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September 6, 1939 (WEDNESDAY)

FRANCE: French forces begin a limited offensive toward Saarbruecken, Germany.

Before leaving Warsaw for Lublin, the government issues orders for Polish forces to retire to the line of the Narew, Vistula and San Rivers.

     The German command asks the Polish Command to evacuate noncombatants from Warsaw if it intends to defend the city. Poland answers: "Warsaw will be defended, nobody will be evacuated."

U.S.S.R.: The German liner Bremen breaches the British blockade and puts into Murmansk after a dash from New York.

REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA: Smuts replaces General Hertzog as Prime Minister and declares war on Germany.

IRAQ: The government breaks off relations with Germany, and begins deporting Germans.

NEW ZEALAND: A decision is made to mobilize a Special Force of three battalions from each of the three military districts as a contribution to the Commonwealth war effort. This force will be recruited from volunteers and from the New Zealand Territorial Force. They are 1st (Rifle) Battalion from the Northern Military District, 2nd (Rifle) Battalion from Central  Military District and 3rd (Rifle) Battalion from Southern Military District. By 3 October 1939, the force became know as the New Zealand Division and the force of three battalions became 18th, 19th and 20th Infantry Battalions of 4th New Zealand Infantry Brigade.

CANADA: Patrol craft (ex fishing vessels) HMCS Van Isle and Malaspina commissioned.

U.S.A.: Commander Atlantic Squadron (Rear Admiral Alfred W. Johnson) begins to establish the off-shore Neutrality Patrol. The seaplane tenders USS Gannet (AVP-8) and USS Thrush (AVP-3) sail for San Juan, Puerto Rico, to establish a seaplane base there.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: The RN's British Northern Patrol (7th and 12th Cruiser Squadrons) commences operation between Shetland and Faeroe Islands, and Iceland. Light cruisers HMS Caledon (D 53), HMS Calypso (D 61), HMS Diomede (D 92), HMS Dragon D 46), HMS Effingham (D 98), HMS Emerald (D 66), HMS Cardiff (D 58) and HMS Dunedin (D 93)are the ships that undertake this work. The patrol stops 108 merchantmen over the next three weeks, ordering 28 into the port of Kirkwall to  have their cargoes inspected.

Mr Turner, a Merchant Navy radio officer, won one of the first gallantry awards of the Second World War for staying aboard to rescue two badly injured sailors after their ship was attacked by a U-boat. He received the Empire Gallantry Medal, the forerunner to the George Cross.

U-38 sank SS Manaar.

U-47 sank SS Rio Claro.

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September 6th, 1940 (FRIDAY)

Main rail lines at Oxten and Caterham had been damaged slightly, also Hawker's at Brooklands and Pobjoy's Rochester works. 

The second operation came when it was just dark at 20:43 (Double Summer Time being in operation), when bombs fell on West Ham damaging houses, railway lines and the Victoria Docks causing 55 casualties. More bombing involved Woolwich, Southwark and London's south-east suburbs, where over 70 casualties were reported.

The weather is fine, but cooler with haze in the Straits and Thames Estuary. During the day, three main attacks are launched, all in the South Coast of England, and the Thames Estuary area. During the morning, a raid approached Portland, but no attack developed. A few small raids in the Bristol/North Wales/Liverpool areas and one raid appeared near Leicester and flew out to sea near Tangmere. In the East, two small raids from the Dutch Cost inland from Harwich, one penetrating to Northampton, and in the afternoon one raid 10 miles out to sea along the Norfolk coast towards the Wash. In the Southeast, the first attack is between 0840-0950 hours with raids totaling some 300 enemy aircraft crossed the Coast between Dover and Dungeness and spread out fanwise, some raids penetrating to Biggin Hill and one as far as North Weald. The raids are intercepted by Royal Air Force (RAF) fighters and most of the day's enemy loses are inflicted during this attack. The second attack, between 1255 and 1400 hours, totaling some 200 enemy aircraft crossed the coast again between Dover and Dungeness, followed by further raids. The majority of raids did not penetrate beyond Kent and Sussex, but some appeared to go as far as Debden and Hornchurch. No 11 Group is reinforced by 4.5 Squadrons during this attack. The third attack, between 1745 and 1845 hours, consisted of two raids each of some 50 German aircraft, crossed the coast between Maidstone towards the Thames Estuary. The main target towards Hornchurch but turned back via Maidstone. Seventeen RAF Squadrons are detailed to meet this attack by 11 Group, and one Squadron over North Weald and Hornchurch from 12 Group. It is reported that after this attack two Me 110's landed almost undamaged, at Manston and Hawkinge. In the South, there is one early reconnaissance from Cherbourg to Portland, Swanage and Selsey Bill. One raid of 20+ aircraft from Cherbourg at 1147 hours approached Portland on a 10 mile (16 kilometer) front, and a further raid of 6+ aircraft are plotted at the same time, but an attack did not develop, and only two aircraft are seen near Portland. Between 1400-1500 hours, small hostile patrol in Lyme Bay. In the West, at 1700 hours, a small raid flew over North Wales to Liverpool. In the North, at 1600 hours, two high reconnaissance raids off the coast at Aberdeen.

     During the night, Luftwaffe activity is on a very reduced scale. From 2015 hours, a few raids flew towards London via the Thames Estuary and Kent. There are no raids in this area after 0030 hours. Scattered raids are plotted through the Midlands and in South Wales, but no raids are plotted into this country after 0100 hours, and up to 0400 hours activity is very slight. There is suspected mine-laying raids on East Coast as far North as the Humber. At 2115 hours two raids are plotted off Aberdeenshire Coast in vicinity of two convoys.

At 3.00 am, Gosta Catroli, a Swedish national trained by the German Secret Service "Abwerh", parachuted from a Dornier Bomber and landed near Yardley, Hastings.

Catroli's mission was to report by means of his radio, on conditions in Britain. He was arrested during the evening on the day he arrived, and on interrogation he was 'turned' and agreed to assist the British authorities.

As a direct result, another agent will be arrested in the same district in a months time. (William L. Howard)

Corvette HMS Campanula commissioned.

HMCS Margaree ex-HMS Diana, a Decoy or D-class fleet destroyer, was commissioned into the RCN at Londonderry, Northern Ireland. She was purchased for $886,847, approximately the average cost of the five C-class destroyers purchased previously by the RCN. All other old A- to I-class fleet destroyers transferred to the RCN subsequently during the war were presented as gifts to the Government of Canada in return for the stationing of Canadian Tribal-class destroyers with the British Home Fleet.

FRANCE: Generalissimo Maurice Gustav Gamelin, former commander of Allied forces in France, is arrested by the Vichy government and charged with responsibility for France´s entry into the war and the resulting disaster. 

He is later interned by the Germans in Northern Italy and is released and repatriated in 1945. He died in 1958.

GERMANY: U-134 and U-406 laid down.

ROMANIA: Bucharest: King Carol of Romania today surrendered to the dictator General Ion Antonescu and abdicated in favour of his son, Prince Michael.
The king, who will seek asylum in Switzerland, declared: "I have decided to abdicate in face of the misfortunes which have come to this country. I hope by this sacrifice to save my country." This is the second time that Carol has given up his throne. He renounced his right of succession in 1925 for love of his mistress, Elena "Magda" Lupescu, before returning to turn his son off the throne in 1930.

"Magda" was a derogatory nickname in favour with the Romanian populace, signifying a woman of the street with few (if any) morals.  The name of Carol's paramour for whom he renounced a kingdom (albeit far from permanentl), was indeed Elena Lupescu. (Greg Kelley)

EGYPT: Italian aircraft make three raids on Marsa Matruh and inflict some damage. It is believed that two attacking machines were damaged by British ground defences.

CANADA: HMS Duchess arrives in Halifax harbour, bringing the members of the Tizard Mission and a black metal box containing, amongst other things, six examples of the cavity magnetron. This would later be described as "the most important cargo to reach our (i.e. American) shores". (Cris Wetton)

The USN destroyers USS Aaron Ward (DD-132), USS Buchanan (DD-131), USS Crowninshield (DD-134), USS Hale (DD-133), USS Abel P. Upshur (DD-193), USS Welborn C. Wood (DD-195), USS Herndon (DD-198) and USS Welles (DD-257) arrive at Halifax, Nova Scotia, along with destroyer USS Russell (DD-414), with Commander Destroyers, Atlantic Fleet (Captain Ferdinand L. (Reichmuth) embarked, and destroyer tender USS Denebola (AD-12). These are the first of the "flushdeck" destroyers to be transferred under the "Destroyers-For-Bases" deal. Contrary to popular opinion, none of the eight ships to be transferred were taken directly from reserve status and handed over to the RN. All eight ships had been recommissioned at least during 1939 and all had been engaged in operations on the neutrality patrols. Two ships were recommissioned considerably earlier and had served for extended periods with both the US Atlantic and Pacific Fleets; Crowninshield (1930) and Buchanan (1934). Denebola was present to provide last-minute ‘running repairs’ before the transfer was completed. All eight destroyers were decommissioned from the USN on 09 Sep and commissioned into the RN on the same day. USS Crowninshield was commissioned as HMS Chelsea (I35). She reached Devonport, England, on 28 Sep 1940 and was assigned to the Sixth Escort Group, Western Approaches Command, for local escort duty. In Nov 42, Chelsea became one of eight ‘flushdeckers’ lent to the RCN. She served with Canadian forces until the Dec 43, operated with both the Mid-Ocean Escort Force and Western Escort Forces. Chelsea returned to Londonderry, Northern Ireland, on 26 Dec 43 and, in early 44, was reduced to reserve status in the Tyne estuary. On 16 Jul 44, she was transferred to Russia and renamed Derskni. "By the long arm of coincidence" (as British Prime Minister Churchill puts it) the Royal Navy crews assigned to man the ships arrive simultaneously.

U.S.A.: The first development contracts (W535 ac-15429) for the prototype Consolidated XB-32 and Boeing XB-29 are signed. This will produce two XB-29s and a static test. The price is $3.6 million.

URUGUAY: The warm generosity with which the U.S. meets the British request for ships contrasts markedly with the cold response to the Uruguayan government's request to purchase three destroyers. U.S. Minister to Uruguay Edwin C. Wilson recounts an interview with "a leading Uruguayan" who complains: "Having been exhorted to cooperate in continental defence, we want to build up our pitifully non-existent Navy, and we ask you to let us have two or three old destroyers that have been lying useless in your ports since the last war. You handed over fifty of these destroyers to Great Britain, and we see pictures reproduced in the papers of quantities of these ships tied up in your ports, looking like so many toy vessels in a shop window. Yet, you tell us that you find it impossible to let us have even a single one of these." Secretary of State Hull confidentially informs Minister Wilson that the USN believes "that the strategic situation in the North Atlantic does not permit the disposal of any destroyers to Uruguay at the present time, the more so as this would inevitably lead to similar requests from other American republics for [the] purchase of destroyers."

ATLANTIC OCEAN: Escorting convoy OA205 (U.K. to North America), corvette HMS Godetia (K 72) is rammed and sunk by the merchantman SS Marsa north of Ireland 3 miles off Alatacarry Head, Rathlin Island at 55 18N, 05 57W. She is the first 'Flower' class to be lost.

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September 6th, 1941 (SATURDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Destroyer HMS Tuscan laid down.

Light cruiser HMS Argonaut launched.

FRANCE: Paris: A German non-commissioned officer, Hoffman, is shot in the Gare de l'Est. 

GERMANY: SS Obergruppenführer Reinhard Heydrich, head of the SD, orders all Jews, over the age of 6, to wear a distinctive yellow Star of David badge. This measure is only an example of the increasing barbarity shown to the Jews and other groups. Recently experiments at Auschwitz concentration camp have started in an attempt to find the most efficient method of exterminating large groups of people. Among other methods, the gas Cyclon-B will be tested. This information needs to be gathered before the methodic Germans will begin full-scale exterminations in early 1942.

U-438 launched.

U.S.S.R.: The Soviets recapture Yelna, near Smolensk, on the Moscow front.

LITHUANIA: The Nazis establish a "large" and a "small" ghetto at Vilna.

JAPAN: Prince Konoye as Prime Minister, bends under military pressure. An Imperial Conference decides that war preparations should be complete by the middle of October. And further that if agreement is not reached by then with the US the decision to go to war should be taken. Further conciliatory proposals to the US are not taken seriously.

U.S. Ambassador Joseph Grew meets with Japanese Prime Minister Prince Konoye. Prince Konoye states that Japan subscribes to the four principles of President Roosevelt and presents proposals for a basis of discussion. Grew goes on to say that, "The Prime Minister hopes that as a result of the commitments which the Japanese Government is prepared to assume . . . a rational basis has been established for a meeting between the President and himself."

Tokyo: The government decides that preparations for war should be completed in six weeks.

CANADA:

Minesweeper HMCS Granby launched.

Corvette HMCS Brantford launched.

Corvette HMCS Morden commissioned.

Minesweeper HMCS Burlington commissioned.

U.S.A.: Washington, the Japanese Ambassador Nomura hands Secretary of State Cordell Hull a draft proposal outlining what the U.S. and Japan will do to establish peace in the Pacific. Two of the items that the Japanese purpose to undertake are (1) that Japan will not make any military advancement from French Indo-China against any of its adjoining areas, and likewise will not, without any justifiable reason, resort to military action against any regions lying south of Japan and (2) that Japan will endeavor to bring about the rehabilitation of general and normal relationship between Japan and China, upon the realization of which Japan is ready to withdraw its armed forces from China as soon as possible in accordance with the agreements between Japan and China.

Light cruiser USS Astoria laid down.

Anti-aircraft cruisers USS Atlanta and San Juan launched.

Light cruiser USS Cleveland launched.

The CBS radio show, "The Life of Riley" ends its first run.

ATLANTIC OCEAN:

U-141 sank SS King Erik.

U-95 sank SS Trinidad.

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September 6th, 1942 (SUNDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: The Messerschmitt Me210 is first used over Britain; two are shot down by Hawker Typhoons over the North Yorkshire coast.

NETHERLANDS: Six RAF Bomber Command aircraft lay mines in the Frisian Islands.

FRANCE: USAAF OPERATIONS IN THE EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (8th Air Force): The VIII Bomber Command flies Mission 10: 76 bombers and 37 fighters in 3 forces attack targets in France; 2 B-17 Flying Fortresses are lost. 
(1) 12 DB-7s attack Drucat Airfield at Abbeville at 1702 hours; escort is provided by 37 Spitfires; 
(2) 30 B-17s, 30 attack the Avions Potez aircraft plant at Meaulte at 1740-1748 hours; they claim 4-19-20 Luftwaffe aircraft; 2 B-17s are lost (this is the VIII Bomber Command’s first loss of aircraft in combat); and 
(3) 11 B-17s, 11 hit Longuenesse Airfield at St Omer and 2 Ft Rouge Airfield at St Omer without loss.

     During the day, ten of 12 RAF Bomber Command Bostons bombed ships in Boulogne harbour but scored no hits. 

GERMANY: During the day, five RAF Bomber Command Mosquitos flew to Germany but only Bremerhaven is bombed. One Mosquito is lost.

     During the night of 6/7 September, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 207 aircraft of six types to bomb Duisburg; 187 actually bomb the city. Cloud and haze are present and the bombing is not concentrated. But Duisburg reports its heaviest raid to date, with 114 buildings destroyed and 316 seriously damaged; 86 people are killed. Eight aircraft, five Wellingtons, two Halifaxes and a Stirling are lost, 3.9 per cent of the force. A mining mission is flown by three aircraft off Heligoland Bight.

U.S.S.R.: In Stalingrad, heavy house-to-house fighting continues in the center of the city while both sides bring up reinforcements. 

German 4.Mountain Division (Gebirgsdivision) of 17.Army captures the leading Black Sea  port of Novorossisk. 

EGYPT: The battle of Alam Halfa ends with the Germans back in their original positions. The supply position of the British 8th Army makes the difference in this battle.
    British 8th Army commander Bernard Montgomery tells visiting U. S. envoy Wendell Wilkie that 300 U. S.-built Sherman tanks have arrived in Port Said and will be in the forefront of his attack on Field Marshal Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps. Montgomery says the climactic battle near El Alamein will begin next month. 
     In the air, U.S. Army, Middle East Air Forces P-40s fly an offensive sweep over the battle area near the Rayil Dayr Ar Depression, claiming 3 Ju 87s shot down; P-40s also escort RAF bombers and fly 2 interceptor missions.

NEW GUINEA:  The Australian 2/14th and 2/16th Battalions withdraw 15 miles (24 kilometres) to Efogi Spur beyond Gap Mountain, where defensive positions are already established. Despite this retreat, the Japanese are suffering, savaged by Australian fire-discipline and Bren guns and by tropical diseases. Allied troops enjoy a medical superiority in sulfa drugs that the Japanese do not have.

In Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea, the Australians skirmish with Japanese troops who have not been evacuated last night. Three Australian ships, the destroyer HMAS Arunta (I 30), the transport ship SS Anshun and the hospital ship HMAHS Manunda enter the bay during the day. The destroyer departs at 1500 hours local. During the evening, the Japanese light cruiser HIJMS Tenryu and destroyer HIJMS Arashi arrive to pick up any stragglers who may be waiting to be evacuated. Just after 2200 hours local, the Japanese ships spot and open fire on SS Anshun from a range of 3 500 meters (2.2 miles) and sink her. The Japanese ships then turn their lights on the hospital ship but do not open fire. At 0200 hours, 7 September, the Japanese ships leave the harbor. 
     In the air, USAAF 5th Air Force P-400 Airacobras, A-20 Havocs, and B-17s strafe and bomb positions, troops, and shipping at Myola, Mubo, Kokoda, Myola Lake, Eora Creek, and Milne Bay. 

TONGA ISLANDS:  The U. S. Navy suffers a serious setback when the fast, new battleship USS South Dakota (BB-57) strikes an uncharted corral pinnacle in Lahai Passage, Tongatabu Island, and suffers extensive damage to her hull. USS South Dakota is one of only three modern battleships in the Pacific Fleet and its temporary loss is keenly felt. She will return to Pearl Harbor for repairs on 12 September and will not return to the fleet until 12 October. 

SOLOMON ISLANDS: 11 SBD Dauntlesses attack Japanese installations on Gizo Island. Meanwhile, 12 SBDs of the Scouting Squadron Three (VS-3) in USS Saratoga (CV-3) arrive at Henderson Field on Guadalcanal for duty with the Cactus Air Force.

AUSTRALIA: U.S. General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander Southwest Pacific Area, sends a message to General George C. Marshall, Chief of Staff U.S. Army, stating that “The Australians have proven themselves unable to match the enemy in jungle fighting. Aggressive leadership is lacking.”

USAAF OPERATIONS IN ALASKA (11th Air Force): In the Aleutians, a B-24 Liberator flying patrol and armed reconnaissance over Tanaga Island, attacks an IJN mine layer and strafes a tender as well as nearby tents and buildings.

CARIBBEAN SEA: The Canadian Upper Lakes and St. Lawrence Transportation Co. bulk laker John A Holloway (1,745 GRT) was sunk by a torpedo from U-164, KKpt. Otto Fechner, CO, in the Caribbean Sea, in position 14.10N, 071.30W. The ship was on route with a cargo comprised mainly of construction materials from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to Trinidad, where she was to load bauxite. One crewmember was lost. U-164 surfaced after the attack and questioned the survivors, who had taken to two lifeboats and two rafts. The 23 survivors sailed in the lifeboats to Santa Marta, Columbia. The first boat arrived at 1900 on 12 Sep and the second arrived after midnight on the 13th. Although they were suffering from dehydration, there were no casualties while in the boats.

ATLANTIC OCEAN:

Armed yacht HMCS Raccoon (no survivors) and SS Aeas (29 survivors) sunk by U-165 in Convoy QS-33.

U-109 sank SS Tuscan Star.

U-375 sank SS Turkian.

U-514 sank SS Helen Forsey.

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September 6th, 1943 (MONDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Squadron Leader Johnny Checketts, 485(NZ) Sqn., RAF (Biggin Hill) flying a Spitfire IX, is shot down during a dogfight over France involving some 20 Focke-Wulf 190s.

With no ammunition left, Checketts had no chance and his Spitfire was soon belching flames through the cockpit. Badly burned, he parachuted to safety and was looked after and hidden by the French for several weeks until he and 12 other escaping servicemen were crammed into a small fishing boat and smuggled across the channel back to England. He had burns to his face, legs and arms and was wounded in both legs, knees and arms. (AAP)

USAAF OPERATIONS IN THE EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS (Eighth Air Force)

* VIII Air Support Command flies Missions 50 and 51 without loss. 
(1) 144 B-26B Marauders are dispatched to the marshalling yards at Ghent, Belgium and Rouen, France; the Ghent mission is recalled when bad weather prevents the fighter escort from taking off; 66 B-26s hit Rouen at 0738 and 0739 hours and 
(2) 126 B-26s bomb the marshalling yards at Amiens and Serqueux, France at 1755 to 1757 hours.

* VIII Bomber Command flies Mission 91: Aircraft and bearing factories in and around Stuttgart, Germany are targeted but extensive clouds prevent all but a few B-17s from attacking the primary targets; 45 B-17s and a P-47 Thunderbolt are lost. Formations become separated and disorganized and attack targets of opportunity in a wide area. 
(1) 151 B-17s attack various targets of opportunity at 0951-1017 hours; they claim 32-6-21 Luftwaffe aircraft; 27 B-17s are lost; 
(2) 111 B-17s hit Stuttgart and various targets of opportunity at 0940-1229 hours; they claim 66-14-29 Luftwaffe aircraft; 18 B-17s are lost; and 
(3) 60 B-24s fly a diversion. 176 P-47s fly escort for the B-17s and claim 1-0-0 Luftwaffe aircraft; a P-47 is lost.

Frigates HMS Caicos and Cayman launched.

Destroyer KNM Stord (ex HMS Success) commissioned.

GERMANY: Stuttgart: 157 B-17 bombers raid the city, while 181 are despatched to other targets; 45 are lost.

     During the night of 6/7 September, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 404 aircraft, 257 Lancasters and 147 Halifaxes, to bomb Munich; 365 bomb the target. The Pathfinders found that Munich is mostly covered by cloud and neither their ground-markers nor their skymarkers are very effective. Most of the Main Force crews could do no more than bomb on a timed run from the Ammersee, a lake situated 21 miles (34 kilometers) southwest of the target. The bombing is mostly scattered over the southern and western parts of the city. Sixteen aircraft, 13 Halifaxes and three Lancasters are lost, 4.0 per cent of the force.

NORWAY: Operation Sizilien. Scharnhorst together with the battleship Tirpitz, and the destroyers Z-27, Z-29, Z-30, Z-31, Z-33, Erich Steinbrinck, Karl Galster, Hans Lody and Theodor Riedel, leaves Altenfiord under the command of Admiral Kummetz, to attack the allied installations in the island of Spitzbergen. (Navy News)

U.S.S.R.:  Soviet forces continue their drive through the Donets Basin in the Ukraine capturing the steel centers at Makeyevka and Kromatorsk, and chemical works at Slavyansk. In central Russia, the Soviets take the rail hub at Konotop and push toward Kiev and the Dnieper. The capture of these cities results in the separation of the German Heeresgruppe Mitte (von Kluge) and Heeresgruppe Sued (von Manstein). 

ITALY:  The British 8th Army continues moving through southern Italy, taking Gioia Tauro on Calabria's northern coast. German demolitions cause more resistance than actual German troops. 

     Field Marshal Albrecht Kesselring, Commander in Chief South, orders his 16th Panzer Division to occupy hills surrounding Salerno, the site of the Allies' upcoming invasion. 

The Strait of Messina is now open to Allied shipping.

     In the air, the USAAF's Twelfth Air Force dispatches B-17s to hit Capodichino Airfield, Villa Literno marshalling yard, Gaeta harbor, and Minturno railroad facilities; weather prevents a B-17 attack on Pomigliano airfield. B-25 Mitchells and B-26s hit Capua airfield and landing grounds at Grazzanise.  US and RAF planes operate on a reduced scale, flying patrols and hitting railroads and targets of opportunity on the Italian toe.

     In the air during the night of 6/7 September, 48 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group visually bomb the marshalling yard at Battapaglia with the loss of one aircraft.

Sardinia:  In the air, USAAF's Twelfth Air Force P-40s hit the landing ground at Pabillonis. 

During the night of 6/7 September, two RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group visually drop leaflets over the island.  

MEDITERRANEAN SEA: HMS Puckeridge was escorting convoy NSM-1 from Gibraltar to Oran and was attacked by U-617 with a spread of 4 torpedoes of which 2 hit the ship, causing her to sink about 40 miles east of Gibraltar. 129 men were rescued.

CHINA: Stilwell asks Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists to join the Communists in order to fight the Japanese more effectively.

Six fighter-bombers of the USAAF Fourteenth Air Force attack wharves, vessels, and destroy a small factory building in the Yoyang-Shihhweiyao area; five others hit trucks, trains, gun emplacements, and railway facilities in areas around Sintsiang and Puchi.

EAST INDIES: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb targets on Timor Island in the Sunda Islands.

NEW GUINEA: Two brigades of the Australian 9th Division meet strong Japanese resistance in their advance on Lae. The 24th Brigade lands to support them.

Five aircraft were used to drop 4 officers and 30 men of 2/4 Fd Reg.

They landed one hour after the main drop by 503 Para (drop height was 600 ft). First 2 aircraft had the gunners while the other three had the dissembled guns (and some ammunition ?). The gunners were dropped on the first pass while their equipment was pushed out the doors of the other aircraft on a second pass.

The pilots had overflown the drop zone and in any case misjudged the wind speed with some troops and equipment landing in trees (the only casualty amongst the 2/4 was VX50125 Gnr WJ Ligerwood who damaged a shoulder). At 1515 hrs (local) - about 2 hours later - 3 B-17s dropped 192 rounds to the gunners.

No information is available as to when the remainder of 54 Bty 2/4 Fd Reg arrived but they did at some time after 2/25 Bn (the first of the air landed troops) and amongst the remainder of 25 Bde.

They took with them 8 x guns (all "baby" 25 pdr) (in total), 5 "Trucks, 5 cwt 4 x 4 Ford" (or Jeeps) and trailers as initial equipment. (Daniel Ross)

As soon as the Japanese at Lae became aware of the 9th Division AIF landing on 4 Sep, they had dispatched a reinforced company force as a "forlorn hope" to delay it. The balance of the Japanese forces east of Lae tried to form a stable defensive line on the Busu River. The Japanese "forlorn hope" did very well: In a vicious slugging fight in the Singaua Plantation they imposed 8 hours delay on the Australians - about as much as a company could hope to achieve against the advance guard of a division. By the time they returned to the Busu River the Japanese had lost about two thirds of their strength.

Also on this day, Lieutenant-General Nakano Hidemitsu recognised the trap that had been sprung: He ordered 51st Japanese Division to abandon Salamaua and fall back on Lae, to defend it against 9th Division AIF to the east and 7th Division AIF to the west. (Michael Mitchell)

     In Northeast New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses and B-24 Liberators attack Malahang Airfield, located 2 miles (3,2 kilometers) east of Lae and the surrounding area, and B-25 Mitchells and B-26 Marauders bomb and strafe enemy defenses in Malahang and vicinity, as Allied ground forces push toward Lae; C-47 Skytrains transport he 871st Airborne Engineer Battalion to Nadzab to improve the airstrip and fly Australian reinforcements into Nadzab during the afternoon. U.S. fighters claim eight Japanese aircraft downed over Lae.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25 Mitchells fly a sweep against barges along the coast of New Britain Island.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: A battalion of the 172d Infantry Regiment secures Grant Island and the western half of Bomboe Peninsula on Arundel Island. The Japanese counterattack on Arundel.

     USAAF Thirteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells and P-39 Airacobras hit enemy positions at Kakasa on Choiseul Island; B-24 Liberators bomb gun positions at Vila on Kolombangara Island; and P-39s join U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) and USN aircraft in a strike on suspected radar site on Morgusaia Island. During the day, seven Imperial Japanese Navy “Zeke” fighters (Mitsubishi A6M, Navy Type 0 Carrier Fighters) are shot down by USMC F4U Corsair and TBF Avenger crews, a USN F6F Hellcat and a USAAF P-39 pilot.

PACIFIC OCEAN: USN submarine USS Halibut (SS-232) sinks a Japanese merchant cargo ship  off the west coast of Honshu, Japan and later hits heavy cruiser HIJMS Nachi with one dud torpedo. In the southwest Pacific, RAAF Beauforts sink a small Japanese cargo vessel 21 nautical miles (24 miles or 39 kilometres) east of Garove Island, in the Bismarck Archipelago.

CANADA:

U.S.A.: Cambridge, Massachussetts: Winston Churchill, in a speech at Harvard University here today, looked forward to future common citizenship between Britain and the United States. He spoke of a future when British and American people would have "hardly a sense of being foreigners". Mr. Churchill has long regarded Anglo-American accord as the linchpin of his policy, but he has never before speculated about so close a relationship. He also, warned that the war was now entering "perhaps its most severe and costly phase."

The Pennsylvania Railroad's "Congressional Limited" train between New York and Washington derails near Frankfort, Pennsylvania, killing 79.

In baseball, pitcher Carl Scheib of the Philadelphia Athletics becomes the youngest player to appear in an American League game when he appears today; he is 16 years, eight months and five days old. He appears in six games this year and finishes the season with an 0-1 record. Except for 1946, he pitches for the Athletics until 1954 when he is traded to the St. Louis Cardinals. His lifetime pitching record is 45-65 and an 4.88 ERA.

Destroyer escorts USS Kephart and Cofer launched.

Minesweeper USS Implicit launched.

Submarine HMS P-512 paid off and returned to USN at Philadelphia.

Corvette HMCS Fennel completed forecastle extension refit Baltimore, Maryland.

ATLANTIC OCEAN: The Canadian-built, British-registered cargo ship Fort Drew (7,130 GRT) was damaged by a mine in position 35.52N, 014.47E. There is no record of loss of life in this incident. Fort Drew was a North Sands-class freighter built by North Van Ship Repairs, Ltd., at North Vancouver, British Columbia. She was completed in Dec 42. Fort Drew was one of 90 North Sands-class freighters built in Canada for American order under the Hyde Park Declaration and subsequently provided to Great Britain under the Lend-Lease Agreement. Maclay, McIntyre Ltd., of Glasgow, Scotland, managed the ship for the British government. Twenty-four of these ships were sunk and another twelve were damaged (one ship was damaged a second time). Four of the ships damaged were beyond economical repair and were declared Constructive Total Losses. Two of the other ships damaged were subsequently lost.

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September 6th, 1944 (WEDNESDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: Blackout and other civil defence measures in Britain are relaxed. The blackout is to be replaced by a "dim-out" in which windows other than skylights can be curtained normally, except during air raids. Street lighting is to be stepped up and diffused car headlight allowed. The blackout will be abolished completely if circumstances permit. Fire-watching is to be abolished except at night in London and south-east England, and Civil Defence will become part-time only.

Compulsory training and drills for the British Home Guard are ended by the war office.

USAAF OPERATIONS IN THE EUROPEAN THEATER OF OPERATIONS

* Eighth Air Force: Mission 607: 49 P-38 Lightnings and 165 P-47s strafe rail and highway traffic in the Rotterdam, the Netherlands, and the Aachen and Koblenz, Germany areas; a P-38 and 3 P-47s are lost to flak. 70 B-24s fly TRUCKIN' missions (carrying cargo to airfields in France).

* Ninth Air Force: In France, B-26s and A-20s hit Brest area strongpoints, a coastal battery at Pointe du Grand Gouin, defenses at Saint-Pierre-Quilbignon, and a Brest area bridge; fighters hit Brest area gun positions and ammunition dump and fly cover for several armored and infantry divisions.

HMS Whitethroat (later HMCS/CNAV Whitethroat) launched Beverly. (AE - surely some mistake, Beverley, East Ridings is far inland with no large river or shipbuilding, unless this is a yacht. )

Corvette HMCS Humberstone commissioned.

Submarine HMS Tabard laid down.

NETHERLANDS: Three RAF Bomber Command Halifaxes lay mines off Texel Island.

The Canadian II Corps reaches the English Channel north of Calais and just south of Boulogne while the U.S. Third Army crosses the Moselle River. British forces capture Armentieres
     In southern France, the French II Corps enters Chalons-sur-Saòne while the U.S. VI Corps advances towards Besancon. 

     In southern France, during the day, weather grounds the USAAF Twelfth Air Force’s XII Tactical Air Command aircraft except for a few fighters based in France which fly armed reconnaissance over the Belfort, Dijon, and Colmar areas, destroying or damaging numerous motor transport and railroad cars and several locomotives, field guns, trailers, and a tank.

BELGIUM:  British forces capture Namur, Ghent and Courtrai while the U.S. VII Corps advances on Liège. 

GERMANY: During the day, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 181 aircraft, 105 Halifaxes and 76 Lancasters, to bomb Emden; 180 aircraft bomb the target. This is the first large raid to Emden since June 1942; it is also the last Bomber Command raid of the war on this target. The force is provided with an escort, first of RAF Spitfires and then of USAAF P-51 Mustangs. The bombing is accurate and Emden is seen to be a mass of flames, but no local report is available other than a brief note which states that several small ships in the harbour are sunk.

     During the night of 6/7 September, RAF Bomber Command dispatches 32 Mosquitos to Hamburg and six to Emden; 29 bomb Hamburg and six bomb Emden. Four Halifaxes lay mines in the River Ems.

U-929 and U-1304 commissioned.

U-2523, U-2524 and U-3016 laid down.

HUNGARY: USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators attack two targets: 111 hit the marshalling yard at Nyiregyhaza and one bombs Kiskun Airfield. During the night of 6/7 September, ten RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group mine the Danube River.

POLAND: Soviet troops capture Ostroleka only 25 miles (40 kilometers) from the border of East Prussia.

ROMANIA: The Soviet advance through Rumania reaches the border with Yugoslavia at Turnu-Severin on the Danube and they link up with Tito's partisans.

    In the air, USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb three rail targets at Oradea: 56 attack the East marshalling yard, 55 bomb the West marshalling yard, and 28 bomb the Sebes Koros River railroad bridge. Meanwhile, two bombers, with fighter escort, evacuate interned U.S. airmen from Bucharest.

YUGOSLAVIA: During the day, USAAF Fifteenth Air Force B-24 Liberators visually bomb five targets: 77 bomb tactical targets at Leskovac; 59 bomb the East marshalling yard at Novi Sad and 57 bomb the South marshalling yard; 54 bomb the East railroad bridge in Belgrade; and 25 bomb the marshalling yard at Leskovac. 

     During the night of 6/7 September, seven RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group mine the Danube River while another aircraft drops leaflets.

ITALY: The Japanese ambassador to Italy reports back to Tokyo that partisan activity, especially around Turin and the Franco-Italian border, has widened, despite German purges. This information is intercepted by British intelligence and decoded, reassuring the British forces fighting within Italy that they were not alone in fighting the Germans. By war's end, Italian guerrillas controlled Venice, Milan, and Genoa, but at considerable cost. All told, the resistance lost some 50,000 fighters.

     During the night of 6/7 September, 51 RAF Liberators of No. 205 (Heavy Bomber) Group bomb the North marshalling yard at Bologna with the loss of one aircraft.

During the night of 5/6 September, USAAF Twelfth Air Force A-20s attack targets of opportunity in the Savona and Milan areas.

CHINA: Twenty four USAAF Tenth Air Force B-24 Liberators fly about 34,000 US gallons (28,311 Imperial gallons or 128,7 kiloliters) of fuel from India to Kunming.

     Twenty USAAF Fourteenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells bomb Yiyang, Lingkuantien railroad yards, trucks north of Lingling, troops and occupied areas around Kiyang and Paishui, and Hengyang Airfield; 45 P-40s and P-51 Mustangs on armed reconnaissance attack troops, shipping, and communications targets in the Yiyang area, bomb warehouses at Hukow, destroy a fuel barge at Pengtse, hit railroad yards, trucks, troops, and sampans at Kweiyang and Lingkuantien, and attack general targets of opportunity at Yangtien.

BURMA: Six USAAF Tenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells hit Indaw while three bomb Katha

PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: On Mindanao Island, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb Santa Ana port and B-25 Mitchells bomb Buayan Aerodrome in the first medium bomber raid in the Philippine Islands since early 1942; several B-24s, turning back from the Santa Ana strike, bomb Rainis in the Talaud Islands.

EAST INDIES: In the Netherlands East Indies, USAAF Fifth Air Force B-25 Mitchells hit Galela on Halmahera Island and the south coast of Morotai Island. Fighter-bombers attack Kaoe (Kaoe I, Kaoe II) Aerodrome and bomb a Djailolo (Djailolo No. 1, No. 2) Aerodrome.

NEW GUINEA: In Dutch New Guinea, USAAF Fifth Air Force A-20 Havocs, B-25 Mitchells, and fighter-bombers hit airfields at Manokwari, Moemi, Ransiki (Moemi North) and Waren, and stores and personnel area at Nabire Aerodrome; P-40s attack southern Soepiori Island and Napido; and P-39 Airacobras strafe barges and huts at Suain.

CAROLINE ISLANDS: In the western Pacific, carrier-based aircraft of the USN's Task Groups 38.1, 38.2 and 38.3 (13 aircraft carriers) begin a 3-day preinvasion bombardment of the Palau Islands; a fighter sweep discloses no aerial opposition and reveals much damage caused by prior USAAF and USN strikes.

Meanwhile, aircraft of Task Group 38.4 (3 aircraft carriers) attack Yap Atoll in the Caroline Islands.

Aboard the light aircraft carrier USS Independence (CVL-22), assigned to Task Group 38.2, is Night Light Carrier Air Group Forty One [CVLG(N)-41] trained for night operations. CVLG(N)-41 is composed of Night Fighting Squadron Forty One [VF(N)-41) with 9 F6F-5N Hellcats and Night Torpedo Squadron Forty One (VTN-41) with 13 TBM-1D Avengers. The Independence is the first fully equipped night carrier operating with a fast carrier task force.

     Eniwetok Atoll USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators bomb Truk Atoll. Meanwhile, aircraft of Task Group 38.4 (three aircraft carriers) attack Yap Atoll.

MARCUS ISLAND: USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators on armed reconnaissance bomb 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 runs on antiaircraft positions on Pagan Island.

VOLCANO ISLANDS: USAAF Seventh Air Force B-24 Liberators strike Iwo Jima.

PACIFIC OCEAN:  Two USN submarines sink five Japanese ships. USS Bashaw (SS-241) sinks a transport west of Mindanao, Philippine Islands, while east of Formosa, USS Spadefish (SS-411) sinks a transport, an army cargo ship and two merchant cargo ships. 

CANADA: Corvette HMCS Humberstone commissioned.

U.S.A.: The USN awards a contract to McDonnell Aircraft Corporation for the development of the Gargoyle or LBD-1, a radio controlled low-wing gliding bomb fitted with a rocket booster and designed for launching from carrier-based dive-bombers and torpedo planes against enemy ships. 
     The motion picture "Double Indemnity" is released today. This film-noir crime drama was written by Raymond Chandler and directed by Billy Wilder and stars Fred MacMurray, Barbara Stanwyck and Edward G. Robinson. The plot has smooth talking insurance representative MacMurray meeting Mrs. Dietrichson (Stanwyck) which results in an affair. The wife then convinces him to murder her husband but all does not go to plan. The film is nominated for seven Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress (Stanwyck). The American Film Institute ranks this film Number 38 on its list of the 100 Greatest Movies.

Submarine USS Torsk launched.

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September 6th, 1945 (THURSDAY)

UNITED KINGDOM: A de Havilland Mosquito PR 34, RG 241, of No. 540 Squadron, makes the fastest east to west crossing of the Atlantic by flying from St. Mawgan in Cornwall to Gander, Newfoundland in seven hours. (22)

JAPAN: The USN's Force 11 (Vice Admiral Frederick C. Sherman) sails from Tokyo Bay for the west coast of the U.S.A.

GUAM: USS PENNSYLVANIA arrives Apra Harbor and enters drydock where a large steel patch is welded over the torpedo hole suffered in the attack of August 12. Repairs will be made to permit her to return to the United States under her own power. (Randall Steigner)

MARSHALL ISLANDS: The Japanese surrender Maleolap Atoll in ceremony on board the destroyer escort USS Wingfield (DE-194).

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: The Japanese surrender to Lieutenant General Sir Vernon Sturdee, General Officer Commanding First Australian Army, aboard the British aircraft carrier HMS Glory (62) off New Britain Island. Upon inspection, it is found that the Japanese forces at Rabaul are greater than Allied intelligence forecast. Instead of 55,000 soldiers and sailors, there are over 89,000 personnel and another 12,400 on New Ireland Island. The town of Rabaul is in ruins and overgrown with jungle and there are 31 sunken ships in the harbor. Japanese defenses are numerous with the hills honeycombed with a system of tunnels more than 150 miles (241 kilometers) in length.

CANADA: The RCAF "Tiger Force" is ordered to cease flying. "Tiger Force" consisted of eight RCAF bomber squadrons equipped with Canadian-built Avro Lancaster Mk Xs that were intended to be shipped to Okinawa and join USAAF units in bombing Japan prior to the invasion.

In Montreal, Quebec, Fred Rose is arrested for communicating official secrets to the U.S.S.R.; he will be sentenced to six years in the penitentiary for espionage. Rose is a Communist union organizer, politician, who is elected as a Member of Parliament for Montreal-Cartier in a 1943 by-election.

U.S.A.:  President Harry S. Truman lays out an economic recovery plan to Congress that would address post-War housing and employment needs.

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