Battle of Midway
The Midway invasion was one of the major turning points of World War II. Japan invaded the Midway Islands on June 4, 1942. That is 81 years ago today. This post is about that. This is a rather detailed post and you can watch the full background of the battle in the movie Battle of Midway (2019).
⚠️Background
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On December 7, 1941, World War II began in the Pacific. It was with the attack of the Pearl Harbor belonging to the American forces located in Hawaii with many Japanese planes launched from 6 aircraft carriers.
From then on, the Imperial Japanese Combined Fleet began conducting continuous military operations against US, British and Dutch territories in the Pacific Ocean and Southeast Asia. The first phase of these operations, which occupied Malaysia, British Singapore, the Dutch East West, Southeast Asia including the Philippines, and various island groups in the central and western Pacific, was almost entirely completed by March 1942.
The second phase of these operations began on 23 January 1942, under which they planned to isolate Australia and India and neutralize its power. In April 1942, their main offensive against Ceylon was launched to gain power in the Indian Ocean. Under operations in the Australian region, it was expected to capture bases around Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, and then use those islands to support future operations against New Caledonia, Fiji and Samoa.
While the Japanese invasion was taking place, the first aircraft carrier battle between Japan and America took place in the Coral Sea on May 4. In the battle, America lost USS Lexington (CV-3) and USS York Town (CV-5) was damaged. Japan lost the aircraft carrier IJN Shoho.
After this battle, Japan realized the gaps in its air defense. In particular, the Doolittle operation launched by America in April had air attacks on several major cities, including Tokyo, located on the mainland of Japan. Because of this, it was necessary to carry out a separate operation to remove the US Navy and Air Force from the Pacific region. Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, the commander of the Imperial Japanese Army, focused on the Midway Islands between Japan and America.
⚠️Midway Islands
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The Midway Islands were first discovered around 1859 and formally annexed by the United States in 1867. Midway Islands came under the Navy in 1903. By 1941, a naval air base had been established there. Located in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, 1300 miles from Pearl Harbor, the Midway Islands were an important strategic base for America at the time.
In addition to the airstrip, Midway Islands had a yard that could hold submarines of the United States at that time, as well as a part that provided fuel for submarines coming from Pearl Harbor. There was a considerable number of naval personnel here and they rendered considerable service to the military operations. Japan's focus on Midway is based on these facts.
Admiral Yamamoto called the Midway invasion Operation MI. Several fleets were coordinated for the operation. Under Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo, Vice Admiral Nobuteke Kondo and Rear Admiral Tamone Yamaguchi, the 1st Aircraft Carrier Squadron, 2nd Squadron, 5th Squadron and 11th Air Force Division of the Japanese Combined Fleet were called into action.
The fact that the Midway Islands were located about 1300 nautical miles from the American military bases in Hawaii was a major advantage for Japan in that it took some time for the American military to receive naval support in the face of a massive attack.
Admiral Yamamoto carefully planned the attack and planned it to consist of 3 basic steps. Its primary step was to change the focus of the American security forces. Thus, first an air attack was to be made on the Aleutian Islands located in Alaska in North America. This was their plan to draw America's attention to it.
When the attack was launched, the 4 ships Soryu (Soryu), Hiryu (Hiryu), Kaga (Kaga) and Akagi (Akagi) of Japan's main 6 aircraft carriers led by Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo (Chuichi Nagumo) were midway. Airplanes were brought to the islands, and on the other hand, a group of 5,000 Japanese troops led by Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondo, a famous officer of the Japanese army, was planned to be sent to Midway by ship.
As the third phase, Admiral Yamamoto planned to position his squadron about 600 miles west of the Midway Islands, and when the attacks were launched, he and his forces were ready to support the attack.
But what Japan didn't know was that America had already managed to decipher their secret codes. After the Pearl attack, the United States was able to decipher the signals after the Japanese intelligence information, when the Japanese attacked the Philippine Islands. Nicknamed Station Haipo
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