Battle of Midway

The Japanese lost four of their most important aircraft carriers

and this defeat changed the momentum to the Allies favor.

DURING THE BOMBING OF MIDWAY THE JAPENES AND THE U.S. WERE IN BATTLE LOTS OF GUNS WERE SHOT OFF AND ALOT OF AIRCRAFT CARRIERS WERE DISTROYED AND NOT TO MENTION A LOT OF PLANES WERE SHOT AND BLEW UP KILLING A LOT OF PEOPLE AND SOME WERE WILLING TO RISK THEIR LIFES AND DIE FIGHTING FOR US.

The Japanese leaders were the Japanese Combined Fleet commander Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto and also admirals or captains Chuichi Nagumo, Nobutake Kondo, Ryusaku Yanagimoto and Tamon Yamaguchi. (the final two were killed in the battle)

For the US, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz was the US Pacific Fleet commander, and fleet admirals included Frank J. Fletcher and Raymond A. Spruance.

During World War II, the Battle of Midway (in June 1942) impacted the United States and its policies in a dramatic way: it provided a decisive 'check' upon the offensive actions of Imperial Japan while also dealing the Japanese Navy a defeat from which it never recovered. For these reasons, this battle may be said to have had a direct effect upon the continued survival of the United States as a whole.

A few. There was the shore garrison at Midway itself, which consisted of a few thousand men. Local Defenses were incharge of Colonel Harold Shannon, Fleet Marine Force commander which consisted of C and D Companies of the 2nd Raider Battalion, USMC and the 6th Defense Battalion (Reinforced) USMC under command of Colonel Shannon. It was not expected that they could successfully repel a concentrated attack of any large force. Their participation was predominantly in providing anti-aircraft fire against the Japanese aircraft and doing their best to get planes into the air. The Army at Midway was represented by the Army Air Corps forward detachment of the 7th Air force with 17 B-17 and four B-26 with a small support staff. The Navy had 30 PBY's and six TBF's on the Island. Marine Air Group 22 contributed 28 Fighters and 34 Dive Bombers. The B-17's were probably missuesd in the role of long range patrol aircraft and despite their many claims, only one Japanese vessel was confirmed as sunk by a B-17 attack and that was a transport. The four B-26's fared no better. They mistook the US Fleet as the Japanese Invasion Fleet and bombed it. There were no friendly fire casualties. The ground forces at Midway consisted of Marine Defense Battalion of 33 officers and 810 enlisted armed with six 5" Naval Guns, 12 three inch Anti-Aircraft Guns and 60 machine guns. The Island was ill defended and could not have withstood an invasion. It didn't matter. The fleets at sea engaged, the US Fleet was victorious and the Invasion Fleet was called off. This was a major turning point in the Pacific War and stopped Japanese expansion to the East.

In June 1942 the Japanese were dominant in the Pacific. They had achieved all their pre-war military goals by conquering the colonies of the western nations. Their fleet - large, modern, and well led - dominated the Pacific. In particular the Japanese had a huge advantage in fleet carriers, five to two vs. their only real opponent the USA. At Midway, due a freakish set of circumstances, the Japanese lost four carriers plus severe damage to their pool of naval pilots. Despite the losses, the Japanese still had an advantage over the USA in naval power. However, the losses were so severe that the psychological impact was such that Japan never again attempted a major sally against the USA in distant waters ( of course a lot of this may also have been due to oil/fuel shortages in Japan ). Alternatively, the USA was empowered by their victory. They went on to complete the building of the largest fleet in world history ( by the end of the conflict the USA had as much fleet tonnage as the rest of the world's fleets combined ). The USA used this fleet to finish off the military power of the Japanese and continue a military domination of the Pacific that continues to this day. Thus Midway was a turning point not just in WWII but in world history. It meant the end to Japan's plan for Pacific domination and meant instead that the USA would become the dominant power here for a long time.

During World War II, the causes of the Battle of Midway were two in number. First, on the Japanese side, the intent was to seize Midway Island as a forward-base that would serve both offensive and defensive capabilities. Second, on the American side, the intent was to prevent this seizure while also dealing the Japanese navy a decisive defeat.

According to the related question, "How many people died in the Bpxrvtattle of Midway?", about 300.

The USA and Japan

June 4

The US in some ways laid a trap. They had broken much of the Imperial Japanese Naval Code, and sent an uncoded message indicating that Midway was short of fresh water. The Japanese picked up the message and relayed it back.

The US fortified the island and sent a fleet of carriers, including some that the Japanese thought had already been sunk.

Naval Intelligence confirmed that an Invasion Fleet was headed there and the US Navy was determined to defend the Island. It attacked the covering fleet and the Invasion Fleet could no longer proceed without air support. It sailed home.

Attack on Pearl Harbor

The Battle of Midway (June 4-7, 1942) was an important turning point in World War II. The Japanese sent a majority of their navy towards Midway island, which was being used by the US as an airfield. It was fought by aircraft launched from aircraft carriers. Four Japanese fleet carriers were lost along with their crew. The US lost the carrier Yorktown. In the end, the Japanese had to turn back their fleets after losing vital air superiority.

More precisely, the Battle of Midway was one part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's planned eastern Pacific campaign for 1941. The overall goal of the Midway battle for the IJN was to draw out the remaining US naval forces and annihilate them, using the temporary superiority of the IJN to insure success. Capture of Midway Atoll would also provide support for harassment and possible capture of the Hawaiian Islands by the Japanese.

Unfortunately for the Japanese, the US Navy was able to break several of their secret communications codes, and was able to learn of the Japanese battle plan. Able to hurriedly repair the USS Yorktown (which the Japanese thought would remain in the repair yard for at least another month), the US was able to scrape together a force of 3 carriers to the IJN's 4 carriers. While the battle would be fought with the balance of forces favoring the Japanese, the US was able to commit considerably more to the fight than the Japanese estimated.

While superior knowledge of the enemy's battle plan provided a considerable advantage for the US, the actual battle was heavily determined by luck. Several questionable decisions on the part of the Americans turned out to be the correct thing to do, and conversely, several debatable decisions of the Japanese turned out to be the wrong choice.

In the end, though a combination of good planning, aggressive leadership, and good luck, the US won a decisive victory, trading 1 carrier and 1 destroyer for 4 carriers and 1 heavy cruiser. Another decisive factor in favor of the Americans was that while most of the downed US aircrews were recovered by rescue planes, almost all of the lost Japanese aircrews were drowned. These highly experienced and effective aircrews were never to really be replaced by the IJN - in fact, the loss of aircrew at Midway was almost 1/3 of the entire IJN's available aircrews.

The Battle of Midway is seen as the "high water mark" of the Japanese expansion in WW2 - from then on, the Japanese were on the defensive, and would only lose territory.

The Battle of Midway, fought near the Central Pacific island of Midway, is considered the decisive battle of the war in the Pacific. Before this battle the Japanese were on the offensive, capturing territory throughout Asia and the Pacific. By their attack, the Japanese had planned to capture Midway to use as an advance base, as well as to entrap and destroy the US Pacific Fleet. Because of communication intelligence successes, the US Pacific Fleet surprised the Japanese forces, sinking the four Japanese carriers, that had attacked Pearl Harbor only six months before, while only losing of one carrier. After Midway, the Americans and their Allies took the offensive in the Pacific.

USN decisive victory.
The Americans decoded a radio message of the Japanese plans and ambushed them

In the midway battle the American planes and ship defeated the Japanese ones.

There were no escort carriers at the Battle of Midway. The American carriers at Midway were the USS Yorktown, CV-5; USS Enterprise, CV-6; & USS Hornet, CV-8, all of the "Yorktown" class. Richard V. Horrell WW 2 Connections.com Here is a complete list of US warships at Midway, Battle of Midway: 4-7 June 1942: United States Pacific Fleet and Pacific Ocean Areas Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN, Commander in Chief Carrier Striking Force Rear Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher, USN Task Force 17 (TF 17) Rear Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher, USN Task Group 17.5 (TG 17.5) Carrier Group Capt. Elliot Buckmaster, USN USS Yorktown (CV-5) -Capt. Elliot Buckmaster, USN (Yorktown was damaged by Japanese aircraft during the Battle of Midway, 4 June 1942, and sank after being torpedoed by Japanese submarine I-168, 7 June 1942). USS Yorktown Air Group - Lt. Comdr. Oscar Pederson, USN Fighting Squadron 3 (VF-3) Lt. Comdr. John S. Thatch, USN 25 Grumman F4F-4 (Wildcat) Bombing Squadron 3 (VB-3) Lt. Comdr. Maxwell F. Leslie, USN 18 Douglas SBD- 3 (Dauntless) Scouting Squadron 3 (VS-3) Lt. Wallace C. Short Jr., USN 19 Douglas SBD-3 (Dauntless) Torpedo Squadron 3 (VT-3) Lt. Comdr. Lance E. Massey, USN 13 Douglas TBD-1 (Devastator) Task Group 17.2 (TG 17.2) Cruiser Group Rear Admiral William W. Smith, USN USS Astoria (CA-34) USS Portland (CA-33) Task Group 17.4 (TG 17.4) Destroyer Screen Capt. Gilbert C. Hoover, USN Commander Destroyer Squadron 2 (Comdesron 2) USS Hammann (DD-412) - torpedoed and sunk by Japanese submarine I-168 following the Battle of Midway, 6 June 1942. USS Hughes (DD-410) USS Morris (DD-417) USS Anderson (DD-411) USS Russell (DD-414) USS Gwin (DD-433) Task Force 16 (TF 16) Rear Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, USN Task Group 16.5 (TG 16.5) Carrier Group Capt. George D. Murray, USN USS Enterprise (CV-6) Capt. George D. Murray, USN USS Enterprise Air Group - Lt. Comdr. Clarence W. McClusky, USN Fighting Squadron 6 (VF-6) Lt. James S. Gray, USN 27 Grumman F4F-4 (Wildcat) Bombing Squadron 6 (VB-6) Lt. Richard H. Best, USN 19 Douglas SBD-2 and SBD-3 (Dauntless) Scouting Squadron 6 (VS-6) Lt. Wilmer E. Gallaher, USN 19 Douglas SBD-2 and SBD-3 (Dauntless) Torpedo Squadron 6 (VT-6) Lt. Comdr. Eugene E. Lindsey, USN 14 Douglas TBD-1 (Devastator) USS Hornet (CV-8) Capt. Marc A. Mitscher, USN USS Hornet Air Group - Lt. Comdr. Stanhope C. Ring, USN Fighting Squadron 8 (VF-8) Lt. Comdr. Samuel G. Mitchell, USN 27 Grumman F4F-4 (Wildcat) Bombing Squadron 8 (VB-8) Lt. Comdr. Robert R. Johnson, USN 19 Douglas SBD-2 and SBD-3 (Dauntless) Scouting Squadron 8 (VS-8) Lt. Comdr. Walter F. Rodee, USN 18 Douglas SBD-1, SBD-2, and SBD-3 (Dauntless) Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) Lt. Comdr. John C. Waldron, USN 15 Douglas TBD-1 (Devastator) Task Group 16.2 (TG 16.2) Cruiser Group Rear Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid, USN Commander Cruiser Division 6 (Comcrudiv 6) USS New Orleans (CA-32) USS Minneapolis (CA-36) USS Vincennes (CA-44) USS Northampton (CA-26) USS Pensacola (CA-24) USS Atlanta (CL-51) Task Group 16.4 (TG 16.4) Destroyer Screen Capt. Alexander R. Early, USN Commander Destroyer Squadron 1 (Comdesron 1) USS Phelps (DD-360) USS Worden (DD-352) USS Monaghan (DD-354) USS Aylwin (DD-355) Destroyer Squadron 6 (Desron 6) Capt. Edward P. Sauer, USN USS Balch (DD-363) USS Conyngham (DD-371) USS Benham (DD-397) USS Ellet (DD-398) USS Maury (DD-401) Oiler Group USS Cimarron (AO-22) USS Platte (AO-24) USS Dewey (DD-349) USS Monssen (DD-436) Submarines Rear Admiral Robert H. English, USN Commander Submarine Force Pacific Fleet (ComSubPac) Pearl Harbor, Hawaii Task Group 7.1 (TG 7.1) Midway Patrol Group USS Cachalot (SS-170) USS Flying Fish (SS-229) USS Tambor (SS-198) USS Trout (SS-202) USS Grayling (SS-209) USS Nautilus (SS-168) USS Grouper (SS-214) USS Dolphin (SS-169) USS Gato (SS-212) USS Cuttlefish (SS-171) USS Gudgeon (SS-211) USS Grenadier (SS-210) Task Group 7.2 (TG 7.2) "Roving Short-Stops" USS Narwhal (SS-167) USS Plunger (SS-179) USS Trigger (SS-237) Task Group 7.3 (TG 7.3) North of Oahu Patrol USS Tarpon (SS-175) USS Pike (SS-173) USS Finback (SS-230) USS Growler (SS-215) Shore-Based Air, Midway Capt. Cyril T. Simard, USN Patrol Wing 1 Detachment (Patwing 1 Det) Comdr. Massie Hughes, USN Patrol Wing 2 Detachment (Patwing 2 Det) Lt. Comdr. Robert Brixner, USN 32 Consolidated PBY-5 and PBY-5A (Catalina) Torpedo Squadron 8 Detachment (VT-8 Det) Lt. Langdon K. Fieberling, USN 6 Grumman TBF (Avenger) Marine Aircraft Group 22 (MAG 22) 2ND Marine Air Wing Lt. Col. Ira L. Kimes, USMC Marine Fighting Squadron 221 (VMF-221) Maj. Floyd B. Parks, USMC Capt. Kirk Armistead, USMC 20 Brewster F2A-3 (Buffalo) 7 Grumman F4F-3 (Wildcat) Marine Scouting-Bombing Squadron 241 (VMSB-241) Maj. Lofton R. Henderson, USMC Maj. Benjamin W. Norris, USMC Capt. Marshall A. Tyler, USMC 11 Vought SB2U-3 (Vindicator) 16 Douglas SBD-2 (Dauntless) Seventh Army Air Force Detachment Major General Willis P. Hale, USA Capt. James F. Collins, USA 4 Martin B-26 (Marauder) Lt. Col. Walter C. Sweeney Jr., USA 13 Boeing B-17 (Flying Fortress) Maj. G.A. Blakey, USA: 6 Boeing B-17 (Flying Fortress) Midway Local Defenses Capt. Cyril T. Simard, USN 6TH Marine Defense Battalion (reinforced), Fleet Marine Force, Col. Harold D. Shannon, USMC Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron 1 (MBTRON 1) Lt. Clinton McKellar Jr., USN Midway Island: PT-20 PT-21 PT-22 PT-24 PT-25 PT-26 PT-27 PT-28 Kure Island: MBTRON 1 detachment: PT-29, PT-30. Also 4 small Patrol Craft deployed along lesser reefs and islands of Hawaiian Group French Frigate Shoals: USS Thornton (AVD-11) USS Ballard (AVD-10) USS Clark (DD-361) USS Kaloli (AOG-13) Pearl and Hermes Reef: USS Crystal (PY-25) USS Vireo (ATO-144) Lisianski, Gardner Pinnacles, Laysan and Necker 4 YPs (converted tuna boats) Midway Refueling Unit, Comdr. Harry R. Thurber, USN: USS Guadalupe, USS Blue (DD-387), USS Ralph Talbot (DD-390) USS Long Island (CVE-1) was with Battle Group1 under Adm Pye. We were the back-up,5 old BBs 1 CA and 5 DDs We were too slow to join the CVs only 17 knots. If the Japs won at Midway we were to try to stop them from hitting Hawaii and San Francisco. The Jap Carriers would have sunk us all, but without carriers we would have had very good chance We were 1200 miles NW of SFO

Thousands of sailors were on each of the four carriers they lost, and most of them died.

And in addition to losing the men on the four aircraft carriers, well over 200 highly experienced and irreplaceable Japanese naval aviators were lost.

According to some sources, the Imperial Japanese Navy lost a total of approximately 2,155 sailors and airmen during the Battle of Midway.

However, according to Sawachi Hisae's "Midowei Kaisen: Kiroku", which tabulates the name, rank, birth province, age at time of death, and term of service (as compiled from Japanese prefectural records), there were exactly 3,057 Japanese casualties, including one civilian technician assigned to Soryu.

The end result of the battle was that Japan's march of expansion was halted and the strategic initiative in the Pacific would now pass to the United States.

If you are referring to Lt. Col. Jack Cosley, USMC of VMSB 241, then you may wish to read: Incredible Victory The Battle of Midway, By Walter Lord Also, any books on Marine Corps Aviation during WW 2. Richard V. Horrell WW 2 Connections.com

No. Canada played very little part in the Pacific war. Their resources were directed to the European theater.

US SHIPS: * Three aircraft carriers: Hornet, Enterprise, Yorktown * Eight cruisers * Fourteen Destroyers * Some submarines shielding the fleet (but not in the battle itself)

Main weapons used were Destroyers, Cruisers and Aircraft Carriers coleman