Combat Team A 17th Division The Battle of Talasea (6–9 March 1944) was fought in the Pacific theater of World War II between Japanese and Allied forces.

Japanese forces captured the island of New Britain in February 1942 after overwhelming the small Australian garrison stationed around Rabaul.

[1] The Japanese subsequently built up a large garrison on the island, which became a lynchpin in the defensive barrier that they established following the failure of attempts to capture Port Moresby in late 1942.

[2] The 1st Marine Division's operations to secure Cape Gloucester would continue until April under the command of Major General William H. Rupertus.

[12] In the days prior to the assault, Royal Australian Air Force Bristol Beaufort aircraft flew numerous sorties from their base on Kiriwina softening up the defenses around the landing beach.

[13] On 3 March, the landing was preceded by a small reconnaissance patrol, consisting of an Australian officer – Marshland – an American and two indigenous scouts, which was put ashore by PT boat.

After determining contacting friendly local inhabitants and ascertaining the strength and dispositions of the Japanese in the vicinity, the patrol had departed the peninsula and returned to Iboki around midnight on 3 March by PT boat.

The following couple of days were used for battle preparation, after which the US force set off for the overnight journey on, embarking from the 5th Marines' base at the Iboki Plantation at 13:00 on 5 March 1944 upon a fleet of 60 assorted types of landing craft escorted by five PT boats.

According to U.S. Marine Corps historians, Hough and Shaw, citing Lieutenant Colonel Isamu Murayama's Southeast Area Operations Record, this impromptu air support was later described by the defenders as heavy.

Of the four Sherman medium tanks that had come ashore, one became stuck on the beach, while the other three moved forward to support Company 'E' as it advanced along the track leading towards the plantation.

Throughout the day heavy fighting followed as the Americans advanced towards the opposite coast, sending patrols out towards the hills to the south in order to secure their flank.

As they approached Mount Schleuther elements of the Japanese 54th Infantry Regiment, moving west along the high ground in an effort to cut the Marines off, began to pour heavy fire down on the Americans.

As a result, the plan for the envelopment of the village of Liapo, southwest of Little Mount Worri, and Waru, west of the emergency landing strip at Talasea, had to be modified.

[23][24] Heavy artillery and mortar fire was exchanged by both sides throughout the night, but it slackened as the Japanese defenders slowly slipped away south towards Bola, having been given the order to withdraw from their divisional headquarters, leaving a small rearguard of 100 soldiers to delay the US troops throughout 9 March.

The Marines attacked Waru the following morning, but found the main Japanese positions abandoned, although they managed to capture two soldiers who had been too slow to get away.

[25] Supply craft were then redirected to Talasea, while the Japanese rearguard withdrew to Garilli, 4 miles (6.4 km) south, where they established another defensive line, having successfully delayed the Marines long enough to prevent them from cutting Matsuda Force's withdrawal route.

[25] In the days following the landing, the Americans continued patrolling actions to follow up the withdrawing Japanese and secure Talasea, pushing north around the bay towards Pangalu, across the neck of the peninsula to Liapo and Volupai and on to Wogankai, southwest to Garu opposite Cape Bastian, and southwards along the coast towards Stettin Bay.

The commander of the 5th Marines, Smith, also recommended that a forward naval base be established at Talasea for PT boats to operate from in order to interdict the barges that the Japanese were sending between Cape Hoskins and Rabaul.