June 26th, 1945 (TUESDAY)
CHINA: Chinese troops recapture Liuchow airfield.
JAPAN: Ryukyu Islands: The USN's Task Group 31.24 lands assault troops of the Fleet Marine Force Reconnaissance Battalion and a 1st Marine Division reinforced rifle company on Kure Shima.
JAPAN: US Navy Task Group 92, the cruisers USS Concord (CL-10), USS Richmond (CL-9) and USS
Trenton (CL-11) plus escorting destroyers, sinks three ships and damages another in a
sweep of the Sea of Okhotsk north of the Kurile Islands.
The US Twentieth Air Force dispatches 510 B-29s and 148 P-51s on nine missions against aircraft factories, light-metals industries and arsenals in southern Honshu and Shikoku; six B-29s and one P-51 are lost.
Mission 223: 64 B-29s hit the light metal industry at Osaka and four others hit alternate targets.
Mission 224: 109 B-29s attack the Osaka Arsenal; 3 others hit alternate targets; one B-29 is lost.
Mission 225: 31 B-29s hit the Kawasaki aircraft plant at Akashi and five others hit targets of opportunity; the 4,000-pound (1,814 kg) bombs are well-placed but the target has been almost destroyed in previous raids.
Missions 226 and 227: 58 B-29s attack the Nagoya Arsenal; six others hit alternate targets; one B-29 is lost.
Missions 228 and 231: 85 B-29s hit the Kawasaki aircraft plant at Kagamigahara; 23 others hit alternate targets; two B-29s are lost; every important building is knocked out.
Mission 229: 50 B-29s attack the Aichi aircraft plant at Eitoku and 14 others attack alternate targets; two B-29s are lost; the raid causes light damage.
Mission 230: 29 B-29s hit the light metal industry at Nagoya and two others hit targets of opportunity.
The B-29s claim 20 Japanese fighters destroyed. The Nagoya and Osaka missions are escorted by 148 P-51s; they claim 2-0-5 Japanese aircraft; one P-51 is lost.
Mission 232: During the night of 26/27 June, 33 B-29s attack the Utsube Oil Refinery at Yokkaichi, the top-priority petroleum target; one other B-29 hits an alternate target.
USN PB4Y-2 Privateers based on Okinawa continue mining operations off Korea.
While on her fifth patrol and on life guard duty , USS Pintado rescued 12 crewmembers of a B-29 bomber south of Honshu. The survivors were taken to Guam where the air crew and submarine crew christened a new B-29 named "USS Pintado SS387" at North Field.
SOUTH-WEST PACIFIC: US Navy underwater demolition teams (UDTs) continue removing obstacles at Balikpapan, Borneo in advance of the Australian landings on 1 July. The UDTs are covered by ten Landing Craft, Support (Large) [LCS(L)], eight Landing Craft, Infantry (Rocket) [LCI(R)] and six Landing Craft, Infantry (Gunboat) [LCI(G)].
CANADA: Corvettes HMCS Barrie and Vancouver paid off Sorel, Province of Quebec.
Frigate HMCS Cape Breton
commenced tropicalization refit Vancouver British Columbia. Later cancelled.
Chief Petty Officer L.J.O. Bastein A-299 RCNR and A/PO (DEMS) Leopold Joseph
Lambert B-260 RCNR awarded Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.
Canada's plans in 1943 for participation in the Pacific War initially envisioned the contribution of 2 cruisers, 2 escort carriers (later changed to 2 larger Colossus-class light fleet carriers), all the Tribal-class destroyers, 3 Prince-class auxiliary cruisers, 10 of the old River-class destroyers, 69 frigates, 12 Castle-class corvettes, 12 Algerine-class minesweepers, plus 6 to 12 landing support ships, and the manning of 3 British escort Maint/ships. The strategy was to operate in conjunction with the forces of the UK in the Indian Ocean. Being totally without the type of support logistics organization necessary for such long-range operations and with the RN's fleet-train in its infancy this was an exceedingly naive plan. Fortunately for Canadian planners, the Second Quebec Conference (11-16 Sep 44) coincided with deliberations about a Canadian contingent in the Far Eastern theatre. A complete reversal of the Canadian concept of operations resulted. The strategy changed to engage in operations in the Central Pacific under the operational command of the American theatre commander. This major change was accompanied by political direction, issued in mid-October, for a major reduction in the number and type of forces to be committed. The new naval force amounted to 2 light cruisers, 2 light fleet carriers, 2 auxiliary cruisers, 11 destroyers, 36 frigates, and 8 corvettes. A large number of the ships that had begun conversion for service in the Pacific War had their refits cancelled and went straight to disposal.
U.S.A.: San Franciso: The Charter for the UN is signed by representatives of 50 Allied countries. With a bamboo brush the delegate from China was today the first of envoys from 50 countries to sign the charter of the new United Nations organization. No fewer than seven delegates signed for the USSR. The ceremony followed nine weeks of negotiations to fashion an organization charged with maintaining world peace. President Truman told the delegates that the charter is "a solid structure upon which we can build a better world."He added: "It was the hope of such a charter that helped sustain the stricken peoples through the darkest days of the war. For it is a declaration of great faith by the nations of the earth - faith that war is not inevitable, faith that peace can be maintained. If we fail to use it, we shall betray all those who died."
Destroyer escort USS Rizzi commissioned.