No. 25 Squadron flew in its SBD-5s to
Guadalcanal on 22 March, escorted by four
Venturas and one C-47 from 40 Squadron. A
Catalina from
6 Squadron stood by at
Halavo Seaplane Base in the
Florida Islands as a safety aircraft. From Henderson Field the squadron flew to
Piva Airfield on 23 January. Upon landing at Piva, the New Zealanders found themselves on a narrow beachhead, with Japanese forces shelling and attacking the perimeter. The first mission flown from Piva was an artillery-spotting exercise undertaken by MacLean de Lange and his gunner on 24 March. Over the course of the day, the squadron flew three more sorties against the Japanese. So close were the enemy, that during one of these raids, ground crew on the airstrip were able to watch the pilots drop their bombs. Throughout the squadron's combat tour, it would be called upon to attack Japanese supply depots and other targets on Bougainville and assist the American ground forces in their campaign on the island. However, its main focus was to assist in the suppression of the Japanese garrison on Rabaul, working with
No. 30 Squadron in attacking the Japanese airfields there to prevent resupply by air. The squadron's tour ended on 20 May. The surviving SBDs took off from Piva and landed at
Renard Field in the
Russell Islands where the aircraft were returned to American ownership. The squadron personnel were flown to
RNZAF Base Whenuapai the following day.
Tour summary No. 25 Squadron flew missions from Piva for approximately eight weeks, flying a total of 32 missions and dropping of bombs. Dozens of artillery pieces were destroyed and considerable damage caused to airfields and other military property. During its operations, five aircraft were lost; two of these were shot down by Japanese anti-aircraft fire, killing their crews. A fifth man, Flying Officer Leslie McLellan-Symonds, was lost on a ferry flight and became a prisoner of war. He died in captivity. ==Reformation==