Wau-Salamaua 1942-1943 – Australians in the Pacific War

Description

Title: Wau-Salamaua 1942-1943 – Australians in the Pacific War

Author: Moremon, Dr John

Condition: Mint

Edition: 2nd Edition

Publication Date: 2006

ISBN: 1877007188

Cover: Soft Cover without Dust Jacket – 64 pages

Comments: The pictorial account of the Australian involvement in the Battle of Wau in Papua New Guinea during World War 2

The Battle of Wau, 29–31 January 1943, was a battle in the New Guinea campaign of World War II. Forces of the Empire of Japan sailed from Rabaul and crossed the Solomon Sea and, despite Allied air attacks, successfully reached Lae, where they disembarked. Japanese troops then advanced overland on Wau, an Australian base that potentially threatened the Japanese positions at Salamaua and Lae. A race developed between the Japanese moving overland, hampered by the terrain, and the Australians, moving by air, hampered by the weather. By the time the Japanese reached the Wau area after a trek over the mountains, the Australian defenders had been greatly reinforced by air. In the battle that followed, despite achieving tactical surprise by approaching from an unexpected direction, the Japanese attackers were unable to capture Wau.