WEDNESDAY, 18 FEBRUARY 1942
SOUTHWEST PACIFIC AREA (SWPA, 5th Air Force): Detachment of the 22d Bombardment
Squadron (Hevy), 7th Bombardment Group (Heavy), departs Nandi Airport, Fiji
from Australia with B-17's. The squadron is based at Jogjakarta.
Air echelon of 91st Bombardment Squadron, 27th Bombardment Group
begins operating from Malang with A-24s; ground echelon is on Bataan.
"Singosari Savior" by Paul Eckley depicts P-40E Warhawk pilot Lt. 2nd Lt. Frank E. Adkins from the 17th Pursuit Squadron (17th PS) intercepts G4M1 Bettys from the Takao Kokutai over Surabaja then chased by escorting A6M2 Zeros that hit his fuel tank and disabled his guns. Lost over eastern Java, he followed a B-17 Flying Fortress landing at the highly camouflaged runway at on Singosari Airfield. After parking near a hangar, Adkins realizes he was hit in his fuel tank and his guns were disabled and later returns to Ngoro Airfield.
ABDA: In the evening, a group of American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDA) warships departs Tjiltjap for an attack on Japanese forces landing at Bali. The force force includes Hr. Ms. De Ruyter and Hr. Ms. Java with destroyers Hr. Ms. Kortenaer, Hr. Ms. Piet Hein, USS John D. Ford (DD-228) and USS Pope (DD-225). While departing, Hr. Ms. Kortenaer becomes stranded on a sandbar and has to wait for the tide to become freed.
