Word: convoying
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...recent technical advances are involved, 1) The design would not imitate orthodox ships, but would be oval, streamlined, making use of the plastic properties of concrete. 2) Advances in short-wave radio make possible accurate remote control of the entire convoy and of ships in dividually, even to permitting scattering of the convoy in case of attack. The ships may be controlled by code signals (like the combination of a safe) that would be changed every trip to prevent the enemy from learning and using them...
...convoy was only 30 miles off New Britain, near Gasmata, when a B-24 Liberator on reconnaissance picked it up. A Flying Fortress escorted by eight long-range P-38 (Lightning) fighters flew in to intercept. They found that the convoy carried an umbrella of 14 Zeros. They shot down nine, probably got three more and damaged the other...
Fortresses haunted the convoy until after dark, when an Australian-manned Navy Catalina picked up the convoy's phosphorescent wake. Three bombs from the Catalina blew up a big (14,000-ton) transport which probably carried...
Next morning the convoy reached the vicinity of Lae, where more Zeros undertook to protect it. Then George Kenney's airmen really started to work. Besides Fortresses, Liberators and Lightnings, George Kenney has samples of almost every type of combat plane the U.S. can produce: twin-engined Boston (A-20), Marauder (B26) and Mitchell (B25) bombers, Kittyhawk (P-40) fighters, plus some Australian Beaufighters and Beaufort bombers. The turbo-supercharged Lightnings can hit the Zeros high, and the heavily-armed Kittyhawks catch them when they come down...
...night and next day George Kenney's airmen hammered at the convoy and its protecting planes. Mitchell bombers sank a transport which rolled over in the shallow water near the Lae jetty, knocked down five Zeros which attempted to interfere. Beaufighters swept into the Lae airdrome, burnt up one Zero, shot up others on the runway. In the late afternoon the oft-derided Kittyhawks were attacked by 18 Zeros. Score: 13 Zeros shot down, one Kittyhawk (pilot safe). When 20 more Zeros jumped some Lightnings they lost all but five. Total Jap planes lost in three days: 85 certain...