5 Oct 1942
  • George Kenney ordered Kenneth Walker to stop personally participating on missions. This order would be disobeyed. ww2dbase [George Kenney | CPC]
Australian New Guinea
  • 6 B-17 Flying Fortress bombers of US 30th Bomb Squadron from Port Moresby, Australian Papua attacked Vunakanau airfield at Rabaul, New Britain. Simultaneously, 8 B-17 bombers of 28th Bomb Squadron attacked nearby Lakunai airfield. The attacks caused very minor damage. ww2dbase [Rabaul, New Britain | CPC]
British Western Pacific Territories Germany Gilbert and Ellice Islands
  • USS S-38 spotted a Japanese tanker at Tarawa, Gilbert Islands and fired three torpedoes at it. The torpedoes struck a lagoon and detonated before they could reach the target. ww2dbase [S-38 | Tarawa | CPC]
Pacific Ocean
  • USS Wahoo sighted a Japanese carrier and mis-identified her to be Ryujo. Lieutenant Commander Marvin Kennedy took a conservative attack approach that ultimately failed to intercept the carrier. ww2dbase [Wahoo | CPC]
  • USS S-44 suffered leaks from damage sustained; her crew attempted repairs while escaping an attack by Japanese destroyers. ww2dbase [S-44 | CPC]
Russia
  • The Soviet STAVKA arrested Major General Ivan Rukhle, recent deputy chief of the headquarters of the Stalingrad Front, and falsely charged him with treason. Rukhle would be kept at the Lubyanka prison near Moscow, Russia until 1952. ww2dbase [Lubyanka Building | Moscow | CPC]
Photo(s) dated 5 Oct 1942
B-17F Fortress “The Aztec’s Curse†of the 26th Bomb Squadron immediately after an attack on Ghizo Island in the Solomon Islands, 5 Oct 1942.Drayton

5 Oct 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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