5 August 1939

August 5th, 1939 (SATURDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: The first British transatlantic air mail service is inaugurated.

Transatlantic air service between the US and the UK was started simultaneously. The American provider was Pan American World Airlines with their Boeing 314 Clippers. The inauguration of this service caused the creation of a very famous alcoholic beverage, Irish Coffee.

Eastbound across the Atlantic, the 314 Clipper's left New York City and flew to Newfoundland and then on to Foynes, Ireland. [Foynes is on the River Shannon about 10 miles (16 km) west of the present Shannon Airport.] The passengers disembarked while the aircraft was serviced and took temporary refuge in a local hotel/restaurant.
These flights were long and tedious and the passengers were very tired and worn out by the time they hit Foynes so one of the Irish bartenders developed a drink rich in sugar to pep the Yanks up.
And so, Irish Coffee was born.

A joint Anglo-French military delegation led by Admiral Sir Reginald Plunkett-Ernle-Erle-Drax and General Joseph Doumenc leaves Britain, travelling by sea to Leningrad, for discussions with Molotov.

At Balmoral Castle in Scotland, two hundred boys are entertained to tea by the King and Queen.

Destroyers HMS Jervis and Janus commissioned.

GERMANY: Albert Forster, the Nazi Gauleiter of Danzig, flies to Berchtesgaden to confer with Adolf Hitler.

U-44 launched.

FREE CITY OF DANZIG: The customs dispute is temporarily resolved, but its resolution is seen in other countries as a Nazi climb-down, infuriating Hitler.

5 August 1940

August 5th, 1940 (MONDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - oil plant at Sterkrade and Dornier aircraft factory at Wismar.
10 Sqn. Seven aircraft to Wismar. Six bombed primary. Two damaged by Flak.
51 Sqn. Eight aircraft to Wismar. Six bombed primary, one damaged by Flak and force landed at Spurn Point (East Yorkshire) on return.
102 Sqn. Six aircraft to Sterkrade. Four bombed primary, one bombed an alternative target.

RAF Fighter Command: Weather, fine. Luftwaffe attacks shipping in the Straits of Dover.
Losses: Luftwaffe, 6; RAF 2.

Six Spitfires of 64 Sqn. fought with Bf109s of JG 54, two Spitfires are shot down and one Bf109 crashes in France. Later Ju88s seeking Channel shipping are attacked off Dover by 151 Sqn. who claim another 109.

London: Britain today responded to the recent arrests of seven British subjects in Tokyo by detaining leading Japanese businessmen in London, Rangoon, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Japan has protested at the arrests and the British ambassador, Sir Robert Craigie, has been summoned by Mr. Matsuoka, the Japanese Foreign Minister, who described the arrests as "unwarrantable". Among the detainees is the manager of the London branch of Mitsubishi Trading. Seven officials of the Salvation Army in Japan have been arrested on espionage charges.

Sloop HMS Erne launched.

Minesweeping trawler HMS River Clyde mined and sunk off Aldeburgh, Suffolk.

At 2138, U-56 fired a spread of two torpedoes at Convoy OB-193 NW of Malin Head and observed that one missed and the other detonated at the end of the run after 7 minutes 25 seconds. However, the Boma was hit in this attack and sank the next day. Three crewmembers were lost.
The master, 47 crewmembers and two gunners were picked up by the Norwegian tanker Vilja, transferred to destroyer HMS Viscount and landed at Liverpool.

GERMANY: Bad weather conditions force the postponement of the air offensive against Britain.

U-208, U-760 laid down.

General Halder receives the first operations plans for the German invasion of the Soviet Union, by General Marcks.

BRITISH SOMALILAND: The Somali town of Hargeisa fell to the Italian army this afternoon, assaulted by infantry and tanks after a three-hour bombardment. It was defended by two battalions of Indian and East African troops plus some of the Somali Camel Corps - most of whom got away.
Any serious defence of Somaliland lost all chance of success when the pro-Allied governor of neighbouring French Somaliland, General Legentilhomme resigned today and was replaced by General Germain, who is under heavy Vichy pressure to obey the terms of the Franco-Italian armistice.
Elsewhere, on the borders of Ethiopia, Italy's 300,000 man army seems reluctant to act aggressively, content with the symbolic occupation of a few border towns, such as Moyale in Kenya and Kassala in the Sudan, and in harassing the British in northern Kenya with some remarkably effective guerrilla columns. It is so short of petrol that it can do nothing else.

CANADA: Camillien Houde, the isolationist mayor of Montreal, is detained under the Defence of Canada Regulations, for making an anti-conscription speech on the 2nd August. He is 'invited' to correct his remarks, refuses, and will be detained until mid-1944. (Dave Hornford)

Armed yacht HMCS Wolf commissioned.
Corvettes HMCS Lethbridge and Sherbrooke laid down Montreal.

U.S.A.: In Washington, D.C., Lord Lothian, the British Ambassador to the U.S., provides President Franklin D. Roosevelt with a note concerning the facilities which the British were prepared to "extend to the United States Government..." This will be part of the "destroyers-for-bases" agreement between the U.K. and U.S. that will be announced in September.

In the U.S., Rear Admiral John W. Greenslade, USN, and French Vice Admiral Georges A.M.J. Robert conclude an agreement concerning the status of Vichy French warships and aircraft in the French West Indies. Ships in question are the aircraft carrier Bearn, light cruiser Emile Bertin, training
cruiser Jeanne d'Arc and auxiliary cruisers Esterelle, Quercy, and Barfleur; aircraft are 44 Curtiss SBC-4 Helldivers, 15 Curtiss H75-A4 Hawks (export version of USAAC P-36) and 6 Brewster Model B-339 fighters (export version of USN F2A Buffalo) delivered to Belgium. The basic agreement is that the French ships and aircraft will remain in Martinique throughout the war.

5 August 1941

August 5th, 1941 (TUESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Sgt J. A. Ward (RNZAF) becomes the first and only member of Vickers Wellington bomber crew to be awarded the Victoria Cross. This is for gallantry when flying as a second pilot in an aircraft of No, 75 Squadron during a night raid on the 7th July. (22)

Destroyers HMS Partridge, Lauderdale launched.
Escort carrier HMS Campania laid down.
Destroyers HS Miaoulis (ex-HMS Modbury) laid down.

U.S.S.R.: Moscow: The Germans have wiped out the "Smolensk Pocket", destroying the Russian sixteenth and Twentieth Armies and capturing 300,000 Russian soldiers, 3,200 tanks and 3,100 guns. It is a shattering defeat for the Red Army.
The pocket was created by General Hoth's Panzer Group 3 and General Guderian's Panzer Group 2 sweeping on from their victory at Minsk and then splitting north and south to encircle Smolensk.
Smolensk itself, the "gateway to Moscow", fell on 16 July and the Russian forces east of the city were surrounded. At first they were contained only by the tanks, which had to wait for the infantry to arrive before attacking the pocket.
Last night the German High Command claimed: "the mass of Soviet forces surrounded east of Smolensk is now annihilated. The remainder faces disbandment."
Marshal Timoshenko, commanding several newly-raised armies, tried to rescue the trapped armies, but his attacks were poorly prepared and, although some units broke through, the rescue attempt failed.
Fighting continues around Roslavl where the Russian Twenty-Eighth Army has also been hastily assembled to try to break the ring. Guderian launched his tanks against Roslavl on 1 August, captured it three days ago and badly mauled the Twenty-Eighth Army in the process. So total is this victory that many of the German soldiers think that there is little left between them and Moscow; they are putting up signposts pointing the way to the Russian capital. However, Hitler has already decided to switch Hoth to the north to reinforce the attack on Leningrad and Guderian to Kiev to the south, leaving Moscow to the infantry.
German communiqués continue to insist that territorial gains are not the main object of warfare - "what matters is that battles of extermination are proceeding."
In the meantime, reserve Soviet units are being hurried into a new defensive line 20 miles to the east of Smolensk. It is a thin line, but it could hold the German infantry deprived of tanks.

NORTH AFRICA: Admiral Darlan is placed in charge of the Vichy police here. General Weygand is his subordinate.

CANADA: Corvette HMCS Amherst commissioned.

U.S.A.: At 0530 hours in Menemsha Bight, Vineyard Sound, Massachusetts, USA, the presidential yacht USS Potomac (AG-35), with President Franklin D Roosevelt aboard, comes alongside the heavy cruiser USS Augusta (CA-31) and moored; the President and his party board the cruiser and the ship embarks at 0617 hours. For security purposes, the President's flag however, remained in Potomac while she, accompanied by the tender USS Calypso (AG-35), transited the Cape Cod Canal to New England waters. A Secret Serviceman, approximating the President in size and affecting the Chief Executive's mannerisms when visible from a distance, played a starring role in the drama. Press releases issued daily from USS Potomac led all who read them to believe that "FDR" was really embarked in his yacht on a pleasure cruise. Meanwhile, USS Augusta, accompanied by the heavy cruiser USS Tuscaloosa (CA-37) and 5 destroyers, stood out of Vineyard Sound at 0640 hours, at 20 knots passing the Nantucket Shoals lightship at 1125 hours. Increasing speed slightly during the night, the ships steamed on, darkened, to Ship Harbor, Placentia Bay, Argentia, Newfoundland to rendezvous with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

The first Vultee SNV-1 flies and was delivered to Naval Air Station (NAS) Corpus Christi, Texas.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: At 0150, 0154 and 0159, U-372 fired four torpedoes at Convoy SL-81 west of Ireland. The first torpedo struck the Belgravian, which burned out and sank the next day. Neumann reported that the second torpedo missed the target but exploded on a ship beyond and that the fourth hit an ammunition freighter, which exploded and sank in 50 seconds. The ship missed was the British steam merchant Volturno, but it is not reported that the torpedo did hit another ship. The ship sunk was the Swiftpool. Three crewmembers from the Belgravian were lost. The master, 40 crewmembers and six gunners were picked up by corvette HMS Bluebell and landed at Gourock.

At 0540, U-74 fired a spread of two torpedoes at Convoy SL-81 west of Ireland and three single torpedoes at 0541 and 0542. The U-boat observed a hit amidships with the second torpedo and heard three detonations after the boat had to dive. Kentrat reported one ship sunk and three others damaged, however, only the Kumasian was hit and sunk.

One crewmember was lost. The master, 43 crewmembers, six gunners and nine passengers were picked up by corvette HMS La Malouine and landed at Liverpool.

At 0520, U-75 attacked Convoy SL-81 west of Ireland and observed a column of fire and water after a first hit and a column of water after a second hit. Ringelmann then had to dive and was not able to make further observations. The two ships hit were the Harlingen and the Cape Rodney. Cape Rodney was taken in tow by tug HMS Zwarte Zee two days later at 52°11N/14°42W. On 9 Aug the ship foundered west of Ushant in 52°44N/11°41W. The master, 31 crewmembers and four gunners were picked up by corvette HMS Hydrangea and landed at Gourock. Three crewmembers were picked up by corvette HMS Zinnia and landed at Londonderry. Three crewmembers from the Harlingen were lost. The master, 34 crewmembers and four gunners were picked up by Hydrangea and landed at Gourock.

5 August 1942

August 5th, 1942 (WEDNESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Destroyer HS Adrias (ex-HMS Border) commissioned.

Minesweeper HMS Gozo laid down.

Frigate HMS Tay commissioned.

Corvette HMS Milfoil launched.

GERMANY: U-188, U-304, U-415 commissioned.

FINLAND: Finnish s/s Pohjanlahti sunk at Uzava south from Ventspils by sub S 7.

U.S.S.R.: Voroshilovsk (Stavropol) falls to German Panzers moving south towards the Maikop oilfields; on the Stalingrad front, Panzers capture Kotelnikovo.

EGYPT: Major General Lewis H. Brereton, Commanding General U.S. Army Middle East Air Force, in his first strategic estimate of the Middle Eastern war, indicates that the 3 major objectives for the Allied Air Forces are to assist in the destruction of General Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps by support to ground troops, secure sea and air communications on and over the Mediterranean, and carry out a sustained air offensive against Italy and against oil installations at Ploesti, Romania and in the Caucasus, if the latter should fall under Axis control.

CHINA: Japanese aircraft again attack the U.S. airfield at Kweilin; notified well in advance by the Chinese warning net previously set up under Brigadier General Claire L Chennault while he was head of the American Volunteer Group (AVG), P-40s meet the Japanese over the target, shooting down 2;and another is downed by ground fire.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: USAAF B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb Tulagi and Guadalcanal; 1 B-17 is lost.

The USN light cruiser USS Boise (CL-47) which departed Pearl Harbor, Territory of Hawaii on 27 July tasked to proceed towards the Japanese home islands and transmit enough radio traffic to simulate a task force, launches 2 SOC Seagulls to search for enemy ships. The aircraft become lost and cannot find the ship. Radio silence is broken in order to give the aircraft a bearing which compromises the mission and the ship begins withdrawing to Pearl Harbor. My source states that the Japanese believed that a task force was near the home islands.

CANADA: Minesweeper HMCS Sault Ste Marie (ex HMCS The Soo) launched Port Arthur, Ontario.
Corvette HMCS Pictou damaged in collision in fog off St John's with SS Hindager.

U.S.A.: A twilight military relief baseball game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants is played at the Polo Grounds in New York City. The Dodgers' shortstop Pee Wee Reese hits a grand slam home run in the top of ninth inning, making the score Dodgers 5, Giants 1, but the hit doesn't count because of the 2110 hours government curfew. The game ends up as a 1-1 tie with the Giants and, the contest will be the last wartime twilight game played.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-Boats return to large scale operations on the main north Atlantic routes with attacks beginning on convoy SC-94 today. These attacks will continue through the 13th. The convoy loses 11 ships and 2 U-Boats are sunk, 4 are damaged.

While U-598 was refuelling in the Middle Atlantic from U-463 one of her men drowned (Maschinenmaat Willi Bredereck) during maintenance work on the hydroplanes and propellers.

At 1145, the unescorted and unarmed Draco was taken under fire by U-155 about 325 miles east of Barbados. Several warning shots were fired, after which the crew abandoned ship in two lifeboats. The CO
later questioned the crew. One lifeboat made it to Suriname while the occupants of the other lifeboat were picked up by the British motor tanker Athelbrae.
At 1613, the Arletta, a straggler from Convoy ON-115, was torpedoed and sunk by U-458 SSW of Cape Race. The master, 29 crewmembers and six gunners were lost. The first officer William H. Duncan and four crewmembers were rescued after 15 days by the USCGC Menemsha and landed at Boston, Mass on 25 August.
The Spar was in convoy SC-94 (position 12), which was separated into several smaller convoys due to fog on 3 August 1942. The section Spar was part of failed to notice the signals for a course change, became separated and rejoined the main convoy on 5 August. But before rejoining, U-593 fired three torpedoes at 1848 on three ships, observed a hit on the second ship and heard one detonation on the first vessel.
Kelbling reported a ship of 5000 grt sunk and one of 4000 grt damaged.

In fact only the Spar was hit by one torpedo in the engine room, which probably killed three of four men on watch. The survivors abandoned their ship in two lifeboats and were picked up by one of the escorting corvettes (HMS Nasturtium or HMCS Orillia).

5 August 1943

August 5th, 1943(THURSDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Minesweeping trawler HMS Gulland launched.
Submarine HMS Turpin launched.

EIRE: An RAF Beaufort crashes at Falcaragh, County Donegal.

GERMANY: U-1193, U-1194 launched.
U-316 commissioned.

SWEDEN: Stockholm: In a move which betrayed Germany's weakened position, the Swedish government announced tonight that it would no longer allow the Swedish railways to be used to transport German troops and war material to Norway. The Swedes were forced to concede transit rights to the Germans in 1940 when the Nazi armies were sweeping to victory over most of Europe.
Stockholm newspapers say that the government has acted because a virtual state of war exists in Norway today, with British commandos mounting raids and uniformed Allied guerrillas active.

U.S.S.R.: Bielgorad falls to General Konev's troops.

Orel: Russia is celebrating the recapture of Orel, which has been in German hands since 1941. In Moscow a 120-gun salute was given at Midnight. The Russians, who fought hard all the way to the approaches to the city, expected a bloody street battle, but when their patrols moved cautiously in they found the suburbs deserted. The Germans, fearing being cut off, had fled. The fall of this German bastion removes the last threat to Moscow and opens the way for the next stage in the Russian advance. The tide of battle is now rolling towards Bryansk.

MV Majakovski (approx. 80 tons) was sunk by a mine laid on 31 July by U-212 SE of Koglujew in the Kara.

LITHUANIA: The Germans start the final deportation of Jews from the Vilna ghetto with a transport to the Vaivara labour camp in Estonia.

LATVIA: The German submarine U-34 sinks at 2155 hours local at Memel in position 55.42N, 21.09E after a collision with the German U-boat submarine tender Lech. 39 of the 43 crewmen survive.

ITALY: SICILY: The race for Messina and victory in Sicily is reaching the final stage. The British have fought their way around Mount Etna on both sides with the Highlanders fighting hard for Biancavilla as the XIII Corps advanced to take Catania, Misterbianco and Paterno, and XXX Corps advances towards Adrano. The Germans are leaving strong rearguards as they retreat northwards to Messina. The British have been aided by forward landings by airborne forces fighting to save bridges from demolition.

The American Seventh Army has used seaborne landings to bypass the Axis defenders along the north coast of the island. They open an assault on the San Fratello ridge, and further inland gain positions overlooking Troina. The enemy withdraws from the town during the night.

In the air, USAAF Ninth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb the town, roads, and road junctions of Francavilla and shipping in the Straits of Messina. Northwest African Tactical Air Force fighters and light and medium bombers attack troops, roads, and gun positions at Adrano and Troina and surrounding areas in support of Allied ground forces, hit motor transport behind enemy lines in Sicily and on the toe of Italy, and sink or damage over 20 small vessels and barges at Milazzo and in the Straits of Messina; and Northwest African Strategic Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses, operating in 2 forces, hit the docks and railroad yards at Messina. B-25s bomb a switching station at Guspini, Sardinia.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Munda Airfield on New Georgia Island, principal objective of the central Solomons campaign, is taken by US Army XIV Corps forces after 12 continuous days of fierce fighting in the jungle area.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: A USN submarine sinks a Japanese transport west of Marcus Island.

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: The US Navy drops over 150 tons of bombs on the deserted island of Kiska.

CANADA: Minesweeper HMS Mary Rose launched Toronto, Ontario.

U.S.A.: Destroyer USS Moale laid down.
Destroyer escorts USS Duffy, Farguhar commissioned.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: SS Efthalia Mari sunk by U-177 at 24.21S, 48.55E.

At 2137, USS Plymouth was hit by one torpedo from U-566 about 120 miles SE of Cape Henry, Virginia. The gunboat had made a underwater sound contact while escorting a coastal convoy, just as the ship swung
left to bear on the target she was struck just abaft the bridge. The ship rolled first to starboard, then took a heavy list to port with the entire port side forward of amidships in flames and sank within two minutes. The survivors were picked up by the US Coast Guard cutter USS Calypso in heavy seas and arrived in Norfolk on 6 August. Built as American motor yacht Alva for W.K. Vanderbilt, New York. On 4 Nov 1941, given to the USN and placed in reduced commission under Cdr F.W. Schmidt at Jacksonville on 29 December. On 22 Jan 1942, the ship entered the Norfolk Navy yard to be converted to the patrol gunboat USS Plymouth, armed with one 4in and four 3in guns. On 20 April, she was fully commissioned, based in Norfolk and assigned to the Inshore Patrol Squadron in the 5th Naval District. She made several convoy escort voyages between New York, Key West and Guantanamo during 1942/43

Minesweeping trawler HMS Red Gauntlet torpedoed and sunk by E-boat S-86 off Felixstowe.

5 August 1944

August 5th, 1944(SATURDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: The German submarine U-671 is sunk at 0200 hours local in the English Channel south of Brighton, England in position 50.23N, 00.06E, by depth charges from the RN frigates HMS Stayner and HMS Wensleydale. 5 of the 52 crewmen survive.

During the day, RAF Bomber Command dispatches aircraft to bomb oil storage and V-1 targets. The targets are (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of aircraft bombing and number lost, e.g., 97-1)

- Oil storage: Blaye (95-0); Bassens at Bordeaux (112-0); Pauillac at Bordeaux (94-1)

- Railroad bridge at Etaples (13-0)

- U-boat pens at Brest (17-0)

- V-1 site at Acquet

- V-1 supply sites: Foret de Nieppe (281-0) and St. Leu D'Esserent (441-1)

During the night of 5/6 August, RAF Bomber Command three RAF Bomber Command aircraft lay mines off Brest while five others drop leaflets.

The USAAF's Eighth Air Force flies four missions.

The USAAF Eighth Air Force flies Mission 519: 543 B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators bomb numerous targets during the morning. The targets are (numbers in parenthesis indicate number of aircraft bombing and number lost, e.g., 97-1):

- Aircraft assembly plants: Halberstadt (Fw-190, 71-1); Langenhagen at Hannover (Fw-190, 140-0); Neupetritor at Brunswick (components, 33-0); Neustadt at Magdeburg (engines, 92-1); Querum at Brunswick (engines, 95-1); Waggum at Brunswick (Me-110, 68-1); and Wilhelmitor (Me-110, 69-3)

- Airfields: Goslar (7-0); Heligoland (1-0); Helmstedt (15-0); and Nordholz (2-0)

- Industrial areas: Dedelstorf, Helmstedt and Magdeburg (each 1-0),

- Oil refinery: Dollbergen (72-0)

- Oil storage: Nienburg (175-2)

- Targets of opportunity: 13-0)

- Vehicle assembly plant: Krupp at Magdeburg/Buckau (86-2); NAG at Brunswick (43-0); Volkswagen at Fallersleben (85-2)

During the night of 5/6 August, 34 RAF Bomber Command aircraft bomb the Krupp Treibstoff synthetic oil refinery at Wanne-Eikel without loss.

- Mission 520: 34 B-17s hit six V-weapon sites in the Pas de Calais at Flers (14-0); Coubronne, Crepieul and Fleury (each 6-0) and Fressin (2-0). Escort is provided by 10 P-51s. Dick Johnson, who flew one of the six aircraft that bombed Crepieul, reports the following: "The 303d Bomb Group had been flying two missions per day for some time and today each squadron planned to launch ten B-17s each for a total of 40 planes. This was a rush job and Beiser was leading our 427th Squadron and only six of us made formation with their assigned group. A few of the planes were so rushed that they weren't fully loaded with bombs. We were to bomb six different targets in France in support of the ground troops. We assembled over Harrington Buncher at 3,500 feet (1 067 meters) and since we were late in taking off we took a short cut to Splasher 10 and then directly to Beachy Head at 20,000 feet (6 096 meters). As a result of this short cut three of our planes couldn't catch up and so they tacked onto another squadron. Our three plane squadron's target was Crepieul, France where we did a ten minute bomb run. Flak gunners did not fire on us as they did some of the others and as a result none of our planes were damaged. In the "A" Squadron the lead plane received a hit that disabled the manual aileron controls and tumbled the gyros that operated the auto pilot just 45 seconds before bombs away. The bombardier recovered just in time to do a fair job in his bombing attempt. The "D" squadron was 20 minutes late when they had to circle in order to avoid a large formation of British Lancasters in their path. At the target one plane was hit by flak that disabled two engines. That squadron flew a direct route to England after bombs away and the disabled plane landed at Ford, Sussex, England, which is near the White Cliffs of Dover. We saw two Me-163 'Komet' rocket planes but with their five to six minute fuel supply they could not reach our 303rd squadrons. Our P-51s shot down several German fighters that day and I think that this was the intent of the mission: to lure up the German fighters so that our fighters with their superior numbers could eliminate them. This was a "FUBAR" mission from the word go, but it was a milk run for me. and it was Beiser's last mission. But I had two more to go. I had the same co-pilot as yesterday's mission but with a mixed crew who were making up missed missions. Why me, Lord? On my penultimate mission on August 7th I would be bombing Paris. Score; Milk runs 14, Others 16."

- Mission 521: In a Micro H test, two B-17s, escorted by eight P-51 Mustangs, bomb a power plant at Beuvry without loss.

- Mission 522: six B-17s drop leaflets in the Netherlands and France during the night.

- 19 B-24s fly CARPETBAGGER missions during the night.

Corvette HMS Denbigh Castle launched.

FRANCE: US troops capture Namur and Charleroi.
Brittany: Men of Lt-Gen George S Patton's Third Army, newly arrived in France are racing towards the ports of Brittany after a spectacular breakout from Normandy. Armoured units are moving so rapidly that they are out of radio contact with divisional HQ, and supplies are being delivered on the run since there has been no time to set up bases and dumps. In five days, advance units have reached Lorient after driving past Rennes, and within 24 hours other units will be on the outskirts of Brest. All German forces in Brittany are withdrawing to the ports, which have been heavily fortified, and Hitler has ordered them to be held to the last man. For the first time in the Allied campaign French resistance fighters are operating alongside regular Allied troops. Some 20,000 armed men and women are under the command of a French officer parachuted in from London along with arms and ammunition.

At Pont Mikael in Brittany, the U.S. 15th Tank Battalion was assigned to the 6th Armored Division, having landed at Utah Beach on 18 July. The breakout at Avranches on 30 July and the drive to capture the Brittany Ports saw the 4th and 6th Armored divisions race across the Brittany peninsula, with some elements covering up to 26 miles (42 kilometres) in a day. Having fought their way through Poullaouen, the "point" of the advanced guard, consisting of one platoon of medium tanks from Company B, the 15th and one platoon of infantry from Company B, 9th Armored Infantry Battalion, as CCR (Combat Command Reserve) continued their advance toward Huelgoat, in central Brittany, at 1750 hours with Brest as their ultimate destination. The "point" was ordered to proceed rapidly toward Huelgoat. Lieutenant Schnepp proceeded without mishap until he neared the road junction about three miles east of Huelgoat, known locally as Pont Mikael. Here he found a hasty minefield across the

highway and reported it to the advance guard commander. At this place there was a bank on one side and a stream on the other making it impossible to bypass the mines. Lieutenant Schnepp proceeded through the minefield straddling the mines as he went, closely followed by his other two tanks. All went well until negotiating the second bank of mines, Lieutenant Schnepp's tank struck a mine blowing off both tracks. At this time the Germans opened up with very heavy small arms fire from all sides. Lieutenant Schnepp and his driver, Private Bennett, were both killed by machine gun fire as they tried to escape from the disabled tank. Lieutenant Colonel Lagrew went forward to investigate the situation and found that there was no room to deploy and attack. He decided to push forward through the minefield. He called for a squad of engineers to clear the mines and ordered the Reconnaissance Platoon to reconnoitre for other mines and for possible routes around them. Then he ordered Lieutenant Bigelow to bring his assault guns forward to support the attack. Lieutenant Durden led the remnants of his Reconnaissance Platoon to Pont Mikael, ascertained the nature, extent and location of the German concentrations and transmitted this information to the Task Force Commander. Lieutenant Durden took the lead in the fighting; walked down the road removing mines and directing drivers of the buttoned up tanks, while constantly under machine gun and rifle fire, and was killed by German machine gun fire. (For his conspicuous gallantry, Lieutenant Durden was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross). The assault guns were able to get through the first minefield. However, the assault gun ammunition half-track hit a mine and was disabled. Lieutenant Bigelow ordered them to fire into the woods and at likely gun positions. The Battalion Commander and the S-3 (Major White), followed the Assault Gun Platoon on foot to inspect the first minefield and to place the infantry, which was advancing on foot, in position. A burst of machine gun fire wounded Lieutenant Colonel Lagrew, and he was evacuated by the medics. Major White then assumed command of the Battalion and reported the situation to the Reserve Command Commander. He then went forward and made a personal Reconnaissance of the road junction. When Major White reached the Assault Gun Platoon's position, he found that they had set fire to several ammunition dumps. A supply truck was burning on the left fork of the road and the road to the right was through a defilade and was mined. Considerable small arms fire was still being received from various parts in the woods and. Lieutenant Bigelow's assault guns were running low on ammunition. Major White reported the above situation to Colonel Hanson (Commander of Reserve Command) who noted the lateness of the hour, and ordered a withdrawal from the defile to the high ground east of Pollaouen. After ordering Company B and the Assault Gun Platoon to withdraw behind a bend in the road, Major White went forward to see what equipment could be salvaged and to see about recovering the bodies of Lieutenant Schnepp and Private Bennett. However, just as they reached the bodies, the Germans opened fire again. Lieutenant Weider (Battalion Liaison Officer), who was accompanying Major White on foot, was mortally wounded. Lieutenant Bigelow then called for a tank from Company B to protect the withdrawal of the troops and equipment, staying with the infantry until everyone was clear and then relieved them at 2245 hours. The command moved into a temporary bivouac just east of Pollaouen and remained there until about 0300. (Chris Warne) [NOTE: This action is in the neighbourhood of Chris' parents house.]

The USAAF's Ninth Air Force dispatches 300+ A-20 Havocs and B-26 Marauders to bomb Saint-Malo harbour and Foret de Sille fuel dump during the night of 4/5 August, and during the day, rail bridges at 6 cities in northern and western France, and marshalling yard at Compiegne; fighters furnish cover for ground forces and fly armed reconnaissance over wide areas of northern France.

GERMANY: U-2506 launched.

POLAND: In Warsaw, Polish insurgents loyal to their government-in-exile in London liberate a German forced-labour camp, freeing 348 Jewish prisoners, who join in a general uprising against the German occupiers of the city. By this date, more than 15,000 Poles have been killed in the uprising.

RAF bombers make supply drops to the Warsaw insurgents. (Corinne Mahaffey)

FINLAND: Kenraalimajuri (Major General) Einar Wihma is killed in a Soviet artillery barrage in Ihantala. Wihma, the commander of the 6. Infantry Division, had successfully fought at the battle of Ihantala where a major Soviet offensive was stopped only a month earlier (Wihma earned the 2nd class Mannerheim Cross, the Finnish equivalent of MOH or VC in late 1941 for personal bravery when commanding the 12th Division). Since then the front has grown quiet, but the Russians has constructed a base only 200 meters (c. 220 yards.) away from the Finnish lines, protected by immobilized tanks. The base is such a nuisance that it is decided it has to be destroyed. After aerial and artillery bombardment a special task force attacks under cover of a smoke screen. Nine tanks are destroyed by satchel charges, but Gen. Wihma is killed in a Soviet counter-barrage while observing the operation.

The last word on Gen. Wihma should be left to author and poet Lasse Heikkilä, who fought in the Battle of Tali-Ihantala as a young AT-man.

After the war he began to write a poetic anthology of the men who had fought in Tali-Ihantala, but it was left unfinished when he committed suicide in 1961. The work was published posthumously few years ago.

This is what Heikkilä wrote of Gen. Wihma:

"Mene ja kerro, että meillä jokaisella on nimi,/mene ja kerro, että suomalainen kenraali makaa saman mullan alla kuin sotamiehet,/saman kunnian kantaen kuin sotamiehet."

Translation:

"Go and tell, that each and every one of us has a name,/go and tell, that a Finnish general lies below the same ground as the privates do,/bearing the same honour as the privates do."

EASTERN FRONT: The Fourth Ukraine Front, under Petrov, is activated by the Soviets in southern Poland and northern Hungary.

ITALY: Florence: Although Marshal Kesselring solemnly declared this Medici capital an "open city", South African troops entered it today to find five of Florence's six bridges destroyed and mediaeval buildings flattened by demolition charges. Only the exquisite Ponte Vecchio with its goldsmiths' and jewellers' shops remains standing over the Arno River and, as in many other places, many old houses have been destroyed and the approach roads mined to delay Allied access.
Now depleted by the removal of American and French troops for the planned invasion of southern France, the US Fifth and British Eight Armies have advanced steadily on both sides of the Apennines. The British XIII Corps, augmented by South Africans, Indians and New Zealanders, took the important rail junction of Arezzo on 17 July and pressed on towards Florence despite tough defensive fighting by German paratroopers and Panzergrenadiers. Replacements on the Italian front include 25,000 men of the Brazilian Expeditionary Corps and the US 96th Division, consisting entirely of black troops. Neither unit has battle experience.

AUSTRALIA: Cowra, New South Wales: Japanese prisoners of way wielding improvised weapons broke out of the Cowra prisoner-of-war camp early today. As they rushed the compound wire, Australian Army guards fired a machine-gun at them until the Japanese knifed and clubbed them to death.
Of the 1,104 Japanese prisoners in the camp, 334 managed to get away, and 234 died and 108 were wounded in the attempt. Three of the camp's army guards were killed and three wounded.
The Japanese had long planned to break out. This incident, the biggest prison escape of the war so far, is the first of its kind to take place in Australia.

Two of the guards, Pte Benjamin Gower Hardy (b.1898) and Pte Ralph Jones (b.1900), Australian Military Forces, were beaten to death at their gun during a mass breakout of Japanese PoWs. By standing their ground, however, they had gained valuable time for their colleagues. (George Crosses)

PACIFIC OCEAN: Carrier-based aircraft from the USN's Task Group 58.1 (Rear Admiral Joseph J. Clark) and TG 58.3 (Rear Admiral Alfred E. Montgomery) and cruisers and destroyers (Rear Admiral Laurance T. DuBose) repeat strikes on Japanese installations on Chichi Jima and Haha Jima in the Bonin Islands. Aircraft from the aircraft carrier USS Bunker Hill (CV-17) inflict further damage upon fast Japanese transport T.4 and damage T.2 off Chichi Jima.

U.S. submarines sink a Japanese merchant passenger/cargo ship and an oiler.

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: A weather mission is followed by a shipping sweep flown by 2 USAAF Eleventh Air Force B-25 Mitchells which is aborted early due to weather.

CANADA: HMC MTB 486 commissioned.
Tug HMCS Riverton commissioned.

USAAF Far East Air Force B-24s bomb personnel and supply areas on Yap Atoll in the Caroline Islands.

U.S.A.: The top pop songs today are (1) "I'll Be Seeing You" by Tommy Dorsey and his Orchestra with vocal by Frank Sinatra; (2) "Swinging on a Star" by Bing Crosby; (3) "Amor" by Bing Crosby; and (4) "Is You Is Or Is You Ain't (Ma' Baby)" by Louis Jordan And his Tympany Five.

Minesweeper USS Ransom commissioned.

Destroyer escort USS McGinty launched.

5 August 1945

August 5th, 1945 (SUNDAY)

CHINA: Chinese troops capture Tanchuk and Hsinning from the Japanese.

MANCHURIA: Mukden: Dr. Marcel Junod, on his way to Tokyo, as the new representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross to Japan, visits the PoW camp. Dr. Junod is appalled at the intimidation of the PoWs, and is especially disturbed that none of the PoW doctors are allowed to talk to him when he insists in visiting the hospital. Dr. Junod also mentions seeing stacks of undistributed Red Cross parcels in the corner of the hut, and asking why they had not been given out to the prisoners. He is informed by the commandant that they were being "saved for later ... at Christmas." And Major Robert Peaty (the senior British officer) notes in his diary, "No one was allowed contact with [Dr. Junod]," and that all prisoners were sent to the factory some distance away, "[p]resumably to keep them away from the Red Cross visitor." (151)(Linda Goetz Holmes)

KURILE ISLANDS: USN PB4Y-2 Privateers of Patrol Bombing Squadron One Hundred Twenty (VPB-120) based at NAAF Shemya, Aleutian Islands, attack 2 enemy vessels off Shimushu Island; 3 vessels south of Otomari Zaki, Onekotan Island; and a beached ship on Araido Island.

JAPAN: During the night of 5/6 August, the USAAF Twentieth Air Force dispatches 612 B-29 Superfortresses to fly 1 mining, 1 bombing and 4 incendiary raids against Japan; 2 B-29s are lost.

- Mission 311: 27 B-29s mine the waters of the Sakai, Yonago, Nakaumi Lagoon, Miyazu, Maizuru, Tsuruga, Obama, Najin and Geijitsu areas; 1 other B-29 mines an alternate target.

- Mission 312: 63 B-29s attack the Saga urban area destroying 0.02 sq mi (0.05 sq km), 1.5% of the city; 1 B-29 is lost.

- Mission 313: 92 B-29s hit the Maebashi urban area destroying 1 sq mi (2.59 sq km), 42.5% of the city; 4 others hit alternate targets.

- Mission 314: 250 B-29s attack the Nishinomiya-Mikage urban area destroying 2.8 sq mi (7.25 sq km), 29.6% of the city; 3 others hit alternate targets; 1 B-29 is lost.

- Mission 315: 106 B-29s bomb the Ube Coal Liquefaction Co. facility at Ube destroying 100% of the refining units and destroying or damaging 80% of other structures; 2 others hit alternate targets.

- Mission 316: 64 B-29s attack the Imabari urban area destroying 0.73 sq mi (1.89 sq km), 76% of the city area.

In Japan, 100+ USAAF Twentieth Air Force P-51s strike airfields and military installations in large area around Tokyo, scoring especially effective hits at Katori Airfield; the USAAF Far East Air Force dispatches 330+ B-24s, B-25s, A-26 Invaders, P-47s, and P-51s to pound Tarumizu town, the industrial area on Kyushu and many targets of opportunity on Kyushu and in the Ryukyu Islands.

On Okinawa, HQ 333d Bombardment Group (Very Heavy) and 435th, 460th and 507th Bombardment Squadrons (Very Heavy) arrive at Kadena, Okinawa from the US with B-29s. These are the first Eighth Air Force B-29 units to arrive.

USN submarines sink two Japanese merchant cargo ships in the Pacific.

The USS Billfish sinks the 1,091 ton Kori Maru off the Kwantung Peninsula with a four torpedo spread (three hits) (Henry Sirotin 101)

MARIANAS ISLANDS: Seven US aircraft take off tonight for Japan, including the Enola Gay, heading for Hiroshima armed with an atomic bomb.

CANADA: Minesweeper HMCS Granby paid off Halifax, Nova Scotia.

U.S.A.: President Truman approves the use of the atomic bomb against Japan. (William L. Howard)

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