U.S. BOMBERS' ATTACKS

Marlborough Express, Volume LXXVI, Issue 253, 27 October 1942, Page 5

U.S. BOMBERS' ATTACKS

JAP. FIGHTERS ROUTED AERIAL OFFENSIVE FROM CHINA?

P.A. Cable.

NEW YORK, Oct. 26.

Hong Kong has been raided twice by heavy U.S. bombers, while other targets in Japaneseoccupied China have also been attacked. The belief is held in Chungking that these operations mark the beginning of a sustained aerial offensive against the Nipponese. The first raid was made yesterday and the second this morning. Twenty tons of bombs landed on the target area when U.S. aircraft first raided Hong Kong, reports the Associated Press Chungking correspondent. Ships, docks and warehouses were hit and many fires started, both on Hong Kong Island and the Kowloon mainland. Ten enemy fighters were shot down, with five more probables. One U.S. bomber failed to return, and one fighter was forced down in Chinese territory. U.S. heavy bombers seriously damaged Japanese -operated coalmines in the vicinity of Linsi, in north-east China, on Wednesday, says- the Associated Press correspondent at United States Army Headquarters in China. In one of the longest raids of the war bombers destroyed a power plant, and put out of commission the Linsi mine and five others in the Kailan area, north-east of Tientsin, from ma* jt mmr jt jmar jt xuw jt m mr m mr «mr *r iimi w Ma

which Japan draws large fuel supplies for her war industries. It is believed that the power-house and other installations cannot be restored for many months. Berlin radio quoted a Tokio report that eight large-type Allied planes dropped incendiary bombs on Hong Kong yesterday afternoon. The damage was "negligible." U.S. bombers attacked Hong Kong this morning for the second time. According to General Stilwell's communique, the airfield near the city was bombed and the power station destroyed. Eighteen Japanese intercepting planes were shot down and five others probably destroyed. One American pilot was slightly injured and his aircraft made a forced landing in Chinese territory. No U.S. plane was lost. The Chungking correspondent of the Associated Press says that Sunday's raid on Hong Kong caught the Japanese napping. The last bomb racks were emptied before Japanese fighters challenged the bombers. There was a hot time for a'few minutes when Zeros swarmed towards the bombers, but American flghters soon scattered the enemy. A destroyer in the harbour received a direct hit in to-day 's raid, in which 18 Japanese fighters were shot down when the enemy unsuccessfully tried to intercept. New fires were added to those produced by Sunday's devastating assault. News of these blows were greeted with great rejoicing in Chungking. They indicate that a big American aerial offensive has begun.