Why Darwin Was the Only Major Australian City Bombed by the Japanese in WWII
Darwin was a rear-area supply base for ABDACOM, an Allied task force created to stop Japanese attacks on the Netherlands East Indies and Malaya. In 1942, it was subjected to a brutal Japanese air raid. It was the first time Australia was attacked on its home soil by a foreign adversary.Darwins Strategic ImportanceAerial view of RAAF Darwin, a critical airbase to American and Australian operations in the South Pacific, 1940. Source: Royal Australian Air ForceDarwin was the capital of Australias Northern Territory at the start of WWII. It was a small town with just under 6,000 residents. Being located astride Allied supply lines, it was a crucial hub of military activity and home to several air and naval facilities built in the 1930s. After the Pearl Harbor attacks, the United States vowed to send equipment and manpower to bolster Australias defenses. This included basing aircraft at RAAF Darwin, the main airfield in the town.American planes flying to Australia used RAAF Darwin as a key point in the South Pacific air ferry route. Japanese control of the Central Pacific in 1942 forced American planes to take a route via Australia in order to get closer to the front lines in the Western Pacific. American B-17 squadrons began flying to the base as part of an effort to reinforce the Philippines. Once that battle ended, the airstrip became a front-line outpost for air raids against Japanese ships sailing to attack the Dutch East Indies. Dutch forces also used the base when their island garrisons began falling to Japan.Japan hoped to do what Germany and Italy attempted to do in the Atlantic: cut off American supplies to its allies. Their submarines began sinking Allied merchantmen off the Australian coast. They also laid mines off harbors like Darwin, causing some damage to ships entering and leaving. The increasing threat meant that civilians started to leave the coastal towns in the Northern Territory. As the ports importance increased, it became a priority target for the Japanese navy.Japanese Plans for AustraliaPainting of the Kido Butai, Japans carrier strike force that attacked Darwin. Source: TheCollectorJapan saw Australia as a serious threat to its imperial ambitions and hoped to neutralize it during the war. The navy and army were divided as to what course of action to take. Some naval staff officers hoped to occupy the northern coastline to prevent it from being used as a base for Allied counterattacks. There were even plans to occupy the whole Australian landmass and settle it with millions of Japanese. However, the army, the more influential service in Tokyo, opposed this and had the support of Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo.Instead, Japan hoped to target Allied supply lines to Southeast Asia and attack Australian port facilities. Already, submarine activity was having an impact. However, the American force buildup concerned Japanese officials. They feared that attempts to seize New Guinea and the rest of the Dutch East Indies would be stopped by counterstrikes from northern Australia, including Darwin. This meant that Japan decided to keep the pressure on the Australians with air and naval attacks.In 1942-1943, Japanese aircrafts targeted a number of Allied sites in Northern Australia. The fear of Japanese invasion led Australia to adopt a total defense strategy. Its forward defenses were strengthened, more men were conscripted for military service, and additional material was stationed at air and naval bases in the north. This meant that Darwin became more significant as an Allied base. By early February 1942, Japan was preparing to strike Darwin to inflict maximum damage on Allied equipment and personnel in the town.Opposing Forces During the RaidUSS Peary, one of the ships stationed at Darwin during the attack that was sunk. Source: Naval History and Heritage CommandDespite the Allied buildup in the Northern Territory, the defenses of Darwin were still dangerously inadequate. A mere 31 Australian and American aircraft were available to defend the port. Many of these were bombers that were useless as air defense. The fighter pilots were very inexperienced. Even worse was that they were not dispersed effectively, meaning that the Japanese could strike all the planes at once if they caught the defenders off guard. Air defense systems were also insufficient: only 16 guns covered the entire town, port, and airfield complexes.At least 47 Allied ships lay at anchor in Darwin harbor on February 19. Many were merchantmen bringing supplies to Australia while others were continuing on to assist Allied defenses in the Dutch East Indies. Others were small warships assigned to convoy duty or to reinforce ABDACOM (Australian-British-Dutch-American-Command) in Java. Many of the Allied ships at anchor were underprotected and lightly manned. They were also anchored in a haphazard manner, making it easy for the Japanese to target as many ships as possible.Japan used the main naval strike force called the First Carrier Strike Force (Kido Butai) to attack Darwin. Four carriers, the Akagi, Kaga, Hiry, and Sry, formed the task force and had 188 aircraft available for the attack. Additionally, 54 Japanese land-based bombers participated, targeting positions and infrastructure not hit by the carrier planes. These pilots were experienced in attacking fortified ports; most had participated in the Pearl Harbor attack. Their numbers were large enough to overwhelm Darwins defenses and inflict massive damage.The First WaveAmerican P-40 Warhawk strafed on the ground during the first attack, 1942. Source: Northern Territory GovernmentEarly in the morning, after scout planes identified the main Allied targets in the harbor, the Japanese carrier-borne strike force attacked. B5N Kate bombers targeted ships with torpedoes, D3A Val dive bombers used 500 and 1000 lb bombs to target airfields and harbor facilities, and A6M Zero fighters strafed the Allied airfields and shot down any roving planes. Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, the leader of the Pearl Harbor strike group, led 81 Kates, 71 Vals, and 26 Zeros. They flew over a watch station on Bathurst Island, which warned Darwin about the planes. However, the warning was ignored because the Australians thought that the incoming planes were American.By 10:00 a.m., the Japanese were over the harbor. The Zeros found some roving American P-40s and shot down several of them. Many others were strafed on the ground or left for the follow-up raid to clean up. Within thirty minutes, they destroyed three warships and six merchantmen at anchor. Another ten ships were damaged. The cargo ship MV Neptuna, carrying a stockpile of TNT on board, exploded after being repeatedly hit by Japanese planes.Some vessels tried to escape, but the tight confines of the harbor made it difficult and most ships remained in the harbor throughout the attack. Ground fire and a couple of Allied fighters hit around 30 Japanese planes, but only four were shot down. Just after 10:00 a.m., the Japanese planes started heading home, having expended most of their ordnance. The attack was not finished; more land-based planes were on their way.The Second WaveAustralian serviceman watches as oil foundries burn during the second attack, 1942. Source: Naval History and Heritage CommandFollowing the strikes by the Kido Butai, Japanese twin-engined bombers from Ambon and Celebes islands in the Dutch East Indies attacked Darwin from high altitude. Their objective was slightly different: They sought to destroy Darwins airfields and port facilities. This had not been done at Pearl Harbor, meaning that the Americans were able to restart the port facilities very quickly. Just before midday, 27 G3M Nell bombers and 27 G4M Betty bombers arrived to plaster the remaining Allied facilities. The garrison was still in shock from the first raid and struggled to respond to the new threat.RAAF Darwin was struck repeatedly and the air and ground crews suffered losses. Some estimates placed Allied aircraft losses at 30, including P-40s, B-24 Liberators, Hudson and Catalina patrol aircraft, and other planes kept in storage. Defective Australian anti-aircraft shells meant that the Japanese were pretty much unopposed. Some dive bombers following in the wake of the Bettys and Nells hit two remaining Philippine merchantmen anchored just outside the port. By 1:00 p.m., all Japanese aircraft were out of Australian airspace.The Allies were stunned by the efficiency of the raid and their weak response allowed the Japanese to inflict very serious damage on the garrison. Subsequent reporting indicated that nearly 250 Allied servicemen and women were killed during the attacks. Some later analysis stated that this number was an underestimate. Seven out of eleven oil storage units were destroyed, causing a fuel shortage for Allied forces in the area. Additionally, the destruction of the port facilities made it difficult for Allied ships to dock in the harbor.The AftermathCenotaph in Darwin honoring all residents of the city killed in Australias wars, 2021. Source: Wild Spirit AdventuresThe attack on Darwin caused a serious panic in Australia and came to be known as Australias Pearl Harbor. Large numbers of civilians on the northern coast fled from their homes, fearing more attacks or even a full-scale invasion. Australian Prime Minister John Curtin vowed to increase defenses in the Northern Territories. He also pleaded with the United States to send more equipment and troops to help defend his country. The attack on Darwin and other Japanese actions convinced Washington to bolster defenses on the continent.Many people in Australia demanded an inquiry as to how a regional capital could be bombed so thoroughly in a short period of time. The Lowe Commission was set up by the government in Canberra to investigate the attack and the Allied response. It found that the defenses were too weak and not enough early warning was provided. Contrary to myth, Canberra did not downplay the extent of the damage; Prime Minister Curtin stated that the attacks were destructive and damaging to the Allied position in northern Australia.Due to the destruction of much of Darwins oil storage facilities, the Australians built underground bunkers to protect oil supplies in Darwin. Additionally, they increased the air strength at RAAF Darwin and positioned more anti-aircraft batteries around the town. In 1943, when Japanese planes tried to attack Darwin again, they were driven off by RAAF Spitfires. As Japans fortunes in the Pacific worsened, attacks on Australia decreased and the threat to the continent was reduced.
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