[FONT="]OUR WAR[/FONT]
[FONT="]RECOLLECTIONS OF THE SECOND WORLD WAR[/FONT]
[FONT="] BY THOSE WHO FOUGHT IN IT[/FONT]
[FONT="]P[/FONT][FONT="]ublished by the US Armed Forces Media Division[1][/FONT]
[FONT="]Published in 1960[/FONT]
[FONT="]March 1, 1941
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[FONT="]AMERICA
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[FONT="]March 1st, 1941 was the first division sized parachute drop of the 74th Airborne Division. I was the Company Executive Officer of Easy Company, 510th Parachute Regiment. My commanding officer was Captain Sobel. We jumped at 0630 with Generals Marshall and Pendleton observing. It went badly, we got caught in some crosswinds and we ended up slamming into the ground at unsafe speeds. We lost Captain Sobel when he went into some electrical wires and 20 other men in our company had injuries ranging from sprained ankles to broken limbs. Over all it was a bad day, 12 men died, 218 were injured. Major General Dan Beals was relieved of his command on the spot by General Pendleton.[/FONT]
[FONT="]ARGENTINA
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[FONT="]I had jumped into Argentina along with the rest of the 82nd Airborne as part of Operation Ripper – the airborne landings outside of Buenos Aires. I was the Assistant Division Commander and I was leading a task force composed of the 1st & 2nd Parachute Battalions (501st Parachute Infantry Regiment) & the 555th Air Landing Battalion (Colored). Our mission was to block reinforcements coming from La Plata into Buenos Aires and to prevent an enemy breakout from BA. We were to hold until the Marines arrived and then we would move into La Plata.[/FONT]
[FONT="]By the end of February, we were about 2/3 of the way through La Plata. We were facing crumbling opposition when word came down of that the Argentinians wanted peace. The Argentine Government in BA had asked the Swedes, who still had an embassy in the city, to broker a cease fire. General Bradley was emphatic – unconditional surrender. In the meantime, the siege would continue. We got word that the Argentine’s main army- the Army of the North – had broken away from the main invasion force and was trying to head back and break the siege. [/FONT]
[FONT="]On March 1st, the enemy’s 2nd Corps attempted to break out and was pushed back. At noon, we got word of the unconditional surrender of General Mercante’s Army of the North. Buenos Aires fell later that afternoon.[/FONT]
[FONT="]AUSTRALIA
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[/FONT]
[FONT="]We had been assigned to the Darwin area, mainly because the Brass didn’t know where to put the only all-black fighter unit in Australia. Actually we got along fairly well with the locals. A large number of our boys had worked in coal mines and got along well with the local miners. I was still a flying sergeant at the time, flying P-40Es. At 0600 on March 1st, I was leading my section into the air to provide air cover the port. Outside the port was a badly damaged cruiser, the USS Salt Lake City, she had arrived during the night and had off loaded most of her wounded.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Our radar was constantly breaking down and we were really surprised when we got word from a Catalina that Jap planes were inbound and expected within the next 15 minutes. The Catalina didn’t make it. We were at 9,000 feet and still climbing when we saw the Jap Kate torpedo bombers heading towards the cruiser with more heading towards the shipping inside the harbor. We were badly outnumbered, we had 16 P-40Es and the Aussies had less than 12 Spitfires and I could see well over 100 enemy planes attacking us. [/FONT]
[FONT="]I lead my section down towards the cruiser which was putting up very little fight, she was slowly moving away from the harbor mouth when the first torpedo hit her in the bow. We tore into a flight of Kates, I managed to bring down one, but lost my wing man in the process. I didn’t know if he had been shot down or simply lost sight of me, which is what happened. I was lining up another when I felt my plane getting hit; sure enough I had a Zero on my tail. Took me some maneuvering but I was able to get behind him and send him down in flames. But he had hurt me, seconds after he went down, my engine died and I had to hit the silk.[/FONT]
[FONT="]We got our butts kicked – we lost 7 of our P-40s, the Aussies lost 2 of their Spitfires, the Salt Lake City, along with 1 Aussie naval ship and twelve merchant ships. But we did manage to shoot down 15 of their planes.[/FONT]
[FONT="]ENGLAND
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[FONT="]I was assigned to the 18th General Hospital outside of Liverpool England. I was an OR nurse and we were pretty busy. Two days before, the Navy (along with the Royal Navy) had attacked the Oslo port facilities and several of our carriers had been hit hard. The carriers had made port last night and we were working around the clock. I went on duty at 7am on the 1st and didn’t stop until 10am on the 2nd. I still don’t remember how many sailors we worked on, I do remember we lost 4 on the table that day.[/FONT]
[FONT="]MEXICO
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[/FONT]
I had arrived in Mexico City on January 18, 1941 with orders to report to the 2nd Battalion, 14th Armored Regiment, 44th US Armored Division as Operations Officer. The Battalion was part the Quick Reaction Force for Mexico City.
We were expecting trouble to increase as the time to the statehood elections grew closer. Our battalion was equipped with the newer model M5 Sherman; these were lovely diesel powered tanks replacing our older M4 Bufords.
On March1st, the Battalion Commander and I were driving to Division HQ. Division was planning a series of war games the next week. We were two miles from Division HQ when we ran into the protest. As protests go, this was a big one, must have been close to 5,000 people heading towards Occupation HQ. They were protesting what they considered to be the left of Mexican territory. We immediately pulled back, our jeep out running the mob, we ran into a patrol of Mexican gendarmes. We told them what was coming; their sergeant swallowed hard and ordered his men forward. They were all killed. We called the Battalion and had them order B Squadron to the scene and for the rest of the battalion to stand to. By early evening the protestors had grown to over 10,000 and General Short declared martial law and ordered a curfew to begin immediately. Naturally they refused to leave, but we had orders to treat them with kid gloves, the President did not want another incident.
General Short finally agreed to meet with a representative shortly before 8pm. They met and General Short quickly dismissed them since their terms were unrealistic. The demands included stopping the votes, the US pulling out of Mexico within 90 days and reparations!
We were ordered to bring up water cannon and tear gas; we still had hopes of getting this peacefully solved. Those hopes were dashed when some 17 year old boy jumped up on to one of my Shemans waving a Mexican flag. The tank commander, while attempting to grab the flag (and the boy), accidentally pushed the boy who fell under the treads. His legs were crushed and three days later he died. We had riots for the next two days which made headlines in Germany and around the world. General Short retired a month later.
[FONT="]NORTH AFRICA
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[FONT="]In 1941 I was flying B-24s out of Libya against targets in Sicily and Italy. On March 1st, I was part of a 100 plane raid against Taranto’s port facilities. The Italian Navy had given up on Taranto as a port months before, most of their surviving fleet units were up in Trieste. We were flying at 24,000 feet, we were the lead plane for the squadron and resistance was expected to be heavy. We arrived over the target at 1000 hours and the flak was heavy, we even encountered German fighters. We lost 2 of our engines over the target, but still managed to drop our bombs on the targets – the dockyards and when we left, they were burning brightly. [/FONT]
[FONT="]We would continue these raids into Italy and later Germany from Libya until we were transferred to Italy shortly after the fall of Rome.[/FONT]
[FONT="]NORTH ATLANTIC
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The Texas was escorting an England bound convoy and on March 1st, we were approaching Ireland. The first sign of trouble was when the ship shuddered and there was an explosion and large plum of water by the bow. We went to battle stations while we tried to figure out had happened. Seconds later, a Norwegian freighter half a mile away blew up. We had wandered into a freshly laid enemy minefield. The Convoy Commander ordered an immediate 180 degree turn as we sought to find a way out of here. Our bow plating was banged up but we were otherwise ok. By the time we were able to extricate ourselves, we had 1 RN sloop sunk, 2 destroyers damaged, 4 merchants damaged, but under tow and 3 more sunk.
[FONT="]Philippines
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[FONT="]I was an Army reservist before the war and had been promoted to major on New Year’s Day, some present – a war and a promotion. I was in Aparri with a company of combat engineers with orders to prepare the port facilities for demolition when the Japs landed and we got caught in the middle of an invasion. I lost half my men in the fighting for the city. I managed to get the rest out and join in the retreat towards Bataan. We were under constant air and artillery attack, by the time we got into friendly lines, I had 37 men left when we crossed into the Abucay-Mauban Line. My men were taken from me and used to bolster other units. [/FONT]
[FONT="]The line was manned by two “Corps” – I Corps (1st Philippine Infantry Regiment (-), 31st US Infantry, 43rd Philippine Scouts, 100th Infantry Battalion (Provisional)), II Corps (2nd Philippine Infantry, 26th Philippine Scouts Cavalry, 45th Philippine Scouts)[/FONT]
[FONT="]The 4th Marines and 101st Infantry Battalion (provisional) made up the reserves.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I was given orders to inspect and confirm that all our ammo and supply depots were rigged for demolition to prevent them from falling into enemy hands. It was supposed to take me a week. Two days into my assignment, I was called to Corregidor to meet with General Van Voorhis. It seemed that during the retreat to the Peninsula, supplies were left on the docks in Manila. There was still fighting going on in the outskirts and the General wanted me to take one of the small steamers over, salvage what I could (especially rice and medical supplies) and destroy the rest. Based on the information he had, General Van Voorhis gave me less than 12 hours before the Japs took the city. He gave me 40 men and expected a miracle. We went in and came out with eight tons of rice and close to 40 days worth of quinine. We also brought out President Quezon and General Lim (both under arrest).[/FONT]
[FONT="]
Memorandum to Commander, US 8th Fleet[2][/FONT]
Memorandum to Commander, US 8th Fleet[2][/FONT]
[FONT="]March 2, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]To: Commander, US 8th Fleet[/FONT]
[FONT="]From Commander, Task Force 80[/FONT]
[FONT="]Subject: USS United States[/FONT]
[FONT="]Date: March 1, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]CC: Commander, US 2nd Fleet[/FONT]
[FONT="]During the raid on Bergen, the carrier United States was badly damaged. She is no longer capable of flight operations – her flight deck is badly damaged, her forward elevator is out of commission, pilot ready rooms destroyed and hull damage from the bow to the island. It is my recommendation that the USS United States be transferred back to the US for a complete overhaul.[/FONT]
[FONT="]CLASSIFIED MEMO TO [/FONT]
[FONT="]GENERAL WALTER SHORT[3][/FONT]
[FONT="]March 5, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]TO: General Short[/FONT]
[FONT="]FROM: Colonel Bratton, G-2[/FONT]
[FONT="]SUBJECT: German activity[/FONT]
[FONT="]DATE: March 5, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]Based on information gathered by informants operating inside the Mexican nationalist groups and US Naval Forces Mexico, we believe the following:[/FONT]
[FONT="]There are between 50-75 German agents inside the Occupied Zone.[/FONT]
[FONT="]They have smuggled in several hundred weapons and approximately 1200lbs of explosives.[/FONT]
[FONT="]While they have been encouraging the riots, they have not been actively taking part in them.[/FONT]
[FONT="]This command believes that the Germans are planning on attacking Occupation Headquarters or other strategic target within the next 30 days.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I have agents looking for their main hideouts.[/FONT]
[FONT="]EBS RADIO SPECIAL REPORT[4][/FONT]
[FONT="]MARCH 10, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]We interrupt our program to inform you of this late breaking news – Yugoslavia has been invaded by German led forces! A spokesman for President Roosevelt has stated that the Allies will send all available aid to the Yugoslavian people. Minutes ago, speaking for Prime Minister Churchill, his spokesman stated that the British people will not standby and allow German aggression to run unchecked. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Radio Belgrade has reported that German and Bulgarian units have crossed the border and are attacking deep inside the country. Reports indicate that the predominately Croatian units in the Yugoslav Army have mutinied and joined the invaders.[/FONT]
[FONT="]We will continue to update you as soon as we get information. This has been a EBS Radio Special Report. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Classified briefing minutes[/FONT]
[FONT="]SUPREME HEADQUARTERS, ALLIED[/FONT]
[FONT="]MEDITERRANEAN[5][/FONT]
[FONT="]March 11, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]General William Gott, Supreme Allied Commander, Mediterranean[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Pierre Duchesne, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Sir Richard O’Connor, Allied Land Forces Commander[/FONT]
[FONT="]Admiral Royal Ingersol, Allied Naval Commander[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Henri Closterman, Allied Air Commander[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Gott: Gentlemen, we have been ordered to assist the Yugoslavs. Prime Minister Churchill would like to have us landing troops within a week. Your thoughts please?[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Duchesne: Speaking on behalf of the French Government, we will not commit any ground forces, but we are willing to send air and naval units.[/FONT]
[FONT="]General O’Connor: We are ready to ship out the Australian I and American VII Corps as soon as shipping can be rounded up. We can then commit the remainder of the American 3rd and British 8th Armies.[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Gott: Well that’s good to hear. General Closterman, your report?[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Closterman: Mon General, acting upon my authority as the Supreme Allied Air Commander, I have already ordered that the 22nd Bomber Group to move to bases outside of Alexandria. There, they will fly to friendly Yugoslavian air fields and conduct missions from there. We will need over flight permission from the Greeks. Our MB200 bombers lack the longer range of the American and British heavy bombers. I have given orders diverting 2/3 of the bombing raids against Italy and Austria to defend the Yugoslavs.[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Gott: Thank you General. Admiral Ingersol?[/FONT]
[FONT="]Getting troops to Yugoslavia will be almost impossible. Within the last 48 hours, the Germans and Italians have managed to lay minefields between Brindisti and Viore. Plus we would have to contend with enemy aircraft flying from Italian bases. We would need more carriers then are in the Med right now. I seriously doubt we can land large numbers of troops.[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Gott: Gentlemen, work out the numbers. I want to hear within 48 hours on if we can land troops in Yugoslavia. I’ll get the boys in the top hats working to see if the Greeks will allow us access to their ports. Thank you gentlemen, that is all.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Teleconference between Prime Minister Churchill and General William Gott[6] [/FONT]
[FONT="]March 13, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]Prime Minister Churchill: General, what good news can you give me?[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Gott: Very little I am afraid, Prime Minister. Long range bombing missions of enemy targets inside Yugoslavia and Italy are currently underway. Getting the troops into Yugoslavia is the problem. Our transports will be sitting ducks for enemy aircraft and submarines, our carriers would be hard pressed to defend them, let alone themselves. In short sir, we cannot land troops in Yugoslavia before it falls.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Churchill: Are you certain General?[/FONT]
[FONT="]General Gott: Unless you can persuade the Greeks to allow us to us their ports and railroads Prime Minister, there is nothing we can do.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Churchill: Congratulations on your promotion to Field Marshal. You are to turn your command over to your deputy and proceed at once to New Delhi where you will relieve Field Marshal Wavell. Field Marshall Wavell will be your replacement in the Middle East. Please inform your deputy and General O’Connor that I want troops on the ground in Greece within a week. I really don’t care if it means upsetting the Greeks. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Field Marshal Gott: Prime Minister, you will be sending troops to be slaughtered sir![/FONT]
[FONT="]Number 10 Operator: The Prime Minister has hung up sir.[/FONT]
[FONT="]PRELIMINARY ACCIDENT REPORT DELIVERED
TO LIEUTENANT GENERAL NEIL RITCHIE[/FONT]
[FONT="]COMMANDER, BRITISH MIDDLE EAST SUPPORT COMMAND[7][/FONT]
[FONT="]MARCH16, 1941[/FONT]
TO LIEUTENANT GENERAL NEIL RITCHIE[/FONT]
[FONT="]COMMANDER, BRITISH MIDDLE EAST SUPPORT COMMAND[7][/FONT]
[FONT="]MARCH16, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]Aircraft type involved in accident: Bristol Bombay[/FONT]
[FONT="]Date of accident: March 15, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]Accident location: Cairo Airport[/FONT]
[FONT="]At 0800 on March 15, 1941, the Bombay had just cleared the runway, when to observers on the ground, power lost in the port engine. The pilot reported an emergency when power was lost in the starboard engine. The plane immediately dove into the ground. The station’s emergency personnel were able to pull out Field Marshal Gott and the plane’s crew chief. I am saddened to report that the Field Marshal died en route to hospital.[/FONT]
[FONT="]When I have a more detailed report, I will of course pass it on to you.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Signed,[/FONT]
[FONT="]FM Jackson, Squadron Leader, RAFVR[/FONT]
[FONT="]SEND IN THE BISONS!![8][/FONT]
[FONT="]bY ERNIE PYLE[/FONT]
[FONT="]March 18, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]bY ERNIE PYLE[/FONT]
[FONT="]March 18, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]AN: March 13, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]I[/FONT][FONT="] was visiting the boys who go up every day in the bombers against their targets in Italy and Austria. I was with the Flying Bisons of the 41st Bombardment Squadron (Heavy) flying B-24 Liberators. [/FONT]
[FONT="]I asked for and received permission to fly on a mission with these brave men. After initially denying me permission, Major David Kirby the squadron commander relented. I was assigned to fly with Captain Denis Pryor of New York City. We had been told that our target was the Italian city of Taranto, but at the last minute, our orders were changed. We would be flying in support of the Yugoslavs and our target was the marshaling yard in Trieste which was supporting the Italian armies moving into Yugoslavia.[/FONT]
[FONT="]We took off just before 2am on the 13th along with other aircraft from the squadrons of the 56th Bomber Group. We expected to reach our targets just after dawn. Resistance was expected to be “moderate” or so the intelligence boys claimed.[/FONT]
[FONT="]We were two hours out of Egypt when we encountered the first enemy fighters. These were a previously unseen Italian fighter, at least to us. There were between 20 and 30 of them and they came in guns blazing. No one could doubt their bravery, but they were clearly no match for our bombers. By the time they fled, six of them had been shot down and only three of our bombers had been damaged.[9][/FONT]
[FONT="]An hour later, more enemy fighters came flying in out of the sun. These were the more recognizable Me-109 Messerschmidt fighters. I counted over thirty and they came in fast and hard. We lost one of our waist gunners. He was a nice red headed kid from Georgia. It would come as cold comfort to his parents, but he died quickly. These Germans were a stubborn bunch, they kept after us, but they must have been at the limits of their range, they only stayed a short time, I regret to say we lost three bombers, but we must have brought down at least ten of their planes.[10][/FONT]
[FONT="]We crossed the coast of Yugoslavia roughly on time and were met by more fighters, this time a mix of Italian and German. They managed to bring down two more of our bombers including Major Kirby’s plane. Our course would take us over the coast of Yugoslavia then onto Trieste. We were approaching the city of Pula when we started picking up serious anti-aircraft fire. Our information was that the city was still in friendly hands, obviously we were wrong. We had just gotten word that Trieste was overcast and we couldn’t bomb our targets. The mission commander ordered a change of target – it was obvious that the enemy had taken this city and so we were going to bomb the port and see if we couldn’t impede the enemy’s advances. We dropped our bombs over the target and turned for home.[11] [/FONT]
[FONT="]On our way home we were jumped by more German fighters. We were attacked in squadron strength and when we landed, it was on 2 engines[/FONT]
[FONT="]MESSAGE TO AIR MARSHAL RICHARD PEIRSE[/FONT]
[FONT="]ACTING COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, BRITISH FAR EAST COMMAND[12][/FONT]
[FONT="]March 24, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]ACTING COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, BRITISH FAR EAST COMMAND[12][/FONT]
[FONT="]March 24, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]Sir, [/FONT]
[FONT="]At 0600, March 24, the freighter Geraldine departed Rangoon harbor as per our orders. On board were 42 British civilians, 105 British wounded military personnel, 225 other British troops and Naval Demolition Party 1227. As per my orders, the oil farm had been destroyed, the runways at the International Airport cratered and the docks rigged to explode two hours after we had left.[/FONT]
[FONT="]I regret to inform you sir that Rangoon is now in the hands of the Japanese. I cannot give you any information on the status of any British troops still fighting in the city.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Respectfully,[/FONT]
[FONT="]James Bokey, Captain, RN[/FONT]
[FONT="]EXCERPT FROM [/FONT]
[FONT="]CHAPTER XI The Mediterranean[/FONT]
[FONT="]MY LIFE[/FONT]
[FONT="]BY ADMIRAL ROYAL INGERSOLL, USN (RETD)[13][/FONT]
[FONT="]Pelican Press 1956[/FONT]
[FONT="]CHAPTER XI The Mediterranean[/FONT]
[FONT="]MY LIFE[/FONT]
[FONT="]BY ADMIRAL ROYAL INGERSOLL, USN (RETD)[13][/FONT]
[FONT="]Pelican Press 1956[/FONT]
[FONT="]While I was the Allied Naval Commander in the Mediterranean, the war expanded with the invasion of Yugoslavia. Naturally we wanted to help, but aside from bombers, we really couldn’t do much. The enemy had mined the entrance to the Adriatic Sea, which meant we couldn’t send in our ground forces without serious losses before they even got into combat.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Prime Minister Churchill didn’t like hearing from General Gott that sending in ground forces simply wasn’t feasible. Churchill fired him and he decided that using Greek ports to send troops into Yugoslavia was the way to go. The Greeks declined, stating that they did not want to get involved. The Allied Commanders were ordered by Prime Minister Churchill to seize Crete from the Greeks and then land troops in Athens to seize the Government. I refused to provide the shipping and the escorts. General O’Connor backed me up and told the Prime Minister that forces under his command would not invade a neutral nation without provocation. By then I had sent a back channel message to Admiral King in Washington and he, in turn, had talked to the President. The President was able to talk the Prime Minister down from his foolish idea. He pointed out that the American public would not tolerate invading a neutral nation to save another neutral nation. Furthermore, he (the President) would have listen to Admiral King and concentrate less on Europe and more on the Pacific. Churchill dropped that idea. Yugoslavia fell on March 25, 1941. [/FONT]
[FONT="]Royal Navy Aircraft Carriers 1940-1960[14][/FONT]
[FONT="]By Norman Heckendorn[/FONT]
Admiralty Press
[FONT="]By Norman Heckendorn[/FONT]
Admiralty Press
1961
[FONT="]Carriers in service or building April 1, 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Archer (light aircraft carrier) Cape Town, South Africa – en route to Addu Atoll[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Argus – Atlantic (Convoy escort)[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Ark Royal – Atlantic[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Courageous – Mediterranean[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Eagle – Mediterranean[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Formidable - Sydney[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Glorious – Atlantic[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Hermes (improved Illustrious class) – under construction, expected to be in service by July 1943[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Illustrious – Addu Atoll[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Implacable – under construction, expected to be in service by August 1942[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Indefatigable – under construction, expected to be in service by February 1942[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Indomitable – under construction, expected to be in service by August 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Majestic (Improved Illustrious class) – under construction, expected to be in service by April 1943[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Pretoria Castle – undergoing conversion to light aircraft carrier, expected to be in service by November 1941[/FONT]
[FONT="]HMS Victorious - Atlantic [/FONT]
[FONT="]Excerpt from
[/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]Chapter 2 – Sabotage[/FONT]
[FONT="]A-Bomb: A History[15][/FONT]
[FONT="]by Sonia Groves[/FONT]
[FONT="]Academy Press[/FONT]
[FONT="]2001
[/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT="]The fire and death of Fermi and the others delayed the A-bomb project by a year. Fortunately, the Germans were prevented from getting into production their atomic bomb. However, the delay did force the Allied invasion of Japan.[/FONT]
[FONT="][FONT="][1][/FONT][/FONT] Our War: Recollections of the 2nd World War by Those who Fought in it; Armed Forces Media Division; 1960
[FONT="][FONT="][2][/FONT][/FONT] USN archives
[FONT="][FONT="][3][/FONT][/FONT] US Army archives
[FONT="][FONT="][4][/FONT][/FONT] EBS News, March 10, 1941
[FONT="][FONT="][5][/FONT][/FONT] British Army archives
[FONT="][FONT="][6][/FONT][/FONT] British Government archives
[FONT="][FONT="][7][/FONT][/FONT] British Army archives
[FONT="][FONT="][8][/FONT][/FONT] Send in the Bisons; Pyle, Ernie; Associated Newspapers, March 13, 1941
[FONT="][FONT="][9][/FONT][/FONT] These were Italian Caproni-Reggiane Re.2000 Falco fighters, there were only 24, three of which were shot down, and nine more were damaged
[FONT="][10][/FONT] Two Me-109s were shot down, eight damaged out of the 48 that were engaged.
[FONT="][FONT="][11][/FONT][/FONT] Actually the Yugoslavian Army was still holding out in Pula, a fact that was not discovered until after the war.
[FONT="][FONT="][12][/FONT][/FONT] RAF archives
[FONT="][FONT="][13][/FONT][/FONT] My Life, Ingersoll, Royal, Pelican Press 1956
[FONT="][FONT="][14][/FONT][/FONT] Royal Navy Aircraft Carriers 1940-1960; Heckendorn, Norman; Admiralty Press 1961
[FONT="][FONT="][15][/FONT][/FONT] A-Bomb: A History; Groves, Sonia; Academy Press; 2001
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