From Jack DeWitt -
who did a little
Island hopping
before winding up on
subs!
I think I
finally was able
to get the
complete article
to you. The
fifth photo down
is the view of
the airstrip
that I had from
my little
teletype tent
outside of the
Captain's tent.
Best Job in the
unit. Great
view and lots of
action. Also
got to read all
the traffic
except the top
secret which was
passed by hand
not by
teletype. I had
two third class
radiomen working
for me to cover
the 3 daily
watches. They
were both
seminary
students and
didn't drink
beer. They
liked the
movies. I could
care less about
the movies, so I
stood their
watches and they
gave me their
beer. I also
used the time
when not
handling traffic
to study
math for tests
that the
management said
I had to
take. That extra
beer was a big
help. Also an
occasional swig
from one of the
bottles of the
hard stuff the
Captain kept
just inside the
door to his
tent. I had to
go in to put the
messages on his
desk. Take it
from there.
He was seldom
around. After 2
or 3 months of
that duty I was
sent back the US
to go to USC and
Midshipmans's
school for
Commissioning in
March of 1945.
That's how bad
they wanted to
get rid of me
and my enjoyable
duty.
I must admit, it
was beautiful up
there with the
tropical skies,
sunrises and
sunsets. And
the view of the
sea, of course.
UP THE SLOT: Marines
in the Central
Solomons
by Major Charles D.
Melson, U.S. Marine
Corps (Ret)
The Munda Drive and the
Fighting Ninth
On 1
August, a Japanese air
raid hit the torpedo
boat mooring basin at
Rendova. Nearby on
Tombusolo was Edwin
Jakubowski with 9th
Defense Battalion
Special Weapons, firing
at the attacking
aircraft. "A PT Boat was
strafed and blew up next
to my little island.
Plywood flying all over
me and one of its
torpedoes went by," he
recalled. Captain Theron
A. Smith, commanding
Battery F, had just
inspected his Number 3
Searchlight Section when
the attack occurred and
later wrote "some
Sunday, alerts and
[Condition Reds all last
night and most of the
day. Attacked by two
dive bombers and Zeros
(estimated 50) about
1600. Two PTs destroyed,
another sunk and beyond
salvage." In a footnote
to the campaign,
Lieutenant (jg) John F.
Kennedy's PT 109 was
rammed and sunk early
the next morning while
operating from the
Rendova base.
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Another defense
battalion
detachment went
to Laiana, where
this emplaced
40mm gun of
1stLt Colin J.
Reeves' battery
merges with the
dense jungle
growth backdrop.
Department of
Defense Photo
(USMC) 60096
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The high ground
at Munda
airfield fell on
5 August 1943.
This picture is
taken at the
site of the
former mission
on Kokengolo
Hill looking
towards Biblio
Hill to the
north.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 57564
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Field
artillery firing
missions against the New
Georgia area continued
to be conducted by
Battery B until 3
August. The tank platoon
of the 10th Defense
Battalion, reinforced by
five tanks from the 11th
Defense Battalion and
the surviving tank of
the 9th Defense
Battalion, led the
assault on Kokengolo and
Biblio Hills on 4 and 5
August. After two days
of heavy fighting, they
routed the defending
forces. The Marine tanks
then cleared the way to
the principal objective
of the entire New
Georgia campaign, the
Munda airfield, which
was captured and
occupied by XIV Corps
Army troops on 5 August
1943. Regiments of the
25th Infantry Division
pursued the Japanese as
they withdrew north from
Munda Point. On the
night of 6 August a
naval battle was fought
in Vella Gulf, where
Japanese destroyers and
barges bringing in
supplies and
reinforcements were
turned back.
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Wreckage and
debris were soon
pushed aside in
the rapid
progress to open
the field for
American use.
The captured
airfield
included
aircraft, in
this case a Zero
fighter in a
coconut and
coral enclosure,
that could not
take off after
the American
landing.
Marine Corps
Historical
Collection
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enlargement in a
new window)
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The engineering
effort pushed
forward and
built upon the
Japanese
construction
that remained.
The work was
completed within
10 days after
the airfield was
captured.
Department of Defense Photo (USMC) 60460
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The
battle for Munda
airfield over, the
Zanana Beach and Laiana
Beach detachments moved
on 6 August to
participate in the Munda
defenses. The
detachments destroyed 12
enemy planes while at
these locations. A day
later, the 9th Defense
Battalion began moving
to the Munda area. The
moves were so organized
that there was no more
than a quarter of the
battalion's weapons out
of action at any one
time. The battalion was
transported largely by
various types of landing
craft, which made the
displacement a slow,
laborious process.
Captain Well's Battery B
of the 155mm Group moved
to Kindu Point on New
Georgia on 8 August and
was assigned the mission
with its large guns of
guarding the western
approaches to Blanche
Channel. On landing,
Battery B and an Army
antitank platoon cleared
the area of remaining
Japanese stragglers.
At
Munda Airfield,
immediately after the
area was cleared of
Japanese, construction
units moved in to repair
and enlarge the
"emergency" field built
by the enemy. By the
evening of 13 August,
this work had progressed
sufficiently to permit
four Army Curtiss P-40
Warhawks to make an
unscheduled landing and
to "christen" the field
with a brief fly-over.
This was soon followed
by the arrival of Marine
air units, including
VMF-123 and -124. Other
Marine squadrons soon
arrived, including the
VMF-214 "Black Sheep" of
Major Gregory Boyington,
who became a grudging
admirer of the 9th's
antiaircraft
marksmanship and a
source of entertainment
with his radio
transmissions while
flying over Munda.
Instead of attacking the
main Japanese force on
Kolombangara at Vila,
the American force
isolated the enemy by
landings on nearby Vella
Lavella on 15 August.
Admiral Halsey did not
want another slugging
match like Munda. A
landing force was built
around the uncommitted
Army 35th Regimental
Combat Team, commanded
by the 25th Infantry
Division's assistant
commander, Brigadier
General Robert B. McLure,
and supported by the
Marine 4th Defense
Battalion. The Japanese
resisted in the air and
sea, but enemy ground
forces were too busy
withdrawing to put up a
determined resistance.
The 4th Defense
Battalion, led by
Lieutenant Colonel
Harold S. Fassett,
defended the beachhead
against 121 attacks and
downed 42 Japanese
planes. The Allied
occupation of these
positions and pressure
from Arundel and New
Georgia put Vila on
Kolombangara in a
precarious position. In
many ways, this was a
prelude to the Marine
Bougainville campaign as
it brought I Marine
Amphibious Corps and new
units not involved in
the fighting into the
New Georgia area.
American fighter cover
came from the Munda and
Segi Airfields.
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Seabees clear a
Japanese tunnel
at the base of
Kokengolo Hill
for use in the
face of the
still present
Japanese menace.
This threat made
the discomfort
of the cave,
filled with
refuse and
corpses, seem a
small price to
pay for the
security of
overhead cover
from artillery
and air attack.
Marine Corps Historical Collection |
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image for an
enlargement in a
new window)
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Commander
Aircraft New
Georgia, BGen
Francis P.
Mulcahy,
expanded
airfield
operations on
Munda with the
construction of
more secure
shelters than
those the
Japanese left
behind. A
heavily
sandbagged
sickbay is on
the left and the
personnel office
is in the
center. The
frame of a
prefabricated
Quonset hut is
being assembled
to the right
rear.
Department of
Defense Photo
(USMC) 71745
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By 15
August, the 9th Defense
Battalion was set up and
emplaced in new
dispersed positions.
Three days later,
another major naval
surface action occurred
off Vella Lavella as the
U.S. Navy combatants
intercepted destroyers
and barges attempting to
evacuate Japanese
troops. From 16 through
19 August, Japanese
artillery on Baanga
Island shelled Munda
Airfield and Kindu Point
causing several
casualties and some
minor damage. Friendly
aircraft and artillery
operated against these
elusive cannon and
finally silenced them.
The battalion suffered
no casualties from this
shelling, though one gun
crew's tent was
demolished by a direct
hit and there were
several hits on other
positions. The 9th's
antiaircraft guns were
now fully placed to
protect the airfield.
Enemy air attacks on the
Munda area, carried out
at night or in the early
morning, continued
throughout the rest of
the month. Captain
Ervin's three Battery G
40mm positions seaward
of the airfield were
straddled by a string of
Japanese bombs that
managed to just miss
everyone.
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The first
fighter plane to
land on Munda
was a VMF-215
Corsair flown by
Maj Robert G.
Owens, Jr., on
14 August 1943.
Flight
operations began
immediately to
cover the Vella
Lavella
landings.
Department of
Defense Photo
(USMC) 60270
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image for an
enlargement in a
new window)
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The Munda drive
moved into a
final phase with
attacks on 4 and
5 August 1943,
again using
Marine tanks in
the lead. Tank
commander Capt
Robert W. Blake
examines some of
the improvised
antitank weapons
faced by his
unit — a Molotov
cocktail and a
magnetic mine.
Marine Corps
Historical
Collection
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The
landing and occupation
of Arundel Island, on 27
August, further
tightened the noose
around Kolombangara.
Army troops were
supported by Captain
Blake and tanks from the
9th, 10th, and 11th
Defense Battalions.
Major General Collins,
commanding the 25th
Infantry Division
carrying out this
assignment, commended
the Marines "for the
whole-hearted co
operation and assistance
rendered this division"
during the operations
against the Japanese in
the Arundel Island
campaign. They performed
all assigned tasks "in a
splendid manner in
support of the 27th
Infantry, in its
action...."
Captain Reichner's
Battery A moved to Piru
Plantation on 29 August
and two days later began
shelling the Vila area
of Kolombangara. The
move was made by landing
craft and foot. Recalled
Captain William T. Box,
with the artillery
group's advance party,
"we hiked up from Munda
using a native guide. I
remember we hiked
through jungle most of
the way. I remember I
was scared. I remember I
was glad to see that
open area with the
supply parachutes" left
by the Army. Soon
afterwards, Battery B
moved to Piru and on 2
September participated
in the shelling of Vila.
A Japanese defender
there with the 8th
Combined Special Naval
Landing Force wrote
in his diary, with "the
situation as it is, one
just can't help but
distrust the operational
plans of the Imperial
Headquarters."
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An essential
element in the
defensive air
war was the use
of radar by the
Americans for
surveillance,
target
acquisition, and
ground-controlled
intercepts. This
is one of the
9th Defense
Battalion's
SCR268s
installed on New
Georgia.
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Close-in air
defense around
the airfield was
accomplished by
regrouping
defense
battalion assets
from Rendova,
Laiana, and
Zanana, This
"Twin-Twenty" is
at Munda, and is
on one of
several types of
mobile mounts at
New Georgia.
Marine Corps Historical Collection
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Dead at his
post, this
Japanese soldier
lies by a
smashed 37mm
antitank gun
near the
airfield. As the
tanks broke
through, the
infantry
followed and the
fighting
continued until
the positions
were overrun or
buried in the
rubble.
Marine Corps
Historical
Collection
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The
artillery group used the
services of spotter
aircraft, but because of
enemy gunfire, switched
from the light
observation planes to
Grumman TBFs because
their armor plating gave
the pilots greater
protection. First
Lieutenant Donald V.
Sandager and Sergeant
Herschel J. Cooper flew
these missions over
Kolombangara. "We both
volunteered to a request
from Major Hiatt. When
we reported to Munda
Airfield we had no
parachutes and were told
each flier had to have
his own," recalled
Sandager. "The pilots
were inexperienced and
flew up from Guadalcanal
each morning and we had
to direct them to find
the battery and
Kolombangara. Radio
communication with the
battery was bad."
Admiral Halsey noted the
artillery group and
Lieutenant Colonel
O'Neil's ability to
"utilize air spotting
and the accuracy of
their fire which stood
out above other more
experienced groups."
The
peak of enemy air
activity over Munda
Airfield occurred the
night of 14-15 September
when enemy planes kept
gun crews at battle
stations all night. The
90mm group expended
3,378 rounds, downing
one plane and causing
most of the enemy planes
to jettison their bombs
over the jungle or the
sea. At Vila, a Japanese
commander reported, "it
had become very
difficult to fire the
antiaircraft guns as the
enemy places their
artillery upon our
position immediately
after we commence firing
upon the aircraft." At
Piru, Japanese
counter-battery fire hit
the artillery group
throughout September and
the first two days of
October. A number of the
enemy artillery
projectiles failed to
detonate and there were
no casualties from the
shelling.
On 15
September, General
Sasaki was ordered to
evacuate his remaining
12,400 men from
Kolombangara. The next
month on 3 October,
while flying his
assigned air spotter
missions, Lieutenant
Sandager reported Vila
evacuated; the Japanese
had pulled out.
Lieutenant Colonel
Scheyer was pleased to
state that for the
"first time in this war
the enemy had been
driven from his base by
bombing and artillery
fire." He concluded that
at Kiska it was bombing
and ship's gunfire, at
Kolombangara it was
naval gun fire, bombing,
and artillery fire that
turned the tide. The
final action of the
campaign was a sea
battle on 6-7 October
when U.S. Navy
destroyers intercepted
Japanese evacuation
ships during the Battle
of Vella Lavella.
The
Japanese air effort
slackened considerably
in October, and came to
an abrupt halt in
November 1943. While at
Munda Airfield, the 9th
Defense Battalion
accounted for eight more
enemy planes. Numerous
alerts, conditions red,
and general quarters
stand-tos that began an
hour before dawn and an
hour after sunset, had
occurred daily for all
gun crews. In early
November, Battery A
moved to Nusalavata
Island and Battery B to
Roviana Island where the
155mm guns covered Munda
Bar and the eastern
approach to Blanche
Channel respectively.
Lieutenant Colonel
Scheyer remained in
command of the 9th until
3 November, when he was
assigned to I Marine
Amphibious Corps and the
command was turned over
to Lieutenant Colonel
Archie E. O'Neil.
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This 1 August
1943 bombing
attack struck
Marine positions
on Rendova, only
wounding one
Marine, but
destroying a
height finder
with flying
coral.
Department of
Defense Photo
(USMC) 58411
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On 22
November, the 9th
Defense Battalion was
attached to VI Corps
Island Command for
occupation duties. On 31
December, the battalion,
with the exception of
one radar crew and two
search light sections,
was relieved of the
Munda Airfield defenses
by the Army 77th AAA
Group. The 9th Defense
Battalion spent several
weeks in camp in the
Munda area waiting for
transportation. These
weeks were not idle as
central camps for the
several groups had to be
set up and improved.
Training schedules,
begun in the later
stages of the campaign,
were carried out.
Transport ships were
available for the trip
to the Russell Islands
beginning on 13 January
1944 and continued until
the entire battalion
move was completed on 25
February.
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Flight Clothing
and Equipment
Flight clothing
was considered
naval aviation
equipment rather
than a purely
Marine Corps
uniform and was
strictly
functional.
Basic items
included leather
boots, leather
gloves, goggles,
a cloth helmet
that contained
headphones, and
a one-piece
cotton khaki
flying suit.
Captain John M.
Foster, flying
from Munda,
stated he wore a
flying suit and
then slung a
"leather
shoulder holster
containing my
45-caliber
automatic over
my neck and
buckled the
belt, strung
with my hunting
knife, first-aid
kit, extra
cartridges and
canteen, around
my waist." He
also wore a
baseball cap and
carried his
flying helmet,
goggles, and
gloves. In
addition, the
pilots carried
65 pounds of
parachute,
rubber raft, and
" jungle pack."
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Drawing
by Kerr
Eby,
U.S.
Navy
Combat
Art
Collection
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The fighting by
the 9th Defense
Battalion
contributed
considerably to
the victory of
the land forces
on New Georgia,
and demonstrated
the value of
advance base
defense. The 9th
was in action
against Japanese
aircraft on 59
different days,
for a total of
159 fire
missions and 249
alerts, with 46
enemy planes
downed. Not
counted in these
statistics were
aircraft damaged
or diverted from
their intended
targets and
forced to under
take less
accurate
nighttime
bombing
missions. The
fire of 155mm
guns destroyed a
number of enemy
artillery
positions and
troops on Munda,
Baanga, and
Kolombangara.
Numerous pill
boxes and
machine gun
positions were
destroyed and
enemy troops
killed by the
tank platoon on
New Georgia
Island. Although
the firing
batteries and
tanks were the
most active
elements of the
battalion, other
components of
the battalion
were deeply
involved in the
fighting also.
The battalion
also destroyed a
machine gun
position and
killed three
Japanese on
Rendova and
killed another
22 enemy and
captured two
prisoners at
Zanana.
Battalion losses
throughout the
campaign were
remarkably few:
13 dead, l
missing, over 50
wounded in
action, and
other non-battle
casualties.
Malaria caused a
number of the
Marines to be
evacuated.
General Griswold
summarized the
battalion's
performance by
concluding that
every "officer
and man of the
organization has
reason to feel
proud of its
accomplishment."
The I Marine
Amphibious Corps
commander,
Lieutenant
General
Alexander A.
Vandegrift, said
"how proud I am
to belong to the
same outfit as
they do." |
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