Air Operations, CBI
BURMA- 8 10th Air Force P-47s attack the airfield at Lashio and targets of opportunity along the Burma Road.
- 4 P-47s attack troops and supplies at Mabein.
- 6 14th Air Force B-25s and 6 fighter-bombers attack a bridge at Wan Pa-Hsa.
- Fighter-bombers attack Man Pong, Mong Long, and Wanling.
- 22 14th Air Force P-51s attack a tanker, a railroad ferry, and airfields at Nanking.
- Fighter-bombers attack targets of opportunity in the Kiungshan (Hainan), Kunming, Paoching, and Yungning areas.
- P-51s of the 23rd Fighter Group’s 74th Fighter Squadron down a G4M 'Betty' bomber and 8 Ki-61 'Tony' fighters over Nanking-area airfields at 1300 hours.
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]Air Operations, East Indies
- FEAF B-24s attack the Sandakan and Jesselton airfields on Borneo.
- B-25s and FEAF and RAAF fighter-bombers attack targets on Halmahera.
| ]Air Operations, Europe
US 8th AIR FORCEGERMANY:
- 232 2nd Bomb Division B-24s and 156 3rd Bomb Division B-17s attack numerous road and rail targets west of the Rhine River.
- 5 heavy bombers and 9 of 432 VIII Fighter Command escorts are lost.
ETO:
- 9th Air Force fighters and fighter-bombers mounting 1,095 effective sorties in support of US Army ground forces throughout the Bulge battle area are credited with destoying 813 motor vehicles and 99 armored vehicles.
- 24 9th Air Force fighters are lost.
- 8th and 9th Air Force fighter pilots down 80 Luftwaffe aircraft over western Germany and eastern Belgium between 0115 and 2300 hours.
- 629 9th Bomb Division B-26s, A-26s, and A-20s attack communications centers and road and rail bridges over a wide area of western Germany.
- 3 bombers are lost.
ITALY:
- 12th Air Force medium bombers are grounded by bad weather, but XXII TAC P-47s are very active against rail lines in the Po River valley and leading to Brenner Pass.
- During the night, XXII TAC A-20s attack the Vicenza Airdrome and light sources, motor vehicles, and railroads in the Po River valley.
AUSTRIA:
- 15th Air Force B-24s attack flak concentrations at Innsbruck and marshalling yards at Graz, Hall, Innsbruck, Villach, and Wels.
- 15th Air Force B-17s attack a synthetic-oil plant at Brux.
- 15th Air Force heavy bombers attack marshalling yards at Plattling and Rosswein.
| ]Air Operations, Marianas
In what turns out to be the last attack of its kind, 25 G4M 'Betty' bombers based on Iwo Jima bomb and strafe B-29 bases on Saipan during the evening. 2 B-29s are destroyed and 1 is severely damaged. 6th Night Fighter Squadron P-61s down 3 of the 'Bettys' over the Saipan area between 2000 and 2300 hours.
[ | ]Air Operations, Philippines
- As Allied preinvasion air attacks against Luzon are intensified, 494th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s based at the airfield at Angaur and escorted by V Fighter Command P-47s attack Clark Field on Luzon. FEAF B-24s attack the Mabalacat airfield on Luzon and the Sasa airfield on Mindanao. V Bomber Command B-25s and V Fighter Command fighter-bombers attack various targets on Mindanao.
- 49th and 475th Fighter group P-38s down 42 Japanese fighters over Clark Field, Mabalacat, and nearby areas of Luzon between 1035 and 1125 hours. A 547th Night Fighter Squadron P-61 crew downs a twin-engine airplane over Mindoro at 1945 hours.
| ]Air Operations, Volcano Islands
12 11th Heavy Bomb Group B-24s attack Iwo Jima.
[ | ]Eastern Front
The Russians narrow the enemy escape route from Budapest to a mere 10 miles.
SOUTHERN SECTORSoviet tanks reach Tatabanya and Czolnok. Forces close upon Esztergom from the south. The 2nd Ukrainian Front begins an offensive against the Pest defenses, pushing the Germans and Hungarians steadily back toward urban Budapest. Under intense pressure the 13th Panzer Division and Feldherrnhalle Panzer Grenadier Division have to give ground, losing considerable numbers of men as they fall back.
[ | ]Occupied Greece
Churchill and Eden fly to Athens to mediate in the civil war.
[]Pacific
- The US submarine Barbero (SS-317) attacks a Japanese convoy and sinks the transport Junpo Maru (4277t) 130 miles west-southwest of Kuching, Borneo.
- The British submarines Trenchant and Terrapin sink the auxiliary minesweeper Reisui Maru (219t), cargo vessel No.23 Hinode Maru and auxiliary sailing vessel Wakamiya Maru in the Strait of Malacca.
- The US freighter Robert J. Walker (7176t) is torpedoed by U-862 in the Tasman Sea. Armed Guard 20mm gunfire explodes a second torpedo, but a third hits the ship and causes irreparable damage. 2 of the 42-man crew are lost in the attack. The ship is abandoned and sinks. Survivors are rescued the next day by the Australian destroyer Quickmatch.
| ]Philippines
Organized Japanese resistance on Leyte finally crumbles, the Japanese having lost 70,000 men while the Americans suffered 15,584 casualties. On Leyte the US 6th Army, which is to carry out the invasion of Luzon, is gradually replaced by the 8th Army.
The 1st Battalion, 305th Infantry Regiment, 77th Infantry Division, supported by engineers and artillery, makes an amphibious landing at Palompon and captures the last coastal town occupied by Japanese forces. The Ormoc Valley is closed, completing the final phase of operations for 6th Army. Gen MacArthur delcares Leyte secure even though units of the 1st Cavalry Divison, the 24th Infantry Division, and the 32nd Infantry Division will continue to encounter resistance as the units clear the last defenders on December 31.
[ | ]Western Front
The XXX Corps, British 2nd Army, takes up positions along the west bank of the Meuse from Givet to Liège. The 51st Div is transferred from the US 9th Army to the 1st Army. Bastogne still holds out, while the German advance slows down and almost comes to a halt through lack of supplies. The Panzers are halted at Celles, 6 km east of the Meuse. They have advanced 80 km in their offensive. The Allies begin their counter-offensive against the German forces in the Ardennes. In this advance the attack of US 4th Arm Div from around Mortelange is to be designed to relieve Bastogne.
[ | ]Images from December 25, 1944
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