| Show Allies Hit Jap-Held Jap Naval Base Yanks Skip Along New Guinea By Associated Press Allied bombers smashed twice at the powerful former Dutch naval base at in the Netherlands East Indies Tokyo radio reported Friday simultaneously simultaneously with land offensives that brought the area of Dutch New Guinea and a Japanese air airbase airbase airbase base at Burma under allied control Tokyo radio said the first blOvat blow v at Wednesday was struck by 50 carrier carrier- based planes making a daring sweep from the Indian ocean I I Heavy bombers presumably from Australia made the second strike Thursday morning If true this is the heaviest raid carried out on the great naval base since the Japanese captured it two years ears ago on the island of Java lies 1900 miles southwest of ot and 2500 miles southeast of It has been periodically bombed by small forces of heavy bombers from northern Australia 1 American Sixth army troops hopped more than miles up t the e Dutch New Guinea coast from Hollandia fo for a speedy amphibious conquest of the Valde island area arca site of f an important air ir base from which General Ma MacArthurs MacArthur's Arthurs forces might speed the cl clean up up an-up of New Guinea and bring the Palau and Philippine Islands under air as as- sault Latest reports indicated the Americans had pinned the last Japanese Japanese Jap Jap- anese d fenders defenders of ot against the edge of the foot coral airstrip airstrip airstrip air air- strip and were wiping out determined determined determined deter deter- mined enemy nemy molar gun cr crews ws On the whole Japanese Defenses were negligible MacArthur said Allied headquarters said the strip can bo be lengthened to feet providing room for heavy bombers which can roam north to the Palau islands miles away to the enemy's big Dutch East Indies Indies Indies In In- dies base at miles to the west and to In the Continued d sy 1 PAJe Two Coluni Lx B gl 6 G Allies Bomb Jap 1 Naval Base In East Easl Indies i Continued from Pace One Philippines 1000 miles to the j i northwest i In Burma Lieutenant General Jose Joseph h W. W Stilwell's troops exploited exploit exploit- I ed their surprise capture of the airfield to advance into the city's outskirts under artillery fire Ire Young Brigadier General Frank Merrill some of whose Marauders helped capture the airfield airfield airfield air air- field sent another column west esl of the city to block the supply line Une from 40 miles west Other allied forces were moving on from the north Approximately 80 SO air line miles to the east Chinese columns were developing a pincers drive to clear cleara a portion of the held enemy-held Burma road and effect a juncture with Stilwell's army thus connecting the Ule Ledo and Burma roads and opening an overland supply route to Chinas China's scantily equipped army American airmen supported the Chinese drive in province by attacking and Lung- Lung ling principal bases in the area Chinese headquarters reported advances advances advances ad ad- vances on the western slopes of the range in the flanking attacks on these bases A Chinese army spokesman in pointed to the blocked Japanese supply lines and said We Ve are extremely optimistic over the Ute situation in western province and northern Burma But it wasn't so rosy in the north conceded defenders defenders defenders de de- de- de fenders of in northern Honan province are surrounded but said Chinese still hold 80 to 90 per cent of the city and are determined to hold out Japanese columns west of ot Lo Lo- yang formed a juncture and pushed into the railway town of only 49 miles from and the Yellow river gap which opens Into Chinas China's rich interior Central Pacific planes pounded little Wake Vake island sank a ton tanker and medium freighter In harbor and bombed Po- Po I nape Nauru and isolated enemy positions in the Marshalls j |
