Rabaul 1943–44 by Mark Lardas

Author:Mark Lardas [Lardas, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781472822451
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Published: 2017-02-26T00:00:00+00:00

Back to base with the enemy in pursuit

On October 18, the Fifth Air Force launched a follow-up strike on Rabaul’s airfields. It was intended as another maximum effort, but due to weather, a mission abort was declared. The B-24s and P-38s returned home, but 50 B-25s, led by Lieutenant Colonel Clinton True, pressed on, attacking Tobera and Rapopo airfields. A low-level raid on Tobera was successfully executed with the attacking squadron successfully escaping and evading all but a handful of pursuing fighters, but the Rapopo attack was not nearly as lucky. The three squadrons pasted the airfield with .50-caliber fire and daisy-cutters, but as soon as they cleared the coast they ran into a buzz-saw of Japanese fighters.

Having received warning of the impending raid, the two untouched airfields had sortied 40 Japanese fighters. They had been circling over the St George’s Channel, expecting the P-38s which normally accompanied the bombers. Instead they discovered the trailing squadron of withdrawing Mitchells as they cleared the coast north of Rapopo. The Zeroes, a mixture of A6M2s and A6M3s, pounced on the unescorted bombers. A long battle followed as the Mitchells flew east, trying to clear Cape Gazelle.

The Zeroes ripped into the Mitchells, both singly and in pairs. For nearly 30 minutes the B-25s were pursued. The Zeroes flew in and out of the formation. The bombers tightened their formation, flying as close to each other as possible for mutual defense. They dropped down almost to wave-top heights to discourage diving attacks. The Japanese were so intent on their prey that some tried diving attacks anyway, misjudged the altitude, and struck the water. They continued their pursuit as the B-25s reached Cape Gazelle and turned south. Finally, the fighters thinned out, leaving the damaged bombers to complete the long trip home or divert to the closer Kiriwina.

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