RECORD BAG

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 September 1943, Page 3

RECORD BAG

■■■ ■ - OF JAPANESE AIRCRAFT IN SOUTH AND SOUTH-WEST PACIFIC. OBTAINED IN AUGUST. (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) SYDNEY, September 4. ♦ The Allied Air Forces in the Soutn and South-west Pacific last month destroyed 584 Japanese planes, probably destroyed 33 and damaged 21. This is a record bag of enemy planes in any month in this area. In the air, 312 aircraft were destroyed compared with 421 in July. On the ground a record total of 272 planes were destroyed in August. Of the planes destroyed, 67 were identified as bombers and 255 as fighters. Communiques do not identify most of the aircraft destroyed on the ground. Allied losses for the month totalled 1415 planes, about two-thirds of them being bombers. More than 1000 tons of bombs were dropped in the Salamaua area during the month. Attacks against Japanese shipping were mainly on barge traffic, and more than 500 of these craft were destroyed and a large number damaged. One Japanese cruiser, two destroyers, two tenders and ten merchantmen were probably sunk, and one cruiser, six destroyers, two tenders and eighteen transports and tankers were damaged. The loss of one Allied ship was announced by General MacArthur’s Headquarters in August.