Posted on Apr 1, 2018
14
14
0
On this day in 1945, after suffering the loss of 116 planes and damage to three aircraft carriers, 50,000 U.S. combat troops of the 10th Army, under the command of Lieutenant General Simon B. Buckner Jr., land on the southwest coast of the Japanese island of Okinawa, 350 miles south of Kyushu, the southern main island of Japan.
Determined to seize Okinawa as a base of operations for the army ground and air forces for a later assault on mainland Japan, more than 1,300 ships converged on the island, finally putting ashore 50,000 combat troops on April 1. The Americans quickly seized two airfields and advanced inland to cut the island’s waist. They battled nearly 120,000 Japanese army, militia, and labor troops under the command of Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima.
The Japanese surprised the American forces with a change in strategy, drawing them into the mainland rather than confronting them at the water’s edge. While Americans landed without loss of men, they would suffer more than 50,000 casualties, including more than 12,000 deaths, as the Japanese staged a desperate defense of the island, a defense that included waves of kamikaze (“divine wind”) air attacks. Eventually, these suicide raids proved counterproductive, as the Japanese finally ran out of planes and resolve, with some 4,000 finally surrendering. Japanese casualties numbered some 117,000.
Lieutenant Buckner, son of a Civil War general, was among the casualties, killed by enemy artillery fire just three days before the Japanese surrender. Japanese General Ushijima committed ritual suicide upon defeat of his forces.
The 1952 film Okinawa starring Pat O’Brien, is one of several movies to depict this decisive episode in the history of the war.
Determined to seize Okinawa as a base of operations for the army ground and air forces for a later assault on mainland Japan, more than 1,300 ships converged on the island, finally putting ashore 50,000 combat troops on April 1. The Americans quickly seized two airfields and advanced inland to cut the island’s waist. They battled nearly 120,000 Japanese army, militia, and labor troops under the command of Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima.
The Japanese surprised the American forces with a change in strategy, drawing them into the mainland rather than confronting them at the water’s edge. While Americans landed without loss of men, they would suffer more than 50,000 casualties, including more than 12,000 deaths, as the Japanese staged a desperate defense of the island, a defense that included waves of kamikaze (“divine wind”) air attacks. Eventually, these suicide raids proved counterproductive, as the Japanese finally ran out of planes and resolve, with some 4,000 finally surrendering. Japanese casualties numbered some 117,000.
Lieutenant Buckner, son of a Civil War general, was among the casualties, killed by enemy artillery fire just three days before the Japanese surrender. Japanese General Ushijima committed ritual suicide upon defeat of his forces.
The 1952 film Okinawa starring Pat O’Brien, is one of several movies to depict this decisive episode in the history of the war.
U.S. troops land on Okinawa - Apr 01, 1945 - HISTORY.com
Posted from history.comPosted in these groups: 
WWII World War Two
WWII World War Two
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 4
8
8
0
We don't appreciate the determination of the Japanese to fight to the bitter end, imho.
TSgt Joe C. LTC Stephen F. MSgt Don Dobbs Sgt Kelli Mays Maj Michael Gravier Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen MSG Dan Walther SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas COL Mikel J. Burroughs Col (Join to see) Maj Marty Hogan SGT Mark Halmrast SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL Lt Col Jim Coe LTC Jeff Shearer
TSgt Joe C. LTC Stephen F. MSgt Don Dobbs Sgt Kelli Mays Maj Michael Gravier Lt Col John (Jack) Christensen MSG Dan Walther SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth SMSgt Minister Gerald A. "Doc" Thomas COL Mikel J. Burroughs Col (Join to see) Maj Marty Hogan SGT Mark Halmrast SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL Lt Col Jim Coe LTC Jeff Shearer
(8)
(0)
7
7
0
Thanks for reminding us TSgt Joe C. that on April 1, 1945 U.S. Army troops under Lieutenant General Simon B. Buckner Jr. assaulted the island of Okinawa which Japanese consider a part of Japan.
Lieutenant General Simon B. Buckner Jr. had the dubious distinction of being the highest ranking officer to be killed in combat when he was killed on June 18, 1945 on Okinawa.
He was killed in action while visiting a forward observation post near the southwest tip of the island.
Images: Okinawa Battle map; 1945-06-18 last picture of Buckner (right), taken just before he was killed by a Japanese artillery shell.; US Marine Corps 6th Division flamethrower in action, Okinawa, Japan, 1945
Background on the Battle of Okinawa
"Okinawa Campaign 1 Apr 1945 - 21 Jun 1945 Contributor: C. Peter Chen
Pre-invasion Operationsww2dbaseOn 25 Mar 1945, American forces landed on the islands of Kerama Retto, 15 miles west of Okinawa, Japan. On 31 Mar, the island of Kamiyama was occupied as the American naval vessels bombarded Okinawa relentlessly.
ww2dbaseLanding at Okinawa
1 Apr-21 Jun 1945
Operation Iceberg struck the island of Okinawa in the Ryukyu Islands on the date of the Easter holiday in 1945. Okinawa was a relatively large island, 60 miles long and eight miles wide; it was the largest of the Ryukyu Archipelago situated between Taiwan and Japan. Immediately to its west was the small island of Ie Shima. Before the landing operation started, Allied bombers softened Okinawa of its defenses and morale, which resulted in the destruction of over 80% of the city of Naha and the sinking of over 65 boats. Admiral Richmond Turner, veteran commander of amphibious forces, delivered landing forces, with ships of the British Pacific Fleet among his vanguard. The amphibious vehicles landed the 96th and 7th Army Divisions on the left flank, and the 1st and 6th Marine Divisions were delivered on the right. Once on land, the combined forces of Chester Nimitz's Marines and Douglas MacArthur's soldiers, the first time their men fought side-by-side, were placed under the command of Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. The landing was not resisted, much to the surprise of the landers. There were no coastal guns, no mortars, and no machine guns; it was a scene very much unlike the previous landings elsewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Deep in the island, however, the 110,000-strong Japanese garrison led by Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima, augmented by 20,000 volunteer Okinawan militiamen, awaited. The only reason they held back was because they were waiting under orders for the completion of Operation Ten'ichigo (see below).
ww2dbaseThe Americans' immediate objectives were the Yontan and Kadena airfields, and they were very quickly taken. Yontan was so quickly taken that a Japanese pilot actually made a successful landing, got out of his fighter, and ordered loudly for a full tank of gas before he realized the men around his plane were Americans; he was gunned down before he could reach for his pistol. The two airfields were declared secure by 20 Apr. In northern Okinawa, the Motobu Peninsula was entrenched by two battalions under the command of Takehiko Udo, who inflicted 1,304 casualties among the American invaders before letting his positions become overrun by Americans. Southern Okinawa proved to be much more difficult. Near the Machinato Line, 300,000 people, Japanese, American, and Okinawan civilians, concentrated in a small area. When Marine veteran and historian William Manchester arrived at the scene, he thought that it was "what Verdun and Passchendaele must have looked like", comparing the great battle scene to the grotesque trench warfare battlegrounds of WW1. The complex of Sugar Loaf Hill, Horseshoe Ridge, and Half Moon Hill was one of the most fiercely contested regions in the entire battle. With each hill covering the other two, the Japanese had connected the three hills with hidden galleries and set up interlocking fields of fire by machine gun and various types of artillery. At Half Moon Hill, veteran Eugene Sledge recalled:
Everywhere lay Japanese corpses killed in the heavy fighting. Infantry equipment of every type, U.S. and Japanese, was scattered about. helmets, rifles, BARs, packs, cartridge belts, canteens, shoes, ammo boxes, shell cases, machine-gun ammo belts, all were strewn around us up to and all over Half Moon.
A small distance in the east was Shuri Hill, which provided machine gun fire to the entire complex as well. It was a death trap for the American Marines who were given the task to assault it, but the Marines took on the task dutifully. Horrendous casualties were incurred on both sides, with at times entire assaults cut down to a handful of survivors. Sugar Loaf Hill had changed hands 14 times before it was finally taken by the Americans.
ww2dbaseAt noon on 7 May, the Americans celebrated Victory in Europe Day with a "terrific, thundering artillery and naval gunfire barrage that went swishing, roaring, and rumbling toward the Japanese."
Many front line fighters at Okinawa recalled a gross infestation of maggots, fueled by the dead bodies strewn around the battlegrounds. "If a [U.S.] Marine slipped and slid down the back slope of the muddy ridge," Sledge recalled, referring to a slop where many Japanese dead lay buried in shallow graves, he was apt to reach the bottom vomiting. I saw more than one man lose his footing and slip and slide all the way to the bottom only to stand up horror-stricken as he watched in disbelief while fat maggots tumbled out of his muddy dungaree pockets, cartridge belt, legging lacings, and the like.
ww2dbaseThroughout the entire Japanese campaign at Okinawa, Ushijima knew there was little chance of winning, especially after Operation Ten'ichigo failed. His only hope was to discourage the Americans with the kind of high casualty rate he had delivered against the invaders so that they would back away from invading the Japanese home islands.
Following the retreat from Shuri, the Japanese defenders formed a final defensive line along the ridges between Kunishi Ridge, Yuza-Dake, and Yaeju-Dake, from west to east. The Japanese dug in to caves and gun emplacements on the hard coral surface, setting up excellent gun positions on high ground, covering the northern approaches that were open with rice paddies and grasslands. On 12 Jun, the 3rd Battalion of the 7th Marine Regiment of the US 1st Marine Division attacked Kunishi Ridge before dawn, capturing a portion of the hill but quickly became isolated as the Japanese fought from beneath them; only under the cover of tanks could supplies be delivered to the mountain top and the wounded be evacuated. On 14 Jun, 1st Marine Regiment of the US 1st Marine Division and the men of the 1st Marine Battalion attacked Kunishi Ridge and Yuza-Dake, respectively. The hills were not secured for several days, with terrible losses on both sides.
The island fell on 21 Jun. Some of the Japanese troops that survived past the American declaration of Okinawa being secure fought on ferociously. During "mop-up" operations, 8,975 Japanese were killed. During the fighting, General Buckner was killed by a ricocheting artillery shell while he toured the front lines, making him the highest ranking American to die during the war. Alongside Buckner, 7,613 Americans fell, and 31,807 were wounded in action. Non-combat American casualties reached 26,221, largely attributed to the heavy concentration of Japanese artillery at Okinawa and the fanatical fighting spirit of the Okinawan defenders. On the Japanese side, 107,539 dead were counted by the Americans, though the actual deaths were almost certainly higher as at least 20,000 were sealed in caves either by American action or Japanese suicide. Only 7,455 Japanese surrendered. Approximately 42,000 Okinawan civilians were killed during the battle.
ww2dbaseOperation Ten'ichigo (Ten-Go)
6-7 Apr 1945
The Operation Ten'ichigo, also known as Operation Ten-Go, was a massive coordinated naval suicide attack led by the battleship Yamato, under the command of Vice Admiral Seiichi Ito. The fleet reached Kabuto Jima on 28 Mar 1945, then sailed for Ube. Ito strongly objected this mission, claiming three major weaknesses with the planning. First, a total absence of air cover at this phase of war when American aircraft controlled air meant the ship would be detected right away; secondly, a mission by ten ships would be overwhelmed by the sixty enemy ships before they could do any damage; finally, Ito argued the daylight timing for the battle was terrible (he preferred a night-time engagement). Nevertheless, Ito was overruled by his superiors, and he accepted his duty as the task force's commander. He radioed an inspiring message to all of his men that noted "[t]he fate of the homeland rests on this operation."
The operation's ultimate goal was to sail the ten ships into the American fleet and do as much damage with their guns as possible, especially with the massive 18-inch guns of the Yamato. If they were not able to do so, they were to beach themselves at various beaches of Okinawa and become shore batteries, and the sailors would then disembark to become infantry. Finally, if that failed, she then was to draw as much fire from American aircraft as possible so that the concurrent Operation Kikusui would confront less resistance from the air.
Although this was meant to be a one-way cruise, contrary to popular belief the ships actually had enough fuel to make a return trip. This fact, however, was concealed from the officers and sailors, therefore the theory of the ships having only enough fuel for a single trip is commonly accepted.
Japanese Navy veteran Kazuhiro Fukumoto recalled:
On March 25 of Showa 20 [1945], we got an order from the headquarters of the combined fleet to prepare for attack.... I totally believed the Yamato was unsinkable. I figured people could get struck by bullets and die, but it never crossed my mind that I might die because of the Yamato sinking. I also thought that the chances of being struck by a bullet were pretty slim, so I had a fairly carefree feeling. I didn't know the specifics of the mission, so I didn't feel particularly burdened.
Battleship Yamato, light cruiser Yahagi, and eight destroyers left the ports at Ube on 6 Apr 1945 at 0600 and stopped for ten hours at Tokuyama to receive fuel and unload non-essentials. As the crew gathered the night before the attack for a final feast, Fukumoto realized the mission must be a desperate one as he witnessed officers showing atypical kindness to the crewmen, helping with cleanup and joined in conversation with them. Almost immediately out of port, they were spotted by American submarines and reconnaissance planes. When day broke on 7 Apr, American commander Marc Mitscher ordered his carriers to launch nearly 300 aircraft to attack the Japanese task force. Admiral Raymond Spruance ordered six battleships to sail behind the air attack in case any Japanese ships would get through the fighter screen. The Japanese detected the American aerial force at 1130, and the battle started at about 1220. Anti-aircraft guns were the Japanese's only air defense aside from the minuscule force of five land-based fighters that turned out to help, which was swiped aside within moments. American aircraft sank Yahagi immediately, and hit Yamato with bombs and torpedoes. Yamato was seriously damaged within 15 minutes of the battle, recalled Naoyoshi Ishida who served aboard the Yamato as an officer at the time.
The machine guns were firing everywhere. It was like a net of bullets, so it wasn't so easy for the planes to bomb us. I wanted to throw a stone at them, they were so close. I could see the American pilots with my naked eyes. It's true what they say in books-that the American pilots were also very brave. They would come out of the clouds and fire at us. I was just dodging the bullets as they ricocheted off the metal. People were falling on the deck, hit by the shrapnel.
Within and hour, three destroyers were sunk, but the Japanese fleet sailed on. After a painful slow listing to port, the Yamato finally capsized at 1420 on 7 Apr, two hours after receiving the first hit. A moment later, she exploded twice as the shells from the primary and secondary magazines fell off their shelves and detonated. The loss of the ship took the lives of 2,488 men; only 279 survived. "I thought we wouldn't be able to win, but I didn't expect us to go down so easily", said Ishida. The price paid by the Americans for taking down the world's largest battleship was merely ten aircraft and twelve lives.
"Bravery? Recklessness?" Asked Ensign Mitsuru Yoshida regarding the decision to launch this mission; he was a radar officer who survived the sinking.
Operation Kikusui
6 Apr-22 Jun 1945
Tokko ("special attack") aircraft caused much frustration and destruction for the Allies. Five American carriers were damaged (three had to return to the US for repairs); the British fared better as their carriers, the prime tokko target, were armored and not easily penetrated. The Okinawa campaign saw a concerted special attack mission, Operation Kikusui ("Floating Chrysanthemum"), calling for 860 naval and 605 army aircraft to strike the Allied forces between 6 Apr and 21 Jun. The warrior Kusunoki Masashige conducted a brave but futile defense in the Battle of Minatogawa in 1336, and in the final moment before defeat, he committed ritual suicide rather than allowing himself to become captured; he had since become a legend in Japanese history, and his emblem, a floating chrysanthemum, became the inspiration for the 1945 defense of Japan. Operation Kikusui, launched in 10 waves between Apr and Jun 1945, involved about 800 Navy and 600 Army aircraft. Special attacks caused over 30 American vessels of various sizes sunk and 368 damaged, killing over 5,000 sailors with as many wounded during the campaign for Okinawa. It was the most substantial loss the US Navy had ever seen in the Pacific War, and it demoralized the sailors. However, there was only so much suicide aircraft could do. Like previous campaigns, successful tokko missions only allowed Japan to become victims of her own success as the number of pilots and aircraft dwindled.
Conclusion of the Campaign
The loss of the battleship Yamato, which bore Japan's mystical name, was so shameful that Prime Minister Kuniaki Koiso resigned on the same day as the ship's sinking.
ww2dbaseFor its strategic location, the occupying American forces remained in Okinawa after the war. It remained under American control until 15 May 1972 when it was finally returned to Japan, though the American military bases there are active until this day.
Sources:
Rikihei Inoguchi and Tadashi Nakajima, The Divine Wind
William Manchester, Goodbye, Darkness
Yoshida Mitsuru, Requiem for Battleship Yamato
Eugene Sledge, With the Old Breed
Dan van der Vat, The Pacific Campaign
Steven Zaloga, Kamikaze
Okinawa Campaign Timeline
23 Mar 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) began softening-up strikes against Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands and continued through 28 Mar 1945.
26 Mar 1945
A small scale special attack by aircraft was conducted by the Japanese off Okinawa, Japan, but a large scale tokko campaign was to come in the future.
27 Mar 1945
USS Ancon departed the Mariana Islands for the invasion of Okinawa with Transport Squadron 15.
30 Mar 1945
British warships including the battleship HMS King George V, under the command of Vice Admiral Sir Bernard Rawlings, and a carrier force led by HMS Illustrious, commanded by Rear Admiral Sir Philip Vian, participated in an attack on the Sakashima Islands, 180 miles south-west of Okinawa, Japan.
30 Mar 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) pounded Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands and its surrounding islets in softening-up strikes.
31 Mar 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) pounded Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands and its surrounding islets in softening-up strikes.
1 Apr 1945
US Tenth Army invaded Okinawa, Japan. Japanese aircraft launched a massive counter-attack, damaging USS West Virginia, USS Tennessee, and HMS Indefatigable, among others.
1 Apr 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) began several days of direct support missions for the troops landing on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands. About every three days, USS Yorktown (Essex-class) retired east for refueling, rearming, and re-provisioning.
3 Apr 1945
USS Ancon was ordered to move further away from Okinawa, Japan due to dangers from Japanese aircraft.
6 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 1 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 230 Japanese Navy and 125 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
7 Apr 1945
Destroyer Yukikaze rescued survivors of battleship Yamato and destroyer Isokaze; she suffered minor damage from American air attacks during the action (3 were killed, 15 were wounded).
7 Apr 1945
Kosaku Ariga, commanding officer of battleship Yamato, went down with the ship as the battleship sank.
7 Apr 1945
When Yamato was discovered was steaming south, Air Group 9 from USS Yorktown (Essex-class) claimed several torpedo hits on Yamato herself just before the battleship exploded and sank. USS Yorktown (Essex-class)?s planes also had at least three 500-pound bombs hit light cruiser Yahagi before that ship also sank. Yorktown then resumed her strikes on Okinawa.
7 Apr 1945
While enroute to attack the US fleets off Okinawa, Japan, battleship Yamato was attacked by US carrier aircraft resulting in her loss, along with several of her escorts.
8 Apr 1945
Two destroyers were damaged by Japanese special attack boats and aircraft off Okinawa, Japan.
9 Apr 1945
The Japanese Navy scored a notable success against the Americans when a large Shinyo Motor Boat packed with explosives charged out of Naha harbour, Okinawa, Japan to ram the USS Charles J. Badger putting the destroyer out of the war with both engines utterly unserviceable. A landing-craft was sunk on the same night and, from the fringes of the destroyer screen, came a report of swimmers armed with hand-grenades, although whether these were, in fact, Fukuryu ("Crawling Dragons") suicide-frogmen still remained uncertain.
11 Apr 1945
USS Ancon set sail for Saipan, Mariana Islands.
11 Apr 1945
USS Missouri, USS Enterprise, USS Essex, and 6 destroyers were damaged by Japanese special attack aircraft off Okinawa, Japan.
12 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 2 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 125 Japanese Navy and 60 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft. Destroyer USS Mannert L. Abele was sunk by a Japanese Ohka piloted bomb off Okinawa; she was the first to be struck by an Ohka bomb and was the only to be sunk by one.
14 Apr 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft damaged a battleship and two destroyers off Okinawa, Japan.
15 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 3 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 120 Japanese Navy and 45 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
16 Apr 1945
US Army troops landed on Ie Shima off Okinawa, Japan. Meanwhile, Japanese special attack aircraft sank a destroyer and damaged a number of other warships.
19 Apr 1945
A major attack was launched against Japanese positions on Okinawa, Japan.
21 Apr 1945
Americans declared Ie Shima, Japan secure.
22 Apr 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft sank a minesweeper and damaged a number of other ships off Okinawa, Japan.
27 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 4 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 65 Japanese Navy and 50 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
28 Apr 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft damaged 5 destroyers, 2 hospital ships, and victory ship Bozeman Victory off Okinawa, Japan. None of the four G4M bombers carrying Ohka special attack aircraft hit their targets.
3 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 5 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 75 Japanese Navy and 50 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft; they sank one destroyer and damaged four other ships. On the same day, a special attack boat damaged a transport also off Okinawa.
4 May 1945
Operation Iceberg II was commenced by the Allies to support the campaign on Okinawa, Japan. Meanwhile, Japanese special attack aircraft sank two destroyers and damaged a number of other warships off the island, including British carrier HMS Formidable and American minesweeper USS Shea (hit by 1 of 7 Ohka special attack aircraft launched on this day).
4 May 1945
USS Luce was attacked by two Japanese special attack aircraft off Okinawa, Japan. The first was shot down near the port side of the ship, and the blast of the explosion caused power failures throughout the ship. The second aircraft crashed into the aft portion of the destroyer, knocking out the port engine, jamming the rudder, and flooding engineering spaces. The commanding officer gave the order to abandon ship at 0814 hours. Of the 312 on board, 126 were killed in the attack and the sinking.
6 May 1945
USS South Dakota was damaged by a magazine explosion off Okinawa, Japan. Nearby, the British Royal Navy Aircraft Carrier HMS Formidable was hit by Kamikaze planes but her steel decking (most US Aircraft Carriers had wooden decking) saved her. Further south, the British Pacific Fleer shelled Japanese positions on the Sakishima Islands of the Ryukyu Islands, 550 miles south of Japan.
8 May 1945
Every gun present at Okinawa, Japan, including naval guns, fired one round at noon at the Japanese in celebration of V-E Day.
9 May 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft damaged two destroyer escorts off Okinawa, Japan and two British carriers (Victorious and Formidable) off Taiwan. On land, the Americans still engaged in vicious close quarter fighting on Okinawa. The Japanese defenders resorted to turning themselves into human bombs, loading themselves with explosives to charge US positions; prisoners were a rarity as the US Marines fired on anything that moved.
10 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 6 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 70 Japanese Navy and 80 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
11 May 1945
A Japanese Navy Ohka combat sortie by 4 G4M bombers off Okinawa, Japan heavily damaged American destroyer USS Hugh W. Hadley. On the island, US troops launched an offensive toward Naha.
12 May 1945
US Army troops landed on Torishima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan.
17 May 1945
In Japan, after a vicious 48-hour battle the Okinawan capital, Naha, was captured by the Americans.
18 May 1945
Destroyer USS Longshaw, stuck on a reef, was sunk by Japanese shore battery at Okinawa, Japan.
19 May 1945
US 77th Division withdrew near the Ishimmi Ridge at Okinawa, Japan after suffering heavy casualties.
20 May 1945
American troops reached Shuri Castle, Okinawa, Japan.
21 May 1945
Japanese traditional and special attacks damaged five Allied ships off Okinawa, Japan.
22 May 1945
Torrential rain reduced mobility of US armoured forces on Okinawa, Japan and gave the Japanese defenders a temporary respite.
24 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 7 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 65 Japanese Navy and 100 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft. On the island, seven Type 97 bombers attempted to crash-land at an American-controlled airfield to deliver suicide commandos during Operation Gi; several aircraft were shot down, but those who successfully reached the airfield delivered 69 commandos who destroyed 9 aircraft and damaged 29 others and set the fuel dump aflame; all commandos were killed or committed suicide.
25 May 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft sank destroyer USS Bates and damaged several other ships off Okinawa, Japan. Part of these attacks included an Ohka combat sortie by 11 G4M bombers, most of which were turned back due to poor weather while the few that launched their Ohka weapons reported no hits.
27 May 1945
Corporal Yukio Araki died as a special attack pilot. His Ki-51 aircraft might be one of the two aircraft which crashed into destroyer USS Braine off Okinawa, Japan.
27 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 8 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 60 Japanese Navy and 50 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft; together with manned torpedoes, these special attacks damaged 5 destroyers and 6 other ships in the area.
28 May 1945
Japanese air offensive sank destroyer USS Drexler and damaged several other ships off Okinawa, Japan.
28 May 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) resumed air support missions over Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
29 May 1945
US 10th Army captured Shuri Castle at Okinawa, Japan. Off the coast, Japanese special attack aircraft damaged 2 destroyers.
30 May 1945
US P-47 aircraft from Ie Shima attacked Japanese shipping and the lighthouse at Amami Oshima, which was part of the Ryukyu Islands north of Okinawa, Japan.
3 Jun 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 9 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 20 Japanese Navy and 30 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
3 Jun 1945
USS Ancon departed Okinawa, Japan for the Philippine Islands.
3 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) struck airfields on the Japanese home islands.
4 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) returned to Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands for support missions before steaming off to evade a typhoon.
6 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
7 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
8 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on airfields on Kyushu, Japan.
9 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Minami Daito Shima, Ryukyu Islands.
10 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Minami Daito Shima, Ryukyu Islands and began retiring toward Leyte, Philippines.
12 Jun 1945
With Japanese troops hopelessly surrounded in the Oroku sector of Okinawa, Japan requested a ceasefire to allow them to commit suicide rather than surrender. Hundreds blew themselves up with grenades or jumped off cliffs.
17 Jun 1945
Japanese Admiral Ota Minoru committed ritual suicide for failing to defend Okinawa, Japan.
19 Jun 1945
US Army captured Okinawa, Japan.
21 Jun 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 10 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 30 Japanese Navy and 15 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
22 Jun 1945
The Americans secured Okinawa, Japan. Three months of savage fighting had cost the Japanese 129,700 military and 42,000 civilian dead. Just over 10,000 were taken prisoner. The Japanese had also lost 7,800 aircraft and six capital ships. The Americans had lost 12,520 dead, 36,600 wounded, 763 aircraft destroyed and 40 warships sunk.
25 Jun 1945
US Marines landed on Kumejima, Okinawa, Japan.
2 Jul 1945
Okinawa, Japan was declared secure.
29 Jul 1945
A special attack Japanese biplane trainer aircraft crashed into destroyer USS Callaghan off Okinawa, Japan; Callaghan was to be the last American warship to be sunk by special attack aircraft in the war."
FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC Ivan Raiklin, Esq. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown CW5 (Join to see) SGM David W. Carr LOM, DMSM MP SGT MSG Andrew White SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx SSgt (Join to see) TSgt Joe C. SGT John " Mac " McConnell SP5 Mark Kuzinski SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Cpl Joshua Caldwell SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
Lieutenant General Simon B. Buckner Jr. had the dubious distinction of being the highest ranking officer to be killed in combat when he was killed on June 18, 1945 on Okinawa.
He was killed in action while visiting a forward observation post near the southwest tip of the island.
Images: Okinawa Battle map; 1945-06-18 last picture of Buckner (right), taken just before he was killed by a Japanese artillery shell.; US Marine Corps 6th Division flamethrower in action, Okinawa, Japan, 1945
Background on the Battle of Okinawa
"Okinawa Campaign 1 Apr 1945 - 21 Jun 1945 Contributor: C. Peter Chen
Pre-invasion Operationsww2dbaseOn 25 Mar 1945, American forces landed on the islands of Kerama Retto, 15 miles west of Okinawa, Japan. On 31 Mar, the island of Kamiyama was occupied as the American naval vessels bombarded Okinawa relentlessly.
ww2dbaseLanding at Okinawa
1 Apr-21 Jun 1945
Operation Iceberg struck the island of Okinawa in the Ryukyu Islands on the date of the Easter holiday in 1945. Okinawa was a relatively large island, 60 miles long and eight miles wide; it was the largest of the Ryukyu Archipelago situated between Taiwan and Japan. Immediately to its west was the small island of Ie Shima. Before the landing operation started, Allied bombers softened Okinawa of its defenses and morale, which resulted in the destruction of over 80% of the city of Naha and the sinking of over 65 boats. Admiral Richmond Turner, veteran commander of amphibious forces, delivered landing forces, with ships of the British Pacific Fleet among his vanguard. The amphibious vehicles landed the 96th and 7th Army Divisions on the left flank, and the 1st and 6th Marine Divisions were delivered on the right. Once on land, the combined forces of Chester Nimitz's Marines and Douglas MacArthur's soldiers, the first time their men fought side-by-side, were placed under the command of Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr. The landing was not resisted, much to the surprise of the landers. There were no coastal guns, no mortars, and no machine guns; it was a scene very much unlike the previous landings elsewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Deep in the island, however, the 110,000-strong Japanese garrison led by Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima, augmented by 20,000 volunteer Okinawan militiamen, awaited. The only reason they held back was because they were waiting under orders for the completion of Operation Ten'ichigo (see below).
ww2dbaseThe Americans' immediate objectives were the Yontan and Kadena airfields, and they were very quickly taken. Yontan was so quickly taken that a Japanese pilot actually made a successful landing, got out of his fighter, and ordered loudly for a full tank of gas before he realized the men around his plane were Americans; he was gunned down before he could reach for his pistol. The two airfields were declared secure by 20 Apr. In northern Okinawa, the Motobu Peninsula was entrenched by two battalions under the command of Takehiko Udo, who inflicted 1,304 casualties among the American invaders before letting his positions become overrun by Americans. Southern Okinawa proved to be much more difficult. Near the Machinato Line, 300,000 people, Japanese, American, and Okinawan civilians, concentrated in a small area. When Marine veteran and historian William Manchester arrived at the scene, he thought that it was "what Verdun and Passchendaele must have looked like", comparing the great battle scene to the grotesque trench warfare battlegrounds of WW1. The complex of Sugar Loaf Hill, Horseshoe Ridge, and Half Moon Hill was one of the most fiercely contested regions in the entire battle. With each hill covering the other two, the Japanese had connected the three hills with hidden galleries and set up interlocking fields of fire by machine gun and various types of artillery. At Half Moon Hill, veteran Eugene Sledge recalled:
Everywhere lay Japanese corpses killed in the heavy fighting. Infantry equipment of every type, U.S. and Japanese, was scattered about. helmets, rifles, BARs, packs, cartridge belts, canteens, shoes, ammo boxes, shell cases, machine-gun ammo belts, all were strewn around us up to and all over Half Moon.
A small distance in the east was Shuri Hill, which provided machine gun fire to the entire complex as well. It was a death trap for the American Marines who were given the task to assault it, but the Marines took on the task dutifully. Horrendous casualties were incurred on both sides, with at times entire assaults cut down to a handful of survivors. Sugar Loaf Hill had changed hands 14 times before it was finally taken by the Americans.
ww2dbaseAt noon on 7 May, the Americans celebrated Victory in Europe Day with a "terrific, thundering artillery and naval gunfire barrage that went swishing, roaring, and rumbling toward the Japanese."
Many front line fighters at Okinawa recalled a gross infestation of maggots, fueled by the dead bodies strewn around the battlegrounds. "If a [U.S.] Marine slipped and slid down the back slope of the muddy ridge," Sledge recalled, referring to a slop where many Japanese dead lay buried in shallow graves, he was apt to reach the bottom vomiting. I saw more than one man lose his footing and slip and slide all the way to the bottom only to stand up horror-stricken as he watched in disbelief while fat maggots tumbled out of his muddy dungaree pockets, cartridge belt, legging lacings, and the like.
ww2dbaseThroughout the entire Japanese campaign at Okinawa, Ushijima knew there was little chance of winning, especially after Operation Ten'ichigo failed. His only hope was to discourage the Americans with the kind of high casualty rate he had delivered against the invaders so that they would back away from invading the Japanese home islands.
Following the retreat from Shuri, the Japanese defenders formed a final defensive line along the ridges between Kunishi Ridge, Yuza-Dake, and Yaeju-Dake, from west to east. The Japanese dug in to caves and gun emplacements on the hard coral surface, setting up excellent gun positions on high ground, covering the northern approaches that were open with rice paddies and grasslands. On 12 Jun, the 3rd Battalion of the 7th Marine Regiment of the US 1st Marine Division attacked Kunishi Ridge before dawn, capturing a portion of the hill but quickly became isolated as the Japanese fought from beneath them; only under the cover of tanks could supplies be delivered to the mountain top and the wounded be evacuated. On 14 Jun, 1st Marine Regiment of the US 1st Marine Division and the men of the 1st Marine Battalion attacked Kunishi Ridge and Yuza-Dake, respectively. The hills were not secured for several days, with terrible losses on both sides.
The island fell on 21 Jun. Some of the Japanese troops that survived past the American declaration of Okinawa being secure fought on ferociously. During "mop-up" operations, 8,975 Japanese were killed. During the fighting, General Buckner was killed by a ricocheting artillery shell while he toured the front lines, making him the highest ranking American to die during the war. Alongside Buckner, 7,613 Americans fell, and 31,807 were wounded in action. Non-combat American casualties reached 26,221, largely attributed to the heavy concentration of Japanese artillery at Okinawa and the fanatical fighting spirit of the Okinawan defenders. On the Japanese side, 107,539 dead were counted by the Americans, though the actual deaths were almost certainly higher as at least 20,000 were sealed in caves either by American action or Japanese suicide. Only 7,455 Japanese surrendered. Approximately 42,000 Okinawan civilians were killed during the battle.
ww2dbaseOperation Ten'ichigo (Ten-Go)
6-7 Apr 1945
The Operation Ten'ichigo, also known as Operation Ten-Go, was a massive coordinated naval suicide attack led by the battleship Yamato, under the command of Vice Admiral Seiichi Ito. The fleet reached Kabuto Jima on 28 Mar 1945, then sailed for Ube. Ito strongly objected this mission, claiming three major weaknesses with the planning. First, a total absence of air cover at this phase of war when American aircraft controlled air meant the ship would be detected right away; secondly, a mission by ten ships would be overwhelmed by the sixty enemy ships before they could do any damage; finally, Ito argued the daylight timing for the battle was terrible (he preferred a night-time engagement). Nevertheless, Ito was overruled by his superiors, and he accepted his duty as the task force's commander. He radioed an inspiring message to all of his men that noted "[t]he fate of the homeland rests on this operation."
The operation's ultimate goal was to sail the ten ships into the American fleet and do as much damage with their guns as possible, especially with the massive 18-inch guns of the Yamato. If they were not able to do so, they were to beach themselves at various beaches of Okinawa and become shore batteries, and the sailors would then disembark to become infantry. Finally, if that failed, she then was to draw as much fire from American aircraft as possible so that the concurrent Operation Kikusui would confront less resistance from the air.
Although this was meant to be a one-way cruise, contrary to popular belief the ships actually had enough fuel to make a return trip. This fact, however, was concealed from the officers and sailors, therefore the theory of the ships having only enough fuel for a single trip is commonly accepted.
Japanese Navy veteran Kazuhiro Fukumoto recalled:
On March 25 of Showa 20 [1945], we got an order from the headquarters of the combined fleet to prepare for attack.... I totally believed the Yamato was unsinkable. I figured people could get struck by bullets and die, but it never crossed my mind that I might die because of the Yamato sinking. I also thought that the chances of being struck by a bullet were pretty slim, so I had a fairly carefree feeling. I didn't know the specifics of the mission, so I didn't feel particularly burdened.
Battleship Yamato, light cruiser Yahagi, and eight destroyers left the ports at Ube on 6 Apr 1945 at 0600 and stopped for ten hours at Tokuyama to receive fuel and unload non-essentials. As the crew gathered the night before the attack for a final feast, Fukumoto realized the mission must be a desperate one as he witnessed officers showing atypical kindness to the crewmen, helping with cleanup and joined in conversation with them. Almost immediately out of port, they were spotted by American submarines and reconnaissance planes. When day broke on 7 Apr, American commander Marc Mitscher ordered his carriers to launch nearly 300 aircraft to attack the Japanese task force. Admiral Raymond Spruance ordered six battleships to sail behind the air attack in case any Japanese ships would get through the fighter screen. The Japanese detected the American aerial force at 1130, and the battle started at about 1220. Anti-aircraft guns were the Japanese's only air defense aside from the minuscule force of five land-based fighters that turned out to help, which was swiped aside within moments. American aircraft sank Yahagi immediately, and hit Yamato with bombs and torpedoes. Yamato was seriously damaged within 15 minutes of the battle, recalled Naoyoshi Ishida who served aboard the Yamato as an officer at the time.
The machine guns were firing everywhere. It was like a net of bullets, so it wasn't so easy for the planes to bomb us. I wanted to throw a stone at them, they were so close. I could see the American pilots with my naked eyes. It's true what they say in books-that the American pilots were also very brave. They would come out of the clouds and fire at us. I was just dodging the bullets as they ricocheted off the metal. People were falling on the deck, hit by the shrapnel.
Within and hour, three destroyers were sunk, but the Japanese fleet sailed on. After a painful slow listing to port, the Yamato finally capsized at 1420 on 7 Apr, two hours after receiving the first hit. A moment later, she exploded twice as the shells from the primary and secondary magazines fell off their shelves and detonated. The loss of the ship took the lives of 2,488 men; only 279 survived. "I thought we wouldn't be able to win, but I didn't expect us to go down so easily", said Ishida. The price paid by the Americans for taking down the world's largest battleship was merely ten aircraft and twelve lives.
"Bravery? Recklessness?" Asked Ensign Mitsuru Yoshida regarding the decision to launch this mission; he was a radar officer who survived the sinking.
Operation Kikusui
6 Apr-22 Jun 1945
Tokko ("special attack") aircraft caused much frustration and destruction for the Allies. Five American carriers were damaged (three had to return to the US for repairs); the British fared better as their carriers, the prime tokko target, were armored and not easily penetrated. The Okinawa campaign saw a concerted special attack mission, Operation Kikusui ("Floating Chrysanthemum"), calling for 860 naval and 605 army aircraft to strike the Allied forces between 6 Apr and 21 Jun. The warrior Kusunoki Masashige conducted a brave but futile defense in the Battle of Minatogawa in 1336, and in the final moment before defeat, he committed ritual suicide rather than allowing himself to become captured; he had since become a legend in Japanese history, and his emblem, a floating chrysanthemum, became the inspiration for the 1945 defense of Japan. Operation Kikusui, launched in 10 waves between Apr and Jun 1945, involved about 800 Navy and 600 Army aircraft. Special attacks caused over 30 American vessels of various sizes sunk and 368 damaged, killing over 5,000 sailors with as many wounded during the campaign for Okinawa. It was the most substantial loss the US Navy had ever seen in the Pacific War, and it demoralized the sailors. However, there was only so much suicide aircraft could do. Like previous campaigns, successful tokko missions only allowed Japan to become victims of her own success as the number of pilots and aircraft dwindled.
Conclusion of the Campaign
The loss of the battleship Yamato, which bore Japan's mystical name, was so shameful that Prime Minister Kuniaki Koiso resigned on the same day as the ship's sinking.
ww2dbaseFor its strategic location, the occupying American forces remained in Okinawa after the war. It remained under American control until 15 May 1972 when it was finally returned to Japan, though the American military bases there are active until this day.
Sources:
Rikihei Inoguchi and Tadashi Nakajima, The Divine Wind
William Manchester, Goodbye, Darkness
Yoshida Mitsuru, Requiem for Battleship Yamato
Eugene Sledge, With the Old Breed
Dan van der Vat, The Pacific Campaign
Steven Zaloga, Kamikaze
Okinawa Campaign Timeline
23 Mar 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) began softening-up strikes against Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands and continued through 28 Mar 1945.
26 Mar 1945
A small scale special attack by aircraft was conducted by the Japanese off Okinawa, Japan, but a large scale tokko campaign was to come in the future.
27 Mar 1945
USS Ancon departed the Mariana Islands for the invasion of Okinawa with Transport Squadron 15.
30 Mar 1945
British warships including the battleship HMS King George V, under the command of Vice Admiral Sir Bernard Rawlings, and a carrier force led by HMS Illustrious, commanded by Rear Admiral Sir Philip Vian, participated in an attack on the Sakashima Islands, 180 miles south-west of Okinawa, Japan.
30 Mar 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) pounded Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands and its surrounding islets in softening-up strikes.
31 Mar 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) pounded Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands and its surrounding islets in softening-up strikes.
1 Apr 1945
US Tenth Army invaded Okinawa, Japan. Japanese aircraft launched a massive counter-attack, damaging USS West Virginia, USS Tennessee, and HMS Indefatigable, among others.
1 Apr 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) began several days of direct support missions for the troops landing on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands. About every three days, USS Yorktown (Essex-class) retired east for refueling, rearming, and re-provisioning.
3 Apr 1945
USS Ancon was ordered to move further away from Okinawa, Japan due to dangers from Japanese aircraft.
6 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 1 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 230 Japanese Navy and 125 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
7 Apr 1945
Destroyer Yukikaze rescued survivors of battleship Yamato and destroyer Isokaze; she suffered minor damage from American air attacks during the action (3 were killed, 15 were wounded).
7 Apr 1945
Kosaku Ariga, commanding officer of battleship Yamato, went down with the ship as the battleship sank.
7 Apr 1945
When Yamato was discovered was steaming south, Air Group 9 from USS Yorktown (Essex-class) claimed several torpedo hits on Yamato herself just before the battleship exploded and sank. USS Yorktown (Essex-class)?s planes also had at least three 500-pound bombs hit light cruiser Yahagi before that ship also sank. Yorktown then resumed her strikes on Okinawa.
7 Apr 1945
While enroute to attack the US fleets off Okinawa, Japan, battleship Yamato was attacked by US carrier aircraft resulting in her loss, along with several of her escorts.
8 Apr 1945
Two destroyers were damaged by Japanese special attack boats and aircraft off Okinawa, Japan.
9 Apr 1945
The Japanese Navy scored a notable success against the Americans when a large Shinyo Motor Boat packed with explosives charged out of Naha harbour, Okinawa, Japan to ram the USS Charles J. Badger putting the destroyer out of the war with both engines utterly unserviceable. A landing-craft was sunk on the same night and, from the fringes of the destroyer screen, came a report of swimmers armed with hand-grenades, although whether these were, in fact, Fukuryu ("Crawling Dragons") suicide-frogmen still remained uncertain.
11 Apr 1945
USS Ancon set sail for Saipan, Mariana Islands.
11 Apr 1945
USS Missouri, USS Enterprise, USS Essex, and 6 destroyers were damaged by Japanese special attack aircraft off Okinawa, Japan.
12 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 2 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 125 Japanese Navy and 60 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft. Destroyer USS Mannert L. Abele was sunk by a Japanese Ohka piloted bomb off Okinawa; she was the first to be struck by an Ohka bomb and was the only to be sunk by one.
14 Apr 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft damaged a battleship and two destroyers off Okinawa, Japan.
15 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 3 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 120 Japanese Navy and 45 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
16 Apr 1945
US Army troops landed on Ie Shima off Okinawa, Japan. Meanwhile, Japanese special attack aircraft sank a destroyer and damaged a number of other warships.
19 Apr 1945
A major attack was launched against Japanese positions on Okinawa, Japan.
21 Apr 1945
Americans declared Ie Shima, Japan secure.
22 Apr 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft sank a minesweeper and damaged a number of other ships off Okinawa, Japan.
27 Apr 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 4 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 65 Japanese Navy and 50 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
28 Apr 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft damaged 5 destroyers, 2 hospital ships, and victory ship Bozeman Victory off Okinawa, Japan. None of the four G4M bombers carrying Ohka special attack aircraft hit their targets.
3 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 5 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 75 Japanese Navy and 50 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft; they sank one destroyer and damaged four other ships. On the same day, a special attack boat damaged a transport also off Okinawa.
4 May 1945
Operation Iceberg II was commenced by the Allies to support the campaign on Okinawa, Japan. Meanwhile, Japanese special attack aircraft sank two destroyers and damaged a number of other warships off the island, including British carrier HMS Formidable and American minesweeper USS Shea (hit by 1 of 7 Ohka special attack aircraft launched on this day).
4 May 1945
USS Luce was attacked by two Japanese special attack aircraft off Okinawa, Japan. The first was shot down near the port side of the ship, and the blast of the explosion caused power failures throughout the ship. The second aircraft crashed into the aft portion of the destroyer, knocking out the port engine, jamming the rudder, and flooding engineering spaces. The commanding officer gave the order to abandon ship at 0814 hours. Of the 312 on board, 126 were killed in the attack and the sinking.
6 May 1945
USS South Dakota was damaged by a magazine explosion off Okinawa, Japan. Nearby, the British Royal Navy Aircraft Carrier HMS Formidable was hit by Kamikaze planes but her steel decking (most US Aircraft Carriers had wooden decking) saved her. Further south, the British Pacific Fleer shelled Japanese positions on the Sakishima Islands of the Ryukyu Islands, 550 miles south of Japan.
8 May 1945
Every gun present at Okinawa, Japan, including naval guns, fired one round at noon at the Japanese in celebration of V-E Day.
9 May 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft damaged two destroyer escorts off Okinawa, Japan and two British carriers (Victorious and Formidable) off Taiwan. On land, the Americans still engaged in vicious close quarter fighting on Okinawa. The Japanese defenders resorted to turning themselves into human bombs, loading themselves with explosives to charge US positions; prisoners were a rarity as the US Marines fired on anything that moved.
10 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 6 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 70 Japanese Navy and 80 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
11 May 1945
A Japanese Navy Ohka combat sortie by 4 G4M bombers off Okinawa, Japan heavily damaged American destroyer USS Hugh W. Hadley. On the island, US troops launched an offensive toward Naha.
12 May 1945
US Army troops landed on Torishima, Ryukyu Islands, Japan.
17 May 1945
In Japan, after a vicious 48-hour battle the Okinawan capital, Naha, was captured by the Americans.
18 May 1945
Destroyer USS Longshaw, stuck on a reef, was sunk by Japanese shore battery at Okinawa, Japan.
19 May 1945
US 77th Division withdrew near the Ishimmi Ridge at Okinawa, Japan after suffering heavy casualties.
20 May 1945
American troops reached Shuri Castle, Okinawa, Japan.
21 May 1945
Japanese traditional and special attacks damaged five Allied ships off Okinawa, Japan.
22 May 1945
Torrential rain reduced mobility of US armoured forces on Okinawa, Japan and gave the Japanese defenders a temporary respite.
24 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 7 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 65 Japanese Navy and 100 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft. On the island, seven Type 97 bombers attempted to crash-land at an American-controlled airfield to deliver suicide commandos during Operation Gi; several aircraft were shot down, but those who successfully reached the airfield delivered 69 commandos who destroyed 9 aircraft and damaged 29 others and set the fuel dump aflame; all commandos were killed or committed suicide.
25 May 1945
Japanese special attack aircraft sank destroyer USS Bates and damaged several other ships off Okinawa, Japan. Part of these attacks included an Ohka combat sortie by 11 G4M bombers, most of which were turned back due to poor weather while the few that launched their Ohka weapons reported no hits.
27 May 1945
Corporal Yukio Araki died as a special attack pilot. His Ki-51 aircraft might be one of the two aircraft which crashed into destroyer USS Braine off Okinawa, Japan.
27 May 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 8 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 60 Japanese Navy and 50 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft; together with manned torpedoes, these special attacks damaged 5 destroyers and 6 other ships in the area.
28 May 1945
Japanese air offensive sank destroyer USS Drexler and damaged several other ships off Okinawa, Japan.
28 May 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) resumed air support missions over Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
29 May 1945
US 10th Army captured Shuri Castle at Okinawa, Japan. Off the coast, Japanese special attack aircraft damaged 2 destroyers.
30 May 1945
US P-47 aircraft from Ie Shima attacked Japanese shipping and the lighthouse at Amami Oshima, which was part of the Ryukyu Islands north of Okinawa, Japan.
3 Jun 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 9 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 20 Japanese Navy and 30 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
3 Jun 1945
USS Ancon departed Okinawa, Japan for the Philippine Islands.
3 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) struck airfields on the Japanese home islands.
4 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) returned to Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands for support missions before steaming off to evade a typhoon.
6 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
7 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Okinawa, Ryukyu Islands.
8 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on airfields on Kyushu, Japan.
9 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Minami Daito Shima, Ryukyu Islands.
10 Jun 1945
USS Yorktown (Essex-class) launched raids on Minami Daito Shima, Ryukyu Islands and began retiring toward Leyte, Philippines.
12 Jun 1945
With Japanese troops hopelessly surrounded in the Oroku sector of Okinawa, Japan requested a ceasefire to allow them to commit suicide rather than surrender. Hundreds blew themselves up with grenades or jumped off cliffs.
17 Jun 1945
Japanese Admiral Ota Minoru committed ritual suicide for failing to defend Okinawa, Japan.
19 Jun 1945
US Army captured Okinawa, Japan.
21 Jun 1945
Operation Kikusui No. 10 was launched off Okinawa, Japan, participated by about 30 Japanese Navy and 15 Japanese Army special attack and escorting aircraft.
22 Jun 1945
The Americans secured Okinawa, Japan. Three months of savage fighting had cost the Japanese 129,700 military and 42,000 civilian dead. Just over 10,000 were taken prisoner. The Japanese had also lost 7,800 aircraft and six capital ships. The Americans had lost 12,520 dead, 36,600 wounded, 763 aircraft destroyed and 40 warships sunk.
25 Jun 1945
US Marines landed on Kumejima, Okinawa, Japan.
2 Jul 1945
Okinawa, Japan was declared secure.
29 Jul 1945
A special attack Japanese biplane trainer aircraft crashed into destroyer USS Callaghan off Okinawa, Japan; Callaghan was to be the last American warship to be sunk by special attack aircraft in the war."
FYI COL Mikel J. Burroughs LTC Stephen C. LTC Ivan Raiklin, Esq. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown CW5 (Join to see) SGM David W. Carr LOM, DMSM MP SGT MSG Andrew White SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx SSgt (Join to see) TSgt Joe C. SGT John " Mac " McConnell SP5 Mark Kuzinski SPC (Join to see) SrA Christopher Wright Cpl Joshua Caldwell SFC Joe S. Davis Jr., MSM, DSL
(7)
(0)
1
1
0
SSgt (Join to see) LTC Greg Henning SFC Stephen King SFC Anthony Beck SGT Brian Nile Alan K. SGT Robert George SGT David A. 'Cowboy' Groth SFC Shirley Whitfield MSG Mark Million Christine C Cullinan COL Lee Flemming SFC George Smith Sgt Trevor Barrett SrA Christopher Wright LTC (Join to see) PO1 William "Chip" Nagel SSgt Harvey "Skip" Porter SCPO Morris Ramsey A1C Ian Williams
(1)
(0)
Read This Next
Continue with Facebook 
Continue with Google