Battle of Midway
The Americans sank four Japanese aircraft carriers off Midway atoll on 4 June 1942 and reversed the Pacific war in a morning. Yamamoto's plan was to take the atoll and, more importantly, to draw the surviving American carriers into a battle he expected to win, since Japan had six months of uninterrupted victories behind it and superior numbers. The plan was elaborate — a diversion at the Aleutians, four separate forces, a picket line of submarines — and depended on surprise. There was none. American cryptanalysts at Pearl Harbor had partially broken the Japanese naval code and identified a target designated AF; a plan to confirm it involved having Midway broadcast in clear that its water distillation had failed, and Japanese traffic duly reported AF short of water. Nimitz positioned three carriers north-east of the island, including Yorktown, patched in three days after being damaged at Coral Sea. The battle turned on about ten minutes. Japanese aircraft were being rearmed on deck after an attack on the island when American torpedo bombers came in low, were nearly annihilated, and pulled the defending fighters down to sea level — leaving the sky above empty when the dive bombers arrived. Three carriers were burning within minutes and the fourth by evening. Japan lost four fleet carriers, a cruiser and over 3,000 men including a large part of its irreplaceable aircrew; the Americans lost Yorktown and a destroyer. Japan never again attacked in the central Pacific. The wrecks of Kaga and Akagi were found in 2019 on the seabed more than five kilometres down. Japan concealed the scale of the defeat from its own government and navy, and the surviving crews were reportedly kept isolated on return.
- Year: 1942 CE
- Category: Military
