OUT OF ACTION

Wairarapa Times-Age, 6 December 1943, Page 3

OUT OF ACTION

UNDER INCESSANT ALLIED ATTACKS JAPANESE AIR BASES ON BOUGAINVILLE. POWERFUL BLOWS STRUCK AT NEW BRITAIN. (By Telegraph—(Press Association —Copyright) SYDNEY, December 5. Incessant attacks in the northern Solomons by Admiral Halsey's planes have now kept the Japanese aerodromes on Bougainville out of action for 40 days. At Empress Augusta Bay. the American beach-head in the island, ground activity has been limited to patrolling, today’s South-West Pacific communique reports. A triangle of Japanese bases on the western New Britain coast has been heavily pounded by General MacArthur's aircraft. The communique reports a smashing attack on Cape Gloucester, where escorted medium and heavy bombers dropped 179 tons of bombs on a supply dump and gun positions. This is one of the heaviest bomb-loads ever delivered on a single target in the South-Pacific area. Combined with this attack have been other raids on Borgen Bay and Gasmata, the main Japanese bases in western New Britain. The bombers dropped 63 tons on Borgen Bay, while. Boston attack planes fired thousands of rounds of ammunition into enemy-occupied villages near the bay. Two night attacks were made on dump areas at Gasmata, causing fires and explosions. Cape Gloucester and Gasmata have been regularly attacked by our aircraft for many weeks past, but the recent raids have been the heaviest yet made on these targets. In the Bismarck Sea just north of New Britain, reconnaissance planes have attacked an 8000-ton Japanese cargo ship and patrol vessel and sunk five barges.