30 Aug 1942
  • US troops landed on Adak Island, Alaska. ww2dbase [TH]
  • Luxembourg was formally annexed into German borders, leading to a general strike. ww2dbase [TH]
  • Most of the Soviet 62nd and 64th Armies broke out of their encirclement by the German 48.Panzer Korps and escaped across the Chervlennaya River in the Caucasus region of southern Soviet Union. ww2dbase [Caucasus Campaign | TH]
  • Douglas MacArthur sent a radio message to Washington DC, United States, urging a response to counter the Japanese attacks on the Allied New Guinea Force. ww2dbase [Douglas MacArthur | CPC]
  • USS S-31's batteries began to produce poisonous chlorine gas, but it was detected and quickly eliminated before causing casualties. ww2dbase [S-31 | CPC]
  • Joseph Stilwell met with Archibald Wavell in Delhi, India, then had dinner with Lord Linlithgow. ww2dbase [Joseph Stilwell | CPC]
  • German submarine U-564 sank Norwegian tanker Vardaas 10 miles north of Tobago island at 0612 hours; all 41 aboard survived. 50 miles to the northeast, U-162 sank US ship Star of Oregon at 0828 hours; 1 was killed, 52 survived. ww2dbase [Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico Campaigns | CPC]
  • German submarine U-66 sank Panamanian ship Sir Huon 375 miles east of Trinidad at 0926 hours; all 46 aboard survived. At 1930 hours, U-66 struck again, sinking US ship West Lashaway; all 56 aboard survived but some would die before being rescued. ww2dbase [Second Happy Time | CPC]
  • 440 internees of the Portland Assembly Center in Oregon, United States departed for the Heart Mountain Relocation Center in Wyoming, United States. ww2dbase [Portland Assembly Center | CPC]
Alaska
  • USS Nashville, USS Honolulu, and USS St. Louis covered US Army's unopposed landing at Adak Island in Alaska's Aleutian chain. ww2dbase [Nashville | St. Louis | Honolulu | Adak | DS]
Atlantic Ocean
  • Comandante Cappellini sighted a biplane aircraft in the Atlantic Ocean at 1411 hours; she submerged to avoid detection. ww2dbase [Comandante Cappellini | CPC]
Australian New Guinea Australian Papua
  • Japanese 144th Regiment attacked Australians at Isurava along the Kokoda Track in Australian Papua; after holding the position for the past few days and sustaining 99 killed and 111 wounded, the Australians finally gave up Isurava and fell back toward Eora; the Japanese suffered 140 killed and 231 wounded during the Isurava engagement. ww2dbase [New Guinea-Papua Campaign, Phase 2 | CPC]
British Western Pacific Territories
  • Japanese aircraft attacked and sank destroyer transport USS Colhoun in the Savo Sound north of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands at 1400 hours; 51 were killed, 95 survived. Overnight, Japanese destroyer transports landed 1,000 troops on Guadalcanal. ww2dbase [Guadalcanal Campaign | Guadalcanal | CPC]
  • The rear echelon of US Marine Aircraft Group 23 arrived at Henderson Field on Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. ww2dbase [Henderson Field | Guadalcanal Campaign | Lunga Point, Guadalcanal | CPC]
Egypt
  • Axis forces launched a new offensive toward El Alamein, Egypt, immediately meeting resistance from the air by the Desert Air Force. On the other side of the lines, British leaders already knew of the general German direction, learned from successful "Ultra" cryptanalysis. ww2dbase [Battle of Alam el Halfa | CPC]
Greece
  • British submarine HMS Rorqual deployed 50 mines off Corfu, Greece; later in the day, she damaged Italian ship Monstella, forcing her to beach to prevent sinking. ww2dbase [CPC]
Hawaii
  • USS Permit arrived at Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii, ending her sixth war patrol. ww2dbase [Permit | Pearl Harbor, Oahu | CPC]
Norway
  • Admiral Scheer arrived at Schemenfjord near Narvik, Norway. ww2dbase [Admiral Scheer | Narvik | CPC]
Russia
  • Soviet ship Revolutionary, damaged by Admiral Scheer at Dikson, Russia three days prior, was repaired and put back into service. ww2dbase [Dikson, Krasnoyarsk Krai | CPC]
Singapore
  • Over 20,000 British and Australian prisoners of war at the Selarang prisoner of war camp in Singapore refused to sign a pledge promising they would not attempt to escape. The Japanese rounded up these uncooperative prisoners of war, placed them in the central plaza, and denied them food, water, and medical treatment. Four prisoners who had previously attempted to escape were executed in front of the group to set an example. ww2dbase [Changi Prison and Selarang Barracks | Singapore | CPC]
United Kingdom
  • HMS Howe was assigned to the British Navy Home Fleet. ww2dbase [Howe | CPC]
United States Photo(s) dated 30 Aug 1942
USS Copahee underway off Port Angeles, Washington, United States, 30 Aug 1942

30 Aug 1942 Interactive Map

Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis




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Famous WW2 Quote
"With Germany arming at breakneck speed, England lost in a pacifist dream, France corrupt and torn by dissension, America remote and indifferent... do you not tremble for your children?"

Winston Churchill, 1935


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