DEC 1943 Events - (Gifted by Leicht)

...to Radio Tokyo's version of the battle. A hundred American planes had attacked the Marshalls but caused "absolutely no damage," and 20 of them had been shot down. Japanese "eagles" had counterattacked with the following results: "One large carrier and one large cruiser sunk instantly; one carrier and one cruiser severely damaged and probably sunk." 12**

Admiral Pownall and his chief of staff, Captain Truman J. Hedding, had handled the task force during this series of counterattacks in a masterly fashion, and maneuvered it smartly. With an unusually small screen and no night fighters, they thwarted the enemy's attack at a cost to him of 29 planes, 18 of them long-range bombers.

As Admiral Halsey objected to being deprived of the battleships formerly included in his South Pacific Force, Admiral Nimitz returned them to him as soon as the Gilberts were secured; but they were required to work their passage. As Admiral Spruance suspected that the "Bettys" which had attacked his forces had landed at Nauru, he decided to give them a pounding before they could go elsewhere.

The force assigned to this operation, commanded by Rear Admiral Willis A. Lee, consisted of carriers Bunker Hill and Monterey, five fast battleships and twelve destroyers. At about 0500 December 8 they arrived at a position 50 miles northeast of Nauru and divided into bombardment and carrier groups, each taking half the destroyers. The former group threw 810 sixteen-inch and 3400 five-inch projectiles into the island from a distance of only 1500 yards; the carrier planes dropped 51 tons of bombs and strafed enemy positions. But the birds had flown. Barely a dozen planes were observed on Nauru, and eight or ten of these were destroyed at a cost of four to us, and damage to destroyer Boyd. She, when investigating a life raft about two miles off shore several hours after the bombardment had ceased, was fired on by a shore battery. A shell exploded in one engine room, killing ten men, and another went off inside the forward stack. Boyd retired, zigzagging violently at 27 knots, straddles and near misses following her out more than seven miles from the shore. She managed to make base under her own steam.

12** Japanese claims, however, were no more fantastic than those of the American aviators, as reported by the U.P. and International News correspondents in Honolulu Advertiser 10 Dec 1943. The same paper, 11 and 13 Dec., has some good stories of the raid.