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Aviation History
1945
1945 - 1043.PDF
MAY 3 IST, 573 OVER THE HUMP : The mountainous terrain flown over by R.A.F. Dakotas on the air transport service Between India and China. Second T.A.F. Praised by P.M. : How Air Transport Saved Chungking NOT long ago the Japanese pub-lished news of a glorious vic-tory over a British naval force in the Straits of Malacca. The British Admiralty, as is its way, waited until reliable reports came in and then pub- lished the true story. On May 6th an Avenger dive bomber from the escort , carrier H.M.S. Shah spotted an enemy1 10,000-ton cruiser with 8-inch guns, of the Nati class, with one destroyer in attendance, while not far off were a supply ship and a submarine chaser. The Avenger went for the cruiser with its bombs, probably scored one hit and also observed a near miss. It sum- moned a force of five destroyers, which attacked the cruiser with tor- pedoes in the night and sank her. Another remarkable story of air transport in Burma has recently been made public, though it describes events in last December. A Japanese Army was threatening Chungking and Kunming, as well as the eastern ter- minus of the air and land routes be- tween China and India. Reinforce- ments for China were urgently needed, and it was decided to despatch two divisions of the 6th Chinese Army, which were driving the Japanese southward from Myitkyina. In ac- cordance with the practice of Eastern Air Command, the move was made by air. In about a month over 25,000 soldiers and 1,500 pack animals, in NAVAL SCOREBOARD pressive list of kills U.S.S. addition to numbers of jeeps, howit- zers, and mortars, were flown into China. This great effort involved over 1,500 aircraft sorties. The sudden arrival of these reinforcements must have been an unpleasant shock for the Japanese. Chungking did not fall. It seems as if the Japanese have been stirred by the reports of the V- bombs and rockets lately used by the Germans, and wanted to do something of the same sort. The best they could do was to send uncontrolled balloons, made of paper, carrying small amounts of explosives, over parts of the United States and Canada. Up to the moment of writing these balloons have done no material damage, though they are capable of starting forest fires. One was shot down by a Canadian airman at a great height. The Prime Minister has sent a mes- sage of congratulation to Air Marshal Sir Arthur Coningham on the work of the men of the 2nd Tactical Air Force, in which he said : '' Their mastery of the skies above our armies, their ever vigilant reconnaissance, their inter- vention in the land battles, and their devastating attacks against the enemy's vital communications, con- centrations, and supply organisation, have made the tasks of our armies far
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