February 24, 1945
Today in World War II Pacific History
Day by day chronology

SATURDAY, 24 FEBRUARY 1945

ALASKA (Eleventh Air Force): Four B-25s on a shipping sweep attack the Hayakegawa River in the Kurile; returning, the B-25s spot and photograph a Japanese balloon bomb.

CHINA THEATER (Fourteenth Air Force): Five B-24s on individual sweeps over the South China Sea and Gulf of Tonkin claim four vessels sunk.

HQ AAF (Twentieth Air Force): Mission 38: In an all-incendiary attack, 105 of 116 B-29s hit the Empire Dock area of at Singapore Harbor, burning out about 40 per cent of the warehouse area; 1 B-29 is lost; this is the last 100-aircraft strike by the XX Bomber Command. HQ 58th Bombardment Wing (Very Heavy) and HQ 468th Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) begin a movement from the Hijli Base Area and Kharagpur respectively to the Marianas. Japanese report: Penang and Singapore were attacked, one B-29 was smoked on left wing and was last seen heading to Malacca Strait, it will not make it.

INDIA-BURMA THEATER (Tenth Air Force): In Burma, eight P-47s in close support of the ground forces near Lashio pound vehicle and a troop concentration; 12 B-25s and about 125 fighter-bombers strike against targets immediately behind the lines, hitting troops, supply areas, occupied towns and villages, vehicles, and general targets of opportunity. Transports complete 600 sorties carrying men and supplies to forward areas.

AAFPOA (Seventh Air Force): 28 B-24s from Angaur Airfield bomb Ising on Mindanao. Three B-24s on armed reconnaissance from Guam bomb Marcus Airfield. During the night of 24/25 Feb, five B-24s out of Guam fly individual snooper strikes against Susaki Airfield and the town of Okimura.

SOUTHWEST PACIFIC AREA [SWPA, Far East Air Force (FEAF)]: On Luzon, strikes in support of ground forces continue, especially W of Ft Stotsenburg; fighter-bombers attack forces holding out on Corregidor; B-24s bomb Sepinggaiig and Manggar Airfields. B-25s sweep off the China coast, bombing the naval base at Ryukyu-Sho, Formosa. The 20th Combat Mapping Squadron, 6th Photographic Reconnaissance Group based at Dulag begins operating from San Jose with F-7s. The 390th Bombardment Squadron (Medium), 42d Bombardment Group (Medium), based at Sansapor begins operating from Morotai with B-25s.