January 8, 1942
Today in World War II Pacific History
Day by day chronology

THURSDAY, 8 JANUARY 1942

China: Nine unescorted SBs from the 2nd BG led by Colonel Chin Wen strike Hunan. Over the northern Hunan they were intercepted by eight Ki-27s of the 54th Sentai, which prevented them to reach the target. Captain Yaichiro Hayashi and his pilots claimed five SBs shot down and two damaged. It seems that two SBs were shot down and three more damaged bombers had to make forced landings.

During the day, four P-40s from AVG, 2nd Squadron were despatched to strafe Mesoht Airfield, where they claimed eight aircraft destroyed on the ground; the Japanese reported that four Ki-27s of the 77th Sentai were burned and three damaged, and that a transport aircraft was also destroyed in flames - but at Raheng, rather then Mesoht! The AA defences claimed two P-40s shot down and, in fact. Flight Leader Charlie Mott's aircraft was hit, but he successfully force-landed in a clearing near the airfield and managed to jump clear before his aircraft burst into flames. He was taken prisoner, and a week later was allowed to broadcast over Bangkok radio that he was unhurt and being treated well. On return, the other pilots reported that Mott had destroyed three of the aircraft claimed, Flight Leader Percy Bartelt and Bob Moss each claiming two, and Flight Leader Bright one.

That night, three AVG pilots Howard, Bright and Peter Wright took off in an attempt to intercept the nightly bombing raids on Rangoon. Owing to the lack of a flare-path, cars and trucks were lined along the edge of the runway to illuminate the runway. The Americans were failed to make contact and at 4:00am advised Mingaladon that they were returning; the headlights of the vehicles were switched on to facilitate landings. As Wright came in to land, a hydraulic pipe in his cockpit fractured and he was sprayed, and half-blinded, by the fluid; his aircraft careered towards the line of vehicles and collided with a car in which pilot Ken Merritt was sleeping. Merritt was killed but Wright escaped injury.

USN: USS John Penn is acquired by the U.S. Navy (USN) as a transport and cargo vessel. Lost is TBD-1 Devastator 0371 from USS Saratoga (CV-3) off Hawaii. RAN: Commissioned is HMAS Whyalla (J153).

IJN: Shōkaku departs Hashirajima as part of Admiral Nagumo's Strike Force bound for Truk to stage for "Operation R" the planned invasion of Rabaul and Kavieng.

RAAF: A Japanese air raid against Rabaul resulted in the loss of Hudson A16-13 due to a nearby bomb blast and Wirraway A20-437 damaged by shrapnel and burned the cockpit area.