Japanese air attacks on Australia, 1942-43
| Battle for Australia |
|---|
| Air raids – Darwin – Broome – Coral Sea – Naval attacks – Sydney & Newcastle – Kokoda – Milne Bay |
Between February 1942 and November 1943, during the Pacific War, the Australian mainland, domestic airspace, offshore islands and coastal shipping were attacked at least 97 times by aircraft from the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army Air Force. These attacks came in various forms, from large scale raids by heavy bombers, to torpedo attacks on ships, to strafing runs by fighter planes.
In the first — and deadliest — attacks, 242 planes hit Darwin on the morning of February 19, 1942, killing at least 243 people, causing immense damage, making hundreds of people homeless and causing the abandonment of Darwin as a major naval base. (See the main article: Air raids on Darwin, February 19, 1942.)
These attacks were opposed by — and often aimed at — units and personnel from the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, United States Army Air Forces, US Navy, British Royal Air Force and Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force. Japanese aircrews also targeted civil infrastructure, including harbours, civil airfields, railways and fuel tanks. Many civilians were also killed.
Contents |
List of attacks by date
1942
February
19 (10.00 a.m.) Darwin, Northern Territory (NT)
19 (11.55 a.m.) Darwin, NT
19 Bathurst Island, NT
March
3 (9.20am) Broome, Western Australia (WA). Attack on Broome: a strafing raid by nine Mitsubishi Zeroes. At least 88 were people killed and 24 Allied aircraft were destroyed.
3 (~10.30am) Carnot Bay, WA. PK-AFV (Pelikaan), a Douglas DC-3 airliner owned by KLM, was shot down by Zeroes returning from the attack on Broome. It crash-landed on a beach 80km (50 mi) from Broome. Four passengers were killed. Its cargo included diamonds worth more than £150,000-300,000, and these were lost ot stolen following the crash.
3 Wyndham, (meatworks), WA
3 Wyndham Airfield, WA
4 (2.00 p.m.) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
14 Horn Island, Queensland (Qld)
16 (1.30 p.m.) Darwin RAAF Airfield and Bagot, NT
17 Darwin, NT
18 Horn Island, Qld
19 (11.40 a.m.) Darwin (Myilly Point and Larrakeyah), NT
20 Cape Londonderry, WA. MV Koolama severely damaged.
20 Derby, WA
22 (00.51 a.m.) Darwin, NT
22 Katherine, NT
23 Darwin, NT
23 Wyndham, WA
23 Wyndham, WA
28 (12.30 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
30 (05.40 a.m.?) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
30 Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
31 (1:20 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
31 (10:19 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
April
2 (3:30 pm) Darwin (Harvey St, McMinn St, Shell Oil Tanks), NT
2 Sattler Airfield, NT
4 (1:48 pm) Darwin Civil Airfield and Parap Hotel, NT
5 (12:29 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
25 (2:00 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
27 (12:07 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
30 Horn Island, Qld
May
June
13 (11:52 am) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
14 (1:14 pm) Darwin (town area), NT
15 (12:20 pm) Darwin (Larrakeyah to Stokes Hill), NT
16 (12:01pm) Darwin (town area), NT
26 (8.50 p.m.) Darwin, NT
July
7 Horn Island, Qld
25 (8:50 pm) Darwin (town area), NT
26 Townsville, Qld
26 (9:39-10:54 pm) Darwin (Vesteys Meatworks), NT
27 (10:27 pm) Knuckey's Lagoon, Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
28 (00:45 am) Darwin RAAF airfield, NT
28 Townsville, Qld
29 (00:59 am) Darwin (town area) and Knuckey's Lagoon, NT.
29 Townsville, Qld
30 (03:58 am) Darwin (town area) and Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
30 Horn Island, Qld
30 Port Hedland, WA
30 Cairns, Qld
31 Mossman, Qld
31 (1.33 p.m.) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
August
1 Horn Island, Qld
21 Wyndham, WA
23 (12:12 pm) Hughes Airfield, NT
24 (9:24 pm) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
24 (10:14 pm) Noonamah, NT
25 (00:05 am) Darwin and Parap, NT
27 (03:45-05:37 am) Darwin (Botanical Gardens) and Cox Peninsula, NT
28 (03:35 am) Darwin (Railway Yards and Port Patterson), NT
30 (02:39 am) Darwin (town area), NT
31 (05:14 am) Darwin (town area) and Cox Peninsula), NT
September
25 (03:41 am) Darwin (town area) and Knuckey's Lagoon, NT
25 (05:48 am) Darwin (town area and Daly Street Bridge), NT
26 (05:22 am) Livingstone Airfield, NT
27 (04:56 am) Bynoe Harbour, NT
27 (05:44 am) Darwin (town area) (Frances Bay)
October
10 Horn Island, Qld
24 (04:42 hrs) Batchelor Airfield
24 (04:52 am) Pell Airfield
24 (04:57 am) Cox Peninsula
24 (05:12 am) Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
25 (05:30 am) Darwin (town area) and Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
26 (04:54 am) Darwin (town area) and Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
27 (02:20 am) Darwin (town area) and Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
November
23 (03:00-04:39 am) Darwin (town area) and Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
23 Coomalie Creek Airfield, NT
26 (03.20 a.m.) Darwin (town area), Strauss Airfield and Hughes Airfield, NT
27 (03:56- 04:46 am) Coomalie Creek, Hughes Airfield and Strauss Airfield, NT
December
1943
January
20 (10:44 pm-00:15 am) Searchlight station, AWC Camp, Ironstone, NT
21 (9:54 pm) Darwin (Frances Bay), NT
22 (1.30pm) HMAS Patricia Cam sunk, near Wessel Islands, NT.
February
March
2 (2:34 pm) Coomalie Creek Airfield, NT
15 (11:20 am) Darwin (oil tanks), NT
April
May
2 (10:15 am) Darwin RAAF Airfield and Darwin Floating Dock, NT
9 Millingimbi, NT
10 Millingimbi, NT
20 Exmouth Gulf, WA
21 Exmouth Gulf, WA
28 Millingimbi, NT
June
18 Horn Island, Qld
20 (10:43 am) Winnellie and Darwin RAAF Airfield, NT
28 (11:07 am) Vesteys, NT
30 (12:30pm) Fenton Airfield, NT
July
6 (12:02pm) Fenton Airfield, NT
August
13 (9:45pm) Fenton Airfield, NT
13 (11:12 pm) Fenton Airfield and Coomalie Creek Airfield, NT
13 (11.42 pm) Coomalie Creek Airfield, NT
14 Long Airfield, NT
17 Port Hedland, WA
21 (00:37 am) Fenton Airfield and Coomalie Creek Airfield, NT
21 (03:30 am) Pell Airfield, NT
September
15 (00:25 am) Fenton Airfield and Long Airfield, NT
15 Onslow, WA
18 (03:50 am) Fenton Airfield and Long Airfield, NT
27 Drysdale River Mission (Kalumburu) airfield, WA
October
November
10 Coomalie Creek Airfield, NT
12 (03:53-05:30 am) Parap, Adelaide River and Batchelor Airfield, NT
References
- ozatwar.com, "Japanese Air Raids in Australia During WW2"
- diggerhistory.info "Attacks on the Australian mainland in WW2"
- Australian War Memorial, "Air raids on Australian mainland – Second World War"
- Darwin Defenders 1942-45 Inc, veterans' association's list of 43 air raids (excluding reconnaissance flights)
Categories
Military attacks against Australia | South West Pacific theatre of World War II | Military history of Australia during World War II