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Beach battles |
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Towards the end of the long campaign in the territory of Papua, Australian and American forces neared the Japanese beachheads at Buna, Gona and Sanananda. The campaign in Papua had begun in July 1942 when Japanese forces landed at Gona and advanced over the Kokoda Track in an attempt to capture Port Moresby. Australian troops fought hard to halt this offensive, with the Japanese on the Kokoda Track finally falling into retreat in late September 1942, and another force defeated at Milne Bay. By mid-November 1942, the Allies had only to defeat the last enemy force in the beachheads to secure this part of Papua-New Guinea. The Japanese had stationed engineering and other base troops at the beachheads. These were located close to each other. On the eastern flank was Buna, on the western flank Gona, and in the centre ran the Sanananda Track (leading to Giropa, on the coast). Strong defensive positions were constructed at all three locations. The Allies underestimated the number of Japanese in the beachheads and their capacity to fight on; senior Allied commanders expected the battle for the beachheads to last about three days - instead, it would take two months of the most costly fighting experienced in PNG. The battle was the first in Papua-New Guinea to involve significant American land forces. (Previously, some American engineers saw action briefly at Milne Bay.) In the lead-up, American and Australian air force squadrons bombed and strafed the beachheads regularly. The coastline from Milne Bay to Buna was treacherous, with many reefs and shifting sandbars, and within range of enemy aircraft, so the naval contribution was limited. Small ships of the Australian Army and US Army's Small Ships Section (including Australian personnel recruited in Australia) carried supplies, guns and men; later, Royal Australian Navy corvettes transported troops of the Australian 18th Infantry Brigade and larger merchant ships carried equipment and supplies. For most of the battle, though, transport aircraft delivered the bulk of troops, equipment and supplies to the battle fronts. The battle began on 19 November 1942. The Australian 16th and 25th Infantry Brigades, which had fought across the Kokoda Track, were ordered to capture Gona and Sanananda (one American battalion that had trekked over the mountains was attached); the American 126th and 128th Infantry Regiments were to capture Buna. The battle was expected to take two or three days. The ill-trained and inexperienced Americans at Buna attacked first (the Australians had run short of supplies) and suffered shocking losses. The Australians, exhausted, with units down to one-third normal strength after crossing the mountains, also suffered heavily when they began attacking. GONA On the western flank, the Australian 25th Infantry Brigade (with the 3rd Battalion attached) attacked Gona. In the first days of the battle, the brigade suffered heavily and literally was fought to a standstill (as were the Allied forces on the other fronts). By the end of November, the Australian 21st Infantry Brigade had been flown over from Port Moresby and, along with the 39th Battalion, took up positions to attack Gona. (These fresh units were veterans of early fighting on the Kokoda Track.) For over a week, troops of the 21st Brigade and remnants of the 25th Brigade attacked the Japanese, with some air and artillery support. The Australians slowly made headway, but suffered very high casualties from both battle and also tropical diseases (in particular malaria). Finally, on 8 December 1942 they captured Gona - the first beachhead to fall. BUNA The Buna battle front was located on the eastern flank. The American 126th and 128th Infantry Regiments were ordered to capture this beachhead. From the outset, the Americans had fire support from some field artillery of the Australian 1st Mountain Battery and 2/5th Field Regiment; soon after the opening attacks on 19 November, the Australian 2/6th Independent Company (infantry/commando unit) also took up positions. The Americans suffered shocking casualties in their opening attacks, as they were not adequately trained and were inexperienced (or 'green'). The Americans made some ground, eventually splitting the beachhead into two, with the strongest enemy force contained at Cape Endaiadere on the eastern side of the beachhead. After an ill-fated attack on 5 December by American troops and Australian machine-gun carriers (the 17th Infantry Brigade sent its machine-gun carriers and crews from Milne Bay by barge), the Allies decided to await the arrival of reinforcements and tanks. The Australian 18th Infantry Brigade and tanks of 2/6th Armoured Regiment began arriving in mid-December. On 18 December, the 2/9th Battalion and tanks renewed the attack, making ground but suffering heavily. Over the following two weeks, Australian and American troops, with tank and artillery support as well as air support, continued attacking. Despite heavy losses, they manage to overwhelm the last Japanese troops at Buna on 5 January 1943 - leaving only Sanananda to fall. SANANANDA The central Sanananda Track ran down the middle of the three beachheads. At the start, the Australian 16th Infantry Brigade, with an American infantry battalion attached, was ordered to advance down the Sanananda Track to the secure this part of the coastline. As on the other fronts, strong defences were encountered on the track, and the Allied advance effectively bogged down. Troops of the 16th Brigade continued attacking on this front, but were soon exhausted by casualties and disease. In early December, two battalions of the Australian 30th Infantry Brigade (49th and 55th/53rd) arrived to take over the attacks but lost very heavily in their opening attacks (almost 50 per cent casualties) and two more units, the 36th Battalion and 2/7th Cavalry Regiment (fighting as infantry) arrived to boost their numbers. American troops managed to get around the outer Japanese positions but these still proved virtually impossible to overcome. Battle casualties and tropical diseases, in particular malaria, took a heavy toll on the troops. Finally, when Buna fell, Allied commanders agreed to send the Australian and American troops and also tanks from that front over to Sanananda. The opening tank attack in mid-January failed, and the battle again bogged down. Finally, however, the Japanese, exhausted by battle and sickness casualties, retreated from their foward positions and the Allies were able to advance to the coast, finishing 'mopping up' on this front on 22 January 1943. |
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