November 4, 1942
Today in World War II Pacific History
Day by day chronology

WEDNESDAY, 4 NOVEMBER 1942

ALASKA (Eleventh Air Force): Bad weather at Umnak and Dutch Harbor on Unalaska and flooded Adak Airfield preclude missions; a new Adak Airfield runway permits an air alert.

SOUTHWEST PACIFIC AREA (SWPA, Fifth Air Force): B-26s bomb Aileu on Timor. In New Guinea, B-17s and B-25s bomb Salamaua and the harbor. Damaged is B-17E "Lucy" 41-2666 when one of the life rafts accidentally deployed, ripping off the radio aerial and wrapping around the port elevator, and the bomber descended to 9,300' and gunner Pfc Lowell Lee fired his machine gun at the raft to deflate it, but it remained wrapped around the elevator. A-20s hit troop concentrations at Oivi, where an Australian attack meets firm resistance; transports fly most of the remainder of the 128th Infantry Regiment, 32d Infantry Division to Wanigela Airfield. Headquaters (HQ) 90th Bombardment Group including 319th Bombardment Squadron, 320th Bombardment Squadron, 321st Bombardment Squadron and 400th Bombardment Squadron arrive at Iron Range from Hawaii with B-24s. Thier first mission is November 13, 1942). Lost on a ferry flight is P-38F pilot Porter (survived) and P-38F 42-12649 pilot 2nd Lt. Richard T. Cella (survived).

Guadalcanal: U.S. Navy Task Force 65 (TF 65) conducts an amphibious landing at Aola. The force included five hundred 14th Naval Construction Battalion (14th NCB) "Seabees" tasked with building Bomber 2 plus the 2nd Marine Raider Battalion "Carlson's Riders" (less detachments) along with elements of the U.S. Army 147th Infantry Regiment and the Marine 5th Defense Battalion.