The Landing at Nadzab was an airborne landing on 5 September 1943 during the New Guinea campaign of World War II. It began with a parachute drop (pictured) into Nadzab by the US Army's 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment and elements of the Australian Army. The drop, which took place in conjunction with the Landing at Lae, was observed by General Douglas MacArthur, circling overhead in a B-17. Australian and Papuan troops reached Nadzab that same day after an overland and river trek. The first transport aircraft carrying troops of the Australian 7th Division landed the next morning, but a terrible air crash at Jackson's Field caused half the Allied casualties of the battle. The 7th Division advanced on Lae from Nadzab. On 11 September, it defeated a Japanese force at Heath's Plantation. During this engagement, Private Richard Kelliher won the Victoria Cross, Australia's highest award for gallantry. The Japanese Army elected not to fight for Lae, preferring instead to withdraw over the rugged Saruwaged Range, which proved to be a gruelling test of endurance. Nadzab was then developed and became the major Allied air base in New Guinea.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landing_at_Nadzab> _______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries: 917: Liu Yan declared himself emperor, establishing the Southern Han state in southern China, at his capital of Panyu (present-day Guangzhou). <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Yan_(emperor)> 1781: American Revolutionary War: French naval forces handed Britain a major strategic defeat in the Battle of the Chesapeake. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Chesapeake> 1793: French Revolution: The National Convention began the Reign of Terror, a ten-month period of systematic repression and mass executions by guillotine of perceived enemies within the country. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reign_of_Terror> 1927: Walt Disney's and Ub Iwerks' first popular character Oswald the Lucky Rabbit made its debut in the animated cartoon Trolley Troubles. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oswald_the_Lucky_Rabbit> 1975: Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme (pictured), a devotee of Charles Manson, attempted to assassinate U.S. President Gerald Ford. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynette_Fromme> _____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day: canard: A false or misleading report or story, especially if deliberately so. <https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/canard> ___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day: Plenty of kind, decent, caring people have no religious beliefs, and they act out of the goodness of their hearts. Conversely, plenty of people who profess to be religious, even those who worship regularly, show no particular interest in the world beyond themselves. --John Danforth <https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Danforth> _______________________________________________ Wikipedia Daily Article mailing list. To unsubscribe, visit: https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/daily-article-l Questions or comments? Contact [email protected]
