Wau Me Worry

After an arduous trek cutting through the jungle, and harassed along the way by Australian KANGA Force, the exhausted Japanese troops of the 102nd Regiment, Okabu Detachment struggled onto the high ground overlooking their objective—the airfield at the village of …

1943-01-31

M9

After an arduous trek cutting through the jungle, and harassed along the way by Australian KANGA Force, the exhausted Japanese troops of the 102nd Regiment, Okabu Detachment struggled onto the high ground overlooking their objective—the airfield at the village of Wau, vital to Allied supply in the region. Attempting to descend on the airfield through the dense jungle, the Japanese forces lose contact with each other, emerging from the cover piecemeal to launch their attacks. Elements of the Australian 2/7 battalion defend the airfield even as Allied reinforcements and supplies land under enemy fire, debarking to immediately join the fight. Though their engineers managed to reach the airstrip, the Japanese could not hold and were forced to fall back.

Wau, New Guinea

The Battle of Wau, 29 January – 4 February 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.

Wikipedia: Battle of Wau

Japanese

Australia