What happened on this day in the Second World War, from 1939 to 1945, with a source for every entry.
About this page
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.
5 of 7 sourced entries for this date, chosen by the editor.
THOR mission records show at least 16 Allied sorties (2 recorded unit missions) in the China-Burma-India Theater on 1943-04-18, flown by USAAF 10th Air Force. Targets included BURMA.
THOR is a secondary compilation with known gaps, not a complete record.
Mediterranean Theater
THOR mission records show at least 124 Allied sorties (23 recorded unit missions) in the Mediterranean Theater on 1943-04-18, flown by USAAF 9th Air Force, USAAF 12th Air Force. Targets included ITALY, SARDINIA.
THOR is a secondary compilation with known gaps, not a complete record.
Pacific Theater
THOR mission records show at least 2 Allied sorties (4 recorded unit missions) in the Pacific Theater on 1943-04-18, flown by USAAF 5th Air Force, USAAF 7th Air Force.
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, chief architect of Japanese naval strategy, is killed when his plane is shot down by American P38's over Bougainville. He was on an inspection tour.