ATTACKING JAPANESE AIRCRAFT IN NEW GUINEA

Wairarapa Times-Age, 8 February 1943, Page 3

ATTACKING JAPANESE AIRCRAFT IN NEW GUINEA

Very Heavy Enemy Losses in Battle Over Wau Aerodrome v NOT A SINGLE ALLIED FIGHTER LOST FURTHER AMERICAN SUCCESS IN . GUADALCANAL LONDON, February 7. The failure of a Japanese air attack on the Allied airfield at Wau, in New Guinea, reported in General MacArthur’s communique, is described by a correspondent as one of the greatest Allied air victories in the South-West Pacific. The communique stated that the enemy was completely defeated and swept from the sky. A series of fierce dogfights took place, the correspondent states. In these Lightnings, Airacobras and Kittyhawks, shot down at least 41 Japanese aircraft and severely damaged 15 more. Of these 15, very few were likely to reach their base. In contrast, not a single Allied fighter was lost. American troops’ on Guadalcanal Island, in the Solomons, have pushed through 40 miles of dense jungle and set up a new base on the north-west coast, outflanking the Japanese positions on Cape Esperance. , A Washington spokesman says there was no sign that the Americans met with any opposition. He described the operation as one of pinching out the enemy forces.