The Wilmington morning star., 1944-02-19
interpreting
The War

The bold and sudden American
air-sea lunge at Truk, whatever
else it acconplishes, has stirred
Tokyo to a fit of radio filters and
inspired a thrill of Allied expect
ancy that was reflected from Lon
don to Chungking.
Truk is more than another Gil
bralterized coral island and la
COON. 1t is prime pivot of JAP
anese Central Pacific defenses, the
capstone of a 1,500-n1ile wide sea
arch from the Solomons to lost
Guam and vital to the stealthily
planned Nipponese scheme of Chi
ma Sea conquest.
1t is a symbol of long planned
japanese international treachery.
That it could be the target for
an American surprise sea-air at.
tack SO soon after the overwhelm.
ing air-sea incursion into the
Marshalls, more than 1000 miles
eastward, without bringing the
main enemy fleet to action, must
shake Japanese public faith in the
victory promises of their wal
lords.
The attack obviously Jared Jap
anese radio commentators. 1t rep
resented an American show Of
Epower, speed and daring. The bolc
strokes must tend to debate Nip
ponese hopes for time to organize
their looted conquest zone.
That blow more than any othe.
struck by the Americans in the
Pacific makes good on the recon
statement of Admiral King, nava
commander-in-ch that it is, nj
longer necessary to wait on de
velopments in Europe to strike anc
strike hard at Japan.
The Hundreds of carrier basee
planes in the attack on Truk I'm
doubtedly were backed by sec
power adequate. to meet any Jap
anese counter action. Tokyo at one
moment styled it scouting op
Grafton in force, and in the mex
reported "mechanized" troops en-
gagged, implying American landing
operations.
The radio voice of Tokyo was
concerned most with explaining
why the boosted japanese higi
seas fleet was not at hand to re
pei the assault. It contended thai
the fleet was being saved for g
more opportune moment to come
out of hiding and deal a decisive
blow.
BY every indication the assault
on Truk was backed with such
air and sea power that if the Jap
anese battle fleet did come to &C
ton it faced a threat of annihila
ton. There are strong intimations
also, that the blow was a surprise
to Japan even though rowing Ma
rine Corps scouting planes hat
previously penetrated Truk' .radal
or other screening system to bring
back word of what they saw.
That word and the aerial photo
graphs taken two weeks ago ma.
have prompted the daring arise;
lunge at Truk. Published accounts
by the Marine officers on the fligh
as to what they saw suggest ;
formidable n m y task force
might have been modifying a
Truk for counter action to the cas-
or south. Many naval and carg'
craft were sighted in Truk anchor
ages.
! That alone would have justified
a daring smash by air to fore
stall expected Japanese action.
The Truk action is all the NOR
surprising because it could b.
driven home so quickly. It tool
months of preparation to get read.
for seizure of the Gilberts and O
the dominating atolls of the Mar
shalls. The supply lines for tn
air-sea-ground armada involve
! lead far back to Pearl Harbor
The indicated power of the ne1
blow westward at the very hear
of Japanese Central Pacific de
tense implies that American &C
vance bases in the Gilberts an
even possibly in the Marshalls ar
already well developed and sup
piled sufficiently for major often
sive rather than purely defensiv
operations.