Rabaul 1943–44
Rabaul 1943–44

Author: Mark Lardas

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-01-25

Total Pages: 92

ISBN-13: 1472822439

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In 1942, the massive Japanese naval base and airfield at Rabaul was a fortress standing in the Allies' path to Tokyo. It was impossible to seize Rabaul, or starve the 100,000-strong garrison out. Instead the US began an innovative, hard-fought two-year air campaign to draw its teeth, and allow them to bypass the island completely. The struggle decided more than the fate of Rabaul. If successful, the Allies would demonstrate a new form of warfare, where air power, with a judicious use of naval and land forces, would eliminate the need to occupy a ground objective in order to control it. As it turned out, the Siege of Rabaul proved to be more just than a successful demonstration of air power – it provided the roadmap for the rest of World War II in the Pacific.

Rabaul 1943–44
Rabaul 1943–44

Author: Mark Lardas

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-01-25

Total Pages: 92

ISBN-13: 1472822455

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In 1942, the massive Japanese naval base and airfield at Rabaul was a fortress standing in the Allies' path to Tokyo. It was impossible to seize Rabaul, or starve the 100,000-strong garrison out. Instead the US began an innovative, hard-fought two-year air campaign to draw its teeth, and allow them to bypass the island completely. The struggle decided more than the fate of Rabaul. If successful, the Allies would demonstrate a new form of warfare, where air power, with a judicious use of naval and land forces, would eliminate the need to occupy a ground objective in order to control it. As it turned out, the Siege of Rabaul proved to be more just than a successful demonstration of air power – it provided the roadmap for the rest of World War II in the Pacific.

Fortress Rabaul
Fortress Rabaul

Author: Bruce Gamble

Publisher: Zenith Press

Published: 2013-09-09

Total Pages: 427

ISBN-13: 0760345597

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For most of World War II, the mention of Japan's island stronghold sent shudders through thousands of Allied airmen. Some called it “Fortress Rabaul,” an apt name for the headquarters of the Imperial Japanese forces in the Southwest Pacific. Author Bruce Gamble chronicles Rabaul’s crucial role in Japanese operations in the Southwest Pacific. Millions of square feet of housing and storage facilities supported a hundred thousand soldiers and naval personnel. Simpson Harbor and the airfields were the focus of hundreds of missions by American air forces. Winner of the "Gold Medal" (Military Writers Society of America) and "Editor's Choice Award" (Stone & Stone Second World War Books), Fortress Rabaul details a critical and, until now, little understood chapter in the history of World War II.

P-47D Thunderbolt vs Ki-43-II Oscar
P-47D Thunderbolt vs Ki-43-II Oscar

Author: Michael John Claringbould

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2020-07-23

Total Pages: 81

ISBN-13: 1472840925

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Although New Guinea's Thunderbolt pilots faced several different types of enemy aircraft in capricious tropical conditions, by far their most common adversary was the Nakajima Ki-43-II Hayabusa, codenamed 'Oscar' by the Allies. These two opposing fighters were the products of two radically different design philosophies. The Thunderbolt was heavy, fast and packed a massive punch thanks to its battery of eight 0.50-cal machine guns, while the 'Oscar' was the complete opposite in respect to fighter design philosophy – lightweight, nimble, manoeuvrable and lightly armed. It was, nonetheless, deadly in the hands of an experienced pilot. The Thunderbolt commenced operations in New Guinea with a series of bomber escort missions in mid-1943, and its firepower and superior speed soon saw Fifth Air Force fighter command deploying elite groups of P-47s to Wewak, on the northern coast. Flying from there, they would pick off unwary enemy aircraft during dedicated fighter patrols. The Thunderbolt pilots in New Guinea slowly wore down their Japanese counterparts by continual combat and deadly strafing attacks, but nevertheless, the Ki-43-II remained a worthy opponent deterrent up until Hollandia was abandoned by the IJAAF in April 1944. Fully illustrated throughout with artwork and rare photographs, this fascinating book examines these two vastly different fighters in the New Guinea theatre, and assesses the unique geographic conditions that shaped their deployment and effectiveness.

The Solomons 1943–44
The Solomons 1943–44

Author: Mark Stille

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-08-21

Total Pages: 97

ISBN-13: 1472824474

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A highly illustrated study of the Solomons campaign in 1943–44 from Guadalcanal, as the US forces advanced through the island chain, to the vital Japanese base at Rabaul.

South Pacific Air War Volume 1
South Pacific Air War Volume 1

Author: Peter Ingman

Publisher:

Published: 2017-11

Total Pages: 252

ISBN-13: 9780994588944

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This volume chronicles aerial warfare in the South Pacific from December 1941 until March 1942, during which air operations by both sides became a daily occurrence. As Imperial Japanese Navy flying boats and landbased bombers penetrated over vast distances, a few under-strength squadrons of the Royal Australian Air Force put up a spirited fight. However it was the supreme power of aircraft carriers that had the biggest impact. Four Japanese fleet carriers facilitated the capture of Rabaul over a devastating four-day period in January 1942. The following month, the USS Lexington's fighter squadron VF-3 scored one of the most one-sided victories of the entire Pacific War. By March 1942 the Japanese had landed on mainland New Guinea, and the scene was set for a race to control Port Moresby. This is the full story of both sides of an air war that could have been won by either incumbent, but for timing, crucial decisions and luck. The two authors are uniquely qualified to tell this story. Raised in Port Moresby, Michael Claringbould is a globally-acknowledged expert on the New Guinea air war and Japanese aviation in particular. Peter Ingman is an acclaimed military history author specialising in the early Pacific War period.

The Solomons 1943–44
The Solomons 1943–44

Author: Mark Stille

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-08-23

Total Pages: 97

ISBN-13: 1472824490

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Victory at Guadalcanal for the Allies in February 1943 left them a vital foothold in the Solomon Islands chain, and was the first step in an attempt to isolate and capture the key Japanese base of Rabaul on New Britain. In order to do this they had to advance up the island chain in a combined air, naval, and ground campaign. On the other hand, the Japanese were determined to shore up their defences on the Solomons, which was a vital part of their southern front, and would bitterly contest every inch of the Allied advance. The scene was set for one of the bloodiest campaigns of the Pacific War. Fully illustrated with specially commissioned maps and artwork, this is the compelling story of the struggle for the Solomons, a key part of the Allied advance towards Japan which saw tens of thousands of casualties and so many ships lost that part of the ocean became known as 'Ironbottom Sound'.

The Battle for Shaggy Ridge
The Battle for Shaggy Ridge

Author: Phillip Bradley

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Published: 2021-08-31

Total Pages: 382

ISBN-13: 1761062638

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An enlightening re-examination of an important campaign following the experiences of the men from both sides. 'You climb and climb . . . This is the field of battle . . . tonight some of us will be dead . . . You'll never forget Shaggy Ridge.' - Shawn O'Leary From the killing ground of Kaiapit to the treacherous heights of the Finisterre Range, for four months in 1943-44 the Australian army fought to drive the Japanese from their mountain strongholds. The most formidable position was the fortress-like Shaggy Ridge, its steep sides rising sharply to a knife-edge crest where battle was joined on a one-man front. Based on the accounts of over a hundred Australians, Americans and Japanese who served on, around and over the ridge, The Battle for Shaggy Ridge tells the story of this extraordinary struggle for control of the Ramu Valley in New Guinea.