Air Operations, Bismarcks
- AirSols TBFs and SBDs, escorted by many AirSols fighters, attack Rabaul's Vunakanau airfield. 42nd Medium Bomb Group B-25s, escorted by many AirSols fighters, also attack the Vunakanau airfield. 21 XIII Bomber Command B-24s, escorted by many AirSols fighters, attack the Tobera airfield at Rabaul.
- VMF-212, VMF-217, and VMF-222 F4Us, and a VMTB-143 TBF crew down 11 A6M Zeros and Ki-61 'Tony' fighters in the Rabaul area between 0845 and 0910 hours. An 82nd Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron P-39 downs a bomber over the Willaumez Peninsula at 1100 hours. VF-17 F4Us down 2 Zeros over the Tobera airfield, Rabaul, at 1245 hours. and 347th Fighter Group P-38s down 10 Zeros over St. George�s Channel and the Tobera airfield at 1300 hours.
- Allied ground forces advancing from Arawe and Cape Gloucester link up, thus bringing to an end the ground campaign in western New Britain. For practical purposes, the air campaign also draws to a close, though occasional missions will still be flown to the area, mainly to restrict barge traffic and Japanese Army foot patrols between bypassed areas and bases.
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]Air Operations, CBI
BURMA- 3 7th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s attack Akyab and Prome. 9 490th Medium Bomb Squadron B-25s attack Chiradan and Godusara. 16 10th Air Force P-51s attack road targets and a barracks at Chishidu. 8 14th Air Force P-40s attack a supply depot and training facility at Wanling.
- 341st Medium Bomb Group B-25s attack shipping at sea near Hong Kong and Hainan Island. 8 51st Fighter Group P-51s and 4 449th Fighter Squadron P-38s strafe the airfield at Chiuchiang; 12 P-40s attack Yangtze River traffic between Puchi and Yoyang.
- 449th Fighter Squadron P-38s down 2 of 3 Ki-45 'Nick' fighters encountered near Kanchang during the afternoon. A 76th Fighter Squadron P-51 downs a Ki-48 'Lily' bomber over the airfield at Suichwan during the evening.
- 9 7th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s attack an arsenal in Bangkok and the Don Maung airfield there.
| ]Air Operations, Europe
Russian bombers attempt to bomb the Tirpitz in Kaafiord, Norway. 15 aircraft start out on the raid, but only 4 find the battleship. A one-ton bomb scores a near miss, but the Tirpitz escapes major damage.
RAF BOMBER COMMANDEvening Ops:
- 21 Mosquitos are sent to Berlin and 4 to Aachen, 2 Wellingtons make RCM flights, 21 Wellingtons lay mines off the Brittany and Biscay ports, and 26 aircraft are on Resistance operations.
- There are no losses.
GERMANY:
- 141 1st Bomb Division B-17s, escorted by 446 fighters, attack aircraft-industry targets at Brunswicck.
- 29 bombers and 295 crewmen are lost
- In one of the hardest fought air battles to date over northwestern Europe, USAAF fighter pilots down a record 60 Luftwaffe fighters along the bomber routes between 1045 and 1330 hours.
- 5 P-38s and 4 P-47s are lost with their pilots
- Due to frost and poor visibility caused by contrails, only 27 of 81 2nd Bomb Division B-24s displatched are able to attack the Gilze-Rijen Airdrome.
- No aircraft are lost to enemy fire, but 4 B-24s are lost in operational accidents
FRANCE:
- 114 9th Air Force B-26s attack the Poix and Beauvais/Tille Airdromes, a bridge, a coastal battery, and several V-weapons sites along the Channel coast.
ITALY:
- XII Air Support Command A-36s, P-40s, and P-47s conduct operations in support of the Allied ground forces in the Anzio beachhead.
ITALY:
- 15th Air Force B-17s and B-24s conduct missions in support of Allied ground forces in the Anzio beachhead.
| ]Air Operations, Marshalls
41st Medium Bomb Group B-25s attack the Maloelap and Wotje atolls.
[ | ]Air Operations, New Guinea
- XIII Fighter Command P-39s attack Bonis and barges near the Green Islands and in Matchin Bay.
- A VMF(N)-531 PV crew downs a G4M 'Betty' bomber 45 miles from Torokina Field on Bougainville at 0354 hours.
| ]Atlantic
The British tanker El Grillo is bombed and sunk by a FW-200 in Seidis Fjord, Iceland.
[ | ]Battle of the Atlantic
- Wellington 'O' of No 612 squadron obtains a radar contact at a range of 8 miles. U-545 is clearly visible in the moonlight from 1 mile and 4 depth charges are dropped which land in a perfect straddle. Making another pass the aircraft spotted survivors in the water.
- U-666 is sunk by Swordfish 'A' from 842 NAS, HMS Fencer.
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| ]Burma
The Japanese occupy the Ngakyedauk Pass, thus cutting off the 7th Indian Div of the British XV Corps at Sinzweya. The 26th Indian Div of the 14th Army, sent to re-establish communications, liberates Taung Bazaar. But the 7th Indian Div is still cut off and now has to be supplied by air.
In the mountainous eastern part of upper Burma, on the border with China, the Japanese confine themselves to controlling the Salween River area, a possible route for the passage of any Chinese reinforcements from Yunnan.
[ | ]Diplomatic Relations
Hungary's ambassador in Lisbon is instructed to inform the Western Allies that Budapest wishes to surrender unconditionally, but not to the Russians.
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Eastern Front
Nikolai F. Vatutin's troops take Shepetovka.
SOUTHERN SECTORStemmerman has drawn his forces in tightly by reducing the pocket significantly. The bulk of his force masses to the south as thin rearguards cover the northern and easter faces. Shepetovka falls to the 60th Army after a protracted battle.
[ | ]Italy
The pro-Allied Italian government is given administrative control over southern Italy, Sicily and Sardinia.
[ | ]Marshalls
US forces begin mopping up remaining resistance throughout the Marshall Islands. On this day, US Marines are landed on Arno Atoll.
[ | ]New Guinea
The US 6th Army and their Australian allies complete Operation DEXTERITY, the capture of the western part of New Britain and the Huon peninsula in New Guinea. The Australian 5th Div advancing along the north coast from Sio link up with the Americans near Saidor. The occupation of the Huon Peninsula is now virtually complete.
[ | ]Pacific
- The Japanese Combined Fleet abandons Truk as a major naval base and heads for Palau, near the Philippines.
- The Japanese destroyer Minekaze is sunk by the US submarine Pogy (SS-266) off Formosa.
| ]Images from February 10, 1944
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