Japan’s conquest of the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia) depended heavily on securing the vast natural resources of the archipelago. Near Palembang, capital of South Sumatra, was an Allied airfield (‘P1’) as well as two oil refineries – Plaju and Sungei Gerong – which processed a third of all oil production in the Indies. Each one was defended by a garrison of around 150 troops. If they were captured intact, the Japanese could continue to supply their war effort and encircle the main island of Java.
At 11.26hrs, IJA paratroopers of the 2nd Raiding Regiment dropped over P1, then over the refineries four minutes later. At Plaju, 60 men from Lieutenant Nakao’s 1st Company landed mainly to the southwest, while some landed in the facility itself. As the paratroopers re-grouped and advanced, they placed flags on three distillation towers and started shutting down refinery equipment to prevent damage.
In the early-afternoon, three reinforced KNIL platoons under Captain Ohl launched a counterattack. Covered by mortars and machine gun fire, they were able to recapture most of the refinery after intense close-range fighting.
This scene shows Menadonese riflemen of 2nd Company, 10th Infantry Battalion as they spot a Japanese flag being removed from a distillation tower; all three were lowered by a Dutch officer and two Menadonese soldiers. In the background, oil tanks and pipes that were hit by bullets and mortar shells are covering the refinery with smoke.
The KNIL troops continued fighting into the night as they tried and failed to dislodge the remaining group of 15 paratroopers. As additional Japanese forces approached Palembang from the Musi River, the defenders began to withdraw.
The Japanese 229th Regiment captured Palembang on the night of 15th February and soon made contact with the paratroopers. Out of 329 who jumped, 39 were killed and 48 wounded. They had also lost the Sungei Gerong refinery to a demolition charge; but Plaju and its vast oil stocks had been captured relatively intact.
Sources
Lohnstein, Marc. Royal Netherlands East Indies Army 1936-42. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing, 2018.
Lohnstein, Marc. The Netherlands East Indies Campaign 1941-42: Japan’s Quest for Oil. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing, 2021.
Remmelink, Willem (ed.), The Invasion of the Dutch East Indies. Leiden University Press, 2015.
Rottman, Gordon and Takizawa, Akira. Japanese Paratroop Forces of World War II. Oxford, England: Osprey Publishing, 2005.
By Ibrahim Zamir
Empire of History 