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• Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru arrived at Manila, Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Hikawa Maru | CPC]
• USS S-28 suffered severe smoking and sparking from her port main motor, which took 14 hours to repair. ww2dbase [S-28 | CPC]
• Benito Mussolini arrived at Rastenburg, East Prussia, Germany after his rescue. While there, he announced the establishment of a new Italian republic to continue the fight against the Allies. ww2dbase [Operation Eiche | CPC]
• Otto Skorzeny flew from Munich, Germany to East Prussia, Germany; on the same flight were Ambassador Dörnberg and Ernst Kaltenbrunner. ww2dbase [Otto Skorzeny | CPC]
• Escort carrier Wake Island was launched, sponsored by the wife of Rear Admiral Frederick Sherman. ww2dbase [Wake Island | CPC]
• Submarine Pintado was launched, sponsored by Mrs. Antonio Prince. ww2dbase [Pintado | CPC]
• The veteran pilots of the German Luftwaffe's JG 51 "Mölders" fighter unit record their 7,000th combat kill. ww2dbase [AC]
• USS Bailey departed San Francisco bound for San Diego, California. ww2dbase [Bailey | DS]
• USS Nicholas transferred her doctor and 2 pharmacist mates to SS Ambrose Pierce to tend to a man stricken with appendicitis. ww2dbase [Nicholas | DS]

• The Japanese abandoned Lae, Australian New Guinea. ww2dbase [New Guinea-Papua Campaign, Phase 3 | Lae | CPC]

• B-24 bombers, escorted by Corsair fighters of US Marine Corps squadron VMF-214, flew a photographic reconnaissance mission over Choiseul, Solomon Islands. ww2dbase [Solomon Islands Campaign | Choiseul | CPC]

• The USAAF 306th Bomb Group flying from RAF Thurleigh launched a bombing raid against the aircraft facilities at Romilly, France. ww2dbase [RAF Thurleigh | Bombing of Cities in France and Low Countries | Romilly | DS]

• To combat the growing strength of Allied bombing attacks the Luftwaffe reorganised its air defences into two territorial fighter commands; one in then Reich and the other in western occupied territories. ww2dbase [Bombing of Hamburg, Dresden, and Other Cities | AC]

• A new marine railway for handling destroyers and submarines at Pearl Harbor Navy Yard, US Territory of Hawaii was completed. ww2dbase [Pearl Harbor Navy Base and Ford Island Naval Air Station | Honolulu, Oahu | CPC]

• US airborne troops (325th Glider Infantry Regiment and 3rd Battalion of 504th Parachute Infantry Regiment) arrived near Paestum, Italy by sea. Elsewhere, the German occupation administration of Italy announced the death penalty for any Italians seen with firearms. ww2dbase [Operation Avalanche | TH, CPC]
• USS Ancon arrived off Salerno, Italy and transferred naval ammunition she had taken on in Palermo, Italy to nearby ships. ww2dbase [Operation Avalanche | Ancon | Salerno, Campania | CPC]

• USS Harder attacked a Japanese patrol craft in the Izu Islands, Japan; both torpedoes missed. ww2dbase [Harder | CPC]

• Naka arrived at Kwajalein Atoll, Marshall Islands. ww2dbase [Naka | Kwajalein | CPC]
• While tracking a formation of two Japanese light cruisers and four destroyers in the northern approaches to Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands, sonar aboard submarine USS Narwhal detected torpedoes approaching from the stern. Narwhal went deep but lost depth control. Control was regained as Narwhal reached 390 feet, a new depth record for Narwhal. ww2dbase [Narwhal | Kwajalein | DS]

• 100 miles east of San Cristobal Island, Solomon Islands, a PBY-5 Catalina patrol bomber with Patrol Squadron VP-23 operating from Halavo Bay, Solomon Islands dropped flares on what looked like a torpedo wake in the aera of a formation of US ships transiting from the Solomons to Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides. Destroyer USS Saufley searched the area and made a submerged sound contact. Saufley made four depth charge attacks totaling 26 charges, bringing Japanese submarine Ro-101 to the surface. Saufley commenced firing with all her guns, scoring many hits and sinking the submarine with all 50 hands. ww2dbase [Saufley | DS]

• The keel of Kanalku Bay was laid down by Kaiser Shipyards in Vancouver, Washington, United States. ww2dbase [Marcus Island | Vancouver, Washington | CPC]
• USS Yorktown (Essex-class) departed San Francisco, California, United States for Hawaii. ww2dbase [Yorktown (Essex-class) | J. J. Clark | San Francisco, California | DS]

15 Sep 1943 Interactive Map