January 15th, 1942 (THURSDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: SS Barra Island, Canadian Atlantic Transportation Co, wrecked in a storm in the Hebrides Sea, two miles off Barra Island, west of Scotland. There was no loss of life in this incident.
Corvette HMS Chrysanthemum commissioned. Taken over by Free French Navy 26 Jan 42 and renamed Comandant Drogou.
An agreement is signed in London between Greece and Yugoslavia for the constitution of a Balkan Union. (The Balkan Pact, signed in February 1934 by Greece, Romania, Turkey and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The Pact which consisted of 39 articles promoting the principles of friendship and non-aggression, mutual assistance and defense of common security and the protection of the rights of minorities.)
NETHERLANDS: RAF Bomber Command sends five Blenheims and four Wellingtons to bomb airfields: three aircraft bomb Schipol Airfield, with the loss of one aircraft, and two each bomb Soesterberg and Texel Airfields.
GERMANY: During the night of 15/16 January, RAF Bomber Command aircraft attack three cities:
- 96 bombers are dispatched to bomb Hamburg; 60 aircraft bomb with the loss of five bombers. Hamburg reports 36 fires, three large, three people killed and 25 injured, but no major incidents.
- 60 aircraft are sent to bomb Emden; 42 aircraft bomb the target with the loss of two bombers. Bomber aircrews claim many fires.
- One aircraft bombs Kiel.
Stuka pilot Hans Ulrich Rudel is awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross.
U-605 commissioned.
SWITZERLAND: Geneva: Two Allied officers, a Briton, Lt Airey Neave and a Dutchman, Tony Lutyen, have arrived safely in Switzerland after escaping from Colditz Castle and walking all the way to the border posing as Dutch labourers. The news of their "home run" will be greeted with cheers at Colditz, where the most persistent escapers are confined. Neave, who was wounded and captured at Calais in 1940, had already made one attempt from a PoW camp in Poland. The two men simply walked out of Colditz wearing fake uniforms, with Lutyen boldly fobbing off a suspicious sentry by demanding a salute.
NORWAY: Tirpitz moves to Norwegian waters from France on orders from Hitler.
U.S.S.R.: Moscow: Official Soviet figures claim that Germany lost 55,000 soldiers and 777 tanks in the battle for Moscow.
Army Group Center (Field Marshal Günther Hans von
Kluge) evacuates the Kaluga sector and takes up winter positions 20 miles (32
kilometres) further west.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: U-577 (Type VIIC) Sunk in the Mediterranean northwest of Mersa Matruh, in position 32.40N, 25.48E, by depth charges from a British Swordfish aircraft (Sqdn. 815/G). 43 dead (all crew lost). (Alex Gordon)
NORTH AFRICA: Lt. George Herbert Goodman (1900-45), RNVR, carried out the dangerous task of dismantling the only Italian self-destroying torpedo recovered in North Africa. (George Cross)
INDIA: Jawaharlal Nehru succeeds Mohandas K. Gandhi as head of India's National Congress Party.
BURMA: Troops of the Japanese 55th Division advance into Burma north of Mergui. Though not one of Japan's original war aims, Burma is invaded to eliminate a possible threat to the Japanese army in Malaya. The Japanese also want to cut the Burma Road which is feeding supplies and equipment to China and seize Burma's oil fields. Two Japanese army divisions pour into southern and eastern Burma. To oppose them, the British have two divisions: one Burmese, one Indian. Many of the Burmese hate the British and desert. Later 5,000 join the Burmese National Army and fight alongside the Japanese.
MALAYA:
Forward elements of the Australian 27th Brigade Group inflict more casualties on
the Japanese in the Gemas area before pulling back to their main position. On
the west coast, the Japanese reach the northern bank of the Muar River and land
a small party between Muar and Batu Pahat, threatening the communications of the
West Force in the Yong Peng area. The boundary between the West Force and the
Indian 3 Corps is altered to give this region, which the Indian 45th Brigade is
defending, to the 3 Corps.
Seven USAAF Far East Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses based at Singosari
Airdrome on Java and flying out of Palembang Airdrome on Sumatra, Netherlands
East Indies, attack Sungei Patani Airfield, Malaysia. Two B-17s abort due to
weather but the other five bomb the target through light AA fire. One B-17 is
damaged beyond repair in a bad landing at Singosari Airdrome tomorrow.
NETHERLANDS EAST INDIES:
General Archibald Lord Wavell, Commander in Chief
Australian-British-Dutch-American (ABDA) Command, South West Pacific, officially
establishes the headquarters of ABDA at the Grand Hotel, Lembang, Batavia, Java, at 1200 hours GMT.
Six new USAAF Far East Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses and four LB-30
Liberators arrive at Singosari Airdrome on Java.
COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES: In the II Corps area on Bataan, the Japanese, attacking vigorously at the junction of the 41st and 51st Divisions, Philippine Army (PA), gain a foothold on the bank of the Balantay River. The 51st Division commits its reserves and service troops to no avail. Further reinforcements, the Philippine Division (less the 57th Infantry) from the U.S. Army Forces, Far East (USAFFE) reserve and the 31st Division (-) (PA) from the I Corps, are sent forward. The Japanese enveloping column in central Bataan arrives in position to turn the corps' west flank but pauses to reorganize. Regrouping is conducted to the east as the enemy threat there diminishes. In the I Corps area, the two Japanese columns driving on Moron converge and push closer to their objective.
CAROLINE ISLANDS: Six Australian (PBY) Catalinas are dispatched to bomb the Japanese base in Truk Atoll. Only one aircraft finds the target and drops 16 bombs. Clouds obscure the results.
TERRITORY OF ALASKA: The USAAF’s Alaskan Air Force is activated at Elmendorf Field, Anchorage, under command of Lieutenant Colonel Everett S. Davis.
CANADA: Submarine FS Surcouf arrived Halifax, Nova Scotia for refit.
U.S.A.: In Washington, Secretary of War Henry Stimson
says nearly two million men will be inducted into the military during 1942. By
years end it will have 3.6 million men.
The State Department issues a memorandum outlining its position with
respect to French sovereignty over bases the United States intends to build in
French Oceania.
In baseball, President Franklin D. Roosevelt gives baseball the go-ahead to
play despite the war. In his famous "green light" letter the President says, "I
honestly think it would be best for the country to keep baseball going." He
encourages more night baseball so that war workers may attend. The Chicago Cubs,
who had signed contracts to install lights at Wrigley Field, drop their plans
because of the military needs for the material.
The first "blackout" Cadillacs were completed by General Motors. Due to
restrictions on materials necessary for the war effort, these cars had painted
trim rather than chrome. They also lacked spare tires and other luxuries.
Minesweeper USS Auk commissioned.
Destroyers USS Blean and Tickham launched.
Destroyer USS Caldwell launched.
Submarine USS Herring launched.
BRAZIL: A united Latin-American front against the Axis powers is now the express aim of a conference which opened in Rio de Janeiro today. Representatives of 21 American republics are attending. In an unprecedented opening address Sumner Welles, the chief US delegate, asked the Latin Americans to break off relations with the Axis. He said that Axis diplomats were informing their capitals of ship movements and continued: "Cast aside the shibboleth of classic neutrality and unite in the common front against the Axis aggressors seeking to conquer the entire world.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: While tracking Convoy HG 78 (Gibraltar to U.K.), U-93 (Type VIIC) is sunk in position 36.40N, 15.52W by the British destroyer HMS Hesperus (H57). 6 dead and 40 survivors.
Previously on 7 May, 1941 3 men were wounded on the U-93 in an
accident with the machine-gun. (Alex Gordon)
At 0941, the unescorted tanker Coimbra was hit by one torpedo from U-123, which had spotted the lights of the tanker astern while the U-boat was proceeding eastbound following the southern shore of Long Island. The torpedo struck on the starboard side just aft of the superstructure. A huge towering explosion lit up the night sky and the cargo of oil quickly caught fire and spread across the water. Residents from the Hamptons on Long Island could see the fire at sea 27 miles away and alerted the authorities. A second torpedo hit the tanker and her stern immediately sank, striking the sea floor. Like his previous victim, the Norness, the bow of the Coimbra was sticking out of the water. Hardegen suggested that, "it was a good thing that my wrecks were partly sticking out of the water. Otherwise how would other ships find the harbour?" The tanker later sank completely. The master, 29 crewmembers and six gunners were lost. Ten survivors, six of them wounded were rescued from the rough seas. Two crewmembers were picked up by destroyer USS Rowan and landed at Argentia, Newfoundland. The remaining survivors were rescued by another American destroyer and landed at St John's.
At 1134, U-203 torpedoed a ship, which exploded and sank immediately. Mützelburg thought that he had sunk an ammunition ship, but his victim was the trawler Catalina.
At 0138, the unescorted Dayrose was torpedoed and sunk by U-552 west of Cape Race. Altogether, the U-boat fired five torpedoes of which two struck the vessel and broke her in two. The master, 31 crewmembers and six gunners were lost. Four crewmembers were picked up by destroyers USS Ericsson and USS Stockton and landed at Argentia, Newfoundland.
At 2317, tanker Diala was torpedoed and damaged by U-553 about 300 miles ESE of Cape Race in 44°50N/46°50W (grid BC 8524). The vessel was proceeding at maximum speed (12 knots) after the convoy ON-52 was dispersed on 11 January. The bow was blown off and the superstructure was extensively damaged. The tanker was abandoned but remained afloat and was reported drifting NE. 48 crewmembers and nine gunners were lost. The master, six crewmembers and one gunner were picked up by the British SS Telefora de Larrinaga and landed at New York. Four survivors from the Athelcrown, which had been sunk by U-82 on 22 January, boarded the abandoned, drifting wreck of the Diala. They remained on board for eight days before they were rescued by the Swedish merchant Saturnus and landed on the Faroes Isles. On 19 March, Allied ships in position 47°N/37°W last saw the drifting wreck, after attempts to tow her were unsuccessful.