Seventy five years ago, on April 5 , 1942, the Japanese bombarded Colombo, and on April 9 raided Trincomalee. According to Winston Churchill, war-time Prime Minister of Britain, the Japanese air raid over Ceylon was the most dangerous moment of the Second World War that caused him most alarm. When compared to Dunkirk evacuation, Battle of Britain, Pearl Harbour Bombing and several other critical episodes, this may be an exaggerated opinion. Yet, the significance of the event cannot be underestimated. If raids had been successful, there would have been full-scale Japanese dominance of the Indian Ocean, which was averted by their failure.
In the Battle of Britain, highly advanced chain of radars gave plenty of warning of approaching German attackers, but such advance radar systems had not been installed in the colonies. Even the basic radars at Ratmalana were unmanned when the Japanese launched their air raid over Colombo on Easter Sunday, April 5 , 1942. But, the previous evening, one long range Catalina Flight operating from Koggala for the surveillance of the Indian Ocean had observed a Japanese aircraft carrier fleet about 640 kilometres south of Ceylon. Its radio operator had transmitted the information to Colombo, before it was shot down by six Japanese Zero fighters launched from the carrier Hiryu.
The crew led by Sqr. leader Leonard Birchal jumped into the sea and were taken captive by the Japanese. They were prisoners of war in Japan until the end of the war.
The following morning, Japanese air armada which included 36 dive-bombers, 53 Kate attack bombers and 36 Zero fighters commanded by Mitsuo Fuchida of Pearl Harbour fame flew towards Colombo. They had passed Galle around 7.15a.m. Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, the Commander of the Japanese carriers had reserved another 180 aircraft to be engaged if and when necessary. The Ratmalana airport was attacked around 7.30a.m. and it became a sad victim. However, the fleet of Hurricanes based at Colombo Reid Avenue Racecourse aerodrome which received early warning, had managed to get airborne without any loss. The main target of the Japanese was the Colombo Port which they thought harboured the Royal Navy’s East Indies and Eastern fleets. But, by this time they had been removed for safety to Addu Atoll in the Maldives, 960 kilometres south-west of Sri Lanka.
Air raid
The air raid lasted until about 8.a.m, and several hours after it was over, around 2.pm two royal navy cruisers, Dorsetshire and Cornwall, were detected by the Japanese in the high seas. They bombarded them and both sank within 15 minutes. Besides, one aircraft carrier and several merchant vessels were destroyed by Fuchida’s Air Force.
By the end of the day, 23 planes of the Royal Air Force had been lost in the battle over Colombo, 17 airmen had been killed with 17 others injured. The number of civilians killed was 85, of which seven were inmates of the Angoda Mental Hospital, as a Japanese bomb intended for the Kolonnawa oil installation fell on its premises. Besides, 77 civilians had got injured. The figure of destroyed Japanese planes claimed by the British was 27 but the number given by the Japanese is five. Only three of them fell on Sri Lankan soil, one at Horana, another at the playground of S.Thomas College, Mount Lavinia and the third at Pitakotte.
After the attack on Colombo, Vice Admiral Nagumo presumed that the Royal Navy’s East Indies and Eastern fleets had been berthed in Trincomalee. But, as stated earlier, they had been removed to Addu Atoll in the Maldives.
Fuchida, the Commander of the Japanese Air Armada led an assault force of 91 bombers and 38 Zero fighters on the morning of 9 April to locate the Royal Navy’s fleets either in Trincomalee harbour or on the adjacent open seas. However, as their arrival was expected, the Royal Air Force was ready with Hurricanes and Fulmars.
The anti-aircraft batteries of the Ceylon Garrison Artillery were also alerted. The air battle was fought over the China Bay, Tambalagam Bay and near the Trincomalee harbour. The Japanese Zero fighters and Kates bombarded the China Bay aerodrome killing hundreds of airmen. One of the fuel tanks which contained aviation fuel exploded in the attack and was burning for nine days. The Japanese also destroyed an old aircraft carrier Hermes which had been brought to Trincomalee for repairs.
With the Hermes was destroyer, Vampire. In order to get clear of trouble they had sailed southwards in the high seas, but, both were spotted by the Japanese to the east of Batticaloa and they were sunk by their bombers. Two oil tankers and three old merchant vessels also perished in the open seas near Kalmunai. The crew of Hermes and Vampire which consisted of British, Indian and Norwegian sailors jumped overboard with life jackets. The survivors who were injured were saved by the fishermen whose vessels were commandeered by the Civil Defence Commissioner. They were brought to Kalmunai early in the evening.
Five Bombers and twelve fighters were lost by the Japanese in the Trincomalee air raid. The Royal Air Force lost five of its Hurricanes and eleven pilots. From about early 1970s, many divers, such as, Rodney Jonklaas had seen the destroyed Hermes at the bottom of the sea off Kalmunai. According to some of them, it is presumed that the large ship which could be observed a small distance away is the Vampire. The wreckage of a Japanese Zero fighter also had been observed nearby.
While the fight between the Japanese Imperial Flyers and the Royal Air Force pilots was going on, Admiral Geoffrey Layton, Supreme Commander of Ceylon, sent a fleet of Blenhiem planes to spot the Japanese carriers in the high seas. Blenhiem located them 208 kilometres east of Ceylon, but were met by a strong barrage of anti-aircraft fire and most of them were destroyed. One of the Blenhiems crashed into Admiral Nagumo’s flagship causing heavy explosions. The sailors jumped overboard to save their lives. The price the RAF had to pay was very high with only four of the Blenhiems returning to their base.
Even after the Japanese withdrawal, the defence of Ceylon was not neglected as the threat never subsided. The British Eastern Fleet returned to Ceylon on 4 September 1943 and South East Asia command headquarters was reestablished in Ceylon. Aerial reconnaissance with long-range Catalina flights to monitor the movements of Japanese battleships, aircraft carriers, submarines as well as airplanes, continued. But, Emperor Hirohito had realized that Japan had bitten more than it could chew. Therefore, there was no further westward incursion or return to Ceylon. Stout defence put up by Ceylon greatly contributed to this situation. Finally, the horror of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945 led to the collapse of Japan. Later on, the victors, as well as the vanquished realized the futility of war and established the United Nations to preserve peace and remove the causes of conflict. But, unfortunately, the major powers have joined the arms race threatening world peace envisaged by the UN. The writer is Emeritus Prof of History, University of Peradeniya, and conducts Postgraduate courses on Military History at the Kotelawala Defence University.