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• » 18 Sep 1943

• Japanese hospital ship Hikawa Maru departed Manila, Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Hikawa Maru | CPC]
• Mussolini declared the Repubblica Sociale Italiana in Northern Italy. ww2dbase [Benito Mussolini | CPC]
• John Basilone participated in a bond tour event in Scanton, Pennsylvania, United States. ww2dbase [John Basilone | CPC]
• USS Bailey departed San Diego bound for San Francisco, California. ww2dbase [Bailey | DS]

• USS Cisco arrived at Darwin, Australia. ww2dbase [Cisco | Darwin, Northern Territory | CPC]
• USS Nicholas arrived at Brisbane, Australia. ww2dbase [Nicholas | Brisbane | DS]

• US Marine Corps squadron VMF-214 attacked a Japanese convoy destined for Vella Lavella in the Solomon Islands. Pilot Chris Magee shot down 2 Japanese D3A aircraft (with a further 1 probable) during this attack. ww2dbase [CPC]

• Shokaku sortied from Truk, Caroline Islands to Brown Island (Eniwetok), Marshall Islands with Combined Fleet under Vice Admiral Ozawa's tactical command in response to the US Task Force 15 carrier raids on Tarawa and Makin. ww2dbase [Shokaku | Truk | CPC]
• Yamato sortied from Truk to Brown Atoll, Eniwetok in response to raids by US Navy Task Force 15 on Tarawa, Makin, and Abemama Atolls. ww2dbase [Yamato | Truk | CPC]

• Yolande Beekman was delivered into German-occupied France via a Lysander aircraft before dawn. ww2dbase [Yolande Beekman | CPC]

• U-537 departed Kiel, Germany for her first war patrol. She carried Wetter-Funkgerät Land-26 weather station equipment along with meteorology expert Dr. Kurt Sommermeyer and his assistant Walter Hildebrant on board. ww2dbase [U-537 | Weather Station Kurt | Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein | CPC]

• Headquarters of British V Corps arrived at Taranto, Italy. ww2dbase [Operation Avalanche | Taranto, Puglia | CPC]
• Italian Navy Xa Flottiglia MAS based at Pola, Italy (occupied Pula, Yugoslavia) under Lieutenant Commander Umberto Bardelli reported the strength of 350 men. ww2dbase [CPC]

• Irako arrived at Yokosuka, Japan. ww2dbase [Irako | Yokosuka, Kanagawa | CPC]

• USS Bluefish sank small Japanese ship with her deck gun in the Dutch East Indies. ww2dbase [Bluefish | CPC]
• USS Sunfish damaged a Japanese transport in the Pacific Ocean, hitting her with 1 of 3 torpedoes fired. ww2dbase [Sunfish (Gato-class) | CPC]
• After stalking a Japanese convoy for a day and a half covering 230 miles, submarine USS Spearfish fired eight torpedoes at three different ships and scored five hits. One 7,000-ton cargo ship sank after nearly being broken in two. Two 5,500-ton freighters were badly damaged and possibly sunk. Spearfish was able to evade the ensuing depth charge attack without damage. ww2dbase [Spearfish | DS]

• German submarine U-711 shelled the Soviet wireless telegraph station at Pravdy in northern Russia. ww2dbase [Arctic Convoys | CPC]

• USS Corvina departed Groton, Connecticut, United States. ww2dbase [Corvina | Electric Boat Company | Groton, Connecticut | CPC]

18 Sep 1943 Interactive Map