THE RECONNAISSANCE AND OCCUPATION OF AKYAB ISLAND, BURMA, AND THE ROLE OF RAF SERVICING COMMANDOS [Allocated Title]
- Title: THE RECONNAISSANCE AND OCCUPATION OF AKYAB ISLAND, BURMA, AND THE ROLE OF RAF SERVICING COMMANDOS [Allocated Title]
- Film Number: ABY 54
- Other titles: ROYAL AIR FORCE OPERATIONS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR [Allocated Series Title]
- Summary: Scenes of reconnaissance, troops landing, and the work of RAF Servicing Commandos during the reoccupation of Akyab Island, Burma.
- Description: Reel 1:Air Marshal Coryton, Air Commodore the Earl of Bandon and Group Captain David seen talking on beach airstrip on the Mayu Peninsula. RAF Stinson L-5 Sentinel light aircraft takes off. RAF Regiment shown preparing for invasion by disinfecting and dying their clothing before laying it out to dry. RAF Regiment airmen load a lorry with boxes of ammunition. An RAF officer smoking a pipe watches the loading. Airborne footage showing reconnaissance of Akyab. No activity seen below. Many buildings appear damaged, some totally destroyed. A crowd of local Burmese seen from the air. Low pass shows locals waving white flags. Airfield runway sabotaged by Japanese with craters at regular intervals. Air-to-air footage of RAF Sentinel in flight. Another low pass over the field, the aircraft's shadow shrinking as the pilot climbs away. Low over the runway. A crowd of local people throng the aircraft cheering and waving. A lorry reverses onto a landing craft. British servicemen look on. Panning shot with various types of landing craft. Ramp raising. Another lorry reverses onto a landing craft. View over the wing of a parked RAF Sentinel of another coming in to land on beach airstrip. The pilot, Group Captain Dennis David climbs out of the aircraft (RAF Sentinel KJ409) and speaks to another officer. Akyab headman climbs out of another aircraft and is driven away in a jeep. Airborne footage of invasion fleet, with various types of landing craft and some larger vessels. Some of this airborne footage from low altitude. Aerial view of port facilities and jetties with two partially-submerged blockships. Men and vehicles coming ashore on Akyab. Jungle hillside. Pan down from white flag at airfield. British servicemen with crowd waving British and American flags. Several crowd shots showing local men and boys. Reel 2: Group of officers directing operations from a beach, including Air Marshal Coryton, Air Commodore Bandon and Lieutenant-General Philip Christison (General Officer Commanding XV Indian Corps). The former judge of Akyab, Royal New Zealand Air Force Wing Commander Bradley addresses an enthusiastic Burmese crowd with garlands of flowers around his neck. A landing craft passes. Petrol poured into a jerry can. Vehicles parked. An officer, possibly Wing Commander Drake, addresses a group of men. A DUKW amphibious truck drives past. A jeep reverses onto a landing craft. Two men talking over a cigarette. Men drinking tea. Bomb disposal team examine a Japanese 50kg aircraft bomb before removing its fuse and primer and loading it with other similar bombs onto the back of a lorry. Likewise with a large number of mortar bombs. A ruined building with a variety of aircraft parts scattered about including engine cowlings, wing spars, propellors hubs, bosses and blades etc. Footage from jetty looking towards partially submerged blockship. Sign saying 'Akyab Port'. Pile of bent propellor blades. Lorry unloading. A derelict Japanese aircraft, possibly a Kawasaki Ki-61, is examined by RAF airmen. RAF ensign fixed to flagstaff. Wing Commander Drake watches the flag being raised. Spitfires of RAF 67 Squadron coming in to land with airmen waving in the foreground. Aircraft include RD:A and RD:C. Squadron Leader Day arrives in Spitfire JC567 'Q3' named 'Mary-Ann'. A petrol drum is rolled past camera and crowbarred open. A hose is inserted into the drum and a Spitfire refuelled. A Spitfire's machine gun magazine is reloaded and the gunports covered with red canvas to indicate this. Airmen talking. Troops board a landing craft. Vehicle patrol. Close-ups on holes in runway. Fuselage section from wrecked Japanese aircraft, probably a Mitsubishi G4M 'Betty' medium bomber. Pan across wrecked engines. Shot inside the wreck's fuselage. Sabotaged drain. Men of an RAF Air Servicing Commando on patrol. Interior shot of hangar. Close-up on Air Servicing Commando badge on hat. Spitfires landing and taxiing. Aircraft RD:B, RD:G, RD:C seen. Close-up on RD:G. Close-up on sign left by departing Japanese reads: 'We Japanese Army will get back near day, When you shall die all the soldiers' [sic]. Anti-aircraft bursts in the sky. Aircraft overhead. Officers talking.
- Alternative Title: ROYAL AIR FORCE OPERATIONS IN SOUTH EAST ASIA DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR [Allocated Series Title]
- Colour: B&W
- Digitised:
- Object_Number: ABY 54
- Sound: Silent
- Access Conditions: IWM Attribution: © IWM
- Featured Period: 1939-1945
- Production Date: 1945-01-02
- Production Country: GB
- Production Details: Air Ministry, Directorate of Public Relations (Production sponsor) Royal Air Force Film Production Unit (Production company) Towler, D (Flying Officer) (Production individual) Lang, T W (Production individual) Clot, Dennis Francis Emile1919-07-04 (Production individual)
- Personalities, Units and Organisations: Coryton, Alec (person) Bernard, Percy (person) David, William Dennis (person) Christison, Philip (person) Royal Air Force, Royal Air Force Regiment (regiment/service) Royal Air Force, 67 Squadron (regiment/service)
- Keywords: Akyab, Burma (geography) Fighter operations, Air operations over Burma, Burma 1942-1945, Second World War (event) Third Arakan Campaign 1944-1945, Burma 1942-1945, Second World War (event) Royal Air Force 1939-1945 (theme) Far East 1939-1945 (theme) Burma 1942-1945 (theme) Combined Operations and Landing Craft 1940-1945 (theme) Amphibious Warfare (theme)
- Physical Characteristics: Colour format: B&W Sound format: Silent
- Technical Details: Format: 35mm Number of items/reels/tapes: 2 Footage: 2157 ft; Running time: 24 minutes
- HD Media:
- Link to IWM Collections page:
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Related IWM Collections Objects:
ABY 148 (AMPHIBIOUS AIRCRAFT OF THE RAF AIR SEA RESCUE SERVICE IN BURMA [Allocated Title]) CI 885 (THE WAR IN THE FAR EAST: THE BURMA CAMPAIGN 1941-1945) CI 1323 (ROYAL AIR FORCE OPERATIONS IN THE FAR EAST, 1941-1945.) SE 2297 (THE BRITISH ARMY IN BURMA 1945) Documents.13719 (Private Papers of Wing Commander J B G Bradley CBE) Documents.4370 (System.Xml.XmlElement) JFU 2 (LANDING SUPPLIES AT AKYAB [Allocated Title]) JFU 33 (LANDING ON AKYAB [Allocated Title]) FUB 44 (PREPARATION AND MOUNTING OF AMPHIBIOUS LANDINGS AT AKYAB [Allocated Title]) FUB 45 (BOMB DAMAGE IN THE ARAKAN [Allocated Title]) FUB 46 (COMMANDOS LAND ON AKYAB [Allocated Title]) FUB 47 (BOMB DAMAGE AND LANDINGS ON AKYAB ISLAND [Allocated Title]) FUB 49 (COMMANDOS MARCHING INLAND ON AKYAB [Allocated Title]) Documents.17155 (System.Xml.XmlElement) 11381 ()