SprueStack Zero Hour: WW2 day by day

9 October 1942

What happened on this day in the Second World War, from 1939 to 1945, with a source for every entry.

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Each day we list events from the Second World War that happened on that date, from 1939 to 1945. Every entry names its source and links to it, so you can read further. Entries are sourced and machine-screened before they go up, a subset is human-reviewed, and we add more over time.

6 sourced entries for this date.

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Entries

France

In heaviest daylight raid to date, about 100 U.S. heavy bombers with strong RAF and U.S. fighter support attack industrial targets at Lille. Many enemy planes are encountered and more than 100 are damaged or destroyed.

Source US Army CMH chronology (opens external site)
Guadalcanal

Rear echelon of 2d Marines, 2d Mar Div, arrives. 164th Inf of Americal Div sails to Guadalcanal from Nouméa, New Caledonia.

Source US Army CMH chronology (opens external site)
American forces defeated the Japanese at the Third Battle of the Matanikau in Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, reversing the Japanese victory a couple of weeks earlier.

Source Wikipedia (opens external site)
Madagascar Theater

THOR mission records show at least 0 Allied sorties (1 recorded unit missions) in the Madagascar Theater on 1942-10-09, flown by RAF. Targets included MADAGASCAR.

Source US Air Force THOR (opens external site)

THOR is a secondary compilation with known gaps, not a complete record.
Mediterranean Theater

THOR mission records show at least 30 Allied sorties (3 recorded unit missions) in the Mediterranean Theater on 1942-10-09, flown by USAAF 9th Air Force. Targets included LIBYA, EGYPT, with named targets incl. BENGHAZI, LG 21 / LG 104.

Source US Air Force THOR (opens external site)

THOR is a secondary compilation with known gaps, not a complete record.
Pacific Theater

THOR mission records show at least 89 Allied sorties (7 recorded unit missions) in the Pacific Theater on 1942-10-09, flown by RAAF, USAAF 5th Air Force. Targets included BISMARK ARCHIPELAGO, NEW GUINEA.

Source US Air Force THOR (opens external site)

THOR is a secondary compilation with known gaps, not a complete record.

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9 October in other years 1939 1940 1941 1943 1944

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9 October 1942

Entries

In heaviest daylight raid to date, about 100 U.S. heavy bombers with strong RAF and U.S. fighter support attack industrial targets at Lille. Many enemy planes are encountered and more than 100 are damaged or destroyed.

Rear echelon of 2d Marines, 2d Mar Div, arrives. 164th Inf of Americal Div sails to Guadalcanal from Nouméa, New Caledonia.

American forces defeated the Japanese at the Third Battle of the Matanikau in Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, reversing the Japanese victory a couple of weeks earlier.

THOR mission records show at least 0 Allied sorties (1 recorded unit missions) in the Madagascar Theater on 1942-10-09, flown by RAF. Targets included MADAGASCAR.

THOR mission records show at least 30 Allied sorties (3 recorded unit missions) in the Mediterranean Theater on 1942-10-09, flown by USAAF 9th Air Force. Targets included LIBYA, EGYPT, with named targets incl. BENGHAZI, LG 21 / LG 104.

THOR mission records show at least 89 Allied sorties (7 recorded unit missions) in the Pacific Theater on 1942-10-09, flown by RAAF, USAAF 5th Air Force. Targets included BISMARK ARCHIPELAGO, NEW GUINEA.

Talk about it