PACIFIC  WRECK  DATABASE
Wreck News & Updates - February 2005
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REPORTS
John Loughman Wreck Photos 1968-73
Papuan Wreck Diary & NEIAF by John Douglas
Victor Grimes 5th Bomber Command
EDITORIAL
Coming soon
WRECKS
Battle of the Java Sea - Last MIA Ship Found!
A6M2 Zero Restored at USAF Museum
JPAC MIA MIssion to PNG, Fiji
REVIEWS
Emblems of the Rising Sun
Pacific Fighters (PC Game)
LINKS
To WWII Pacific websites

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1. EDITORIAL - Upcoming Events
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A Tribute to Marion LutesWelcome to 2005, this year marks the 60th anniversary of events in 1945. Already the year is full of Pacific happenings and reports.  There are a few site related happenings to report, and as always, thanks to all new and long term contributors As a follow up to last update's Lady in the Clouds, a computer rendering of the P-47 by MaxL - Tribute to Marion Lutes

PWD Discussion Forum is back in action, we have upgraded the form and apologize for the down-time in December Login, or join up now and enter one of the many discussions available related.

Due to overwhelming popularity of the site, you might have experienced a 'bandwith overquota' message if you visited the site in late December.  With user donations we have added more bandwidth, and are proud to announce a new peak of 4891 visitors, a new one-day record for the site!

Yours in history,
Justin Taylan
email - justin@wanpela.com
PacifcWrecks.com | PacificGhosts.com

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2.  WRECK NEWS
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Click For StoryBattle of the Java Sea - Last Missing Ship Found!
By Kevin Denlay.  Divers aboard the MV Empress have now found all four of the missing ships from the Battle of the Java Sea. The last missing ship, HNMS Kortenaer was discovered on December 8, 2004 and positively identified Learn more about this, and their past discoveries of HMS Electra, HNMS De Ruyer and HNMS Java.

Click For StoryMitsubishi A6M2 Zero On Display at USAF Museum
Recovered from Kavieng in 1969, this aircraft ended up in the collection of the USAF Museum, and was restored and put on display September 2004.  Learn more about the long history of this interesting former wreck.

JPAC Teams Deploy to Papua New Guinea and Fiji
Three JPAC MIA recoveries teams are currently deployed in the Pacific - two in Papua New Guinea and one to Fiji.  Read their new release about the missions of these operations, the first MIA work in the Pacific for 2005.

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3. REPORTS & PHOTOS
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John Loughman - Papua New Guinea Photos 1968 - 73
Click For StoryIn 1968  prior to PNG independence I went up in May to prepare the handover of the Australian Post Office Radio Branch. I had been corresponding with a Barry Flood of the Commonwealth Bank who relieved all over the Territory where he was able to inspect and photograph a lot of wrecks. I left the territory in December 1973.

Papuan Wreck Diary
Click For Storyby John Douglas  PWD's longest running column: five years of wreck related monthly reports.  Read Douglas' monthly report on wreck related activities including new discoveries at Murik Lakes, and explorations planned for 2005 at Wewak and Madang Provinces.  Also, visit Douglas research page related to Neatherlands East-Indies Air Force (NEIAF) one of the forgotten Air Forces that served in the Pacific.

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4.  VETERAN INTEVIEWS
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Read StoryVictor Grimes 5th Bomber Command
Profile by his daughter, Leslie Grimes about her father's wartime service, including photos from his collection. Grimes was part of the 5th Air Force's Bomber command from the earliest days of American operations.

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5.  REVIEWS - Pacific WWII Related Books
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View all WWII Pacific Book, Magazine and Video Reviews a comprehensive source for all the best Pacific related references and reading. Have a book related to WWII Pacific to recommend? Write a review and add it to the archive. This month's update focuses on new DVDs and multimedia releases.

Read ReviewEmblems of the Rising Sun
by Peter Scott. Comparatively little is published in english about Japanese aircraft, especially the Japanese Army Air Force (JAAF).  This book is not only worthwhile for aficionados of the JAAF, or model builders, but is itself an outstanding publication in terms of quality, research and scope that anyone interested in WWII aviation would want in their library. Includes photos and aircraft lithographs of ever fighter and bomber sentai from start to finish of the war.

Read ReviewPacific Fighters (PC Game)
Review by Daniel Leahy. As a Pacific flight simulator fanatic, I was sitting on the edge of my seat at the announcement of UbiSoft's new simulator - Pacific Fighters. I loved the reality of their previous Il-2 Sturmovik series, though could never really get immersed in the Eastern Front theatre. Though still a fan of the now dated Combat Flight Simulator 2, I was eagerly awaiting the updated graphics, amount of aircraft and realism that Pacific Fighters was promising to deliver.

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6.  Pacific WWII - Links of the Month
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Great links related to WWII Pacific, submitted by users of the Pacific Wreck Database site. Do you know of a good Pacific related website? Email the URL for inclusion in our comprehensive list of links!

American Invasion of New Zealand
Thanks to John Wilson for these links

Pacific Islander's Prespective of WWII
Thanks to Douglas Herman for these links:
Saipan | Guam | Yap | Palau 

April 1943 Pacific Aircraft Recognition Album
Thanks to Peter Dunn for this link

U-Boats in the Pacific
Thanks to Ken Dodge for this link
Flying Boat Discovered off Hawaii
Thanks to Joe Myhand for this link
Anderson Air Force Base Guam B-29 Wreckage
Thanks to R. Smisek for this link
New Zealand in WWII
Thanks to John Wilson for this link
Ace Ivon Julian and Bryson Fisken
Thanks to John Wilson for these links
First Aboriginal Commissioned Officer
Thanks to Daniel Leahy for this link
Saipan - A Collection of Photos
Excellent website by Keith Tarrier
USAAF Night Fighters Against Japan
Covers the history of Pacific Night Fighters
Ponam Island - Then & Now
Thank to Matt Kay for this link
Accident-Report.com
Thanks to Daniel Leahy for reporting this site


# # # End of Wreck News February 2, 2005 # # #

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