April 10, 1943
(5th AF) B-17s bomb Kairiru Island.
February 6, 1944
(5th AF) A-20s hit shipping near Kairiru and Mushu Islands causing considerable damage
and destruction.
February 4, 1944
((5th AF) Three
B-25 Mitchells from the 17th TRG Fight'in 17th" piloted by Captain Bert N. Smiley (Operations Officer), Lt. Herb Young
and Lt. Pruitt, all "experience
their first significant combat on an armed reconnaissance mission. They flew
over Kar Kar Island, but found nothing. They proceeded to Wewak with
clear weather, and low scattered clouds. Spotting a ship off Muschu and
Kairiru Islands, they split up to attack a variety of targets. Prutt attacked
a barge setting it on fire, and a direct hit on a 'Sugar Charlie (500 ton
cargo vessel) in a cove on Kairiru. Smiley attacked a ship getting near misses
and a lugger, and strafing another barge, then strafed two PETE seaplanes
moored off Kairiru, and targets on land. Young bombed a gun boat, and
near missed a cargo vessel. On the south side of Muschu Island, a large concentration
of barges, reportedly the largest ever seen in SWPA was strafed. The costs
were Smiley's top turret gunner S/Sgt Victor McMullen, who was KIA. Young's
plane was damaged, a fire in navigator's compartment and causing the left
gear to drop out of the plane, and belly landed back at base. Reference:
17th TRG "Fight'in 17th" History "The Battle of Kairiru and
Muschi Islands", pages 131–132.
March
20, 1944
(5th AF) aerial reconnassance photo taken of St. Johns Mission area and Japanese
seaplane anchorage.
March 21, 1944
(5th AF) 140+ B-24s, B-25s, A-20s, P-38s and P-40s attack St. John's Mission area of Kairiru
Island.
March 22, 1944
(5th AF) B-24s,
B-25s, A-20s, and P-40s hit shipping off Kairiru Island and St. Johns Mission
area.
April 27, 1944
(5th AF) B-24s, B-25s and A-20s attack Mushu and Kairiru Island.
May 2/3, 1944
(USN) PT Boat Grounding Code Book Raft, Barge Attacks: After attacking barges west of Bogia,
PT-114 and PT-144 proceeded to Kairiru arriving at 1:30am, PT-114 grounded off
Yarin on a reef 400 yards off shore, it jettisoned its torpedoes and depth charges,
and was pulled off the reef by PT-144. Before it was, the ship was prepaired
to be abandoned, and a raft with code books and secret information accidently
drifted away. When the incident was reported, PT-134 and PT-129 were sent out
to try and find the raft. They spotted it on the beach. Crew member Bob Leeson
swam across the reef in daylight to tow the raft back to the PT Boat, the code
books were still aboard and not discovered. Ten minutes later, a 3" gun
opened up on the boats from Yarin, they returned fire and withdrew. After dark,
they returned again, discovering loaded barges on the south coast of Kairiru,
and followed them. They turned towards shore, to get in range of shore batteries,
but the PT-Boats sank two of them., and damaged the third. A 20mm shell
damaged PT-129, putting a hole in the exhaust stack and small fire in the engine.
Two of her crew passed out from the fumes, but were revived, and their lives
saved. After airing out the engine room, they returned to the beach area and
fired their 24 rockets against beached barges, while shore batteries fired at
them. During the entire action, the boats were under inaccurate fire from gun
batteries near Yarin.
June 25, 1944
(5th AF) Fifth Air Force and RAAF aircraft attack barges at Mushu Island and Kairiru Island.
July 9, 1944
(5th AF) B-25s and fighter-bombers hit dums on Kairiru Island.
July 20, 1944
(5th AF) A-20s and a B-25 bomb stroops on Kairiru Island.
July 21, 1944
(5th AF) P-47s attack Kairiru
Island.
August 11, 1944
(5th AF)P-39s hit the Kairiru Island barge terminal, coastal guns at several points.
August 27, 1944
(5th AF) Fighter bombers hit a
fuel dump and barges at Kairiru Island.
