5 Jan 1945




See all photos dated 5 Jan 1945
- In the Philippine Islands, Japanese aircraft attacked the American invasion fleet bound for Luzon. Special attack aircraft damaged cruiser USS Louisville, Australian cruiser HMAS Australia, destroyer USS Helm, destroyer USS Stafford, Australian destroyer HMAS Arunta, escort carrier USS Manila Bay, and escort carrier USS Savo Island. Meanwhile, American aircraft sunk Japanese destroyers Momi and damaged destroyers Hinoki and Sugi west of Manila Bay. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 2 | CPC]
- Three American light cruisers and nine destroyers bombarded various targets in the Kurile Islands. ww2dbase [CPC]
- USS Wake Island took on 19 survivors of sunken USS Ommaney Bay. In the afternoon, the task group she sailed with was subjected to heavy air attacks; her anti-aircraft gun crews claimed three Japanese aircraft shot down. ww2dbase [Wake Island | CPC]
- USS Hawkbill arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her second war patrol. ww2dbase [Hawkbill | CPC]
- Aircraft from USS Marcus Island damaged a Japanese midget submarine in the Mindanao Sea in the Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Marcus Island | CPC]
- The German attack on Bastogne, Belgium was called off. ww2dbase [Battle of the Bulge | Bastogne | CPC]
- 28 P-40N and P-51D fighters of the US 14th Air Force and Chinese-American Composite Wing (Provisional) from Laohekou, Hubei, China attacked the Japanese airfield at Wuhan in the same province, destroying 50 Japanese aircraft in the air and on the ground. One Chinese fighter was shot down. Two of the Chinese victories was scored by Tan Kun, flying a P-40N fighter, against one Ki-43 aircraft and one Ki-44 aircraft at 1400 hours. ww2dbase [Tan Kun | Laohekou, Hubei | CPC]
- Kamoi and the rest of convoy HI-87 departed Zhoushan Islands off the coast of Zhejiang Province, China. ww2dbase [Kamoi | Zhoushan Islands, Zhejiang | CPC]
- USS Sennet departed Pearl Harbor, US Territory of Hawaii for her first war patrol. ww2dbase [Pearl Harbor Navy Base and Ford Island Naval Air Station | Sennet | Pearl Harbor, Oahu | CPC]
- American cruisers, destroyers, and carrier aircraft attacked the Bonin Islands. At Iwo Jima, a Japanese landing ship was sunk by destroyer fire. At Chichi Jima, destroyer USS Fanning sank a Japanese freighter by gunfire and a torpedo, while destroyer USS David W. Taylor was damaged by a mine. ww2dbase [Battle of Iwo Jima | Iwo Jima | CPC]
- USS Whale searched for survivors of a downed B-29 Superfortress bomber east of Tokyo, Japan without success. ww2dbase [Whale | CPC]
- SB No. 123 (formerly landing ship No. 107) was sunk by a US destroyer in the Pacific Ocean west of Hahajima, Bonin Islands, Japan. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | CPC]
- The Japanese Army SB craft previously known as the Navy landing ship No. 154 was sunk by a US destroyer in the Pacific Ocean off Iwo Jima, Japan. ww2dbase [No. 101/103-class | CPC]
- Destroyer USS Helm was struck by a Nakajima Ki-43 'Oscar' special attack fighter that damaged Helm's searchlight and injured six men. ww2dbase [Ki-43 Hayabusa | Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Tokko "Kamikaze" Special Attack Doctrine | Helm | DS]
- The last session of the police summary court of the Kattowitz Gestapo took place in block 11 in Auschwitz I camp. Around 100 Polish prisoners were condemned to death, to be executed by firing squad on the next day. The court was presided by Johannes Thuemmler. These prisoners were under the jurisdiction of the Gestapo and not of the commandant of the concentration camp. ww2dbase [Discovery of Concentration Camps and the Holocaust | Auschwitz Concentration Camp | Oswiecim | CPC]
- German V-2 rocket hit the golf course at Croydon, London, England, United Kingdom, making a crater 40 feet wide. ww2dbase [V-Weapons Campaign | Vergeltungswaffe 2 | London, England | CPC]




See all photos dated 5 Jan 1945
5 Jan 1945 Interactive Map
Timeline Section Founder: Thomas Houlihan
Contributors: Alan Chanter, C. Peter Chen, Thomas Houlihan, Hugh Martyr, David Stubblebine
Special Thanks: Rory Curtis
Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you. Share this article with your friends: Stay updated with WW2DB: |
|
Search WW2DB & Partner Sites
News
- » WW2DB's 16th Anniversary (29 Dec 2020)
- » Hidekazu Tamura shared his feelings toward his war time internment (2 Sep 2020)
- » WW2DB's 15th Anniversary (29 Dec 2019)
- » Japan and Russia to continue negotiations on the Kuriles territorial dispute (22 Nov 2019)
- » Wreck of Akagi Found (21 Oct 2019)
- » Wreck of Kaga Found (18 Oct 2019)
- » See all news
Current Site Statistics
- » 1,094 biographies
- » 332 events
- » 38,156 timeline entries
- » 1,126 ships
- » 337 aircraft models
- » 190 vehicle models
- » 352 weapon models
- » 117 historical documents
- » 225 facilities
- » 464 book reviews
- » 27,153 photos
- » 351 maps
Famous WW2 Quote
"All right, they're on our left, they're on our right, they're in front of us, they're behind us... they can't get away this time."Lt. Gen. Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, at Guadalcanal