HEAVILY DEFEATED

Wairarapa Times-Age, 27 April 1942, Page 3

HEAVILY DEFEATED

LATEST ENEMY AIR RAID ON DARWIN ELEVEN JAPANESE PLANES SHOT DOWN. ALLIED LOSSES NEGLIGIBLE. LONDON, April 26. A message from Melbourne states that an air battle fought over Darwin, when that town was raided by the Japanese for the first time in three weeks, was the biggest ever fought over Australian territory. Eight enemy bombers and three fighters were shot down, all of them, it is understood, by American pilots. About 100 bombs were dropped. They caused few casualties and did slight dam-

age. A communique from General MacArthur’s headquarters states that 24 enemy bombers and fighter escorts launched a heavy attack on the town, but they were brilliantly intercepted and eight bombers and three fighters were destroyed, while our losses were negligible. Fifteen Japanese fighters attempted to raid Port Moresby, but they also were intercepted. Eight bombers attacked Tulagi, in the Solomon Islands. The results of both raids were slight.

The Japanese, says a correspondent, are now employing a large number of fighters in an attempt to gain control of the New Guinea skies and wrest the initiative from the Allies.

ATTACK ON RABAUL CONTINUED METHODICALLY. INEFFECTIVE ENEMY EFFORTS MELBOURNE, April 26. The Allied headquarters in Australia have reported an increase in the frequency of the small-scale Japanese raids on Port Moresby. The Allied planes arc keeping up the systematic attacks on Rabaul.

The enemy attacked Port Moresby three times during Thursday with negligible effect. A communique today states that the enemy made a further small raid on Port Moresby at noon on Friday with seven fighters, which our fighter aircraft successfully intercepted in a sanguinary combat. Our air forces also bombed Lae airfield.

Correspondents report that Thursday’s enemy air activity in the New Guinea area was the most persistent to date. The enemy seemed bent on trying to disorganise the Allied air offensive, and planes roared across the sky from dawn to dusk. In one raid on Port Moresby the enemy planted q load of bombs near lhe aerodrome, but caused no damage and were chased away. In a later raid a small force of fighters sneaked in and gunned the airfield area. Going cut, they shot up a small roadside encampment where Australian and English war correspondents had stopped for tea. The pressmen found safe refuge in a slit trench. Other attacks were anticipated, and the Japanese were beaten to it on each occasion. Tile Allied aircraft did a good job in a raid on Rabaul on Thursday. In cne attack they straddled shipping in the harbour, and in low-elevel attacks they bombed wharves and sheds and caused havoc in addition to groundstrafing fleeing Japanese.