Air Operations, Carolines

• 30th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s attack the Yap Atoll.
• 11th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s attack the Truk Atoll.

Air Operations, CBI

• 38 10th Air Force P-47s attack Japanese Army troops around Myothit and three occupied towns.
• 12 P-47s attack a bridge at Wanling.
• 8 P-47s support Allied ground troops near Mohnyin.
• 4 P-47s attack targets of opportunity near Wanling.

• 71 14th Air Force P-51s and P-40s attack targets in the Kweiping area.
• 67 fighter-bombers attack numerous targets across southern China and into western Burma.

Air Operations, East Indies

• FEAF B-25s attack Menado on Celebes and nearby targets.
• A-20s and fighter-bombers attack oil facilities at Boela and Amahai, the Kairatoe airfield on Ceram, and the Namlea airfield on Boeroe.
• P-38s attack anti-aircraft batteries and Japanese Army troops on Halmahera and northeastern Celebes.
• During the night, FEAF SB-24s mount nuisance raids against the Balikpapan area on Borneo.

Air Operations, Europe

• 2 Wellingtons and 1 Liberator carry out uneventful signals patrols.

• 57 Mosquitos are sent to Cologne and 4 to Stuttgart. A report from Cologne says the bombing is scattered across the city, but only minor damage is reported.
• There are no losses.

Air Operations, Formosa

• US carrier aircraft from Task Force 38 continue to attack air and naval targets. Opposition is very light as 947 effective sorties sweep the island from dusk until noon.
• At twilight, as she is recovering aircraft, the USS Franklin is damaged when she is struck by 1 of 4 low-flying G4M 'Betty' bombers that deliver an unsuccessful torpedo attack. 1 of the 'Bettys' is downed by a VF-13 F6F, 1 crashes into the Franklin, and the others are downed by ships’ fire. In another attack, the heavy cruiser USS Canberra is damaged by a torpedo.
• 2 VF(N)-41 F6Fs down 3 H8K 'Emily' flying boats over Takao at 0500 hours.
• Carrier-based fighters and a VT-8 TBM crew down 2 E13A 'Jake' reconnaissance planes, 1 E16A 'Paul' reconnaissance plane, 5 Ki-44 'Tojo' fighters, 1 Ki-46 'Dinah' reconnaissance plane, 1 G4M 'Betty' bomber, and 1 Ki-57 'Topsy' transport plane over Formosa during the morning.
• Carrier-based fighters down 12 G4M 'Betty' bombers, 1 Ki-57 'Topsy' transport plane, 2 D4Y 'Judy' dive bombers, 3 P1Y 'Galaxy' bombers, and 2 fighters at sea between 1600 and 1830 hours.

Air Operations, Japan

• 4 28th Composite Bomb Group B-24s photograph and attack Kashiwabara.
• 4 B-25s attack the Kurabu Cape airfield and buildings on Tomari Cape.

China

Gen Patrick Hurley, Roosevelt's personal representative with Chiang Kai-shek, recommends to the President that Gen Stilwell should be recalled.

Eastern Front

Troops from the 2nd and 3rd Baltic Fronts break the German defense ring around Riga and reach nearly to the outskirts of the city. German forces in northern Latvia are threatened with encirclement.

The German 163rd Infantry Div launches a counterattack to the north and west of Luostari (which is now in Soviet hands) as the 2nd Mountain Div digs in between Luostari and Petsamo along Arctic Ocean Highway.

The 67th Army penetrates the German defenses around Riga. Schorner has managed to thrwo up a defense line at Tukums and halts a drive by the 67th, 1st Shock and 22nd Armies into his left flank. After days of bitter fighting the line will be stabilized and a perimeter from which the 16th and 18th Armies will fight the rest of the war erected.

Greece

Advance guards of a major British and Greek force land at the Piraeus and occupy Kalamata airfield. A British parachute battalion is dropped at Megara and captures the airport there.

Italy

The British 46th Div (V Corps) takes Carpineta. Units of the 6th Arm Div advance in the Grizzana sector, about 20 miles southwest of Bologna, and after several unsuccessful attacks succeed in capturing Monte Stanco and Bombiana.

The German resistance around Livergnano begins to show signs of giving way under the offensive of the 91st Div, II Corps, and the land and air bombardment. The Americans capture Height 603 and the village of Casalino, northwest of Livergnano. During the night units of the 88th Div cross the Sillaro River, west of Height 339.

Pacific

US Task Force 38 continues its attacks on targets on the island of Formosa. The Australian cruiser Canberra (CA-70) is seriously damaged by a torpedo from a Japanese aircraft, and the US carrier Franklin (CV-13) is also damaged, though not so seriously, by a Japanese suicide aircraft.

Western Front

In southeast Holland, where the formations of the British 2nd Army are operating, the 3rd Div of British VIII Corps begin an attack from Overloon, about 20 miles south of Nijmegen toward Venlo(Venray?), but runs into strong resistance.

Troops from the US 1st Div, VII Corps, enter Aachen from the east. While the 2nd Battalion fights in the streets, from house to house, the 3rd Battalion storms Observatory Hill, one of 3 heights that dominate the city from the north.

Images from October 13, 1944

King George VI with 21st Army Group, Holland, 13 October 1944

F6F Hellcats on the USS Franklin (CV-13), October 1944

Japanese-American troops on patrol in a Willys MB jeep with 1/4-ton trailer, France, 13 October 1944

Japanese-American Troops on patrol

American infantry troops advance through a hole in the Siegfried Line, or Westwall, October 1944

Advancing Through the Siegfried Line

91st Infantry Division servicemen leaving the town of La Guaroa, Italy, 13 October 1944.

91st Infantry Division Leaving La Guaroa

Wounded infantrymen of The North Shore Regiment being offloaded from a Terrapin amphibious vehicle of the 79th Armored Division, photographed west of Terneuzen, Netherlands, on 13 October 1944. (LAC Photo)

Wounded British Soldier Being Transferred

Captain W.A. Teed of the North Shore Regiment, Embarkation Staff Officer of the 8th Canadian Infantry Brigade, talking with Captain C.J. Aendry, crew commander of an LVT amphibious vehicle of 79th Armoured Division, near Terneuzen, Netherlands, 13 October 1944.

Near Terneuzen, Netherlands