Battle of Vella Lavella (land)

Battle of Vella Lavella
Part of the Pacific Theater of World War II
US troops on Vella Lavella, mid-September 1943
Date 15 August – 6 October 1943 Location Vella Lavella in the Solomon Islands 7°44′S 156°38′E / 7.733°S 156.633°E / -7.733; 156.633 Result Allied victory
Belligerents
United States  New Zealand	Japan
Commanders and leaders
Theodore S. Wilkinson Oscar Griswold Harold Barrowclough	Noboru Sasaki
Strength
9,588	700 – 1,000
Casualties and losses
150 killed	Less than 150 to 200–300 killed

The Battle of Vella Lavella was fought from 15 August – 6 October 1943 between Japan and the Allied forces from New Zealand and the United States. Vella Lavella, an island located in the Solomon Islands, had been occupied by Japanese forces early during the war in the Pacific. Following the fighting around Munda Point, the Allies recaptured the island in late 1943, following a decision to bypass a large concentration of Japanese troops of Kolombangara.

After a landing at Barakoma on 15 August, US troops advanced along the coasts, pushing the Japanese north. In September, New Zealand troops took over from the Americans and they continued to advance across the island, hemming the small Japanese garrison along the north coast. On 6 October, the Japanese began an evacuation operation to withdraw the remaining troops, during which the Naval Battle of Vella Lavella was fought. Following the capture of the island, the Allies developed it into an important airbase which was used in the reduction of main Japanese base at Rabaul.

The fighting on Vella Lavella took place following the Battle of Munda Point, which was fought in the aftermath of the Japanese evacuation from Guadalcanal as the Allies began advancing to main Japanese at Rabaul under the Operation Cartwheel plan. After the loss of the airfield at Munda Field to US forces, the Japanese had withdrawn to Kolombangara, where they established a 10,000 to 12,000-strong garrison under Major General Noboru Sasaki. Initial US plans following Munda Point had envisaged an assault on Kolombangara, but the US commander, Admiral William Halsey, decided to bypass Kolombangara and land forces around Barakoma on Vella Lavella instead where they were to capture the Japanese airfield and develop a naval base.

Situated 35 nautical miles (65 km; 40 mi) northwest of Munda, Vella Lavella was the most northern island in the New Georgia chain, and offered a stepping stone for future operations against Japanese forces on the Shortland Islands and on Bougainville. It also offered better prospects for base development than at Kolombangara. At the same time, it was close enough to US airbases at Munda and Sergei Point to afford the required air support that would be necessary to defend against Japanese air attack.

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