The
Japanese 1942 East Indies Campaign
Japanese
forces invaded Timor Island, Netherlands East Indies when Japanese
paratroopers were dropped in Kupang.
The
Southwest Pacific TheaterTask
Force 11, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier task force based around the USS
Lexington and commanded by Vice Admiral Wilson Brown, was on its way to
raid the Imperial Japanese military base at Rabaul, New Britain when it
was attacked by a force of land-based bombers of the Imperial Japanese
Navy under the command of
Vice Admiral Goto Eiji. As a result of the loss of
surprise, Vice Admiral Brown canceled the planned raid on Rabaul and
retired from the area. Because of the high losses in bomber aircraft,
the Japanese postponed their impending invasion of Lae-Salamaua, Papua
New Guinea. Although the American attack was cancelled, Japanese naval
land based bombers attacked U.S. Navy Task Force 11,
centering their efforts upon the aircraft carrier USS Lexington (CV 2).
In the ensuing battle off Bougainville, combat air patrol F4F Wildcats
and SBD Dauntlesses (the latter utilized in the
anti-torpedo plane role) and ships' antiaircraft fire annihilated the
Japanese formations. Lt.
Edward O'Hare, attached to Fighting Squadron 3 on the USS Lexington, shot down five Japanese G4M1
Betty bombers that were attacking the USS Lexington in just four
minutes, becoming the U.S. Navy's first flying ace in World War II.
O’Hare was selected for promotion to Lieutenant
Commander and became the first naval aviator to be awarded the Medal of
Honor for this action. O'Hare went missing on November 26, 1943, while
he was leading the U.S. Navy's first-ever nighttime fighter attack
launched from an aircraft carrier. In 1945, the U.S. Navy destroyer USS
O'Hare (DD-889) was named in his honor and in 1949 the Chicago, Illinois
airport was renamed O'Hare International Airport was named in his honor.In
the wake of the Japanese carrier strike the day before, Darwin,
Australia, was abandoned as an Allied naval base.
RAF and USAAF air operations from the field outside the port,
however, would continue.
The
Pacific TheaterThe
destroyer USS Stewart (DD 224), damaged by shellfire in the Battle of
Badoeng Strait the previous night, suffered further damage when,
improperly shored and placed on blocks. The USS Stewart rolled on her
port side in a Dutch floating drydock at Surabaya, Java.
The
Japanese 1941-42 Philippines Campaign
The
submarine USS Swordfish (SS 193) evacuated President Manuel Quezon, his
family, and other Philippine officials from Corregidor in the
Philippines.
The
Battle of the AtlanticThe
unescorted American steam merchant Delplata was torpedoed and sunk by
the U-156, commanded by Kapitänleutnant Werner Hartenstein,
approximately 60 miles west of Martinique in the eastern Caribbean Sea.
Of the ship’s complement, all 53 survived and were picked up by the
minesweeper USS Lapwing (AVP 1). The 5,127 ton Delplata was carrying
general cargo and was bound for St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.The
unescorted Norwegian steam merchant Nordvangen was torpedoed and sunk by
the U-129, commanded by Kapitänleutnant Asmus Nicolai Clausen, in the
eastern Caribbean Sea. All of the ship’s complement of 24 died. The
2,400 ton Nordvangen was carrying bauxite and was bound for New Orleans,
Louisiana.The
unescorted American motor merchant Lake Osweya was torpedoed and sunk by
the U-96, commanded by Kapitänleutnant Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock,
southeast of Sable Island, Nova Scotia in the northwestern Atlantic
Ocean. All of the ship’s complement of 39 died. The 2,398 ton Lake
Osweya was carrying general cargo and was bound for Reykjavik, Iceland.
The
United States and Vichy France
Admiral
William D. Leahy, Ambassador to Vichy France, wrote to U.S. President
Franklin D. Roosevelt that he expected a recall "for consultation" since
the French had not responded positively to Roosevelt's message of
February 11 regarding giving aid to Axis powers. President Roosevelt,
while sympathetic to Admiral Leahy's position, subsequently informed his
ambassador that "to hold the fort [in Vichy] is as important a military
task as any other in these days." Leahy was thus retained in France. On
the same day that Leahy wrote to the President, however, German
submarine U-156 put in to Martinique to put ashore one of the men
wounded by the premature barrel explosion on February 16 while shelling
an oil refinery on Aruba.
The
Nisei - Japanese Americans in WW2Secretary
of War Henry L. Stimson authorized Lieutenant General John L. De Witt,
Commanding General of the Western Defense Command, to effectuate the
recommendations DeWitt made on February 14 and to exercise all powers
conferred upon him and upon any military commander designated by him by
Executive Order No. 9066
issued the previous day. Among the steps taken
was the evacuation of Japanese from western Washington and Oregon,
California and southern Arizona. Transmitted is the final report of that
evacuation.
Ships CommissionedThe
Dutch destroyer HNMS Van Galen (G 84) was commissioned. Her first
commander was Lt. Commander Francois T. Burghard.The objective of WW2Timelines.com is to provide a day by day account of the events that lead up to and were part of the greatest conflict known to mankind. There are accounts for the activities of each particular day and timelines for subjects and personalities. It is the of this website intent to provide an unbiased account of the war. Analysis, effects caused by an event, or prior or subsequent pertinent events are presented separately and indicated as text that is italicized.
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