MR 203(2) Sec. 32 War Department Operational Summaries - September 1944

MR 203(2), Sec. 32 - WAR DEPARTMENT OPERATIONAL SUMMARIES September, 1944 372 Franklin D. Roosevelt Library MR 203(2) Sec. 32 - WAR DEPARTMENT OPERATIONAL SUMMARIES DECLARAFIED DOO DIA. 5200.9 (9/27/19) Date- 8-2-71 Signature RT. 14 September, 1944 WAR DEPARTMENT DAILY OPERATIONAL SUMMARY No. 1026 0700 September 30 to 0700 October 1, 1944 COPY FOR THE WHITE HOUSE 203( KAMCHATKA PENINSULA ARAIDO-TO TATSUMI-ZAKI KATACKA-WAN SHUMUSHU-TO OTHOTSK OSD Letter, 5-3-72 DECLASSIFIED TO TOMARI-ZAKI OF / SEA PARAMUSHIRO-TO 146° 150° 154° 158° 53" a 53° KAMCHATKA OCEAN PARAMUSHIRO / ONEKOTAN 49° 49 ISLANDS SHIMUSHIRU PACIFIC 45" KURILE URUPPU + SCALE YETOROFU & 6 10 M KURABU-SAKI KUNASHIRI APPROXIMATE MILES 146° 150° 154° 158" 6 4 2 o 2 4 6 8 IO 12 14 16 18 20 KATTEGAT HELGOLAND BAY Kiel 54 52 PEmden Bremen eine + Londoner o OBerlin ORotterdom MUNSTER BIELEFELD 52 HAMM 50 6 oBrussels Cologne OLeipzig 20 Abbeville o Frankfurt Proque 50 48 o Paris ORennes Nancy KARLSRUHE Lafre Decrease O-Tours o Munich 48 Vienna 46 Budapest o Bern o Bolzono 46 4 Lyon Bordeoux 44 Milon o PTrieste o Toulouse Bologno GSD Letter, 5-3-72 RECLASSIFIED O 44 CENTRAL EUROPE Ricer OSplit 42 so o 50 100 ISO 200 P. STATUTE MILES 2 o 2 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 84-87117-300 DECLASSIFIED OSD Letter, 5-3-72 WESTERN HEMISPHERE On 29 September two heavy bombers attacked enemy installations on Shumushu. EUROPEAN THEATER 1. The Allied Expeditionary Air Force flew more than 1,100 sorties in support of ground operations during the 24-hour period ending at sunset, 29 September. Thirty-five enemy aircraft were destroyed; We lost ten planes. During the night 29-30 September, 39 RAF bombers dropped 57 tons of explosives on Karlsruhe; 13 others laid 77 mines in the Kattegat and in Helgoland Bay. The 8th Air Force dispatched 833 escorted bombers on 30 September to attack rail yards at Hamm, an ordnance depot and power station at Bielefeld, and a rail junction at Munster. Preliminary reports indicate that we lost ten bombers. Eight flying bombs reached England during the 24-hour period ending at 0600, 30 September; two penetrated the London area. 2. On 30 September our First Army made small advances southeast of Rotgen and southwest of Prum. Our Third Army repulsed numerous counterattacks and scored minor gains east of the Moselle. In the Seventh Army sector our positions northwest of Belfort were - 1 - TOP COMO BRESCIA MILAN VERONA VENICE PADUA TURIN * CREMONA TOP e ALESSANDRIA FERRARA OPARMA MODENA BOLOGNA GRAVENNA GENOA SAVONA MONOR LOORO EGGC ZUOLO RIMINI SPEZIA SAV GNANO PESARO IMPERIA LINE AS OF 29 SEPTEMBER LUGG LINE AS OF 30 SEPTEMBER PISA FLORENCE PO VALLEY 5-8-78 Letter, 080 DECLASSIFIED LEGHORN 10 o 20 40 60 APPROXIMATE MILES BASE MAP NO. 2804 (FREE) R& A,OSS 4 NOVEMBER 1945 REPRODUCED, 085 DECLASSIFIES OSD Letter, 5-3-72 WESTERN FRONT o 50 75 100 125 150 JJHEGEN MILES TURNTOUT EINDHOVEN ROIGEN PRUM ] 25-2941-20 T DECLASSIFIED 08D Letter, 5-3-72 improved in spite of strong counterattacks. Heavy fighting continued in the Eindhoven-Nijmegen corridor without significant change; British and Polish troops captured a small town four miles northwest of Turnhout. Canadian troops captured Calais, although mopping-up of scattered elements continues. MEDITERRANEAN THEATER 1. Bad weather continued to restrict Mediterranean air operations during 29 September. However, fifty-two fighter bombers attacked rail lines leading south from Milan and shot down one enemy plane. A small mission of Balkan Air Force fighters attacked a town in Yugoslavia. Weather forced cancellation of 15th Air Force operations the next day. 2. By noon, 30 September, British and American troops of the Fifth Army had registered small gains northwest of Lucca and cut the Modena-Lucca highway in two places north and west of Piteglio; elements advancing astride the Florence-Bologna highway pushed to within a mile of Monghidoro. In the Adriatic sector Allied troops strengthened their line along the southern bank of the Fiumicino River and were mopping up in Savignano. ASIATIC THEATER 1. During 27 and 28 September Eastern Air Command planes raided tactical targets in scattered areas from the Arakan coast to - 2 - LEDO PROSHAN Brahmaputro MANIPOR FRONT SHAUP 1001M CHITTAGONG MANDAWAY N. BURMA 0SD Letter, 5-3-72 APPROXIMATE LINE OF CONTACT 25 o 25 50 75 APPROXIMATE MILES AKYAB 24-90057-300 SEA OF JAPAN YELLOW LOYANG SEA NAGASAKI COP SHANGHAI FOOCHOW CHINA OSD Letter, 5-3-72 DECLASSIFIED HONGKONG 100 o 8 200 300 400 500 taxxxx SCALE OF MILES TONGKING SOUTH CHINA SEA GULF - 24-99078-300 PALAU IS BABELTHAUP I A N NETHERLANDS INDIES DARVEL BAY MALE WILDS WEWAK Altopet Marquke QBD Letter, 5-3-72 EXIMISSIONED Derain DECLASSIFIED OSD Letter, 5-3-72 north Burma. Five Japanese planes bombed our Liuchow airfield on the night of 27-28 September; two of our planes were damaged. The next day 27 escorted B-24's of the 14th Air Force attacked Samshui, while 13 lighter aircraft hit the Chuanhsien-Kweilin area. Six P-38's dropped Napalm (flaming oil) bombs on targets in French Indo-China. 2. On 29 September British troops were in contact with the Japanese at Haupi, four miles northeast of Tiddim. PACIFIC AND SOUTHWEST PACIFIC THEATERS 1. On 28 September 40 Solomons-based bombers and fighters raided enemy installations on Bougainville and New Ireland. The next day more than 100 sorties were flown against shipping and land targets in the New Guinea-Timor-Celebes-Mindanao area. These included a 20-ton attack by heavy bombers on an airfield in the Wewak district. A single Navy patrol bomber, operating in the Darvel Bay region, exploded fuel and ammunition dumps, fired docks, and sank a 4,000-ton freighter transport, three smaller freighters and six cargo barges. 2. During 28 September 14 B-24's dumped 33 tons of explosives on Truk; lighter aircraft attacked Taroa and Nauru. The next day a single heavy bomber and more than 20 fighters attacked Pagan, - 3 - DECLASSIFIER 08D Letter, 5-3-72 KAUNAS 0 MINSK LINE 45 29 SEPT LINE AS 30 SEPT BERLIN o GWARSAW o BRESLAU KIEV, PRAGUE KRAKOW MUNICH VIENNA DORGO BUDAPEST, PASS VENICE 5 TURNU SEVERIN BUCHAREST SOFIA OTIRANA MUHU PSKOV RISA EASTERN FRONT KAUNAS 50 o so 100 APPROXIMATE MILES 25-2145-200- DECLASSIFIEB OBD Letter, 5-3-78 TWE i KONGAURU I L NGESEBUS 6 N PELEUV L ANGAUE L. KAMILIARLUM MT. UMURBOBOC LINE AS OF 29 SEP LINE AS OF 30 SEP PELELIU ISLAND 0 8000 3000 SCALE IN YARDS 25-2876-200 TOP SECTIVE DECLASSIFIED OSD Letter, 5-3-72 three B-24's hit Marcus, and fighters raided Wotje and Babelthuap. By 1800, 29 September, Ngesebus and Kongauru had been captured by our troops. On Peleliu mopping-up operations continued on the northern end of the island and on Umurbrogol Mountain. EASTERN FRONT During 30 September clashes occurred between advancing Finnish units and German rearguards in Lapland. Red Army forces landed on Muku Island, off the Estonian mainland. The Soviets forced the Borgo Pass in the eastern Carpathians and established a bridgehead in Yugoslavia, across the Danube opposite Turnu-Severin on a front of approximately 40 miles. - 4 -