochina.

Sept 3, 1943
-Destroyer Ellet (DD-398) sinks Japanese submarine I-25, 150 miles northeast of Espiritu Santo.
-Submarine Pollack (SS-180) sinks Japanese transport Tagonoura Maru off Mikura Jima.
-Submarine Pompano (SS-181) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Akama Maru.

Sept 3, 1944
-TG 12.5 (Rear Admiral Allen E. Smith), comprising small carrier Monterey (CVL-26), three heavy cruisers, and three destroyers, pound Japanese installations on Wake Island.
-Japanese destroyer Hasu is damaged by mine off Yangtze estuary.

Sept 3, 1945
-Japanese surrender Wake Island in ceremony on board destroyer escort Levy (DE-162).
-Escort carrier Anzio (CVE-57) is damaged in collision with oiler Suamico (AO-49) while fueling off Okinawa.

 

3 September 1943 – A VF-6 F6F shoots down 1 H8K 35 miles west-southwest of Baker Island.

Rich

 

Rich, does your source give information on US aircraft shot down by the Japanese ? I know the US was not that good.
Pick you out an avitar so I can see what your alterego looks like!!

 

Sept 4, 1939
-Philippine motorship Don Isidro, on her maiden voyage en route from her builders' yard at Kiel, Germany, to Manila, P.I., clears the Suez Canal; U.S. government immediately protests British authorities having removed, at Port Said, two German engineers (on board "to guarantee construction and demonstrate proper manning" of the new vessel) from Don Isidro (which is under the American flag) as illegal and a violation of the neutral rights of the United States.
-U.S. steamship President Roosevelt off-loads British Scott-Paine-type motor torpedo boat PT 9 at New York; PT 9 will be the prototype for the motor torpedo boats constructed by the Electric Boat Company.
-President Roosevelt proclaims a "limited national emergency" and orders enlisted strength of all armed forces increased--naval enlisted men from 110,813 to 145,000; Marine Corps from 18,325 to 25,000--and authorizes recall to active duty of officers, men, and nurses on retired lists of Navy and Marine Corps.

Sept 4, 1942
-Submarine Growler (SS-215) sinks Japanese ammunition ship Kashino in Formosa Straits, about 50 miles northeast of Keelung, Formosa.
-Submarine Guardfish (SS-217), operating off northeast coast of Honshu, sinks merchant cargo ships Kaimei Maru and Chita Maru, and passenger cargo ship Tenyu Maru, off Kuji Bay, Iwate Prefecture, Japan.
-Submarine Pompano (SS-181) sinks guardboat No.27 Nanshin Maru northeast of Honshu, Japan.
-Japanese merchant cargo ship Suki Maru is sunk by mine in Bangka Strait, N.E.I.

Sept 4, 1943
-TF 76 (Rear Admiral Daniel E. Barbey) lands Australian 9th Division on Huon Peninsula near Lae, New Guinea, in Operation POSTERN. In Japanese retaliatory air strikes, infantry landing craft LCI-339 is sunk; destroyer Conyngham (DD-371) is damaged by dive bomber; and tank landing ships LST-471 and LST-473 are damaged by torpedo and dive bombers.
-Japanese aircraft attack four Rendova-based U.S. motor torpedo boats off Meresu Cove, damaging PT-124 and PT-125.
-Submarine Albacore (SS-218) sinks Japanese gunboat Heijo Maru southwest of Ponape, Carolines.
-Submarine Pargo (SS-264) damages Japanese fleet tanker Ryuei Maru approx 160 miles southwest of Kagoshima.
-Submarine Sunfish (SS-281) sinks Japanese army cargo ship Kozan Maru approx 75 southwest of Tainan, Formosa.
-Submarine Tarpon (SS-175) sinks Japanese guardboat Yulin Maru in northern Pacific.

Sept 4, 1944
-Submarine Bowfin (SS-287) sinks Japanese guardboat No.6 Hinode Maru east of Nanpo Shoto.

Sept 4, 1945
-Japanese surrender Aguijan Island Marianas, in ceremony on board Coast Guard Cutter No.83425.

 

Sept 5, 1940
-Secretary of the Navy Knox and Commander Aircraft Scouting Force depart San Francisco, California, in XPB2Y-2 for Pearl Harbor.

Sept 5, 1942
-Japanese troops are withdrawn from their tenuous beachhead at Milne Bay.
-High speed transports Gregory (APD-3) and Little (APD-4) are sunk by Japanese destroyers Yudachi, Murakumo, and Hatsuyuki off Lunga Point, Guadalcanal.
-Submarine Seal (SS-183) sinks Japanese merchant passenger-cargo ship Kanju Maru southeast of Cam Ranh Bay, French Indochina.

Sept 5, 1943
-District patrol craft YP-279 founders in heavy weather off Townsville, Australia.
-Salvage vessel Yusho Maru is sunk by mine in Makassar Strait.
-Submarine Albacore (SS-218) hits Japanese transport Hokusho Maru with two dud torpedoes.
-Submarine Swordfish (SS-193) sinks Japanese army transport Tenkai Maru approx 350 miles northwest of Manus.

Sept 5, 1944
-Submarine Albacore (SS-218) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Shingetsu Maru north of Muroto Saki.
-British submarine HMS Tantivy sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Shiretoko Maru off Sumatra.
-Japanese merchant cargo ship Kokka Maru is sunk by mine, Keelung, Formosa.

Sept 5, 1945
-Japanese surrender Yap Island in ceremony on board destroyer Tillman (DD-641).

 

Sept 6, 1940
-Secretary of the Navy Knox and Commander Aircraft, Scouting Force arrive at Pearl Harbor, T.H., in XPB2Y-2. The Secretary is visiting the fleet as it carries out operations in Hawaiian waters.

Sept 6, 1942
-District patrol craft YP-74 is sunk by collision with merchant vessel Derblay off the Aleutian Islands.
-Battleship South Dakota (BB-57) is damaged when she fouls a coral reef in Lahai Passage, Tonga Islands.
-Japanese submarine I-11 is damaged by gunfire for a PBY Catalina of VP-11 Black Cats off of Espiritu Santo.

Sept 6, 1943
-Submarine Halibut (SS-232) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Shogen Maru and later hits heavy cruiser Nachi with one dud torpedo approx 75 miles southeast of Yokohama, Japan.
-Submarine Seahorse (SS-304) is damaged by depth charges off the Palaus shortly after attacking a convoy, but remains on patrol.
-USAAF B-24 damages Japanese hospital ship America Maru approx 135 miles northwest of Kaeving, New Ireland.
-RAAF Beauforts sink small Japanese cargo vessel Seicho Maru 21 nautical miles east of Garove Island.

Sept 6, 1944
-TF 58 (Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher) arrives off Palauto to begin operations against Japanese airfields and defense installations in the western Carolines; a fighter sweep discloses no aerial opposition and reveals much damage caused by prior strikes. Task groups involved are TGs 38.1, 38.2 and 38.3. TG 38.4 (Rear Admiral Ralph E. Davison), meanwhile, conducts fighter sweep over Yap.
-Small carrier Independence (CVL-22) begins use of specifically trained air group for night work, marking the first time that a fully equipped night carrier operates with the fast carrier task force.
-Destroyers Ellet (DD-398) and Downes (DD-375) bombard Aguijan Island, Marianas, to destroy gun emplacement located by air reconnaissance.
-Submarine Albacore (SS-218) sinks Japanese auxiliary minesweeper No.3 Eguchi Maru at entrance to Kii Suido, Japan.
-Submarine Hake (SS-256) damages Japanese destroyer Hibiki east of the Ryukyus.
-USAAF P-40s sink Japanese fishing boats Sakae Maru, Tairyu Maru, Tatsuei Maru, and Takuyo Maru off Kai Island.
-Japanese army cargo ship Eiji Maru is sunk by mine approx 35 miles southeast of Kaoshiung, Formosa.

Sept 6, 1945
-Japanese surrender Maleolap Atoll in ceremony on board destroyer escort Wingfield (DE-194).
-U.S. troops begin return to United States as TF 11 (Vice Admiral Frederick C. Sherman) sails from Tokyo Bay for the west coast.

 

Okay, Maru is a very common part of Japanese ship names. What does it mean? There was one in the post today called America Maru!

 

The term "maru" like many words in the Japanese language can have many meaning depending on when and what form it is used in. It is believed that the original word was a form of compliment or respect when attached to a name and when bestowed on a male it was intended to protect that person from harm. It also refers to the concept of the circle as in completeness or wholeness. In Japan unlike in America a ship is referred to as a male. Therefore when the word "maru" is attached to the name of a ship it is believed to protect the ship from harm. This is how it was described to me by a Japanese friend. However when one looks back at the ships that this word is added too it seems to me that it is only added to transport type ships whether they tranport goods or personnel or equipment doesn't really seem to matter.

 

Thanks Bill.

 

Sept 7, 1942
-Submarine Growler (SS-215) sinks Japanese merchant cargo ship Taika Maru 20 miles northwest of Keelung, Formosa.

Sept 7, 1943
-Japanese aircraft bomb Nanumea, Ellice Islands.
-Motor torpedo boats PT-118 and PT-172, damaged by grounding, Solomons area, are scuttled.
-In the Indian Ocean, the U.S. freighter Lyman Stewart, en route to Durban, South Africa, from Colombo, Ceylon, is attacked by Japanese submarine I-27, and slightly damaged by a dud torpedo. I-27's gunfire attack proves equally ineffective, and Lyman Stewart proceeds on her way. There are no casualties on board the freighter.

Sept 7, 1944
-Planes from TGs 38.1, 38.2, and 38.3 conduct full scale air strikes on Japanese installations throughout the principal Palaus; they will repeat the evolutions (albeit with diminishing force in view of the paucity of targets) the next day. CRUDIV 14 (Rear Admiral F.E.M. Whiting) (three light cruisers, screened by four destroyers, drawn from TGs 38.2 and 38.3) bombards Japanese installations on Peleliu, Angaur, and Ngesebus, supplementing the carrier air strikes begun the previous day by TF 58. Heavy cruiser New Orleans (CA-32) and light cruiser Biloxi (CL-80) and four destroyers (from TG 38.4) bombard Yap; they will repeat the bombardment the following day. Planes from TG 38.4, meanwhile, on this day and the next will carry out operations against Yap and Ulithi.
-U.S. Army forces supported by naval vessels land on Soepiori Island in the Schouten Islands of New Guinea.
-Destroyer Flusser (DD-368) is damaged by shore battery, Wotje Island, Marshalls, while on a routine patrol to the south of the island.
-Submarine Paddle (SS-263) sinks Japanese transport Shinyo Maru, which unbeknown to her attacker carries 750 American prisoners of war on board. Tanker No.2 Eiyo Maru is damaged by Paddle off the coast of Mindanao, and is beached at Sindagon Point.
-RAAF Beaufighters sink Japanese motor sailboat Keishin Maru off southern coast of Ceram.

 

Sept 8, 1943
-Four U.S. destroyers bombard Lae, New Guinea.
-Submarine Drum (SS-228) sinks Japanese army cargo ship No. 13 Hakutetsu Maru off Hollandia.
-Japanese land attack planes (755th Kokutai) bomb Nanomea, Ellice Islands.

Sept 8, 1944
-Submarine Bashaw (SS-241) sinks Japanese transport Yanagigawa Maru west of Mindanao.
-Submarine Seal (SS-183) damages Japanese destroyer Namikaze off Hokkaido.
-Submarine Spadefish (SS-411) sinks Japanese transport Shokei Maru and army cargo ship Shinten Maru off Sakishima Gunto, and merchant cargo ships Nichiman Maru and Nichian Maru a few miles farther away.
-USAAF B-24s bomb Japanese shipping off Chichi Jima, damaging cargo vessels Heiwa Maru and Toyo Maru.