Evening star., 1944-04-23
Land BomberS
|Hit Mariianas
For First Time
Two More Islands
In MurshuIIs Seized:
Wewuk NeutroIized

FALL OF CHENGHSIEN Feared
Near as Japs Drive Ahead. Pg. Al
BY the Associated Press.
Japan's Marianas Islands, at
the Pacific crossroads to the
Philippines and Tokyo, have
been bombed by American land
based bombers for the first time.
1t was the second air blow
against the Marianas, the first
being made by carrier planes.
Four-engined Army and Navy
bombers' made an over water
round-trip flight of more than 1900
miles and shot their way through
Is interceptors to bomb Saipan and
Tinian, air and naval bases in the
Southern Marianas.
The raid was announced yester-
day simultaneously with the disclos-
ure that the American flag has been
raised over two more of Japan's
inundated Marshall Islands in the
Central Pacific.
Wewak Base Neutralized.
Meanwhile, Southwest Pacific
headquarters disclosed that Wewak,
the japanese base on the North
eastern New Guinea coast, has been
neutralized by Allied bombing and
strafing raids.
The aerial offensive against
Altape, another enemy supply base
and bivouac center on the coast 90
miles west of Wewak, also has been
quickened.
Three runwayS Of airfields at
Wewak were rendered unservice-
able under the pounding of 200
tons Of explosives dropped by 5th
Army Air Force heavy bombers,
the communique said.
installations, enemy-held coastal
villages and offshore islands in the
Aitape area shook under 26O tons
OF Allied bombs Fuel dumps were
set af1re and many buildings were
destroyed.
Solomons- based medium and light
bonbers continued delivering their
daily loads of destruction on Ra-
baul, New Britain, dropping more
than 100 tons of explosives in the
latest raid Friday.
Truk Pounded Again.
Army and Navy bombers pounded
Trunk Atoll and the Hall Islands
in the Carolines on Thursday and
Friday, the Navy announced last
night.
Seven Army Liberators set off ex-
ploslons on an air strip and started
fires in nearby areas in the raid
Thursday on Moen and Dublon
Islands in the Truk Atoll.
Ulul Island and Igup, Murilo and
Ruo Islands in the Hall Islands, As
miles north of Truk, were hit by
search planes of Fleet Air Wing 2
on Friday. Four small vessels were
destroyed and four damaged. Truk
previously had been bombed Tues
day and Ponape, it's eastern OUTPOST,
on Thursday.
Marianas Near Guam.
The heavy bomebr raid on the
Marianas last Monday was the
second American air blow at Saipan
and Tinian, 125 miles from Guam,
which the japanese occupied early
IN the war. In the first strike by
carrier forces, 1875 japanese planes
were wiped out, two ships sunk
and nine damaged. The land based
bombers reported only that they
shot down one or two interceptors.
Antiaircraft fire was moderate. No
other details were announced.
The attackers came from the
Central Pacific, probably based on
EnlWetok in the Western Marshalls.
l 100 air miles to the southeast.
Both new atolls occupied in the
MarshallS-Aur and Erikub-are in
the eastern chain almost within ar
tlllery range of two of the four
remaining enemy bases in the Mar
shalls, which have been undergoing
daily air bombardment for months.
Allied Southeast Asia headquar-
ters declared the Indian situation
continues to develop favorably."
Allied dive bombers were reported
lnfilcting heavy casualties on re-
treating Japanese 30 to IS miles
northeast of Imphal. Renewed
Japanese attacks were reported re-
pulsed at Bishenpur, trail and road
junction southwest of Imphal.