The Battle of Midway took place in the span of 4 days (June 3 - 6, 1942) between the U.S. Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy. The battle was located right in between the US and Japan, on an island that the US controlled called Midway.
In hopes to continue its momentum after the Pearl Harbor bombing, Japan hoped to secure the Pacific Ocean with a surprise attack against the US at Midway. Yamamoto, commander of the Imperial Japanese Navy, first planned a smaller attack on the Aleutian Islands to divert the American forces. He then planned a three-pronged attack towards Midway. He would first have an air attack on the island launched from the aircraft carriers, Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu, and Soryu. Next, he would have an invasion of soldiers and ships. Finally, Yamamoto placed both airplanes and ships 600 miles west of Pearl Harbor in hopes to stop American reinforcements from coming to Pearl Harbor.
This plan would have been successful if the US hadn’t gotten access to Yamamoto’s plans. The US was able to figure out Yamamoto’s plan by using cryptanalysts to intercept and decipher Japanese messages. Yamamoto was forced to transmit all his messages through the radio as Japanese was so spread out across the Pacific. This made it easy for cryptanalysts to break the codes and figure out that Japan planned to attack either June 3 or 4.
Despite the US having figured out Japan’s war plans, they experienced many failures at the beginning of the battle. B-17 Flying Fortress bombers were sent from US carriers to attack the sea invasion of troops and ships that Yamamoto had planned. The US made the mistake of thinking that Japan had concentrated most of its troops on these ships, and this attack ultimately failed. The next day, the US hastily sent in more B-17 Flying Fortress bombers, but Japan was ready and the bombers were shot down.
When Japan implemented the first part of its invasion by sending 108 Japanese warplanes to Midway, the US failed to defend the attack, and its base was severely damaged. Right after this attack, the US struck back and sent airplanes to attack Japan's aircraft carriers without success.
The US was only able to turn the tide of the battle when Japan needed to refuel its airplanes and ships. The US struck three Japanese carriers with US bombers as the Japanese were refueling. US dive bombers then bombed the fourth and last Japanese carrier solidifying the Japanese defeat.
The US’s successful defense against the Japanse at Midway signaled that Japan would give up its quest in controlling the Pacific and remain on the defensive side for the rest of World War II.
This is a really thorough post, and I liked how you went through all the different aspects of the Battle of Midway in chronological order, including the original plans (and why they were initiated) and how the U.S. saw past their adversaries. I think it's important to note that both sides were on similar levels when the battle took place, although some misconstrue that the Japanese had a peerless strategic authority over the Americans. The reason that Japan seemed to be at an advantage at the beginning was that the U.S.'s imperial fleet committed a series of irreversible mistakes (just as you mentioned, B-17 Flying Fortress bombers were sent to attack a location that Yamamoto had planned for them to, distracting from the actual site of importance), which doomed the U.S.'s carrier force to premature ruin. Although some speculate that it was pure luck that Japan needed to refuel its airplanes and ships, I believe it is also because of the American's adequate air training, which includes the skill of decision making, and perseverance that allowed the U.S. to gain the initiative in the end.
ReplyDeleteSource:
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/true-story-battle-midway-180973516/