In 1945, my
dad was sent out to the Admiralty Islands as part of the back-up team
with the British Pacific Fleet. As a member of MONAB IV (see previous
post http://tinned-variety.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/monab-1-10.html
) he was stationed on the island of Ponam, near Manus, in what is
now part of Papua New Guinea.
When I was
researching for my annotations to I Think I Prefer the TinnedVariety: The Diary of a Petty Officer in the Fleet Air Arm duringWorld War II I found out that Ponam Island had been prepared
for service in the Pacific War by the American Construction
Battalions – CBs – who came to be known as The SeaBees.
 |
| Ponam Island from the air |
From the air
Ponam Island looked rather like an aircraft carrier and the American
SeaBees had built an airfield on it using crushed coral for the
runway. The island was handed over to the Royal Navy fully equipped.
As well as the airstrip there were aircraft repair shops and storage
for aircraft parts; petrol and oil storage tanks; a control tower;
jeeps and trucks; huts for accommodation and an officers' mess;
dining halls; a hospital; a water de-salination plant and kitchens.
(The kitchens even included an ice-cream maker). The U.S. Navy also
left behind a forty strong team of SeaBees personnel to maintain the
island and its facilities.
Everything
the Americans had constructed at Ponam Island was handed over to the
British for their use when Admiral Fraser lead the British Pacific
Fleet to join the American, Australian and New Zealand fleets in
their struggle against Japan.
Recently I
found a fascinating web-page with some photographs of the SeaBees at
work preparing Ponam Island for its part in the war.
The Building of the US Navy Airstrip on Ponam Island
August - December 1944
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