The Battle of Badung Strait was a naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the night of 19/20 February 1942 in Badung Strait (not to be confused with the West Java city of Bandung) between the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command (ABDA) and the Imperial Japanese Navy. In the engagement, four Japanese destroyers defeated an Allied force that outnumbered and outgunned them, sinking the Dutch destroyer and escorting two transports to safety. The battle demonstrated the Japanese Navy's considerable superiority over the Allies in night fighting, which lasted until the Battle of Cape St. George.
Background
A battalion of the 48th Infantry Division of the Imperial Japanese Army landed in Bali on 18 February 1942. Dutch Admiral Karel Doorman's naval forces were scattered around Indonesia, but the invasion of Bali could not be ignored; it would give the Japanese an airbase within range of the ABDA naval base at Surabaya, so he sent in all available ships. The short notice gave no time to concentrate his ships; accordingly, several Allied forces were to attack the Japanese.
Battle
On 19 February, the first Allied vessel to engage was the submarine , which damaged one of the Japanese transports. Later that day, 13 USAAF heavy bombers and seven A-24 Banshees attacked the convoy, but succeeded only in damaging the transport Sagami Maru. On Bali, W.P. Roodenburg's Balinese militia deserted, while the Japanese captured Denpasar airfield intact.