One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University
One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University
One Hundred Years of Flight USAF Chronology ... - The Air University
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1943<br />
January 13: <strong>The</strong> Army <strong>Air</strong> Forces activated Thirteenth <strong>Air</strong> Force in New<br />
Caledonia for fighter and bomber operations against the Japanese in<br />
the Southwest Pacific theater.<br />
January 21: At the Casablanca Conference in Morocco, where U.S. and<br />
British leaders discussed war policy, Lt. Gen. Ira C. Eaker successfully<br />
presented his case for daytime bombing <strong>of</strong> Germany to Winston S.<br />
Churchill, prime minister <strong>of</strong> Great Britain.<br />
January 27: For the first time, Eighth <strong>Air</strong> Force bombed a target in Germany.<br />
More than 50 B–17s and B–24s <strong>of</strong> the 1st Bombardment Wing<br />
attacked submarine construction facilities at Wilhelmshaven.<br />
January 30–31: In a night raid on Hamburg, Germany, the Royal <strong>Air</strong> Force<br />
first used H2S, an airborne radar navigation system for finding ground<br />
targets not visible because <strong>of</strong> clouds or darkness.<br />
February 1: Navy crews in PBY–5 Catalina aircraft rescued Thirteenth <strong>Air</strong><br />
Force commander Maj. Gen. Nathan F. Twining and 14 others near<br />
the New Hebrides Islands after they were forced to ditch their aircraft<br />
and spend six days in life rafts.<br />
February 17: Allied Force Headquarters constituted and activated Mediterranean<br />
<strong>Air</strong> Command under <strong>Air</strong> Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Tedder <strong>of</strong><br />
Great Britain. It included three commands: Northwest African <strong>Air</strong><br />
46<br />
Lt. Gen. Ira C. Eaker, commander <strong>of</strong><br />
Eighth <strong>Air</strong> Force in 1943, directed<br />
early U.S. heavy bomber raids over<br />
Europe.