5 September 1939

"A special report should be drawn up...upon the questions arising from the SO-CALLED neutrality of the SO-CALLED Eire. Various considerations arise: (1) What does Intelligence say about possible succouring of U-boats by Irish malcontents in West of Ireland inlets."

(NOTE: There was no diesel fuel in Eire!) "Secondly, a study is required of the addition to the radius of our destroyers through not having the use of Berehaven or other South Irish submarine bases; showing also the advantage to be gained by our having these facilities. The Board [of Admiralty] must realise that we may not be able to obtain satisfaction, as the question of Irish neutrality raises political issues which have not yet been faced, and which the First Lord is not certain he can solve."

FRANCE: The French Commissioner of Information makes a radio broadcast, referring to the current war communiques as "those of a people that has already at hand all that is necessary for defense or attack, whose frontier cannot be violated."

GERMANY: William L Shirer notes in his diary: "Very strange about the western front. The [foreign ministry] assures us that not a single shot has been fired there yet."

German Army Commander-in-Chief Colonel-General Walther von Brauchitsch gives the A-4 rocket project the highest possible priority. Even so, it will be another five years before the first production A-4 (V-2) rocket is launched at a military target.

POLAND: Germans enter Piotrkow and set fire to the Jewish district. Tenth Army units from Army Group South cross the Pilica River and turn northwest toward Warsaw. The fortress of Graudenz falls and the Germans break through the corridor. Krakow is surrounded.

Warsaw: The Polish government moves from Warsaw to Lublin, 100 miles (161 kilometers) southeast, as German forces advance to with 31 miles (50 kilometers) of the city.

U.S.A.: Washington: US neutrality, announced by Roosevelt two days ago becomes official.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaims the neutrality of the United States in the war between Germany and France, Poland, the UK, India, Australia and New Zealand, and orders the USN to form a Neutrality Patrol. As a result, Chief of Naval Operations (Admiral Harold R. Stark) directs Commander Atlantic Squadron (Rear Admiral Alfred W. Johnson) to maintain an offshore patrol to report "in confidential system" the movements of all foreign men-of-war approaching or leaving the east coast of the United States and approaching and entering or leaving the Caribbean.

USN ships are to avoid making a report of foreign men-of-war or suspicious craft, however, on making contact or when in their vicinity to avoid the performance of unneutral service "or creating the impression that an unneutral service is being performed." The patrol is to extend about 300 miles (483 km) off the eastern coastline of the United States and along the eastern boundary of the Caribbean (see 6 September). Furthermore, U.S. naval vessels are to report the presence of foreign warships sighted at sea to the district commandant concerned.

The U.S. Maritime Commission issues Hydrographic Office Special Warning No. 9 directing that all U.S. merchant ships en route to or from Europe are not to steer a zig zag course, are not to black out at night, and are to paint the U.S. flag on each side of the hull, on hatches fore and aft, and on sun decks of passenger vessels, and to illuminate the colors flying from the flagstaff at night. In Hydrographic Office Special Warning No. 12 (promulgated the same day), U.S. merchant vessels engaged in domestic, "near-by foreign" or transpacific trade are not required to paint the flag on hull, hatches and decks, but otherwise are to follow the other instructions contained in Special Warning No. 9.

In New York City, the U.S. steamship SS President Roosevelt off-loads the British Scott-Paine-type motor torpedo boat PT-9 at New York; PT 9 will be the prototype for the motor torpedo boats constructed by the Electric Boat Company.

During the night, German activity commenced soon after 2030 hours. Raids to the South Wales/Midlands/Manchester and Liverpool and West Riding areas came in between Portland and Bournemouth, and there is also activity in the southeast of Scotland, and in the Tees district as far inland as Catterick. A number of raids coming from the Thames Estuary and from the South Coast, over a considerable period, remained within the London area. There are also scattered raids in Essex/Kent/Surrey and Sussex. At 0100 hours two raids are being plotted in the Irish Sea between Dublin and Belfast and between Kintyre and the Irish Coast. By 0230 hours activity has decreased and less than a dozen raids are still being plotted inland. Mine-laying is suspected in Lyme Bay, Thames Estuary and between Amble and St Abb's Head. Also increased activity of this nature in the Firth of Forth. (Andy Etherington)

RAF Fighter Command: There were two main raids on the south-east today, the first between 10:15 and 10:45 directed at targets in south-east London.

In a second and more serious phase, between 15:15 and 16:30, Detling aerodrome was bombed and five oil tanks at Thameshaven set on fire, which came to serve as a useful beacon despite the efforts of 43 and 303 Squadrons to prevent the bombing. During the engagement Flt. Lt. A. Rabagliati of 46 Sqn. took a four-cannon Hurricane, V7360, into action for the first time. Operating alongside 249 Squadron, No. 46 encountered Bf109s over the Thames Estuary, one being blown apart by cannon fire.

At night the Luftwaffe roamed almost with impunity over a wide area, many single aircraft overflying London's IAZ (Inner Artillery Zone). Bombs falling at Greenwich.

Shops and buildings at Clifton, Bristol, were hit and four people killed, while at Liverpool bombs found the docks, Dunlop's Walton works, domestic buildings and shops in Bootle, Lime Street and Rainhill Mental Hospital. At Prescot, St. Helens, four died, and others in incidents at Birkenhead, Wallasey and Wigan.

Losses: Luftwaffe, 23; RAF 20.

Flower class corvette HMS Picotee is completed at Harland and Wolff at Belfast. (Debbie Laws)

NORTH SEA:
4,000 German troops are believed drowned when a British submarine torpedoes the transport ship 'Marion'. This later turns out to be a false rumour.

FRANCE: Vichy France breaks diplomatic relations with Belgium, the Netherlands and Norway.

GERMANY: An irate Chancellor Adolf Hitler orders a new offensive by the Luftwaffe against Britain with no regard for the civilian population, with London as the primary target, after the RAF for the first time makes several night raids on Berlin, causing many civilian casualties.

LUXEMBOURG: The authorities adopt Germany's anti-Semitic Nuremburg Laws, and seize all Jewish-owned businesses.

ROMANIA: Having lost Bessarabia and northern Bukovina to the Soviet Union and Transylvania to Hungary, the Romanian government collapses. General Ion Antonescu assumes dictatorial powers in a coup and opens negotiations with the Fascist Iron Guard. Parliament is dissolved and the constitution is suspended. King Carol II flees the country tomorrow and his son, Michael V, became the new king.

AUSTRALIA: The first Australians leave Sydney, New South Wales, for Canada for training by the Commonwealth Air Training Plan. More than 10,000 Australian airmen will be trained in Canada during the war.

CANADA: The 3rd Canadian Infantry Division is formed and concentrated in the Maritimes at Camp Debart, Nova Scotia and Camp Sussex, New Brunswick.

Corvette HMCS Kenogami launched Port Arthur, Ontario. Minesweeper HMCS Malpeque launched North Vancouver, British Columbia.

U.S.A.: Corvette USS Fury launched. Destroyer USS Charles F Hughes commissioned.

COSTA RICA: The government offers Cocos Island to the U.S. for the defence of the Panama Canal.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: After months of negotiations, an agreement is announced for the transfer of 50 old but valuable US destroyers to the RN in exchange for bases in the West Indies and British Guinea. The first of them arrive in Britain towards the end of the month.

UNITED KINGDOM: This is how a Hurricane pilot who had run out of ammunition forced down a M.E. 109 during Saturday's battle over Kent. ...

He gunned the German, feigned an attack, and eventually forced him to land in a field. Then he circled low and dropped a packet of cigarettes to the Nazi, who picked them up and waved acknowledgement.

Destroyer HMS Bicester launched. Escort carrier HMS Fencer laid down. Submarine HMS Universal laid down.

BALTIC SEA: German forces complete the occupation of Estonia, occupied by the USSR in 1940.

U.S.S.R.: Moscow: As the Germans approach, all children under the age of 12 are evacuated from the city. Soviet submarine SC-136 commissioned.

JAPAN: Admiral YAMAMOTO Isoroku, Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet, presents his "Plan Z" to the Naval Staff College. This plan describes an attack on the U.S. Territory of Hawaii by carrier-based aircraft.

COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: Marshall offers MacArthur "> MacArthur a “first-class” National Guard division. MacArthur declines and asks for more aircraft.

Initial flight of nine B-17D's of the 14^th Bombardment Squadron of the 14^th Bombardment Squadron of the 19^th B.G. are transferred to the Philippines.

AUSTRALIA: The Australians reiterate to British Prime Minister Winston Churchill the request made by Australian Prime Minister Robert W. Menzies and General Sir Thomas Blamey, General Officer Commanding Australian Imperial Force, for the relief of the Australian troops at Tobruk, Libya.

CANADA: Minesweeper HMCS Ungava commissioned.
Minesweeper HMCS Nipigon arrived Halifax from builder Toronto, Ontario.
Corvettes HMCS Arvida, Barrie and Dauphin departed Sydney, Nova Scotia as escort Convoy SC-43.
Corvettes HMCS Chambly and Moose Jaw depart St John's for exercises.

The U.S. Army's Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall, issues a memorandum giving a "Brief Periodic Estimate of the World Situation." The estimate for Japan states "beset with uncertainties, may do nothing, may attack the Maritime Provinces (the islands north of Hokkaido and all of the Sakhalin peninsula. Mike Lenox), may seek to expand to the Southwest; it is even possible that she may withdraw from the Axis. Japan also has the capability of concentrating her newly augmented forces against China and seeking a decision there. No indication or likelihood of this is seen. In the general picture and excluding China, where she must continue to fight, her most likely, but by no means certain course is inaction."

ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-141 sinks steam trawler Anders.
U-501 sinks SS Einvik in Convoy SC-41.

UNITED KINGDOM: Because of Major General Carl Spaatz's convincing protests, Lieutenant General Dwight D Eisenhower changes his mind concerning his recent orders to suspend Eighth Air Force operations from the UK in order to devote total air effort to support of the Twelfth Air Force and the forthcoming African campaign; General Eisenhower informs General George C Marshall that he considers air operations from the UK and in Africa mutually complementary.

The VIII Bomber Command flies Mission 9: 42 bombers and 24 fighters, in 2 forces, attack targets in France without loss; (1) 11 DB-7s, escorted by 24 Spitfires, attack the port area at Le Havre at 0932 hours and (2) 31 B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb the locomotive depot at Sotteville marshalling yard at Rouen; this is largest force of 8th Air Force heavy bombers to attack to date; almost 20% of the high explosive bombs burst within the marshalling yard.

FRANCE: Vichy police round up the last of 9,872 Jews for loading on trains to the concentration camp at Auschwitz, Poland.

U.S.S.R.: (Sergey Anisimov)(69)Baltic Fleet, Ladoga and Onega Flotillas: Shipping loss. MMS "Piksha" - mined at Leningrad Sea Channel.

Stalingrad: Fighting is now taking place in the suburbs; yesterday the Germans reached the Volga, south of the city. General Friedrich Paulus has delayed his attempt to seize Stalingrad quickly in order to mop up the considerable Russian forces which he had bypassed and which he now considers a threat to the northern flank of his salient.

At the same time Russia's Marshal Zhukov, newly arrived to take command, is energetically preparing an attack on the Germans. He is fully aware of the dangers of the situation. In a directive issued two days ago he told his officers: "Stalingrad could be seized today or tomorrow if the northern group of forces is not rendered immediate assistance." His orders are for the "troop commanders north and north-west of Stalingrad to strike the enemy quickly ... No procrastination will be tolerated. Delay now is regarded as criminal."

As he did in Leningrad and Moscow, Zhukov is conscripting the civilian population to prepare and to man last-ditch defences in front of the city. Young boys and old men are marching off to war still in their civilian clothes. There is no doubt that Zhukov intends to impose Stalin's order of "Not a step backwards". Stalingrad is ringing with the slogan: "There is no land beyond the Volga."

Today the Soviet 24th and 66th Armies attack, but fail to gain any ground however, they take pressure off 62nd and 64th Armies, giving them time to lay barbed wire, dig trenches, plant mines, and infuse manpower. The Soviet 87th Division is down to 180 men, the 112th has 150, and the 99th Tank Brigade has 120 men and no tanks.

CRETE: U.S. Army, Middle East Air Forces B-24s strike shipping and dock area in Candia Bay.

EGYPT: The Germans and Italians complete their withdrawal from Alam Halfa, and dig in. British General Montgomery issues an Order of the Day, congratulating Eighth Army on its "devotion to duty and good fighting qualities which have resulted in such a heavy defeat of the enemy and which will have far-reaching results."
In the air, U.S. Army, Middle East Air Forces P-40s escort RAF bombers over the battle area southeast of Alam-el-Halfa Ridge near Rayil Dayr Ar Depression as the enemy offensive falters and is pushed back.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, the Australians continue their fighting withdrawal from the Myola drop area on the Kokoda Track and set up defensive positions at Efogi They destroy supplies on the withdrawal. In Milne Bay, the Australian 2/9th Battalion attacks behind an artillery barrage and Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) P-40 Kittyhawk fighters strafing. The Japanese are forced to retreat and the Australians capture the Wagga Wagga supply dump, the main Japanese supply base. During the evening, the Japanese evacuation force consisting of a light cruiser, three destroyers and two patrol boats enters Milne Bay and picks up 1,318 men. One-third of the 2,000-man Japanese force has been killed. Only 100 or these are fit for action and 311 are wounded. The ships sail just before 2400 hours leaving behind 625 dead or wounded. (William L. Howard)

After the Japanese evacuation force has been sighted near Kitava Island, Trobrriand Islands, located north of the east end of New Guinea, six Beaufort Mk. Vs of the RAAF's No. 100 Squadron arrive at Gurney Airfield (No. 1 Strip) at Milne Bay.

In the air, USAAF 5th Air Force P-400 Airacobras strafe Kokoda, Kaile, Isurava, Alola, Buna, Sanananda, and Buna-Kokoda trail; and the airfield at Buna is strafed and bombed by P-400s and A-20 Havocs.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Guadalcanal: Japanese forces on Guadalcanal, are again reinforced last night. Japanese light cruiser HIJMS Sendai and 11 destroyers bring 1000 men of the 2nd Battalion, 4th Infantry Regiment and remaining troops from Colonel Ichiki's 28th Regiment to Taivu Point. The destroyers HIJMS Yadachi, Hatsuyuki and Murakumo are detailed to bombard Henderson Field but they sight USN high speed transports, USS Gregory (APD-3) and Little (APD-4), and sink them about 5 nautical miles (10 kilometers) north-northwest of Henderson Field in position 09.20S, 160.01E. The two APDs are spotted due to light from flares dropped by a PBY Catalina crew attempting to assist Marine gunners on Guadalcanal. Both USS Little and Gregory attempt gunnery, but with three 4 inch (10,16 centimeter) guns apiece they are no match for the more modern Imperial Japanese Navy destroyers. Both sink within minutes.

A separate barge convoy in scheduled to arrive on Guadalcanal at 5:00 am bearing another 1000 troops under Col. Oka. Only 150 reach Guadalcanal today after interception by P-400s from the USAAF 67th Fighter Sqdn. Another 4-500 will be found in various places during the next several weeks. But those late comers will not be available for the next Japanese offensive.

PACIFIC OCEAN: The USN submarine USS Seal (SS-183) sinks a Japanese merchant passenger-cargo ship southeast of Cam Ranh Bay, French Indochina.

TERRITORY OF ALASKA: Aleutians: Three B-24 Liberators of the USAAF 11th Air Force abort the bombing of Kiska Island due to an overcast.

NEWFOUNDLAND: U-513 sinks SS Lord Strathcona and SS Saganaga.
U-506 sinks SS Myrmidon.
SS Lord Strathcona (7,335 GRT) Canadian bulk ore carrier was torpedoed and sunk while at anchor in Conception Bay, Newfoundland, in position 47.35N, 052.59W, by U-513, KKpt. Rolf RÜGGEBERG, CO. U-513 had just sunk the British ore carrier SAGANAGA, with the loss of 28 lives, when the Third Mate gave the order to abandon Lord Strathcona. The crew got away just as the ship was hit. The Canadian ore carrier ROSE CASTLE was alongside the loading pier and was the target of U-513's third attack. But, the torpedoes went wide and hit the pier, badly damaging it. U-513 was a long-range Type IXC U-boat built by Deutsche Werft AG, at Hamburg. She was commissioned on 10 Jan 42. U-513 conducted four patrols and compiled a record of six ships sunk for a total of 29,940 tons and damaged two ships for a further 13,177 tons. She was sunk on 19 Jul 43, while under the command of KptLt. Friedrich GUGGENBERGER, Knights Cross, Knights Cross with Oak Leaves, in the South Atlantic off the coast of Brazil, in position 27.17S, 047.32W, by depth charges from a USN 'Mariner' patrol aircraft from VP-74 Sqn. KptLt Guggenberger, who was renowned for sinking the British aircraft carrier HMS ARK ROYAL, was among the 7 survivors, although he was seriously wounded. 46 crewmembers were lost. Rolf Rüggeberg was born in Barcelona, Spain, in 1907. He joined the navy in 1926 and was on exchange duties at the Spanish Naval Academy in Cadiz when the war began. In Jul 40 he was appointed as the Assistant to the Naval Attaché in Madrid and in Nov 40 was made the Acting Naval Attaché in Lisbon. Rüggeberg entered the U-boat force in Apr 41. After conversion training, due to his seniority, he entered directly in a U-boat commander's at-sea training programme in the long-range Type IXB boat U-107, commanded by the 'ace' KKpt. Günter Hessler, Knight's Cross. He was appointed to command U-513 on 10 Jan 42, and completed his tour of duty on 14 May 43, after three successful patrols. He was appointed as the Commander of the 13th U-boat Flotilla in Jun 43 and remained in that position until the end of the war. He was promoted to FKpt on 01 Nov 44. Rolf Rüggeberg was detained after the war and was freed in Oct 45. Rüggeberg, like many other U-boat commanders, demonstrated great ability as a wartime commander, despite his lack of experience in U-boats or, indeed, his lack of operational experience of any kind. His attack at Conception Bay was especially daring considering the size of the long-range Type IX boat and the confines of the harbor.

U.S.A.: The Office of Price Administration (OPA) imposes rent controls to prevent price-gouging.

The final details of Operation Torch, the allied invasion of French North Africa, are decided by British and American planners. The initial landings will be made by Americans because it's believed the French won't fight hard against Yanks but might against British troops. Nearly 60,000 American troops commanded by Major General George S. Patton, Commanding General Western Task Force, will sail from Norfolk, Virginia, land in Morocco and take Casablanca. Another 45,000 Americans under Major General Lloyd Fredendall, Commanding General Central Task Force, will sail from Scotland and storm Oran, Algeria. Americans will make up the first wave of a third landing near Algiers, where British troops will follow them ashore.

ARGENTINA: President Castillo reaffirmed Argentina's intention to abide by its neutrality policy. "We are believers in justice and right, and can solve all our controversies by arbitration without any thought of having recourse to war."

VIII Air Support Command Mission 48: 3 marshalling yards are targeted. 72 B-26B Marauders are dispatched to 2 marshalling yards at Ghent, Belgium; 31 bomb one yard at 0827 hours; 32 bomb the second yard at 0831 hours; the 36 B-26s dispatched to the marshalling yard at Courtrai, France are recalled due to weather.

NETHERLANDS: During the night of 5/6 September, RAF Bomber Command aircraft lay mines off two locations, four off Texel and three in the Frisian Islands.

FRANCE: Thirty six USAAF VIII Air Support Command B-26B Marauders dispatched to bomb the marshalling yard at Courtrai are recalled due to weather.

During the night of 5/6 September, RAF Bomber Command drops mines on two targets; five aircraft off Brest and three off Lorient.

GERMANY: During the night of 5/6 September, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 605 aircraft, 299 Lancasters, 195 Halifaxes and 111 Stirlings, to carry out a second 'double' attack, this time against Mannheim and Ludwigshafen; 506 actually bombed. The target area for this double attack is clear of cloud and the Pathfinder marking plan worked perfectly. Ground-markers are placed on the eastern side of Mannheim so that the bombing of the Main Force, approaching from the west, could move back across Mannheim and then into Ludwigshafen on the western bank of the Rhine. The creepback did not become excessive and severe destruction is caused in both targets. Thirty four aircraft, 13 Halifaxes, 13 Lancasters and eight Stirlings, are lost, 5.6 per cent of the force. Three aircraft also dropped mines in the German Bight near Heligoland.

U.S.S.R.: The sectors of Bryansk and Donets find the Red Army making excellent advances against the defending Germans.

Soviet submarine K-1 lost for unknown reasons on her 16th patrol to Novaya Zemlia. All hands lost.

ITALY: Montgomery's Eighth Army is taking its time liberating the peninsula's toe. In three days with no opposition, the British have crawled 15 miles (24 kilometres) to Bagnara on Calabria's north coast and Bova Marina on the east.

In the air during the day, USAAF Twelfth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses visually bomb two targets: 109 bomb Viterbo Airfield and five bomb Cittavechia while 200+ B-25 Mitchells and B-26 Marauders hit landing grounds at Grazzanise. Weather hampers operations of the fighters and medium and light bombers of the Twelfth Air Force and RAF, and only a few targets (guns, roads, railroads, and troops) are attacked during missions over the toe of Italy.

In the air during the night, 48 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group visually bomb the marshalling yard at Villa Literno while five others drop leaflets over northern Italy.

Sardinia: USAAF Twelfth Air Force medium bombers and fighters hit the Pula radar station and town of Pabillonis.

NORTH AFRICA: The Allies' main Italian invasion force sails from North African ports and heads for Salerno, 25 miles (40 kilometres) south of Naples. More than 450 ships are carrying 69,000 American and British troops commanded by General Mark Clark, Commanding General U.S. Fifth Army. The Allies will land at Salerno on 9 September, and Clark confidently expects to take Naples five days later.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: Fifteen USAAF Fourteenth Air Force P-38 Lightnings and P-40s attack the marshalling yard southeast of Lao Kay while 16 P-38s and P-40s hit barracks in the city.

NEW GUINEA: In the first airborne attack by the Allies in the Pacific War, American paratroopers of the 503d Parachute Infantry Regiment and 31 artillerymen of the Australian 2/4th Field Regiment parachute into the Markham Valley and take the disused airfield at Nadzab, northwest of Lae, without opposition.

This was the "left pincer" of Blamey's Operation Postern. Today we would call it a "Point of Entry" operation. The immediate object was to secure the Nadzab airstrip, potentially the largest in New Guinea. A further objective was to outflank the strategically vital town of Lae.

503rd US para regiment were accompanied by elements of a battery of 2/4 Australian Field Regiment equipped with "short" 25 pdr howitzers.

The operation begins at 1022 hours local, when 82 USAAF Fifth Air Force C-47 Skytrains, escorted by 146 P-38 Lightnings and P-47 Thunderbolts, drop paratroops of the U.S. 503d Parachute Infantry Regiment and 31-men of the Australian 2/4th Field Regiment equipped with "short" 25 pounder (87.6 mm) howitzers at Nadzab Airfield (first such landings in the Southwest Pacific Area) just west of Lae. The drop follows the bombardment of the drop zone by 52 USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25 Mitchells and numerous fighter-bombers, the laying of a smoke screen over the landing area by A-20 Havocs and the bombing of Lae Airfield by 24 B-24 Liberators. Nadzab Airfield is quickly overrun and by 1840 hours, the site of the dirt strip has been cleared so that an Australian infantry division can be flown in. After landing, the paratroops link up with the Australian forces in the Bulolo Valley.

This was the first time Australian soldiers had parachuted into action. I believe it was also the first time that any force in the world had parachuted into action with artillery [perhaps someone can confirm this?]

602 pioneers, (2/2 Pioneer Bn) 126 engineers (2/6 Fd Coy ) and 760 porters of the Australian 7th Division "hoofed it" from Tsili Tsili overland "using Maj Kidd's route". A second group improved the route while a third consisting of 90 engineers and 60 pioneers took the folding boats from the junction of the Watut and Markham Rivers to Kirkland's Dump (on the Markham), they had also floated their heavy equipment and plant down the Markham River on rafts the day before, then "laid up" in thick cover until the drop started. (Daniel Ross)(96)

The para drop was very well organised by US 5th Air Force - it is no easy task to plan and execute the drop of a complete regiment plus artillery. It was supported by copious fighter cover and smoke screens dropped by bombers. 5th Air Force also dropped dummy parachutists in other areas to confuse the Japanese.

No Japanese resistance was encountered (at this stage), tribute to Blamey's skill in convincing the Japanese that the true objective of the campaign was Salamaua, many miles to the south.

As a point of interest for those who like big guns: the "short" 25 pounder was developed at the Australian Army School of Ordnance in Victoria. Its ballistics were worse than a conventional 25 pdr (not surprising) but it packed a bigger punch than e.g. a US 75mm pack howitzer. The short 25 pdr could be broken down into section for transport by aircraft. This was done at Buna and at Wau where the gunners assembled their guns under fire on the airstrip. Now at Nadzab, Australian gunners had shown that it could be successfully dropped by parachute as well. (Michael Mitchell)

The airfield is made operational and the entire Australian 7th Division is flown in.

PACIFIC OCEAN: The USN submarine USS Swordfish (SS-193) sinks a Japanese army transport north of New Guinea.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Ten RAAF Beaufort Mk. IVs attack Gasmata Airfield on New Britain Island. Three aircraft are shot down over the target and a fourth crashes on landing.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Arundel Island, the U.S. 172d Infantry Regiment unsuccessfully attacks Japanese positions about 600 yards (549 meters) southeast of the base of Bomboe Peninsula.

* Fourteenth Air Force: In French Indochina, 15 P-38 Lightnings and P-40s attack the marshalling yard southeast of Lao Kay; 16 P-38s and P-40s hit barracks in the city.

U.S.A.: Destroyer escorts USS Herzog, McAnn and Whitehurst launched.
Minesweeper USS Staunch laid down.
Destroyer escort USS William C Cole laid down.

UNITED KINGDOM: London: The Benelux Customs Union, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg, is established by the exile governments of these countries. This will eventually lead to the formation of the European Economic Community.

- Mission 605: 739 bombers and 315 fighters are dispatched to southeastern Germany; 6 bombers are lost; during the missions, a P-51 shoots down a Swiss Bf 109 near Dubendorf.
(1) 203 B-17s attack a Stuttgart aero engine plant and 4 attack targets of opportunity; 2 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 147 P-51 Mustangs; they claim 19-0-0 aircraft in the air and 14-0-27 on the ground; 2 P-51s are lost.
(2) 277 B-17s hit a synthetic oil plant at Ludwigshafen and 1 hits a target of opportunity (1); 2 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 155 P-51s; a P-51 is lost; and
(3) 183 B-24s hit the Karlsruhe marshalling yard and 2 bomb targets of opportunity; 2 B-24s are lost.

- Mission 606: 143 B-17s make a visual attack on enemy positions in the Brest, France area; 2 B-17s are lost; escort is provided by 21 P-51s without loss.

- Mission 608: 7 B-17s drop leaflets in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany during the night.

- 46 B-24s and 2 C-47s fly CARPETBAGGER missions during the night; a B-24 is lost.

- VIII Fighter Command fighter-bomber missions: (1) 48 P-38s and 167 P-47s attack transportation targets in western Germany and claim 0-0-2 aircraft in the air and 62-0-30 on the ground; 4 P-47s are lost and (2) 67 P-38s and P-47s attack 3 airfields in the Hanau/Giessen, Germany area and claim 2-0-0 aircraft in the air and 66-0-28 on the ground; a P-38 and 3 P-47s are lost.

ÉIRE: A RN Catalina crashes at Foynes, County Limerick. Foynes, across the River Shannon from present day Shannon International Airport, is the seaplane base used by PanAm and BOAC for flights across the Atlantic to North America.

WESTERN EUROPE: The Germans under von Rundstedt, organize a new Western Front using remnants of Heer units that escaped from Normandy reinforced with teenage and middle-age conscripts and displaced Luftwaffe ground crews and sailors. The new front runs across the southern Netherlands and northern Belgium to Germany's western border, then extends south through Luxembourg and eastern France.

FRANCE: Namur and Charleroi are liberated by the US 1st Army. Germany launches its first V-2 missile at Paris.

In northern France, the U.S. Ninth Army becomes operational taking command of troops on the Brittany Peninsula.

The U.S. 80th Infantry Division, Third Army, attempts to bridge the Moselle River but is rebuffed by new German defenses.

The Canadian 3rd Division moving along the coast, bypasses Boulogne and reaches the Calais area; the Germans are prepared to defend both ports. Lieutenant General George S. Patton, Commanding General of the U.S. Third Army, orders the XII Corps to cross the Moselle River, secure Nancy, and be prepared to continue to Mannheim and the Rhine River.

In the air during the day, 143 USAAF (USAAF) Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses make a visual attack on enemy positions in the Brest, France area; two B-17s are lost. Escort is provided by 21 P-51 Mustangs without loss. The supply dump at Bricy Airfield in Orleans is visually bombed by 84 B-17s without loss.

In the air over northern France, 300+ USAAF Ninth Air Force B-26 Marauders and A-20 Havocs bomb strongpoints in the Brest area and a coastal battery at Pointe du Grand Gouin while fighters hit gun positions and other military targets in the Brest area and fly cover for six armored and infantry divisions.

In the air over southern France, USAAF Twelfth Air Force fighters fly sweeps through the Rhone Valley.

During the day, RAF Bomber Command sends 348 aircraft, 313 Lancasters, 30 Mosquitos and five Stirlings, to carry out the first of a series of heavy raids on the German positions around Le Havre which are still holding out after being bypassed by the Allied advance; 335 aircraft bomb the target. This is an accurate raid in good visibility. A second force of 60 Lancasters and six Mosquitos is sent to bomb gun positions outside Brest, whose garrison is also still holding out; 63 aircraft bomb the target.

BELGIUM: The British 7th Armoured Division captures Ghent but the German continue to hold the northern outskirts for several days. The U.S. 2d Armored Division and the 113th Cavalry Group push deep into the country to a general line from Brussels to Gembloux. Namur and Charleroi are liberated by the US First Army. (John Nicholas)

During the night, seven USAAF Eighth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses visually drop leaflets over the country.

NETHERLANDS: "Dolle Dinsdag" (Mad Tuesday): The Dutch people celebrate their liberation, after the English based Dutch radio claims on Sep. 4 that allied forces have crossed the border between Antwerp and Breda. Because of the quick advance from Normandy through France and Belgium to Antwerp, liberated on Sep 4, and the collapse of the German army, expectations are that the Netherlands will be liberated in a very short time. Along the roads people await the allied columns to advance, dressed in their best clothes, carrying flowers and waving flags. Before that they see columns of Germans and Dutch collaborationists flee the country.

Rumours are spread rapidly and become pure fantasy: in Rotterdam is heard that Breda is liberated, In Amsterdam they know that the Allies are already in The Hague. The Rotterdam harbour is probably in the hands of the Dutch resistance and the allies have dropped thousands of paratroopers near Zwolle, in the northeast.

Resistance people come out in the open and arrest alleged collaborators. In some cities resistance and Germans fight each other.

In the late afternoon it becomes clear that the celebrations are premature and time will tell that they were *very* premature. Not a single allied soldier or vehicle comes even near the Dutch border. It will take the allies weeks of heavy fighting to make it to the Great Rivers in November. The north of Holland has to live through the Hunger Winter until May 1945.

How did this all start, then? Why did Dutch radio claim that the allies had crossed the border?

On Sep 4 the allies liberated Antwerp, a few dozen miles from the Dutch border. In the evening news a journalist had prepared a speech for the Dutch Prime Minister in exile, Mr. Gerbrandy. In that speech was written that the allies were *nearing* the Dutch border, which was changed by the PM himself in 'crossed the border'. He claims to have had that message from a trusted source, a resistance man in Breda.

The BBC next took over the message, and the next morning (Sep 5) the Dutch radio even claimed Breda had been liberated. After this message however the radio never mention it again and is silent about allied advances.

There are several theories about how this all occurred. One of them tells that British reconnaissance were seen close to the border, and mistakenly held for advancing troops. Another is about an overheard radio transmission between a British unit and its headquarters. This unit supposedly was in Brasschaat, just north of Antwerp, on the road to Breda. When asked where they were, they answered that the were on the Bredabaan (Breda Road) in front of the 'Cafe Breda'. By naming Breda twice one could easily think the unit was actually there.

GERMANY: During the night of 5/6 September, 41 of 43 RAF Bomber Command Mosquitos bomb the city of Hannover without loss.

HUNGARY: USAAF Fifteenth Air Force bombers attack five transportation targets: 106 B-17 Flying Fortresses visually bomb the North Railroad Bridge in Budapest while 51 attack the South Railroad Bridge; 93 B-24 Liberators bomb the Szolnok railroad bridge; 85 B-24s bomb the railroad bridge at Szob; and one aircraft bombs a target of opportunity.

During the night of 5/6 September, four RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group lay mines in the Danube River.

POLAND: Warsaw: Against all odds the Poles are still holding out in Warsaw despite the efforts of SS General Erich von dem Bach-Zelewski, and expert in crushing revolts. The Poles, girls and boys as young as ten among them, are defending every street, every house, every pile of rubble with enormous courage. The sewers have become their lines of communications, cellars their operating theatres.

Stalin still refuses to help, despite impassioned pleas from Churchill and from Roosevelt, who will not land American supply aircraft of Russian airstrips without Stalin's permission. The Soviet Army is in a difficult position across the Vistula, facing three strong Panzer divisions and with its own supply lines overstretched in the rear. But the Poles accuse Stalin of holding back for political reasons.

U.S.S.R.: The Soviet Union declares war on Bulgaria. Bulgaria declares war in return, their attempts to stay out of the war have been unsuccessful.

During Operation Zeppelin, an attempt to destroy strategically important targets around Moscow, an Arado 232B-0 transport carrying troops intent on sabotage hits a tree and catches fire near Moscow. (21)

Arctic Ocean: U-362 (Type VIIC) is sunk in the Kara Sea near Krakovka, about 33 nautical miles west-northwest of Lomonsovo, Russia, by depth charges from the Soviet minesweeper T-116. 51 dead (all crew lost). This is the boats seventh patrol but she is not credited with sinking any ships. (Alex Gordon)

The Finnish peace delegation arrives in Moscow. Hostilities have ceased for 2 days. The Finnish delegation won't leave until the 7th of September, and the hostilities have been suspended since the 4th/5th for the duration of negotiations. (Mikko Härmeinen & Gene Hanson)

YUGOSLAVIA: A USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberator bombs the marshalling yard at Subotica and during the night of 5/6 September, seven RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group lay mines in the Danube River.

ITALY: The British 8th Army continues strong attacks on Coriano and Gemmano ridges. The German forces hang on. Lucca falls to the US IV Corps.

The British V Corps and Canadian I Corps continues strong attacks on Coriano and Gemmano ridges in Italy. The German forces hang on. The U.S. 1st Armored Division takes Lucca and the South African 6th Armoured Division gets forward elements to Monsummano and clears part of Mount Albano. Meanwhile the Germans pull back from positions north of Florence.

Medium bombers of the USAAF (USAAF) Twelfth Air Force again strike, with excellent results, road and rail bridges in the Po Valley while fighter-bombers blast rail lines and rolling stock south of the river; fighters support the limited ground force advance in preparation for a major assault on the Gothic Line.

Ninety nine USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb the railroad bridge at Ferrara while during the night of 5/6 September, 56 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group attack the marshalling yard at Ferrara.

CHINA: Twenty one USAAF (USAAF) Tenth Air Force B-24 Liberators fly fuel to Kunming and numerous other cargo and troop carrier sorties are flown to various terminals in the China-Burma-India theater.

Twenty five USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells attack Kiyang and Hengyang and cause considerable damage in both towns and at the Hengyang Airfield; six others attack trucks and other targets of opportunity at the Siangtan ferry crossing, near Hengyang and Kiyang, in the Lingling and Yoyang areas, and at Samshui; and two more B-25s bomb Kowloon shipyards. Twenty six P-40s attack concentrations of river junks, troops and horses in the Kiyang-Wangyang area; and other fighter-bombers, operating individually or in flights of two to ten aircraft, hit a variety of targets of opportunity throughout the Hengyang, Kiyang, Yungfengshih, and Lishui area.

EAST INDIES: In the Netherlands East Indies, small-scale pre-dawn strikes by USAAF Fifth Air Force B-24 Liberators hit Kendari Airfield on Celebes Island while fighter-bombers attack Galela and nearby villages on Halmahera Island, Moluccas Islands. Almost 60 B-24s bomb Langoan Airfield on Celebes Island while a sizeable B-25 force bombs Djailolo Airfield, several villages, and Kaoe antiaircraft positions on Halmahera Island, all.

NEW GUINEA: Replying to the request by Australian General Sir Thomas Blamey, Commander in Chief Allied Land Forces Southwest Pacific and Commander-in-Chief Australian Military Force, for the use of the Australian 6th Division at Aparri, Philippine Islands, U.S. General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander, Southwest Pacific Area, says that the intelligence estimate of enemy strengths in northern Luzon ‘is over-generous’ and that there would be little opposition. His plan is that when the 6th Division has accomplished its task at Aitape, Northeast New Guinea, it would be brought to the Philippines, where it would be landed in the Lingayen Gulf to participate in the final drive to Manila. This would probably occur in March, 1945.

In Dutch New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force fighter-bombers hit Soepiori Peninsula villages and Waren and Moemi Aerodromes near Ransiki.

USAAF OPERATIONS IN THE PACIFIC OCEAN AREA (Seventh Air Force): 20 Saipan Island-based B-24s bomb Iwo Jima. Gilbert Islands-based B-25s attack Nauru and Ponape Islands.

CAROLINE ISLANDS: USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberator flies an armed reconnaissance flight over Yap Island.

MARCUS ISLAND: A USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberator flies an armed reconnaissance flight over the island. The island is located in the North Pacific about 768 nautical miles (1 422 kilometers) west-northwest of Wake Island and is used as a refueling point for Japanese aircraft en route to the Central Pacific.

MARIANA ISLANDS: USAAF Seventh Air Force P-47 Thunderbolts make strafing and rocket attacks on antiaircraft positions on Pagan Island.

PALAU ISLANDS: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-24s hit Peleliu Airfield on Peleliu Island.

PACIFIC OCEAN: Allied submarines sink two Japanese ships: (1) USS Albacore (SS-218) sinks a merchant cargo ship north of Muroto Saki, Japan, and (2) HMS Tantivy sinks a merchant cargo ship off Sumatra.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: Australian minesweeper HMAS Kiama (J 353) lands a reconnaissance party of 13 Australian Imperial Force officers (from New Guinea Force and the 5th Division), 12 RAAF officers, 73 other ranks and ten natives at Jacquinot Bay, New Britain Island.

Coast Guard-manned Army vessel FS-198 was commissioned at New Orleans with her first commanding officer being Lt. J. J. Grant, USCGR. He was succeeded 3 October 1945, by LTJG Charles W. Shannon, USCG. She was assigned to and operated in the Southwest Pacific area including Leyte, etc.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: In Vietnam, Laotian Prince Souphanouvong flies to Hanoi in an aircraft provided by the U.S. of Strategic Services (OSS) meets with Ho Chi Minh to discuss Vietnamese aid in forming an Indochinese bloc opposing the return of colonialism. Laotian Prince Phetsarath opposes the initiative.

JAPAN: Iva Toguri D'Aquino, a Japanese-American suspected of being wartime radio propagandist "Tokyo Rose," is arrested in Yokohama.

In 1949, she is tried for treason in a U.S. court in San Francisco, California, convicted of the charges and sentenced to ten years in prison and a US$10,000 fine. She served six years at the Federal Reformatory for Women in Alderson, West Virginia, and is released early in 1956. She maintained her innocence, asserting that she has not said the words used to convict her, and that she has remained a loyal American. Though forced to broadcast to the Allied troops, she claimed that she, with the help of American POWs assigned to the radio broadcasts, made herself and her words purposefully ridiculous. She has refused to give up her American citizenship, despite pressure and even punishment from the Japanese who forced her into the broadcasting role. In the 1970s a public campaign brought to light the testimony of the POWs who worked with her and supported her story. The testimony of the witnesses against her is questioned and she is eventually pardoned by President Gerald Ford in 1977. After her imprisonment she returned to Chicago where her family owned a store. She continued to work at the store and as of 2005, she is 89-years-old and living in Chicago, Illinois.

CAROLINE ISLANDS: The Japanese surrender Yap Atoll in a ceremony on board the destroyer USS Tillman (DD-641).

CANADA: Igor Gouzenko, a cypher clerk at the Soviet Embassy in Ottawa, defects with more than 100 secret documents under his coat detailing the workings of a major Soviet spy ring operating in Canada, with tentacles reaching into the Department of External Affairs code room, the British High Commissioner's Office and the Chalk River, Ontario, nuclear facility. His defection results in 20 espionage trials and nine convictions. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police gave Gouzenko Canadian asylum and a new identity, and he dies in hiding in 1982. (Dana Andrews played Gouzenko in the 1948 film "The Iron Curtain.")
Canada's first nuclear reactor, ZEEP (Zero Energy Experimental Pile) at the Chalk River Laboratory, achieves criticality.

U.S.A.: H. Corwin Hinshaw and William H. Feldman of the Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, report the first successful use of streptomycin in treating tuberculosis in humans.

Escort carrier USS Tinian launched.
Aircraft carrier USS Philippine Sea launched.