This year we celebrate the 80th Anniversary of the Battle at Midway ending on June 7, 1942. The Midway Island of Hawaii was the stage for the dramatic and forceful refusal of Japanese Forces by U.S. military and the important turning of the tides for the Pacific War.
Though outnumbered by ships and planes, the U.S. had the element of surprise thanks to cryptanalysts successfully deciphering enough the of the Japanese communications codes to determine that the Island of Midway would be their next target.
On June 3rd, under the leadership of General Chester Nimitz, U.S. bombers struck at Japanese ships approximately 500 miles from the coast of Midland, resulting in minimal damage. The next morning, Japanese fighter planes, called Zeros, attacked Midway heavily. By mid-morning, however, U.S. carrier-based aircraft, TBDs (Torpedo Bombers), struck again and sank three heavy Japanese carriers and one heavy cruiser. In the late afternoon, U.S. planes sank the fourth heavy carrier. The sneak attacks caught the Japanese off guard when they were hit while taking torpedoes off their planes on the flight deck to replace with bombs.
The Battle of Midway is the one action that can be called the turning point of the war in the Pacific. By June 7th, 1942 Japan had more than 2,500 casualties, four aircraft carriers, one heavy cruiser, and 292 aircraft. The fighting was not without loss to the U.S. as well with 307 men, one carrier, one destroyer, and 150 planes.
Read more about the History of the Battle of Midway.
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