The Battle of Sattelberg took place between 17 and 25 November 1943, during the Huon Peninsula campaign of the Second World War. Involving forces from Australia, the United States and Japan, the fighting centred on the Sattelberg mission station which was situated atop a hill about 900 metres (3,000 ft) above sea level, approximately 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) inland from Finschhafen, New Guinea. Following the Australian landing at Scarlet Beach a large force of Japanese had retreated inland towards Sattelberg. The Japanese, holding the high ground, subsequently threatened the Australian lines of communication as they advanced south towards Finschhafen. The Australian 26th Brigade was tasked with capturing the mission to neutralise this threat. Over the course of 10 days they advanced west from Jivevaneng up the southern approaches to the mission, reducing the Japanese position with armour, artillery, and air support. The Japanese finally abandoned Sattelberg and withdrew north to Wareo, having suffered heavy casualties and running low on supplies.
Background
Following the fall of Lae in September 1943, the Australians continued their advance north along the New Guinea coast towards the Huon Peninsula, with the aim of securing Finschhafen, where large scale air and naval facilities could be constructed for operations that were planned against New Britain. On 22 September 1943, less than a week after Lae had been captured, Brigadier Victor Windeyer's Australian 20th Brigade was detached from the 9th Division by Major General George Wootten, the divisional commander, and landed at Scarlet Beach (north of Siki Cove), to the east of Katika and about 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) to the north of Finschhafen.
The landing was only lightly opposed, and the Australians began to advance south towards Katika where Japanese resistance was stronger, but was nevertheless overcome by the early afternoon. As the 20th Brigade advanced south towards their objective at Finschhafen, intelligence indicated that the Japanese were moving to the high ground to the west at Sattelberg, which was situated about 900 metres (3,000 ft) above sea level. Captured documents showed that three infantry battalions were being concentrated at an old Lutheran mission station that had been established at Sattelberg in the 19th century during the German colonial administration of the area. Concerned for the security of his lines of communication due to the presence of Japanese on his flank, the Australian brigade commander adopted more cautious tactics, while reinforcements were called for. Heavy fighting ensued, but Finschhafen fell to the Australians on 2 October.
Following this, the 9th Division was tasked with advancing towards Sio, further around the coast on the northern side of the Huon Peninsula. The Japanese in the area around Finschhafen were growing in strength, however, as a large number of the 4,000 to 5,000 men that had garrisoned Finschhafen had managed to escape inland, while the rest of the 20th Division, under the command of Lieutenant General Shigeru Katagiri, was being moved from Bogadjim, south of Madang, to provide reinforcements. Wootten considered that the threat posed by this force meant that Sattelberg would have to be captured before the 9th Division could undertake its advance towards Sio.
Prelude
Advance on Finschhafen
During the advance on Finschhafen, a company from the 2/17th Battalion, which had been tasked with securing the beachhead and the flank, had been sent to Sattelberg but had been unable to occupy it due to the strength of the Japanese force already there. As captured orders had revealed Japanese plans to break through to the coast, it was decided to place the company into a blocking position east of Sattelberg along the coast road around Jivevaneng. In this position, from 25 September onwards they were subjected to a number of attacks as they attempted to deflect attacks by the Japanese 3rd Battalion, 80th Infantry Regiment, which were aimed at breaking through to Heldsbach Plantation, directly south of the beachhead at Siki Cove. On 30 September the 2/17th were replaced by a company from the 2/43rd Battalion, and over the next couple of days, a whole battalion of Japanese surrounded the position and attacked it eight times. Four attempts by the Australians to relieve the company failed, before an attack on Kumawa by the 2/17th Battalion on 5 October cut the Japanese supply lines and provoked a strong counterattack, which subsequently drew pressure off the beleaguered company, and enabled it to be relieved on 7 October. As the threat of Japanese counterattack grew, the 24th Brigade landed at Langemak Bay on 10 October to reinforce the 20th Brigade. The following day, Wootten was able to establish his divisional headquarters at Finschhafen, and preparations began for the Australians to attack the Japanese force around Sattelberg.
During this time, the Japanese were also planning an offensive. On 10 October, the Japanese 20th Division's commander, Katagiri, arrived at Sattelberg having trekked overland from Sio. After taking over operational control of the forces there, on 12 October he issued orders for an attack to commence on 16 October. This attack was conceptualised as consisting of two infantry regiments, the 79th and 80th, supported by three artillery batteries from the 26th Field Artillery Regiment, a company from the 20th Engineer Regiment and the divisional signals unit. As a part of this offensive, the 80th Infantry Regiment would continue to make attacks on the Australian forces around Jivevaneng, while the 79th Infantry Regiment would drive towards Katika and attempt to break through to the coast to attack the beachhead at Scarlet Beach, where a seaborne assault would be made concurrently by 70 men from the Sugino Craft Raiding Unit.
The Australians had learned about Katagiri's plans and as a result the 9th Division commander, Wootten, decided to put off his own offensive plans while the Japanese attack was dealt with. It came in the early hours of 17 October, and over the course of the following week heavy fighting ensued around Katika and Jivevaneng. Forewarned, the Australians were able to check these attacks with assistance from American support units, and by the time that the Japanese called off their offensive on 25 October, the Japanese 20th Division had suffered 352 men killed and 564 wounded, while the Australians had suffered 228 casualties. It was during the early stages of this fighting that an American soldier, Private Nathan Van Noy, from the 532nd Engineer Boat and Shore Regiment, performed the deeds that resulted in him being posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
Japanese preparations
With the 79th Infantry Regiment having lost around 50% of its strength and with ammunition and food running low (by the end of the month, they had been reduced to quarter rations), the Japanese divisional commander, Katagiri, made the decision to call off the attack in order to pull back from Jivevaneng and Katika and regroup on the higher ground further west around the mission. This order was passed on the morning of 24 October, and by the morning of 27 October the Japanese 20th Division's subunits had managed to regroup to the east of Sattelberg. Following this, Katagiri received orders from the 18th Army commander, General Hatazō Adachi, who delivered them personally at Sattelberg, for the 20th Division to prepare to hold the mission and to engage in offensive operations in the immediate vicinity.
As a part of this plan, Katagiri decided that he would use the 80th Infantry Regiment to defend Sattelberg, while the 79th would concentrate in the Nongora area with the intention of launching a counter-attack upon the Australian forces advancing from Katika, near the Song River on 25 November. Around Sattelberg, the 80th Infantry Regiment was deployed in five key locations. Three companies from the regiment's 2nd Battalion established a position at the 2,200 feature (known as "Saheki-yama" to the Japanese), and another three companies from the 3rd Battalion were positioned astride the Sattelberg road at "Miyake-dai", or the 2,600 feature. Another two companies were positioned to the south of the main position at "Yamada-yama", while the remainder of the regiment was entrenched around the mission itself—the "Kanshi-yama"—where they had established a formidable "fortress", and around the Japanese commander's "keep" which was positioned on the 3,200 feature, known as the "Katagiri-yama". The strength of these forces was estimated by the Australian commander, Wootten, to be around 2,800 men in the immediate vicinity of Sattelberg mission, with a further 2,400 around Nongora and another 1,000 to the north at Gusika. These estimates were confirmed after the fighting.
The Japanese defenders were supported by the 4th Air Army, with fighter and bomber aircraft from the 6th and 7th air divisions flying close support missions against Australian artillery positions, carrying out bombing operations around the Finschhafen area, and dropping supplies by air around Sattelberg and Wareo throughout October.
Allied preparations
Prior to the attack on Sattelberg, the Australians needed reinforcements. Although initially the Allied higher commanders were reluctant to provide these, on 25 October the Militia 4th Brigade was detached from the 5th Division and placed under the operational control of the 9th Division. These troops were subsequently used in a defensive role around the beachhead to free up the rest of the 9th Division for the offensive operations. The 2/43rd Battalion, from the 24th Brigade, was also brought up on 30 September, ahead of the rest of the brigade which arrived later in October. Nevertheless, by the end of September, the Allies perceived the situation around Finschhafen to be "reasonably secure", and American engineer and construction units, including the 808th Engineer Aviation Battalion, started to arrive in October. By December they had begun work constructing an airfield and other base facilities around Dreger Harbour. Following this, Wootten began finalising his plans for assaulting Sattelberg. Because the 20th Brigade had borne the brunt of the fighting following the landing in September, the 26th Brigade, which had landed at Langemak Bay on the night of 20 October under Brigadier David Whitehead, was chosen to spearhead the attack. At the same time, the 20th and 24th brigades, operating in the central and northern sectors, would continue patrolling operations in order to keep the Japanese off balance.
Support for the 26th Brigade's attack would be provided by divisional assets, including Matilda tanks from C Squadron, 1st Tank Battalion, whose presence the Australians took great lengths to keep secret, artillery from the 2/12th Field Regiment and later (after it was found that the 25-pdrs could not be transported up the Sattelberg Road), the 2nd Mountain Battery, and support-by-fire from the 2/2nd Machine Gun Battalion. The 2/13th Field Company supplied engineer detachments to each battalion, while air assets were provided by the United States 5th Air Force and No. 4 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, which was an Army co-operation squadron that was equipped with Boomerangs and Wirraways, and provided aerial observation in support of artillery operations. Vengeance dive bombers from No. 24 Squadron, RAAF, also provided support, while Japanese supply lines were disrupted by Allied aircraft and PT boats.