Show ip Supply Line by Yank fAction Action Welds Ring a Around round Japs in Lae ILae Area I iVern Yern Haugland A L L I E D HEADQUARTERS HEADQUARTER Pacific Sept 7 UP- UP P paratroops cut off all land supply lines Jines of some Japanese troops in the Lae Laed nd d area of New Guinea Guine ith rith the capture of an enemy air- air held eld in the Markham valley allied announced Tuesday I The air strip was seized Sunday h hen n hundreds of borne air Ameri- Ameri ii soldiers rs and an Australian arUl ar- ar Ul illery ry unit complete with machine machines s s mortars ammunition rub- rub e ri assault boats and radio landed pear ar the field I fAn An Australian force flown Into mar Rallied allied advanced base marched I verland five days to rendezvous ear r the occupied airfield with the American merican paratroopers who had hadla la gamed ed Sunday morning while Gen Gens t rat l Douglas MacArthur looked on tom from m a Flying Fortress Field eld Grown Over O Overt t A headquarters statement disi dis dis- ip I i Hosed sed that the enemy airfield had lot been used by the Japanese for and was overgrown with I J unai nai grass four to six feet high h field flat and level easily can Placed placed into operating condition Capture of the airfield effective- effective I I helped close the trap on the of Lae and IThe The iThe paratroopers landed on three lid sides lide's s of the Japanese airdrome willed wiled by three thre smoke screens hick outlined the field perfectly i 1 TAs KII soon as the paratroops l landt landi land land- nd- nd i the Australian ground force t to cross the near near-by Markam Mark- Mark Kun amm m river by means of a pontoon dge ridge Other floated own vin the river in assault boats to site of the field Coined fined Ined I ar First First r Lieutenant Monte Kleban I an Antonio Texas who jumped ith the paratroopers said the I ground force which had cured swamps for enemy detach- detach e tS during its five five day day march I edthe borne air-borne troops several ours Jurs after they had landed We saw one another at the theme theme theme me moment said Klebans an public relations officer MacArthurs MacArthur's command With l ful shouts the Australians and I ran toward one anth an- an ther th r. r These strangers hugged d embraced like like long lost long lost The he allied meeting faceting closed the theng ti ng ab about ut the imperiled Japanese Their best inland route of flight e broad Markham valley was lo ed by the paratroopers who floated to earth in white orange ed e so and blue parachutes Sunday r rom m the low-flying low transports I Me hile attack planes in the biggest information ever massed in this the tUe area laid a smoke screen hey dropped down behind the T. T ap nese air and sea anchorage se e of Lae I Beautiful Beautiful Wonderful ex- ex aimed General MacArthur as he heo hew hew o w W Wave wave ave on wave of transports iU oad the without a plane in sight to oppose oe e huge force of bombers and Enters fhe enemy was completely Some advices said one Continued on Page Palle Five Column Four J i Yank Pa Paratrooper er Landin Landing Cuts New Guinea Nip Supply Line I Continued from Page Pare One Japanese patrol managed to fire a few wild shots at the descending troops That constituted the op op- position This spectacular mission sprung on the fourth anniversary of Australia's Australia's Aus- Aus entry into the war followed by by a day the landing of Africa- Africa seasoned Australians above Lae Saturday from ships escorted by American men of war The Japanese believing the main allied drive was coming from Sala- Sala maua 18 miles southeast of Lae were so 50 surprised by the Australian Australian Austra Austra- lian Ban landings that they were able to inflict only a few lew casualties with their air force But the paratroopers' paratroopers surprise was even greater Not a plane was lost The soldiers classified by bythe bythe bythe the colors of their chutes landed in the high head-high grass to form the precise pattern which had been sketched on paper Jumping from so low Iowan an altitude that the Japanese would hate haye had only a few seconds to fire had they been on hand the paratroopers paratroop paratroop- ers quickly disengaged themselves from the chutes and moved along the valley whose river empties into the Huon gulf at Lae General MacArthur who later said he felt the responsibility of cheering on his men in their first such combat mission with his presence presence presence pres pres- ence said on returning to his headquarters headquarters headquarters head head- quarters We have closed the ring at Lae La and This ring of men begins in the ridges just below the mouth of the Francisco river near the airdrome moves out of the mountains mountains mountains moun moun- across the river follows an Irregular line behind anc and Lae and is anchored less than 10 miles east of Lae at a point to which the Australians have pushed since their landings Saturday The latest operations placed the allies on the offensive 0 as never before in the New Guinea sector Paratroops are not a defensive organization one military man emphasized Therefore this is the first vigorous vigorous vigorous vig vig- I orous offensive move against the Japs in the Pacific I In addition to General MacArthur MacArthur MacArthur MacAr MacAr- thur other high ranking officers made clear by their presence the importance of the operations Flying Flying Flying Fly Fly- ing in a separate plane was Lieutenant Lieutenant Lieutenant Lieu Lieu- tenant General George C. C Kenney commander of allied air forces in inthe inthe inthe the southwest Pacific Major General General General Gen Gen- eral Richard K Sutherland MacArthur's MacArthurs MacArthurs MacArthur's Mac- Mac MacArthurs MacArthur's Arthurs Arthur's chief of staff and Major General Ennis Whitehead of the advanced echelon group were in another Acting as copilot on General General General Gen Gen- eral MacArthurs MacArthur's Ma Arthurs Arthur's as Brigadier Brigadier Brigadier Briga Briga- dier General Roger Ramey of Denton Denton Denton Den- Den ton Texas commanding general of the fifth air force Ai Air support of the operations was impressive Mitchells bombed bombe l the landing area before the transports transports transports trans trans- ports arrived Nearer Lae they theys s spilled p pill i 11 e d fragmentation bombs among enemy artillery posts and raked installations with rounds of ammunition North of Lae an an enemy strong point was destroyed by 94 tons of bombs J |