Post by aircraftclocks on Mar 8, 2023 14:10:43 GMT 12
I found this report in a very unexpected place.
STRIKE ON TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY - MUGHAI AREA (SOUTH BOUGAINVILLE)
11th APRIL - 1945
AIRCRAFT - 4 X F4U'S
PILOTS - F/O MORRISSEY (LEADER) F/S CROSBY, F/S KIDDLE, F/S BOYLE
BOMB LOAD - 2 X 500 LB. DAISY CUTTERS ON EACH AIRCRAFT.
CALL SIGN - ONYX 11
WEATHER -
(1) TARGET AREA. 6/10 CLOUD AT 4000 FEET. HAZE UP TO 3000 FT. REDUCING VISIBILITY TO 5 MILES.
(2) SOUTH BOUGAINVILLE GENERALLY 8/10 CU. at 4000 FEET
AIRCRAFT LEFT GREEN - 1330 Hours
AT TARGET AREA - 1455 - 1500 HOURS
TIME LEFT TARGET AREA - 1530 - 1535 HOURS
COMMUNICATION
(1) AIRCRAFT TO DANE BASE - NO CONTACT FROM TARGET AREA 4/4 FROM VICINITY PURIATA RIVER, ON 4475.
(2) LEADER TO F/S CROSBY - LOUD AND CLEAR
APPROACH TO TARGET AREA - SOUTH ALONG COAST OF BOUGAINVILLE TO LAKE LAHALA, THENCE WEST FLYING NTH. OF MT. BOEDER TO MUGUAI AREA.
RESULTS OF STRIKE:
F/O MORRISSEY - IN TWO RUNS ON HUTS SOUTH (1 MILE) OF MUGHAI DESTROYED FOUR HUTS AND DAMAGED TWO MORE.
F/S KIDDLE - IN FIRST RUN ON BUILDING NTH-EAST OF MUGUAI DAMAGED ONE BUILDING. SECOND BOMB HUNG UP TEMPORARILY BUT FELL OFF WHEN AIRCRAFT PULLED ROUND.
F/S BOYLE - IN TWO ATTACKS NORTH-EAST OF MUGUAI DESTROYED TWO HUTS IN FIRST ATTACK AND ONE HUT IN SECOND.
F/S CROSBY - NOT KNOWN - MISSING
NARRATIVE - F/O MORRISSEY
F/O MORRISSEY LED HIS SECTION OF FOUR AIRCRAFT TO THE MUGUAI AREA FROM THE EAST AND INSTRUCTED HIS NOS. 2 AND 3 AND 4 TO ORBIT AT 3000 FEET TO 4000 FEET WHILE HE MADE A RECONNAISSANCE OF THE AREA. ON CHOOSING AS A TARGET A GROUP OF SIX OR SEVEN HUTS ABOUT ONE MILE SOUTH OF MUGUAI, MORRISSEY CALLED ON F/S CROSBY TO JOIN HIM AND INSTRUCTED F/S KIDDLE AND F/S BOYLE TO CHOOSE AND ATTACK TARGETS IN THIS AREA.
AFTER CROSBY HAD JOINTED MORRISSEY AND BEEN MADE CONVERSANT WITH THE TARGET THEY WERE BOTH TO ATTACK, MORRISSEY INSTRUCTED CROSBY TO ORBIT WHILE HE MADE HIS ATTACK, AND THEN TO FOLLOW IN ON THE TARGET. THEY WERE THEN AT ABOUT 3000 FEET.
AFTER HIS BOMBING MORRISSEY SAW CROSBY CHANGE HIS DIRECTION OF ORBIT AND FUL ROUND TOWARDS KARA AIRFIELD. MORRISSEY CALLED CROSBY ON R/T AND WARNED HIM TO KEEP AWAY FROM KARA BUT CROSBY DID NOT ANSWER. AT THIS STAGE MORRISSEY SAW TWO BLACK SMOKE PUFFS AHEAD OF HIM. THE ONLY FLAK HE HAD SEEN TO THIS WAS ONE STREAK OF TRACER IN FRONT OF HIS AIRCRAFT WHEN ON HIS PRELIMINARY RECONNAISSANCE ABOUT ONE MILE NORTH OF MUGUAI.
MORRISSEY PULLED AWAY TO THE EAST, AWAY FROM KARA AND WARNED HIS SECTION TO BEWARE OF HEAVY ACK ACK. HE THEN NOTICED THAT CROSBY WAS MISSING AND CALLED FOR HIM ON R/T BUT RECEIVED NO REPLY.
AT THIS POINT F/S BOYLE CALLED MORRISSEY AND ASKED WHETHER HE (MORRISSEY) HAD DONE A ROLL ONTO HIS TARGET. REALISING THE POSITION MORRISSEY CALLED BOYLE TO JOIN HIM AND LED HIM TO THE POSITION WHERE CROSBY HAD LAST BEEN SEEN. TOGETHER THEY SEARCHED AN AREA WITHIN TWO MILES RADIUS OF MUGUAI INVESTIGATING FIVE FIRES EN ROUTE. BOTH MORRISSEY AND BOYLE WERE QUITE CONVINCED THAT NONE OF THESE FIRES WAS THAT OF A BURNING AIRCRAFT BUT WERE MERELY RUBBISH FIRES.
AFTER SEARCHING FOR APPROXIMATELY THIRTY MINUTES F/O MORRISSEY REFORMED HIS SECTION AND HEADED FOR PIVA. NO CONTACT COULD BE MADE WITH DANE BASE UNTIL THE AIRCRAFT WERE IN THE VICINITY OF THE PURIATA RIVER WHEN THE LOSS OF F/S CROSBY WAS COMMUNICATED AND ACKNOWLEDGED.
THE CIRCUMSTANCES IN BRIEF WERE MADE KNOWN TO PIVA OPERATIONS, AND AFTER REFUELLING, THE AIRCRAFT RETURNED TO GREEN ISLAND.
F/S BOYLE
WHILE F/O MORRISSEY WAS BOMBING, F/S BOYLE SAW WHAT HE THOUGHT WAS MORRISSEY'S AIRCRAFT CHANGING ITS DIRECTION OF ORBIT AND PULLING CLOSER TO KARA WITH ITS BELLY MORE OR LESS EXPOSED. AT THIS TIME HE SAW ONE GUN FLISH FROM THE KNOWN ACK ACK POSITIONS NORTH OF KARA (Map Ref. 297379 1" series, KARA) AND ABOUT TWO SECONDS AFTER HE SAW THE CORSAIR WING TO PORT AND GO DOWN ALMOST VERTICALLY IN A MANNER NOT NORMAL FOR BOMBING/ATTACK. AS F/S KIDDLE THEN CALLED HIM ADVISING HIM TO KEEP ORBITING AS HE (KIDDLE) WAS GOING INTO MAKE AN ATTACK, BOYLE LOST SIGHT OF THE CORSAIR WHICH HE LAST SAW AT 1000 TO 1500 FEET GOING DOWN PRACTICALLY VERTICALLY. BOYLE THEN FOLLOWED KIDDLE AND MADE HIS BOMBING RUNS, AFTER WHICH HE CALLED MORRISSEY TO ASK WHETHER HE HAD DONE A DOWNWARD ROLL IN HIS BOMBING. BOYLE RECEIVED A NEGATIVE REPLY AND JOINED MORRISSEY IN THE SEARCH OF THE AREA.
AFTER SEARCHING UNSUCCESSFULLY FOR TEN MINUTES BOYLE SAW A NEW FIRE THREE QUARTERS OF A MILE EAST OF THE NORTH END OF KARA STRIP. THIS HE INVESTIGATED AT LOW LEVEL AND FOUND THAT IT WAS NOT OF A BURNING AIRCRAFT. BOYLE WAS QUITE CONVINVED OF THIS. FROM THE POSITION OF THE FIRE TWO PUFFS OF GUN SMOKE WERE SEEN. THE SECTION WAS THEN REFORMED AND LED TO PIVA.
F/S KIDDLE
WHEN ORBITING NORTH-EAST OF MUGUAI SAW TWO LINES OF TRACER BUT COULD NOT DETERMINE THE GUN POSITION.
WHILE MORRISSEY WAS BOMBING HE SAW CROSBY ORBITING AND THEN SAW ONE BURST OF BLACK SMOKE AT ABOUT 4000 FEET AND TWO GUN FLASHED FROM THE GROUND FROM A POSITION NEAR THE NORTH END OF KARA (Map ref. 297379 - 1" series - KARA SHEET) AFTER HE HAD COMPLETED HIS BOMBING, AND ON LEARNING THAT CROSBY WAS MISSING, KIDDLE CLIMBED TO 4000 FEET AND TRIED TO CONTACT THE MISSING AIRCRAFT AS WELL AS DANE BASE, BUT WAS UNSUCCESSFUL IN BOTH. HE THEN FLEW SOUTH DOWN THE EAST SIDE OF KARA AND THEN NORTH AGAIN OVER THE SAME AREA. PUFFS OF M.G. SMOKE WERE SEEN COMING FROM A POSITION ONE-QUARTER TO ONE-HALF MILE EAST OF THE NORTHERN END OF KARA STRIP. KIDDLE SEARCHED THE WESTERN SIDE OF KARA BEFORE REJOINING THE SECTION AND FLYING TO PIVA NORTH FIELD.
FLAK ENCOUNTERED
THIS IS THE SUBJECT OF A SEPARATE REPORT.
STRIKE ON TARGETS OF OPPORTUNITY - MUGHAI AREA (SOUTH BOUGAINVILLE)
11th APRIL - 1945
AIRCRAFT - 4 X F4U'S
PILOTS - F/O MORRISSEY (LEADER) F/S CROSBY, F/S KIDDLE, F/S BOYLE
BOMB LOAD - 2 X 500 LB. DAISY CUTTERS ON EACH AIRCRAFT.
CALL SIGN - ONYX 11
WEATHER -
(1) TARGET AREA. 6/10 CLOUD AT 4000 FEET. HAZE UP TO 3000 FT. REDUCING VISIBILITY TO 5 MILES.
(2) SOUTH BOUGAINVILLE GENERALLY 8/10 CU. at 4000 FEET
AIRCRAFT LEFT GREEN - 1330 Hours
AT TARGET AREA - 1455 - 1500 HOURS
TIME LEFT TARGET AREA - 1530 - 1535 HOURS
COMMUNICATION
(1) AIRCRAFT TO DANE BASE - NO CONTACT FROM TARGET AREA 4/4 FROM VICINITY PURIATA RIVER, ON 4475.
(2) LEADER TO F/S CROSBY - LOUD AND CLEAR
APPROACH TO TARGET AREA - SOUTH ALONG COAST OF BOUGAINVILLE TO LAKE LAHALA, THENCE WEST FLYING NTH. OF MT. BOEDER TO MUGUAI AREA.
RESULTS OF STRIKE:
F/O MORRISSEY - IN TWO RUNS ON HUTS SOUTH (1 MILE) OF MUGHAI DESTROYED FOUR HUTS AND DAMAGED TWO MORE.
F/S KIDDLE - IN FIRST RUN ON BUILDING NTH-EAST OF MUGUAI DAMAGED ONE BUILDING. SECOND BOMB HUNG UP TEMPORARILY BUT FELL OFF WHEN AIRCRAFT PULLED ROUND.
F/S BOYLE - IN TWO ATTACKS NORTH-EAST OF MUGUAI DESTROYED TWO HUTS IN FIRST ATTACK AND ONE HUT IN SECOND.
F/S CROSBY - NOT KNOWN - MISSING
NARRATIVE - F/O MORRISSEY
F/O MORRISSEY LED HIS SECTION OF FOUR AIRCRAFT TO THE MUGUAI AREA FROM THE EAST AND INSTRUCTED HIS NOS. 2 AND 3 AND 4 TO ORBIT AT 3000 FEET TO 4000 FEET WHILE HE MADE A RECONNAISSANCE OF THE AREA. ON CHOOSING AS A TARGET A GROUP OF SIX OR SEVEN HUTS ABOUT ONE MILE SOUTH OF MUGUAI, MORRISSEY CALLED ON F/S CROSBY TO JOIN HIM AND INSTRUCTED F/S KIDDLE AND F/S BOYLE TO CHOOSE AND ATTACK TARGETS IN THIS AREA.
AFTER CROSBY HAD JOINTED MORRISSEY AND BEEN MADE CONVERSANT WITH THE TARGET THEY WERE BOTH TO ATTACK, MORRISSEY INSTRUCTED CROSBY TO ORBIT WHILE HE MADE HIS ATTACK, AND THEN TO FOLLOW IN ON THE TARGET. THEY WERE THEN AT ABOUT 3000 FEET.
AFTER HIS BOMBING MORRISSEY SAW CROSBY CHANGE HIS DIRECTION OF ORBIT AND FUL ROUND TOWARDS KARA AIRFIELD. MORRISSEY CALLED CROSBY ON R/T AND WARNED HIM TO KEEP AWAY FROM KARA BUT CROSBY DID NOT ANSWER. AT THIS STAGE MORRISSEY SAW TWO BLACK SMOKE PUFFS AHEAD OF HIM. THE ONLY FLAK HE HAD SEEN TO THIS WAS ONE STREAK OF TRACER IN FRONT OF HIS AIRCRAFT WHEN ON HIS PRELIMINARY RECONNAISSANCE ABOUT ONE MILE NORTH OF MUGUAI.
MORRISSEY PULLED AWAY TO THE EAST, AWAY FROM KARA AND WARNED HIS SECTION TO BEWARE OF HEAVY ACK ACK. HE THEN NOTICED THAT CROSBY WAS MISSING AND CALLED FOR HIM ON R/T BUT RECEIVED NO REPLY.
AT THIS POINT F/S BOYLE CALLED MORRISSEY AND ASKED WHETHER HE (MORRISSEY) HAD DONE A ROLL ONTO HIS TARGET. REALISING THE POSITION MORRISSEY CALLED BOYLE TO JOIN HIM AND LED HIM TO THE POSITION WHERE CROSBY HAD LAST BEEN SEEN. TOGETHER THEY SEARCHED AN AREA WITHIN TWO MILES RADIUS OF MUGUAI INVESTIGATING FIVE FIRES EN ROUTE. BOTH MORRISSEY AND BOYLE WERE QUITE CONVINCED THAT NONE OF THESE FIRES WAS THAT OF A BURNING AIRCRAFT BUT WERE MERELY RUBBISH FIRES.
AFTER SEARCHING FOR APPROXIMATELY THIRTY MINUTES F/O MORRISSEY REFORMED HIS SECTION AND HEADED FOR PIVA. NO CONTACT COULD BE MADE WITH DANE BASE UNTIL THE AIRCRAFT WERE IN THE VICINITY OF THE PURIATA RIVER WHEN THE LOSS OF F/S CROSBY WAS COMMUNICATED AND ACKNOWLEDGED.
THE CIRCUMSTANCES IN BRIEF WERE MADE KNOWN TO PIVA OPERATIONS, AND AFTER REFUELLING, THE AIRCRAFT RETURNED TO GREEN ISLAND.
F/S BOYLE
WHILE F/O MORRISSEY WAS BOMBING, F/S BOYLE SAW WHAT HE THOUGHT WAS MORRISSEY'S AIRCRAFT CHANGING ITS DIRECTION OF ORBIT AND PULLING CLOSER TO KARA WITH ITS BELLY MORE OR LESS EXPOSED. AT THIS TIME HE SAW ONE GUN FLISH FROM THE KNOWN ACK ACK POSITIONS NORTH OF KARA (Map Ref. 297379 1" series, KARA) AND ABOUT TWO SECONDS AFTER HE SAW THE CORSAIR WING TO PORT AND GO DOWN ALMOST VERTICALLY IN A MANNER NOT NORMAL FOR BOMBING/ATTACK. AS F/S KIDDLE THEN CALLED HIM ADVISING HIM TO KEEP ORBITING AS HE (KIDDLE) WAS GOING INTO MAKE AN ATTACK, BOYLE LOST SIGHT OF THE CORSAIR WHICH HE LAST SAW AT 1000 TO 1500 FEET GOING DOWN PRACTICALLY VERTICALLY. BOYLE THEN FOLLOWED KIDDLE AND MADE HIS BOMBING RUNS, AFTER WHICH HE CALLED MORRISSEY TO ASK WHETHER HE HAD DONE A DOWNWARD ROLL IN HIS BOMBING. BOYLE RECEIVED A NEGATIVE REPLY AND JOINED MORRISSEY IN THE SEARCH OF THE AREA.
AFTER SEARCHING UNSUCCESSFULLY FOR TEN MINUTES BOYLE SAW A NEW FIRE THREE QUARTERS OF A MILE EAST OF THE NORTH END OF KARA STRIP. THIS HE INVESTIGATED AT LOW LEVEL AND FOUND THAT IT WAS NOT OF A BURNING AIRCRAFT. BOYLE WAS QUITE CONVINVED OF THIS. FROM THE POSITION OF THE FIRE TWO PUFFS OF GUN SMOKE WERE SEEN. THE SECTION WAS THEN REFORMED AND LED TO PIVA.
F/S KIDDLE
WHEN ORBITING NORTH-EAST OF MUGUAI SAW TWO LINES OF TRACER BUT COULD NOT DETERMINE THE GUN POSITION.
WHILE MORRISSEY WAS BOMBING HE SAW CROSBY ORBITING AND THEN SAW ONE BURST OF BLACK SMOKE AT ABOUT 4000 FEET AND TWO GUN FLASHED FROM THE GROUND FROM A POSITION NEAR THE NORTH END OF KARA (Map ref. 297379 - 1" series - KARA SHEET) AFTER HE HAD COMPLETED HIS BOMBING, AND ON LEARNING THAT CROSBY WAS MISSING, KIDDLE CLIMBED TO 4000 FEET AND TRIED TO CONTACT THE MISSING AIRCRAFT AS WELL AS DANE BASE, BUT WAS UNSUCCESSFUL IN BOTH. HE THEN FLEW SOUTH DOWN THE EAST SIDE OF KARA AND THEN NORTH AGAIN OVER THE SAME AREA. PUFFS OF M.G. SMOKE WERE SEEN COMING FROM A POSITION ONE-QUARTER TO ONE-HALF MILE EAST OF THE NORTHERN END OF KARA STRIP. KIDDLE SEARCHED THE WESTERN SIDE OF KARA BEFORE REJOINING THE SECTION AND FLYING TO PIVA NORTH FIELD.
FLAK ENCOUNTERED
THIS IS THE SUBJECT OF A SEPARATE REPORT.