Palikulo Bay Airfield or Bomber Field #1 is a former

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

airfield on the island of

Espiritu Santo Espiritu Santo (, ; ) is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of and a population of around 40,000 according to the 2009 census. Geography The island belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region ...

in the New Hebrides Islands at the

Espiritu Santo Naval Base Naval Advance Base Espiritu Santo or Naval Base Espiritu Santo, most often just called ''Espiritu Santo'', was a major advance Naval base that the U.S. Navy Seabees built during World War II to support the Allied effort in the Pacific. The base ...

History

World War II

The 7th Naval Construction Battalion arrived on Santo on 11 August 1942 and began construction of more extensive air facilities to support the

Guadalcanal Campaign The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by the United States, was an Allies of World War II, Allied offensive against forces of the Empire of Japan in the Solomon Islands during th ...

. After completing a second fighter airfield at Turtle Bay they began constructing a bomber field at Palikulo Bay. The runway was by built of PSP over a coral base. The 15th Naval Construction Battalion arrived on Santo on 13 October 1942 and added taxiways, revetments, and a extension to the runway for air transport operation. Units of the 5th Bombardment Group based at Palikulo included the 23d Bombardment Squadron operating B-17Es and later B-24s from 1 December 1942 until 3 January 1944, and the 72d Bombardment Squadron and 394th Bombardment Squadron both operating B-17s. On 13 August B-17E #41-2463 of the 394th Bombardment Squadron piloted by

Gene Roddenberry Eugene Wesley Roddenberry Sr. (August 19, 1921 – October 24, 1991) was an American television screenwriter and producer who created the science fiction series and fictional universe ''Star Trek.'' Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up ...

crashed on takeoff due to mechanical failure. Navy and USMC units based at Palikulo included: * VMD-154 operating PB4Ys * VMD-254 operating B-24s * VMO-250 operating J2Fs. Following the sinking of the USS Wasp (CV-7) on 15 September 1942, VF-71 operating F4Fs was temporarily based at Palikulo. On the nights of 15 and 23 October 1942 Palikulo was shelled by a Japanese submarine however no serious damage resulted.

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF; ) is the aerial warfare, aerial military service, service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed initially in 1923 as a branch of the New Zealand Army, being known as the New Zealand Perm ...

(RNZAF) units based at Palikulo included: * No. 1 (Islands) Group Headquarters from 1 March 1943-January 1944 * No. 3 Squadron operating

Lockheed Hudson The Lockheed Hudson is a light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built by the American Lockheed Aircraft Corporation. It was initially put into service by the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and ...

s from 9 October-6 December 1942 and later operating

Lockheed Ventura The Lockheed Ventura is a twin-engine medium bomber and patrol bomber of World War II. The Ventura first entered combat in Europe as a bomber with the RAF in late 1942. Designated PV-1 by the United States Navy (US Navy), it entered combat in ...

s in July 1944 * No. 9 Squadron operating Lockheed Hudsons from March 1943 * No. 14 Squadron operating P-40s from April–June 1943 * No.25 Squadron operating SBDs from 30 January to 22 March 1944 The RNZAF operated a base depot at Palikulo that assembled aircraft that arrived aboard US ships and were then assigned to RNZAF Squadrons. SBD-4 RNZAF Espiritu Santo 1943

Postwar

NOB Espiritu Santo disestablished on 12 June 1946. Part of the airfield forms part of the main road along Palikulo Bay, while the remainder together with all taxiways and base facilities is largely overgrown with vegetation.

References

{{authority control World War II airfields in the Pacific Ocean Theater Airports in Vanuatu Espiritu Santo Airfields of the United States Navy Military installations closed in the 1940s 1942 establishments in the New Hebrides 1945 disestablishments in Oceania Closed installations of the United States Navy

History

World War II

Postwar

See also

References