Air raids on Semarang–Salatiga–Ambarawa

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Air raids on Semarang–Salatiga–Ambarawa
Part of the Indonesian National Revolution
Militairen rijden een verkenningsvliegtuig uit een hangar, Bestanddeelnr 2232.jpg
An Indonesian Air Force Yokosuka K5Y, similar to those used during the air raids
Date29 July 1947
Location
Semarang, Salatiga, and Ambarawa
Result
  • Inconclusive
Belligerents
Flag of Indonesia.svg Indonesia Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands
Commanders and leaders
Suryadi Suryadarma
Halim Perdanakusuma 		unknown
Units involved
Flag of the Indonesian Air Force.svg  Indonesian Air Force Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Royal Netherlands East Indies Army
Strength
2 K5Y1 "Willow"
1 Ki-51 "Sonia" 		unknown
Casualties and losses
No casualties 7 killed

The air raids on Semarang, Salatiga, and Ambarawa was an air strike launched by the Indonesian Air Force on early hours of 29 July 1947 against Dutch military targets located in the Central Javanese town of Ambarawa and cities of Semarang and Salatiga during the Indonesian National Revolution.

Contents

It was the first military operation conducted by the Indonesian Air Force. 29 July, the date of the air raids and the 1947 Yogyakarta Dakota incident, is commemorated in Indonesia as the "Air Force Service Day" (Hari Bakti Angkatan Udara). [1]

Background

On 21 July 1947, the Dutch forces launched Operation Product, a military offensive aimed to capture economically productive areas of the Indonesian Republican-held territories in the islands of Java and Sumatra, in violation of the Linggadjati Agreement previously signed in 1946. [2]

As part of the offensive, the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (ML-KNIL) launched Operation Pelikaan to attack Indonesian airfields and destroy aircraft belonging to the Indonesian Air Force, and so ensuring that no Indonesian aircraft would disrupt the offensive. 24 Indonesian aircraft were destroyed on 21–23 July period and ground facilities at several Indonesian airfields were disabled. [3]

Seeing the firsthand destructive results of Operation Pelikaan, several Indonesian Air Force cadets were determined to take revenge by proposing to launch air strikes against Dutch-held territory. The idea was initially rejected by the Air Force commander Air Commodore Suryadi Suryadarma and one of his deputy then Group Captain Halim Perdanakusuma, although they later reluctantly approved the proposal. [4]

Mission

Halim assigned the H-Hour of the raid at 05:00 in the morning of 29 July 1947, with Semarang and Salatiga as the targets. Four surviving aircraft at Maguwo airfield in the outskirts of Yogyakarta were allocated for this mission, which were two Yokosuka K5Y1 "Willow", one Mitsubishi Ki-51 "Sonia", and one Nakajima Ki-43 "Oscar". The two K5Y1s, to be flown by Flight Cadets Sutarjo Sigit and Suharnoko Harbani with Sutarjo and Kaput respectively as rear gunners, were assigned to target Salatiga, while Semarang were assigned to the Ki-51, flown by Flight Cadets Mulyono and rear gunner Dulrachman, and escorted by Ki-43 flown by Flight Cadet Bambang Saptoaji. [4] At 19:00 on 28 July, the four pilot cadets were briefed on the mission by Suryadarma and Halim. [5]

During the preparation on the early hours of 29 July, it was found that the machine gun synchronization system in the Ki-43 could not be repaired in time, and the raids were to go ahead with three aircraft instead. Problem also hampered Sutarjo Sigit's K5Y1, as the defensive machine gun could not be mounted on the aircraft. [4]

The mission went ahead as planned, with aircraft departing Maguwo airfield at 05:00. Ki-51 flown by Mulyono was the first to take off, followed by K5Y1s of Sutarjo and Suharnoko. [5]

During the flight to Salatiga, Suharnoko aircraft was separated from Sutarjo. Later Suharnoko saw a vast lake, and believing he was above Ambarawa, dropped his bombs and continued to rendezvous with Sutarjo. [4] Above Salatiga, Sutarjo only managed to drop one of his bomb, [4] which hit a local hospital and failed to explode, [3] with another bomb dropped somewhere else due to technical malfunction. [4] Mulyono were able to reach Semarang and dropped two bombs over the Port of Tanjung Emas, killing seven people. [3]

All three aircraft returned safely to Maguwo and were quickly camouflaged to prevent them from being spotted by Dutch aircraft. [6]

Aftermath

As a response to the raids, the No. 120 Squadron of Dutch East Indies Army Air Force launched offensive counter air sorties against Indonesian airfields of Maguwo and Maospati. [3] During one of the sorties, two Dutch P-40 Kittyhawks spotted a C-47 on landing approach to Maguwo and shot it down, culminating on the 1947 Yogyakarta Dakota incident. [7]

The air raids is one of the main plot of the 1981 film Serangan Fajar . [8]

The 2021 Indonesian film Cadet 1947 was heavily inspired and dramatized retelling of the 29 July 1947 air raids and its participants. [9]

References

  1. ↑ Savsavubun, Tadea Elisabeth (28 July 2025). "Sejarah 29 Juli dan Hari Bakti TNI AU". RRI.co.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  2. ↑ Ricklefs, M.C. (1981). A History of Modern Indonesia Since c. 1300. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. p. 213. ISBN   0-253-19593-4.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Heyman, Jos (November 2005). "Indonesian aviation 1945-1950" (PDF). nei.adf-serials.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 December 2005. Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Mukhti, M.F. (11 June 2019). "Pemboman Udara Pertama Indonesia". Historia.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Kenang, Sejarah Hari Bhakti TNI AU yang Diperingati Tiap 29 Juli". indonesiadefense.com (in Indonesian). 29 July 2021. Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  6. ↑ Catur Windu TNI-AU 1945-1977: Sejarah Bergambar [32 Years of Indonesian Air Force 1945-1977: An Illustrated History] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Dinas Sejarah TNI Angkatan Udara. 1977. p. 51.
  7. ↑ Soewito, Irna Hanny Nastoeti Hadi; Suyono, Nana Nurliana; Suhartono, Soedarini (2008). Awal Kedirgantaraan di Indonesia: Perjuangan AURI 1945–1950 [Beginnings of Flight in Indonesia: The Struggle of the Air Force 1945–1950] (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Obor Foundation. p. 110. ISBN   978-979-461-672-7.
  8. ↑ "Membangun Replika Cureng dan Guntei untuk Film Serangan Fajar". aviahistoria.com (in Indonesian). 6 August 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  9. ↑ Adinda Permatasari; Sumiyati (21 November 2021). "Film Kadet 1947, Kisah Heroik 7 Pemuda di Masa Agresi Militer Belanda". viva.co.id (in Indonesian). Retrieved 29 July 2025.
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