3 Aug 1942
  • USS Gudgeon sank Japanese passenger/cargo ship Naniwa Maru 80 miles west of Truk, Caroline Islands at 0400 hours; 31 were killed. ww2dbase [Gudgeon | CPC]
  • Destroyer USS Tucker struck a friendly mine near Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides at 2145 hours; 6 were killed, 152 survived. ww2dbase [CPC]
  • German submarine U-552 detected Allied convoy ON-115 330 miles east of St. John's, Newfoundland, and submarines U-71, U-217, U-597, U-553, and U-704 moved in to attack in coordination; ships of the convoy became disarrayed as the convoy attempted to change course to evade the attack; U-552 sank British ship Lochkatrine (9 were killed, 81 survived) and damaged British tanker G. S. Walden (1 was killed) at 0305 hours; at 0401 hours, U-553 damaged Belgian ship Belgian Soldier. Further out in the North Atlantic, U-605 sank British trawler Bombay 190 miles southeast of Reykjavik, Iceland at 1654 hours, killing all 13 aboard. ww2dbase [Second Happy Time | CPC]
  • British submarine HMS Saracen sank German submarine U-335 300 kilometers northwest of Bergen, Norway at 2130 hours (43 were killed, 1 survived and captured by Saracen); 6 torpedoes were expended on this attack. ww2dbase [CPC]
  • Japanese submarine I-175 damaged Australian trawler Dureenbee with her deck gun and machine gun 20 miles off Moruya, Australia; 3 were killed and 9 survivors abandoned the burning wreck. ww2dbase [CPC]
  • USS Massachusetts, with USS Nicholas as an escort, arrived at Norfolk, Virginia. Nicholas departed immediately to return to Boston. ww2dbase [Nicholas | DS]
Alaska Australia
  • George Brett was awarded the Silver Star medal by Douglas MacArthur in Australia. ww2dbase [George Brett | CPC]
Australian New Guinea
  • Saburo Sakai, along with the others of Japanese Navy Tainan Air Group, was relocated to Rabaul, New Britain. ww2dbase [Saburo Sakai | Rabaul, New Britain | CPC]
Australian Papua India New Hebrides
  • While approaching the anchorage at Espiritu Santo, destroyer USS Tucker struck a mine amidships and nearly broke in two. Attempts to tow her shallow water before she could sink were unsuccessful and the ship sank the following day. 3 were killed and 3 were missing. ww2dbase [Tucker | Espiritu Santo | DS]
Russia United Kingdom
  • A German Do 217 medium bomber attacked Middlesbrough, England, United Kingdom at 1308 hours, damaging the railway station, killing 8 civilians, and wounding 56. ww2dbase [Battle of Britain | Middlesbrough, England | CPC]
United States
  • US Marine Corps Major General Clayton Vogel was made the commanding general of the Fleet Marine Force, San Diego Area in the US Navy 11th Naval District in southwestern United States. ww2dbase [San Diego, California | CPC]
  • USS Bailey was ordered to join USS Quick and Beatty in a search for a reported enemy submarine near Matinicus Island, Maine, 60 miles northeast of Bailey’s exercise area. The destroyers, assisted by one PBY Catalina patrol aircraft, searched the area all night without locating the submarine. Bailey returned to her exercise area. ww2dbase [Bailey | Maine | DS]
Photo(s) dated 3 Aug 1942
HMS Indomitable and HMS Eagle sailing behind HMS Victorious, 3-10 Aug 1942; note Hurricane and Albacore aircraft on VictoriousHMS Formidable underway, 3 Aug 1942USS Quincy with Measure 12 (Modified) camouflage scheme at Noumea, New Caledonia, 3 Aug 1942, photo taken from carrier USS WaspUSS San Juan probably at Nouméa, New Caledonia, 3 Aug 1942; photograph taken from USS Wasp
See all photos dated 3 Aug 1942

3 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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