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• » 20 May 1945

• Japanese troops began pulling out of China. ww2dbase [TH]
• American troops reached Shuri Castle, Okinawa, Japan. ww2dbase [Okinawa Campaign | CPC]
• USS Wake Island completed her repairs at Apra Harbor, Guam, Mariana Islands. ww2dbase [Wake Island | CPC]
• Claude Auchinleck had lunch with Winston Churchill, during which Auchinleck noted to Churchill that William Slim was among the best generals in the British Army and recommended the appointment of Slim to succeed him as Commander-in-Chief, India. ww2dbase [Claude Auchinleck | CPC]
• USS Chub attacked a Japanese convoy in the Java Sea, sinking a transport with one of four torpedoes fired. ww2dbase [Chub | CPC]
• USS Ray sank a Japanese patrol vessel west of Japan with her deck gun. ww2dbase [Ray | CPC]
• USS Cero sank a Japanese trawler east of Japan, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. ww2dbase [Cero | CPC]

• Captain J. E. Leeper was named the commanding officer of USS Shamrock Bay, relieving Captain Frank T. Ward, Jr, while the ship was at Guam, Mariana Islands. ww2dbase [Shamrock Bay | Apra | CPC]

• Barbers Point Naval Air Station: Composite Squadron 63 (VC-63) departed. ww2dbase [Barbers Point Naval Air Station | Ewa, Oahu | DS]

• Pilots of Japanese Navy 631st Naval Air Group were officially assigned to individual submarines of Submarine Squadron 1. ww2dbase [CPC]
• Patrol Boat No. 102 began installation work of a Type 13 air search radar at Kure, Japan. ww2dbase [Stewart | Kure Naval Arsenal | Kure, Hiroshima | CPC]

• Canadian troops landed on the island of Texel off the Dutch coast unopposed. ww2dbase [Georgian Texel Uprising | Texel, Noord-Holland | CPC]

• Allied convoy JW-67 arrived at the Kola Inlet near Murmansk, Russia. ww2dbase [Arctic Convoys | Murmansk | CPC]

• Escort carrier USS Bogue departed New York bound for Norfolk. ww2dbase [Bogue | New York City, New York | DS]
• Fleet oiler USS Tamalpais was placed in commission, Lt Cmdr A.J. Church commanding. ww2dbase [Tamalpais | Marinship Shipbuilding | Sausalito, California | DS]

• USS Tirante departed Midway for her second war patrol. ww2dbase [Tirante | Midway Bases | Midway | CPC]
• USS Puffer departed Midway Atoll for her eighth war patrol. ww2dbase [Puffer | Midway Bases | Midway | CPC]

20 May 1945 Interactive Map