June 14th, 1943 (MONDAY)
UNITED KINGDOM: The creation of the Allied Tactical Air Force in the UK is announced.
Escort carrier HMS Pursuer commissioned.
MEDITERRANEAN SEA: The Italian island of Lampedusa surrenders to the British.
CHINA: Kung-an: Chinese troops today completed mopping-up operations in western Hupeh, recapturing the last towns lost during the Japanese offensive that had been intended to take Changsha, the rice bin of central China, in readiness for a further advance against Chungking, the Chinese Nationalists' provisional capital. Chinese losses in the six weeks of fighting are estimated at 70,000 - 80,000, compared with Japanese losses of 3,000-4,000. The tide of battle turned two weeks ago when Japanese troops were forced to retreat, fleeing to Kung-an, one of the towns recaptured today. A week before, the enemy advance had been checked at Shih-pai, as 60,000 Japanese massed on the banks if the Chiang river, with the Nationalist leader, Chiang Kai-shek, exhorting his men to defend the town as if it were a Chinese Stalingrad.
JAPAN: Tokyo: General Tojo meets the pro-Axis Indian leader Subhas Chandra Bose, who has fled from India by submarine.
AUSTRALIA: A USAAF B-17C Flying Fortress being used as a transport crashes at Bakers Creek in North Queensland soon after take-off from Mackay Aerodrome in Queensland. Of the 41 people on board only one survives making this the worst air disaster in Australian history. The aircraft had been modified to carry passengers and was carrying a crew of six and 35 American service members returning to the war zone at Port Moresby, New Guinea. More... (Mike Yared)
CANADA: Frigate HMCS Coaticook laid down Lauzon Province of Quebec.
U.S.A.: The U.S. Supreme Court rules that schoolchildren could not be compelled to salute the flag of the United States if doing so would conflict with their religious beliefs. [See 1942]
Ohio: Dale Harriman, registers for the Draft. (Glen Boren)
Destroyer escort USS Brister laid down.
Destroyer USS McDermut laid down.
ATLANTIC OCEAN: U-564 (Type VIIC) is sunk at 1730hrs northwest of Cape Ortegal, Spain, in position 44.17N, 10.25W, by depth charges from a British Whitley aircraft (10 OTU/G). 28 dead, 18 survivors.
U-334 (Type VIIC) is sunk in the North Atlantic southwest of Iceland, at position 58.16N, 28.20W, by depth charges from the British frigate HMS Jed and the sloop Pelican. 47 dead (all crew lost). (Alex Gordon)
When an RAF 547 Sqn Wellington attacked U-155 in the Bay of Biscay, one man died. [Bootsmaat Heinz Wilke]. Four 307 Polish Sqn Mosquitos then attacked wounding 5 men. U-155 shot down one of the Mosquitos.
A Mosquito attacked U-68 killing 1 and wounding 3 more. U-68 later was given the doctor onboard of U-155 for some medical treatment. [Obergefreiter Hans Schaumburg].