Volume Six of this series chronicles aerial warfare in the New Guinea theatre in the critical period of January to March 1943. It can be read alone or as a continuation of the previous five volumes which span the first thirteen months of the Pacific War. January 1943 saw a successful Japanese supply and reinforcement convoy arrive at Lae from Rabaul, in the face of fierce opposition from Allied air power. The fresh troops soon threatened to overrun the Australian mountain stronghold of Wau, before a massive airlift by Fifth Air Force C47s delivered reinforcements just in time. Meanwhile the air war over New Guinea was increasingly fought by newly arrived JAAF units who shared the air war burden alongside their veteran IJN counterparts. Against this background many of the Fifth Air Force bomber squadrons moved up from Australia to Port Moresby. This greatly increased the combat efficiency of these units, enabling, among other things, sustained daily pressure on the Japanese bastion of Rabaul. Then in March 1943 the Japanese sent a second convoy from Rabaul to Lae which resulted in the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, one of the landmark combats of the entire Pacific War. Using refined attack and bombing tactics, Fifth Air Force and RAAF squadrons conducted an allout shipdestroying effort which made world headlines. Never before has this campaign been chronicled in such detail, with Allied and Japanese accounts matched for a factual and thoroughly detailed account of the conflict.

About the Author
Raised in Port Moresby, Michael Claringbould is a globally recognised expert on the Pacific air war and Japanese wartime aviation. A keen aviation historian, Peter is both an author and publisher as the proprietor of Avonmore Books. A former business executive, Peter has travelled widely throughout northern Australia and the South Pacific conducting research for his books. He is the Chairman of the South Australian Aviation Museum History Group.


Book Information
ISBN 9780975642368
Author Michael Claringbould
Format Paperback
Page Count 180
Imprint Avonmore Books
Publisher Avonmore Books