_UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II_
Pictorial Record
Second Edition
THE WAR AGAINST JAPAN
[Illustration]
CENTER OF MILITARY HISTORY
UNITED STATES ARMY
WASHINGTON, D.C., 2006
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hunter, Kenneth E.
The war against Japan.--2d ed.
p. cm.--(United States Army in World War II. Pictorial record)
“The text was written and the photographs compiled by
Capt. Kenneth E. Hunter and Miss Margaret E. Tackley” Foreword.
Includes index.
1. World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Japan--Pictorial works.
2. World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Pacific Ocean--Pictorial works.
3. World War, 1939-1945--Campaigns--Pacific Area--Pictorial works.
I. Tackley, Margaret E. II. Center of Military History. III.
Title. IV. Series.
D767.H85 2006
940.53’52 dc22
2006014728
First Printed 1952--CMH Pub 12-1
For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government
Printing Office
Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800;
DC area (202) 512-1800
Fax: (202) 512-2250 Mail: Stop IDCC, Washington, DC 20402-0001
ISBN 0-16-076546-3
Foreword
To the Second Edition
This collection of 500-plus pictures dramatically enhances the written
record of World War II in the Pacific Theater. The images freeze in
place the soldiers, the weapons, the operations, the geography, and the
tenor of the moment. Maj. Gen. Orlando Ward’s foreword to the first
edition (_see next page_) describes this visual dimension as essential
to fully understanding military history. _The War Against Japan_ was
one of the first volumes in the United States Army in World War II
series, and it has stood the test of time. The book has also served as
a useful resource for anyone seeking to illustrate this stage of the
war.
Although this second edition keeps all the original photographs,
captions, and short narrative historical introductions in each section,
the Center of Military History has taken several steps to improve
the appearance, currency, and utility of the book. New prints of all
existing photographs ensure their clarity, replacing the old printing
negatives with greatly improved examples. The Center staff also removed
outdated references and developed an appendix that provides more
detailed information on sources and photograph cataloging numbers. I
hope this information will further assist those involved in research or
seeking to obtain their own prints.
In visually documenting the World War II experience, this volume has
proven to be an invaluable collection. By publishing this upgraded
edition, the Center hopes to revive and expand the book’s effectiveness
in promoting an awareness of the determination, courage, and sacrifices
of the American soldier in World War II.
Washington, D.C. JEFFREY J. CLARKE
15 May 2006 Chief of Military History
Foreword
During World War II the photographers of the United States armed forces
created on film a pictorial record of immeasurable value. Thousands
of pictures are preserved in the photographic libraries of the armed
services but are little seen by the public.
In the narrative volumes of UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II, now
being prepared by the Office of the Chief of Military History of the
United States Army, it is possible to include only a limited number of
pictures. Therefore, a subseries of pictorial volumes, of which this
is the last, has been planned to supplement the other volumes of the
series. The photographs have been especially selected to show important
terrain features, types of equipment and weapons, living and weather
conditions, military operations, and matters of human interest. These
volumes will preserve and make accessible for future reference some
of the best pictures of World War II. An appreciation not only of the
terrain upon which actions were fought, but also of its influence on
the capabilities and limitations of weapons in the hands of both our
troops and those of the enemy, can be gained through a careful study of
the pictures herein presented. These factors are essential to a clear
understanding of military history.
The text was written and the photographs compiled by Capt. Kenneth E.
Hunter and Miss Margaret E. Tackley; the volume was edited by Miss Mary
Ann Bacon. The book deals with the Pacific Theater of Operations and is
divided into six sections: (1) The Allied Defensive; (2) The Strategic
Defensive and Tactical Offensive; (3) The Offensive--1944; (4) The
Final Phase; (5) The China-Burma-India Theater; and (6) The Collapse of
Japan and the End of the War in the Pacific. Each section is arranged
in chronological order. All dates used are local dates, and it should
be remembered that all dates west of the International Date Line are
one day ahead of those east of the line. For example, 7 December 1941
at Pearl Harbor is the same day as 8 December 1941 in the Philippines.
The written text has been kept to a minimum. Each section is preceded
by a brief introduction recounting the major events which are set down
in detail in the individual narrative volumes of UNITED STATES ARMY IN
WORLD WAR II. The appendixes give information as to the abbreviations
used and the sources of the photographs.
Washington, D.C. ORLANDO WARD
3 January 1952 Maj. Gen., USA
Chief of Military History
United States Army in World War II
_Advisory Committee_
(As of May 2006)
Jon T. Sumida
University of Maryland
Brig. Gen. Patrick Finnegan
U.S. Military Academy
Lt. Gen. Anthony R. Jones
U.S. Army Training and
Doctrine Command
Adrian R. Lewis
University of North Texas
Brian M. Linn
Texas A&M University
Howard Lowell
National Archives and Records Administration
Col. Craig Madden
U.S. Army War College
Joyce E. Morrow
Administrative Assistant to the
Secretary of the Army
Ronald H. Spector
The George Washington University
Brig. Gen. Volney Warner
U.S. Army Command and General Staff College
_U.S. Army Center of Military History_
Jeffrey J. Clark, Chief of Military History
Chief, Histories Division Richard W. Stewart
Editor in Chief Keith R. Tidman
Contents
_Section_ _Page_
I. THE ALLIED DEFENSIVE 2
II. THE STRATEGIC DEFENSIVE AND
TACTICAL OFFENSIVE 76
III. THE OFFENSIVE--1944 213
IV. THE FINAL PHASE 328
V. THE CHINA-BURMA-INDIA THEATER 412
VI. THE COLLAPSE OF JAPAN AND THE END OF
THE WAR IN THE PACIFIC 443
APPENDIX A: LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 463
APPENDIX B: LIST OF PICTORIAL SOURCES 464
INDEX 475
.. to Those Who Served
THE ALLIED DEFENSIVE
SECTION I
The Allied Defensive[1]
Before 7 December 1941, while war was actively being waged in Europe
and the Far East, the United States, still a neutral, was expanding
its manufacturing facilities to meet the demands for additional war
materials, both for the growing U.S. forces and those of the Allies.
On 7 December the Japanese struck Pearl Harbor in an attempt to so
cripple U.S. naval power that future Japanese conquest and occupation
in the Pacific would meet with little or no opposition. This attack
dealt a serious blow to Navy and Army Air Forces units stationed in
the Hawaiian Islands. On the same day two Japanese destroyers attacked
the island of Midway, but were beaten off by the defending troops. On
8 December Wake was assaulted. The attacks on Wake were continued for
two weeks and the small U.S. garrison was forced to surrender on 23
December. Another weak garrison on the island of Guam, unable to resist
the enemy attacks, fell on 10 December.
[1] See Louis Morton, _The Fall of the Philippines_, Washington, D.C.,
1953, in the series U.S. ARMY IN WORLD WAR II.
Early on the morning of 8 December the U.S. forces in the Philippines
were notified that a state of war existed and a full war alert was
ordered. On the same day the first Japanese aerial attack on the
Philippines took place. This was followed by others and on 10 December
enemy landings were made on Luzon. Expecting an early victory, the
Japanese sent a large force, but it was not until 6 May 1942 that the
Japanese were able to conquer the American and Filipino defenders who
fought a delaying action down the Bataan Peninsula and made a final
stand on the island of Corregidor. All military resistance ended in
the rest of the Philippine Islands by 17 May except for small bands
of guerrillas who continued to fight the enemy until 1945 when the
U.S. forces landed in the Philippines. In March 1942 the commander
of the United States Army Forces in the Far East was ordered to move
to Australia by the President of the United States. Troops from
the United States began arriving in Australia in December 1941 for
the build-up in preparation for the defense of Allied bases and the
recapture of enemy-held islands and bases in the Pacific.
While some Japanese forces were carrying out the attacks in the
Pacific, others were overrunning Malaya, North Borneo, and Thailand.
After eighteen days of fighting Hong Kong was captured on 25 December
1941. Thailand, unable to resist the Japanese, agreed to co-operate
with them. Early in 1942 the Japanese took Borneo and by 15 February
the British garrison in Malaya capitulated. In the Netherlands East
Indies the U.S. Navy inflicted damage on an enemy convoy in the Battle
of Makassar Strait, the first important surface action of the war for
the U.S. Navy. On 9 March 1942 formal surrender by the Dutch ended all
resistance in the Netherlands East Indies. By these conquests in Asia
and the Pacific, the Japanese gained valuable territory rich in natural
resources and were ready to expand in other directions.
During the first six months of 1942 the U.S. Navy fought the Japanese
Navy in the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway, and
raided the Marshall and Gilbert Islands. Army Air Forces medium bombers
took off from a carrier at sea and bombed Tokyo in April 1942 in a
surprise attack. As part of the Midway operations in June, planes of
the Japanese Navy bombed U.S. installations in Alaska and enemy troops
landed in the Aleutian Islands on Attu and Kiska.
The Allied defensive phase of the war in the Pacific ended on 6 August
1942, with the Allies ready to strike the enemy-held islands in the
South Pacific.
HAWAII
[Illustration]
HAWAII
[Illustration: INFANTRYMEN DURING A FIELD INSPECTION in the Hawaiian
Islands, January 1941. From 1935 on the U.S. garrison in the Hawaiian
Islands was larger than any other American overseas outpost. However,
by 1940 there was a shortage of modern equipment and trained personnel,
and not until February 1941 did troop reinforcements and up-to-date
equipment begin to arrive in Hawaii. The United States was not
prepared for war and the men and equipment did not meet the necessary
requirements.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: COAST ARTILLERY BATTERY training in Hawaii. Man at left
is placing a round in the manual fuze setter of a 3-inch antiaircraft
gun M1917M2. A plan for the defense of the Hawaiian Islands had been
set up and joint maneuvers (land, air, and naval forces) were held
periodically to test the various security measures.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: 4.2-INCH CHEMICAL MORTAR CREW in action during maneuvers
(top); 75-mm. gun M1917A1 in a camouflaged position (bottom). As in
all U.S. military commands, the Hawaiian Department was faced with the
problem of training the largely inexperienced forces available at the
time.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: BROWNING ANTIAIRCRAFT MACHINE GUN on a runway at Wheeler
Field, Oahu, in the Hawaiian Islands. Early in December 1941 all the
U.S. troops, including antiaircraft batteries, were returned to their
stations from field maneuvers to await the signal for riot duty.
Trouble was expected, and while Japanese diplomats in Washington talked
peace, their Pearl Harbor Striking Force was moving eastward toward
Hawaii. During this movement the fleet maintained radio silence and was
not detected as it approached the islands. (.50-caliber antiaircraft
machine gun, water-cooled, flexible.)]
HAWAII
[Illustration: FLYING FORTRESSES, Boeing B 17C heavy bombers, burning
at Hickam Field, Oahu, on 7 December 1941 (top); wreckage at the
Naval Air Station at Pearl Harbor, after the enemy attack, 7 December
(bottom). At 0730 on 7 December the first waves of Japanese aircraft
struck the U.S. defenses. Although a few U.S. fighter planes managed to
get into the air and destroyed some of the Japanese planes, the attack
wrought severe damage. After neutralizing the airfields the Japanese
struck at the U.S. Navy warships in the harbor.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: THE DESTROYER USS _SHAW_ EXPLODING during the attack
on Pearl Harbor, 7 December. The first attack on the U.S. warships
anchored in the harbor was delivered at 0758. By 0945 all the Japanese
aircraft had left Oahu and returned to their carriers. The U.S. Pacific
Fleet suffered a major disaster during the attack which lasted one
hour and fifty minutes. Sunk or damaged during the attack were the
destroyers _Shaw_, _Cassin_, and _Dowries_; the mine layer _Oglala_;
the target ship _Utah_; and a large floating drydock. Also hit were the
light cruisers _Helena_, _Honolulu_, and _Raleigh_; the seaplane tender
_Curtis_; and the repair ship _Vestal_.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: U.S. BATTLESHIPS HIT AT PEARL HARBOR. Left to right:
_West Virginia_, _Tennessee_, and _Arizona_ (top); the _West Virginia_
aflame (bottom).]
HAWAII
[Illustration: DAMAGED WARSHIPS. The U.S. destroyers _Dowries_, left,
and _Cassin_, right, and the battleship _Pennsylvania_, in background,
shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Of the eight battleships hit,
the _Arizona_ was a total loss; the _Oklahoma_ was never repaired; the
_California_, _Nevada_, _West Virginia_, _Pennsylvania_, _Maryland_,
and _Tennessee_ were repaired and returned to service. The slight
depth of Pearl Harbor made possible the raising and refitting of these
ships.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: DESTROYED CURTIS P 40 FIGHTER PLANE at Bellows Field
(top); wrecked planes at Wheeler Field after the 7 December attack
(bottom). Of the Army’s 123 first-line planes in Hawaii, 63 survived
the attack; of the Navy’s 148 serviceable combat aircraft, 36 remained.
Only one small airfield on the north shore near Haleiwa was overlooked
during the raid.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: JAPANESE MIDGET SUBMARINE which ran aground on the beach
outside Pearl Harbor, 7 December. Early on the morning of 7 December at
least one Japanese submarine was reconnoitering inside Pearl Harbor,
having slipped past the antisubmarine net. After making a complete
circuit of Ford Island the submarine left the harbor and later ran
aground on the beach where it was captured intact.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: DESTROYED HANGAR AT HICKAM FIELD, 7 December. During
the attack the Army lost 226 killed and 396 wounded; the Navy,
including the Marine Corps, lost 3,077 killed and 876 wounded. The
Japanese attack was entirely successful in accomplishing its mission,
and the U.S. forces were completely surprised both strategically and
tactically.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: SOLDIERS LEAVING PIER to board trucks for Schofield
Barracks, Honolulu. As a result of the disaster at Pearl Harbor,
the Hawaiian command was reorganized. There was little enemy
activity in the Central Pacific after the 7 December attack. The
Japanese had seized Wake and Guam and were concentrating on their
southern campaigns. As the build-up of men and equipment progressed,
reinforcements began to pour into Hawaii for training and shipment to
Pacific stations.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: CONSTRUCTION WORK AT WHEELER FIELD, 11 December 1941.
After the Japanese raid many destroyed or damaged buildings were
rebuilt.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: ARMY TROOPS IN LCP(L)’S, during an amphibious training
exercise, leave Oahu for a beach landing. After the entry of the United
States into World War II training was intensified, and specialized
training in amphibious landings was given the troops arriving in the
Hawaiian Islands since most of the islands to be taken later would have
to be assaulted over open beaches. In February 1943 the Amphibious
Training Area, Waianae, Oahu, was activated for training units in
amphibious landings. LCP(L)’s had no bow ramp for disembarking troops.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: DEPLOYING FOR ADVANCE INLAND after landing on the
beach. During the war more than 250,000 men were given instruction in
amphibious assault operations.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: U.S. LIGHT TANK M2A2 during maneuvers on Oahu, 1942.
This light tank with twin turrets, one containing a .50-caliber machine
gun and the other a .30-caliber machine gun, was first manufactured in
1935. In December 1942, when it was declared obsolete, there were 234
left in the Army. The M2A2 light tank is a good example of the type of
equipment available shortly after the entry of the United States into
World War II.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: LIGHT TANK M3 being refueled during jungle maneuvers.
This tank, which replaced earlier light tank models, had as its
principal weapon a 37-mm. gun.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: A BATTERY OF 105-MM. HOWITZERS M2A1 firing during
maneuvers (top); ordnance men repairing small arms (bottom). Two men
are holding .45-caliber automatic pistols M1911; in the vice on the
table is a .30-caliber Browning automatic rifle M1918A2; on the table
are two .30-caliber rifles M1.]
HAWAII
[Illustration: MEN CLEANING A 3-INCH ANTIAIRCRAFT GUN M3 (top); members
of a machine gun crew operating a Browning machine gun HB .50-caliber,
flexible (bottom).]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: PHILIPPINE ISLANDS]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: MORTAR SQUAD ASSEMBLING AN 81-MM. MORTAR M1 during
training in the Philippine Islands in 1941 (top). New recruits are
given instruction in use of the Browning .30-caliber machine gun
M1917A1 (bottom). In 1936 a program for national defense was initiated
in the Philippine Islands. A military mission of U.S. officers was
charged with the organization and training of Filipino regular troops.
In July 1941 the Philippine Army was ordered into the service of the
Army of the United States and U.S. troops were sent to the islands from
the United States.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: FILIPINO TROOPS training with a 37-mm. antitank gun M3.
As a result of the war warning to all overseas garrisons on 27 November
1941, the U.S. forces in the Philippines went on a full war alert.
Over a period of years the Japanese had collected a valuable store of
information about the Philippines and planned to occupy the Philippine
Islands, eliminating all U.S. troops there.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: LOADING A BAMBOO RAFT before crossing a river during
maneuvers (top), troops and mules preparing to swim a river (bottom).
By December 1941 U.S. ground forces in the Philippines numbered about
110,000, of which a little over 10,000 were U.S. personnel. The
remainder were Philippine scouts, constabulary, and Philippine Army
troops. As in the Hawaiian garrison, the hastily mobilized army lacked
training and modern equipment.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: ENGINEER TROOPS stand ready to place sections of a
ponton bridge in position during a river-crossing maneuver in the
Philippines, 1941.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: TROOPS CROSSING the newly constructed ponton bridge.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: CAVITE NAVY YARD, Luzon, during a Japanese aerial
attack. Early on the morning of 8 December 1941 the Japanese struck
the Philippine Islands. By the end of the first day the U.S. Army Air
Forces had lost half of its bombers and a third of its fighter planes
based there. During the morning of 10 December practically the entire
Navy yard at Cavite was destroyed by enemy bombers. The first Japanese
landings on Luzon also took place on 10 December. On 14 December
the remaining fourteen U.S. Army bombers were flown to Port Darwin,
Australia, and the ships that were undamaged after the attack were
moved south.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: RESIDENTS OF CAVITE evacuating the city after the
Japanese bombing raid of 10 December. After the destruction of the
Navy yards at Cavite, the remaining 11 naval patrol bombers were flown
to the Netherlands East Indies. The ground forces were left with
little or no air support. The Japanese, having control of the air over
the Philippines, began to mass their troops for the capture of the
islands.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: MEDIUM BOMBERS, B 18’S (top) and pursuit planes, P 36’s
(bottom) of the U.S. Far East Army Air Force attack infantry troops
during 1941 maneuvers in the Philippines. When the Japanese attacked
the Philippine Islands the United States had some 300 aircraft in the
Far East Air Force, but of these only 125 were suitable for combat. The
300 planes represented over 10 percent of the total U.S. air strength
at this time. The pilots and crews were well trained and lacked only
combat experience.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: JAPANESE ADVANCING during the drive on Manila. The
medium tank is a Type 94 (1934), with a 57-mm. gun with a free traverse
of 20 degrees right and left. It had a speed of 18 to 20 miles an hour,
was manned by a crew of 4, weighed 15 tons, and was powered by a diesel
engine.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: CAMOUFLAGED 155-MM. GUN M1918 (GPF) parked on the
Gerona-Tarlac road, December 1941. The Japanese forces moved down
Luzon forcing the defending U.S. troops to withdraw to the south. On
30 December a large-scale attack was launched and the U.S. troops
were driven back ten miles to Gapan. After another enemy attack they
fell back twenty miles farther. A secondary enemy attack at Tarlac
failed to achieve important gains. The northern U.S. force protected
the withdrawal of the southern force by a delaying action. All troops
were beginning to converge in the vicinity of Manila and the Bataan
Peninsula.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: AERIAL VIEW OF CORREGIDOR ISLAND off the tip of Bataan.
On 25 December, Headquarters, United States Army Forces in the Far
East, was established on Corregidor. Manila was declared an open city
on the following day and the remains of the naval base at Cavite were
blown up to prevent its supplies from falling into enemy hands.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: TANK OBSTACLES AND BARBED WIRE strung to delay the enemy
advance on Bataan (top); members of an antitank company in position
on Bataan (bottom). As the Japanese advanced, the defending forces
withdrew toward the Bataan Peninsula. The rugged terrain, protected
flanks, and restricted maneuvering room on Bataan limited the enemy’s
ability to employ large numbers of troops. Preparations for the defense
of the peninsula were intensified and the stocks of supplies were
increased.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: JAPANESE PRISONERS, captured on Bataan, being led
blindfolded to headquarters for questioning. On 1 January 1942 the
Japanese entered Manila and the U.S. troops withdrew toward Bataan.
Army supplies were either moved to Bataan and Corregidor or destroyed.
The remaining forces on Bataan, including some 15,000 U.S. troops,
totaled about 80,000 men. The food, housing, and sanitation problems
were greatly increased by the presence of over 20,000 civilian
refugees. All troops were placed on half-rations.]
MARSHALL ISLANDS AND WAKE
[Illustration: WOTJE ATOLL IN THE MARSHALL ISLANDS during the attack
by a naval task force, February 1942 (top); Wake during an attack by a
Douglas torpedo bomber (TBD) from the aircraft carrier USS _Enterprise_
(bottom). On 1 February the Pacific Fleet of the U.S. Navy began a
series of offensive raids against the most prominent Japanese bases
in the Central Pacific area. The first of the attacks was carried out
against Kwajalein, Taroa, Wotje, and other atolls in the Marshall
Islands, as well as Makin in the Gilbert Islands. On 24 February a task
force made a successful air and naval bombardment against Wake.]
MARCUS ISLAND AND WAKE
[Illustration: PT (MOTOR TORPEDO) BOAT NEAR MARCUS ISLAND, which was
attacked 4 March 1942 (top); U.S. cruiser firing at Wake, 24 February
1942 (bottom). The aircraft carrier _Enterprise_, two cruisers, and
seven destroyers comprised the task force attacking the island of Wake.
The _Enterprise_ and two cruisers were the main ships used during the
Marcus Island attack, 1,200 miles from Japan. Losses to the U.S. forces
during these attacks were light and the effectiveness of the use of
fast, powerful, carrier task forces was demonstrated.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: JAPANESE SOLDIERS FIRING A MACHINE GUN Type 92 (1932)
7.7-mm. heavy machine gun, gas-operated and air-cooled. This was the
standard Japanese heavy machine gun (top). Japanese firing a 75-mm. gun
Type 41 (1908), normally found in an infantry regimental cannon company
(bottom). Called a mountain (infantry) gun, it was replaced by a later
model. Light and easily handled, it was very steady in action. When
used as a regimental cannon company weapon it was issued on the basis
of four per regiment.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: GUN CREW WITH A 3-INCH ANTIAIRCRAFT GUN M2. The U.S.
troops moving southward down Bataan in front of the enemy forces
continued their delaying action as long as possible. The Bataan
Peninsula, 32 miles long and 20 miles across at the widest portion, is
covered with dense woods and thick jungle growth. Through the center
runs a range of mountains. The limited area and difficult terrain made
the fighting more severe and added to the problems of the advancing
Japanese. However, the situation became steadily worse for the
defending troops and on 9 April 1942 the forces were surrendered to the
Japanese.]
TOKYO RAID
[Illustration: B-25’S ON THE FLIGHT DECK of the aircraft carrier USS
_Hornet_ before taking off to bomb Tokyo on 18 April 1942 (top); B-25
taking off from the flight deck of the _Hornet_ (bottom). In a small
combined operation in the western Pacific by the U.S. Navy and the Army
Air Forces, sixteen planes took off from the carrier _Hornet_, 668
nautical miles from Tokyo, to bomb the city for the first time during
the war. The Japanese were completely surprised because, even though
they had received a radio warning, they were expecting Navy planes
which would have to be launched from a carrier closer to Tokyo, and
therefore would not reach the city on 18 April.]
TOKYO RAID
[Illustration: CREW IN CHINA after raiding Tokyo. About noon on 18
April the medium bombers from the _Hornet_ reached Tokyo and nearby
cities. After dropping their bombs they flew on to China where they
ran out of fuel before reaching their designated landing fields. The
crews of only two of the planes fell into Japanese hands. The others
lived in the mountains for about ten days after assembling and were
later returned to the United States. The news of the raid raised morale
in the United States and while the damage inflicted was not great, it
proved to the Japanese that they needed additional bases to the east to
protect the home islands of Japan.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: JAPANESE TROOPS ON BATAAN during the spring of 1942.
The Japanese commander insisted upon unconditional surrender of
all the troops in the Philippines and was furious when he learned
that only the U.S. forces on Bataan Peninsula had surrendered. The
forces on Corregidor held their fire until the captured Bataan troops
were removed from the area. (This picture was reproduced from an
illustration which appeared in a captured Japanese publication.)]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: U.S. PRISONERS ON BATAAN sorting equipment while
Japanese guards look on. Following this, the Americans and Filipinos
started on the Death March to Camp O’Donnell in central Luzon. Over
50,000 prisoners were held at this camp. A few U.S. troops escaped
capture and carried on as guerrillas.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: SOLDIERS IN MALINTA TUNNEL on Corregidor, April 1942.
With food, water, and supplies practically exhausted and no adequate
facilities for caring for the wounded, and with Japanese forces landing
on Corregidor, the situation for the U.S. troops was all but hopeless.
The commander offered to surrender the island forts on Corregidor to
the Japanese. When this was refused and with the remaining troops in
danger of being wiped out, all the U.S. forces in the Philippines were
surrendered to the enemy on 6 May 1942. Couriers were sent to the
various island commanders and by 17 May all organized resistance in the
Philippines had ceased.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: COASTAL DEFENSE GUN on Corregidor (top); 12-inch
mortars on Corregidor (bottom). Corregidor’s armament comprised eight
12-inch guns, twelve 12-inch mortars, two 10-inch guns, five 6-inch
guns, twenty 155-mm. guns, and assorted guns of lesser caliber,
including antiaircraft guns. The fixed gun emplacements were in open
concrete pits and exposed to aerial attack and artillery shelling. The
Japanese kept up strong concentrations of fire against the defenses on
Corregidor until most of the defending guns were knocked out.]
PHILIPPINES
[Illustration: CAPTURED AMERICAN AND FILIPINO TROOPS after the
surrender on Corregidor. The 11,500 surviving troops on Corregidor
became prisoners of war and on 28 May 1942 were evacuated to a prison
stockade in Manila. The fall of Corregidor on 6 May marked the end of
the first phase of enemy operations. The Japanese had bases controlling
routes to India, Australia, and many islands in the Central and South
Pacific and were preparing for their next assaults against the Allies.
(This picture is reproduced from an illustration which appeared in a
captured Japanese publication.)]
CHINA
[Illustration: JAPANESE TROOPS posed in the streets of Shanghai. The
Japanese had been fighting in China since the early 1930’s. During
late 1941 and early 1942 Hong Kong and Singapore fell to the enemy
along with Malaya, North Borneo, and Thailand. Control over the latter
gave Japan rich supplies of rubber, oil, and minerals--resources badly
needed by the Japanese to carry on the offensive against the Allies.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: U.S. TROOPS ARRIVING IN AUSTRALIA. In March the
headquarters of the Allied forces in the Southwest Pacific was
established at Melbourne. The Netherlands East Indies had fallen to the
enemy and it was necessary to build up a force in the Southwest Pacific
area to combat the Japanese threat to Australia. With the Japanese
blocking the sea lanes of the Central Pacific, a new line of supply to
the Far East was established by way of the Fiji Islands, New Caledonia,
and Australia.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: COAST ARTILLERY TROOPS entraining at Melbourne, March
1942. The Japanese air attack on Darwin in February proved that the
north coast of Australia was too open to attack by enemy planes and
thereafter the Allies concentrated their forces along the eastern coast
from Melbourne to Townsville.]
CORAL SEA
[Illustration: AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS _LEXINGTON_ burning after the
Battle of the Coral Sea. The Japanese planned to strengthen their
bases in the Southwest Pacific and to sever the line of communications
between the United States and Australia. One enemy task force, sent
to take Tulagi in the southern Solomons, was attacked at sea and
lost a number of ships, but nevertheless landed troops and captured
Tulagi. Another task force intended for Port Moresby did not reach
its objective because of an attack by U.S. naval forces. This battle,
called the Battle of the Coral Sea, was fought on 7-8 May 1942 and was
the first carrier against carrier battle in history.]
CORAL SEA
[Illustration: SURVIVORS OF THE USS _LEXINGTON_ after the Battle of the
Coral Sea. The _Lexington_ was so badly damaged that she had to be sunk
by torpedoes from U.S. destroyers. Both the U.S. and Japanese Navies
inflicted damage on surface ships and both lost aircraft in the battle.
The opposing forces withdrew at about the same time and the action can
be considered a draw. Following this battle the enemy no longer tried
to send troops to Port Moresby by sea, an advantage to the Allies who
began to develop the area of northeastern Australia and New Guinea.
Instead, the Japanese sent troops overland to drive on Port Moresby and
by 28 July 1942 had captured Kokoda, key to the mountain pass through
the Owen Stanley Range.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: SOLDIERS PRACTICE LOADING into small boats during
training in Australia. Cargo nets on a transport could be used with a
great degree of efficiency as they could accommodate far more troops at
one time than ladders.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: 3-INCH ANTIAIRCRAFT GUN M3 being decontaminated by
members of a coast artillery battery after the gun had been subjected
to mustard gas during training in chemical warfare (top). After firing,
artillerymen open the breech of their 155-mm. howitzer M1918 mounted on
an M1918A3 carriage (bottom).]
MIDWAY
[Illustration: BURNING JAPANESE AIRCRAFT CARRIER during a bombing
attack at the Battle of Midway, 3-6 June 1942. The Japanese Grand
Fleet, comprised of 4 aircraft carriers, 11 battleships, 14 cruisers,
58 destroyers, and all the requisite auxiliaries, left Japan to engage
the U.S. Fleet in a major battle, if possible, and at the same time
to occupy Midway Island. The U.S. Fleet, warned of the impending
attack, divided its ships into two carrier task forces consisting in
all of 3 aircraft carriers, 8 cruisers, and 14 destroyers. Twenty-five
submarines covered all the approaches and heavy and medium bombers were
flown to Midway to supplement the air power on the island.]
MIDWAY
[Illustration: THE AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS _YORKTOWN_ during the attack
(top) and burning (bottom). At the Battle of Midway the _Yorktown_
was badly damaged and while being towed was torpedoed and sunk by an
enemy submarine. After losing all four of its aircraft carriers and 250
planes, the Japanese fleet abandoned the assault and retired from the
scene. During the battle the main body of the fleet had come no closer
than 500 miles to Midway. As in the Battle of the Coral Sea, surface
vessels made no contact during the engagement. The Battle of Midway,
one of the decisive battles in the Pacific, stopped Japanese expansion
to the east, and Midway remained in U.S. hands. The U.S. losses were
one aircraft carrier, one destroyer, and 150 planes. From this time on
the balance of power in the Pacific shifted steadily in favor of the
Allies.]
ALASKA
[Illustration: DUTCH HARBOR, ALASKA, with buildings burning after
the Japanese bombing of June 1942. On 3 and 4 June the Japanese
attacked the Army installations there. Of the two bombings, the first
resulted in little damage, but the second considerably damaged ground
installations. On 4 June the Japanese landed a battalion on Attu,
and on the 6th troops landed on Kiska. Since most of the available
U.S. ships, planes, and trained troops were needed in other areas, no
immediate action was begun to recapture Attu and Kiska. Both the United
States and Japan learned that, because of the extremely bad weather
conditions, this area was one of the most unsuitable in the world for
combat operations and the Aleutians were not used as an important base
for operations.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: MILITARY MOTOR CONVOY IN AUSTRALIA. Great distances
had to be traveled in Australia by rail and motor convoys, many miles
of which were through barren or waste land such as shown in these
photographs.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: AN ARMY NURSE giving an enlisted man an inoculation.
Troops arriving in Australia were prepared for transshipment to the
enemy-held islands during the latter part of 1942. Since the number of
troops in the Southwest Pacific was limited during the early stages,
future operations were based on the movement of air force units from
island to island to gain air superiority, provide cover for the
advancing ground forces, and isolate enemy positions. As the ground
forces moved to a new position, airfields were to be established for
the next jump. Some of the first enemy positions to be taken were near
Port Moresby and in the Solomons.]
AUSTRALIA
[Illustration: COMPLETELY EQUIPPED TROOPS GOING UP A GANGPLANK at
Melbourne to go on the way to their new station in the forward area.
After receiving additional training in Australia, troops were sent out
to carry the offensive to Japanese-held bases.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: TROOPS EN ROUTE TO NEW CALEDONIA; in foreground is a
37-mm. antitank gun M3 (top). Men cleaning their weapons aboard a
transport (bottom). Some troops arrived in New Caledonia directly from
the United States while others went by way of Australia.]
NEW CALENDONIA
[Illustration: ARMY TROOPS ARRIVING AT NOUMÉA, New Caledonia, in March
1942 aboard a transport (top); troops arriving at the dock after
leaving the transport (bottom).]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: TROOPS WEARING GAS MASKS cross a stream under a
protective cover of smoke during maneuvers (top); infantrymen and jeeps
(¼-ton 4×4 truck) crossing a stream during training on New Caledonia,
summer 1942.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: PACK MULE TRAIN of a cavalry unit during training.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: ADVANCE COMMAND POST of an infantry division stationed
on New Caledonia, 1942.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: TYPICAL TERRAIN OF NEW CALEDONIA; the rugged terrain
and dense woods and growth made maneuvering in the Pacific islands
extremely difficult (top). Small infantry bivouac area, showing the
native-type huts occupied by some of the U.S. troops stationed on the
island (bottom).]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: INTERIOR OF A NATIVE-TYPE HUT occupied by U.S. troops
stationed on New Caledonia (top); headquarters building of an infantry
division, New Caledonia (bottom). Huts of this type were used as troop
quarters and as office buildings since the material for construction
was easily accessible and the huts were also an effective camouflage
measure against enemy aerial observation.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: AMPHIBIAN TRUCK, 2½-ton 6×6, nicknamed “the Duck,”
standardized in October 1942, proved to be an extremely valuable
piece of equipment. It could operate on land or water and was often
used to bring supplies ashore where there were no ports or harbors
available for larger craft. Supplies loaded from ships onto the Ducks
could unload at the supply dumps, saving the extra handling involved
when lighters or similar craft were used. This vehicle could carry
approximately 25 men and their equipment or a 5,000-pound payload.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: NATIVE NEW CALEDONIANS unloading mail for troops
stationed on the island. Throughout the Pacific natives were used
whenever possible for construction work on airfields, to transport
supplies and equipment, and in all other types of work calling for
unskilled labor.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: U.S. AND NEW ZEALAND SOLDIERS comparing weapons. The
Australians and New Zealanders took part in a number of the operations
in the Southwest Pacific Area.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: SOLDIER STANDING IN A CAMOUFLAGED FOXHOLE during an
infantry training problem in jungle warfare (top). An Australian sniper
in a camouflaged position during training (bottom). Every effort was
made to teach all troops all methods of jungle warfare so that they
could better combat the enemy who was well trained in jungle fighting
and living.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: MEN OF AN ORDNANCE UNIT ASSEMBLING VEHICLES which had
arrived crated in sections. By October 1942 twenty-five men were
completing six vehicles a day on this assembly line.]
NEW CALEDONIA
[Illustration: ENLISTED MAN CATCHES UP ON LOST SLEEP after spending all
night packing and moving with his regiment to the port of embarkation
in preparation for a move from New Caledonia to another South Pacific
island. The hilt of the saber which shows on the right side of the pack
is that of an Australian cavalry saber issued in lieu of a machete.]
THE STRATEGIC DEFENSIVE
AND
TACTICAL OFFENSIVE