The Super Summary of World History - Alan Dale Daniel [206]
We cannot go into all the details of the battle here, but the results were four Japanese fleet carriers burned and sunk, and one American fleet carrier (the damaged Yorktown) was lost to Japanese submarine action after being badly damaged by air attacks. Japanese personnel losses were high as well (over 2,000), and all of those lost were highly trained and experienced flight crew members. Some blame Admiral Nagumo for the loss, complaining he lacked aggressiveness; nevertheless, the planners were actually responsible for the loss, because they cut the striking power of the Japanese carrier fleet by one-half in side show actions at the Coral Sea and the Aleutian Islands. Better luck would have helped the Japanese. One of their critical search planes launched behind schedule and spotted the US fleet much too late. In carrier battles, the first carrier to spot the other fleet and launch its aircraft has an immense advantage. The Japanese search pattern was not as concentrated as it could have been because the Japanese were operating on the assumption the US Navy would be absent.[271] In the matter of searching for the other fleet the Americans enjoyed a large edge in its very-long-range Catalina seaplanes operating out of Midway, and American intelligence reports predicting the enemy fleet’s approach headings.
American luck, determination, and bravery played a large role in the battle. Commander Wade McClusky Jr, leader of a flight of USS Enterprise Dauntless dive bombers (SBD) running low on fuel, spotted a lone Japanese destroyer traveling at high speed and changed course to mimic the destroyer’s heading.[272] He found the Japanese carrier fleet and, unplanned, arrived over the enemy carriers concurrently with a flight of Yorktown’s SBDs led by Commander Maxwell Leslie.[273] Both attacked simultaneously without coordinating the attack. Japanese air cover was missing in action. The Zero fighters were landing to refuel after annihilating two flights of outdated American torpedo planes. Up until this moment in the battle numerous American attacks had scored no hits while suffering large losses.
During this instant America’s only good weapon, the Dauntless dive-bomber, appeared above the Japanese carriers. Three Japanese fleet carriers became sinking infernos, helped along to their doom by their ordinance crews leaving bombs and torpedoes improperly stowed, adding to the damage when they detonated.[274] The remaining Japanese carrier, the Hiryu, struck back heavily damaging Yorktown, but Hiryu was sunk in turn by Dauntless strikes from the USS Enterprise.[275] The damaged Yorktown was later sunk by a Japanese submarine.
Losing four first class carriers and their crews was a massive blow to the Japanese navy.
In several books on the battle, the titles sum up most people’s views on the action: Miracle at Midway, by Gordon Prange, and Incredible Victory, by W. Lord. Nimitz risked it all and won. After Midway, Yamamoto realized it was necessary to go over to the defensive and await the US Navy’s assault on the Empire’s vast new perimeter.
The South Pacific and Indochina
As all this transpired, the Japanese army was trying to conquer the rest of Indochina and New Guinea. The Japanese army and navy were also pushing south down the Solomon island chain toward Fiji and New Caledonia to establish air bases and make supplying Australia problematical for the Americans.
Since Japan was having trouble conquering China they decided to isolate the country by cutting off all outside help. To this end, they captured all of China’s major coastal harbors and towns by 1940. Japan attacked and gained control of Burma, cutting the Burma Road that was bringing supplies to the Nationalist Chinese. The United States flew supplies over the Himalayan mountains to China month after month in an effort to keep China in the war. Keeping China fighting and tying down Japanese resources there was a major US war aim.
In Burma, the Japanese administered a resounding