RIVAL NAVIES

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 77, 28 August 1942, Page 5

RIVAL NAVIES

MAY HAVE TO COME TO GRIPS

Sydney, Aug. 27. A major setback for the Japanese Navy within the next few days could reduce the enemy sea power to a point where it might not again be able to challenge the American Fleet, whose strength is rapidly increasing. This is the opinion among Australian observers, but a London report that “Japan has already lost her naval supremacy in the South-West Pacific” is regarded as premature.

The pictures of the fighting are far from complete, but American naval communiques are known to be ultraconservative and the latest statement that the “results of the fight so far are encouraging” is accepted as giving good grounds for optimism. American observers report that the sea and air battle is apparently raging with increased fury, in spite of the withdrawal of one Japanese force. Heavy enemy landing in New Guinea, the battle, which so far has served to confirm again the superiority of land based aircraft in such operations. This, advantage lies strongly with the Allies, j Aerial forces alone were used in the battle engagement up till Monday, ex- j cept for one destroyer attack against shore targets. However, observers be j lieve the Japanese Fleet may now have come to close grips with the American j Fleet for the first time since the war | began in the Pacific.

It is pointed out that Japan needs j desperately to regain her initiative, and she is thus likely to accept the issue sought and provoked by the Allies be | fore the American consolidation of the j southern Solomons is completed. Once the Allies have established numbers of ! airfields in the area Japan’s chances of retaking the islands will have dwindled to vanishing point. DIVE-BOMBER ATTACKS American forces in the Solomons a'e stated to be using Buccaneer and Helldiver dive-bombers and Avenger tor-pedo-bombers against the Japanese ships. American predictions are that the enemy losses will at least equal those in the Midway Island battle.

Mr Arthur Hale, a radio news analyst, says the Allies have regained the Pacific naval superiority which they lost at Pearl Harbour, and he adds: “But be j fore we can say the Pacific is ours we must smash the Japanese Fleet in its, home waters.” The opinion here that Japan is still at great strength in the South-West Pacific is sharply underlined by the latest enemy enemy landing in New Guinea. “We should not believe that the powerful and persistent enemy will tamely allow the reverses in the Solomons to discourage him from further adventures in the South Seas,” says the Sydney “Sun” in a leader. “He still has his forward bases in the Archipelago and on New Guinea itself. The latest landing proves his intention to increase their number and so encircle our one outpost in this region—Port Moresby.” i

Pointing out that the enemy can speedily and powerfully reinforce his sea, air, and land forces from the bases in the Marshalls and Carolines, the “Sun” adds: “If we may look upon the last fortnight's success as the turn of the tide, the flood of Japanese conquest may still send the spume of its heavier waves into channels closer to Australia and New Zealand. Before the full ebb many battles will have to be fought by land, sea, and air ” —P.A. Special Australian correspondent.