24 August 1939

August 24th, 1939 (THURSDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM:
Parliament reconvenes and passes the Emergency Powers Act, Royal Assent is given today.
The Royal Navy is ordered to war stations.
Western Approaches Command opens at Plymouth.

Kent County Cricket club secretary, G de L. Hough, suggests to the touring West Indian cricket team, that their match scheduled for the 30th might have to be cancelled because of the deepening crisis. (72)

Destroyer HMS Juno commissioned.

Minesweeper HMS Britomart commissioned.

Lord Lovat is mobilised as a Captain in the Lovat Scouts, Territorial Army. (Daniel Ross)

NETHERLANDS: Sloop HNLMS Van Kinsbergen commissioned.

GERMANY:
Hitler predicts that the Chamberlain government will fail.
Göring meets with Birger Dahlerus, a Swedish businessman and proposes that Dahlerus, who has good connections, should act as a go-between with Great Britain.
Ambassador Henderson urges that Poland and Germany re-establish contact, saying that it is the 'last hope, if any, of peace: if there is a last hope'.

Sidney Cotton and his secretly modified Lockheed Electra fly the last British civilian flight out of Berlin. He had flown to Berlin to pick up Hermann Göring and fly him to England for a last ditch meeting with Chamberlain in an effort to avert war. Given an exact route to follow for his departure, Cotton still managed to photograph the German naval fleet at Wilhelmshaven from 60 miles away on the way out. With the start of the war, Cotton became the head of the RAF's Photographic Reconnaissance Unit (PRU), but quickly antagonized top RAF brass and was tossed out. Cotton's biography is titled "Aviator Extraordinary". More recently, fellow Australian Jeff Watson has filmed a one hour documentary about Cotton's exploits and penned a book about him. Both are titled "Last Plane Out of Berlin", with the book coming out in October 2002. (Dennis Sparks)

FREE CITY OF DANZIG:
The Gauleiter Albert Forster becomes head of state.

U.S.S.R.:
Marshal Voroshilov goes duck shooting.

U.S.A.:

- President Franklin D. Roosevelt sends a telegram to Adolf Hitler in which he says, "I appeal to you in the name of the people of the United States, and I believe in the name of peace-loving men and women everywhere, to agree to the solution of the controversies existing between your Government and that of Poland through the adoption of one of the alternative methods I have proposed."

- Louis ‘Lepke’ Buchalter, the leader of "Murder, Incorporated," a squad of hit men employed by Mafia bosses and Jewish gang leaders, gives himself up to newspaper columnist Walter Winchell in New York City. Winchell turns the underworld leader over to FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover. (Jack McKillop & Keith Allen)

24 August 1940

August 24th, 1940 (SATURDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM:
RAF Bomber Command: 4 Group (Whitley). Bombing - electrical factory at Milan - aircraft factory at Augsburg - Daimler-Benz factory at Stuttgart.
10 Sqn. Ten aircraft to Milan. Four returned early, six bombed primary.
77 Sqn. Ten aircraft to Augsburg. Seven bombed primary, one FTR.
102 Sqn. Nine aircraft to Stuttgart. All bombed primary.

Battle of Britain:
London: The city has its first bombing raid when ten German planes returning home jettison their loads by mistake. Germany loses 38 planes today and Britain 22.

The Luftwaffe today concentrated its attacks on Fighters Command's airfields flying 1,030 daytime sorties. The first raid appeared at 8.30 am when 40 Do17s and Ju88s, escorted by 66 Bf109s, approached the coast. 12 fighter squadrons went up to intercept. But the raid was a feint, and the real attack was timed to catch the British fighters on the ground as they refuelled.

Hornchurch and North Weald took heavy punishment, with the fighters scrambling to get into the air as the bombs dropped. Hornchurch was saved for severe damage largely by its anti-aircraft guns, while Hurricanes from neighbouring Romford came to the rescue at North Weald.

Manston, in its exposed position on top of the Kentish cliffs, took a terrible hammering, although stories about a "mutiny" amongst ground staff - allegedly refusing to come out of underground shelters despite threats and entreaties from the superior officers - appear to have arisen from a series of misunderstandings, as have tales of civilian workers refusing to fill in bomb craters under enemy fire. Tonight Manston has ceased to exist as a front line fighter base, and is being used only as an emergency field. This is not the only weakness that today's attacks have shown up. Five of 264 Squadrons Defiants have been shot down.

There is also something wrong with the co-operation between Air Vice-Marshal Keith Park's hard pressed 11 Group and Air Vice-Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory's 12 Group.
When Park asked for help today, 12 Group's squadrons took so long in forming their "big wing" that the raiders had bombed and gone before 12 Group appeared on the scene. The Germans also got through to Portsmouth where, attempting to bomb the dockyard, they were heavily engaged by anti-aircraft fire. Many of their bombs fell into the town and caused heavy civilian casualties. Ramsgate was also hit. As a result of the day's fighting the German lost 41 aircraft and the RAF 20. But the day is not yet over.

Göring has ordered a round-the-clock offensive, and there are reports tonight of raids on Cardiff, Swansea, South Shields and many areas around London.

London: 2nd Lt Ellis Edward Arthur Chetwynd Talbot (1920-41), Royal Engineers, carried a new and unpredictable type of German bomb to a safe spot on his shoulders. (Empire Gallantry Medal)

Destroyer HMS Acheron damaged by German aircraft during an air raid on Portsmouth.

ASW trawler HMS Gavotte commissioned.

GERMANY: U-144 is launched.

CANADA: Corvette HMCS Sorel is laid down at Sorel, Province of Quebec.

U.S.A.: The USAAC signs a contract with Boeing for the construction of two prototype XB-29s and a static test model.

The Detroit Tigers and the Boston Red Sox play a baseball game in Fenway Park in Boston. With the Tigers leading 11-1 after seven innings, the Red Sox left fielder Ted Williams pitches the last two innings and gives up one run on three hits.

Minesweepers USS Raven and Osprey are launched.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: An attack by U-37 on convoy SC1 and OA-200 to the southeast of Greenland leads to the loss of a merchantman (SS Brookwood) and sloop HMS Penzance. The sloop is blown in half by a torpedo and it was not possible to lower boats or rafts. (Alex Gordon)(108)

U-57 sinks SS Cumberland, SS Saint Dunstan and damages SS Havildar in Convoy OB-202.

U-48 sinks SS La Brea in Convoy HX-65.

24 August 1941

August 24th, 1941 (SUNDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Prime Minister Winston Churchill makes a radio broadcast in which he discusses his recent meeting with U.S. President Roosevelt in Newfoundland. Churchill pledges unhesitating aid to the U.S. in the event that peaceful discussions with Japan fail.

In a speech to the House of Commons Churchill says: "Napoleon in his glory and genius spread his Empire far and wide. ... Napoleon's armies had a theme. They carried with them the surges of the French Revolution - Liberty, Equality and Fraternity. ... There was a sweeping away of outworn, medieval systems and aristocratic privilege. There was the land for the people, a new code of law. Nevertheless, Napoleon's empire vanished like a dream." (Peter Kilduff)

The RCAF's No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron, equipped with Hurricane Mk. Is and based at Northolt, Middlesex, England, shoots down two RAF Blenheim bombers which were mistaken for Junkers JU-88s.

Minesweeper HMS Fort York launched.

Submarine KNM Uredd (ex-HMS P-41) launched.

FRANCE: VICHY FRANCE: Anti-terrorist laws, aimed at crushing the Resistance, are passed giving "terrorists" the death penalty.

GERMANY: Hitler has ordered the termination of the "T4" action, under which 70,273 mentally-ill people have been liquidated since September 1939.
Although the murders were supposed to be carried out in strict secrecy, rumours about the specially-designed "euthanasia" centres have been spreading. On 31 July the bishop of Münster denounced the killings in a sermon. Hitler now appears to have bowed to public pressure.

FINLAND: The troops of Col. Winell's 8th ID cross the Bay of Viipuri unopposed. They are able to consolidate their positions on the eastern shore before the Soviets react.

U.S.S.R.: General Ivan S. Konev initiates a new counterattack in the area of Gomel but it is not successful.

Soviet destroyer Engels (ex-Desna) sunk in minefield while operating with the Baltic Fleet.

CANADA: HMCS Kenogami, a Flower-class corvette, arrived at St. John's to join Newfoundland Command. Newfoundland Command and the Newfoundland Escort Force (NEF) were established on 23 May 41. That same day, the Canadian corvettes Agassiz, Alberni, Chambly, Cobalt, Collingwood, Orillia and Wetaskiwin departed Halifax for St. Johns. There were virtually no naval facilities in existence in St. Johns and, initially, operational support was provided from alongside by ships of the Royal Navy. The British auxiliary oiler Teakwood arrived on 29 May and the auxiliary stores ship City of Dieppe arrived on 03 Jun. A second auxiliary oiler Clam arrived on 09 Jun and on 14 Jun the submarine depot ship Forth arrived. She was replaced in Sep by the destroyer depot ship Greenwich, which, despite her smaller size and greater age, was more suited to the needs of the NEF. A Great Lakes passenger steamer, known as HMCS Avalon II, was added to serve as an afloat barracks. Cmdre L.W. Murray arrived to assume command on 15 Jun. For a number of months his entire staff consisted of his deputy, Cdr. R.E. Bidwell (who did not arrive until Jul 41), and his flag secretary. The first escort of a convoy by the NEF was quickly undertaken on 02 Jun when Chambly, Orillia, and Collingwood put to sea to join with the 57-ship Halifax to Liverpool convoy HX-129. This convoy, which left Halifax on 27 May, was the first to have continuous close escort all the way across the Atlantic. It arrived safely in Liverpool on 12 Jun 41.

U.S.A.: A rag tag group of five musicians, dubbed the Dodger SymPhony by radio announcer Red Barber, make their debut at a Brooklyn Dodgers baseball game in Ebbets Field, Brooklyn. This band, none of which could read music, perform their zany antics at all evening and weekend games.

24 August 1942

August 24th, 1942 (MONDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM:

The US 8th Air Force in England flies Mission 5: B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb the shipyard of Ateliers et Chantiers Maritime de la Seine at Le Trait, France, dropping 24 tons of bombs.

Major General Carl Spaatz, Commanding General US 8th Air Force, reports the RAF attitude towards US daylight precision bombing seems to be changing from one of scepticism to one of tentative approval.

USAAF 307th Fighter Squadron moves to Merston, Surrey. .

Prime Minister Winston Churchill returns to England after meeting with Soviet Premier Josef Stalin in Moscow.

Trawler HMS Magdalen commissioned.

GERMANY: Thierack is appointed by Hitler as the new Minister of Justice. He has the power to set aside any or all written law. (Gene Hanson)

U-193 launched.
U-981and U-982 laid down.

U.S.S.R.: Black Sea Fleet and Azov Flotilla: Submarine "M-3" - mined and sunk in Odessa Gulf, close to Bolshoi Fontan (raised in 1951).
Baltic Fleet, Ladoga and Onega Flotillas: Shipping loss. SKR "Burya" - mined at Bolshoi Tuters Is. (later raised) and MS "T-204" ("Fugas") - mined close to Lavensari Is.
Black Sea Fleet and Azov Flotilla: Shipping loss: GB "Bug" and SKR "Shturman" exploded by crew to prevent capturing, in Temruk. GB "Don" - damaged by aviation and exploded by crew to prevent capturing, in Temruk (Sergey Anisimov)(69)

The slowing German offensive in the Caucasus creeps to within 85 miles (137 kilometres) of the Grozny oil complex.

LIBYA: U.S. Army, Middle East Air Forces B-24 Liberators attack Tobruk harbour.

NEW GUINEA: A Japanese amphibious force leaves Buna in seven large barges and New Ireland Island, Bismarck Archipelago, in transports, heading for Milne Bay; the barges are detected by an Australian coastwatcher during the afternoon.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Guadalcanal: East of Guadalcanal, US scout planes flying from Enterprise spot carrier Ryujo. A strike is dispatched. Then Shokaku and Zuikaku are sighted. Attempts to redirect the attack from Admiral Fletcher are unsuccessful.
The Ryujo is sunk.

Japanese attacks from the two fleet carriers find Enterprise and while damaged, she is still able to land planes. One of the bombs is caught on film at the exact moment of explosion. Most of the Japanese planes in this strike choose the Enterprise, only a few attack North Carolina for superficial damage. The steering gear on Enterprise goes out of commission during damage control, and for 30 minutes the "Big E" circles with her rudder jammed hard to starboard. A second Japanese strike is spotted on radar while the Enterprise is disabled. It heads for an estimated position and does not find the US forces.

The new tactic of centralized fighter direction, using radar, is marred by radio frequencies jammed with too many American transmissions. The mission of this Japanese Naval task force is to protect a supply and reinforcement convoy under command of Admiral Tanaka. This will become known as "The Battle of the Eastern Solomons". The final act involving the convoy will occur tomorrow.
The battle pits 3 IJN aircraft carriers, HIJMS Ryujo, HIJMS Shokaku and HIJMS Zuikaku against 2 USN carriers, USS Enterprise (CV-6) and Saratoga (CV-3). The seaplane carrier is damaged by SBD-3 Dauntlesses of Bombing Squadron Three (VB-3) and Scouting Squadron Three (VS-3) and TBF-1 Avengers of Torpedo Squadron Eight (VT-8) in USS Saratoga (CV-3). Light cruiser HIJMS Jintsu is damaged by SBD-3s of Marine Scout Bombing Squadron Two Hundred and Thirty Two (VMSB-322) based on Guadalcanal. Planes from HIJMS Ryujo bomb USMC positions at Lunga Point on Guadalcanal but SBD Dauntlesses of Bombing Squadron Three (VB-3) and TBF Avengers of Torpedo Squadron Eight (VT-8) in USS Saratoga sink HIJMS Ryujo; 3 USAAF B-17s that are patrolling the area also bomb the Japanese ships from high altitude but hit nothing.

USS Enterprise is damaged by 3 direct hits and 4 near misses by aircraft from the two remaining IJN carriers but attacks against the battleship USS North Carolina (BB-55) are unsuccessful; USS Saratoga is hidden by a rain squall and escapes attack. As soon as the US carriers land all of their aircraft, they withdraw from the area. The Japanese do the same thing.

During the night four Japanese warships shell Henderson Field on Guadalcanal.

For more details on this battle, see Tim Lanzendörfer's web site.

Japan loses 21 planes, the US just three.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Allied Air Forces B-17s bomb Gasmata Island and airfields at Rabaul, New Britain Island.

PACIFIC OCEAN: USN submarine USS Guardfish (SS-217) torpedoes and sinks a Japanese merchant passenger-cargo ship off entrance to Sendai harbour, on the northeast coast of Honshu, Japan.

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: In the Aleutians, a photo reconnaissance sortie scheduled to be flown by a US 11th Air Force B-24 Liberator is cancelled due to overcast.
In a public opinion poll the following results were obtained:

CANADA Minesweeper HMCS Llewellyn and Lloyd George commissioned. Tug HMCS DW Murray assigned to Halifax.

U.S.A.: If the Allies build a strong enough air force do you think that they can win the war virtually alone?

Yes 40%

No 49%

No opinion 11%

August 29, 1942

As long as the war lasts would you favour or oppose a committee of judges with full power to set aside any peacetime laws and regulations that they felt were slowing the war effort?

Favour 58%

Oppose 23%

No opinion 19%

(Jay Stone)

Hollywood stars Tyrone Power, 28, and Henry Fonda, 37, join the armed forces. Power joins the Marine Corps but doesn't go to boot camp until he finishes the motion picture "Crash Dive" about submarines. Fonda joins the Navy and goes straight to boot camp as a Seaman Apprentice. Power went to Officer Candidate School and was commissioned and then took flight training and was later assigned as a transport pilot in the Pacific. He was discharged in Jan 46. Fonda served on the destroyer USS Satterlee (DD-626) rising to the rank of Quartermaster Third Class. Based on the recommendation of the executive officer on the ship, Fonda was commissioned a Lieutenant (jg) and served in Air Combat Intelligence in the Central Pacific; he was discharged in Oct 45.

Destroyer USS Beale launched.
Submarine USS Cero laid down.
Destroyer USS Luce laid down.

Escort carrier USS Santee is commissioned.

BRAZIL: Rights of non-belligerency are granted to the Government of Brazil by Uruguay, Chile, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, and Paraguay.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-162 sank SS Moena.
U-601 sank SS Kujbyshew.
U-23 sank SS Shkval.

24 August 1943

August 24th, 1943 (TUESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM:

The USAAF's VIII Air Support Command and VIII Bomber Command in England fly missions to France.

- VIII Air Support Command Missions 33A and 33B: B-26B Marauders fly 2 diversions for the VIII Bomber Command B-17s.

- VIII Bomber Command Mission 86 Part I: An air depot and airfields in France are targeted:

1. 110 B-17s are dispatched to the Villacoublay Air Depot; 86 hit the target at 1800-1805 hours; they claim 1-0-1 Luftwaffe aircraft.

2. 42 B-17s are dispatched to the Conches and Evreux/Fauville Airfields; 22 hit the target at 1844-1858 hours; they claim 0-0-2 Luftwaffe aircraft; a B-17 is lost.

3. 35 of 36 B-17s fly a diversion without incident.

- VIII Bomber Command Mission 86 Part II: 85 B-17s, which had flown to North Africa after attacking Regensburg, Germany on 17 August, are dispatched to the Merignac Airfield at Bordeaux; 58 hit the target at 1157-1200 hours; they claim 3-3-10 Luftwaffe aircraft; 3 B-17s are lost.

Nine B-17s return to North Africa after encountering difficulties.

Frigate HMS Fitzroy laid down.

GERMANY: Himmler is appointed as Minister of the Interior. Neurath resigns as Protector of Bohemia and Moravia with Frisch as his replacement.

U-867 launched.

DENMARK: Today and tomorrow there are several bomb incidents in Copenhagen, Denmark and strikes in shipyards, courtesy of the Danish resistance.

U.S.S.R.: Black Sea Fleet and Azov Flotilla: HS "Shkval" - by U-boat gunfire, at Gelenjik area (Sergey Anisimov)(69)

ITALY: Northwest African Tactical Air Force (NATAF) fighter-bombers hit a railroad tunnel and cruiser offshore at Sibari, tracks and buildings at Castrovillari, and the town area at Sibari; and RAF Desert Air Force airplanes strafe motor transport north of Reggio di Calabria and provide withdrawal cover for the NATAF fighter-bombers.

CHINA: 7 B-24 Liberators and 6 B-25 Mitchells of the USAAF's Fourteenth Air Force, escorted by 22 P-40s and P-38 Lightnings, bomb airfields at Hankow and Wuchang; 4 B-24s are lost; 24 IJA interceptors are claimed shot down.

NEW GUINEA: The Australian 3 Division is replaced by the 5 Division during the final phases of operations against Salamaua. This attack is really a feint; the main objective is Lae and the main body of Australian forces are approaching it from the interior of the island.
U.S. forces continue their operations to capture Dot Inlet.
In the air, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-24s thoroughly pound Wewak and bomb Salamaua while B-25s bomb Larat and barges east of Wotap.

EAST INDIES: Fifth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb Larat Island in the Tanimbar Islands of the Netherlands East Indies.

NEW HEBRIDES ISLANDS: The Japanese submarine HIJMS I-25 launches a "Glen" (Yokosuka E14Y, Navy Type 0 Small Reconnaissance Seaplane) to reconnoitre Espiritu Santo Island.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: US Army troops capture Bairoko Harbor on New Georgia ending the battle for the island.

- 25 Thirteenth Air Force B-24s, with fighter escort, bomb Papatura Fa Island and attack the eastern shore of Ringa Cove on New Georgia Island. P-39Airacobras strafe barges at Kakasa on Choiseul Island.

CANADA: The Quadrant Conference between U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, British Prime Minister Winston S. Churchill and Canadian Prime Minister W.L. MacKenzie King in Quebec City, Quebec, ends. Operation OVERLORD, the invasion of north-western Europe, target date is 1 May 1944, and Operation POINTBLANK, the Combined Bomber Offensive to destroy economic and military power of Germany as a prelude to OVERLORD, shall constitute the primary effort against Germany. Plans for the invasion of Italy are approved, but the forces to be employed are confined to those already allotted by TRIDENT, the U.S.-British conference held in Washington, D.C., USA, in May 1943. Advances against Japan are to be made along both the Central Pacific and the Southwest Pacific Area (SWPA) route. Action in the Central Pacific is to begin with invasion of Gilberts and Marshalls Islands. In the SWPA, Rabaul on New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago, will be neutralized but not captured; New Guinea w ill be neutralized as far west as Wewak; Manus Island in the Admiralty Islands and Kavieng on New Ireland Island, Bismarck Archipelago, are to be secured as bases from which further advances can be supported. A new Allied command, Southeast Asia Command (SEAC), is authorized to simplify command structure in Asia; British Admiral Lord Louis Mountbatten is to be Supreme Commander and U.S. Lieutenant General Joseph Stilwell will be his deputy. The China Theater is not included in SEAC; as China is an area of U.S. strategic responsibility, General Stilwell is responsible to Chinese Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek. The North Burma offensive is scheduled to begin in February 1944. President Roosevelt opposed recognition of a DeGaulle government, but Churchill recognizes French General Charles DeGaulle's National Committee as a wartime ally. Although there was growing unity on military strategy, there was also growing political disunity especially involving Italy.

Corvette HMCS Rimouski completed foc'sle extension refit Liverpool, Nova Scotia.

U.S.A.: The US Army Air Forces Antisubmarine Command is redesignated I Bomber Command and reassigned to the First Air Force after the USAAF and US Navy reach an agreement under which the USAAF withdraws from antisubmarine operations.

Destroyer escort USS Brister launched.

Destroyer escorts USS Gillette and Price laid down.

Submarine USS Spot laid down.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Two German submarines are sunk:

- U-134 is sunk in the North Atlantic near Vigo, Spain in position approximately 42.07N, 09.30W by 6 depth charges from an RAF Wellington Mk XIV of No 179 Squadron based at Gibraltar. All 48 men on the U-boat are lost.

- U-185 is sunk in the mid-Atlantic, in position 27.00N, 37.06W, by depth charges from 3 USN TBF Avengers of Composite Squadron Thirteen (VC-13) in the escort aircraft carrier USS Core (CV-13). 22 of the 51 crewmen in the U-boat survive.

24 August 1944

August 24th, 1944 (THURSDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: London: While the reopening of London theatres signals the defeat of the V1 flying-bomb offensive against the capital, the closure of theatres and amusements in Germany shows the desperate state the war has reached for the Nazis. Dr Goebbels announced today that all theatres, music halls and cabarets were to be closed from 1 September and all holidays suspended as part of total mobilization. Manpower released will be conscripted for war-work. So will thousands of students.

The US Eighth Air Force in England flies 2 missions.
- Mission 568: 1,319 bombers and 739 fighters, in 4 forces, are dispatched on visual attacks on strategic targets in Germany with some PFF on targets of opportunity; 26 bombers and 4 fighters are lost. The numbers in parentheses after the target name indicate number of attacking bombers.
(1) B-24s bomb aviation industry targets at Brunswick/Waggum (125), Brunswick/Querum (99) and Hannover/Langenhagen (72) and an oil refinery at Misburg (88); 5 others hit targets of opportunity; they claim 0-0-1 aircraft; 5 B-24s are lost. Escort is provided by 248 P-38 Lightnings P-47 Thunderbolts and P-51 Mustangs they claim 10-0-0 aircraft; 2 P-51s are lost.
(2) B-17s attack the Merseburg oil refinery (185), Weimar (129) and Kolleda Airfield (30); targets of opportunity hit are airfields at Goslar (37), Nordhausen (11), Vorden (11) and Stade (2), and Leipzig (10) plus 7 others; they claim 10-3-3 aircraft; 16 B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 121 P-51s; they claim 4-0-1 aircraft without loss.
(3) B-17s bomb oil industry targets at Brux (139), Ruhland (135) and Freital (65); 15 hit targets of opportunity; 3 B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 240 P-47s and P-51s; they claim 10-0-0 aircraft; 2 P-51s are lost.
(4) 43 B-24s hit Kiel/Walther; 3 others hit Hemmingstedt Airfield and 2 hit targets of opportunity; 2 B-24s are lost. Escort is provided by 17 P-51s without loss.

- Mission 569: 1 B-17 drops leaflets on Brest, France during the night.

Repair ship HMS Beauly Firth launched.

Submarine KNM Utsira (ex-HMS Variance) commissioned.

FRANCE: The French 2nd Armoured Division, under Major-General Jacques Leclerc, reaches the outskirts of Paris. Fighting within the city again, due to German defensive movements. The French use back streets to crack the Germans' defences of Paris and reach the heart of the city. Nearby, the U. S. 4th Infantry Division pushes into Paris' suburbs. Meanwhile, the U.S. 5th Infantry and 7th Armored Divisions bridge the Seine at Melun and Mandara, east of Paris.

Resistance fighter Emile Guet takes part in the capture of an 82-man German battalion. The head of Guet's Resistance Group promises the captives that they will be treated as prisoners of war. (Pierre Sauvey, AP)

Paris: The reluctance of von Cholitz to engage his troops in battle has encouraged those who want to be active against the Germans, so nullifying the truce. Estimates put the number of civilian casualties of the insurrection as 1,000.

In northern France, weather cancels a US IX Bomber Command mission against 4 fuel dumps north of the Seine River; fighters give air cover to ground forces, mainly for 3 armoured and 2 infantry divisions, bomb Seine River bridges, and fly armed reconnaissance along the Seine and around Troyes, Orleans, and Tours; about 270 C-47 Skytrains fly supply and evacuation missions.

The USAAF's Twelfth Air Force in France and Italy TACTICAL OPERATIONS (Twelfth Air Force): During the night of 23/24 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20 Havocs hit motor transport and targets of opportunity in the Rhone Valley of France and at Genoa, Milan, and Turin, Italy; medium bombers bomb bridges at Montpellier, Avignon, and Lunel, France and Solignano Nuovo, and Castel del Rio, Italy, and score direct hits on gun positions in the Marseille, France area; and fighters bomb and strafe gun positions, vehicles, roads and bridges throughout south-eastern France.

In the south, US forces liberate Cannes and Antibes on the Riviera and Arles on the Rhone River while the Germans evacuate Bordeaux however, the Germans occupy fortified bunker positions on the Gironde estuary west of the city.

The first shipments of gasoline, ammunition, food and other military equipment begin streaming across France on the "Red Ball Express," a highway supply line using thousands of American trucks. Using two roads restricted to military traffic, Red Ballers hotrod from St. Lo in Normandy to advanced supply dumps of the U.S. First and Third Armies. The Red Ball rolls 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

GERMANY: Rastenburg: Hitler orders the building of a new "west wall" charging party officials to do the work because he no longer trusts the army.

U-779 commissioned.
U-2519 and U-2520 laid down.

NORWAY: The aircraft carriers HM Ships Formidable, Furious and Indefatigable launched an air strike against the great German battleship Tirpitz sheltering in Altenfjord. Fleet Air Arm Barracuda dive-bombers attacked escorted by Seafires, Hellcats, Fireflies and Corsairs. Tirpitz was hit, though not seriously damaged.

FINLAND: President Mannerheim and the cabinet unanimously decide to seek peace with Soviet Union. It is agreed that the decision can't be postponed even if Germany is continuously providing Finland with war material and Hitler hasn't reacted to Mannerheim's message to Keitel that Finland will stay in the war only as long as it is in her interest to do so.

Submarine Iku-Turso tries to attack Lavanaari harbour but in shallow water it hits a net obstacle and is damaged by explosion. Boat returns to Helsinki.

CZECHOSLOVAKIA: B-17 Flying Fortresses of the USAAF's Eighth Air Force in England visually bomb two targets in Brux: 132 aircraft bomb the synthetic oil refinery while seven others bomb the industrial area; two aircraft are lost. The USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy bombs three targets: 158 bomb the airfield at Pardurice while 110 hit the oil refinery in the same city; another 100 bomb the oil refinery at Kolin; 13 bombers are lost.

U.S.S.R.: The German Army Group South Ukraine, under Freissner, has been shattered by Russian attacks and the defection of the Rumanian forces attached. Kishinev falls to the Soviets.

HUNGARY: Forty nine heavy bombers of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy visually bomb the railroad bridge at Szeged without loss.

ITALY: The US Fifteenth Air Force dispatches 530+ B-17s and B-24s to bomb 3 oil refineries at Kolin and Pardubice, Czechoslovakia; marshalling yard at Vinkovci, Yugoslavia; Szeged, Hungary; and Ferrara, Italy railroad bridge and several targets of opportunity; around 70-80 fighters escort the Czechoslovakian missions; US bombers and escorting fighters claim nearly 40 air victories.

During the day, medium bombers of the USAAF's Twelfth Air Force bomb bridges at Solignano Nuovo, and Castel del Rio. Heavy bombers of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force hit four targets: 62 bomb the railroad bridge at Ferrara; individual bomber hit the railroad at Bordeno and Formignana and a target of opportunity at Polesella; two aircraft are lost. During the night of 23/24 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20 Havocs hit motor transport and targets of opportunity at Genoa, Milan, and Turin while 74 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb the Main marshalling yard at Bologna.

During the night of 23/24 August, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20 Havocs hit motor transport and targets of opportunity at Genoa, Milan, and Turin; during the day, medium bombers bomb bridges at Solignano Nuovo, and Castel del Rio.

YUGOSLAVIA: Fifty one heavy bombers of the USAAF's Fifteenth Air Force in Italy visually bomb a marshalling yard at Vincovici.

CHINA: Town areas, river and road traffic, railroad targets, and other targets of opportunity in or near Hengyang, Chuchou, Siangtan, and Yangtien are attacked by 8 B-25s and 25 P-40s of the USAAF's Fourteenth Air Force; 19 other P-40s hit similar targets of opportunity at Yungeheng, Anjen, along the central Yangtze River, and south of Mangshih.

BURMA: 9 USAAF Tenth Air Force B-25s bomb Kangon; 3 P-47 Thunderbolt flights support British troops northeast of Pinbaw, hitting forces and gun emplacements near Namyin Te and Nansankyin; 4 P-47s bomb Nankan; and 4 P-51 Mustangs strafe vehicles along the Shweli River and bomb a storage area south of Hopin.

NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES: A British air and naval force under Admiral Sir Bruce Fraser, including carriers HMS Victorious and Indomitable, and battleship HMS Howe, under Admiral Moody, attack Padang in SW Sumatra.

The USAAF's Far East Air Forces dispatches B-25s to attack shipping in Lembeh Strait, Celebes Island, while B-24s bomb Lolobata Airfield on Halmahera Island.

CAROLINE ISLANDS: US Seventh Air Force B-24s based in the Marshall Islands bomb Truk Atoll.

MARIANA ISLANDS: The advanced air echelon of Brigadier General Emmett O'Donnell Jr's HQ 73d Bombardment Wing (Very Heavy) arrives in the with B-29s, the first Twentieth Air Force contingent to arrive; the ground echelon arrives by ship on 16 September.

SAIPAN: Saipan Island-based P-47s of the USAAF Seventh Air Force pound Aguijan and Pagan Islands. Marshall Island-based B-24s bomb Truk Atoll while B-25s hit Nauru Island.

PACIFIC OCEAN: The USN submarine USS Harder (SS-257) is sunk by Japanese Coast defence Vessel No. 22 off the west coast of Luzon. In a four day period the USS Harder under the command of Samuel Dealey sank three Japanese destroyers and damaged two more, most with short range down the throat shots, a dangerous tactic. In all Dealey sank 16 Japanese ships and was awarded the Medal of Honor before being lost, along with all of his crew to a Japanese Minesweeper today. (Jack McKillop and Dave Shirlaw)

USN submarines sink four Japanese merchant ships. (1) USS Ronquil (SS-396) attacks a Japanese convoy, sinking an army cargo ship off Keelung, Formosa, and a merchant cargo ship off Sankaku Island; (2) USS Sailfish (SS-192) attacks Japanese convoy in Luzon Strait, sinking a transport; and (3) USS Seal (SS-183) sinks a merchant cargo ship off the southeast coast of Hokkaido, Japan.

CANADA: ASW towing vessel HMCS Kirkwood assigned to HMCS Somers Isles.

U.S.A.: The USN establishes its first night carrier air group, Night Light Carrier Air Group Forty Three [CVLG(N)-43] at NAAS Charlestown, Rhode Island. The air group consists of 2 squadrons, Night Fighting Squadron Forty Three [VF(N)-43] and the first night torpedo squadron, Night Torpedo Squadron Forty Three [VT(N)-43].

Destroyer escort USS Woodson commissioned.
Minesweeper USS Murrelet laid down.

Submarine USS Requin laid down.

Coast Guard-manned Army vessel FS-264 was commissioned at New York with LTJG E. F. Warner, USCGR, first commanding officer. On 27 September 1944 she departed New York towing P-751 for the Southwest Pacific where she operated during the war at Leyte, Manila, etc. She was decommissioned on 24 September 1945.

Fleet Marine Forces, Pacific and Admin Command, Fleet Marine Forces, Pacific are combined to become Provisional HQ, Fleet Marine Force. (Gordon Rottman)

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Three German submarines are sunk:

- U-354 is sunk in the Barents Sea northeast of North Cape, in position 72.49N, 30.41E, by depth charges from the RN sloops HMS Mermaid and HMS Peacock, the frigate HMS Loch Dunvegan and the destroyer HMS Keppel. All hands on the U-boat, 51-men, are lost.

- U-445 is sunk in the Bay of Biscay west of St. Nazaire, France, in position 47.21N, 05.50W, by depth charges from the RN frigate HMS Louis. All 52 crewmen of the U-boat are lost.

- U-925 is last heard from today. She and her 51 crewmen are lost in the North Atlantic or Arctic Sea north of Britain.

24 August 1945

August 24th, 1945 (FRIDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Repair ship HMS Cape Wrath launched.

Frigate HMS Padstow Bay launched.

U.S.S.R.: The Soviet Union releases 52 American internees.

Pacific Fleet: Submarine "L-19" is lost - mined at Laperouse Strait. (Sergey Anisimov) (69)

INDIA: Frigate INS Sind is commissioned.

JAPAN: Military cadets occupy broadcasting facilities in Kawaguchi, Japan in protest to the Japanese surrender. This is near Tokyo in Saitama Prefecture. General Tanaka goes to the station. He enters and continues to harangues the cadets until they give up.

Late that night, in his office, General Tanaka commits harakiri. He takes the whole responsibility for the destruction by fire of a section of the Imperial Palace. The fire was the result of a USAAF bombing raid. His instructions to the regimental commanders of the Eastern District Army are:

"I am very grateful to all of your regiments for keeping in strict order after the Imperial command to surrender. Now I have fulfilled my duty as Commanding Officer of the District Army. I am determined to lay down my life to beg His Majesty's awful pardon in place of you and all of your officers and men. I heartily hope that you and all your officers and men will strictly watch yourselves and guard against rashness and be devoted to the peaceful revival of our fatherland."

Off Japan, the former Japanese Navy transport vessel Ukishima Maru, carrying 4,000 people, mostly Koreans who had been forced labourers in military facilities in Aomori Prefecture, northeastern Japan, being returned home, left Ominato port today.

The 4,730-ton ship exploded and capsized as it neared Maizuru port, around 5:20 p.m. today.

Among the 4,000 people on board, 524 Koreans and 25 Japanese were killed, according to the Japanese government announcement at the time.

It is assumed that the Ukishima Maru struck an American mine. (Gene Hanson)

KURILE ISLANDS: US Eleventh Air Force B-24s try to photograph the Soviet occupation but are impeded by clouds.USNPB4Y-2 Privateers of Patrol Bombing Squadron One Hundred Twenty (VPB-120) based on Attu and VPB-122 based on Shemya photograph Onekotan, Shasukotan and Harumukotan Islands.

CANADA: Tropicalisation refit of HMCS Stone Town cancelled at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia.

U.S.A.: The last M-24 tank built by the Cadillac Division of the General Motors Corporation rolls off the assembly line. Cadillac is now free to begin building automobiles for the first time since 1942.

Minesweeper USS Murrelet commissioned.

Submarine USS Sarda launched.

The motion picture "Pride of the Marines" is released today. Based on the book by Roger Butterfield, this war drama, directed by Delmar Daves, stars John Garfield, Eleanor Parker, Dane Clark, Rosemary DeCamp and Mark Stevens. The film is based on the real life story of Marine Al Schmid who was blinded while fighting on Guadalcanal. The film is nominated for a writing award.
The top songs on the pop record charts are (1) "If I Loved You" by Perry Como, (2) "I Wish I Knew" by Dick Haymes, (3) "Till The End Of Time" by Perry Como and (4) "You Two Timed Me One Time Too Often" by Tex Ritter. "Till The End Of Time" is ranked Number 2 for the year 1945.

Maestro Arturo Toscanini, the conductor of the NBC Symphony Orchestra, agrees to return to Italy next February to conduct the opening performance at La Scala opera house.

In baseball, the Cleveland Indians' ace Bob Feller returns from the Navy and attracts a home crowd of 46,477 in Cleveland Stadium, who watch him strike out 12 and yield only four hits in a 4–2 win over Detroit's Hal Newhouser. Feller will get nine starts during the remainder of the year, and his five wins will include a one-hitter and two 4-hitters. With the war now over, fans are clamouring for entertainment and it is clear Feller is still baseball's number one ticket seller.

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