US Marine Corps - The Black Vault

Planning jot’ Paring the ~apanese Toenails 497
The specific tasks were to seize, hold, and develop:
1.
2.
3.
Dog
a staging point for small craft in:
a. the Wickham Anchorage Area in the southeastern part of
Vangunu Island and 50 miles from Munda airstrip.
b. Viru Harbor on New Georgia Island 30 miles southeast of
Munda airstrip.
a fighter airstrip at Segi, New Georgia, 40 miles from the Munda
airstrip.
Rendova Island, whose northern harbor was just 10 short miles
south of Munda, as a supply base, advanced PT Base, and an
adequate support base to accommodate amphibians prior to their
embarkation for an assault on Munda and/or Vila.
Day was set for June 15th “or shortly thereafter.” This date was in
accordance with the good old Navy practice of getting everyone pressing
to be ready ahead of the real date when they bad to be ready.
Between the day when this order was issued and June 3rd when COM-
SOPAC issued his Operation Plan 14-43, there were several changes made
in the planning, but the most important, at Rear Admiral Turner’s working