OBJECTIVE: Tien Ho airfield at Canton is the primary target, but when ground fog obscures the airbase, the bombers hit gasoline storage facilities and godowns instead.
TIME OVER TARGET: ~4:15 a.m.
AMERICAN SQUADRONS AND AIRCRAFT: Three B-25s from 11th Bomb Squadron (341st Medium Bomb Group, China Air Task Force)
AMERICAN PILOTS AND AIRCREW:
Dr Hargreaves tugged out some more of my ((infected)) eyelashes ((he'd had to do that a couple of months earlier)). Eyes ache and are sore.
Jap. papers admit air raid, they say they shot down 2 planes. No word of our parcels, all fear we may not get them now due to lack of transport etc.
Selwyn-Clarke didn't come in, upsetting all x-ray arrangements.
Mabel getting really fat in the face.
Internee Captain George Andrew Burn, aged 65, formerly a Master Mariner with Harry Wicking and Co. Merchants and Agents, dies at the French Hospital.
The Times (London) carries an optimistic account of conditions in the Hong Kong camps based on the report of International Red Cross delegates Rudolf Zindel and Edward Egle - 'the general state of health of prisoners in Hong Kong is good'.
Sources:
Burn: Greg Leck, Captives of Empire, 2006, 619
Much less air patrols by Japs today.
Conflicting reports of damage in town in Camp.
Bowls Single Finals played off. Oram beat Bradley. ((There was a Miss J A Oram in camp, but would they have had mixed-sex competition in Bowls? The other possibility is Mr J Orem.))
Another air raid today, we distinctly heard bombs,and saw ack-ack fire. Must have been big bombs for us to hear all this way, think they were at Taikoo. Dreadful to think of the poor Chinese casualties there must be at the docks and other places.
Dr Y-E said Mabel's heart beats are showing through her skin, said it's pushing against the chest wall and isn't right.
Black-out 10.45 p.m.
About noon when third raid. Much machine gunning. Great excitement. Early blackout. Rumour one American plane shot down. Chinese airmen said in downed American machine.
Saw another air attack on Colony at 11AM. Ideal day for air attacks. Fine, with high cloud.
Black out.
Henry Ching notes that his father's diary mentions the third American air raid on Hong Kong happened on this day, and that:
In Edwin Ride’s book on the BAAG he states “the first of regular 14th Air Force bombing raids over Hong Kong took place during 25-28 October 1943 (sic)” - he says “there were all told three raids, 3.30 p.m. Oct 25th, 1.30 a.m. Oct 26th and 11 a.m. Oct 28th”.
OBJECTIVE: Dive-bomb shipping in Victoria Harbor
TIME OVER TARGET: ~11:00 a.m.
AMERICAN UNITS AND AIRCRAFT: Seventeen P-40Es from 16th and 75th Fighter Squadrons (23rd Fighter Group, China Air Task Force, 10th Air Force)
AMERICAN PILOTS AND AIRCREW:
Blackout last night. Still haven't finished next to last chapter of Louie.
Great losses on Solomon Islands, both for U.S. and Japs.
Nan in hospital.
Quiet day today.
Targets hit so far, Whitfield barracks & 2 cruisers in Junk Bay. Quarry Bay district damaged & Peninsula Hotel.
General news good.
Had front tooth filled.
S'hai gift (BRA) Y. 6.50 per adult, Y3.25 each child under 18.
((red X next to date on this entry))
(("BRA"= British Residents Association.))
Quiet today.
Rec. Y.6.50.
Mabel still has to stay in ((hospital)) quite a time. She is to get about 2 or 3 Yen from VADs.
Mr Thomas Nicolas died this morning ((Ship's Officer)).
Birth of Rosemary Virginia Mitchell. She's the first baby to be conceived as well as born in Stanley Camp, and her parents were probably the first couple to marry there.
The death from TB of ship's officer Thomas Abedneger (or Abednego) Nicholas, aged 48. He was held at the Kowloon Hotel before being sent to Stanley.
Source:
Birth: China Mail, September 15, 1945, page 3
Death of Mr. T.A. Nicolas (53).
To Mr & Mrs A.M. Mitchell, a daughter (Rosemary Virginia)
The last day of another month - and I have a feeling that we may not be here for so very much longer! The last week has been an exciting one: on the night of Monday 26th at about 1:30 a.m. and by the light of a brilliant full moon there was another raid. Our room slept through it but other people heard it and on looking out saw the flashes of guns beyond the Mount Parker range of hills and saw tracer shells and saw the shells bursting. Next morning the Japanese sent in a notice to Gimson to say that no internee must be seen looking at the sky!!!
Fighting at Tai po.