Pacific Theater
Operation Tsuzigiri: Japan’s Ki-43s vs Allied ATC
by Jon DiamondWhy was Myitkyina such an important objective in the reconquest of Burma in 1943 through 1944 for the Allies and especially among them, Lt. Read more
Pacific Theater
The Pacific Theater during World War II is generally regarded as the area of military confrontation between the Allied powers and Imperial Japan. The Pacific Theater consists of the entire operational expanse of the war from the Aleutian Islands in the north to Australia in the south, including island chains such as the Solomons, Gilberts, Marshalls, and Marianas. The China-Burma-India (CBI) Theater is also considered a major component of the Pacific Theater.
Pacific Theater
Medal of Honor Recipient: Henry “Red” Erwin
By Robert F. DorrIn the closing months of World War II, Staff Sergeant Henry E. “Red” Erwin, Sr., picked up a burning phosphorus flare inside the cramped fuselage of his Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber high over Japan. Read more
Pacific Theater
The Battle for Henderson Field: the Harrowing Fight on Guadalcanal
By David A. Johnson“Colonel, there’s about 3,000 Japs between you and me.” Sergeant Ralph Briggs telephoned the command post of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment at about 9:30 on the night of October 24, 1942, to report what he had just seen. Read more
Pacific Theater
Was Admiral Richmond K. Turner One of the Worst of WWII’s Leaders?
By Brad ReynoldsHistorical controversy has famously surrounded Admiral Richmond K. Turner. In his responsibility as Director of the War Plans Division, he was to inform Admiral Kimmel, Commander of the Pacific Fleet, of Japanese diplomatic threats alluding to military retribution for souring political relations. Read more
Pacific Theater
Blunder or Deception? Stilwell at Myitkyina
by Jon DiamondGeneral Joseph W. “Vinegar Joe” Stilwell and his Sino-American Myitkyina Task Force (MTF), in a coup de main attack, seized the vital Japanese-controlled airfield just west of the town of Myitkyina on the great Irrawaddy River in northern Burma on May 17, 1944. Read more
Pacific Theater
George C. Marshall: Architect of Victory
By Michael D. HullPresident Franklin D. Roosevelt was disturbed in the autumn of 1938 by the Munich agreement, at which the rights of Czechoslovakia were signed away, and by reports of mounting air strength in Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany. Read more
Pacific Theater
WWII Vehicles: The Island-Hopping LVT
By R.J. SeeseWhile making business calls in Tampa, Florida, during the summer of 1980, I spotted a strange looking tracked contraption atop an overgrown pedestal in front of the U.S. Read more
Pacific Theater
The Japanese Blitz on Bataan
By Donald YoungFollowing their impressive string of victories in Malaya, Hong Kong, Burma, the Dutch East Indies, and the Philippines, it appeared that the Japanese were invincible in the early days of World War II. Read more
Pacific Theater
Devastating Firestorm: A Gunner in the Superfortress Raid on Tokyo
By Robert F. Dorr & Douglas L. CarterWhen the Boeing B-29 Superfortress crews poured out of the briefing at North Field, Tinian, on the afternoon of March 9, 1945, they were disgruntled. Read more
Pacific Theater
Was the 1917 Enfield a Good Rifle Compared to the Springfield?
By Steve LilleyIn director Howard Hawks’s 1941 film classic, Sergeant York, then-Corporal Alvin York, portrayed by Gary Cooper, single-handedly knocks out more than 30 German machine-gun nests and, with little assistance, captures 132 enemy soldiers. Read more
Pacific Theater
The Battle of the Coral Sea
By John WukovitsWorld War II was less than six months old when the American public, already stunned by the debacles at Pearl Harbor and Guam, faced one of its darkest moments. Read more
Pacific Theater
Perilous Rescue of the SS Cape San Juan
By Eric NiderostThe giant Martin PBM-3R “Mariner” landed with a kind of swanlike grace, its stubby bow parting the waters, transforming them into a series of white and foamy ripples that radiated from the seaplane’s wake. Read more
Pacific Theater
Hellfire on the Hornet’s Nest: Flamethrower Tanks at Bougainville
By Steve ZalogaU.S. portable flamethrowers were first used in combat during the Guadalcanal campaign in January 1943. It quickly became apparent that the exposed flamethrower operator was vulnerable to Japanese small arms fire. Read more
Pacific Theater
The Birth of the Viet Minh: World War II’s Prelude to the Vietnam War
By John BrownIn the late 18th century, the French established Catholic missions in Indochina, and until the 1820s they enjoyed local protection, but after that persecution began and increased steadily, particularly under Emperor Tu-Duc, who reigned from 1847 to 1883 and wanted to stamp out Christianity. Read more
Pacific Theater
The USS Vestal: The Pearl Harbor Attack & Beyond
by Glenn BarnettOn Saturday, December 6, 1941, the repair ship USS Vestal eased alongside the USS Arizona at her berth at Pearl Harbor. Read more
