World war II chronology - August 1942

1 August 1942	In the United States, the Bureau of Ordnance acknowledges that its Mark XIV torpedoes run lower than their programmed depth, confirming what operational skippers knew all year.
2 August 1942	In retaliation for the public protest of Dutch bishops against the deportation of Jews, the German Gestapo orders the arrest of former-Jewish Catholics, to be taken to Auschwitz.
4 August 1942	British Prime Minister Winston Churchill flies to Cairo, Egypt, removing General Claude Auchinleck as commander of the Middle East forces with General Sir Harold Alexander, and brings in General Sir Bernard Montgomery to run the 8th Army.
6 August 1942	On convoy SC-94 to Britain in the Atlantic ocean, Royal Canadian Navy destroyer Assiniboine rams and sinks German submarine U-210. "Moonshine" technology is first used operationally by British Bomber Command against German early-warning radar.
7 August 1942	American Marines begin landing on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands.
10 August 1942	The Operation Pedestal convoy begins at Gibraltar, as thirteen merchant ships and one oil tanker set sail for Malta, with 59 escort warships.
11 August 1942	In England, the Pathfinder Force is officially created. It is designed to be used as lead bomber squadrons specialized in finding targets and marking their locations for following bombers. In the Mediterranean, a German submarine sinks escort carrier Eagle, which sinks in eight minutes with a crew of 200. Italian planes from Sardinia attack convoy Pedestal, but hit no ships.
12 August 1942	Italian planes from Sardinia make a second attack on convoy Pedestal. Italian planes from Sardinia make a third attack on convoy Pedestal. Merchant ship Deucalion is hit, and later sinks.  Italian planes from Sicily attack convoy Pedestal. Merchant ship Foresight is sunk, and carrier Indomitable is damaged. The carrier force withdraws as planned. Italian and German submarines attack convoy Pedestal. Three merchant ships are sunk: Cairo, Clan Ferguson, and Empire Hope. Four ships are damaged: Nigeria, Brisbane Star, Kenya, Ohio. E-boats from Pantelleria attack convoy Pedestal. They sink four merchant ships: Santa Elisa, Wairangi, Almeria Lykes, and Glenarchy. The Manchester is damaged, and later sinks.
13 August 1942	Italian planes from Sicily attack convoy Pedestal. They sink merchant ship Waimarama and damage tanker Ohio. Italian planes from Sicily attack convoy Pedestal. They sink merchant ship Dorset and one other ship. Merchant ships of Mediterranean convoy Pedestal begin reaching Valletta harbor at Malta, over three days. Only five ships out of fourteen survived.
15 August 1942	The United States 101st Airborne Division is officially activated, at Camp Claiborne, Louisiana. Quote by Adolf Hitler: "... St. Petersburg must therefore disappear utterly from the earth's surface. Moscow too." Swedish destroyers escort German troop ships disguised as merchant ships through Swedish territorial waters. Winston Churchill visits Josef Stalin in Moscow, telling him there will be no cross-Channel invasion of Europe in 1942, but there will be an invasion of North Africa soon. Stalin is not happy, but accepts the position, so long as the European invasion takes place in 1943. Royal Canadian Navy corvette Oakville rams and sinks German submarine U-94 in the Atlantic ocean.
17 August 1942	In the Mediterranean Sea, north-west of Egypt, German submarine U-83 torpedoes and sinks passenger liner Princess Marguerite. Most of the 1,000 on board are rescued by the Royal Navy destroyer Hero. The US 8th Air Force makes its first bombing raid over Europe, with 18 B-17 bombers attacking Rouen, France. All planes return safely. 31 British Pathfinder Force bombers make their first operational flight. They lead over 100 bombers to attack the submarine construction center at Flensburg, south of the Danish border. No bombs hit the target, as they all strike several miles north.
18 August 1942	General Bernard Montgomery takes command of the British 8th Army in Egypt. Britain's Security Intelligence Service radios Berlin, Germany, telling of a commando raid on Dieppe for dawn on the 19th. The message is sent via a captured German radio, and the raid is scheduled for the 18th. (Unfortunately, the raid was postponed for one day because Louis Mountbatten did not show at the appointed time.) Adolf Hitler issues Directive 45, dealing with elimination of partisans in Russia. The Dieppe raid force of 4963 in LCTanks departs from England across the English Channel.
19 August 1942	A convoy of British 3 Commando in Operation Jubilee crossing the English Channel encounters a German convoy along the French coast. The out-gunned Germans are driven off, but the surprise operation is now compromised. Some British ships are sunk, reducing the landing force east of Dieppe. The sea fight alerts coastal defences at Berneval and Puys, France. The Allies launch a major raid on the French port of Dieppe. 5000 of the 6000 troops are part of the Canadian 2nd Division. Original code name of the operation is Rutter, but was changed to a different plan code-named Jubilee. Primary objectives are to see if it is possible to seize and hold a major continental port, obtain intelligence from prisoners, documents, and equipment, and to see the German reaction to major attack on the French coast. Secondary objectives are to draw the Luftwaffe into battle, show the USSR that Britain is seriously trying to help distract the Germans, and to give Canadian forces in Britain something to do. British 4 Commando lands at Vesterival, France, with objective to destroy the guns in the Hess battery near Varengeville. The Royal Regiment of Canada lands on the beach at Puys, France, near Dieppe, to fully-alerted German soldiers' machine-gun fire. (Of the 522 landing, 225 are killed, 264 are taken prisoner, and only 33 return to England as wounded.)  British 3 Commando climbs the cliff at Belleville, left flank of the Dieppe assault, and soon knock out the Goebbels artillery battery inland at Berneval. South Saskatchewan Regiment and Cameron Highlanders of Canada land at Pourville, France. One group meets heavy resistance as it crosses the River Scie, and is stopped short of Dieppe. The main force of Camerons advance about two miles toward an airfield before they are stopped. The 27 of 29 Churchill tanks of the 14th Canadian Tank (Calgary) Regiment land on the main beach at Dieppe. Twelve are stopped by enemy gunfire, shingle banks, and the sea wall. The fifteen that get past the sea wall are blocked by concrete obstacles in the narrow streets. The Essex Scottish Regiment lands on the eastern section of the beach at Dieppe. Despite intense enemy machine-gun fire, one small group makes its way into town, and signals the headquarters ship. The Canadian Royal Hamilton Light Infantry lands at the west section of the beach at Dieppe. They clear a large strongly-held casino and several pillboxes. Some men make it into town, and engage in intense fighting. British 4 Commando destroys the guns in the Hess battery near Varengeville. Canadian 2nd Division commander General Roberts orders reserves of Fusiliers Mont-Royal and British 40 Commando Royal Marines to land in center beaches at Dieppe. The Royal Regiment of Canada, just east of Dieppe, makes a second attack to break out of their beach position, making a small penetration into the town. Three platoons of reinforcements from the BlackWatch (Royal Highland Regiment) of Canada join the Royal Regiment of Canada on the beach at Puys, but are also pinned on the beach, and later forced to surrender. Canadian 2nd Division commander General Roberts orders British 40 Commando Royal Marines land on the western edge of Dieppe. The Royal Regiment of Canada surrenders, after losing about 500 Canadians killed or captured. Allied commanders order a general withdrawal from Dieppe. As the British 40 Commando Royal Marine troops approach the Dieppe beach, Lieutenant-Colonel Joseph Phillips signals for following boats to turn back. He is shot down. British Major General J.H. Roberts orders the immediate evacuation of troops from Dieppe. German submarine U564 sinks merchant ships Empire Cloud and British Consul in convoy TAW(S). The last Allied troops are evacuated from Dieppe. At the end of the attack, 4384 Allied officer and soldiers are dead, wounded, or taken prisoner, of which 3379 are Canadian. 108 British aircraft were shot down; 46 German aircraft were lost. The British navy lost one destroyer and 13 major landing craft. (The 60% casualty rate is the heaviest of any Allied attack of the war. Lessons learned and results of the raid: landing soldiers must be trained with live ammunition overhead so they do not lie down when shot at; capture of a port may not be possible, so the design and development of the Mulberry artificial harbor is accelerated; Germans now expect an attack on a major port for the allied invasion, so they distribute their forces accordingly; every army commander needs to have his own headquarters ship; the constituents of landing beaches must be known for tank movement; a proper pre-landing bombardment policy is required.) During the day, the fighter plane battle over Dieppe involved 730 Allied aircraft, flying 2955 sorties. (This is the largest single-day fighter battle of the war.) US 8th Air Force B-17 bombers attack the German Luftwaffe fighter base at Abbeville.
21 August 1942	The German flag is planted on the highest mountain of the Caucasus.
22 August 1942	Brazil declares war on Germany.
23 August 1942	The German 6th Army crosses the Don River near Kalach. German forces make an air raid on Stalingrad.
24 August 1942	16th Panzer Division of the German 6th Army reaches the Volga river near Rynok, ten miles north of Stalingrad. Canadian escorted convoy SC-107 in the Atlantic is attacked by 16 submarines, losing 15 of 42 merchant ships.
27 August 1942	Soviet long-range bombers make an air raid on Berlin, from bases 1000 miles away. Josef Stalin appoints General Georgy Zhukov as deputy supreme commander of the Red Army, sending him to direct the defense of Stalingrad. A British Pathfinder bombing force leads about 300 bombers against Frankfurt, Germany. Severe damage to the targets is done. 31 planes are shot down. Nine British Lancaster bombers attack the new German aircraft carrier Graf Zeppelin at Gdynia. The ship is not hit, but no planes are shot down.
28 August 1942	In the Caribbean Sea, Royal Canadian Navy corvette Oakville sinks German submarine U-94. A British Pathfinder bombing force leads about 192 bombers in an attack on Nuremberg, Germany. The town is heavily damaged. 25 planes are shot down.
30 August 1942	German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel launches another offensive against El Alamein, but has to withdraw. German submarine U564 sinks Norwegian merchant ship Vardaas.
31 August 1942	American carrier Saratoga is torpedoed, putting it out of action for three months.