June 1944 (5)

Clearing a road-block on the Imphal-Kohima Road

Around the wide Pacific…….

14 June – Iwo Jima, in the Volcano Island group, and Chichi Jima & Haha Jima, in the Bonins, were attacked by US carrier aircraft.  Installations were bombed and strafed.  The Japanese lost: 39 planes shot down, 25 aircraft destroyed on the ground, 2 freighters sunk and several heavily damaged.  The US lost: 8 aircraft, with 3 more downed the following day.

15 June – on Biak Island, New Guinea, US ground forces were not making progress due to cliff-side ambushes.  MacArthur sent in Gen. Eichelberger to take over the command.

In Japan, 47 China-based B-29’s bombed Yawata, the nation’s steel center.  Not much damage was incurred on the plant although the civilian casualty rate was high.  This was the first attack by land-based aircraft on Japan’s mainland.

Ichi-Go Plan

18 June – the Japanese Ichi-Go offensive captured Changsha, Burma.  They continued to advance, which put Gen. Chennault’s B-29 bases in jeopardy.

19-20 June – enemy installations on Pagan were bombed and strafed by US aircraft.  From here, until 7 July, Guam and Rota were attacked each day at least once by carrier forces.

Japanese tanks and troops in CBI

22-26 June – in the CBI, the enemy siege and fighting at Imphal, India lasted 88 days.  The Japanese U-Go offensive unraveled as the British 2nd Division and 5th Indian Division finally met up at the Imphal-Kohima Road, Milestone 107.  In Burma, the town of Mogaung fell to the 77th LRP Brigade and the Chinese 38th Div.  They then turned east to Myitkyina, where the US and Chinese forces were already laying siege.

Kuril Islands

In the Kuril Islands, Kurabu Zaki, on Paramushir, and important enemy base, was bombarded by ground units.  This action would be repeated on 30 June.

28 June – US troops on Saipan reached Nafutan Point on the southeast tip of the island.  It had taken nearly 2 weeks to cover 4 miles (6 km).

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Melvyn Douglas

Article from the ‘CBI Roundup’ newspaper

MELVYN DOUGLAS CRASH LANDS

INDIA – Capt. Melvyn Douglas, motion picture star now serving in CBI as a Special Service Officer, and 17 other passengers on an airplane owe their lives to the cool piloting of 1st Lt. Harold L. Griffith, of Los Angeles, Calif., it was revealed this week.

After riding out a severe storm and bucking terrific headwinds, Griffith was forced to make a difficult “belly landing.” The dangerous crash landing was made on a dry lake, flanked on three sides by hills, and was accomplished without a moon for illumination.

Capt. Douglas and the other passengers, including Capt. Roger F. Howe, Seattle, Wash., and Glenn Abbey, of Dodgeville, Wis., member of the American Mission at New Delhi, had high praise for Lt. Griffith and his co-pilot, Lt. James M. George, of Seminole, Tex., and Sgt. E. B. Halzlip, Eatonton, Ga., radio operator.

Click on images to enlarge.

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Military Humor – 

CBI humor

CBI humor

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Farewell Salutes – 

Gloria (Gove) Allen – Delray Beach, FL; USO, WWII

Luxembourg American Cemetery

Paul Chess (Fiszel Czyz) – brn: POL/Chicago, IL; US Army, WWII

Cyrus Duval – Twinsburg, OH; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 11th Airborne Division

John Farrel Sr. – Bronx, NY; US Coast Guard, WWII

Paul Healy Newport, RI; US Army, Vietnam

Edward Isbell – OK; US Navy, WWII, PTO

Charles Kessler – Denver, CO; US Army Air Corps, WWII

John McCreight – Toronto, CAN; RC Air Force, WWII, navigator

Charles Prophit – Tquesta, FL; US Navy, Vietnam

Geneva (Shepard) Richard – Womelsdorf, PA; US Army WAC, WWII, driver

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