Air Operations, Central Pacific

A US Army reconnaissance team is landed on Howland Island to inspect the 2,400-foot runway originally built there for Amelia Earhart. Despite bombing attacks by both US Navy and Japanese Navy aircraft since the start of the Pacific War, the runway is intact. Engineers and ground crews will soon be landed to get the base into condition to support aerial operations.

Air Operations, Europe

• 5 Oboe Mosquitos are sent to Cologne and 4 more to Duisburg.
• There are no losses.

Air Operations, New Guinea

• 90th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s, escorted by V Fighter Command P-38s, attack the airfield at Wewak and nearby ammunition dumps.
• V Bomber Command B-25s attack Lae.
• 8th and 475th Fighter group P-38s down 1 G4M 'Betty' bomber and 10 Japanese fighters in a running fight from Wewak to Angoram between 1025 and 1100 hours.

Air Operations, Solomons

VMF-222 F4Us down 1 Ki-61 'Tony' fighter and 2 A6M Zeros near Vella Lavella at 0805 hours, and 2 VMF-222 F4Us down 3 Zeros over Vella Lavella at 1540 hours.

Aegean

(15th?)British troops occupy the island of Kos and immediately establish an RAF base there. The island, off southwest Turkey, is a potential approach to southeast Europe and a base for air operations against German communications and oil resources in Romania. A victory hear might also persuade Turkey to support the Allied cause as the threat of German air raids from Rhodes would be eliminated. Kos is to be a springboard for an assault against the German stronghold on Rhodes. By the end of September, British forces make contact with cooperative Italian troops on most of the neighboring islands.

Air Operations, Pacific

A flight of B-24 Liberator and B-25 Mitchell bombers attacks enemy shipping and ground installations at Paramushiru in the north Pacific. 4 enemy vessels are damaged, but 10 US aircraft are lost after they are attacked by 25 Japanese fighters.

Axis Diplomacy

Mussolini arrives in Munich, Upper Bavaria.

China, Politics

Chiang Kai-shek becomes president of China for a three-year term succeeding Lin Sen who died August 7. Chiang thus assumes even greater authority in Nationalist territory. Chiang has proved to be a mercurial war leader, and shows little interest in the general Allied war against Japan except when US, British and Commonwealth efforts affect his own campaign. His relationship with Gen Stilwell, Allied chief of Staff in Burma-China-India theater, is particularly troubled, especially as Stilwell recommends an alliance between the Nationalists and Communists to defeat Japan.

Corsica

The resistance of the Italian Cremona and Friuli Divs at Bastia, Corsica is crushed by German forces.

Greece

Over the next 10 days the Italian Acqui Div under Gen Antonio Gandin resists the Germans in Cephalonia and surrenders only when 1,500 have been killed and the Germans then kill 5,000 more and deport the rest to labor camps.

Italy

There are now signs that a wedge can be driven between the British and American beachheads at Salerno. Gen Heinrich von Vietinghoff, Commander of the German 10th Army, launches a counter-attack against the US sector with units from 16th Pzr and 19th Pzrgdr Divs. The US forces are driven out of Persano and the line is penetrated in several places. In one area the Germans reach within a mile of the beaches. Naval gunfire is important in preventing the attacks from achieving a decisive success. The cruiser Uganda is damaged by an Hs293 glider bomb. Unloading from the ships in the southern sector is and hurried plans are made for evacuation in case of emergency.

Alexander and Eisenhower are extremely annoyed at this and make arrangements for more rapid reinforcement. New troops begin to arrive during the night to reinforce the bridgehead, and it is stablized. Therefore, part of Gen Matthew Ridgeway's 82nd Airborne Div is dropped on the beaches in the evening. The remainder drop on Sept 14. Farther south Montgomery's forces continue to push forward. Cosenza is taken.

Solomons

The Americans land a small force on Sagekarasa, northeast of Bomboe peninsula.

US Marines in the Jungles of Vella Lavella, Solomon Islands, September 13, 1943