A watan Fabrairun 1943, ƙungiyar ta shiga cikin ɗaukar hoto game da kwashe sojojin Japan daga Guadalcanal. A watan Afrilun 1943, ya shiga cikin Operation I-Go. A lokacin Operation SE a ranar 16 ga Yuni, rukunin 24 D3A masu jefa bama-bamai a karkashin Lieutenant Tamotsu Ema sun kai hari kan jiragen ruwa na Allied a kusa da Guadalcanal, inda sabon kwamandan kwamandan kungiyar "Hikōtaichō" Saburō Shindō ya jagoranci 16 Zeros don raka su. Sun rasa 'yan bama-bamai takwas da kuma Zero hudu a harin. A ƙarshe, an rushe rukunin mayakan kungiyar a ranar 1 ga Agusta 1943 kuma an tura wasu matukan jirgi zuwa rukunin 201 da 204 na Air. Daga nan sai kungiyar ta zama cikakkiyar rukunin bama-bamai kuma ta karɓi wasu bama-bamai na Nakajima B5N da B6N daga wasu rukunin. Ya ci gaba da shiga cikin
Yaƙin neman zaɓe na Solomon Islands da yakin New Guinea, gami da kai hari ga jiragen ruwa na Allied yayin saukowa a Lae, Arawe, Finschhafen da Cape Torokina.