JAP COUNTERATTACK

Dominion, Volume 35, Issue 282, 27 August 1942, Page 5

JAP COUNTERATTACK

Fleet Suffers In Solomons SMALL FORCE EAST OF MORESBY

The Japanese have counter-attacked the American forces in the Solomon Islands. A great sea and air battle developed on Sunday afternoon, and the first official announcement, received by the Press Association from Washington yesterday, revealed that American army and naval planes had effectively bombed warships, including two aircraft-carriers and a battleship. The enemy attempted with heavy air loss to bomb and shell points on Guadalcanal Island on Sunday night, and on Monday a Japanese transport and a cruiser north of Guadalcanal were hit by bombs.

While the second battle of the Solomon Islands is being fought 600 miles to the east, planes from General MacArthur s command have attacked a new convoy of enemy warships and transports just north of the south-east tip of New Guinea, says a Press Association dispatch from Sydney. A Japanese gunboat was destroyed by a direct bomb hit, and two transports were heavily strafed. The Allies lost one plane in the operation. The direction which the Japanese convoy was headed is not revealed by the south-west Pacific headquarters, but it is significant that the attack on the vessels was made south of the Trobriand Islands, which is the nearest island group to the south-east tip of New Guinea. The raid was made by fighter-bombers, which are being increasingly used in this theatre. The convoy is officially described as "small.”

The attack was only a small part of the widespread Allied air activity on Tuesday.