Operation Transom was an attack by
Allied forces against the Japanese-occupied city of
Surabaya on the Indonesian island of
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. Conducted by the British-led
Eastern Fleet
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
* Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
* Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
* Eastern Air ...
, the operation took place on 17 May 1944 and involved American and British
carrier-based aircraft bombing the city's docks and an
oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, lique ...
. An American
torpedo bomber
A torpedo bomber is a military aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with aerial torpedoes. Torpedo bombers came into existence just before the First World War almost as soon as aircraft were built that were capable of carrying the weight ...
was shot down, and two British torpedo bombers were lost in accidents.
The attack on Surabaya was the second, and final, joint American-British
aircraft carrier raid in the Indian Ocean during 1944. It was undertaken to divert Japanese forces from the
Allied landing on Wakde island off
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
and make use of the American aircraft carrier on its return voyage to the Pacific. The warships involved in the operation sailed from
Ceylon and refuelled in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
before reaching the waters south of Java, where the carriers' aircraft were launched. On the morning of 17 May two groups of Allied aircraft made a coordinated attack on Surabaya's port and several industrial facilities that took the Japanese by surprise. American
heavy bomber
Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...
s struck Surabaya that night and Australian aircraft laid
mines in nearby waters; these aircraft operated from bases in northern Australia.
Estimates of the damage inflicted by the Allies differ. Some sources describe the results as modest, and others contend that they were significant. The number of civilian casualties caused by the raid is unknown. There is consensus that the operation provided the British
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
with useful exposure to superior
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
carrier tactics. The attack had no effect on Japanese military deployments as the Eastern Fleet was not considered a serious threat.
Background
Surabaya in World War II
Surabaya is a city in eastern
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mos ...
that was part of the
Netherlands East Indies (NEI) at the time of World War II. It became one of the main port cities in Asia during the late 19th century and was the centre of the NEI's
sugar export industry. Surabaya's economy began to decline in the 1920s, but it remained an important commercial city.
Japanese forces
invaded and conquered most of the NEI between December 1941 and March 1942. Surabaya was bombed on many occasions during the campaign, the first air raid focusing on the city's port and naval base. The Dutch garrison surrendered on 8 March. Like the rest of Java, Surabaya was administered by the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
during the
occupation of the Netherlands East Indies.
Surabaya remained an important naval base and industrial centre during the occupation. Japanese
anti-submarine forces based at Surabaya hunted Allied
submarines operating in the
Java Sea. The
Wonokromo oil refinery located in the city was the only facility in Java that produced
aviation fuel. Large numbers of Allied aircraft attacked Surabaya on 22 July and the night of 8/9 November 1943. Areas across the city were bombed during the first of these raids. Small raids took place during most months from February 1944 until the end of the war in August 1945.
Royal Australian Air Force
"Through Adversity to the Stars"
, colours =
, colours_label =
, march =
, mascot =
, anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...
Consolidated PBY Catalina
The Consolidated PBY Catalina is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft that was produced in the 1930s and 1940s. In Canadian service it was known as the Canso. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served wi ...
aircraft also periodically dropped
naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, any ...
s in the entrance to Surabaya's port from August 1943. From the start of 1944 minefields laid by aircraft considerably disrupted movements of shipping in and out of Surabaya and sank several ships.
Allied and Japanese plans
From mid-1942 until early 1944 the Allies did not undertake any offensive naval operations in the
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...
. Their main naval force there was the small British-led
Eastern Fleet
Eastern may refer to:
Transportation
*China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai
* Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways
* Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991
* Eastern Air ...
which was commanded by Admiral
Sir James Somerville. From January 1943 the fleet did not include any
aircraft carriers and its three elderly
battleships were transferred elsewhere later in the year. The remaining ships were capable only of protecting Allied shipping. Fortunately for the Allies, the Japanese did not attempt any large-scale operations in the Indian Ocean after mid-1942. This allowed the Eastern Fleet to focus on countering German and Japanese submarines and using its own submarines to raid Japanese shipping.
![Admiral James Somerville visiting USS Saratoga on 3 April 1944](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Admiral_James_Somerville_visiting_USS_Saratoga_on_3_April_1944.jpg)
The plan adopted by the
Allied leaders at the November 1943
Cairo Conference
The Cairo Conference (codenamed Sextant) also known as the First Cairo Conference, was one of the 14 summit meetings during World War II that occurred on November 22–26, 1943. The Conference was held in Cairo, Egypt, between the United Kingdo ...
stated that "the main effort against Japan should be made in the Pacific", and that the Indian Ocean would be a subsidiary theatre. It was also decided that any offensive operations, including aircraft carrier raids, in the theatre would have the goals of "maintaining pressure on the enemy, forcing dispersion of his forces, and attaining the maximum attrition of his air and naval forces and shipping".
In January 1944 the
Admiralty
Admiralty most often refers to:
*Admiralty, Hong Kong
*Admiralty (United Kingdom), military department in command of the Royal Navy from 1707 to 1964
*The rank of admiral
*Admiralty law
Admiralty can also refer to:
Buildings
* Admiralty, Traf ...
, the British government institution responsible for administering the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...
, decided to substantially reinforce the Eastern Fleet. This had been made possible by the surrender of the
Italian Navy in 1943, which removed one of the Royal Navy's main opponents and gave the Allies control over the
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...
. A total of 146 warships were scheduled to arrive over the next four months. These included three battleships, two aircraft carriers, fourteen
cruisers and large numbers of
destroyers and other escort vessels. The first substantial group of reinforcements reached the Eastern Fleet's base at
Ceylon on 27 January; these included the aircraft carrier , battleships and and
battlecruiser . Many other ships arrived over the course of the year. Shortages of destroyers hindered the fleet's ability to conduct offensive operations until April, as priority was given to escorting convoys.
In early 1944 the Japanese military transferred its main naval striking force, the
Combined Fleet
The was the main sea-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Until 1933, the Combined Fleet was not a permanent organization, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units norm ...
, to
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
. This change was made to evacuate the fleet from its bases in the central Pacific, which had become vulnerable to American attacks, and concentrate it at a location with good naval repair facilities and ready access to fuel. The Japanese did not intend to undertake any large-scale attacks into the Indian Ocean. Somerville believed that his force would be unable to counter the Combined Fleet if it entered the Indian Ocean, and more air units were dispatched to protect Ceylon. The
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
also agreed to temporarily transfer the aircraft carrier and three destroyers from the Pacific to augment the Eastern Fleet.
''Saratoga'' and her escorts
joined the Eastern Fleet on 27 March 1944. ''Illustrious'' and ''Saratoga'', accompanied by much of the Eastern Fleet, conducted a successful air raid against the Japanese-held island of
Sabang in the NEI on 19 April as part of
Operation Cockpit
Operation Cockpit was an Allied attack against the Japanese-held island of Sabang on 19 April 1944. It was conducted by aircraft flying from British and American aircraft carriers and targeted Japanese shipping and airfields. A small number of ...
. The Allied aircraft sank one ship, drove another
aground
Ship grounding or ship stranding is the impact of a ship on seabed or
waterway side. It may be intentional, as in beaching to land crew or cargo, and careening, for maintenance or repair, or unintentional, as in a marine accident. In accidenta ...
, damaged oil storage tanks and destroyed up to 24 Japanese aircraft on the ground. One Allied aircraft was shot down, and an attack on the fleet by three Japanese aircraft was defeated.
Prelude
![1944-05-15JapWW2BattlefrontAtlas](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/1944-05-15JapWW2BattlefrontAtlas.jpg)
Following Operation Cockpit, ''Saratoga'' was directed to return to the United States for a
refit
Refitting or refit of boats and marine vessels includes repairing, fixing, restoring, renewing, mending, and renovating an old vessel. Refitting has become one of the most important activities inside a shipyard. It offers a variety of services f ...
. The head of the US Navy, Admiral
Ernest King
Ernest Joseph King (23 November 1878 – 25 June 1956) was an American naval officer who served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet (COMINCH) and Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) during World War II. As COMINCH-CNO, he directed the U ...
, suggested to Admiral
Lord Louis Mountbatten
Louis Francis Albert Victor Nicholas Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma (25 June 1900 – 27 August 1979) was a British naval officer, colonial administrator and close relative of the British royal family. Mountbatten, who was of Germa ...
, the commander of
South East Asia Command
South East Asia Command (SEAC) was the body set up to be in overall charge of Allied operations in the South-East Asian Theatre during the Second World War.
History Organisation
The initial supreme commander of the theatre was General Sir A ...
, that the carrier and other vessels of the Eastern Fleet strike Surabaya on her return voyage. King hoped that this would divert Japanese forces ahead of the Allied
landing at Wakde island off New Guinea that was scheduled for 17 May. Mountbatten agreed to the proposal.
Somerville decided to conduct the attack using almost the same forces as had been involved in Operation Cockpit. One of the main differences was to substitute
Grumman Avenger
The Grumman TBF Avenger (designated TBM for aircraft manufactured by General Motors) is an American World War II-era torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air and naval a ...
s for ''Illustrious''s usual air wing of
Fairey Barracuda
The Fairey Barracuda was a British carrier-borne torpedo and dive bomber designed by Fairey Aviation. It was the first aircraft of this type operated by the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm (FAA) to be fabricated entirely from metal.
The Barracuda ...
torpedo and
dive bombers. This change was made because Surabaya's defences were expected to be stronger than those at Sabang, and Somerville had decided to launch the aircraft from the city, which was beyond the Barracudas' effective range. Because of the distance to be covered from Ceylon and the Royal Navy's lack of experience in
underway replenishment
Replenishment at sea (RAS) ( North Atlantic Treaty Organization/Commonwealth of Nations) or underway replenishment (UNREP) ( U.S. Navy) is a method of transferring fuel, munitions, and stores from one ship to another while under way. First devel ...
, the final plans for the operation involved the Eastern Fleet refuelling at
Exmouth Gulf
Exmouth Gulf is a gulf in the north-west of Western Australia. It lies between North West Cape and the main coastline of Western Australia. It is considered to be part of the Pilbara Coast and Northwest Shelf, and the Carnarvon Basin geolog ...
in
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...
before striking Surabaya. The
United States Army Air Forces' 380th Bombardment Group
38 may refer to:
*38 (number), the natural number following 37 and preceding 39
*one of the years 38 BC, AD 38, 1938
Events
January
* January 1
** The new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending ...
, which was based near
Darwin in Australia, was to also bomb Surabaya on the night after the carrier raid to prevent the Japanese from dispatching aircraft to attack the Eastern Fleet as it withdrew. The Allies had good intelligence on the locations of Japanese facilities in Surabaya, which aided planning for air raids on the city. They lacked information on the strength of Japanese air forces in the region, which forced the Eastern Fleet to assign large numbers of fighter aircraft to escort the strike force and protect the fleet rather than attacking ground targets.
The Eastern Fleet was organised into three forces for Operation Transom. Force 65 comprised ''Queen Elizabeth'', ''Valiant'', ''Renown'', the French battleship
''Richelieu'', two cruisers and eight destroyers. Force 66 was made up of ''Illustrious'', ''Saratoga'', two cruisers and six destroyers. Force 67 was the replenishment group and comprised six
tankers
Tanker may refer to:
Transportation
* Tanker, a tank crewman (US)
* Tanker (ship), a ship designed to carry bulk liquids
** Chemical tanker, a type of tanker designed to transport chemicals in bulk
** Oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tank ...
, a
water distilling ship and two cruisers. Somerville commanded the fleet from ''Queen Elizabeth''. The warships were drawn from six navies, the
capital ship
The capital ships of a navy are its most important warships; they are generally the larger ships when compared to other warships in their respective fleet. A capital ship is generally a leading or a primary ship in a naval fleet.
Strategic im ...
s being accompanied by three American destroyers, four British cruisers and three destroyers, four Australian destroyers, a Dutch cruiser and destroyer and a New Zealand cruiser. The Australian light cruiser also sailed from
Fremantle in Western Australia to protect the tankers while they were at Exmouth Gulf; this allowed their two escorting cruisers to augment Force 66 during the attack. Two squadrons of
Supermarine Spitfire fighters were transferred from
No. 1 Wing RAAF at Darwin to Exmouth Gulf to protect the Eastern Fleet while it refuelled and Australian and American
maritime patrol aircraft
A maritime patrol aircraft (MPA), also known as a patrol aircraft, maritime reconnaissance aircraft, or by the older American term patrol bomber, is a fixed-wing aircraft designed to operate for long durations over water in maritime patrol rol ...
were assigned to operate offshore.
Each carrier had an
air group
A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation.
Air and aviation groups
The terms group and wing differ significantly from one country to another, as well as between different branches ...
made up of units from their parent navies. ''Illustrious'' embarked two squadrons equipped with 14
Vought F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contract ...
fighters
Fighter(s) or The Fighter(s) may refer to:
Combat and warfare
* Combatant, an individual legally entitled to engage in hostilities during an international armed conflict
* Fighter aircraft, a warplane designed to destroy or damage enemy warplan ...
each and two squadrons with nine Avengers. ''Saratoga''s air group comprised a squadron with 26
Grumman F6F Hellcat
The Grumman F6F Hellcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft of World War II. Designed to replace the earlier F4F Wildcat and to counter the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero, it was the United States Navy's dominant fighter in the second ha ...
fighters, a squadron with 24
Douglas SBD Dauntless
The Douglas SBD Dauntless is a World War II American naval scout plane and dive bomber that was manufactured by Douglas Aircraft from 1940 through 1944. The SBD ("Scout Bomber Douglas") was the United States Navy's main carrier-based scout/di ...
dive bombers and a squadron operating 18 Avenger torpedo bombers, as well as a single Hellcat allocated to the Air Group Leader.
Surabaya's defences against air attack at the time of Operation Transom included a few
anti-aircraft guns
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
, whose crews were inadequately trained.
Radar
Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...
stations and a network of observer posts were also sited to detect minelaying aircraft. The Japanese forces stationed in the city included the Imperial Japanese Army's
28th Independent Mixed Brigade and the headquarters of the
Imperial Japanese Navy's 2nd Southern Expeditionary Fleet
The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy, their roles were invasion and maintenance of the public order in southwestern area the French Indochina, Philippines, British Malaya and Dutch East Indies.
Organization Southern Expeditionary Fleet ...
.
Attack
![Avenger being armed on HMS Illustrious (87) 1944](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Avenger_being_armed_on_HMS_Illustrious_%2887%29_1944.jpg)
Force 67 was the first element of the Eastern Fleet to sail, departing on 30 April. Forces 65 and 66 sailed on 6 May. The Allied ships proceeded to Exmouth Gulf on a course that kept them at least from Japanese airfields to avoid being detected or attacked. The carriers' air wings practised the attack they would conduct on Surabaya three times during the voyage. The warships arrived at Exmouth Gulf on 14 and 15 May. While his ships were refuelling, Somerville met with the commander of the
United States Seventh Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of ...
, Vice Admiral
Thomas C. Kinkaid, Rear Admiral
Ralph Waldo Christie
Ralph Waldo Christie (30 August 1893 – 19 December 1987) was an admiral in the United States Navy who played a pivotal role in the development of torpedo technologies. During World War II, he commanded submarine operations out of the Australian ...
who commanded the fleet's submarines, and the Naval Officer In Charge Fremantle, Commodore
Cuthbert Pope, to discuss the most recent intelligence.
The Eastern Fleet departed Exmouth Gulf on the afternoon of 15 May and proceeded north. It arrived at the flying off point at 6:30 am local time on 17 May without being detected by the Japanese. One British and seven American submarines also took up positions near Surabaya, the southern entrance to the
Strait of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow stretch of water, 500 mi (800 km) long and from 40 to 155 mi (65–250 km) wide, between the Malay Peninsula (Peninsular Malaysia) to the northeast and the Indonesian island of Sumatra to the southwest, connec ...
and the
Bali,
Lombok
Lombok is an island in West Nusa Tenggara province, Indonesia. It forms part of the chain of the Lesser Sunda Islands, with the Lombok Strait separating it from Bali to the west and the Alas Strait between it and Sumbawa to the east. It is ...
and
Sunda Straits to support the Eastern Fleet. The submarines were positioned to rescue Allied aircrew that were forced down, attack ships that tried to escape from Surabaya and intercept any Japanese warships that attempted to attack the Allied fleet.
The aircraft launched by the carriers were organised into two strike forces. Force A was made up of nine Avengers from ''Illustrious'', twelve Dauntless dive bombers and an escort of eight Corsairs. Force A's Avengers were to bomb the Braat Engineering Works and the Dauntlesses the oil refinery. Force B was to attack shipping and dock facilities in Surabaya's port. It comprised twenty-one Avengers and six Dauntlesses escorted by eight Corsairs and twelve Hellcats. The commander of ''Saratoga''s air group, Commander
Joseph C. Clifton, led both carriers' air wings during the attack.
All of the aircraft were launched and formed up with the rest of their force by 7:20 am. Two British Avengers crashed during takeoff, their crews being rescued.
![Surabaya under attack during Operation Transom](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a8/Surabaya_under_attack_during_Operation_Transom.jpg)
The attack on Surabaya commenced at 8:30 am. The Japanese had not detected the aircraft as they approached, and were taken by surprise. The two forces made a well-synchronised attack, Force A approaching Wonokromo from the south and Force B attacking the port from the north. No Japanese fighter aircraft were encountered, and the anti-aircraft guns were largely ineffective. One of ''Saratoga''s Avengers was shot down, and both members of its crew became
prisoners of war.
The Allied pilots believed that they had inflicted heavy damage. They claimed to have damaged ten ships, demolished both the Wonokromo oil refinery and the Braat Engineering Works and destroyed 16 aircraft and several buildings at an airfield.
After the strike force completed landing on the carriers at 10:50 am, the Eastern Fleet withdrew to the south-west in an attempt to obscure the fact that it was headed for Exmouth Gulf. Somerville's staff had not requested a debriefing from Clifton upon his return. As a result, they did not learn until photographs taken by one of ''Saratoga''s
photo reconnaissance
Aerial reconnaissance is reconnaissance for a military or strategic purpose that is conducted using reconnaissance aircraft. The role of reconnaissance can fulfil a variety of requirements including artillery spotting, the collection of ima ...
aircraft were dropped onto ''Queen Elizabeth'' at 3:00 pm that many worthwhile targets, including Japanese submarines, remained in Surabaya's port. Somerville later regretted not ordering a second strike during the afternoon of 17 May.
The eight submarines that supported Operation Transom were not needed to rescue downed airmen, and none sank ships that were escaping from Surabaya. attacked a Japanese
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
near
Ambon
Ambon may refer to:
Places
* Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia
** Ambon, Maluku, a city on Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku province
** Governorate of Ambon, a colony of the Dutch East India Company from 1605 to 1796
* Ambon, Morbihan, a c ...
on 11 May while en route to take up station north of Surabaya, sinking one ship and damaging several others. sank a cargo ship in Sunda Strait on 20 May but was counter-attacked by the ships escorting it. The submarine had to abort its patrol the next day after the crew became sick due to either contaminated drinking water or fumes from cleaning chemicals. The historian
Clay Blair judged that the submarines would have likely achieved more if they had undertaken routine patrols or been stationed near the major Japanese naval anchorage at
Tawi-Tawi
Tawi-Tawi, officially the Province of Tawi-Tawi ( tl, Lalawigan ng Tawi-Tawi; Tausug: ''Wilaya' sin Tawi-Tawi''; Sinama: ''Jawi Jawi/Jauih Jauih''), is an island province in the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim ...
.
The heavy bomber raid against Surabaya that had been planned to cover the Eastern Fleet's withdrawal took place on the night of 17/18 May. Seven
Consolidated B-24 Liberators were dispatched from Darwin and refuelled at
Corunna Downs Airfield
Corunna Downs Airfield was a secret Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) base at Corunna Downs, south of Marble Bar, Western Australia, Marble Bar in the Pilbara region of Western Australia during World War II.
In 1942 the RAAF built a secret airb ...
in Western Australia. They then proceeded to Surabaya and attacked its port with demolition bombs. This caused further fires and damage. RAAF Catalinas flying from
Yampi Sound in Western Australia also laid mines near the city during May to support the landing at Wakde. A minelaying mission conducted by Catalinas from
Nos. 11 and
43 Squadrons on the night of 20/21 May encountered heavy opposition from the Japanese defenders who were still on high alert following the carrier and heavy bomber raids. One of the Australian aircraft was destroyed.
Aftermath
Subsequent operations
''Saratoga'' and her three escorting American destroyers detached from the Eastern Fleet shortly before sunset on 18 May, and proceeded to Fremantle. The remainder of the Eastern Fleet reached Exmouth Gulf the next morning, and sailed for Ceylon before sunset after refuelling again. ''Adelaide'' and one of the Australian destroyers that had been attached to the Eastern Fleet left Exmouth Gulf bound for Fremantle after the tanker group departed on 19 May. The Eastern Fleet arrived back at Ceylon on 27 May. ''Saratoga'' reached
Bremerton, Washington
Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremer ...
, on 10 June and after a refit re-joined the
Pacific Fleet in September 1944.
As was also the case with Operation Cockpit and the several other carrier raids the Eastern Fleet conducted in 1944, Operation Transom did not have any effect on Japanese deployments. This was because the Combined Fleet did not regard the Eastern Fleet as a threat, and was under orders to preserve its strength to contest a major American offensive that was expected to take place in the central Pacific. The Japanese leadership incorrectly interpreted the American landing at
Biak
Biak is an island located in Cenderawasih Bay near the northern coast of Papua, an Indonesian province, and is just northwest of New Guinea. Biak is the largest island in its small archipelago, and has many atolls, reefs, and corals.
The large ...
off the north coast of New Guinea on 27 May as being the main Allied effort, and the Combined Fleet dispatched a powerful force to make a counter attack on 10 June in what was designated
Operation Kon
Operation or Operations may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* Operation (game), ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity
* Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory
* Operations (magazine ...
. This attack was cancelled two days later when it became apparent that the Americans were about to invade the
Mariana Islands in the Central Pacific, and the Combined Fleet was defeated during the
Battle of the Philippine Sea
The Battle of the Philippine Sea (June 19–20, 1944) was a major naval battle of World War II that eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invas ...
fought between 19 and 20 June.
Assessments
Accounts of the damage inflicted during Operation Transom differ.
Stephen Roskill, the official historian of the Royal Navy's role in World War II, wrote in 1960 that although the Allies believed during the war that "many of the ships in harbour had been sunk or damaged and ... severe destruction had been done to the oil refinery and naval base", Japanese records "do not confirm that either their shipping or the shore facilities suffered at all heavily". These records indicated that only a single small ship was sunk. Roskill judged that "fires started on shore" led the Allied aircrew to "report too optimistically on the results of the raid". The Australian naval official historian
G. Hermon Gill reached an identical conclusion in 1968. He also noted that Admiral
Guy Royle
Guy or GUY may refer to:
Personal names
* Guy (given name)
* Guy (surname)
* That Guy (...), the New Zealand street performer Leigh Hart
Places
* Guy, Alberta, a Canadian hamlet
* Guy, Arkansas, US, a city
* Guy, Indiana, US, an unin ...
, the head of the Royal Australian Navy, told the Australian
Advisory War Council
The Advisory War Council (AWC) was an Australian Government body during World War II. The AWC was established on 28 October 1940 to draw all the major political parties in the Parliament of Australia into the process of making decisions on Australi ...
on 23 May that Operation Transom had been of dubious value on military grounds as similar results could have been achieved by land-based aircraft without risking warships. More recently, a 1990 work by
Edwyn Gray
Edwyn Gray (born 1927) is a British writer who specialises in naval writing although at times has written short stories.
He was born in London and educated at the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe. He read economics at the University of London ...
and a 2009 work by
David Brown concurred with Roskill and judged that the raid had not been successful.
Other historians regard the attack as a victory for the Allies. The official historian of the overall British effort in South East Asia,
Stanley Woodburn Kirby
Major General Stanley Woodburn Kirby, (13 February 1895 − 19 July 1968) was a British Army officer who served in both World Wars.
Personal
Stanley Kirby was the son of Sir Woodburn Kirby, born in the Hendon district of London. He was educated ...
, wrote in 1962 that the Wonokromo oil refinery and other industrial facilities were set on fire, the naval dockyard and two other docks were bombed and twelve Japanese aircraft destroyed on the ground. H.P. Willmott noted in 1996 that the raid caused "severe damage" to the Wonokromo oil refinery, "damage to the dockyard" and the sinking of a
minesweeper
A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.
History
The earliest known usage of ...
, a
submarine chaser and a naval freighter.
Jürgen Rohwer
Jürgen Rohwer (24 May 192424 July 2015) was a German military historian and professor of history at the University of Stuttgart. Rohwer wrote over 400 books and essays on World War II naval history and military intelligence, which gained him w ...
stated in 2005 that twelve Japanese aircraft were destroyed on the ground, a small freighter was sunk and a
patrol boat
A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval vessel generally designed for coastal defence, border security, or law enforcement. There are many designs for patrol boats, and the ...
damaged beyond repair. In 2011 David Hobbs judged that the operation was successful, the Wonokromo oil refinery being "burnt out", naval dock installations damaged and a merchant ship sunk. Marcus Faulkner wrote in 2012 that Operation Transom "inflicted considerable damage". As is the case for the other air raids on Surabaya during World War II, it is not known how many civilian casualties resulted from Operation Transom.
Both Roskill and Hobbs agree that the attack provided the Royal Navy with important experience of carrier strike operations and exposure to superior American carrier tactics. Roskill observed that Somerville decided to copy the way in which ''Saratoga''s crew conducted flight operations. Hobbs identified other lessons the Royal Navy took away from the operation, including a need to plan to conduct at least two strikes against each target and the desirability of obtaining photo reconnaissance aircraft that could be flown from carriers. Gray also noted that the operation, and especially the need to refuel in Western Australia, illustrated to the Royal Navy that it required an improved ability to replenish warships while they were at sea. This contributed to the acquisition of many supply ships that later supported the
British Pacific Fleet
The British Pacific Fleet (BPF) was a Royal Navy formation that saw action against Japan during the Second World War. The fleet was composed of empire naval vessels. The BPF formally came into being on 22 November 1944 from the remaining ships o ...
during its operations against
Okinawa
is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi).
Naha is the capital and largest city ...
and Japan in 1945.
References
Citations
Works consulted
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Transom, Operation
South-East Asian theatre of World War II
Naval battles of World War II involving France
Naval battles of World War II involving the Netherlands
1944 in Indonesia
World War II aerial operations and battles of the Pacific theatre
Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving the United Kingdom
Naval battles and operations of World War II involving the United Kingdom
April 1944 events
Indian Ocean operations of World War II
Naval battles of World War II involving Japan
Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving Japan
Naval battles of World War II involving the United States
Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving the United States
Naval battles of World War II involving New Zealand