October 3, 1943
Today in World War II Pacific History
Day by day chronology

SUNDAY, 3 OCTOBER 1943

CHINA (Fourteenth Air Force): Seven P-40's damage a 250' vessel on the Yangtze River near Chiuchiang; Four P-38's bomb Chiuchiang docks; Six B-24's damage a 100' coastal freighter off Tonkon Point on Hainan. A detachment of the 76th Fighter Squadron, 23d Fighter Group, based at Hengyang begins operating from Suichwan with P-40's.

SOUTH PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Thirteenth Air Force): P-39s strafe several barges west of Choiseul.

SOUTHWEST PACIFIC THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Fifth Air Force): B-25's continue to hit barges along the west coast of New Britain in the Bismarck Archipelago. 431st Fighter Squadron, 475th Fighter Group ceases operating from 12 Mile Drome and moves to Dobodura No. 12 with P-38s.

USN: USS Henley (DD-391) is sunk by a torpedo fired by Japanese submarine RO-108 off Cape Cretin.

Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru is damaged by mine off Surabaya on Java.

Japanese complete evacuation of Kolombangara.