bombing of Darwin

The Bombing of Darwin, also known as the Battle of Darwin, on 19 February 1942 was both the first and the largest single attack ever mounted by a foreign power on Australia. On that day, 242 Japanese aircraft attacked ships in Darwin's harbour and the town's two airfields in an attempt to prevent the Allies from using them as bases to contest the invasions of Timor and Java. The town was only lightly defended and the Japanese inflicted heavy losses upon the Allied forces at little cost to themselves. The urban areas of Darwin also suffered some damage from the raids and there were a number of civilian casualties.