Location
Located at the southern tip of New Georgia Island, along Panga Bay and the Njai Pass to the north-east. Located
at the
mouth of the Morovo Lagoon.
Construction
Construction
of a crushed coral strip was begun by a survey party from USN
Acorn 7 (47th CB Battalion (Seabee) landed on January
21,
1943. By July 10, 1943, they had built a 3,000' x 300' single runway running roughly east to west for limited
operations and as an emergency landing field, only 40 miles from Munda. Taxiwas and ravetments were built to the north and south of the runway. This strip became the main
Allied
airstrip on
New Georgia until the liberation of Munda.
American Units based at Segi (partial list)
925th AAA AW
BN
47th Construction Battalion, C company
VF-38 (12 x F6F) October 1943 - ?
VF-40 (12 x F6F) October 1943 - ?
VF-33 (24 x F6F) Nov 1 - Nov 29, 1943
Veteran
Frank Ruscavage recalls:
"I served on Segi point in 1944. Navy
Seabee's constructed the airbase, I was with the 925th AAA AW
BN. The Navy planes that flew from Segi were SBD bombers & Gruman
Corsairs, I believe there were called 'the flying duck'. The
Japs on Bouganville made a
counter push to recapture the air field, they got pretty close
of doing so, all planes were ordered to different airfields in
the region, the P-38's to Segi, the airfield on Segi was long
enough to land the plane but they had to touch down at the very
beginning of the strip, the 1st three planes didn't and went
into
the water, the other planes (about 12) landed safely. The month
was I think was in June 1944."
Don Anderson reports:
“My father [47th Construction Battalion, C company]
helped build the airstrip at Seghe Point in WWII, all the veterans
call Segi Point, pronouncing it 'Seegee'. I visited there in the summer of 1993.
I left a plaque with a picture of the landing, CB Logo, info, and papers on the
back with the names of the 47th Seabees at the small police outpost by the end
of the strip. I landed on the strip and went to Uepi. I came
back in motorized canoe and dove on the P-38. It was right where
my dad said it would be. However, the said the P-38’s were
trying to land and the runway was short for them. The first made
it but the second ran into the back of it and pushed it into
the water. I think this can be verified. Look at the back of
the P-38. It is bent under. This would be where the other plane
hit it. My dad said the planes were running out of fuel trying
to get back to Henderson Field on Guadalcanal.
The tower told them the runway was too short for them. A P-38
radioed back that
it was try or land in the ocean. The tower told them to come
on. I have many photographs my dad took, but no scanner. The
pilot quarters were down by the water. The rest were up on the
hill along with the guns. I found some buried barrels on the
hill. I took pictures and video. I got laughed at when I got
home. They would put an outhouse over these buried drums. When
they got full, They put the top on it and moved the outhouse
somewhere else. You will notice that there is a dugout area closed
to the strip. This was a dug officer swimming pool. I notice
canoes are docked inside it now to get off the ocean. I think
they used marston mat on a hole in the side for the water to
go in and out. My dad said this was so an officer didn’t
get attacked by a shark. He said they swam and bathed in the
ocean. A shark wouldn’t eat an enlisted man.”
Today
It is still used by Solomon Airlines, the crushed coral strip
is still used, overgrown with grass.
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