WW2 Operations

Operation Argument	USAAF attack on German fighter plane factories (Jan 11 - Mar 1, 1944)
Operation Avalanche	US Fifth Army attack on Salerno, Italy (Sep 9, 1943)
Operation Barney	US Navy submarine attack into the Sea of Japan (Jun 1945)
Operation Baytown	Allied invasion of Italy in region of Calabria by British and Canadian troop crossing the Straits of Messina on September 3, 1943. See also Operation Avalanche and Operation Slapstick.
Operation Brassard	Allied attack to capture Elba (Jun 17, 1944)
Operation Brewer	US attack on the Admiralty Islands (Feb 19, 1944)
Operation Brimstone	Allied attack on Sardinia (Sep 18, 1944)
Operation Catchpole	US attack on Eniwetok Island (Feb 17, 1944)
Operation Chariot	British attack on St. Nazaire on March 28, 1942. (St. Nazaire Raid)
Operation Clarion	Allied air attack on Germany (Feb 22, 1945)
Operation Cobra	US First Army movement from Normandy to St Lo (Jul 25, 1944)
Operation Corkscrew	Allied attack on Pantelleria Island (May 18, 1943)
Operation Crossbow	Allied air attack on German rocket sites (Aug 17, 1943)
Operation Daffodil	Allied attacks on Tobruk in North Africa on September 13, 1942. (Part of Operation Agreement.)
Operation Desecrate	US attack of Palau Islands (Mar 31, 1943)
Operation Detachment	US attack on Iwo Jima (Feb - Mar, 1945)
Operation Dragoon	Allied attack on French Riviera (Aug 15, 1944)
Operation Flintlock	US attack on Marshall Islands (1944)
Operation Foxes Den	Axis attack operation on Australia (1943)
Operation Grenade	US Ninth Army movement toward Rhine River (Feb 23, 1945)
Operation Hailstone	US carrier attack on Truk Island (Feb 16 - 17, 1944)
Operation Husky	Allied attack on Sicily (Jul 10, 1943)
Operation Iceberg	US attack on Okinawa (Apr 1, 1945)
Operation Infatuate	Allied landings on the island of Walcheren on November 1, 1944 as part of the Battle of the Scheldt.
Operation Jubilee	Allied attack on Dieppe (Aug 11, 1942)
Operation Longsuit	USMC 2nd Division attack on Tarawa (Nov 20, 1943)
Operation Market-Garden	Allied attack in the Netherlands (Sep 1944)
Operation Meeting House	USAAF fire bomb attack on Tokyo (Mar 9, 1945)
Operation Mike I	US amphibious attack on Luzon (Jan 9, 1945)
Operation Neptune	Initial landing phase of the Allied invasion of northwest Europe, Operation Overlord.
Operation Overlord	Allied invasion of Normandy (Jun 6, 1944)
Operation Plunder	Allied movement across the Rhine River (Mar 23, 1945)
Operation Quicksilver	Allied deception plan to convince Germans that D-Day landings would occur on Calais.
Operation Reckless	US attack on Hollandia (Apr 22, 1944)
Operation Road's End	Allied destruction of Japanese ships that survived the war (Feb 1946)
Operation Slapstick	British landings at Taranto, Italy on September 9, 1943. See also Operation Avalanche and Operation Baytown.
Operation Shingle	Allied amphibious attack on Anzio (Jan 22, 1944)
Operation Tidal Wave	Ninth USAAF attack on oilfields in Ploesti (Aug 1, 1943)
Operation Titanic	Allied dummy parachute drops in Normandy (Jun 6, 1944)
Operation Torch	Allied invasion of North Africa (Nov 8, 1942)
Operation Varsity	Allied airborne drop across the Rhine River (17th Airborne Div)
Operation Watchtower	US attack on Guadalcanal and Tulagi (Aug 7, 1942)

MISSION E-Magazine

My Documentary

Commonwealth (CAC) Boomerang

The Commonwealth Boomerang was a respectable fighter design fielded in response to the impending Japanese invasion of Australia.

The Commonwealth Boomerang (also known as the Commonwealth Aircraft Corporation - or "CAC" - Boomerang) was of completely Australian indigenous design. Based on the CAC Wirraway, which in turn was spawned from the American NA-16 trainer aircraft produced by North American, the Boomerang was developed in direct response to the impending Japanese invasion of the Australian homeland. As with other facets of Australian war-production, aviation design was hardly given attention to prior to the war. With the advancements by by Imperial Japan throughout Asia and the Pacific, Australian soil was now deemed in the crosshairs of the mighty army and naval forces for the inevitable takeover of the British Commonwealth territory.

The Boomerang was of a utilitarian and traditional design, appearing much like the early stout monoplanes featured in the latter half of the 1930's in the United States. Wings - which were taken directly from the Wirraway design - were forward and low-mounted on the fuselage which was of an all new design. Additionally, the empennage and the retractable landing gear system were also of the preceding designs creation leading to a conversion model of sorts in the Boomerang. The pilot sat behind the powerplant in a framed canopy cockpit. Armament consisted of 2 x 20mm cannons in the wings and an array of 4 x 7.7mm machine guns in the wings.

With aircraft development hitting full stride in England and the United States, the Pratt & Whitney brand Twin Wasp series engine was deemed too underpowered for the new designs. As such, a surplus of the type was made available for use in Australia and was promptly set into the Boomerang fuselage. The resulting mating of power and design produced an aircraft capable of just over 300 miles per hour, a ceiling of 34,000 feet and a range of 1,600 miles on the 1,200 horsepower radial piston engine. From design to flying prototype, the CAC team created the Boomerang in an impressive three months of development.

At first glance, the statistics could appear quite pedestrian considering the type would be fighting against the powerful Nakajima, Aichi and Mitsubishi designs of the Pacific but the Boomerang surprisingly faired quite well in the theater - for the short time it was given. Factors leading to its success were directly tied to the systems ability to withstand punishment, deliver a formidable arsenal on its target through its combination machine gun/cannon armament and turn alongside the best the Japanese could field. As quickly as the Boomerang arrived into frontline service, it quickly gave way to the more capable American designs coming off the assembly line at record pace. Once surplus resources had been built up in the United States, England, Canada and Australia were quickly fielding the capable and available American designs en mass. Nevertheless, the symbol that was the Boomerang would long remain the symbol of a nation with a proud effort in designing producing a wartime fighter when it needed one most.

Two arrested near Australian army base

Two men have been charged after allegedly taking photographs of the Sydney military base at the centre of a major terrorist plot.

Police were called to Holsworthy Barracks, in Sydney's southwest, at 2pm (AEST) on Wednesday, responding to reports two people had entered the military reserve and were taking photographs of the base.

It is understood the two men were working for media outlets.

"Army personnel detained the men until police arrived," a police statement said.

"Police seized a laptop and camera for further examination.

"A 26-year-old man, from Kingswood, and a 38-year-old man, from Gorokan, attended Liverpool Police Station where they were issued with a future court attendance notice for the offence of unlawfully sketch, draw, photo or paint fortifications.

"They are due to appear in Liverpool Local Court on 25 September 2009."

A number of journalists and photographers reported from outside the base on Wednesday.

Levels of security at the barracks were at the centre of some of the reports.

Five men have been charged with terrorism-related offences following raids on 19 properties in Melbourne and Victoria's southwest on Tuesday.

It's alleged the men were involved in a plot to storm the Holsworthy base armed with automatic weapons in a bid to kill as many soldiers as possible before they themselves were killed.

Australian Secret Units During WW2

Here's a cool website full of Allied Signal Intelligence Units & other Secret Units, in Australia during WW2.

Something that caught my attention was the Australian Air Investigation Intelligence link. Their role was to capture Australians spying for Japan and Germany...I'm really into figuring out why would people betray their country, and what went on behind the scenes that drove them to do so.

Albert N. Beaumont was Ranger 11 with the Australian Air Investigation Intelligence (AAII). His job was to capture Australians who were traitors and working for the Japanese and the Germans. Most of his missions were in the Islands or North Queensland, though he did have to go to other States of Australia. He was trained in unarmed hand to hand combat.

He had a 33 year oath of silence which he honoured and was told that his unit did not exist and all records would be destroyed. His grand-daughter, Julie Beaumont, has carried out some research on his service records which state that he was attached to the FMBC of the Air-Sea Rescue Squadron, stationed in Milne Bay in New Guinea.

Leaves me wondering about 3 things:

1) Who were the people he managed to capture, and when they were caught, were they put through torture?

2) Did this operation ever end, or did it mutate into another operation (like maybe it reached the government's level or something and it's running to stop a WW3 from happening?)

3) If there're any more secret units like these left hiding?

Joe.

Follow-Up: "Kaiten" Subs and "Balloon" Bombs

The I-401 aircraft submarine was 400 ft. long, 39 ft. high, could dive to 330 ft., with a crew of 144, a range of 37,000 mi., and carried 3 bombers with foldup wings. The I-400 and I-401 sailed for the U. S. West Coast in 1945 in Operation PX to deliver bacteriological bombs, but both were captured at sea before launching any planes. Both were scuttled in 1946.

The Japanese “midget” submarine of the type used at Pearl Harbor was the largest of its class, designed to fight in the open ocean rather than in protected coastal areas.

The average sailor was 5 feet 8 inches tall, the average height of American military personnel during World War II.

The first picture released to the American public of the attack on Pearl Harbor was of a tiny submarine captured on a Waimanalo beach -- a top-secret weapon that caught the U.S. Navy by surprise. Derisively dubbed a "midget" submarine, this swift, powerful craft was the Stealth fighter of its day. The midget submarines were designed to be unbolted into three sections. This is the front section, showing torpedo tubes and compressed-air tanks.

Kaiten suicide midget submarine, 45 ft. long, 1.55 ton explosive charge on its front, operational after 11/10/44, sank 2 American ships with 162 killed, at loss of 106 kaiten pilots.

Japan sent five Type A midget submarines to Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941, and were launched by larger subs. The USS Ward sank one midget sub, and another was never found.
Three were salvaged, including the Ha-19 immediately after the Dec. 7 attack.

Kamikaze planes attacked the U.S. fleet starting Oct. 1944 in the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
The USS St. Lo was sunk Oct. 25.

Japan launched 9000+ balloon bombs after 11/3/44; 1000 reached the U.S. and 285 were sighted; 6 hikers were killed 5/5/45 in Oregon

Out of some 9000 launched only about 1,000 actually made it to the US and Canada, and of those there was one case of six people being killed by the bomb carried by the balloon. For a weapon, that's a pathetic rate of success. The forest fires they hoped to start never appeared, largely because the bombs were being designed or in hiatus during the dry season in the US. If lots of fires had started then lots of people would have been needed to fight them, perhaps reducing the war effort, or at least that's what the Japanese hoped.

”The concept of balloon bombs might have changed the course of the war in favor of the Japanese had it been pursued with more vigor and tenacity. ... Had this balloon weapon been further exploited by using germ or gas bombs, the results could have been disastrous to the American people.”

The program could have caused major forest fires if they had been launched during the west's dry season. Any biological weapon descending over a city could have caused mass panic and damaged US morale. Those are could-have-beens, of course. Alternative history type of thinking.

It wasn't just an easy matter of inflating and letting the balloon go.
The weather had to be just right, the wind currents just right, and even then the wind at the surface could catch the partially-inflated balloon and cause problems for its handlers.

A balloon suspended in mid-flight, and a balloon bomb launch site (See above).

Newspaper articles gathered from:

1) Nevada State Journal, June 13, 1945,
2) The Lethbridge Herald (Canada) June 22, 1945, and

3) The Lethbridge Herald (Canada) Oct. 15, 1948

...on the function and aesthetics of the balloon bomb.



























The balloons were made often by schoolchildren.

”In numbers, school children were the greatest labor force on this project. During wartime, school hours were short in order that the remainder of their day could be devoted to the war effort. Thousands of Japanese had a part in making these balloons, but officially they were never told of their purpose. Even when word about their intended use would filter down, no one believed it.

”Two years of experimentation and some 9,000,000 yen (more than 2,000,000 prewar dollars) were spent on the manufacture of balloons.”

Cost per balloon was about $2,300 at the start of the project but went down as production increased.

This was where the balloons were launched from.

Number of balloons launched:

November 1944: 700
December 1944: 1,200
January 1945: 2,000
February 1945: 2,500
March 1945: 2,500
April 1945: 400
Total: 9,300

Joe.