Operation Chronicle

Operation Chronicle
Part of World War II, Pacific War
American troops disembarking from an LCI
Date 23–30 June 1943 Location Woodlark Island and Kiriwina, Territory of Papua Result Allied occupation
Belligerents
United States  Australia	Japan
Commanders and leaders
Walter Krueger	Hatazō Adachi
Strength
~16,800	0
Casualties and losses
0

Operation Chronicle was the Allied invasion of Woodlark and Kiriwina Islands, in the South West Pacific, during World War II. The operation was a subordinate action that formed part of the wider Operation Cartwheel, the advance towards Rabaul. An early planning name for this operation was Operation Coronet. Preliminary actions commenced on 23–24 June 1943 when small reconnaissance parties were landed on both islands. The main operation was executed without opposition on 30 June 1943. Around 16,800 personnel took part, divided into two forces. The United States Army provided the majority of ground troops, which were supported by a United States Marine Corps defense battalion as well as U.S. and Australian aircraft and naval vessels.

The two islands were subsequently developed by U.S. naval construction battalions and engineers who constructed airfields and PT boat bases. United States Army Air Force aircraft arrived on Woodlark in mid-July, while Royal Australian Air Force aircraft began operations from Kiriwina in August. Ultimately, though, the islands played only a limited role in the Allied offensive against Rabaul as the Allied advance pushed further west.