machine gun ammunition. In an
explosive duel witnessed by the IJN
personnel below, two of the Hudsons
were shot down.
Piloted by Fg Off Graham Gibson,
Hudson A16-126 dived into a ridge
inland from Gasmata with the loss
of all on board – the wreck not being
discovered until 2008. The other
Hudson lost, A16-91, was flown by
24 Squadron’s commanding officer,
Sqn Ldr John Lerew.
Somehow, Lerew managed to jump
free before one of the aircraft’s wings
separated – the only one of his crew
to survive. He evaded the enemy and
made his way to Port Moresby.
This capped-off something of a real-
life Boy’s Own adventure for Lerew.
He had flown bombing raids against
Kapingamarangi and fired on a Mavis
from a Wirraway before leading the
RAAF Rabaul ground staff on an epic
jungle trek. His leadership ensured
the group was safely evacuated by
RAAF flying boats.
Game changers
As the Japanese settled into Rabaul,
a new unit formed on February
10 called 4 Kokutai. Planned as
a composite fighter and bomber
unit, it absorbed the 18 Claudes
then operating from Lakunai, with
forward deployment of four at
Gasmata. These established standing
patrols flown by single aircraft from
04:00 until 18:00 hours each day,
at altitudes of between 10,000 and
16,000ft.
A major portent for future 4 Ku
fighter operations came on February
17 with the arrival of the light carrier
Shoho in Rabaul carrying six brand
new Zekes in crates. It took several
days to get them flying.
The Zekes were a potential game
changer for the region. When
equipped with an under-fuselage
drop-tank, the A6M had an
exceptional endurance, which was
so necessary in Pacific operations.
Compared to the 1930s-era
Claudes with their fixed, spatted
undercarriages, open cockpits and
machine guns, the Zekes offered the
performance of a modern fighter
bolstered with the hitting power of
two 20mm cannons.
Given the tail code prefix ‘F’, the
Zekes of 4 Ku were allocated to
the first chutai led by Lt Okamoto
Harutushi. For the time being, 2 and
3 chutai continued operating Claudes
under Lts Iwasaki Nobuhiro and
Kawai Shiro.
On February 20 one of the Claudes
intercepted a Hudson over Rabaul,
riddling it with bullets and killing the
wireless operator.
Meanwhile Vunakanau had
finally been made ready for bomber
operations, and over the course of
several days 18 Mitsubishi G4M1
Bettys flew in from Truk to equip two
bomber chutai of 4 Ku.Darkest day
While the Japanese were increasing
their strength, the first American
forces arrived in the South Pacific,
the most significant element
of which was the carrier USS
Lexington (also see News). Based
on information provided by RAAF
Hudsons, its commander quickly
formulated a plan to raid Rabaul.
While approaching the objective on
February 20, Lexington was spotted
450 miles distant from Rabaul by
Mavis flying boats. The new Betty
bombers had proved devastating
while using torpedoes to sink the
British warships Prince of Wales
and Repulse off Malaya some weeks
earlier, and no time was wasted in
ordering both chutai of 4 Ku to
attack the carrier.
Torpedoes had yet to be delivered
to Rabaul, so the Bettys were each
loaded with two 250kg bombs
instead. The six Zekes of 4 Ku were
operational, but drop-tanks had
not yet been delivered either, so the
bombers would fly the mission alone.
What unfolded was one of the most
one-sided aerial engagements of the
entire Pacific War. With the benefit
of radar, Grumman F4F-3 Wildcats
of VF-3 mauled the unescorted
bombers. Just two of 18 Bettys
returned to Rabaul. Two Mavises
were also shot down, while another
Mavis and a Jake were lost to weather.
It was the darkest day of the“The Claudes expended 2,800 rounds of 7.7mm machine gun
ammunition. In an explosive duel witnessed by the IJN personnel
below, two of the Hudsons were shot down”Left
Wirraway A20-319
abandoned at
Lakunai and captured
by the Japanese.May 2018 FLYPAST 45