SPLENDID BAGS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 21 October 1943, Page 3

SPLENDID BAGS

OBTAINED BV AMERICAN SUBMARINES RANGING OVER WIDE AREAS IN PACIFIC. AND IN JAPANESE HOME WATERS. (By Telegraph—Press Association —Copyright) WASHINGTON, October 19. The sinking or damaging of 460 Japanese ships in the Pacific since the start of the war is recorded in a communique from the Naval Department, which states:—“Far East and Pacific: According to the latest available information, the United States submarines, operating over wide areas and carrying the war to the enemy’s closest home waters, have sunk a total of 319 Japanese ships, probably sunk or damaged 36, and damaged 105 others since December 7, 1941.” The recent sinkings include six large tankers, 17 large cargo and supply ships, 45 medium cargo and supply ships, three large transports, two medium tankers and 20 miscellaneous vessels. Of the total of ships torpedoed 148 had not been mentioned previously. Explaining this, the Secretary of the Navy, Colonel Knox, said that a prompt announcement of the submarine sinkings might have helped the enemy, and therefore it was withheld till the information was no longer valuable. Colonel Knox estimated that the American submarines have accounted for approximately 75 per cent, of all the Japanese merchant tonnage destroyed since the outbreak of the war. He supplied details showing that of the Japanese warships attacked American submarines had sunk three cruisers and 22 destroyers, and 12 other types were probably sunk, including one aircraft-carrier, two cruisers and five, destroyers. The damaged vessels, included two aircraft-carriers, five cruisers and six destroyers. Of the merchantmen sunk, 34 were tankers, 27 were transports, 190 were cargo vessels and 29 were miscellaneous.