Friday 27 February 1942

HMS Exeter (right, barely visible under the spray) and Australian cruiser HMAS Hobart (D63) under aerial attack by Japanese aircraft in the Battle of Java Sea. The date of this picture has not been positively established may be from 27 February 1942. Or, it may be from an earlier incident on 14-15 February 1942.

Battle of the Pacific: Admiral Karel Doorman has his fleet at sea east of Surabaya in search of a reported Japanese invasion fleet heading for Java on 27 February 1942. After spending all night and all morning in a fruitless search, his ships spot the Japanese ships at about 16:00. within about fifteen minutes, the two fleets are firing guns and torpedoes at each other. Allied cruiser HMS Exeter is hit in the boiler room by a Japanese shell and heads back to Surabaya, and destroyer HNMLS Kortenaer sinks quickly after being hit by a torpedo. A gun battle between Royal Navy destroyer Electra and Japanese light cruiser Jintsū and destroyer Asagumo leads to the loss of Electra (Asagumo is damaged and withdraws). At 18:00, having lost two ships with a third badly damaged, Doorman breaks off the battle and heads west in an attempt to intercept the invasion transport ships. However, on the way, Royal Navy destroyer Jupiter hits a mine and sinks, compounding the damage. The Japanese pursue Doorman and there is another furious gun-and-torpedo battle which leads to the sinking of Dutch cruisers De Ruyter and Java. Doorman goes down with his ship, and only 111 men survive from both ships. Following orders, the only two surviving Allied ships, cruisers Perth and Houston, retreat back to Tanjung Priok.

Dutch flagship De Ruyter, sunk on 27 February 1942.

The Battle of the Java Sea is decisive for the fate of the Netherlands East Indies. While the battle delays the Japanese invasion by the day, that comes at a cost to the Allies of virtually their entire fleet in the Netherlands East Indies (Japanese losses are not known with precision but apparently are very light). The fate of Java is now sealed and the Allies have almost no naval forces left in the region aside from the battered Exeter and a few destroyers. This arguably is the height of Japanese naval power in the Pacific, though a lot of fighting remains.

In this perfectly timed photo, the U.S. Navy seaplane tender USS Langley (AV-3) is torpedoed by USS Whipple (DD-217), after being abandoned, south of Java, 27 February 1942. Naval History and Heritage Command NH 92476 USS LANGLEY (AV-3)

Allied woes at sea on 27 February 1942 do not end there, however. US Navy aircraft carrier USS Langley, the country's first aircraft carrier and now serving as a seaplane tender, is attacked early in the day south of Tjilatjap (Cilacap), West Java, along with US destroyers Whipple and Edsall by sixteen Mitsubishi G4M "Betty" bombers. They are flying out of Denpasar airfield on Bali and are escorted by 15 A6M Reisen "Zero" fighters. While Langley (which is carrying 32 P-40s) evades two bombing runs, it takes five 60- and 250-kg bombs on the third pass and bursts into flames. At 13:32, the crew abandons ship, and the escorting destroyers put two torpedoes into Langley to make sure that the Japanese don't salvage it. The tragedy of the Langley does not end there, either, as many of her surviving crew are on another ship, USS Pecos, when it is sunk while en route to Australia.

Polish soldiers in London, 27 February 1942 (Imperial War Museum).

Eastern Front: In the Crimea, Soviet Lieutenant General Dmitry Timofeyevich Kozlov launches an offensive along a section of the front at the Parpach Narrows at 06:30. The Red Army has 93,804 troops, 1,195 guns and mortars, 125 anti-tank guns, 194 tanks, and 200 aircraft. The offensive begins with a 230-gun artillery barrage, but the shelling is poorly aimed and does little to disrupt the German defenses. The Germans have their 46th and 132nd Infantry Divisions on the 42 Corps front along with the Romanian 18th Infantry Division. The Germans also have Gruppe Hitzfeld in reserve.

The crew of destroyer USS Whipple (DD-217) watches as its torpedo (fired to prevent the ship from falling into enemy hands) strikes USS Langley south of Java (Naval History and Heritage Command NH 92475 USS LANGLEY (AV-3)).

The Germans rely on a hedgehog defense of fortified strongpoints at the villages of Tulumchak, Korpech’, and Koi-Asan. They have built strong fortifications all along the front, and they are aided by warm weather which creates muddy conditions benefiting the defense. The Soviets must advance across a flat, 80-square kilometer plain which exposes them to brutal counter-fire. Soviet tanks, particularly the heavy KV-1s which are slow and make good targets, sink in the mud. Still, the Red Army soldiers take Tulumchak, which is held by the Romanian 18th Infantry Regiment. However, the Germans hold their other two strongpoints at Korpech’ and Koi-Asan after brutal fighting. The Luftwaffe makes 40 Stuka sorties which help to knock out 93 Soviet tanks in total, including 28 KV-1s. The Soviets do make minor gains but at a brutal cost.

Sergeant Hajime Toyoshima (left), Australia’s first Japanese prisoner of war, Bathurst Island, 27 February 1942. Toyoshima piloted of a Zero fighter damaged during the 19 February air raid on Darwin. After being forced to crash-land on Melville Island, Toyoshima was disarmed and captured by Aborigines who took him to Bathurst Island to hand over to Sergeant Leslie Powell (right), 23rd Field Company, Royal Australian Engineers. Powell, who had been sent to maintain demolition installations on the island and was unarmed, used Toyoshima’s service pistol to escort him into captivity.

European Air Operations: RAF Bomber Command sends 68 bombers (33 Wellingtons, 17 Manchesters, and 18 Hampdens) to bomb the Kiel drydock again where Gneisenau is being repaired. However, the weather is cloudy and only 50 bombers even drop their bombs - but where they drop is a mystery because there is no report of damage in Kiel. In another mission, 33 bombers (three Whitleys are lost) attack Wilhelmshaven and heavy cruiser Scharnhorst, but again the weather is poor and only 26 bombers drop their bombs - somewhere - to no effect. Another 15 bombers (11 Hampdens and 4 Manchesters) lay mines off the Frisian Islands.

The Luftwaffe bombs and sinks 269-ton British coaster Fernside off Banff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland.

Tanker R.P. Resor, sunk on 27 February 1942.

Battle of the Atlantic: U-578 (KrvKpt. Ernst-August Rehwinkel), on its third patrol out of St. Nazaire, torpedoes and sinks 7451-ton tanker R.P. Resor about 20 miles east of Manasquan Inlet, New Jersey. The torpedo hits at 06:36 and ignites oil which sprays into all along the ship. The flames make abandoning ship almost impossible, and the sole lifeboat that can be launched is burned up. There are only two survivors of the 50 men on board. The ship stays afloat at an extreme angle, but the stern grounds in 122 feet of water when it is taken under tow and the ship sinks on 1 March.

U-432 (Kptlt. Heinz-Otto Schultze), on its fourth patrol out of La Pallice, torpedoes and sinks independent 8215-ton US tanker Marore about 3.5 miles off Wimble Shoals near Cape Hatteras. Captain Schultze then surfaces and begins the shelling the ship. The crew of the Marore abandons ship just in time. All 39 men survive.

U-156 (Kptlt. Werner Hartenstein), on its second patrol out of Lorient, uses its damaged deck gun (which exploded during a surface attack on the island of Aruba) sinks 2498-ton British freighter Macgregor about 15 miles northeast of Cabo Frances Viejo, Dominican Republic. Hartenstein follows the freighter for 16 hours until moonrise allows him to make his attack. The U-boat's gun erupts from 1600 yards at 22:35 and the first shot kills or wounds the freighter's gun crew. The Macgregor is able to send a distress signal before the guns destroy the freighter's bridge. After 35 minutes, the freighter is ablaze and the crew abandons ship. Amazingly, only one man on the Macgregor perishes, hit by the opening shot from U-156. There are 30 survivors.

Italian freighter Tembien, sunk off Tripoli on 27 February 1942.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Italian forces based on Rhodes launch a major counterattack against British commandos trying to take Kastelorizo in Operation Abstention. The weather is poor, making the landings difficult, but Ammiraglio di Divisione (Vice Admiral) Luigi Biancheri manages to land enough troops from gunboats Lupo, Lince, MAS 546, and MAS 561to isolate the poorly equipped British troops. During the afternoon, destroyers Crispi and Sella also land more troops to bring the total Italian Army presence to 258 soldiers and 80 marines. Now outnumbered, the commandos retreat to Nifti Point, harassed by naval gunfire by Lupo. Offshore, the Royal Navy makes a half-hearted attempt to intervene but can't locate the Italian ships. The British intend to land reinforcements on destroyer Rosaura, but the heavy Italian naval presence is calling that into doubt. Operation Abstention has become a muddled fiasco, but the British are determined to take the island and thus send more troops from Alexandria to land on the 28th.

Royal Navy Submarine HMS Upholder torpedoes and sinks 5584-ton Italian freighter Tembien about 24 miles (40 km) from the Tripoli lighthouse.

The Bruneval radar station.

Special Operations: The British execute Operation Biting, an overnight raid on German coastal radar installations in northern France. After several days of poor weather, conditions are right for aircraft of RAF No. 51 Squadron based at RAF Thruxton to drop "C" Company of the 2nd Parachute Battalion at Bruneval, France. The Commandos take the cutting-edge Wurzburg radar installation by force, killing one German guard and taking two others as prisoners. Rather than destroying the equipment, the Commandos remove it and take key pieces to the nearby beach on special trolleys. However, the Commandos find the beach to be under enemy fire, so they return to the installation and, after a fierce firefight with German troops, re-occupy it while other troops clear the beach. Six Royal Navy landing craft then appear on schedule and the entire force (less six Commandos who get lost) board and return to England. The Commandos lose two killed and eight wounded, while the Germans lose 5 killed, two wounded, and five missing men. The raid is both a technical and propaganda success for the British and leads to the expansion of British airborne forces. British scientists use the equipment to develop radar countermeasures, including "Window" (chaff), that are highly effective in later air raids. The British will erect a memorial to the Biting raid at Bruneval.

Short S23 C-Class S.849, Empire Flying Boat, A18-12 G-AEUG "Coogee" VH-ABC (see above photo) of 33 Squadron RAAF crashes on landing in Cleveland Bay near Townsville on 27 February 1942. Six RAAF crew perish and are buried at Townsville War Cemetery.

US/Mexican Relations: President Roosevelt signs an executive order establishing a Joint Mexican-U.S. Defense Commission.

British/Venezuelan Relations: Great Britain cedes Patos Island to Venezuela. This is one of Britain's oldest possessions in the New World, dating to 1628 and being part of the colony of Trinidad and Tobago. In exchange, the Venezuela government gives Trinidad and Tobago Soldado Rock. The two islands are or will become national parks and are of no strategic importance.

HMS Duke of York at sea, 27 February 1942. © IWM (A 7556).

US Military: US Navy ship Sea Witch deposits 27 crated P-40s at Tjilatjap, Java. With the Japanese about to invade, it is doubtful that they can be prepared in time to enter combat.

US Government: There is a tense Cabinet meeting at the White House about Japanese internment. At the meeting, representatives of the US Army claim that ethnic Japanese in the Hawaiian Islands will all have to be brought to the mainland for internment. President Roosevelt disagrees and wishes them to be interned on Molokai. The issue is left unresolved, but eventually, the Army's position will prevail.

A formation of Japanese bombers attacking warships during the Battle of the Java Sea, as seen from the Australian cruiser, HMAS Hobart, February 1942. Australian War Memorial P02620.005.

British Homefront: British physicist and radio astronomer James Stanley Hey discovers radio emissions coming from the Sun. This is a major development in the field of radio astronomy - the study of celestial objects at radio frequencies. Hey's discovery is related directly to the war, as he realizes today that complaints from the RAF of jamming of anti-aircraft radars are not the result of German actions, but are natural phenomenon from the Sun.

American Homefront: Scientist Edwin Hubble publishes an article, "The Problem of the Expanding Universe," in Science magazine. Hubble writes that he has validated scientist Albert Einstein's General Theory of Relativity by proving that light takes longer than it should to arrive at earth from distant galaxies. The reason is that the universe is expanding. The theory of the expanding universe is one of the cornerstones of modern cosmology. The question of how fast the universe is expanding remains unresolved to this day.

Armorers reloading a Messerschmitt Bf 109E of Jagdgeschwader 27 (JG27), North Africa, February 1942.

February 1942

February 1, 1942: The US Navy Strikes Back
February 2, 1942: Germans Recovering in Russia
February 3, 1942: Japanese Shell and Bomb Singapore
February 4, 1942: Battle of Makassar Strait
February 5, 1942: Empress of Asia Sunk
February 6, 1942: The Christmas Island Body
February 7, 1942: The Double-V Campaign
February 8, 1942: Japan Invades Singapore
February 9, 1942: French Liner Normandie Capsizes
February 10, 1942: US Car Production Ends
February 11, 1942: Tomforce Fails on Singapore
February 12, 1942: The Channel Dash
February 13, 1942: Japanese Paratroopers In Action
February 14, 1942: RAF Orders Terror Raids
February 15, 1942: Japan Takes Singapore
February 17, 1942: Indian Troops Defect to Japanese
February 18, 1942: Battle of Badung Strait
February 19, 1942: FDR Authorizes Internment Camps
February 20, 1942: O'Hare the Hero
February 21, 1942: Crisis in Burma
February 22, 1942: Bomber Harris Takes Over
February 23, 1942: Bombardment of Ellwood, California
February 24, 1942: US Raid on Wake Island
February 25, 1942: Battle of Los Angeles
February 26, 1942: Gneisenau Eliminated
February 27, 1942: Battle of Java Sea
February 28, 1942: Battle of Sunda Strait

2020

Tuesday 24 February 1942

Douglas SBD-3 Dauntlesses on the deck of USS ENTERPRISE (CV-6) prepare for the Wake Island Raid, 24 February 1942. USS Northampton is visible in the background (colorized, US Navy).

Battle of the Pacific: The evacuation of Java picks up steam on 24 February 1942 as reports flood in of a Japanese convoy heading southwest in the Strait of Makassar. All US Army Air Force bombers are ordered to fly to Australia, and any that cannot fly are to be destroyed. The order comes none too soon, as during the day Japanese bombers attack the Bandoeng airfield and destroy three B-17 Flying Fortresses on the ground. Japanese bombers are in action and they sink 7117-ton Dutch freighter Kota Radja at Surabaya and lightly damage Royal Navy heavy cruiser HMS Exeter and Australian light cruiser HMAS Hobart.

"View taken aboard USS ENTERPRISE (CV-6) showing Grumman F4F-3 Wildcats preparing for takeoff." Naval History and Heritage Command.

US Navy Task Force 16 (Vice Admiral William F. Halsey) raids Wake Island. Bombing Squadron Six and Torpedo Squadron Six send their SBD Dauntlesses and TBD Devastators from USS Enterprise. Heavy cruisers USS Northampton and Salt Lake City chip in some SOC-1 Seagulls to bomb the island. Northampton and Salt Lake City stand offshore and shell the atoll under the command of Rear Admiral Raymond A. Spruance. The attack sinks two Japanese patrol boats and two Kawanishi H6K4 Navy Type 97 Flying Boats. In the air, F4F Wildcats shoot down a third Kawanishi flying boat. There are still many American POWs on Wake Island, and to their number is added the crew of an SBD Dauntless that is shot down over the island. For security reasons, this raid is not announced by the Navy until 25 March.

US Navy submarine USS Swordfish continues its evacuation of highly placed individuals in the Philippines. Having already evacuated Manuel Quezon, today it embarks U.S. High Commissioner to the Philippine Islands Francis B. Sayre and his party of 12, plus five sailors, at Manila Bay. Swordfish heads for Fremantle, Western Australia, due to the ongoing evacuation at Java.

"Wake Island Raid, 24 February 1942. Crewman readies rear-cockpit 30 Cal MG. Mount on a Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless prior to the launching of airstrikes against Wake. View taken on board USS Enterprise (CV 6)." National Archives photograph, 80-G-66279.

The after-effects of the 19 February air raid are still being felt in Darwin, Australia. Three-masted 1894-ton iron sailing ship Kelat, requisitioned by the Australian Navy and used as a collier, sinks unexpectedly at anchor. This sinking comes as a surprise and is likely due to everyone involved being fully engaged in repairing other damage and simply forgetting to run the ship's pumps.

As they have done previously, the Japanese perform some surreptitious aerial reconnaissance over Pearl Harbor. Japanese submarine HIJMS I-9 sends its Yokosuka E14Y1 Navy Type 0 Small Reconnaissance Seaplane over the naval base. As in previous overflights, this one goes undetected by the US military.

The Melbourne, Australia, Argus reports on the recent Darwin air aid, 24 February 1942.

Eastern Front: The weather is improving on 24 February 1942, and this helps the Luftwaffe airlift to the Demyansk and Kholm pockets. The Luftwaffe is using all of its transport planes and many bombers in this airlift, and the supplies are just barely keeping the garrisons fighting. Neither side really has the initiative at this point, but, strangely, both sides think they have it.

European Air Operations: The RAF sends 42 Hampdens and 9 Manchester bombers on minelaying operations near the Frisian Islands and off Whilehlmshaven and Heligoland. Two Hampdens fail to return. An additional five bombers drop leaflets on France and Belgium.

The wrecks of Luftwaffe aircraft in a British scrapyard, 24 February 1942. Types visible are Junkers Ju 88, Heinkel He 111 and Messerschmitt Bf 109E (Dennis Richards: Royal Air Force 1939–1945. Volume I: The Fight at Odds; London, HMSO, 1953).

Battle of the Atlantic: U-boats have a big day in the North Atlantic on the Convoy routes. About 420 miles southeast of St. John's, Newfoundland, several U-boats spot Convoys ONS-67 and ON-66. They are part of Wolfpack Rochen. It is a very confusing day in the North Atlantic, with multiple U-boats firing torpedo spreads into different convoys and many hits scored - but which ships are hit by which U-boat can be difficult to pin down. Different sources may give different U-boats credit for some sinkings.

U-158 (Kptlt. Erwin Rostin), on its first patrol out of Heligoland, attacks ONS-67 at 08:55. His victim is the 8032-ton British tanker Empire Celt, which is hit by two torpedoes. There are six dead and 47 survivors. The Empire Celt eventually breaks in two, with the stern portion remaining afloat at least until 4 March. U-158 later damages 8146-ton British tanker Diloma at 10:35 with one torpedo, but the tanker is able to make it to Halifax under reduced power. All 60 people on Diloma survive.

MV Eidanger, sunk on 24 February 1942.

U-558 (Kptlt. Günther Krech), on its sixth patrol out of Brest, joins the party at 06:51 and ultimately sinks two ships and damages a third (which another U-boat later sinks):

• 8009-ton British tanker Anadara (damaged, then sunk)
• 5578-ton British freighter Inverarder
• 9432-ton Norwegian tanker Eidanger

U-558's first attack is on Eidanger, which is hit by one torpedo but remains afloat. At 09:50, it attacks the convoy again and damages 8009-ton British tanker Anadara, sinks 5578-ton freighter Inverarder, and put another torpedo into 9432-ton tanker Eidanger. All 62 people on the Anadara perish when it is finished off by U-587 (Kptlt. Ulrich Borcherdt) later in the day. Tanker Eidanger takes hours to sink, so U-558 puts another two torpedoes into it at 15:40 to finish it off. Meanwhile, all 42 people on Inverarder survive despite the fact that it sinks fairly quickly. All 39 people on the Eidanger survive. Those are how things break in the North Atlantic, whether you survive depends on which ship you are on, and not whether it sinks right away.

7005-ton freighter Empire Hail is torpedoed and sunk at 01:45 east of St. John's. This sinking is usually ascribed to U-94 (Kptlt. Herbert Kuppisch), but this may not be accurate. In any event, all 49 men on board perish. These convoy battles can become quite difficult to break down and figure out exactly which U-boat sank which ship. Empire Hail either is a straggler or has been dispersed from Convoy ON-66.

Norlavore, sunk on or about 24 February 1942.

U-432 (Kptlt. Heinz-Otto Schultze) on its fourth patrol out of La Pallice, might be the U-boat that sinks 2713-ton US freighter Norlavore off the east coast of the United States (this sinking is a mystery). Norlavore, on a journey between Baltimore and Puerto la Cruz, Venezuela, is reported missing on 24 February 1942. There is heavy weather in the area, so the sinking may be related to that. Nobody survives, and it is not certain how many were aboard.

U-752 (Kptlt. Karl-Ernst Schroeter), on its fourth patrol and en route from Bergen to La Pallice, reports torpedoing a tanker in Convoy HX 175. However, it is unclear which ship is involved, if any.

Paris-soir newspaper, 24 February 1942.

Battle of the Mediterranean: Fighting on land has quieted down, but the war at sea is never-ending. RAF Squadron No. 830, based on Malta, attacks Axis shipping off Tripoli. No ships are damaged or sunk, but the British lose a Swordfish when it is shot down. The crew perishes.

Battle of the Black Sea: Soviet submarine Shch-213 sinks two ships near the mouth of the Bosphorus. One is the Struma, discussed below. The other is 454-ton Turkish naval auxiliary Cancaya, off Kara Burnu. Everyone survives.

Stjepan Filipovićin on the gallows (United States Holocaust Museum).

Partisans: Axis forces capture Yugoslav communist Stjepan Filipovićin in Valjevo (now Serbia). After a quick trial, he is hanged on 27 March 1942, aged 26. He is named a National Hero of Yugoslavia on 14 December 1949. He is best remembered for his defiant stance on the gallows when he holds his arms up high and shouts (in his native language) "Death to fascism, freedom to the people!"

Spy Stuff: The Soviets and Germans have been vying for the support of Turkey, and today the Soviet NKVD decides to do something about it in a very roundabout way. They sponsor a Macedonian student in Ankara to assassinate German Ambassador to Turkey Franz von Papen. Exactly why the Soviets want to assassinate von Papen is a mystery, because he is not particularly influential within the Third Reich's upper reaches, but maybe they don't know that. The Soviets may be trying to impress the Turks with their ability to affect events in Turkey. Perhaps they just figure that a former German Chancellor (for about five months in 1932) is a worthy target. The student, in a scene somewhat foreshadowing a latter assassination attempt on Reinhard Heydrich, first tries to shoot von Papen. When that fails, he tries to blow von Papen up. Unfortunately for the student and the Soviets, the student mistimes his throw of the bomb and it explodes in his hand, killing him. Von Papen thus continues on as ambassador and is credited with some diplomatic moves that don't sway the Turks to the Axis but do at least keep it neutral.

A Luftwaffe aerial reconnaissance photo of Sevastopol on 24 February 1942. The Red Army continues to hold out in Sevastopol against General Manstein's 11th Army (Federal Archive Picture 168-278-015).

Propaganda: Voice of America (VOA) makes its first broadcast from New York City via short-wave radio. This first show by announcer William Harlan Hale is in German, who opens it by saying:

Here speaks a voice from America. Every day at this time we will bring you the news of the war. The news may be good. The news may be bad. We shall tell you the truth.

VOA is intended for non-US audiences and is designed to give the Allied version of facts and to counter enemy propaganda. While perhaps not as influential as the nightly BBC broadcasts to Occupied Europe, VOA at least provides a face to the United States war effort there. This begins a long history of VOA throughout the Cold War that continues to this day, now broadcast in English and fifty-two other languages.

Applied Technology: Apparently for the first time, the US military becomes interested in the new medium of television. The Bureau of Aeronautics of the US Navy begins the process of procuring television equipment that is capable of operating from airplanes. The Navy isn't quite sure what to do with television but has vague plans to use it for radio-controlled remote operation of weapons and aircraft.

Third Officer John Norie and the senior cadet of the motor tanker Anadara. Later sunk with the loss of all hands (Wreck Site).

US/British Relations: Brand new (launched on 18 July 1942) escort carrier USS St. George (CVE-17) is transferred under Lend-Lease to the Royal Navy, which renames it HMS Pursuer (D73).

US Military: Major General Joseph Stilwell, Commanding General American Army Forces, China, Burma, and India, completes his journey from the United States to Karachi (now in Pakistan).

Under orders to head to India, U.S. Major General Lewis Brereton and his staff board two bombers and depart Melbourne, Victoria. Brereton's new position is as commander of the10th Air Force.

The USAAF makes big progress in building up its assets in Australia.

• Headquarters, 3rd Bombardment Group (8th, 13th, 89th, and 90th Bombardment Squadrons) arrives in Brisbane, Australia with A-20s. 
• Headquarters, the 22nd Bombardment Group (Medium) (2nd, 19th, and 33rd Squadrons and 10th Reconnaissance Squadron) with B-26s;
• Headquarters, 38th Bombardment Group (Medium) (70th and 71st Squadrons and 15th Reconnaissance Squadron with B-26s)
• 35th and 39th Pursuit Squadrons (both Interceptor), flying P-39s.

USAAF forces in Australia at this time are under the command of U.S. Major General George H. Brett, deputy commander of the ABDA Command.

The 503rd and 504th Parachute Infantry Battalions are joined together to form the 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. This unit later becomes famous in England as the "Red Devils." As a result of its renown, it will be allowed to wear a distinctive maroon beret that ultimately becomes standard wear for all paratroopers.

Troops of one of the Indian mule pack companies watering their mules at drinking troughs in a camp in Lebanon, 24 February 1942. Exact location unknown. © IWM (E 8771).

Chinese Government: Following his two-week visit to India with his wife, Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek arrives in Kunming on his way back to Chungking.

Holocaust: About 781 (this number has changed over time due to scholarship) Jewish refugees are drifting in the Black Sea off Yam Burnu in 240-ton Panamanian freighter MV Struma en route from Romania to Mandatory Palestine when disaster strikes. Soviet submarine Shch-213 torpedoes Struma, whose engines have failed, killing all of the refugees but one (David Stoliar) plus all 10 crewmen. The Soviet sub is under secret orders to sink all neutral and enemy shipping entering the Black Sea as part of a blockade of the region. Stollar eventually makes it to Palestine and passes away in 2014. Among other things, the Struma disaster becomes a rallying cry within Israel (after it is established) and a subject of recriminations within the British government.

"The wrecks of Luftwaffe aircraft in a British scrapyard, 24 February 1942. The fuselage of a Junkers Ju 88 is being lifted by a crane." © IWM (E (MOS) 56).

Norwegian Homefront: Norwegian satrap Vidkun Quisling is finding resistance to his rule in unusual places. His government has demanded that the bishops of the Lutheran Church publicly proclaim their allegiance to Quisling's puppet government. Rather than accede to this demand, the bishops begin to resign on 24 February 1942. They are led by Dr. Berggray, Bishop of Oslo, who resigns today, and all others follow on 2 March 1942. Displeased, Quisling suspends the bishops (which is overkill, as they have resigned) and appoints loyalists in their places. This is a key step in a long battle between the leaders of the local church, the judiciary, and other prestigious organizations to Quisling's rule.

German Homefront: Anton Drexler, who founded the German Worker's Party (DAP) which ultimately became the NSDAP on 24 February 1920, passes away from natural causes in Munich on 24 February 1942. Drexler, an almost forgotten historical figure, was the co-founder of the DAP in Munich on 5 January 1919. In September 1919, Drexler noticed a new member in the audience who got into a loud argument with another attendee. Impressed by this stranger, Drexler went up to the man, gave him a pamphlet, and encouraged him to join the DAP. The man was Adolf Hitler, and this was his first contact with the organization. Hitler received approval from his army superiors to join the DAP and quickly began raising its profile. Hitler did not replace Drexler as leader until July 1921. After that, Drexler left the party completely in 1923 and faded into obscurity. However, Drexler did later reestablish a minor connection with the NSDAP, though he never again attained any power.

Moses Anger, who is registered at Auschwitz on 24 February 1942. He will perish there on 3 March 1942 (Auschwitz Memorial).

American Homefront: Just as automobile manufacturers have converted to production of military vehicles, gun manufacturers cease all production today of civilian 12-gauge shotguns and retool for military production.

Future History: Joseph Isadore Lieberman is born in Stamford, Connecticut. After graduating from Yale University Law School, Joe (as everyone calls him) embarks on a legal career, then embarks on a political career. He is elected to the Connecticut Senate in 1970, where he serves for a decade, then serves as Connecticut Attorney General from 1983 to 1989. After that, Lieberman serves as US Senator from Connecticut from 1989 to 2013. Lieberman wins the 2006 Senate race running as an Independent rather than on his typical Democratic Party line. Lieberman is instrumental in the creation of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in 2002. Since leaving the Senate, Joe Lieberman has remained active in politics.

Paul Pond is born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England. As Paul Jones, he becomes a popular radio personality in Great Britain, including presenting "The Blues Show" on BBC Radio 2 for 32 years up until April 2018. Paul Jones also records numerous albums, from "My Way" in 1966 (including the hit song "High Time") to "Suddenly I Like It" in 2015. Paul Jones remains active as of 2019.

Patricia Joanne "Jenny" O'Hara is born in Sonora, California. She becomes a noted stage, film, and television actress in the United States. She is particularly noted for being on numerous popular television series beginning in 1975 and continuing up to the time of this writing, though never becoming a celebrity. Jenny O'Hara remains active as an actress.

Abraham Bienenstock, registered at Auschwitz on 24 February 1942. He will perish there on 28 February 1942.

February 1942

February 1, 1942: The US Navy Strikes Back
February 2, 1942: Germans Recovering in Russia
February 3, 1942: Japanese Shell and Bomb Singapore
February 4, 1942: Battle of Makassar Strait
February 5, 1942: Empress of Asia Sunk
February 6, 1942: The Christmas Island Body
February 7, 1942: The Double-V Campaign
February 8, 1942: Japan Invades Singapore
February 9, 1942: French Liner Normandie Capsizes
February 10, 1942: US Car Production Ends
February 11, 1942: Tomforce Fails on Singapore
February 12, 1942: The Channel Dash
February 13, 1942: Japanese Paratroopers In Action
February 14, 1942: RAF Orders Terror Raids
February 15, 1942: Japan Takes Singapore
February 17, 1942: Indian Troops Defect to Japanese
February 18, 1942: Battle of Badung Strait
February 19, 1942: FDR Authorizes Internment Camps
February 20, 1942: O'Hare the Hero
February 21, 1942: Crisis in Burma
February 22, 1942: Bomber Harris Takes Over
February 23, 1942: Bombardment of Ellwood, California
February 24, 1942: US Raid on Wake Island
February 25, 1942: Battle of Los Angeles
February 26, 1942: Gneisenau Eliminated
February 27, 1942: Battle of Java Sea
February 28, 1942: Battle of Sunda Strait

2020

Saturday 21 February 1942

HMS Graph during sea trials off the Clyde, 19-21 February 1942. The Graph was U-570 before being captured. © IWM (A 9817).

Battle of the Pacific: In Burma, the Japanese win the race for Sittang Bridge near Mokpalin in a chaotic scene on 21 February 1942. A hodgepodge of British units holds the bridge against attacks while retreating Allied troops try to reach it. Due to Japanese infiltration, they wind up attacking both the eastern and western ends of the bridge, stretching the defending troops. The Japanese are so strong that they beat back the 3rd and 5th Gurkhas approaching from the east in hand-to-hand combat. The day ends with the British barely holding the bridge itself but little else in the area. They are in danger of having to destroy the bridge with most of the 17th Division still on the other side.

Meanwhile, the 16th Indian Brigade and 46th Indian Infantry Brigade of the Indian 17th Division are stuck on a hot, dusty road in their retreat from the Bilin River. They are harassed by Japanese fighters strafing the road and setting vehicles alight and also short of essentials like water. The Japanese reach the division's headquarters at Kyaikto, which barely holds out while it prepared to evacuate. The retreating column loses its discipline, with some men abandoning the road and taking refuge in the nearby Bogyagi Rubber Estate. Many men form up into small units or proceed alone through the jungle, always in danger of being spotted by Japanese snipers or running into ambushes. The American Volunteer Group (AVG) "Flying Tigers" now operate out of Rangoon. The First Squadron successfully attacks Tak Aerodrome at Rahaeng, destroying a fighter and two bombers. In general, the AVG pilots can establish aerial superiority over critical areas when necessary. However, when they try to help out the retreating 17th Division today, the Flying Tigers mistakenly attack some of the men they are trying to help on the road, killing 160 of them and only adding to the horrific scene of blazing vehicles and dying men.

The 21 February 1942 New York Times features General MacArthur ("The Army reports that this is believed to be the most recent picture") on the front page. He is a symbol of United States resistance to Japanese aggression. Unkown to Times readers, today the War Department orders MacArthur to leave Bataan and eventually head to Australia.

In the Philippines, the fighting along the Main Line of Resistance (MLR) has died down as the Japanese bring in reinforcements for the final drive into the Bataan Peninsula. There is an eerie quiet as the Japanese pull back all of their outposts from the river in order to reorganize. General Douglas MacArthur receives orders from the War Department to follow Manuel Quezon to Mindanao and then proceed to Australia to take command of all Allied forces in the Southwest Pacific (a role now filled by default by Major General George H. Brett, Deputy Commanding General ABDA Command). MacArthur very briefly considers resigning his command and remaining as a private, but reconsiders and decides to follow orders. The Japanese have blocked most shipping from reaching Bataan, but submarines can still make the journey, and blockade runner Elcano makes it through today with half a ton of supplies for Corregidor.

Java remains the Allies' bastion in the Netherlands East Indies, but it is basically surrounded now that the Japanese have taken the islands around it. The decision of Australia to divert its men to the homeland also is reducing Allied options. General Brett tells the War Department, which still feels that the Allies can hold Java, that he is evacuating the Fifth Air Force and other troops from Java back to Australia. Today, USAAF Fifth Air Force bombers based at Surabaya, Java, attack on Japanese shipping and on Japanese positions on Bali which are thought to be preparing an invasion of Java. ABDA Commander General Archibald Wavell also informs his superiors that Java will soon be lost.

USS Growler (SS-215) off Groton, Connecticut (USA), on 21 February 1942 (Naval History and Heritage Command).

The Allies have a small success on Dutch West Timor, where Australian commandos retreating from Portuguese East Timor attack the village of Babau at dawn. After a fierce struggle, they take the village by sunset. However, this is of little strategic significance, as the Australians are fleeing from the Japanese further east and are simply trying to escape back to Allied lines.

The Sook Ching Massacre continues in Singapore. The Japanese execute an unknown number of men of Chinese ethnicity in various locations.

US Navy submarine USS Triton (Lieutenant Commander Willis A. "Pilly" Lent, SS-201), on its second patrol out of Pearl Harbor in the East China Sea, intercepts two Japanese freighters. It hits Shokyu Maru with two torpedoes but is chased off by a four-engine seaplane. Shokyu Maru sinks about sixty miles south of Quelpart (Jeju) Island.

Collier's, 21 February 1942.

Eastern Front: The Red Air Force has landed about 3000 troops inside the pocket south of Vyazma within the past couple of days. The Soviet planes fly through foul weather that the Luftwaffe considers too dangerous. These Soviet troops immediately begin consolidating their position rather than trying to expand it. The German V Panzer Corps in Vyazma watches the Soviets but does not have to do much fighting. Both sides at this time consider themselves to hold the initiative, but, somewhat perversely, neither side is acting on it. While the Germans do have sketchy control of areas all around the new Soviet arrivals, they know that the Red Army could punch through back to the East if they want to. However, the Soviet troops don't want to.

A Luftwaffe reconnaissance photo of Sevastopol, Crimea, taken on 21 February 1942. The arrow points to a Soviet Navy torpedo depot. The Red Army continues to hold Sevastopol, though it is surrounded on its landward approaches by General Manstein's 11th Army (Federal Archive Bild 168-278-017).

After considering a request for a withdrawal by Fourth Army for several days, the German Army Command (OKH) tells Fourth Army commander General Heinrici that he can begin building a fallback position on the Ugra River. However, OKH still refuses to approve giving up Yukhnov, which is the entire point of the exercise. That must await final approval from Hitler, and nobody wants to ask him. Given the unexpectedly unaggressive behavior of the Soviet paratroopers south of Vyazma, the Germans have the luxury of a long period of deliberation about this.

European Air Operations: The British learn that heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen has moved to a fjord near Trondheim, so during the day they send 15 bombers (6 Halifax, 5 Manchester, and 4 Stirling bombers) to attack Norwegian airfields. This is to prepare for a Fleet Air Arm raid by the aircraft carrier HMS Victorious on Prinz Eugen. However, the weather is poor and little is accomplished. The British lose one Manchester.

After dark, RAF Bomber Command sends 22 Wellington and 20 Hampden bombers over Germany in search of targets of opportunity. The RAF loses two Hampdens and one Wellington.

Circe Shell, sunk on 21 February 1942.

Battle of the Atlantic: Heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen, the heavy cruiser Admiral Scheer, and the destroyers Richard Beitzen, Paul Jakobi, Z25, Hermann Schoemann, and Friedrich Ihn leave Brunsbüttel and head to Norway. They stop briefly at Grimstadfjord, then head further north to Trondheim. Prinz Eugen is one of the three large German warships that made the successful Channel Dash on 12 February 1942, and the British are keeping a close eye on it in an attempt to sink it and salvage some of their reputation for naval supremacy. The RAF launches airstrikes on Norwegian airfields in order to prepare for a raid on the ships.

The Kriegsmarine continues Operation Neuland in the Caribbean to great effect on 21 February 1942. While not as famous as Operation Paukenschlag along the east coast of the United States, Operation Neuland is very successful and greatly complicates the situation facing the United States Navy.

Norwegian tanker Kongsgaard, sunk on 21 February 1942.

U-67 (Kptlt. Günther Müller-Stöckheim), on its third patrol out of Lorient, sinks 9467-ton Norwegian tanker Kongsgaard about seven (11 km) miles west of Noordpunt, Curaçao. The attack takes place on the unescorted Kongsgaard at 15:32 when two torpedoes hit. The tanker immediately becomes a blazing inferno but takes several hours to sink, so U-67 fires two more torpedoes, one of which hits at 19:30. Due to the flames, the crew is only able to launch one lifeboat. There are 37 dead and nine survivors.

U-161 (Kptlt. Albrecht Achilles), on its second patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes 8207-ton British tanker Circe Shell about 20 miles northwest of Port of Spain, Trinidad. The tanker takes a long time to sink, so U-161 waits until dark when it is safe from Allied aircraft and fires a final torpedo at 01:41 on the 22nd to finish it off. There is one dead and 57 survivors.

Azalea City (shown) is lost with all hands on 21 February 1942.

U-432 (Kptlt. Heinz-Otto Schultze), on its fourth patrol out of La Pallice, torpedoes and sinks 5529-ton independent US freighter Azalea City about 125 miles southeast of Ocean City, Maryland. Two of three torpedoes fired over more than an hour hit the freighter, which quickly sinks at 02:42. There are 38 dead and no survivors. Since there are no survivors, it is only assumed that this incident involved the Azalea City, but the facts match up.

U-107 (Oblt. Harald Gelhaus), on its fifth patrol out of Lorient, torpedoes and damages 10,068-ton Norwegian tanker Egda in the mid-Atlantic south of Newfoundland. The tanker has been dispersed from Convoy ON-65. Two torpedoes hit, but they only cause a list to port that is corrected by counterflooding (tankers are notoriously difficult to sink due to their unique construction). Gelhaus runs out of torpedoes after firing one more that misses, so Egda is able to continue on to Halifax. There are no dead and 40 survivors.

U-156, which opened Operation Neuland by shelling an oil installation on Aruba, docks at Vichy French port Martinique in order to offload an injured man. This causes a diplomatic incident between the United States and Vichy France (see below).

HMS Graph, formerly U-570, undergoing trials in the Clyde on 19-21 February 1942. "The casing party heaving in on the capstan." © IWM (A 9881).

Battle of the Mediterranean: Military Governor Dobbie further restricts food and fuel rations to the civilian population. He warns London in a telegram that "we have reached a critical point in the maintenance of Malta." There are several Luftwaffe attacks during the day, including attacks on Kalafrana, Hal Far, Luqa, and Ta Qali. The attacks continue throughout the day and into the night with little let-up.

US/Vichy France Relations: French Vice Premier Admiral Jean Darlan tells US Ambassador Admiral William D. Leahy USN (Retired), about the emergency visit by U-156 today to the Vichy French port of Martinique. Leahy warns Darlan (as he writes in his diary) that the United States is prepared to:

take such action in the interest of security of the Western Hemisphere as it may judge necessary and in accordance with existing inter-American obligations.

Leahy is still waiting for a reply to his request to be recalled from France, where he feels very unwanted. The United States has no plans to occupy Martinique at this time, so Leahy is bluffing when he suggests that the United States is ready to act. However, the French Navy has large ships there, including the one-off aircraft carrier Bearn, so it is keeping a close eye on the port.

The New Yorker, 21 February 1942.

Chinese/Indian Relations: Winding up a two-week trip to India, Chinese leader Chiang Kai-shek prepares a farewell message for his wife (who speaks English after majoring in English literature at Wellesley) to broadcast over the radio. Chiang urges unity among the Allies:

In these horrible times of savagery and brute force, the people of China and their brethren the people of India should, for the sake of civilization and human freedom, give their united support to the principles embodied in the Atlantic Charter and in the joint declaration of the 26 nations, and ally themselves with the anti-aggression front. I hope the Indian people will wholeheartedly join the allies-namely, China, Great Britain, America, and the Soviet Union-and participate shoulder to shoulder in the struggle for survival of a free world until complete victory has been achieved and the duties incumbent upon them in these troubled times have been fully discharged.

After this speech, the couple returns to China.

US Military: With President Roosevelt's Executive Order 9066 in effect, Secretary of War Henry Stimson reassures Congress in a letter that the US Army is preparing to remove people of Japanese descent from the west coast of the United States. There is great concern among members of the west coast delegation that this is not being done quickly enough. Stimson has his subordinates begin drafting legislation to enforce FDR's order (it becomes Public Law 503 after being passed by Congress on 19 March and signed by the President on 21 March 1942).

Flynn's Detective Fiction, 21 February 1942.

Australian Military: Lieutenant General Vernon Sturdee, Chief of the Australian General Staff, orders Lieutenant General John Lavarack, General Officer Commanding I Australian Corps, and his staff to evacuate Java and return to Australia. This comports with a recent decision by Prime Minister John Curtin to repatriate all Australian troops not involved in actual combat to the homeland. In his instructions to ABDA Commander General Sir Archibald Wavell, Sturdee also asks for the return of Australian troops that on 18 February arrived on SS Orcades at Batavia.

British Military: The British remove Burma from the ABDA Command and it reverts to a purely British Empire war zone. The British 7th Armored Brigade arrives in Rangoon Harbor from the Middle East.

Australian Women's Weekly, 21 February 1942.

Vichy French Military: Battleship Dunkerque arrives in Toulon after repairs at Oran, Algeria.

Uruguay: President Alfredo Baldomir dissolves congress and assumes dictatorial powers.

India: A non-party conference opens in Delhi under the auspices of Tej Bahadur Sapru. The goal is to claim Dominion status through dialogue rather than through resistance, as advocated by some other Indian leaders.

Episode 2 of "This is War," broadcast on 21 February 1942.

American Homefront: Episode 2 of Norman Corwin's series "This is War" is broadcast over all four national radio networks. This episode is entitled "The White House at War" and is narrated by actor Paul Lukas.

Future History: Margarethe von Trotta is born in Berlin. She becomes an actress, with her first contribution behind the scenes to Volker Schlöndorff’s "The Sudden Wealth of the Poor People of Kombach" (1971). The two become a film team and get married, with Volker passing away in 1991. She becomes known as a "feminist filmmaker" who creates documentaries often centered around female historical figures such as Rosa Luxemburg and Hannah Arendt or fictional heroines. Usually, her heroines champion women's rights and seek to upset the status quo. Margarethe von Trotta remains active in the German film industry as of 2019.

The Saturday Evening Post of 21 February 1942, with a cover design by Rudy Arnold.

February 1942

February 1, 1942: The US Navy Strikes Back
February 2, 1942: Germans Recovering in Russia
February 3, 1942: Japanese Shell and Bomb Singapore
February 4, 1942: Battle of Makassar Strait
February 5, 1942: Empress of Asia Sunk
February 6, 1942: The Christmas Island Body
February 7, 1942: The Double-V Campaign
February 8, 1942: Japan Invades Singapore
February 9, 1942: French Liner Normandie Capsizes
February 10, 1942: US Car Production Ends
February 11, 1942: Tomforce Fails on Singapore
February 12, 1942: The Channel Dash
February 13, 1942: Japanese Paratroopers In Action
February 14, 1942: RAF Orders Terror Raids
February 15, 1942: Japan Takes Singapore
February 17, 1942: Indian Troops Defect to Japanese
February 18, 1942: Battle of Badung Strait
February 19, 1942: FDR Authorizes Internment Camps
February 20, 1942: O'Hare the Hero
February 21, 1942: Crisis in Burma
February 22, 1942: Bomber Harris Takes Over
February 23, 1942: Bombardment of Ellwood, California
February 24, 1942: US Raid on Wake Island
February 25, 1942: Battle of Los Angeles
February 26, 1942: Gneisenau Eliminated
February 27, 1942: Battle of Java Sea
February 28, 1942: Battle of Sunda Strait

2020