25 February 1939

UNITED KINGDOM: The first of 2.5 million Anderson air raid shelters appear in Islington, North London. They are corrugated iron huts, sunken into the ground and covered with earth.

UNITED KINGDOM: Liverpool: The first battle squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force arrived in Britain today to join the RAF in the Allied cause against Hitler. They follow their fellow-countrymen from the army, who are already in Britain.
"The men come from coast to coast, from Nova Scotia to Vancouver. No fewer than 146 cities, town and villages in every province of the Dominion are represented," said Squadron-Leader W D van Vliet, a first class rugby player and ice-hockey champion." About 20% of them are French-Canadian, and they are all especially anxious to get to France."
They were welcomed at the dockside by the Earl of Derby, who said to them: " It is not for me to wish you a good time. What I shall do, if I may be pardoned the language, is to wish you as good a time as you can have, and I will wish the Boche what I know he will get - and that is a hell of a time."
The Canadians lined up on the quayside - pilots, crewmen, gunners, fitters, riggers and cooks - were urged by their officers to cheer the Earl, though few appeared to have any idea who the elderly gentleman was.
(Jack McKillop adds): This was Number 110 (Army Co-operation) Squadron. The squadron was a former Auxiliary Active Air Force (AAAF) (US = Air Force Reserve) unit based at De Lesseps Aerodrome in Weston, Ontario outside of Toronto. When mobilized on 10 September 1939, the squadron was equipped with biplane training aircraft, e.g., de Havilland DH-82 Tiger Moths and Fleet Fawn Mk Is. In December 1939, the squadron moved to Rockcliffe, Ontario and reequipped with Westland Lysander Mk IIs in preparation for overseas shipment; these aircraft were left in Canada when the unit departed for England.

The squadron departed Rockcliffe on 13 February 1940 and established a base at Old Sarum, Wiltshire, England on 26 February where they were again equipped with Lysander Mk IIs. The squadron began training with the intention of going to France with the Canadian 1st Division but the fall of France and the cessation of land operations in western Europe relegated the unit to a year and a half of waiting and training. On 1 March 1941, all squadrons under control of the RAF that had been formed under Article XV of the Commonwealth Air Training scheme were renumbered in a block between 400 and 499. This applied to Australian, Canadian and New Zealand units; RAAF units were renumbered 450 to 484; RCAF units were renumbered 400 to 449; and RNZAF units were renumbered 485 to 499. The RCAF's No. 110 (Army Co-operation) Squadron was renumbered No. 400 (Army Co-operation) Squadron.

In March 1941, the squadron moved to Odiham, Hampshire and in April, they traded in their Lysanders for Curtiss Tomahawk Mk Is. On 6 November 1941, the squadron flew their first operational mission when two Tomahawks were dispatched from Odiham to fly a reconnaissance mission from Le Treport to Courtrai, France; unfortunately, there was insufficient cloud cover and the mission was aborted.

U.S.S.R.: Soviet submarine M-31 launched.

ITALY: Rome: The American envoy Sumner Welles arrives at the start of his European peace mission.

GIBRALTAR: The unarmed U.S. freighter SS Exochorda is detained for several hours by British authorities, but is allowed to proceed.

U.S.A.: The first National Hockey League game, between the New York Rangers and the Montreal Canadiens, is televised on station W2XBS, Channel 1, from Madison Square Garden in New York City. W2XBS is the National Broadcasting Company's flagship station in New York City; it is now WNBC-TV, Channel 4. The Rangers won 6-2. The total TV audience is 300. (Jack McKillop and Dave Hornford)

CARIBBEAN SEA: Off Venezuela, the unarmed U.S. freighter SS West Camargo is stopped by an unidentified French cruiser off north coast of Venezuela; the French make to attempt to board but only request information "where from, where bound, and what cargo" before allowing the merchantman to proceed after a 20 minute delay.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Norway/UK convoy HN14 is attacked. U-63 is sighted by escorting submarine HMS Narwhal and sent to the bottom by destroyers HMS Escort, HMS Imogen and HMS Inglefield.

U.S.A.: The motion picture "The Lady Eve" opens at the Paramount Theater in New York City. Directed by Preston Sturges, this romantic comedy stars Barbara Stanwyck, Henry Fonda, Charles Coburn and William Demarest.

The motion picture "Meet Boston Blackie" opens at the Rialto Theater in New York City. Directed by Robert Florey and starring Chester Morris, this is the first of a series of 14 B crime movies about the detective.

A meeting is held in the Army Chief of Staff’s office in Washington, D.C., concerning defenses in Hawaii. The minutes state that “in view of the Japanese situation the Navy is concerned with the security of the fleet in Hawaii, and apparently the new commander of the fleet there has made a check and reported it to Washington and the Secretary of the Navy has outlined the situation to the Secretary of War. Their particular point is the type of air force in Hawaii, particularly Pursuit. They are in the situation where they must guard against a surprise or trick attack. It is necessary for the fleet to be in anchorage part of the time and they are particularly vulnerable at that time. I do not feel that it is a possibility or even a probability, but they must guard against everything. We also have information regarding the possible use of torpedo planes.”

UNITED KINGDOM: Westminster: Sir Stafford Cripps makes a speech asking why so many resources are being spent on building up Bomber Command.

The debate that began in the House of Commons yesterday comes to a close with many speakers being sharply critical of government policy, with the bombing of Germany being called into question.

Major General James E Chaney, Commanding General US Army Forces in British Isles (USAFBI), instructs Brigadier General Ira C Eaker and the staff of the VIII Bomber Command to proceed to HQ, RAF Bomber Command for a study of bombing operations, and to make reconnaissance of certain airfields and submit plans for the reception and assignment of US Army Air Forces units.

FRANCE: Paris: Galtier-Boissière's diary notes more arrests by the Gestapo. "Marie-Claude, daughter of Lucille Vogel and widow of Vaillant-Couturier".

During the night of the 25-26th, three RAF Bomber Command aircraft drop leaflets on Paris and Lille.

GERMANY: During the night of 25-26th, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 61 aircraft, 43 Wellingtons, 12 Manchesters and six Stirlings, to visually bomb a the floating drydock at Kiel; 36 aircraft bomb the target. In the bombing of the harbor area, the accommodation ship Monte Sarmiento is hit and burnt out with the loss of 120-130 lives; 16 people are also killed and 39 injured in the town. Three Wellingtons are lost. Nine Hampdens also fly a mining mission along the coast.

NORWAY: During the night of the 25-26th, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 21 Whitleys to bomb aluminium factories at Heroya and Odda. These areas are cloud-covered and the Whitleys return without bombing.

U.S.S.R.: Black Sea Fleet and Azov Flotilla: Shipping loss: MS "TSch-405 "Vzrivatel"" - by field artillery, close to Eupatoria (later raised) (Sergey Anisimov)(69)

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: British submarine HMS P38 is sunk off the coast of Tunisia by Italian destroyers.

INDIA: U.S. Major General Joseph Stilwell is promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General, AUS, and confers with GHQ, India, at New Delhi.

BURMA: The Japanese are infiltrating into the Pegu Yomas mountain range through a gap of some 30-40 miles (48-64 kilometres) that exists between the Burma 1st Division at Nyaunglebin and the Indian 17th Division at Pegu, threatening the Rangoon-Mandalay road.
Pilots of the American Volunteer Group (AVG, aka, “The Flying Tigers”) shoot down three Nakajima Ki-27, Army Type 97 Fighters (later assigned the Allied Code Name “Nate”) over Rangoon at 1200 hours. At 1700 hours, the AVG pilots shoot down 23 Japanese Army fighters and an Army bomber over Rangoon.

NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES: On Java, General Archibald Wavell, Commander in Chief, American-British-Dutch-Australian (ABDA) Command, closes his HQ and departs for Australia. The ABDA Command is dissolved effective 0900 hours and the defence of Java is left to Dutch General Ter Poorten. The Dutch are to be assisted by British, Australian and American detachments. Wavell resumes his previous command, Commander in Chief India.
     On Java, the Australian Blackforce is concentrated around Buitenzorg, about 40 miles (64 kilometres) south of Batavia. The U.S. 2d Battalion, 131st Field Artillery Regiment (75mm Gun) (Truck-Drawn) is attached to Blackforce. (The 131st was a Texas National Guard unit inducted into Federal service on 25 November 1940.)
     Japanese destroyers land a small force on Bawean Island, 85 miles (137 kilometres) north of Surabaja, and set up a radio station.
     A Dutch PBY Catalina spots Japanese transports moving to invade Java. At 1125 hours, all available Allied cruisers and destroyers are ordered to join Admiral Doorman's Eastern Striking Force at Surabaja, Java. The cruisers HMS Exeter and HMAS Perth with destroyers HMS Jupiter, HMS Electra and HMS Encounter sail from Batavia to Surabaja. Without waiting for the arrival of the British reinforcements, Admiral Doorman sails with the heavy cruiser USS Houston (CA-30), the Dutch light cruisers HNMS De Ruyter and HNMS Java and seven destroyers from Surabaja at dusk. He carries out a sweep to the east along the coast of Madoera Island in the hope of intercepting the Japanese transports reported near Bawean Island. No contact is made however and the Allied force return the next morning to Surabaja where it is joined by the British detachment from Batavia. From then onwards the Eastern Striking Force became known as the Combined Striking Force, under the command of Dutch Rear-Admiral Karel Doorman. One of the problems faced by this force is that each Navy uses their own standards that are not compatible, e.g., signalmen must grapple with four different types of flag codes.

AUSTRALIA: Arriving at Brisbane, Queensland, from the U.S. are three USAAF bombardment groups (one light and two medium), with their assigned 12 squadrons, in addition to a pursuit squadron. Two of the groups will enter combat in April.

U.S.A.: Los Angeles: The city is recovering from a false alarm of an air-raid which caused anti-aircraft defences to fire at "unidentified aircraft."

Reports of unidentified aircraft approaching Los Angeles, California, from the ocean during the night of the 24th-25th result in the city being blacked out from 0227 to 0721 hours. During the "Battle of Los Angeles," some 1,400 rounds of 3-inch (7.62 cm) antiaircraft ammunition is fired against various "targets." Later the US Army will conclude that the "battle" had been touched off by one to five unidentified aircraft, but the USN will maintain there was no reason for the firing.
The War Production Board bans the use of rubber thread in brassieres, girdles and corsets for the duration of the war.

Washington: Thousands of American residents of Japanese descent are being forcibly moved from the west coast to internment camps in inland states. More than 112,000 people are being ordered into buses and lorries, often at gunpoint - whether or not they are American born or naturalised citizens. Such is anti-Japanese hysteria in the United States since the attack on Pearl Harbor that most civil rights campaigners have turned a blind eye to the mass evacuation.

All 3,000 Japanese -American residents of Terminal Island, Los Angeles, have been given three days in which to leave.

The decision is a response both to fears on the part of the army and navy that the Japanese might help a Japanese invasion and to pressure from the public and politicians. Since the attack on Pearl Harbor seven Japanese have been murdered by vigilantes.

One senator has called for all Japanese, whether citizens or not to be placed in "concentration camps". Similar scenes are taking place in western Canada. Men are being parted from their families and placed in labour camps.

In Washington, the Air War Plans Division recommends the removal of Operation GYMNAST (an early Allied plan for the seizure of Casablanca and the invasion of Northwest Africa) from the list of current projects. This proposal, if adopted, would leave the 8th Air Force uncommitted to any operation.

The all-Nisei Varsity Victory Volunteers (Triple V) is formed in Hawaii as part of the 34th Combat Engineers Regiment. (Gene Hanson)

The U.S. Coast Guard assumes responsibility for U.S. port security under Executive Order 9074.

Escort carrier USS Breton laid down.

Destroyer KNM Stord (ex-HMS Success) laid down.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: At 0218, the unescorted steam tanker La Carriere was torpedoed by U-156 about 70 miles SW of Guanica, Puerto Rico. The ship sank only after two additional hits and two missed torpedoes at 0839. Eleven crewmembers and four gunners were lost. The master and four crewmembers were picked up by a USCG cutter and landed at Trinidad. 21 crewmembers landed at Guanica the same day.

Five U-boats - four of them outward bound from their Biscay bases and fully loaded with torpedoes - have caused havoc to convoy ON-67, westbound from Liverpool to Halifax. It was sighted 600 miles north-east of Cape Race and trailed until the submarines formed a hunting pack and struck.

In the three-day battle that followed, seven ships - six of them large tankers - are sunk.

The seven sinkings are: the Norwegian ship Finnanger by U-158 on 24 February 39 dead; the British Adellen by U-155 on the 22nd 36 dead; the British Anadara by U-558 and U-587 on 24 February, 62 dead; the Norwegian Eidanger by U-558 and U-158 on the 24th, no dead; the British Empire Celt on the 24th by U-558, six dead; the British Inverarder by U-558 on the 24th,,no dead; the Norwegian Sama by U-155 on 22 February, 20 dead.

UNITED KINGDOM: The RAF and USAAF establish a pattern of round-the-clock bombing, hitting Nürnberg today: the RAF makes night raids and the USAAF flies by day.

Moscow: Stalin orders General Konstantin Rokossovsky to attack towards Gomel and Smolensk, even though only half his troops have arrived in the battle zone.

ITALY: Ninth Air Force B-24s bomb Naples harbor and Crotone during the night of 24/25 February.

TUNISIA: Kasserine: It was a cavalry charge, with heavy guns this time, almost in the movie tradition of the Seventh Cavalry, that finally saved the day at the Kasserine Pass for the Allies, Brigadier LeRoys 9th Infantry Division had travelled the 735 miles from western Algeria non-stop, and arrived just as the British and French forces were preparing to pull back.

It was a final sortie by the 2nd Lothians and Border Horse Regiment that convinced Rommel that he had no chance. British tanks took their objective, but five were lost in the mist and destroyed. Rommel chose to withdraw in the belief, based on this tank assault, that his army would be engulfed by the reinforced Allies. Such was the stealth of his withdrawal that the Allies found themselves attacking empty positions the next morning.

The Battle of the Kasserine Pass is over, and now the Allies count the cost: 10,000 men (6,500 Americans) lost, to the Axis's 2,000. The US II Corps alone has lost 183 tanks and 208 artillery pieces, 500 Jeeps and trucks, and also huge amounts of ammunition.

Twelfth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb El Aouina Airfield. Fighters and A-20s hit troops and military traffic in the Thala-Kasserine-Sbeitla areas and along the Gafsa-Feriana road. Other fighters carry out widespread reconnaissance and patrol missions.

INDIA: 40+ Japanese aircraft attack Dinjan Airfield; 32 intercepting P-40s shoot down 12 aircraft at about 0730 hours local.

BURMA: Tenth Air Force P-40s from Dinjan dive-bomb a bridge 10 miles (16 kilometres) west of Myitkyina. A single span is knocked out with 1,000 pound (453.6 kilogram) bombs and another damaged. B-24s again fail to damage the Myitnge Bridge.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Fifth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24s attack shipping, airfields, and the town area at Rabaul, New Britain Island. The airfield on Gasmata Island is also bombed.

NEW GUINEA: Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs again bomb and strafe forces at the Guadagasal Saddle and vicinity.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Thirteenth Air Force P-38 Lightnings, P-40s and USN F4U Corsairs sweep the Kahili, Bougainville Island area.

NEW ZEALAND: Japanese PoWs stage a mass breakout from Featherston army camp, in which 48 Japanese and one camp guard are killed.

Dave Gillies, an officer at the camp, says the army had sought to move two Japanese officers from one compound to another. The prisoners resisted.

After a two-hour standoff while the seated prisoners refused to move, Lieutenant James Malcolm fired a warning shot and then a second shot, apparently aiming to wound an officer, which he did. The same bullet killed a man behind him. The Japanese moved; some said they were attacking the guard, others that they were scattering. The armed guard surrounded the prisoners. Thirty seconds later, 31 Japanese were dead and 91 injured. Seventeen died of their wounds. A New Zealand soldier was killed.

An investigation showed that most of the Thompson sub-machinegun rounds were fired by Corporal Jack Owen, brother of Charles Owen who had been killed in the Tarawa Massacre. whose nickname "Drag" came from a Hollywood Western character who was always drawing his six-shooter.

"I think Jack Owen probably helped in speeding up the Japanese wish to die for their emperor, while getting some satisfaction in avenging the ill treatment and execution of his brother, and his brother's associates," Mr Gillies says. He believes that Jack knew his brother was dead.

"Whether the corporal's contribution at Featherston was a vengeance one is a matter for conjecture in the riot," Mr Gillies says. But Japanese prisoners sensed that Jack Owen's action had been a reprisal, he says.

Guard Len James told Mike Nicolaidi in The Featherston Chronicles that Jack Owen fired on the prisoners; from behind, "mowing, them down". (Gordon Rottman)

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: In the Aleutians, 4 Eleventh Air Force P-40s sweep Kiska Island while six B-24 Liberators and 5 B-25 Mitchells bomb the Main Camp and North Head areas.

Minesweeper HMS Mary Rose (ex-HMCS Toronto) laid down Toronto, Ontario.

Frigate HMCS Levis laid down Lauzon, Province of Quebec.

Frigate HMCS (ex-HMS) Ettrick launched.

U.S.A.:

Submarine USS Sea Lion laid down.

Minesweepers USS Triumph, Swerve and Spear launched.

Destroyer escort USS Daniel T Griffin launched.

Destroyer USS Endicott commissioned.

Light fleet carrier USS Princeton commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: At 0817, U-628 fired a spread of four FAT torpedoes and one stern torpedo at Convoy ON-166 about 400 miles ESE of Cape Race and reported one ship sunk. The Manchester Merchant sank within 90 seconds. 29 crewmembers and six gunners were lost. The master, 27 crewmembers and four gunners were picked up by destroyer HMS Montgomery and frigate HMCS Rosthern and landed at St John's.

GERMANY: Allied air forces have rounded off their "Big Week" of bombings with a double blow on the Schweinfurt ball-bearing plant. Following last night's USAAF raid, RAF Bomber Command sent 662 more aircraft against this target tonight. But the raid was a failure: only 22 aircraft reached the target, and 33 were shot down.

* * Mission 235: In the final "Big Week" mission, 4 targets in Germany are hit; 31 bombers and 3 fighters are lost.

* * * 268 B-17s are dispatched to aviation industry targets at Augsburg and the industrial area at Stuttgart; 196 hit Augsburg and targets of opportunity and 50 hit Stuttgart; they claim 8-4-4 Luftwaffe aircraft; 13 B-17s are lost.

* * * 267 B-17s hit aviation industry targets at Regensburg and targets of opportunity; they claim 13-1-7 Luftwaffe aircraft; 12 B-17s are lost.

* * * 172 B-24s hit aviation industry targets at Furth and targets of opportunity; they claim 2-2-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; 6 B-24s are lost.

* * Escort is provided by 73 P-38s, 687 Eighth and Ninth Air Force P-47 Thunderbolts and 139 Eighth and Ninth Air Force P-51s; the P-38s claim 1-2-0 Luftwaffe aircraft: the P-47s claim 13-2-10 Luftwaffe aircraft, 1 P-47 is lost; the P-51s claim 12-0-3 Luftwaffe aircraft, 2 P-51s are lost.

* * Mission 236: 5 B-17s drop 250 bundles of leaflets on Grenoble, Toulouse, Chartres, Caen and Raismes, France at 2129-2335 hours without loss.

* Continuing coordinated attacks with the Eighth Air Force on European targets, Fifteenth Air Force B-17s with fighter escorts bomb the Regensburg, Germany, aircraft factory; enemy fighter opposition is heavy .

Other B-17s hit the air depot at Klagenfurt, Austria, and the dock area at Pola, Italy. B-24s attack the Fiume, Italy, marshalling yard and port and hit the Zell-am-See, Austria, railroad and Graz airfield and the port area at Zara, Yugoslavia; 30+ US aircraft are lost; they claim 90+ fighters shot down.

* Major General Paul L Williams becomes Commanding General of the Ninth Air Force's IX Troop Carrier Command. 191 B-26 Marauders bomb Venlo, Saint-Trond, and Cambrai/Epinoy Airfields, France in a morning raid as a diversion in support of the VIII Bomber Command heavy bombers over Germany; 36 abort, mainly because of a navigational error; 164 B-26s dispatched against military targets in France during the afternoon are recalled because of bad weather.

* In Italy, Twelfth Air Force P-40s attack guns and troop concentrations east of Campoleone and in the Carroceto area; A-36 Apaches bomb the towns of Terracina and Sperlonga and roads in the area; P-40s also maintain patrols over Anzio.

ITALY: The destroyer HMS Inglefield is sunk at dusk off Anzio by a Hs293A Glide bomb and sinks very rapidly off Anzio at 41 26N 12 36E. There are 35 casualties and 157 survivors. (James Paterson and Alex Gordon)(108)

BURMA: The Tenth Air Force dispatches 8 B-25s and 4 P-51 Mustangs to attack bridges at Meza, Sinthe, and Natmauk, causing light damage to the bridges and destroying 3 locomotives and several railroad cars.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: 16 Fourteenth Air Force P-40s attack docks, railroad yards and warehouses at Hongay; in the harbor 1 large boat is sunk and another damaged; 2 P-40's hit a cargo vessel at Campha Port, leaving it sinking; 2 others bomb and strafe Weichow Island.

JAPAN: 3 Eleventh Air Force B-24s from Shemya Island in the Aleutians are over Matsuwa Island in the Kurile Islands shortly after midnight 24/25 February on a photographic reconnaissance and bomb run; the mission is not completed due to weather.

ADMIRALTY ISLANDS: Fifth Air Force B-25s bomb Lorengau on Manus Island and Momote Airfield on Los Negros Island.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: The USN's Destroyer Division 90 (DesDiv 90) under Commander Edmund B. Taylor, bombards Rabaul on New Britain Island.

Destroyer Squadron 12 (DesRon 12) under Captain Rodger W. Simpson, en route to bombard Kavieng on New Ireland Island and its airstrips, shipping, and fortifications, encounters a Japanese army cargo ship. In the ensuing action, destroyers USS Farenholt (DD-491), USS Buchanan (DD-484), USS Lansdowne (DD- 486), USS Woodworth (DD-460), and USS Lardner (DD-487) sink the enemy freighter. Japanese shore batteries subsequently give DesRon 12 a warm reception, damaging USS Buchanan and USS Farenholt.

The Thirteenth Air Force attacks targets on New Britain Island. P-39Airacobras on armed reconnaissance bomb an AA position at Monoitu, hit the Aitara area, and attack a barge in the Cape Gazelle area; 20+ B-25s hit Matupi and Rapopo Airfield; and 21 B-24s and 17 P-38s follow shortly with another strike on Rapopo Airfield.

CAROLINE ISLANDS: Seventh AIr Force B-24s from Abemama and Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands bomb Ponape Island.

MARSHALL ISLANDS: Seventh Air Force aircraft based in the Gilberts attack three atolls; P-40s flying from Makin Island bomb and strafe targets at Jaluit Atoll while B-25s from Tarawa Atoll and Abemama Island bomb Mille and Wotje Atolls.

NEW GUINEA: Fifth Air Force B-25s bomb the Alexishafen-Madang, areas while A-20s bomb airfields at Alexishafen.

PACIFIC OCEAN: USN submarines sink two fleet tankers, an army cargo ship, and a merchant cargo ship.

CANADA: Destroyer HMCS Columbia rammed a cliff in fog at Motion Bay, Newfoundland due to faulty radar. Repairs to make her seaworthy for towing were carried out in Bay Bulls in May. In Sep 44 she was taken to Liverpool, NS, where she served as an ammunition depot ship. She was paid off on 12 Jun 45 and sold for scrap later the same year.

Lieutenant Jack Eardely Koyl RCNVR, HMC 3rd LCI(L) Flotilla, was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross (DSC). Awarded as per Canada Gazette of 26 February 1944 and London Gazette of 25 January 1944, the citation read: "For gallant and distinguished services and untiring devotion to duty in operations, which led to the capture of Sicily by Allied Forces." He also received a Mention in Despatches on 26 Feb 44. Awarded as per Canada Gazette of 26 February 1944 and London Gazette of 21 December 1943, the citation read: "For good service in the first landing of troops on the mainland of Italy." Jack Koyl was born at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He joined the Volunteer Reserve and was commissioned at a Lt. (Temporary) on 18 Aug 41. He was assigned to the HMC 3rd LCI(L) Flotilla on 21 Jan 44. After his service in Sicily and Italy, Lt. Koyl was assigned to HMCS Prince Robert, a Prince-class anti-aircraft ship on 23 Apr 44. He was demobilized on 20 Oct 45.

NEWFOUNDLAND: Frigate HMCS Montreal departed St John's for EG C-4 in Londonderry.

ARGENTINA: President Ramirez resigned and was succeeded by General Edelmiro Farrell.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-91 is sunk in position 48.12N, 40.56W by the British destroyers HMS Affleck, Gore and Gould. 36 dead and 16 survivors. (Alex Gordon)

Whilst escorting convoy JW.57 to Murmansk, destroyer HMS Mahratta takes a hit from a Zaunkönig fired by U-990 (Kapitanleutnant Hubert Nordheimer) and then one more torpedo and sinks at 2055. The destroyer explodes and sinks within minutes. Despite the fact that destroyers HMS Impulsive and Wanderer are quickly on the scene there are 220 casualties and just 16 survivors in the freezing waters. The commander, ten officers and 209 ratings lost their lives. Location: 280 miles West of the North Cape at 71 17N 13 30E. (Alex Gordon and Dave Shirlaw)(108)

U-601 sunk in the Arctic Ocean NW of Narvik, Norway, in position 70.26N, 12.40E, by depth charges from an RAF 210 Sqn Catalina aircraft. 51 dead (all hands lost).

NORTH SEA: SS Egholm in Convoy FS-1739 was torpedoed and sunk by U-2322 SE of Holy Island. Two crewmembers and three gunners were lost. The master and 20 crewmembers landed in Tyne.

ENGLISH CHANNEL: U-1018 is sunk in unknown depth Depth charged; 2 self escape with Drager gear during sinking. They are made PoWs. (Mark Horan)

NETHERLANDS: NETHERLANDS: Sgt Aubrey Cosens (b.1921), Canadian Army, seized several farm buildings, killing or capturing the defenders. A sniper killed him soon after. (Victoria Cross)

The American M-26 Pershing tank sees action for the first time in a combat crossing of the Roer river with the 3rd Armored Division.

* * Mission 847: 1,197 bombers and 755 fighters are dispatched to hit tank factories, airfields associated with jet aircraft, oil depots and rail targets visually in Germany; they claim 34-0-21 Luftwaffe aircraft; 5 bombers and 8 fighters are lost:

* * * 377 B-17s are sent to hit the Maybach tank factory at Friedrichshaffen (63) using Gee-H, and the station and marshalling yard (73) and oil storage tanks and marshalling yard (174) at Munich; 51 hit the secondary target, the marshalling yard at Ulm; 1 other hit Kenzingen, a target of opportunity; 2 B-17s are lost. Escorting are 136 P-51s; they claim 1-0-2 aircraft on the ground; 2 P-51s are lost.

* * * 452 B-17s are dispatched to hit the marshalling yard at Munich (315) and Neuburg (88); targets of opportunity are Kaufbeuren (13), Ludwigsfeldt marshalling yard (12), Kempten (1), Durladingen (2), Rortwell (1) and other (5); 3 B-17s are lost; 140 P-51s escort and claim 2-0-3 aircraft on the ground.

* * * 368 B-24s are sent to hit the marshalling yard (115) and tank factory (54) at Aschaffenburg and the airfields at Giebelstadt (96) and Schwabishch Hall (93). The escort is 126 P-51s.

* * * 262 P-47s and P-51s fly close escort and area patrols claiming 21-0-4 aircraft in the air and 10-0-12 on the ground; 6 P-51s are lost.

* * 8 P-51s escort 4 F-5 Lightnings on a photo reconnaissance mission over Germany.

* * Mission 848: 12 B-24s drop leaflets in France, the Netherlands and Germany during the night.

* The Fifteenth Air Force attacks targets in Austria: 600+ B-17s and B-24s bomb marshalling yards in Amstetten, 2 in Linz, 2 in Villach, and Salzburg, plus the Linz benzol plant and ordnance depot and several targets of opportunity. Fighters escort and some afterwards strafe targets of opportunity in Austria, southeastern Germany, and western Czechoslovakia. In Germany, 37 P-51s strafe railroad targets in the Rosenheim-Muhldorf-Landshut-Augsburg areas. Routine reconnaissance and supply missions continue.

* In Germany, bombers of the Ninth Air Force strike 4 rail bridges, 4 communications centers, a marshalling yard and 9 targets of opportunity as part of the interdiction campaign against Germany; fighters escort the bombers, attack assigned ground targets, fly armed reconnaissance, and support the 8th and 104th Infantry Divisions in the Duren area, the XIII and XlX Corps east of the Roer River, and the VIII, XII, and XX Corps along the Prum and Saar Rivers.

* In Italy during the night of 24/25 February, Twelfth Air Force A-20s attack marshalling yards at Villafranca di Verona, Cittadella, Castelfranco Veneto, Trento, and Turin, and airfields at Villafranca di Verona and Bergamo; medium bombers cut or damage bridges at Vipiteno, Dogna, Ala, and Campo San Pietro, and a railroad fill at San Felice del Benaco; XXII Tactical Air Command fighters and fighter-bombers are restricted by ground haze in the Po Valley but attack rail lines, marshalling yards, rolling stock, motor transport, and dumps.

A flight of 16 Me-262s from KG(J)-54 are jumped by P-51s as they emerge from a cloudbank. They are taken completely by surprise and six are shot down without any US losses. Later other P-51s strafe KG(J)-54s main jet base, destroying five more Me-262s on the ground, and damaging three others. Finally two Me-262s from the unit attempt to land after dark, but crash killing both pilots. (Mike Yaklich)

BURMA: In joint operations with the British and Chinese army forces, 16 Tenth Air Force P-47s support the British 36 Division in the Mongmit sector while 31 P-47s support the Chinese 38th and 50th Divisions near Lashio and Namtu, respectively; a low B-25 strike knocks out a suspension bridge at Namsang; 9 B-25s and 85 fighter-bombers blast troop concentrations, supply areas, road traffic, and general targets of opportunity behind enemy lines.

CHINA: 6 Fourteenth Air Force B-25s, supported by 5 P-40s, hit sampans and buildings in the Puchi area; 3 B-25s and 19 P-40s pound the Isuho ferry and attack river and road traffic from Siangtan to Hengyang; a single B-25 bombs truck convoys S of Hengyang; 4 B-24s over the Gulf of Tonkin and South China Sea claim damaging hits on 2 vessels; 44 P-51s and P-40s hit bridges, river shipping, troop areas, and motor transport at Kweiyi, Paoching, and Siangtan, from Lingling to Hengyang and Leiyang, from Anjen to Chaling, north of Liuchow, and west of Ishan.

FORMOSA: FEAF B-24s bomb Takao and P-51s hit targets of opportunity along the east coast.

JAPAN: Task Force 58 attacks targets in the Tokyo area despite bad weather. NineUSNcarrier aircraft are lost, along with four pilots, but the raids destroy 150 Japanese aircraft on the ground plus five small ships. Two aircraft factories are also hit.

Navy and Marine pilots, flying F6F Hellcats and F4U Corsairs respectively, down 46 Japanese aircraft in the air over the Tokyo area; 46 are destroyed between 0850 and 1040 hours and Marine F4U pilots destroy another seven over Tokyo Bay between 0930 and 1015 hours. Plans for afternoon strikes are canceled at 1215 hours when the weather deteriorates.

The USAAF's XXI Bomber Command flies Mission 38: 172 B-29s bomb the urban area of Tokyo; 29 others hit alternates and targets of opportunity; this is the XXI Bomber Command's largest mission to date and its first 3-wing strike against Japan as the 73d and 313th Bombardment Wings (Very Heavy) are joined by the 314th; 3 B-29s are lost. 450 tons of incendiaries are dropped and 28,000 buildings gutted.

PACIFIC OCEAN: The IJN escort SHONAN is sunk south of Hainan by the submarine USS Hoe. (James Paterson)

Two USN destroyers sink three guardboats; USN submarines sink a guardboat, two merchant cargo vessels, and an escort vessel; an RN submarine sinks a cargo vessel; and aircraft sink a merchant cargo ship.

Lieutenant General Millard F Harmon, Commanding General Army Air Forces Pacific Ocean Area (AAFPOA) and Deputy Commander of the Twentieth Air Force, is lost near Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands when his aircraft disappears en route to Washington DC. (On 2 March Major General Willis H Hale, AAFPOA deputy commander for operations, assumes Harmon's positions).

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: FEAF B-24s attack troop concentrations on the east side of the Ipo River and bomb Japanese positions between Ipo and Osboy on Luzon.

VOLCANO ISLANDS: 9 Guam Island-based Seventh Air Force B-24s hit blockhouses, and mortar and rocket-launching positions on the northwestern part of Iwo Jima Island; 8 B-24s, flying separate harassment strikes, pound airfields on Chichi Jima during the night of 25/26 February.

IWO JIMA: Motoyama Airfield Number 2 is captured by US Marines and Motoyama Airfield Number 1 is declared operational for emergency use.

CANADA: A mob of more than 1,000 drove out 100 police who had rounded up deserters and military call-up delinquents in Drummondville, Quebec.

Submarine USS Clamagore launched.

Destroyers USS Norris and Goodrich launched.

Destroyer USS Duncan commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-1018 depth charged and sunk. 2 crewmembers self escape with Dräger gear during sinking and taken POW.