Screens - Operation Vengeance

OPERATION VENGEANCE APRIL 18,1943

Mission objective: Intercept and shoot down Admiral Yamamoto & Staff in transit from Rabaul to Ballale on April 18, 1943.
USAAF P-38 aircraft will depart Kukum airfield on Guadalcanal and arrive at Bougainville Island at 9:30AM for intercept.

Takeoff 7:10AM. Major John Mitchell leads an attack force of eighteen P-38 aircraft on a mission to Bougainville to intercept enemy aircraft with Admiral Yamamoto & staff onboard.
One P-38 aircraft (Lt. Jim McLanahan) rips a tire on the Marston Mat and has to abort take off. It gets parked beside the runway while maintenance personnel arrive to investigate and render repairs. (3656 x 1080 jpg)

Lt. Rex Barber takes off in "Miss Virginia" #147

After takeoff, all the aircraft circle in pattern to form up. During form up, another aircraft (Lt. Joseph Moore) aborts mission due to fuel transfer malfunction with drop tanks, and will return to base.

Sixteen P-38 aircraft formed up above the airfield, ready to proceed on mission.

The formation flies by Russell Islands as it drops to low altitude to evade radar detection.

Leg 1 of mission. Heading westward.

Leg 2 of mission. Heading turned to northwest.

Leg 3 of mission. Heading turned a little more to the northwest. (3602 x 1080 jpg)

The formation makes a final right turn into Bougainville.

5 minutes after making the right turn, the High Cover Group (twelve P-38) separates from the Attack Group (four P-38). High Cover Group starts climb to 18000 feet.
(High Cover = Mitchell, Jacobson, Canning, Goerke, Kittel, Whitaker, Ames, Graebner, Anglin, Smith, Stratton, Long)

Attack Group (Lanphier, Barber, Holmes, Hine) approaches the south coast of Bougainville

Crossing the threshold of the Bougainville shoreline and proceeding inland.

Attack Group proceeds inland. Checking the map to see where the enemy formation might be, they look to be about 20 kilometers away. (Map grid 10 km)

G4M1 Betty bombers. #323 is carrying Admiral Yamamoto. He is seated in the plane commander's seat right behind the pilot. The second Betty #326 is carrying vice Admiral Ugaki.

The A6M3 Zekes provide escort and protection as they trail the Betty bombers high and to the rear.

Zekes in V formation above the Betty bombers.

Betty bombers approach the central part of Bougainville along its western coast.

Attack Group is now about 10 kilometers away from the enemy group. (Map grid 1 km)

At 8 kilometers away, the dots appear to be bogies.

From the cockpit, numerous dots are visible. Two big dots followed by six small dots above, assume these are the Betty bombers and the escort fighters.
Time 09:34AM, "Bogies 11 o' clock high" comes over the radio. (In the game mission, "bombers 11 o'clock low" call is made by the high cover fighters.)

Location of the Betty bomber group at 09:34AM. They were spotted about 40 miles west of Kahili airbase.
The actual inflight mission map was overlaid on top of the Mission Editor map to help show the geographic position.

Skin off the drop tanks and climb to attack!

#323 Yamamoto

The Betty went down southwest of Buin. Post war wreckage located at 6°47'12.0S 155°38'46.0E.

#326 Ugaki

The Betty was heavily damaged and eventually crashed into the ocean, just south of Moila Pt. Vadm Ugaki was hospitalized but subsequently returned to active duty.