The story
64 F4U Corsair fighters of US Marine Corps squadrons VMF-214 and VMF-216 conducted a fighter sweep over Rabaul, New Britain. 72 Japanese fighters rose to defend. The Americans claimed 30 Japanese shot down, but Japanese records would later revealed that only 3 fighters were actually lost.
There's more to discover
You have arrived at just one small part of Back to Normandy — a personal project dedicated to preserving stories, images, music and memories of the Second World War.
Every record is a doorway to a larger story. Explore Back to Normandy to discover more, or visit Fred Vogels' personal website to learn about the person and the projects behind it.