MONDAY, 19 MARCH 1945
ALASKA (Eleventh Air Force): Five B-24s bomb and photograph the Kashiwabara naval base. Eight B-25s bomb canneries along the Masugawa and Asahigawa Rivers.
CHINA THEATER (Fourteenth Air Force): Five B-24s on a sweep over the South China Sea and Gulf of Tonkin claim a large freighter sunk. 4 P-38s strafe trucks from Son La to Hoa Binh, French Indochina.
INDIA-BURMA THEATER (Tenth Air Force): In Burma, 24 P-38s support the forces of the Chinese 50th Division near Hsipaw; 12 P-38s sweep roads S of the bomb line while 27 P-47s operating over and behind enemy lines hit troop concentrations and supplies at Namlan, Namio, and Nam-maw-long and a Japanese-held monastery at Nammaw-long. Transports fly 502 sorties to forward areas.
AAFPOA Seventh Air Force: 12 Guam based B-24s
attack the Susaki Airfield and radio installations in the afternoon. During
the night of 19/20 Mar, Susaki Airfield is hit again by 5 B-24s flying separate
snooper strikes. VII Fighter Command: 16 P-51s from Iwo
Jima bomb and strafe Susaki Airfield, a radio installation, and storage
area on Chichi Jima.
SOUTHWEST PACIFIC AREA [SWPA, Far East Air Force (FEAF)]: B-24s and fighter-bombers
again hit installations on northern Luzon. B-24s hit a variety of targets on Cebu including the town of Minglanilla. The 8th Combat Cargo Squadron, 2d Combat
Cargo Group, moves from Biak to Dulag with C-46s; the 63d Bombardment
Squadron (Heavy), 43d Bombardment Group (Heavy), moves from Tacloban to Clark
Field with B-24s. Lost is A-20G 43-22155 (pilot MIA, gunner rescued).
USN: For the first time, a large force of 240 carrier aircraft from Task Force 58 (TF-58) including USS Essex (CV-9), USS Intrepid (CV-11), USS Hornet (CV-12), USS Wasp (CV-18), USS Hancock (CV-19), USS Bennington CV-20 and USS Belleau Wood (CVL-24) attack Kure Kure Naval Arsenal and warships in Kure Harbor.
IJN: Fifty-four N1K2-J Shiden Kai (George) from 343 Kokutai (343 Air Group) led by Lt Oshibuchi Takashi intercept U.S. planes over Kure claiming 52 enemy planes shot down for the loss of 16 fighters. Japanese anti-aircraft gunners claim another 5 shot down.
Task Force 58 (TF 58) under the command of Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher carrier planes from USS Essex (CV-9), USS Intrepid (CV-11), USS Hornet (CV-12), USS Franklin (CV-13), USS Wasp (CV-18), USS Hancock (CV-19), USS Bennington CV-20 and USS Belleau Wood (CVL-24) strike airfields on Kyushu, Kure and warships in Kure Harbor and Kobe, destroying incomplete Japanese submarine I-205 in drydock, and damaging battleships Yamato, Ise, Hyuga and Haruna; carriers Kaiyō, Ikoma, Katsuragi, Ryuhō and Amagi; small carrier Hosho; escort carrier Kaiyo; heavy cruiser Tone, light cruiser Oyodo, submarines I-400 and RO-67, auxiliary submarine chaser Cha 229 at Kure; and escort destroyer Kaki at Osaka.
Japanese planes target the aircraft carriers: out carriers for attack: USS Wasp (CV-18) is bombed off Shikoku at Lat 32°16'N, Long 134°05'E. USS Essex (CV-9) is hit by friendly fire at Lat 32°10'N, Long 134°20'E. USS Franklin (CV-13) is hit by two bombs off Kyushu, 32°01'N, 133°57'E, as the ship is rocked by a succession of explosions, Lieutenant Commander Joseph T. O'Callaghan, ChC, the carrier's Roman Catholic chaplain, ministers to wounded and dying men irregardless of faith or creed, organizes and leads fire-fighting parties, directs the jettisoning of ammunition and the flooding of a magazine, and mans a hose to cool hot, armed bombs rolling on the listing deck. O'Callaghan's courage and fortitude inspires his shipmates. Elsewhere on board, Lt(jg) Donald A. Gary calms anxious shipmates trapped in a smoke-filled compartment and after repeated tries through dark, debris-filled passageways manages to find a way to escape. Later, he organizes and leads fire-fighting parties in the blazing inferno of the hangar deck, and then enters number three fireroom to raise steam in one boiler in the face of extreme hazards. O'Callaghan and Gary will both earn the Medals of Honor.
Submarine Balao (SS-285) attacks Japanese convoy MOTA- 43, sinking troopship Hakozaki Maru and damaging transport Tatsuharu Maru off the Yangtze estuary about 90 miles north-northwest of Shanghai, 33°10'N, 122°10'E, and sinking merchant fishing vessels No.1 Katsura Maru and 1 Eiho Maru and No.2 Eiho Maru, 34°40'N, 122°55'E.
Submarine Balao (SS-285) attacks Japanese convoy MOTA- 43, sinking troopship Hakozaki Maru and damaging transport Tatsuharu Maru off the Yangtze estuary about 90 miles north-northwest of Shanghai, 33°10'N, 122°10'E, and sinking merchant fishing vessels No.1 Katsura Maru and 1 Eiho Maru and No.2 Eiho Maru, 34°40'N, 122°55'E.
PV-1s (VPB 128) bomb and damage Japanese midget submarine at Cebu; strike is repeated the next day.
Japanese river gunboat Suma is sunk by USAAF mine (laid by 14th Air Force planes on 4 March ), in the Yangtze, 51 miles above Kiangyin, China, 32°00'N, 120°00'E. Mine also claims merchant ship Kozan Maru, on the Yangtze below Chinkiang, 32°05'N, 119°56'E.
USAAF mine also sinks Japanese merchant tanker Sarawak Maru, repaired damage by USS Besugo (SS-321) on January 24 1945 roughly ten miles off Horsburgh Light, Singapore, 01°25'N, 104°36'E.
Japanese merchant vessel Mikawasan Maru is sunk by aircraft off Iyo.
Japanese escort destroyer Shinnan is damaged by aircraft, 33°47'N, 131°35'E.
Japanese landing ship T.105 is damaged by aircraft, near Ujina.
Japanese merchant vessel Rashu Maru is damaged by aircraft, off Uzaki, Hyogo prefecture.
Japanese merchant cargo ship Teiritsu Maru is damaged by aircraft, 34°16'N, 13°03'E.
U.S. Army: Sixth Army's I Corps area, 33d Div TF takes Bauang town and bridge with little difficulty. In XI Corps area, 2d Bn of 20th Inf, 6th Div, reaches positions some 1,200 yards W of Mt Baytangan during morning. 1st Inf renews attack and gains ground to right of 20th Inf. 172d Inf, in effort to envelop Sugar Loaf Hill, moves 2d Bn through 103d Inf to Mt Caymayuman to strike from rear. 3d Bn, 103d Inf, continues clearing Mt Tanauan, where enemy is offering strong opposition. Platoon of 2d Bn, 151st Inf, 38th Div, from garrison of Corregidor, lands on E end of Caballo I. without opposition; locates enemy defenses in center of the island, against which softening bombardment is conducted for the next week. In XIV Corps area, patrol of 511th Inf, 11th A/B Div, and guerrillas occupy Mt Bijang without opposition. RCT 158 begins attack for 3 hills in Cuenca area: 2d Bn reaches two of the hills with ease, but 3d Bn, attacking the third, Mt Macolod, is stopped short of Cuenca by intense fire.
In U.S. Eighth Army area, in preparation for assault landing on Cebu, Thirteenth Air Force starts intensive bombardment. On Mindanao, 1st Bn of 186th Inf arrives at Zamboanga, where American control is being extended. Elements of Co F, 162d Inf, on Malamaui I., return to Basilan. On Panay, one 185th Inf column continues toward Iloilo until halted by enemy defenses at Molo. Another seizes Carpenter bridge across Iloilo R north of Molo before Japanese can destroy it. A third column seizes Mandurriao and its airfield without opposition. Japanese, after nightfall, attempt to escape into mountains through guerrilla lines at Jaro and are largely successful.
USMC: On Iwo Jima, the 5th Marin Divison RCT 26, assisted by fire of RCT 28, maintains pressure against the last enemy pocket, moving forward slowly. 4th Mar Div completes re-embarkation.
Burma: Fourteenth Army's 33 Corps area, Ind 19th Div is still unable to break into Fort Dufferin, but aircraft breach the thick wall. Ind 20th Div column drives through Pyinzi to Pindale, in region south of Mandalay.
