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1111:′s Avengers crashed into the sea after takeoff, but its crew escaped unscathed. The other Avengers and the escort force departed from the fleet at 0715, and the strike Corsairs took off shortly after. The strike force ran into a barrier of clouds as they approached the Sumatran coast. Strike Leader Stuart advanced through a gap in the clouds to inspect the target but was unable to locate it. The strike was diverted to the secondary target, Belawan Deli, where the weather was little better.
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was surprised and downed by a
Hellcat. The raid ended in chaos, with complete loss of radio discipline. The strike force and escorts rendezvoused just beneath the clouds. Lieutenant Commander W. J. Mainprice had to form up his squadron (No. 854) and lead them back on his own initiative because of the
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Despite the lack of opposition met, Operation Robson was considered a failure on account of the bad weather and the lack of radio discipline. The subsequent operations of
Outflank—
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At the flying-off position, low clouds and heavy squalls reduced visibility, prompting Vian to postpone the launch twenty minutes. The operation finally began at 0636. One of
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1118:. Two of the Corsairs became lost and strafed a large storage tank at either Pangkalan Brandan or Pangkalan Susu. The defences of Belawan Deli were unprepared: the
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On the afternoon of the attack, a
Japanese radio message was intercepted: "Am closing down now, will call you later." At the suggestion of Captain C. E. Lambe of
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The
Avengers bombed the wharves from 1500 feet, while the Corsairs strafed the fuel storage tanks and warehouses in the town. A train was also hit at nearby
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1151:. No Japanese aircraft were spotted, either on the ground or in the air. Force 67 had returned to Trincomalee by 22 December.
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for the operation consisted of two forces: Force 67, the strike force, and Force 69, the oiler group. The commander, Admiral
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in 1942, but the
Japanese had repaired it by the year's end. Refined product was piped from there to the port of
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1127:"radio bedlam". All 55 aircraft returned safely and the four Corsairs landed by 1050, and the force retired.
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and the destroyers of Force 67 refuelled. Undetected, the fleet reached the flying-off position, north of
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Aerial operations and battles of World War II involving the United
Kingdom
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Naval battles and operations of World War II involving the United
Kingdom
909:. It had been fired by fleeing American and Dutch personnel during the
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The
British Pacific Fleet: The Royal Navy's Most Powerful Strike Force
874:(20 December 1944) was the first of a series of aerial operations,
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was ineffective and no fighters were put in the air, although one
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World War II aerial operations and battles of the
Pacific theatre
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World War II operations and battles of the
Southeast Asia Theatre
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The Forgotten Fleet: The British Navy in the Pacific, 1944–1945
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on 17 December, and met Force 69 the next day (18 December).
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were dispatched for a low-level sweep over the airfields at
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eight miles away and to the more distant deep-water port of
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The primary target of Operation Robson was the refinery at
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738:Bombing of South East Asia, 1944–1945
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959:). Also in Force 67 were the carrier
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882:(BPF) against the oil refineries of
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74:Limited Allied operational success
14:
911:invasion of the Dutch East Indies
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1047:The strike force departed from
1:
1025:. The oiler group comprised
660:Manchuria and Northern Korea
1233:. Seaforth. pp. 63–64.
458:Dutch East Indies (1941–42)
415:Strategic bombing (1944–45)
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1224:. New York: Coward-McCann.
1147:and Oleelhoe, the port of
937:, had his flag aboard the
607:Volcano and Ryukyu Islands
884:Japanese-occupied Sumatra
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1079:supplied a further four
975:1833 Naval Air Squadrons
957:1844 Naval Air Squadrons
694:Second Sino-Japanese War
534:Estevan Point Lighthouse
289:Indian Ocean (1941–1945)
240:Marshalls–Gilberts raids
1120:anti-aircraft artillery
296:Japanese merchant raids
64:Netherlands East Indies
595:Hiroshima and Nagasaki
439:Burma and India (1944)
262:Gilberts and Marshalls
118:Commanders and leaders
1229:Hobbs, David (2011).
1220:Winton, John (1970).
995:, and the destroyers
880:British Pacific Fleet
505:Philippines (1944–45)
463:Philippines (1941–42)
168:Casualties and losses
1085:Grumman F6F Hellcats
1073:Grumman TBF Avengers
1067:supplied twelve and
878:, undertaken by the
306:Homfreyganj massacre
1081:Vought F4U Corsairs
1032:and the destroyers
154:2 aircraft carriers
876:Operation Outflank
751:North Western Area
653:Japanese surrender
619:Naval bombardments
549:Fire balloon bombs
272:Volcano and Ryukyu
267:Marianas and Palau
178:Facilities damaged
1194:, pp. 70–74.
907:Pangkalan Brandan
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451:Southwest Pacific
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872:Operation Robson
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674:Manchuria (1945)
529:Aleutian Islands
379:Indochina (1945)
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335:2nd Indian Ocean
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313:Christmas Island
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888:World War II
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554:Project Hula
539:Fort Stevens
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282:Ocean Island
245:
235:Pearl Harbor
158:7 destroyers
83:Belligerents
37:World War II
31:Part of the
18:
1192:Winton 1970
1141:Indomitable
1137:Illustrious
1109:Indomitable
1097:Indomitable
1093:Illustrious
1089:Indomitable
1077:Illustrious
1069:Illustrious
1065:Indomitable
1049:Trincomalee
962:Illustrious
944:Indomitable
935:Philip Vian
679:Mutanchiang
500:New Britain
216:Pacific War
131:Philip Vian
1256:Categories
1204:Hobbs 2011
998:Kempenfelt
965:(carrying
947:(carrying
929:The naval
890:. Admiral
790:2nd Sabang
767:Matterhorn
756:1st Sabang
624:Sagami Bay
613:Starvation
495:New Guinea
156:3 cruisers
1149:Kota Raja
1131:Aftermath
1103:Operation
1029:Wave King
1016:Whirlwind
992:Newcastle
942:HMS
785:Singapore
773:Palembang
668:Kantokuen
575:Air raids
490:Australia
480:Coral Sea
374:Singapore
369:Hong Kong
152:60 planes
1160:Meridian
1071:sixteen
1053:Argonaut
1022:Wrangler
980:Argonaut
834:Meridian
813:Outflank
761:Surabaya
686:Chongjin
647:Downfall
585:Yokosuka
402:Tiderace
359:Thailand
176:1 bomber
147:Strength
55:Location
1214:Sources
1004:Wakeful
886:during
639:Shumshu
524:Ellwood
389:Vietnam
160:1 oiler
142:Unknown
60:Sumatra
1156:Lentil
1145:Sabang
1010:Wessex
857:Livery
850:Collie
843:Balsam
827:Lentil
820:Robson
806:Millet
795:Padang
409:Zipper
395:Jurist
364:Malaya
323:Ceylon
257:Midway
108:
94:
71:Result
1166:Notes
1087:from
1041:Whelp
1035:Wager
800:Sigli
580:Tokyo
568:Japan
485:Timor
111:Japan
1158:and
1038:and
1027:RFA
1019:and
989:and
973:and
971:1830
955:and
953:1839
590:Kure
277:Truk
47:Date
967:854
949:857
35:of
1258::
1174:^
1099:.
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1044:.
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1001:,
983:,
969:,
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894:,
560:PX
469:RY
62:,
1206:.
728:e
721:t
714:v
246:K
207:e
200:t
193:v
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