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Malay States.
74. Our aircraft and those of the Netherlands East Indies Air Force carried out daily reconnaissances of the coastal and battle areas.
No reports of casualties to our aircraft have been received.
75. Penang was raided on the 11th by three waves of enemy bombers, totalling 77 aircraft, and these were succeeded by heavy attacks on the two following days. Ragan Luar was reported out of action for fuelling ships and Penang aerodrome was evacuated, after being demolished. The aerodromes at Butterworth, Jabi, Sitawan, Sungei Hue and Taiping were also destroyed and evacuated. On the 15th, 20 aircraft bombed our aerodrome at Ipoh (100 miles S.E. of Penang), damaging part of the petrol dump. On the 13th and 15th, low- flying machine-gun attacks were carried out on Kuantan aerodrome, without causing damage or casualties.
76. During the period 7th to 17th, a total of 17 enemy aircraft are known to have been destroyed, of which 13 are claimed by A.A. guns. Two more were seen to collide.
Netherlands East Indies.
77. On the 10th, six Hudsons of the Royal Australian Air Force bombed Tobi Island (200 miles N.W. of New Guinea) obtaining direct hits or near misses on a storehouse.
78. On the 17th, aircraft of the Netherlands East Indies Air Force, on reconnaissance, reported sighting an aircraft carrier and other naval vessels stationary off Miri (Sarawak). Six Glenn Martins and five Buffaloes were despatched from Sinka Wang (Borneo: 100 miles S. W. of Sarawak) and located, at Miri, three cruisers, six armed raiders or auxiliaries and a tanker; the aircraft carrier was not seen. A.A. fire from the ships and shore was heavy and no hits are claimed on the enemy warships. The attacking aircraft were engaged by Japanese fighters which are thought to have operated from the aircraft carrier. Aircraft despatched later were prevented from attacking by bad weather. A Dutch aircraft has claimed a direct hit on a destroyer.
Hong Kong.
79. Bombs were dropped on the Island in daytime on the 12th, 16th and 17th, and on the nights of 14th/15th and 15th/16th. At Saukiwan, civilian casualties resulted, and the docks at Aberdeen were hit, but, in general, little military damage has been reported from air attack.
Two hostile aircraft were destroyed and hits were claimed on a third.
Sarawak.
80. On the 14th, Japanese bombers unsuccessfully attacked the garrison from Miri which was en route to Kuching (300 miles S.Š.E. of Miri), which was reached safely.
American possessions.
81. There is little official information on air operations in the Pacific but the following facts are of interest :----
(i) West Coast of United States. On the 8th December, enemy aircraft were suspected in the locality to the seaward of San Francisco but their presence was not confirmed. The following night further alarms occurred but no raid developed.
(ii) Pearl Harbour.-Although information regarding the aircraft which took part in the attacks on Pearl Harbour is scanty, the indications are that they came from at least two aircraft carriers, which may have included the Shokaku and Zuikaku. The American report that 150 aircraft participated is thought to be exaggerated. The Shokaku and the Zuikaku are the latest aircraft carriers built for the Japanese Navy and each carry 48 aircraft. Forty-one Japanese aircraft were claimed to have been shot down.
(iii) Wake Island.-United States Marines were still holding out against attack on the 11th December, and claim to have shot down five bombers by A.A. gunfire.
enemy
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