In May 1942, things were going Japan’s way. Its impact has sometimes been attributed to the battle’s devastating impact on the Japanese strike force, which included the loss of four aircraft carriers, nearly 300 planes and as many as 3,000 men, including Japan’s most experienced pilots. All Rights Reserved.Time Life Pictures/US Navy/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images The Japanese were able time and again to inflict frightful damage to US units as the latter attempted to close range for a gun duel.By contrast, problems with the US Mark 14 torpedoes, most notably the exploder, magnetic detonator, and depth-regulation, frustrated American submarine and PT skippers throughout the first two years of war.
But the eastern horizon was growing increasingly dark. The Japanese had tipped the hourglass at Pearl Harbor. By August of 1942, the sand that measured the Japanese Navy’s pre-eminence in the Pacific had all but run out. US shipyards and factories had revved into high gear. Japan’s Imperial Navy had failed to deliver its knockout blow, and U.S. war production was just ramping up, just as Yamamoto feared. The sinking of four fleet carriers, a heavy cruiser, and loss of nearly 250 aircraft manned by veteran pilots could never be made good by the Japanese industrial base or her aviation training pipeline. With the fifth anniversary of the Battle of Midway approaching, the ONI Review publishes the official Japanese action report of this engagement, only now translated under the supervision of the Naval Analysis Division, United States Strategic Bombing Survey, and here available in English for the first time. Conversely, the US Pacific Fleet, not wanting to squander its numerical and power advantage, emphasized a doctrine that looked to avoid night combat.Even after Midway, the Imperial Japanese Navy remained a most formidable opponent. Then, after losing the Battle of Midway, Japan slowly went on the defensive and began losing island after island. The Battle of Midway confirmed the carrier’s emergence as the key naval vessel in World War II, displacing the battleship. Here are five little-known facts about the Battle of Midway, and its impact on A torpedoed Japanese destroyer photographed through the periscope of the U.S.S.
It was a disaster from which the IJN would never fully recover. If successful, Yamamoto believed, the Midway attack would crush the U.S. fleet, winning the Pacific War for Japan. New aircraft designs were entering service or mass production that outclassed any Japanese machines. The US Strategic Bombing Survey reveals that the Japanese began peace feelers shortly after their defeat at Midway in April, '42.
Therefore, the IJN sought to master a doctrine that would largely negate the US advantage in numbers of ships and weight of broadside. Japan’s efforts to establish clear naval and air superiority in the western Pacific first hit a snag in the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942, when the U.S. fleet turned back a Japanese invasion force headed for New Guinea. Japan’s Navy was superbly trained and equipped, excellent in gunnery, and led by experienced and aggressive commanders. This failure would come back to haunt the Japanese in May 1942, when the first major carrier battle took place in the South Pacific. In addition, the Aichi D3A “Val†dive bomber was at least a match for the Douglas SBD Dauntless, and one of the few Japanese aircraft sturdy enough to absorb punishment and survive.F4F-2 Wildcat in early-war markings (left) TBD Devastator launches torpedo in training run (right)Perhaps the biggest advantage the Imperial Japanese Navy held over the US Pacific Fleet in the summer of 1942 was that of training for night surface combat. In contrast, the Japanese ships relied solely on human lookouts, allowing U.S. dive-bombers to remain undetected until virtually the moment they reached attack position.