I know sometimes I can be pretty hard on the Navy and make it seem like my service has all been attributed to one big mistake. That’s not entirely true. When I was going up for my ESWS qualification and studying the section for Navigation/Administration, I started reading about the Battle of Midway. I heard of it vaguely before, but didn’t really pay much attention to it. After reading it, and further looking it up online, it’s one of the greatest prides I will ever take in calling myself a US Navy Sailor. Seriously, I’m not trying to turn anyone Joe Navy here, but to imagine the Sailors on one of those ships, heading toward what was the largest attack force the Japanese had ever assembled, not sure if they’d make it back home, and eventually taking out FOUR Japanese aircraft carriers, is one of the most inspirational and motivating things I could think of. Yesterday marked the 66th anniversary of this history making event. If you’re unaware of the Battle of Midway, here’s my horrible summary.
Six months after the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor, Admiral Yamamoto, who had devised the attack, drew up a plan to attack Midway Atoll to draw out and destroy the remaining US Pacific Forces. While the US had been able to decrypt the Japanese communication for some time, and were aware the Japanese Imperial Navy was preparing to mount an attack, they were still unaware of where the attack was to take place. Some cryptanalysts believed the Japanese codename “AF” stood for Midway, but were still unsure. Admiral Chester Nimitz, Commander of the Pacific Fleet, had his own beliefs that Hawaii itself could be attacked. As the date of the attack was drawing near, Admiral Nimitz devised a radio deception operation to see if the US could confirm that “AF” was indeed Midway. A plain text message was sent from Midway saying a water distillation plant had suffered a casualty and that the island was essentially running out of water. A day or two later, a Japanese message was intercepted that read “AF is short on water,” confirming the attack was to be against Midway. The battle, for which we were greatly outnumbered, ended with the loss of one of our carriers and a destroyer, and a crushing blow to the Japanese Navy when we destroyed their four aircraft carrier, one heavy cruiser, and hundreds of aviators. This was a turning point of the war, as it gave the US and Japan about the same amount of naval superiority and allowed us to begin our offensive. Another thing to note about Midway is that it was almost fought entirely with air power, changing the way wars at sea would be fought forever.
I also want to note the following inscription about Midway from the World War II memorial in Washington.
“They had no right to win. Yet they did, and in doing so they changed the course of a war … Even against the greatest of odds, there is something in the human spirit - a magic blend of skill, faith and valor - that can lift men from certain defeat to incredible victory.”
– Author Walter Lord
The Sailor’s Creed has the line “I represent the fighting spirit of the Navy, and those who have gone before me…” and this is exactly the type of thing I think of when I really take a minute to realize what I’m saying.
If you have a few minutes to spare, read more about Midway on the Navy Historical website here.
Comments 3
In the top ten “Navy’s Finest Hour” category. No only did wave after wave of flights from those carriers get shot down by the Japanese, but we lost the Yorktown in the process. The IJN lost 4 carriers and Never recovered from the loss. They built these tremendous assets but had no ability to replace the lost ships, men and material. But over confidence led them to push for the destruction of the US carriers thinking we’d negotiate a peace then. Forgetting the Atlantic fleet would have been pulled by FDR to protect Pearl harbor.
A loss at Midway Island would have a paved the way for the Japanese fleet to attack the dry docks and SRF at Pearl. Thus destroying our ability to repair any of the ships previously sunk. Nimitz called it right. Took a big gamble, and showed why the US Navy is the best fighting force in the world.
Posted 07 Jun 2008 at 2:37 am ¶If it wasn’t for those crazily brave pilots flying those TBFs pulling the Japanese fighter coverage low allowing the Navy dive bombers to pick and choose their targets; if it wasn’t for the indecision of Admiral Nagumo at the last minute to debate on whether to wipe out the remaining forces on Midway or to arm his wing to knock out the the US CVs; if it wasn’t for the ability for SRF Hawaii to patch up the Yorktown after the Battle of the Coral Sea to get her back in action in short time; if it wasn’t for the efforts of the crew to keep the Yorktown up that fooled the Japanese pilots that they were attacking the Enterprise or Hornet; if it wasnt for the sharp eyes of the guys in the YBP Catalinas; if it wasn’t for the “out side the box” thinking of the intel guys, Midway would have been a completely different story…a whole team effort.
That blunted the Japanese attempts to cripple the US Navy in the Pacific to force the US to the bargaining table to recognize Japanese power as it was in the Pacific; it wasn’t so much the loss of the ships but the loss of the veteran pilots who had spearheaded the Japanese assault in the Pacific since 1940 that really hampered the Japanese naval air service that allowed the US to dominate in the war…that and our unrestricted submarine warfare that effectively strangled Japan.
Posted 08 Jun 2008 at 3:53 pm ¶I just found this site. Very interesting so far. I’ve been very interested in the Battle of Midway ever since I saw the movie as a kid. Although the movie is inaacurate, it was the jump start that lead me to join up many years later. When I left AB “A” school in Lakehurst, N.J., I got orders to the USS Midway out of Yoko many moons ago. Being a bit of a USN WWII history buff, my “Holy Grail” was realized in Jan. of 91. I was stationed on the Ranger steaming toward the Persian Gulf. We were in a hurry to get there and liberty in Pearl Harbor was cancelled, but we headed to the north of Hawaii. One evening, just before sunset, the CHENG got on the 1MC and announce that we were passing though the area were the Battle of Midway occurred. He then gave a detailed account of the events as I stood in the catwalk staring out over the ocean and imagining the sacrifices made by everyone involved. A very moving experience.
In case anyone wants a good perspective of the events and a great read, pick up Shattered Sword. One of the best books on the subject as far as I’m comcerned.
Posted 02 Aug 2008 at 6:32 am ¶http://www.shatteredswordbook.com/
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