Air Operations, Bismarcks

RAAF Kittyhawk fighter-bombers attack Gasmata.

Air Operations, CBI

• 8 14th Air Force P-40s attack Pingkai and nearby targets of opportunity.

• 8 14th Air Force P-40s attack the airfield at Kengtung and nearby Japanese Army barracks.

• 4 14th Air Force P-40s attack the airfield at Dong Cuong.

Air Operations, Central Pacific

Japanese Navy bombers attack the airfield at Funafuti, where 2 Seabees are killed and a B-24 and C-47 are destroyed.

Air Operations, East Indies

• V Bomber Command B-25s attack a freighter near Tanimbar Island in the Molucca Islands.
• During the night, V Bomber Command B-24s attack den Pasar, Soerabaja, and Tjepoe.

Air Operations, Europe

• 66 Lancasters and 17 Halifaxes raid Ludwigshafen-on-Rhine with the main target being the I.G. Farben factory.
• This raid is a purely blind-bombing raid without any target indicators being dropped. 43 crews bomb using H₂S with 2 or 3 hitting the factory. 6 more bomb within a mile. This is a good result for limited application of H₂S. Because of misleading instructions broadcast from England to the German night-fighter pilots, most of the fighter force lands early.
• 1 Lancaster is lost.

• 21 Mosquitos are sent to Berlin, Bochum, Bonn and Duisburg and there are 4 OTU sorties.

Air Operations, Gilberts

VII Bomber Command B-24s based at Canton Island and Funafuti attack Tarawa.

Air Operations, Marshalls

• VII Bomber Command B-24s based at Canton Island and Funafuti attack the Taroa and Mille airfields on Maloelap.
• VD-3 PB4Ys reconnoiter and photograph the Wotje Atoll.

Air Operations, New Guinea

• 58 V Bomber Command B-24s are sent against Sattelberg in support of Australian Army ground forces, but only 3 B-24s and 12 RAAF bombers reach the target through bad weather.
• 348th Fighter Group P-47s strafe shipping between Finschhafen and Saidor.

Air Operations, Solomons

• At 0350 hours, Japanese Navy D4Y 'Judy' dive bombers mount an unopposed attack against a US Navy reinforcement convoy near Bougainville. One troop-laden destroyer-transport is sunk, the only ship sunk by Japanese aircraft during the Bougainville operation. 64 crewmen and 52 Marines are lost. 5 'Judys' are downed by antiaircraft fire.
• At 0800, AirSols fighters intercept 10 D4Y 'Judy' dive bombers and 55 fighters on an anti-shipping strike in Empress Augusta Bay. VF-17 F4Us down 1 B5N 'Kate' bomber, 2 Ki-61 'Tony' fighters, and 6 A6M Zeros over Empress Augusta Bay between 0800 and 0815. 2 VMF-221 F4Us down 3 'Judys' over Cape Torokina at 0800 hours. 2 VF-17 F4Us are lost.
• XIII Bomber Command B-24s attack the airfield at Buka and 3 42nd Medium Bomb Group B-25s attack Kieta.

Eastern Front

The Soviets continue to advance toward Korosten and capture Novodichi. Farther north they also make gains near Gomel. Von Manstein's forces counterattack forcefully in the Zhitomir-Fastov sector and gain some ground.

The Belorussian Front's 48th and 11th Armies have almost encircled Gomel, the defending 9th Army fighting vigorously despite being heavily outnumbered.

The XLVIII Panzer Corps recaptures Zhitomir, smashing the Soviet lines of communication west of Kiev and endangering those forces still pushing west. German units also push toward Malin and Korosten, threatening the 60th Army. Despite the danger, the 13th Army captures Ovruch as it continues to advance on the northern wing of the 1st Ukrainian Front.

New Guinea

Australians with Matilda tanks assault Sattelberg.

Pacific

• The US high speed transport McKean (APD-5) is sunk by an aircraft torpedo off Bougainville, Solomon Islands.
• The US submarine Capelin (SS-289) leaves Darwin, Australia for Molucca and the Celebes area and is never heard from again.

Scenes from November 17, 1943

The Sangro River November 1943: An Indian soldier pushing his vehicle which is bogged down in deep mud in the Sangro area.

Vehicle in the Mud near the Sangro

Matilda tanks from the Australian 1st Tank Battalion move up towards the fighting, 17 November 1943 during the Battle of Sattelberg.

Matilda Tanks Moving Towards the Fighting

Soldiers from the Australian 2/48th Battalion prepare for an attack, 17 November 1943 during the Battle of Sattelberg.

Australians Preparing to Attack

A 17-pounder anti-tank gun moved into position on the River Sangro front, November 1943.

Anti-Tank Gun Moving into Position

Leros - An officer gives orders to some paratroopers. 17 November 1943.

Paratroopers on Leros

Leros - A group of German paratroopers,parked near mount 'Wonder' at the end of the fighting. On the faces reads fatigue and hardness of combat. 17 November 1943.

Paratroopers on Leros