May 29, 1944

THIS WAS REPORTED TODAY, MAY 29, 1944:

NAPLES. — (AP) —

American  t a n k s have  struck to t h e slopes of the Alban hills less than 16 miles from Rome's outskirts, and are attacking German mobile strongpoints. A front dispatch said today.

LONDON.—(AP) —

A thousand  heavy American bombers and  1,200 fighters spanned t h e length

of Germany today, bombing two  aircraft factories in Poland and four in central and eastern Ger many while other fleet's struck up from the south  at the Vienna and Wiener Neustadt areas,

Southwest Pacific,—(U.P.)—

Acting Prime Minister Frand M. Forde ofAustralia suggested today that Gen. Douglas MacArthur's forces may invade the Philippines before "many more months" go by.

Allies Driving

At 4 Citadels

In German Line

NAPLES. — (AP) —

American  t a n k s have  struck to t h e slopes of the Alban hills less than 16 miles from Rome's outskirts, and are attacking German mobile strongpoints. A front dispatch said today.

By SID FEDER

NAPLES. —(AP) —

Fifth army troops stormed toward four Rome-line strongholds against fierce resistance today, thrusting one wedge within 17 miles of t he Eternal City.

Headquarters declared three of 18 German divisions engaged in b a t t l e had been v i r t u a l l y destroyed in t h e b r o a d offensive launched May 11. w i t h more than 15,000 prisoners taken.

8,000 Planes Blast Axis Europe

By GLADWIN HILL

LONDON.—(AP) —

A thousand  heavy American bombers and  1,200 fighters spanned t h e length

of Germany today, bombing two  aircraft factories in Poland and four in central and eastern Ger many while other fleet's struck up from the south  at the Vienna and Wiener Neustadt areas,

As t h e stunning day of bombardment drew to dusk, it appeared t h a t the Allies might have sent out another fleet as large as t h e record number of 8,000 war planes which flew Sunday from British a n d  I t a l i a n  bases.

The predominantly American fleets of warplanes scourged t he face of Europe, bombed the invasion coasts of France and Belgium, strafed the front lines in

I t a l y and reached deep inside Germany, Poland and Austria to terar-up hideway plants of  t h e German aircraft industry.

Poznan and Kreising. Those in Kreising is five miles southeast The sky-darkening fleet equaled that of yesterday, which was t h e largest ever dispatched by t h e

U. S. a i r forces.

The Polish factories were at Poznan and Kreisling. Those in Germany were at Leipzig, Tutow, Cottbus and Sorau. The flight to Poznan entailed a round trip of at least 1,450 miles.

Strike French Coast

Simultaneously, hundreds of lesser American bombers struck heavily and repeatedly at the French invasion coast, bombing bridges, railroads and airdromes.

TWO              THE RACINE JOURNAL-TIMES, MONDAY AFTERNOON, MAY 29, 1944.

New Drive to Biak Island Takes

MacArthur Closer to Philippines

A L L I E D HEADQUARTERS,

Southwest Pacific,—(U.P.)—

Acting Prime Minister Frand M. Forde ofAustralia suggested today that Gen. Douglas MacArthur's forces may invade the Philippines before "many more months" go by.

His indirect prediction of an early assault came as American jungle troops closed in on Mokmer airfield, 900 miles southeast of the Philippines, after landing on Biak island Saturday in a 200-mile invasion jump from the north coast of New Guinea.

"I hope that it will not be many months before we will go back to the Philippines with a bang, then to Formosa and Japan, Forde said at a luncheon of the Australian Natives' association.

MacArthur himself, in announcing the landing on Biak island, said that it secured bases "for the advance to (the Japanese empire's) vital areas in the Philippines and the Netherlands East Indies."

Posh Towards Airdrome.

Tanks, planes, and naval guns were supporting infantrymen in their drive toward Mokmer airfield, one of three on the island. The fall of Bosnek. main village on the island, within the first few hours of the invasion secured thenew beach-head and doomed the airfields.

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