Operation Matador was an amphibious thrust, during the Burma Campaign

Burma Campaign

The Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian Theatre of World War II was fought primarily between British Commonwealth, Chinese and United States forces against the forces of the Empire of Japan, Thailand, and the Indian National Army. British Commonwealth land forces were drawn primarily from...

 in January 1945, to capture the strategic port of Kyaukpyu

Kyaukpyu

Kyaukpyu is a major town in Rakhine State, in western Myanmar. It is located on the north western corner of Yanbye Island on Combermere Bay, and is 250 miles northwest of Yangon. The town is situated on a superb natural harbor which connects the rice trade between Calcutta and Yangon...

, located at the northern tip of Ramree Island

Ramree Island

Ramree Island is an island off the coast of Rakhine State, Burma. The area of the island is about 1350 km². The Battle of Ramree Island took place here for six weeks during January and February 1945, as part of the British Fourteenth Army 1944/45 offensive on the Southern Front of the Burma...

, south of Akyab across Hunter's Bay, as well as the key airfield near the port. On 21 January 1945, an hour before the Indian 71st Brigade was to land, the battleship opened fire with her main battery while planes from the escort carrier

Escort aircraft carrier

The escort aircraft carrier or escort carrier, also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the USN or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft carrier used by the British Royal Navy , the Imperial Japanese Navy and Imperial Japanese Army Air Force, and the...

  spotted for her. The light cruiser also joined the bombardment, along with Liberators

B-24 Liberator

The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...

 and Thunderbolts

P-47 Thunderbolt

Republic Aviation's P-47 Thunderbolt, also known as the "Jug", was the largest, heaviest, and most expensive fighter aircraft in history to be powered by a single reciprocating engine. It was heavily armed with eight .50-caliber machine guns, four per wing. When fully loaded, the P-47 weighed up to...

 of No. 224 Group

No. 244 Squadron RAF

No. 244 Squadron RAF was a Royal Air Force Squadron formed as an anti–submarine unit in World War I and a bomber unit in the Middle East in World War II.-Formation and World War I:No...

 RAF

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 which bombed and strafed to soften up the beaches. The assault troops landed unopposed and secured the beachhead; the following day, the Indian 4th Infantry Brigade landed. http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/b1/baffins.htm

See also

• Battle of Ramree Island
  Battle of Ramree Island
  The Battle of Ramree Island was fought for six weeks during January and February 1945, as part of the Indian XV Corps 1944/45 offensive on the Southern Front of the Burma Campaign during World War II....