Bauer, Harold, LtCol

May 22
Flew to Noumea today to bring back the 3 fighters on Monday as promised. When I arrived at the Tangiers, Adm. McCain kindly let it be know that I was to come back over herewith to Efate' with two Army Colonels in the Army Engineer Corps to look over the field and the South Bay site. I stayed aboard the Tangiers.
May 23
We got off to the usual early start and looked over the field as ordered and made our reconnaissance of South Bay. The Army Engineers have been using an iron mat very successfully which no doubt will be the answer to our problems here both as to the material to use and the time element for completion of the project. We stayed over nite in Efate'. I postponed the flight of 3 fighters from Noumea to Efate' until Wednesday, the 27th.
May 24
We returned to Noumea by "P" boat and reported a very successful trip to the Admiral. I met Beanie in Noumea and we road (sic) together in a reconnaissance car out to the airport--a 2 1/2 hour trip. It was very cold and I caught more cold on top of a sore throat I had picked up riding the "P" boats for 2 days. To top it off, I only had one blanket when I turned in at the airport and nearly froze to death. Col. Sverdrup, the Army Eng., ordered some Marston Matting for the field.
May 25
You guessed it. I have a fever, a sore throat, sinus and a head cold. The doctor is giving me sulfanilamide to cure me so that I can make the flight on Wednesday. I am staying in bed and doing my level best. I saw some of the Marston Mat Material being used at Tontouta for taxi lanes. It certainly is the answer for rapid construction at Efate'.
May 26
Another day in bed on sulfanilamide. (You can have that stuff) My back feels like someone hit me with an axe. It makes the kidneys work overtime, too. I'll take a sore throat and fever to the way I feel--anytime. Admiral McCain came in to see me and I gave him a more optimistic estimate on the field if he could get us the iron mat. Told him I was going to bring 6 of my fighters over Monday, June 1st, and the rest on Friday, June 5th. He immediately sent out a dispatch giving May 30 as the date of the Fighters arrival here and ordered some more Marsten Mat. He even stated in his dispatch that the field would be ready 2 weeks after arrival of the mat. I may be working 24 hours per day myself to get it done.
May 27
Certainly didn't feel like flying today but the mail had to go through. 3 of us left Tontouta at 0945 and arrived Efate' 1 1/2 hrs. later. I was surprised at the ease with which we all landed. They had a landing strip about 2800' long available. We didn't use it all due to a good wind up and down the runway.
May 28
We kept the 3 fighters ready for action all day. We'll probably have to wait a long time for our first crack at a Jap bomber. I picked out locations for a few more plane dispersals. We are really fortunate in that respect here. Mother Nature must have know that someday she would have to conceal airplanes on the ground from the view of those in the air. We opened our new mess hall with the evening meal and, altho' we had no time to kill the indoor flies, there was much improvement. We held a free beer party on the welfare fund to celebrate the opening of the mess hall.
May 29
We got busy on the mess hall fly situation today. Bought some flit and laid 'em low. The meals are quite pleasant now. That is one problem licked. We still have several left. Got heads together with the engineer, Lt. Mathews, in order to speed up completion of the 6000' ft x 200' landing strip. We want it ready when the Marstan Mat arrives. Went down to visit Ens. Durkin & rear seat man Bailey who had a forced landing while away from the Enterprise nearly 3 weeks ago . They were adrift in their rubber boat until picked up in the New Hebrides about 140 miles north of Efate'.
May 30
It started to rain last night and continued all day up to nightfall. We had mud holes all over the camp and the field became soft. The radar reported a target so I took off to investigate. It turned ou to be two of our patrol planes.
May 31
We tried a radar practice tracking run this a.m. but the radar burned out two condensors. We tried it again this afternoon but it turned out very unsatisfactorily. We found out the radar has quite an area of blind spots. We had a grand day--got in some flying for three of our new boys who did very well.
June 1, 1942
6 more of our planes came over from Noumea today. A B-17 escorted them over. I went out to meet them off the harbor here and escorted the works to the field. They all made nice landings. I tried another radar tracking practice this a.m. and the results were so disheartening I went down to raise a storm about it. I wound up by flying the island communicator all over the area looking for a better radar location. An unidentified plane was reported flying over the field about 1700. Chick and I took off looking for it but had no luck. The Radar just didn't produce for us. At Midway we would have nailed it long before it even got here if it were an unfriendly plane. I had to make a forced landing on the way back. Got away with it beautifully. I was fortunate enough to have power to put me near the field so that I could land there.
June 2
Rec'd a flock of personal and official mail today when a "P" boat brought 2 of my pilots and my ordnance chief over from Noumea. Went down to Army Hdqtrs today and raised a fuss about the field being constructed too slowly. It stirred them up momentarily but I believe they will do nothing besides just talk. The boys brought me the sad news from Noumea that one of my pilots--a very intelligent, ambitious, and a marvelous prospect of an aviator was killed in Noumea on Sunday when he failed to pull out of a dive. This hurts me very deeply especially since I was so fond of him. His name was Finisgane--a Stanford graduate. Got some orders written up on the Fighter Director system today. Worked with Radar again today trying to get them so that they can train on a target above 5000'. So far it is pitiful.