May 31, 1942: The Attack on Sydney Harbour

Sunday 31 May 1942

A Japanese mini-sub that entered Sydney Harbour on the night of 31 May 1942 but got caught in netting. The crew, unable to escape, scuttled it with themselves inside (Gordon Short, The Sydney Morning Herald).

Battle of the Pacific: After dark on 31 May 1942, three Japanese Kō-hyōteki-class mini-submarines, (M-14, M-21, and M-24) and their two-man crews enter Sydney Harbour, Australia. Only one of the subs, M-24, makes a successful attack, firing its two torpedoes to sink converted ferry HMAS Kuttabul (21 dead, 19 Australians and 2 British). The M-24 crew then attempts to exit the harbor only to wreck off Sydney's Northern Beaches at Bungan Head (sub discovered in 2006).

This begins a two-week-long campaign by the "mother" submarines to disrupt shipping in the area, during which they sink three ships and kill 50 sailors. The "Attack on Sydney Harbour," which includes submarines shelling Sydney and Newcastle on 8 June 1942, is the only time those cities have been attacked.

"U.S. Army Air Force Boeing B-17E Flying Fortress bombers of the 431st Bombardment Squadron take off from the airfield on Eastern Island, Midway Atoll, on the afternoon of 31 May 1942. The plane in the center is an early-model B-17E-BO (s/n 41-2397), with a Bendix remotely controlled belly turret, flown by 1st Lt. Kinney." Naval History and Heritage Command USAF-22635-AC.

In the Central Pacific, both Japanese and US carriers are converging on Midway Island. The Japanese intend to invade, but they don't know the US Navy has discovered their plans and is lying in wait. The sides are roughly equal, with four Japanese fleet carriers opposing three US fleet carriers and land aircraft based on Midway. At Midway, B-17 bombers begin flying search operations looking for the Japanese ships. These searches, which include PBY Catalinas, focus on the seas to the north.

Admiral Nimitz is not taking any chances regarding the outcome of the upcoming confrontation at Midway. He already has ordered his only reserve aircraft carrier, USS Saratoga, to complete its repairs at San Diego and head to Pearl Harbor ASAP. Today, the navy shifts two battleships, Colorado and Maryland, to San Francisco to protect the west coast in case of a Japanese breakthrough.

US Navy submarine USS Pollack (SS-180) torpedoes and sinks Japanese auxiliary submarine chaser Shunsei Maru No. 5 off Murotosan, Japan.

B-17s of the 5th Air Force attack Lae and Salamaua, New Guinea.

Australian Navy depot ship (former ferry Kuttabul) sunk by a Japanese mini-submarine in Sydney Harbour on the night of 31 May 1942 (Gordon Short, The Sydney Morning Herald). 

Battle of the Indian Ocean: As one group of Japanese mini-subs attacks Sydney Harbour, another group has been attacking Royal Navy warships at Diego Suarez, Madagascar. Having blown a 30x30 foot hole in battleship HMS Ramillies and sunk freighter British Loyalty, the two subs exit the bay and head northwest. M-16b is lost and never found, while M-20b - the one that made the attacks - winds up beached at Nosy Antalikely (Antali Keli) islet after its battery runs out. The two crewmen receive help from friendly locals, make it to the mainland, and head for their recovery area at Cape Amber on foot.

With their cover blown, Japanese submarine I-10 launches its "Glen" seaplane for the second day in a row to fly over Diego Suarez. The British, oblivious, fail to notice.

Kuttabul lying on the bottom in Sydney Harbour after being torpedoed on 31 May 1942.

Eastern Front: The front has settled down since the German victory southeast of Kharkov, where the victors are busy counting prisoners. At Fuhrer Headquarters in East Prussia, General Franz Halder comments about the upcoming Case Blue that "Build-up is proceeding according to plan."

The Germans have another big opportunity to the north, where large Soviet forces are essentially trapped on the wrong side of the Volkhov River. Halder comments, "The enemy's intention to pull out of the Volkhov bulge is now quite obvious; not clear about Pogostye bulge."

What Halder doesn't know is that General Lieutenant A. A. Vlasov, commander of the 2nd Shock Army in the bulge, has repeatedly asked for permission to retreat but has been denied. Now, Vlasov's army is so weak that it doesn't matter whether he is allowed to retreat or not. Vlasov is preparing a final, desperate breakout at Myasnoi Bor that will decide the fate of his army.

British destroyer HMS Highlander at sea, 31 May 1942 (© IWM FL 1984).

European Air Operations: While Cologne recovers from the stunning 1000-plane RAF Bomber Command raid of 30/31 May, the British try again with a massive raid against Essen. This one, however, achieves little in comparison to the firestorm created at Cologne.

The de Haviland Mosquito bomber makes its operational debut today. Four of the bombers of RAF No. 105 Squadron visit Cologne to drop a few more bombs and take some reconnaissance photos.

The Luftwaffe retaliates for the Cologne raid with a "Baedecker Raid" against Canterbury. It causes large fires that lead to heavy damage.

Mass bomber raid on Cologne (The National Archives UK, artist unknown).

Battle of the Atlantic: The final six ships of Convoy PQ-16 make port in Archangel, ending the convoy. PQ-16 lost eight ships, six to air attack, one to a mine, and one to U-703. Despite the losses, the Allies consider the convoy a success because of the badly needed war supplies brought to the Soviet Union. It also includes Heavy Lift Ships including SS Empire Elgar that remain in the USSR to facilitate convoy unloading for 14 months.

U-107 (Kptlt. Harald Gelhaus), on its sixth patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 4536-ton Panamanian freighter Bushranger west of Jamaica. This sinking is sometimes said to have occurred on 1 June, as different accounts have the torpedo hitting before or after midnight on the 31st. There are 17 dead and 26 survivors, who are picked up on 12 June by UCGS USS Nike.

U-506 (Kptlt. Erich Würdemann)g, on its second patrol out of Lorient, gets its final victory of a patrol during which it has sunk eight ships of 39,906 tons and damaged three more of 23,358 tons. This victim is 2292-ton British freighter Fred W. Greene, which sinks 200 miles southeast of Bermuda. The ship is carrying 725 tons of military stores and general cargo, including 48 motor trucks, construction equipment, beer, cigarettes, and 48 bags of mail. Würdemann has to use his deck gun because he is out of torpedoes. There are five dead and 36 survivors, who are picked up on the 1st by two different US destroyers, Bernadou (DD 153) and Ludlow (DD 438).

U-432 (Kptlt. Heinz-Otto Schultze), on its fifth patrol out of La Pallice, torpedoes and sinks 1188-ton Canadian freighter Liverpool Packet 15 miles west of Seal Island (near Cape Sable), Nova Scotia. There are two deaths and 19 survivors, who make it to shore in their lifeboat at Seal Island.

Italian submarine Comandante Cappellini torpedoes and sinks 8214-ton British tanker Dinsdale southwest of St. Paul Rocks off Brazil. There are thirteen deaths.

Comandante Cappellini also torpedoes and sinks 8214-ton British Royal Fleet Auxiliary RFA Dinsdale northeast of Pernambuco. There are five dead and 52 survivors.

Truck-mounted 6-pdr anti-tank gun in the Western Desert, 31 May 1942.

Battle of the Mediterranean: With German General Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps having pulled back into a defensive position called "The Cauldron," the battle along the Gazala Line has entered a new phase. The key factor for both sides is supplies for thirsty men and tanks. To solve this problem, Rommel sends the 90th Light Division and the Italian Trieste Division to assault the British 150th Infantry Brigade blocking the supplies in the 'Sidi Muftah box." The attack, launched in the morning, continues throughout the day, making good progress but not breaking through the British defenders.

In Rome, General Albert Kesselring is tired of having the British sink his supply ships to Rommel. Today, he submits a plan to invade Malta to the Italian Commando Supremo. However, the ultimate decision rests with Hitler, and he isn't ready to repeat a Crete-style invasion.

The Arizona Daily Star for 31 May 1942 headlines the previous day's Memorial Day celebrations. Off to the side is a column about the British counterattack against Rommel in Libya.

On the Allied side, the supply situation of the Free French holding out at the fortress of Bir Hakeim is alleviated when fifty supply trucks of the 101st Transport Company break through the German encirclement. A French raid from the fort destroys five tanks and a German armored vehicle repair shop. In the air overhead, things do not go as well for the Allies. They lose fifteen fighters and a bomber, their worst losses of the battle, to nine Luftwaffe losses. 

British submarine HMS Proteus and Taku torpedo and badly damage 6836-ton Italian freighter Gino Allegri about 80 miles west of Benghazi. The ship remains afloat until finished off by RAF aircraft.

HMS Proteus also torpedoes and sinks 1571-ton Italian freighter Bravo northwest of Benghazi.

Obfw. Erich Krenzke of 6./JG 27 is captured after he is forced to crash-land his Bf 109F-4 behind British lines near Acroma and El Adem. He finishes his career with eight victories.

An Italian hiking group organized by the Fascists in Mulhouse, France, hike through Upper Alsace, 31 May 1942 (Proietti, Ugo, Federal Archive Image 212-357)

Battle of the Black Sea: Soviet submarine SHCH-214 shells and sinks 85-ton Turkish sailing ship Mahbubdihan northeast of Cape Igneada, Turkey.

US Military: US ration strength in Northern Ireland as of this date is 32,202, including 1626 officers, 102 nurses, 16 warrant officers, and 30,458 enlisted men.

American Homefront: Golfer Sam Snead, known as "Slammin' Sammy Snead," wins the PGA Championship at Seaview Country Club in Galloway Township, New Jersey. It is the first of what become seven major titles. Immediately after this event, which is the last major championships held until 1944, Snead joins the US Navy and serves in it for the remainder of World War II. Following his honorable discharge, Snead resumes winning tournaments (a record 82 PGA Tour events) until he retires in 1987. As of this writing, Snead remains tied for the most lifetime PGA Tour events won.

Bomb damage in Cologne city center from the May 30/31 RAF 1000-plane raid. This is Unter Goldschmied (Federal Archive Picture 121-1334).

May 1942

May 1, 1942: Japanese Take Mandalay

May 2, 1942: Cruiser Edinburgh Sunk

May 3, 1942: Japanese Take Tulagi

May 4, 1942: Fletcher Attacks at Tulagi

May 5, 1942: British Invade Madagascar

May 6, 1942: Corregidor Falls to Japan

May 7, 1942: Scratch One Flattop!

May 8, 1942: Lexington Sunk in the Coral Sea

May 9, 1942: Manstein on the Attack in Crimea

May 10, 1942: Spitfires Rule Over Malta

May 11, 1942: First Japanese Retreat at Deboyne

May 12, 1942: Soviets Attack At Kharkov

May 13, 1942: Crisis at Kharkov

May 14, 1942: Where in the World is AF

May 15, 1942: Germans Take Kerch

May 16, 1942: Sobibor Begins Operation

May 17, 1942: Germans Counterattack at Kharkov

May 18, 1942: Soviet Command Confusion 

May 19, 1942: Soviet Panic at Kharkov

May 20, 1942: Churchill and Molotov Negotiate

May 21, 1942: U-106 Sinks the Wrong Tanker

May 22, 1942: AF is Midway!

May 23, 1942: German Forces Surround Soviet Armies at Kharkov

May 24, 1942: German Anti-Partisan Operations in Full Swing

May 25, 1942: Soviet Breakout at Kharkov Fails

May 26, 1942: Rommel Pounces in North Africa

May 27, 1942: Heydrich Fatally Wounded in Prague

May 28, 1942: German Victory At Kharkov

May 29, 1942: Japanese at Madagascar

May 30, 1942: First RAF Thousand-Plane Raid

May 31, 1942: The Attack on Sydney Harbour

2021

May 28, 1942: German Victory At Kharkov

Thursday 28 May 1942

Kittyhawk fighters of the American Volunteer Group flying near the Salween River Gorge on the Chinese-Burmese border, 28 May 1942.

Battle of the Pacific: Two US Navy carriers, the USS Enterprise (CV-6) and Hornet (CV-8), leave Pearl Harbor on 28 May 1942 for the vicinity of Midway Island. A third carrier, Yorktown, continues to under frantic repairs in dry dock to damage caused at the Battle of the Coral Sea and is scheduled to follow them on within the next two days. Yorktown's air units, depleted by casualties, are replaced by fresh units (Bombing Three (VB-3), Torpedo Three (VT-3), and Fighting Three (VF-3)).

Naval Intelligence has determined from decoded Japanese transmissions that the Japanese intent to invade Midway on June 4th, and American Admiral Chester W. Nimitz is planning to give them a hot welcome by all of his carrier forces. Taskforce commander Vice Admiral William Halsey has been replaced by Rear Admiral Raymond A. Spruance due to illness. Unfortunately, carrier Saratoga remains on the West Coast for repairs and is unavailable for the battle, but some of its aircrews wind up on Yorktown. Admiral Nimitz has ordered 25 submarines to patrol around Midway.

The US 11th Air Force has secretly constructed an airfield on Unmak, Aleutian Islands, in preparation for the anticipated Japanese invasion in conjunction with the Midway operation. The field becomes operational today when a B-17 flies armed reconnaissance over the Aleutian chain. The Japanese are not there yet, so the bomber crew spots nothing amiss. 

USS Salmon (Lt.Cdr. E.B. McKinney) torpedoes and sinks 4382-ton Japanese freighter Ganges Maru 250 nautical miles southeast of Cam Ranh Bay, French Indochina. There are seven deaths.

B-26 bombers of the 5th Air Force attack the airfield at Lae, New Guinea.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: After a long journey across the Indian Ocean, a Japanese naval force composed of submarines designated "Divine Dragon Operations No. 2" nears Madagascar. Its mission is to launch midget submarines against the British Far Eastern Fleet in the vicinity of East Africa. Training for this mission has taken place throughout 1942 and has had the attention of top Japanese leadership, including Admiral Yamamoto. This is one of the few Japanese military activities designed specifically to aid their German allies, though how much aid attacks on the British Far Eastern Fleet would be to the Reich is an open question.

German tanks crossing a river on the Russian Front, World War II. Illustration from Illustrierte Zeitung (Leipzig, 28 May 1942).

Eastern Front: In a crushing defeat, the Soviet 6th and 57th Armies and 21st Tank Corps are annihilated southeast of Kharkov by defending German forces after being encircled. Red Army General Timoshenko still has not grasped the true state of play and only today orders a halt to Soviet offensive operations. Scattered and sporadic attempts by individual units continue, but very few succeed. Mass surrenders by an estimated 250,000 men begin today and continue for several days. The Germans, meanwhile, have lost perhaps 20,000 casualties all told. 

A Soviet salient to the southwest by Red Army forces attempting to reach Kharkov from the northeast is eliminated with help from the Luftwaffe first group of Schlachtgeschwader 1. It is flying the new Henschel HS-129 ground attack aircraft, which have proven quite durable and effective. During May, SchG 1 has flown 1467 sorties, with 1,028 Bf 109 missions, 259 by Hs 123s and 180 by the Hs 129s

At Fuhrer Headquarter in East Prussia, General Franz Halder writes in his war diary: 

The battle at Kharkov and on the Donets is brought to a close with a large take of prisoners and booty. Army Group South has issued the orders for the next phase of the offensive "Volchanak" and "Izyum."

The stage is now set for the opening stages of the grand German offensive that Hitler has decided will "sweep the deck" of the remaining Soviet forces and finally bring a successful conclusion to the campaign in the USSR. This, however, will take some time to prepare and is subject to the whims of the weather.

European Air Operations: Weather on the Channel Front remains unsettled, with winds from the southwest gusting to 40-45 mph and visibility poor, especially in the morning. This obviously is not good flying weather, so it is mainly an "off" day for the RAF. The men spend such days entertaining themselves during the day and then often attending Entertainments National Service Association (ENSA) shows in the evening.

HMS MTB-77 - Vosper 72 feet-type Motor Torpedo Boat, British Navy. Commissioned 28 May 1942, Bombed by German aircraft off Vibo Valentia, Calabria, Italy on 8 September 1943.

Battle of the Atlantic: After losing half a dozen ships to Luftwaffe attacks south of Bear Island on the 27th, Convoy PQ 16 is joined by a Soviet escort composed of three destroyers and four minesweepers. These warships enable the convoy to proceed toward the Soviet Union without losing any more vessels.

U-502 (Kptlt. Jürgen von Rosenstiel), on its fourth war patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 6759-ton US freighter Alcoa Pilgrim about 150 miles south of the Mona Passage (southwest of St. Thomas). The ship, carrying 9500 tons of bauxite ore, sinks within 90 seconds and the crew has no time to launch lifeboats. There are 31 dead and 9 survivors, who are picked up by US freighter Thomas Nelson.

U-106 (Kptlt. Hermann Rasch), on its sixth patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 7383-ton British freighter Mentor north of Cabo Catoche, Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Rasch surfaces and questions the crew, who misinform him that the ship was the Bengloe. There are four dead and 82 survivors, who are rescued after three days by British freighter Antilochus.

U-103 (Kptlt. Werner Winter), on its seventh patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 6414-ton US tanker New Jersey 90 miles southwest of Grand Cayman Island. The crew is able to launch two lifeboats before Winter fires a coup de grace torpedo and then surfaces and uses his deck gun to finish off the tanker. All 42 crewmen survive, picked up by USS Tattnall (DD 125) and Biddle (DD 151) within a few days.

U-155 (Kptlt. Adolf Cornelius Piening), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 1928-ton Dutch freighter Poseidon east of Barbados. Piening engages in a somewhat unusual night surface attack. After firing four torpedoes, one finally hits and sinks the ship quickly. All 32 men on board perish.

Panamian 7797-ton tanker Sylvan Arrow, torpedoed on 20 May by U-155, finally sinks. There are 43 survivors and one dead.

British freighter Yorkmoor, sunk by U-506 on 28 May 1942.

U-506 (Kptlt. Erich Würdemann), on its second war patrol out of Lorient, uses its deck gun to sink 4457-ton British freighter Yorkmoor northeast of the Bahamas. Würdemann uses his gun because he is out of torpedoes, having used them all in a successful patrol in the Gulf of Mexico. Yorkmoor has a 4-inch gun and eight machine guns, so an unusual gun battle emergest between the freighter and the U-boat. However, it is a night attack and the Yorkmoor's gunners have difficulty aiming at the submarine so they score no hits. The attack takes just over half an hour, during which the U-boat gunners fire 55 shells and score several hits at extreme range. The ship's crew abandons ship in four lifeboats after the radio operator has sent distress calls. All 45 crewmen survive, picked up within about a week by British freighter Laguna and a US Coast Guard cutter. U-506, although out of torpedoes and having used up a lot of shells, still has one more victory in store for it on the way back to base during an extremely successful patrol.

Italian submarine Barbarigo torpedoes, shells, and sinks 4836-ton British freighter Charlbury off the east coast of Brazil. There are two deaths.

German 1337-ton minesweeper Sperrbrecher-174 (Tindefjell) hits a mine and sinks west of Buoy 11W, west of Dunkirk. There is one dead.

Canadian 70-ton sailing vessel Carmen Nina runs aground and is wrecked off Sheet Harbor, Nova Scotia. Casualties are unknown.

The U.S. Navy destroyer USS Nicholas (DD-449) flying Bath Iron Works' house flag on acceptance trials off Rockland, Maine (USA), 28 May 1942, a week before she was commissioned (Naval History and Heritage Command 19-N-36881).

Battle of the Mediterranean: Fierce tank battles continue in Libya as German General Erwin Rommel continues his offensive into the British Gazala Line. The British 4th Armoured Brigade arrives at El Adem and stops the German 90th Light Division, pushing it back to the southwest.

While his forces have made impressive advances, Rommel's main headache is at the fortress of Bir Hakeim. There, the Italian IX Tank Battalion of the 132nd Tank Infantry Regiment, Ariet Division, has failed to dent strong Free French fortifications and lost heavily in the attempt. 

Supplies are critical in the desert, as the panzers eat up fuel during Rommel's sweeping maneuvers and the men need water and rations. Italian supply vehicles operated by the Trieste and Ariete divisions are slowed by minefields near Bir Hakeim but continue to make progress toward the advancing panzers. 

While the Afrika Korps retains the initiative, quick British responses have blunted the attacks and ended chances of a quick German victory. The Desert Air Force (DAF) bombs the French at Bir Hakeim by mistake. The French under General Kœnig are surrounded at Bir Hakeim, so Kœnig attempts to break the encirclement by sending a column north toward the 150th Infantry Brigade. A fierce battle ensues during which the French destroy seven Italian half-tracks, but Italian artillery prevails and the breakout attempt fails.

The New York Times of 28 May 1942 notes that "Heydrich of Gestapo Hurt: Big Reward Up for Assailant."

Special Operations: German leader Reinhard Heydrich remains alive at a Czech hospital, kept alive by quick surgical intervention following the assassination attempt on 27 May 1942. The medical prognosis remains grim, but Heydrich's condition has stabilized. His two assassins, Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, remain at large in a local safe house. SS-Reichsfuhrer Heinrich Himmler has dispatched his personal SS physician, Karl Gebhardt, by plane to the hospital to supervise Heydrich's care.

Wojciech Biernat, was born in Jodłówka. A Catholic priest who perished at Auschwitz on 28 May 1942 (Auschwitz Memorial).

Holocaust: The first convoy of Nacht und Nebel (Night and Fog) detainees, composed of 43 men and 9 women, leave Paris from the Gare de l’Est. The male detainees are taken to a camp at Hinzert and the females to Aachen. While technically they are supposed to be taken before a German court and tried, this does not always happen. The Nacht und Nebel arrests stem from a 7 December 1941 directive issued by Adolf Hitler to arrest political activists secretly ("in the night and fog"), leaving their families and friends uncertain about their fates. Invariably aside from rare situations, those arrested were to be executed.

American Homefront: US Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson issues a warning to the citizens of the West Coast to prepare for a Japanese bombing attack in retaliation for the Doolittle Raid.

Italian opera singer is released from FBI custody after three months of custody for being a suspected enemy alien. The FBI alleged that Pinza supported the Axis and have held him at Ellis Island since March 1942. A fellow opera singer, Norman Cordon, claimed to have told the FBI that Pinza was a fascist sympathizer, though there never was any proof of that. Why Cordon did that is unproven, though perhaps out of professional jealousy. Pinza quickly goes from captivity to singing onstage at the Metropolitan Opera.

Future History: Tien Chun is born in Guangdong, China. As James Tien, he becomes a prominent actor in 70 Hong Kong martial arts films such as "Hands of Death" (1976) until retiring in 1996. 

Stanley Benjamin Prusiner is born in Des Moines, Iowa. He goes on to win numerous awards and accolades in the fields of neurology and biochemistry, including the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physiology for prion research. As of this writing in 2021, Prusiner is director of the Institute for Neurodegenerative Diseases research laboratory at the University of California, San Francisco.

Vought Test Pilot team, 28 May 1942 -Lt-Rt Boone Guyton, Charlie Sharpe, Dick Burroughs, Bill Boothby & Lyman Bullard with SB2U.

May 1942

May 1, 1942: Japanese Take Mandalay

May 2, 1942: Cruiser Edinburgh Sunk

May 3, 1942: Japanese Take Tulagi

May 4, 1942: Fletcher Attacks at Tulagi

May 5, 1942: British Invade Madagascar

May 6, 1942: Corregidor Falls to Japan

May 7, 1942: Scratch One Flattop!

May 8, 1942: Lexington Sunk in the Coral Sea

May 9, 1942: Manstein on the Attack in Crimea

May 10, 1942: Spitfires Rule Over Malta

May 11, 1942: First Japanese Retreat at Deboyne

May 12, 1942: Soviets Attack At Kharkov

May 13, 1942: Crisis at Kharkov

May 14, 1942: Where in the World is AF

May 15, 1942: Germans Take Kerch

May 16, 1942: Sobibor Begins Operation

May 17, 1942: Germans Counterattack at Kharkov

May 18, 1942: Soviet Command Confusion 

May 19, 1942: Soviet Panic at Kharkov

May 20, 1942: Churchill and Molotov Negotiate

May 21, 1942: U-106 Sinks the Wrong Tanker

May 22, 1942: AF is Midway!

May 23, 1942: German Forces Surround Soviet Armies at Kharkov

May 24, 1942: German Anti-Partisan Operations in Full Swing

May 25, 1942: Soviet Breakout at Kharkov Fails

May 26, 1942: Rommel Pounces in North Africa

May 27, 1942: Heydrich Fatally Wounded in Prague

May 28, 1942: German Victory At Kharkov

May 29, 1942: Japanese at Madagascar

May 30, 1942: First RAF Thousand-Plane Raid

May 31, 1942: The Attack on Sydney Harbour

2021

May 20, 1942: Churchill and Molotov Negotiate

Wednesday 20 May 1942

Prime Minister Winston Churchill greets Soviet Foreign Minister Molotov in the back garden of No. 10 Downing Street, 20 May 1942. Also seen in the photo are  Deputy Prime Minister Clement Attlee, British Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden, and others (The Daily Telegraph).

Battle of the Pacific: Admiral Nimitz approves a secret operation on 20 May 1942 to ascertain Japanese plans. One of the codebreakers in the Honolulu station, Jasper Holmes, has come up with a way to ascertain the location of "AF," known from decrypts to be the target for an upcoming Japanese invasion. Using an undersea cable that is known to be secure, Nimitz today sends a message to the Midway Island base commander telling him to send out a radio message that there is a "water shortage" at the island. "At the present time, we have only enough water for two weeks. Please supply us immediately."

Just to make certain the intended Japanese recipients get the radio message, the island commander also is instructed to send the request for help both in a code the Japanese are known to have broken and "in the clear" (without coding). The US naval intelligence offices in three locations - Melbourne, Honolulu, and Washington - then sit back to see what develops.

The Japanese indeed are preparing an offensive operation against Midway. Today, Admiral Yamamoto sends out Operational Order 14. This details a complex plan to coordinate invasions of the Aleutian Islands and Midway with troops from Saipan.

A Yeoman in the US Navy Fleet Radio Unit in Melbourne, Australia (FRUMEL), Bill Tremblay, is working late. At 23:30, he identifies Yamamoto's message as important even though it is badly garbled. After Tremblay discusses it with his superiors, the message is put on a fast track for decryption. That, however, will take several days. The Honolulu station also intercepts a copy of the message which also is garbled, but largely in different places. Between the two interceptions, a large portion of the lengthy message can be decrypted.

B-17s based in Australia bomb the airfield at Koepang, Timor, continuing a series of missions against the base. These missions are effective at silencing antiaircraft guns at the airfield.

Due to the meeting of Brigadier General Jimmy Doolittle and President Franklin Roosevelt in the White House on 19 May, the newspapers on 20 May are full of hints of new raids on Japan. Here, the Baltimore News-Post gives these rumors a banner headline. In fact, no such raids are planned.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: Today is generally viewed as the completion of the Japanese conquest of Burma. The British formally dissolve Burma Corps, transferring all soldiers formerly under General William Slim to the British IV Corps. Slim is reassigned to Indian XV Corps.

Meanwhile, India is receiving a steady flow of reinforcements from the United States. Another unit of the 10th Air Force in the China-Burma-India Theater arrives at Karachi, India, from the US today. It is the 11th Bombardment Squadron, 7th Bomber Group (Heavy), and flies B-17s. The 11th will become active and fly its first mission on 3 June 1942

The troops of Soviet Marshal Timoshenko, shown, are in big trouble around Kharkov on 20 May 1942.

Eastern Front: The Wehrmacht commits more units to its attempt to encircle the Red Army troops wheeling about in confusion south of Kharkov. The Luftwaffe is particularly effective at sealing the pocket, sending Junkers Ju 87 Stukas from StG 77 to destroy five of the Soviet bridges across the Donets River and damage four others. Kampfgeschwader 3 (KG 3), meanwhile, focuses on the roads in the developing pocket that are crowded with Soviet columns that have belatedly been turned 180 degrees to face the growing threat to their communications. Such a maneuver is difficult even in normal times, as the roads east are crowded with service troops, equipment, and other obstacles. The going is slow, and the Soviets are running out of time.

Turning an army around is one of the most difficult maneuvers in warfare. The entire orientation is inverted, with the cutting edge of tanks, infantry, and artillery having to reverse course in a perfectly coordinated ballet that is difficult in peacetime, let alone under fire. The army's "tail," or supply establishment, likewise has to change position to be just the right distance from the front line - which is moving who knows where. Ammunition dumps wind up in the wrong places, headquarters have to move and are out of touch, unit commanders don't even know where their soldiers are. Add to that blocked roads through rough terrain caused by air and artillery attacks and it's easy for chaos to erupt. This is exactly what happens to the Red Army south of Kharkov in May 1942.

Fulfilling a direct order from Field Marshal Fedor von Bock, the 14th Panzer Division advances further north from Petrovskoye and takes Protopopovka. This eliminates another key Soviet Donets river crossing and narrows the mouth of the breakthrough from there to Balakleya down to a dozen miles.

The Germans, though, are running a big risk. They are drawing only a thin line between the huge Red Army forces to the east and west. It is eight miles long and, in most places, only two miles wide. This easily could be pierced by fierce Red Army attacks. The German III Panzer Corps heads west to try and expand the width of this cordon. However, the Germans have to rely on Romanian troops that are less than enthusiastic to stick their heads into this potential noose (at Fuhrer headquarters, General Franz Halder notes that "the Romanians have gained only a little ground").

Von Kleist.

Determined to seal his victory, General Ewald von Kleist risks it all and sends the 16th Panzer Division (General Hube), the 60th Motorized Division, and the 1st Mountain Division to support the exposed 14th Panzer Division. These are the best troops in the First Panzer Army, the cream of the Wehrmacht. It is a huge gamble because Soviet counterattacks from either or both sides easily could cut off all of these divisions in the exposed salient. This would turn German victory into defeat. Bock convinces Sixth Army commander Friedrich Paulus (direct orders don't always work in these situations even in the Wehrmacht), whose troops are north of the bulge, to support this ambitious move by releasing the 3rd and 23rd Panzer Divisions. They will advance south from Balakleya and meet Kleist's advancing panzers. Even if they meet, however, it is unclear if they can hold their positions against furious counterattacks. It is an audacious gambit.

Someone is going to have a massive victory that may decide the entire summer campaign. It's just not perfectly clear yet who that will be. How hard the Red Army on opposite sides of the German advance will resist this encircling move is the big imponderable.

Bock knows the decisive moment of the entire campaign, perhaps the entire war has arrived. He writes in his war diary, confidently but perhaps more hopefully:

[T]tonight I have given orders aimed at completely sealing off the Izyum bulge. Now everything will turn out well after all.

Only one thing stands in Bock's path to victory: the Red Army. However, something strange is going on. The Germans are astonished to see no signs of either a determined breakout or a relief attack from the East. The thin German lines are holding and consolidating even though they are outgunned and outmanned by enemy troops just out of sight. It's a mystery that only deepens.

The Arizona Daily Star of 20 May 1942 features news from the Eastern Front battle of Kharkov that suggests the Red Army is doing well there. "Russian Planes blast at German Tanks Along Highway."

General Manstein's 11th Army eliminates the final above-ground pocket of Soviet resistance south of Kerch today (there are still Red Army soldiers operating out of catacombs in the region). The German success in the Kerch peninsula means many Luftwaffe resources can be transferred to the Kharkov battle, but there is still unfinished business in Crimea to the west. Luftwaffe ace Gordon "Mac" Gollob completes one of the longest sustained victory streaks of the war by shooting down two enemy aircraft, a DB-3 and a LaGG-3. This gives him 101 victories, a major milestone, and 14 victories over the past five days since taking command of JG 77. Gollob is the tenth Luftwaffe pilot to reach the century mark. After these victories, JG 77 is transferred west to help with the conquest of Sevastopol.

The German victory in the Kerch peninsula now is complete. It was an overwhelming triumph. While Fliegerkorps VIII has lost 37 aircraft, the Soviets lose 417. While between 37,000 and 116,045 Red Army soldiers make it back to the mainland, an estimated 162,282 do not. The Germans take about 150,000 soldiers and others (many are civilians) prisoner. The 11th Army loses only 7588 men in total, about ten tanks, and a dozen artillery pieces. The Soviets effectively lose three armies and nine divisions, with nine other divisions requiring major rebuilding.

European Air Operations: There are no major raids by either side today, perhaps due to the weather. The RAF's 197-plane raid on Mannheim on the night of 19/20 May accomplishes very little and causes only two fatalities in the city.

During an intruder operation to Soesterberg Airfield, German Flak of the 2./leichte Flak-Abteilung 764 downs an RCAF Douglas DB-7B Boston Mk III. All three crewmen perish.

MV Norland on fire and sinking after being torpedoed by U-108 on 20 May 1942.

Battle of the Atlantic: German raider Michel shells and sinks 4245-ton Norwegian freighter Kattegat in the South Atlantic. Michel's crew takes the entire 32-man crew of Kattegat as prisoners.

U-108 (KrvKpt. Klaus Scholtz), on its seventh patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes, shells, and sinks 8134-ton Norwegian tanker Norland in the mid-Atlantic. Norland is part of Convoy ON 93. The entire 48-man crew survives and is rescued by Dutch freighter Polyphemus and USS PT-453.

U-753 (KrvKpt. Alfred Manhardt von Mannstein), on its fourth patrol out of La Pallice, gets its first victory of the wary. It torpedoes and sinks 7191-ton US Liberty ship George Calvert in the Caribbean near the Yucatan Channel. There are three deaths and 48 survivors.

U-155 (Kptlt. Adolf Cornelius Piening), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and badly damages 7797-ton Panamanian tanker Sylvan Arrow in the Caribbean southwest of Grenada. There are one death and 43 survivors, who are picked up by the destroyer USS Barney. Sylvan Arrow sinks while under tow on 28 May.

Wreck of SS Halo, sunk on 20 May 1942 by U-506, lying on the seafloor.

U-506 (Kptlt. Erich Würdemann), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 6986-ton US tanker Halo 50 miles south of Louisiana. There are 39 deaths and three survivors, who are rescued by Mexican freighter Oaxaca and British freighter Otina. This is the ninth victory of the patrol for U-506 and it isn't over yet. The wreck of the Halo, which was carrying 64,103 barrels of crude oil, is found during a pipeline survey in July 2000 lying in 470 feet (78 fathoms, 143 m) of water.

U-158 (Kptlt. Erwin Rostin), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 8,113-ton British tanker Darina 500 nautical miles (930 km) southeast of Bermuda. There are six deaths and 50 survivors, who are rescued by British freighter British Ardour, Norwegian freighter Dagrun, and US freighter Exanthia. This is the first victory of what will be an eventful patrol for U-158.

US Navy yard patrol craft USS YP-387 sinks after colliding with collier Jason off Delaware. There are six deaths and 15 survivors who are rescued by Jason.

The 20 May 1942 Chicago Daily Tribune contains a map and account of the 18 April Doolittle Raid on Japan.

Battle of the Mediterranean: U-431 (Kptlt. Wilhelm Dommes), on its sixth patrol out of La Spezia, torpedoes and sinks 4216-ton British tanker Eocene off Sollum, Egypt. The tanker is part of convoy AT-46. All 43 crewmen survive, rescued by Royal Navy HMT Cocker.

Due to a large number of RAF Supermarine Spitfires now on Malta, the Axis bombing raids now are usually composed of hit-and-run attacks by Luftwaffe fighter-bombers. The main objectives are still the airfields, and Luqa Airfield is attacked several times today after dark. Compared to the situation of a month ago, however, the attacks are minor and cause little damage.

Battle of the Baltic: Norwegian (Axis) freighter Vestra hits a mine and sinks in the Skagerrak near the Falsterbo Lighthouse, Sweden. The ship sinks in shallow water and is refloated, repaired, and returned to service.

Anglo/Soviet Relations: Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov arrives in London to hold talks on opening a second front. Churchill does not take to Molotov, later saying about him, "I have never seen a human being who more perfectly represented the modern conception of a robot." (WSC, WWII, Vol. I p. 288-9). Molotov, as usual, is all business, just as he was with Hitler in November 1940. He emphasizes Soviet claims on territory in Poland and the Baltic States, matters that Churchill views as premature. Despite their issues, the two men immediately begin work toward preparing a twenty-year treaty of friendship. The final agreement is signed on 26 May 1942.

Woodland, California, 20 May 1942. Entrance to American Legion Hall, being used by the Wartime Civil Control Administration (W.C.C.A.) to assist persons of Japanese ancestry in settling their affairs before they depart for internment camps (Dorothea Lange, National Archives at College Park NARA record 1372774).

US Military: The US Navy Department issues a press release on 20 May 1942, "Recruiting of [African Americans] to Begin June 1." It also releases a separate press release, "Marines Announce Plans for Recruiting [African Americans]."

The new Navy recruits are to receive the normal eight weeks of training at the established Great Lakes facilities. This will qualify them for a sixteen-week vocational school at the Hampton Institute in Virginia. They will be trained there as electricians, carpenters, ship fitters, machinists, metalsmiths, firemen, and cooks. Heretofore, African Americans in the Navy have been confined to the stewards' branch. Fearful of crew shortages in this area, the Navy refuses to allow transfers out of the stewards' branch to the general service until May 1945.

The black Marine Corps recruits have a somewhat different experience. The Marine Corps does not have a training center prepared, so the recruits must be placed on inactive duty status while one is set up. Eventually, a facility is constructed at Montford Point, near New River, North Carolina, and Camp Lejeune. Prospective Marine Corps recruits face often insurmountable obstacles such as tight quotas for black marines and other restrictions.

Admiral John S. McCain arrives at Noumea, New Caledonia, in seaplane tender USS Tangier. He assumes command as the new Commander Aircraft South Pacific Forces (COMAIRSOPAC). McCain now is responsible for tender and shore-based aviation in the South Pacific Area (SOPAC) under admiral Nimitz. This area is to the east of the Southwest Pacific Area and south of the Central Pacific Area. SOPAC encompasses the Ellice, Phoenix, Marquesas, Tuamotu, Samoa, Fiji, and New Hebrides island groups plus New Caledonia and New Zealand. However, it does not yet include Guadalcanal or Tulagi and thus does not include areas of likely conflict. It includes, though, the main route from the United States to Australia and is of immense strategic importance.

Submarine USS Kingfish (SS-234) is commissioned.

The Major League Baseball schedule for 20 May 1942, sponsored by Carstairs White Seal Blended Whiskey.

British Government: A two-day debate on the war situation concludes in Parliament. PM Leslie Hore-Belisha, the Secretary of State for War under former Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, is particularly critical of the Churchill government's handling of the war situation. He notes that there is not yet a "method of continuous cooperate" with the United States and that the different Allies are speaking with "disunited voices." Hore-Belisha proposes government reforms that will maintain "a clear-cut distinction" between "impartial, undiluted military opinion and what is a political decision." This is an obvious attack on Churchill, who is suspected by some of managing the war for his own personal political benefit.

American Homefront: Henry Ford begins the construction of a memorial to inventor George Washington Carver in Greenfield Village adjacent to the Logan County Courthouse. This project has been Ford's dream since meeting Carver, who is still alive to watch the building go up and be completed, in 1937.

Future History: Carlos Norman Hathcock is born in Little Rock, Arkansas. He joins the US military during the Vietnam War and becomes a Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant. He earns the nickname "White Feather Sniper" due to his habit of wearing a bush hat with a feather in it. Hathcock becomes a legendary sniper, and the Viet Cong place a $30,000 bounty on him. In his most famous encounter, he is sent specifically to eliminate an elite Viet Cong sniper known as "The Cobra." He accomplishes the task with a bullet that travels up Cobra's scope and into his eye. Carlos Norman Hathcock survives the war and passes away on 23 February 1999.

West Coast internees bound for a camp. (Dorothea Lange, Woodland, California, May 20, 1942. Courtesy National Archives and Records Administration).

May 1942

May 1, 1942: Japanese Take Mandalay

May 2, 1942: Cruiser Edinburgh Sunk

May 3, 1942: Japanese Take Tulagi

May 4, 1942: Fletcher Attacks at Tulagi

May 5, 1942: British Invade Madagascar

May 6, 1942: Corregidor Falls to Japan

May 7, 1942: Scratch One Flattop!

May 8, 1942: Lexington Sunk in the Coral Sea

May 9, 1942: Manstein on the Attack in Crimea

May 10, 1942: Spitfires Rule Over Malta

May 11, 1942: First Japanese Retreat at Deboyne

May 12, 1942: Soviets Attack At Kharkov

May 13, 1942: Crisis at Kharkov

May 14, 1942: Where in the World is AF

May 15, 1942: Germans Take Kerch

May 16, 1942: Sobibor Begins Operation

May 17, 1942: Germans Counterattack at Kharkov

May 18, 1942: Soviet Command Confusion 

May 19, 1942: Soviet Panic at Kharkov

May 20, 1942: Churchill and Molotov Negotiate

May 21, 1942: U-106 Sinks the Wrong Tanker

May 22, 1942: AF is Midway!

May 23, 1942: German Forces Surround Soviet Armies at Kharkov

May 24, 1942: German Anti-Partisan Operations in Full Swing

May 25, 1942: Soviet Breakout at Kharkov Fails

May 26, 1942: Rommel Pounces in North Africa

May 27, 1942: Heydrich Fatally Wounded in Prague

May 28, 1942: German Victory At Kharkov

May 29, 1942: Japanese at Madagascar

May 30, 1942: First RAF Thousand-Plane Raid

May 31, 1942: The Attack on Sydney Harbour

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May 19, 1942: Soviet Panic at Kharkov

Tuesday 19 May 1942

President Franklin D. Roosevelt presents the Medal of Honor to Brigadier General James Harold Doolittle in a ceremony at The White House, 19 May 1942. The President is seated at the left. Standing, left to right, are Lieutenant General Henry H. Arnold, Chief of the Army Air Forces; Mrs. Doolittle; Brigadier General Doolittle; and General George Catlett Marshall, Jr., Chief of Staff, United States Army. (Franklin D. Roosevelt Library and Museum, Photographic Collection, NPx. 65-696).

Battle of the Pacific: US Admirals "Bull" Halsey and Frank Fletcher are bringing their Task Forces 16 and 17 east toward Hawaii on 19 May 1942 in anticipation of a major Japanese attack. Nobody is completely sure where the attack will occur, but the consensus is that Midway Island will be the target. Light cruiser USS Nashville (CL-43) sails through the expected area of the attack from Midway to the western Aleutians today but does not see any enemy ships.

Japanese submarine I-21 launches a seaplane to reconnoiter Suva Bay, Fiji.

Battle of the Indian Ocean: The Japanese have sent a detachment of submarines, "Detachment A," to the Indian Ocean to scout for opportunities. Today, submarine I-30 launches a seaplane to reconnoiter Zanzibar and Dar-es-Salaam.

A B-25B of the 39th Bomb Squadron forced to crashland at Westover Field, Massachusetts, on 19 May 1942 due to issues with the landing gear. Everyone survived. The pilot, Lt. John Henebry, ultimately becomes a major general and writes a book about his wartime experiences, "The Grim Reapers: At Work in the Pacific Theater" (2002).

Eastern Front: Commander of Army Group South Field Marshal Fedor von Bock presses his advantage against a disbelieving Red Army south of Kharkov. Having coordinated plans with First Panzer Army commander General Ewald on Kleist on the 18th, he orders Sixth Army commander General Friedrich Paulus to begin an attack from Merefa southwest of Kharkov. The objective is to occupy and distract the Soviet forces far to the west of where Kleist's panzers are attempting to surround them.

Kleist's III Panzer Corps, meanwhile, is brushing aside opposition as it continues eating into the Soviet supply corridor. The 14th Panzer Division crosses the Bereka River to take Petrovskoye while other divisions head west to block an expected Red Army breakout attempt. This narrows the mouth of the bulge to fifteen miles and deprives the Red Army forces to the west of a critical Donets river crossing.

Soviet Southwest Front, led by Marshal Semyon Timoshenko, finally begins to react to the growing Wehrmacht threat. After continuing to attack German VIII Corps south of Kharkov in the morning, it quickly breaks off the attacks and begins sending units to block Kleist's panzers to the southeast. The Luftwaffe controls the skies and sees and attacks the red Army columns on the roads. The German pilots, enjoying complete aerial dominance, claim to destroy 29 tanks during the day.

The Sixth Army war diary summarizes the situation at the end of the day: "The enemy's offensive strength has cracked. The breakthrough to Kharkov is therewith prevented."

A German Panzer 38(t) leaves a landing craft on a beach near Yalta, May 1942 (Federal Archive B 145 Fig. F016214-0021A).

It is unclear where the Soviet orders to break off the attack in the morning came from. Post-war Soviet histories claim they came from Timoshenko on his own authority. If so, it is a dramatic turnaround by Timoshenko, who has been telling Stalin all along that the German counterattacks are not a threat. The Stavka finally reverses course at the end of the day and orders the advanced Sixth Army and Bobkin Group to terminate the offensive toward Kharkov and head southeast to confront Kleist's panzers.  

 

At his midnight conference, Hitler calls von Bock and tells him to hurry up and finish the encirclement. Kleist is to send 14th Panzer Division the final fifteen miles to reach Balakleya, where German troops of Paulus' Sixth Army await. Bock immediately calls Kleist's chief of staff and tells him to take the next town, Protopopovka, "under all circumstances and as soon as in any way possible." The fate of 600,000 Soviet soldiers to the west hangs in the balance. At Fuhrer Headquarters, General Franz Halder notes briefly in his diary that "The situation east of Kharkov is no longer dangerous."

In Crimea, General Manstein's 11th Army continues mopping up resistance in the Kerch region. Some histories record the 19th as the day of German victory in Crimea, and General Franz Halder records in his war diary that "The Kerch offensive can be regarded as closed." However, there remain Red Army holdouts (including at the port of Sevastopol), including thousands congregating in catacombs south of Kerch. In the air, Luftwaffe ace Gordon "Mac" Gollob continues a torrid victory streak, shooting down three more Soviet R-5 reconnaissance planes to raise his victory total to 99.

Internees await relocation in Centerville, California. May 19, 1942. Dorothea Lange, photographer. Gelatin silver print. Collection of Oakland Museum of California. Gift of Paul S. Taylor.

European Air Operations: The weather clears sufficiently for both sides to resume their bombing operations. This is only a brief interruption of activity in what otherwise is a very quiet month along the Channel Front.

The Luftwaffe ends its lull by attacking Hull in another "Baedeker Raid." There are 50 deaths, 58 seriously injured, and extensive damage, especially in the Alexandria dock area. The bombing accuracy is quite good, especially relative to recent RAF attempts, with hits on the Blackburn aircraft factory at Brough (west of Hull). Extensive fires erupt along Scarborough Lane and Westbourne Avenue. The attack is notable for the use of an 1,800kg bomb and a 1,000kg bomb. Other areas hit include Hedon (east of Hull), Hornsea, and Withernsea. The Luftwaffe loses two Junkers Ju 88 bombers and a Dornier Do-217.

RAF Bomber Command mounts its first major raid in eleven days. The target is Mannheim. A total of 197 bombers (11 lost) embark, with 105 bomber crews claiming to hit the city. However, accuracy is very poor, and very few bombs actually hit the city. Local authorities estimate that bombs from only about ten bombers actually hit the city. However, the bombs that do hit cause an appreciable amount of damage to some small businesses in the harbor areas. There are only two deaths in the city.

In minor raids, 65 RAF bombers (one lost) attack St. Nazaire but cause little damage. Another 9 bombers lay mines off Lorient and near Heligoland, while 13 bombers drop leaflets over France.

The Downs family, survivors of the sinking of freighter SS Heredia on 19 May 1942 by U-506.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-506 (Kptlt. Erich Würdemann), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 4732-ton US refrigerated freighter Heredia at 02:00 two nautical miles (3.7 km) southeast of the Ship Shoal Buoy off Louisiana. The ship sinks very quickly, giving no time to launch the boats. There are 36 deaths and 26 survivors, who are rescued by local shrimpers Conquest, J. Edwin Treakle, Papa Joe, and Shellwater, with three of the survivors picked up by a seaplane.

U-103 (Kptlt. Werner Winter), on its seventh patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and sinks 5037-ton US freighter Ogontz 70 nautical miles (130 km) southeast of Cozumel, Mexico. There are 19 deaths and 22 survivors, who are rescued by US tanker Esso Dover.

U-751 (Kptlt. Gerhard Bigalk), on its sixth patrol out of St. Nazaire, torpedoes, shells, and sinks 3110-ton US freighter Isabela 35 nautical miles (65 km) south of Navassa Island Lighthouse. There are three deaths and 34 survivors, who make it to Cape Briton, Haiti, in lifeboats. This is the final victory for U-751.

An Italian submarine torpedoes and sinks Swedish 5747-ton steel cargo freighter Tisnaren somewhere in the Atlantic between Brazil and Senegal. Italian submarines Comandante Cappellini and Barbarigo are operating in this area but it is not definite which is the attacker.

At Hvalfjordur, Iceland, some merchant marine sailors aboard US freighter SS Ironclad notice that there is a shipment of liquor (it is en route to the US Ambassador to Moscow, Admiral William H. Standley, USN (Ret.)). They decide to help themselves and discipline breaks down, with fighting breaking out. At the behest of an armed guard officer on board, troops from the battleship USS Washington are sent over to restore order. Ironclad is removed from convoy PQ 16.

Tugboat Iriquois at sea, 19 May 1942 (Puget Sound Maritime Historical Society).

Battle of the Mediterranean: Royal Navy submarine HMS Thrasher torpedoes and sinks 1160-ton Italian freighter Penelope a few miles northwest of Monopoli, Italy.

Malta has been heavily reinforced with Spitfire fighters recently and the results are plain in the daytime sky. While Luftwaffe fighter sweeps over the island continue, the new defenders lead to a much-reduced bomber threat. In fact, they enable RAF bombers to go back on the offensive. Today, RAF bombers attack an Italian convoy northbound from Tripoli, though no ships are sunk.

Manhattan Project: Having just taken over the atom bomb research program, Robert Oppenheimer sends a letter to Ernest O. Lawrence updating him on progress. He writes that the atomic bomb design is solved "in principle" and projects that "six good physicists" should be able to work out the details within six months.

Joint Allied Command: The 30th and final in a series of Post-Arcadia meetings of the Combined Chiefs of Staff takes place in Washington, D.C. Among the topics discussed is an expected German advance toward the Persian Gulf from Syrian bases, the selection of targets for the nascent USAAF Eighth Air Force, and German development of a "new odorless gas, suitable for a surprise attack by inclusion in bombardments from the ground or from the air."

The crash site at No. 9 Bombing and Gunner School, Quebec.

Canadian Military: A Battle Mk. I crashes at No. 9 Bombing and Gunnery School, Mt.-Joli, Quebec, killing the four crewmen. This school is part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, so the passengers include airmen from Canada, New Zealand, and Australia.

US Military: Brigadier General Ira C. Eaker, commander of Eighth Air Force, assumes command of all US air units in the United Kingdom.

Pursuant to a recent agreement between the United States and Panama, the 31st Fighter Squadron, 37th Fighter Group, 6th Air Force transfers its P-39 and P-40 fighters from Chorrera, Panama, to Albrook Field, Canal Zone.

Australian Military: A Tugan LJW7 Gannet aircraft flying from Batchelor Field (northern Australia) to Groote Eylandt makes a forced crash landing in a swamp in remote Arnhem Bay. The crew survives and scavengers the ruined airplane to make a raft. They survive an epic 33-day journey to the Milingimbi mission. Survivor George Booth later writes a book, "33 Days," describing how local natives helped the crew survive. This real-life story has echoes in the motion picture "Flight of the Phoenix" (1965) starring Jimmy Stewart.

Brigadier General James Harold Doolittle, U.S. Army Air Forces, 1942. (U.S. Air Force).

President Roosevelt presents the Medal of Honor to Lt. Colonel James Doolittle, who is also promoted to brigadier general, for the 18 April 1942 Doolittle raid. The citation reads:

For conspicuous leadership above and beyond the call of duty, involving personal valor and intrepidity at an extreme hazard to life. With the apparent certainty of being forced to land in enemy territory or to perish at sea, Lt. Col. Doolittle personally led a squadron of Army bombers, manned by volunteer crews, in a highly destructive raid on the Japanese mainland.

While, in fact, not a particularly damaging air raid as the citation reads, the Doolittle Raid was a major morale booster after the series of defeats at Singapore, Bataan, and elsewhere. It also influences Japanese strategy to its detriment, making it more defensive and paranoid.

American Homefront: The Western Defense Command issues Civilian Restrictive Order No. 1. This forces all Japanese-Americans in California, Oregon, Washington State, and southern Arizona to move into relocation camps. These camps are located in numerous states between eastern California and the Mississippi River. The total number of persons ultimately sent to camps is approximately 122,000.

Paul Waner of the Braves becomes the third National Leaguer to get 3000 hits (following Honus Wagner and Cap Anson).

Future History: Frederick "Curly" Neal is born in Greensboro, North Carolina. Curly Neal becomes a celebrity as the Harlem Globetrotters' featured ballhandler from 1963-1985. He also is featured in the animated Hanna-Barbera cartoon "Harlem Globetrotters." The Globetrotters retire Neal's No. 22 on 15 February 2008. Frederick Neal passes away in Houston on 26 March 2020.

Look magazine of 19 May 1942 features a Marine Corps Sergeant Otto Nuske on the cover.

May 1942

May 1, 1942: Japanese Take Mandalay

May 2, 1942: Cruiser Edinburgh Sunk

May 3, 1942: Japanese Take Tulagi

May 4, 1942: Fletcher Attacks at Tulagi

May 5, 1942: British Invade Madagascar

May 6, 1942: Corregidor Falls to Japan

May 7, 1942: Scratch One Flattop!

May 8, 1942: Lexington Sunk in the Coral Sea

May 9, 1942: Manstein on the Attack in Crimea

May 10, 1942: Spitfires Rule Over Malta

May 11, 1942: First Japanese Retreat at Deboyne

May 12, 1942: Soviets Attack At Kharkov

May 13, 1942: Crisis at Kharkov

May 14, 1942: Where in the World is AF

May 15, 1942: Germans Take Kerch

May 16, 1942: Sobibor Begins Operation

May 17, 1942: Germans Counterattack at Kharkov

May 18, 1942: Soviet Command Confusion 

May 19, 1942: Soviet Panic at Kharkov

May 20, 1942: Churchill and Molotov Negotiate

May 21, 1942: U-106 Sinks the Wrong Tanker

May 22, 1942: AF is Midway!

May 23, 1942: German Forces Surround Soviet Armies at Kharkov

May 24, 1942: German Anti-Partisan Operations in Full Swing

May 25, 1942: Soviet Breakout at Kharkov Fails

May 26, 1942: Rommel Pounces in North Africa

May 27, 1942: Heydrich Fatally Wounded in Prague

May 28, 1942: German Victory At Kharkov

May 29, 1942: Japanese at Madagascar

May 30, 1942: First RAF Thousand-Plane Raid

May 31, 1942: The Attack on Sydney Harbour

2021