May 23rd, 1943 (SUNDAY)
GERMANY: Berlin: Dönitz orders all U-boats to be fitted with anti-aircraft guns.
Tonight the RAF drops 2,000 tons of bombs on Dortmund. 100,000 tons of bombs have been dropped on Germany since the war began.
TERRITORY OF ALASKA: ALEUTIAN ISLANDS:
On Attu Island, the Americans begin a two-pronged attack on Fish Hook Ridge located southwest of Attu Village between Chichagof Harbor and the east arm of Holtz Bay. The 4th Infantry Regiment attacks the west face while the Southern Landing Force attacks the east face. The attacks are stopped cold by the Japanese.
The USAAF's Eleventh Air Force dispatches six B-24 Liberators and 12 B-25 Mitchells to fly three air-ground support missions over Attu but due to bad weather, they are rerouted to attack Kiska Island. Weather there is also poor and only one B-25 bombs the Main Camp area. Next, three B-24s and 18 P-38 Lightnings fly three air cover missions to Attu. The last of these missions is notified by a USN PBY Catalina that 16 Japanese bombers are west of Attu and five of the P-38s intercept the bombers over the island; the bombers jettison their bombs and close formation but five are shot down and seven are listed as probables; two P-38s are lost.
A Navy construction battalion lands on Attu to begin construction of an airbase.
U.S.A.: The USS New Jersey BB-62 is commissioned. The sister ships of the Iowa class are: USS Iowa, USS Missouri and USS Wisonsin. She displaces 45,000 tons, with a length of 887 feet 7 inches, a draft of 38 feet and beam of 108 feet 1 inch. Powered by 4 Westinghouse turbines fired by 8 boilers, with 212,000 shaft horsepower, she has a top speed of 33+ knots. She will carry a crew (WWII) of 120 officers and 3,000 enlisted men. Nine 16"/50 cal guns in 3 turrets are the main armament, with 20 5"/38 cal dual purpose guns in twin mounts for the secondary armament. AA weapons include 64 40mm AA guns in 16 quad mounts and 49 20mm AA guns. She carries 3 Vought OS2U Kingfisher floatplanes.Submarine USS Dorado launched.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: A Fairey Swordfish Mk. II, aircraft "B" of No. 819 Squadron in the escort aircraft carrier HMS Archer, damages the German submarine U-752 in the North Atlantic with rockets and the sub is scuttled by her crew in position 51.40N, 29.49W; 17 of the 46-man crew survive. This is the first successful sinking of a U-boat using rockets.