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This is Volume One of The Army Air Forces in World War II, titled Plans and Early Operations, January 1939 to August 1942, edited by Wesley Frank Craven and James Lea Cate. The University of Chicago Press first published it in 1948, and the Office of Air Force History reprinted it in 1983. The front matter explains how the AAF historical program was set up during the war. The index covers Pacific, Atlantic and European operations, and nothing in the text concerns unidentified aerial phenomena.
“The Wash”17 pages
T H E A R M Y A I R F O R C E S I N W O R L D W A R I 1 cerned over the defense plans, apparently feeling that unless the area received more adequate protective measures, Plaines des Gaiacs would become an invitation to the Japanese rather than a weapon of re- sistance. H e went so far as to inform the liaison officer of the Ha- waiian Department that if weapons and troops failed to arrive before Plaines des Gaiacs became operable he would withdraw authority for all further work. The State Department smoothed the way by as- suring the Commissioner that assistance would be given, but it did not reveal the strength, nationality, composition, or projected movements of Patch's units, and the question was dropped with the arrival of the ground force on I 2 March, followed on the I 5th by the 67th Pursuit Squadron.20In addition to these forces, action was expedited in pre- paring the ground echelon of the bombardment squadron for transfer to New Caledonia; and on 1 7 May, approximately 208 men, com- prising the 69th Squadron of the 38th Bombardment Group (M), with its attached 4th Platoon of the 445th Ordnance Company (Aviation), sailed from Brisbane, carrying their equipment with them.*l Scarcely less vital or vulnerable than New Caledonia in the ferry line were the Fiji Islands, useful both as an aircraft staging area and as a naval anchorage. Responsibility for their local defense had passed to New Zealand early in the war; now the Combined Chiefs reaf- firmed this original arrangement and determined that, in addition, the United States should assist New Zealand by providing air defenses and equipment. Substantial quantities of the materiel necessary for Fiji defense already had been supplied out of U.S. stocks, with the remainder coming from British sources.22New Zealand had sent most of the personnel for the garrison of Viti Levu, increasing her forces on that island to approximately 10,000troops by May 1 9 4 2 , at which time the total US. Army forces consisted of 2 5 pursuit planes and 600 men, including personnel for operation and maintenance of air- dromes a t Nandi.23 T o provide for the relief of the New Zealand forces and to assure Allied grasp upon these strategic islands, the United States on I 3 May assumed responsibility for their defense, and immediately initiated action to send strong reinforcements to the Fijis. Under the joint Army-Navy plan, approximately 15,000 men of the 37th Division were to begin movement about 1 7 May from the west coast of the United States in a six-vessel convoy. Also scheduled for eventual 434
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