HISTORY

BUNA

František Šrédl

Airacobras of the 80th FS at Fourteen Mile Drome, fourteen miles from Port Moresby in the fall of 1942. The pilot with the cigarette in his mouth is William Brown, who shot

down two Zeros during the raid of August 26th, 1942. The other pilot in this shot is 2nd Lt. Charles R. Able, who also had some success during this raid, when he damaged another

Zero, although this was not during the actual raid proper, but rather on the return trip to their home field. In any case, Able was one of four pilots that were ultimately forced to

leave the formation due to damage to their own airplanes. In this case, it was due to the loss of a cockpit entry door. In the background, behind the plane coded ‘A’, is Airacobra

coded ‘Y’, the subject of the ProfiPACK release of the P-400 kit. Noteworthy is the nonstandard black spinner and the kill mark ahead of the code ‘Y’. In the case of this Airacobra,

the marking was applied to both sides of the nose.

Between the 25th and 29th of August, 1942, the Americans

conducted four aerial raids against the Japanese airfield situated

near the village of Buna, during which the attacking 80th and 41st

FS Airacobras were credited with the destruction of eleven Zeros

in air combat, and another nine on the ground. The Americans

conceded the loss of one Airacobra, without, however, the loss of

the pilot. The successes of these raids significantly influenced the

course of air combat over New Guinea for the next several months.

This was also helped by the fact that the Japanese were compelled

to withdraw their elite Tainan Kokutai from New Guinea to Rabaul

at the end of August, 1942. The unit was replaced on New Guinea

by the newly transferred 2nd Kokutai, which began combat ops

from Buna on August 22nd, 1942, and the above mention raids

severely limited their combat effectiveness, considering that

the unit initially had around thirty A6M3 Model 32 Hamps at its

disposal, more commonly known by the reporting name of Zero.

When pilots of the 80th FS strapped into their Airacobras on the

morning of August 26, they had completed their first month of

combat duty in the defense of Port Moresby, but without a single

victory over a Japanese aircraft to the unit’s credit. This was

partially due to the decrease in Japanese air force activity at the

time. Even more significant factors were the relative inexperience

of the pilots and the limited performance of the Airacobra at

higher altitudes, from which the Japanese bomber assets tended

to attack Port Moresby. Even on this rainy morning, there was

really nothing to suggest that the cards were about to change in

the 80th FS’s favor. From the group of ten Airacobras slated to fly

the mission, almost half were pulled off the roster due to technical

issues, including the unit CO, Capt. Philip Grasley. As a result, the

planned mission would be flown by just six airplanes. The mission

was taken over by Capt. William Brown, and maybe because of

this turn of events, the unit took off on an incorrect heading.

The first to realize the mistake was 2nd Lt. Daniel Roberts, flying

Brown’s wing, and as the formation was increasingly heading off

course, radio silence was broken in order to inform his CO of what

had been happening. Brown promptly corrected the navigational

error, and it was at this moment that the 80th FS fortunes would

turn for the better. Thanks to the aforementioned problems, the

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formation of six Airacobras approached the Japanese base from

an unexpected direction. Adding to the misfortune of the taking

off Japanese, the timing of the attack couldn’t have been worse.

Three Zeros began gaining altitude, while another three had just

left the runway. The first encounter between the two sides led

to Zero kills recorded by Capt. William Brown, 2nd Lt. Daniel

Roberts, Lt. George T. Helveston and 2nd Lt. Gerald T. Rogers.

Brown and Rogers each downed another after a quick turn back

into the fight in a head on attack, while 2nd Lt. Leonidas S. Maters

damaged a third, and Lt. Noel Lundy, bringing up the rear of the

Airacobra group, also was involved. On the Japanese side, lost

were Petty Officer 1st Class Takeichi Iwase and Petty Officer 3rd

Class Taizo Ibara. Flight P/O 3c Kiyoshi Nakono was also lost, while

Ensign Kazuo Tsonuda managed to force land his stricken aircraft,

coded Q-102, on the airfield’s landing strip. Member of the Tainan

Kokutai, Petty Officer 2nd Class Ichirobei Yamazaki, needed to be

evacuated to Rabaul due to his injuries, and subsequently back

Every 80thFS Airacobra carried a large, yellow letter on the side of the fuselage ahead of the

cockpit entry door. As can be seen in the photograph, 80th FS Airacobras could (but not always)

carry a tactical number on the tail surface as well. The white number on the tail appeared on

Airacobras acquired from the 39th FS. The rear section of the Airacobra in the background of

this photo belongs to the main subject of the newly released ProfiPACK kit of the P-400. One

of the 80th FS’s longest serving pilots, Norbert Ruff, is posing on the wing.

INFO Eduard - September 2019