Naval Analysis of the Battle of Midway - Essay Example

The Battle of Midway A Naval Analysis The battle of midway was a retaliatory attack on Japan by the US after Japan struck Pearl Harbor during the second World War period. This attack occurred between the fourth and seven of June in in the year 1942 six months after the initial attack by Japan on Pearl Harbor. In essence, the US navy pinned down the Japanese Imperial Navy by causing tremendous damage to their fleet. Moreover, historians term the battle as the most significant Pacific Campaign for the war as it was one of the recognized victory by the US navy. This battle was a successful combat as Americans manage to squash four Japanese aircraft belonging to their navy. In essence, this combat was at Midway atoll which was a mid-pacific naval base because of the high water tower visible in the area. In the past, Japan portrayed prowess over the US navy hence making them strike any where that they chose to without seeking consent from the US navy. However, The Battle of Midway created an equal platter for the two naval entities to take deemed offensiveness on one another. With these shallow facts presented, this essay will investigate the Battle of Midway and the significance it had on the historic past of the United States. Background information Primarily, Japan had strong convictions about eliminating US control over the greater Pacific region as a way of allowing themselves to create a larger Asian sphere for prosperity. For them, taking war to the Americans meant that Japan had demoralized them through defeat as a way of gaining upper recognition in the Pacific war. As part of their plan, Japan intended to lure US aircraft fleets into a trap that would allow them to be occupants of Midway on US soil. This action drew influence from the Doolittle Raid that made Japan cautious that facilitated the expansion of their perimeter defense area. However, the operation failed miserably because the US navy broke Japanese naval codes that provided information on the time and location of their deliberated attack 1. In essence, Japan intended to use Midway as a potential combat location that would have furthered attacks n Islands like Fiji and Samoa. In this regard, the forewarning enabled assisted the US in their setting up of a successful ambush of four out of six aircraft carriers as a vengeance plot for their own carriers attacked by Japan. Japanese battle plan As history would present it, the attack mission was under the able leadership of Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku that focused on winning the US over as they had done to Malaya, Phillipines, and Indonesia. However, there resulted internal wrangles between the Imperial Army and the Navy that led to delayed plans for the attack. In due time, the conflict achieved solutions as Yamamoto threatened to resign citing no cooperation from their counterparts. Finally, the two war agencies adopted his hatched plan to the latter. Essentially, Yamamoto was for the idea of destroying US aircraft forces as the country served as the primary hurdle to conquering the pacific. Moreover, the heightening of this concern drew influence from the Doolittle Raid of April 18, 1942 where US targets bombed Japanese cities. From this attack, the Japanese viewed American carriers as merciless threats as they were able to penetrate their territory with ease that tormented the Japanese psychologically. In his attack plan, Yamamoto intended to knock down defenses that existed in Midway and then establish a Japanese owned airbase there. The plan included an assault attack led by Deputy Admiral Nagumo Chuichi and his aircraft carrier from the North West. This would have weakened the forces of defense in Midway to facilitate a strike on US warships. Next in the battle aircraft line would be a battleship with Admiral Yamamoto on-board who was to be the heavy Ferrier of gun powder essential for the war. Additionally, vice admiral Kondo Nobutake was to come from the southwestern and the western side whose role in the battle of Midway was to secure the area in Japan. However, the plan failed before execution as two out of six carriers under the care of Nagomo received assignments to another battle known as the Coral Sea battle. In return, one of the airships had irreparable damages while the other brought out the heavy harm of those on board. Ideally, the preparation for this battle occurred between March and June of the year 1942. The actual Japanese attack On the morning of June 4th off 1942, a fleet of at least a hundred planes commanded by Admiral Nagumo Chuichi launched terror on Midway for almost two hundred and forty miles northwest of the battle area. However, the US had also launched their own offensive attack against the Japanese who were not aware that their planned was no secret2. The seaplanes also patrolled in anticipation of the known Japanese enemy where one reported visual of their oncoming enemy. In anticipation, Midway defenses launched their attack planes after confirmation by a visual approach of the enemy on the radar signal. Additionally, the Marines, Army bombers, and the US navy went out to attack the Japanese fleet that headed straight for Midway. At six fifteen hours, Marine Corps from Midway intercepted the Japanese air strike strike formation where the Japanese applied overwhelming force on retaliating the attack. The Japanese Zero fighters shot down the 221 Squadron which demonstrated how weak the US defense machinery was when it came to confrontation by Japanese Zero3. Subsequently, the US navy lost commanding officer Major Parks Floyd who controlled the attacking VMF-221 that was an intense loss to the navy. Other two Japanese aircraft carriers hit islands surrounding Midway that immense inhabitants at about six thirty hours of the same day. However, this attack did not disable the potential of the airfield despite knocking down a number of facilities on the Eastern Island. Additionally, oil tanks, a sea plane hangar and some buildings on the Sand island caught destructible fire that totally destroyed them. On the radio call, Liutenant Tomonaga asserted that another strike via air was critical in securing Midway for the Japanese to put the area under their controlled authority. The US Navy acquired this information to their advantage. US 4th June attack on the Japanese Carrier force While Japan thought that they had secured Midway, they did not foresee the attack that the US had planned for them. The defenses in Midway hit the Japanese carriers hard through counter strikes that made them suffer uncoordinated efforts. The US defenses present in Midway offended the Japanese air strikes from all angles that included torpedo attacks, marine bombers, and army formation 4. As a result, the Japanese carrier forces plunged into the sea where the documented visible evidence of the carriers were photos from high-flying B-17S. While this was happening, a Japanese scout plane had managed to spot the US fleet and reported to their attack base. At this time, Admiral Nagumo began reloading his attack planes with arms for the second phase of the attack, but had to make room for additional weapons when the news of the attack hit their base. In a counter approach, the admiral reorganized flight decks intended to attack Midway through US ships and Japanese anti-ship weaponry. Arguably, Nagumo barely missed the target when it came to war related attacks on their opponents in a battle. In the hours that followed, US Navy planes that included the Hornet, Enterprise, and the Yorktown facilitated attacks that did not achieve target hits. However, this attack managed to cripple Japanese efforts for a period of time before they could release further attacks to Midway. The Japanese defense fighters became disorganized and hence could not facilitate immediate airstrike attacks on Midway. In the hours that followed, Akagi, Soryu, and the Kaga Japanese carriers hit the skies where the US set out attacks that led to the defeat of the intended airstrike5. In addition, the last existing operational carrier, the Hiryu, went down as a result of a bomb released by the US carrier aircrafts when they located the location of this Japanese carrier. After hours of deprived air cover, Admiral Yamamoto called off the Midway attack and retreated after six months since the Pacific war with Japan began. Naval action by the US during the June 4th Battle of Midway On the afternoon of the material day, Pensacola made way to provide additional escort to USS Yorktown as it had suffered critical bomb damage6. In essence, the Pensacola was one of the many fleets of TF-16 ships involved in the Battle of Midway that also capture the actual feel of the the damages caused to the Yorktown. The head of operations at that time was Vice Admiral Halsey William who headed the task force that was to confront the Japanese airplanes. Ideally, the Yorktown had suffered intense damages to which those in charge of repair estimated that it would take months before it could be back and running. However, some functions in the aircraft had not suffered great losses that included the elevators and flight deck. In the battlefield, the US picked Japanese approach from a radius of several miles on their radar. This precedented an attack by the US since they could sit and wait for casualties on their side. Most of the US planes suffered damages within the first minutes of the attack but the Japaneses were not successful in neutralized Midway. Major Henderson Lofton fell victim to the initial airstrike attack by Japan while he was riding his squadron into battle space. Later, Guadalcanal took up his name as a sign of honor for his contribution in the securing of Midway (Allen 189). This happened in August of the same year. However, the loss of one of the commanders did not dwindle hope for the US to secure their territory as they engaged using much force than before. Major Fletcher commanded the Yorktown that later suffered as due to miscalculated tactical approach. In essence, Major Fletcher had first hand experience on how to conduct successful air strikes when presented with the opportunity of unavoidable war. This strike was tricky as the American target could not locate the target with ease as initially anticipated. An incorrect direction of two hundred and sixty three degrees rather than two hundred and forty degrees fro the Hornet resulted in futile target disablement results. However, American torpedo attacks succeeded in making Japanese carriers tip off balance, lose combat on the basis of air patrol, and lastly made the Japanese carriers to run on operational fuel. The attack was fruitful as the US used information available in the broken codes to disarm Japanese long planned attack. The US managed to sink a warship that had Admiral Yamaguchi on-board who sunk with it in solidarity with the naval conduct code7. In essence, this proved that US had managed to secure a well-deserved trip as they had managed to cripple combat operations on Japan. Conclusion By the end of the war, the registered fatalities registered on the Japanese side was about three thousand and sixty aboard the four naval carriers and on the heavy cruisers. As a result of their clear victory, American forces pulled back assuring themselves that Japan had stopped underestimating the abilities possessed by the US navy Intel. On the other, matters surrounding the defeat of the Japanese at the battle of Midway remained hidden to the Japanese public where Japanese agencies coated it as a victory for their country. As a result of the defeat, the Japanese navy improved on their war tactics as they adopted advanced war tactics like re-armed flight decks. Further, the Japanese adopted the draining of all unused fuel in their carriers and also inclusion of advanced fire fighting equipment on the flight deck elevators. Additionally, the defeat of the US on the Japanese facilitated advanced training regimen for their replacement pilots as a way of meeting short term fleet needs. Remarkably, the withdrawal of US aircraft fleets signified that Midway had remained under their control and not under that of their sworn enemies. Works Cited Allen, Mark W. Midway Submerged: An Analysis of American and Japanese Submarine Operations at the Battle of Midway, June 1942. Bloomington, IN: iUniverse, Inc, 2011. Print. Carlson, Elliot. Joe Rocheforts War: The Odyssey of the Codebreaker Who Outwitted Yamamoto at Midway. Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press, 2011. Internet resource. Isom, Dallas W. Midway Inquest: Why the Japanese Lost the Battle of Midway. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 2007. Internet resource. Parshall, Jonathan B, and Anthony P. Tully. Shattered Sword: The Japanese Story of the Battle of Midway. Dulles, Va: Potomac, 2007. Print. White, Steve. The Battle of Midway: The Destruction of the Japanese Fleet. New York: Rosen Pub, 2007. Print. Read More