The Battle of Midway

1. The Battle of Midway Rob Lohnes: Images Lloyd Arsenault: Text Andy Murray: Presentation and Summary Matthijs Vanderlee: Powerpoint

2. Battle of Midway Facts • First attack june 4th 1942. • Last attack june 6th 1942. (IVE-bombers from Enterprise and Hornet bombed and sank heavy cruiser Mikuma.) • It ended Japan's dominant naval power over the U.S. • Japanese ships sunk: Akagi, Hiryu, Kaga, Soryu, Mikuma • U.S. ships sunk: USS Yorktown, USS Hammann • Occured 6 months after Pearl Harbour

3. Japanese Shortcomings • Yamamoto expected task force 16 only to exist out of the USS Enterprise and the USS Hornet and believed that the Americans had been demoralized by their defeats over the past 6 months. • Yamamoto didn’t know the U.S. Encrypted the main Japanese naval code. • He expected a quick battle where he would take over the Midway Islands and their military bases. • Because America encrypted the code they know exactly what the attack plan was. • A picket line of Japanese submarines was late getting into position (partly because of Yamamoto's haste), which let the American carriers reach their assembly point northeast of Midway (known as "Point Luck") without being detected. • The U.S.’s task force 16 came with more cruisers than what Yamamoto expected.

4. The Battle - Just after midnight on 4 June, Admiral Nimitz, advised Task Forces 16 and 17 of the course and speed of the Japanese "main body.” Shortly after dawn, a patrol plane spotted two Japanese carriers and their escorts. The first attack on 4 June, however, took place when the four night-flying PBYs attacked the Japanese transports northwest of Midway with one PBY torpedoing fleet tanker AkebonoMaru. Later that morning, Aichi D3A carrier bombers and Nakajima B5N torpedo planes, supported by numerous fighters, bombed Midway Island installations. Although defending U.S. Marine Corps Brewster F2A and Grumman F4F fighters suffered disastrous losses, losing 17 of 26 aloft, the Japanese only inflicted slight damage to the facilities on Midway. Over the next two hours, Japanese fighters on Combat Air Patrol and antiaircraft fire from the Japanese fleet annihilated the repeated attacks by the American aircraft from Marine Corps Douglas SBD and Vought SB2U scout bombers from VMSB-241, Navy Grumman TBF torpedo bombers from VT-8 detachment, and U. S. Army Air Force torpedo-carrying Martin B-26 bombers sent out to attack the Japanese carriers. Army Air Force "Flying Fortresses" likewise bombed the Japanese carrier force without success, although without losses to themselves. Between 0930 and 1030, Douglas TBD torpedo bombers from VT 3, VT-6, and VT-8 on the three American carriers attacked the Japanese carriers. VB-6 and VS-6 "Dauntlesses" from Enterprise bombed and fatally damaged carriers Kaga and Akagi, while VB-3 "Dauntlesses" from Yorktown bombed and wrecked carrierSoryu. The last air attacks of the battle took place on 6 June when dive bombers from Enterprise and Hornet bombed and sank heavy cruiser Mikuma, and damaged destroyers Asashio and Arashio, as well as the cruiser Mogami. At Admiral Spruance's expressed orders, Devastators from VT-6 that accompanied the strike did not attack because of the threat to them from surface antiaircraft fire. After recovering these planes, TF 16 turned eastward and broke off contact with the enemy. Yorktown, suffering from numerous torpedo hits, finally rolled over and sank at dawn on 7 June.

5. Sources • http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/events/wwii-pac/midway/midway.htm • http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/battle_of_midway.htm • http://militaryhistory.about.com/od/worldwari1/p/Midway.htm