Tokyo, Aug. 22.
Japanese naval bombers yesterday carried out an "effective" raid against the Chinese aircraft factory at Kienklao setting It on fre, a spokesman for the Japanese Ministry of the Navy said. to-day.
About 15 direct hits were scored, the announcement claimed. Ths Klenkiao air base, the spokesman declared. had been' rendered useless by repeated bombings.
Other aerial operations, the spokesman stated, had been " carried out against the aerodromes at Yangchow and Hsuchow. In the latter locality, one hangar, two military barracks and 10 aeroplanes on the ground were stated to have been destroyed.
At Yangchow, near Chinkiang along, the Yangtze, Japanese aircraft were stated by the spokesman to have destroyed three Chinese machines on the ground and shot down one. One Japanese machine was lost.
Chinese land forces. the spokes: man asserted, appeared to have been seriously affected by the Japanese aerial bombings. This, he declared, had caused an almost complete cessation of their daytime activities, At night, however, Chinese forces have frequently attacked Japanese seclors—Domel. nearest one being 30 yards from a hangar with the damage limited. the destruction of an old training. plane.
General Mao Peng-tsou, feld_commander of the Chinese 'Air Force, informed the party that a total of '34 Japanese aeroplanes, including 24 heavy. bombers, were known to have been brought" down whereas Chinese machines had been—shot down but one had crashed, two had been slightly damaged and' three hit by bombs on' the ground.
After inspecting wreckage among which were several," double-engined Japanese bombers brought down in the vicinity of Nanking, and interviewing several Chinese pilots, one of whom claimed to have brought down four Japanese machines single-handed. 1' was personally con-vineed, as were most of the party, that the Chinese had scored. smashing victory In aerial encounters during the past few days.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.