Operation catchpole
The landing zones and the advance on the islands
| date | 17th bis 23. February 1944 |
|---|---|
| place | Eniwetok Atoll |
| output | American victory |
| Parties to the conflict | |
|---|---|
| Commander | |
| Troop strength | |
| 2 regiments | 2,741 soldiers |
| losses | |
|
262 dead, |
2,677 dead, |
The Battle of Eniwetok was an American company in the Pacific theater during World War II to assume the islands Engebi, Parry and Eniwetok in the Eniwetok Atoll of the Marshall Islands . The operation took place from February 17 to 23, 1944 and is assigned to the Battle of the Marshall Islands .
preparation
In order to cut off air support for the Japanese , seven American bombers bombed Japanese bases in the Mariana Islands on February 1 in the run-up to the company . Then, on February 17th and 18th, the Americans launched a massive carrier-based bombing raid on Truk ( Operation Hailstone ) to completely isolate the islands. Hundreds of Japanese aircraft were destroyed; almost the entire Japanese air fleet in the area. In addition, the machines sank 2 cruisers , 5 destroyers , 31 transport ships and some smaller units.
Result
The landing operation itself began on February 17th on Engebi. American bombers began bombing the atoll at 7:00 a.m. At the same time, the nearby islands of Canna and Camellia were attacked in order to station artillery there as quickly as possible , as Engebi could be fired from there. Underwater units examined the waters near the beach for mines , but did not find anything.
Task Group TG.51.11, under the command of Rear Admiral Harry W. Hill , brought 8,000 soldiers from the 22nd Marine Regimental Combat Group and 2 battalions of the 106th Regiment of the 27th Infantry Division with 11th Transport and 16 landing boats to the atoll islands. Engebi was taken in just six hours. The Japanese had hardly been able to offer any resistance.
Eniwetok
The Eniwetok landing took place on February 19th with the same procedure. But here the landing units came under heavy Japanese machine gun fire , which threw them back onto the beach. Occasionally there were even "man against man" fights with bare hands. Eniwetok was not completely in American hands until February 21.
Parry
As the last atoll island, Parry was shot from two sides ready for a storm from February 17th to the morning of February 22nd; from the newly installed artillery on Eniwetok and from the seaside of three American battleships. Then at 9:00 a.m. on February 22nd, the landing units stormed Parry and encountered almost no Japanese resistance. The island was in American hands at 7:30 p.m.
Sacrifice and Consequences
The Japanese army under Major General Yoshimi Nishida was able to offer considerable resistance in some cases, but at the end of the fighting, only 64 of the 3,431 Japanese were taken prisoner by the Americans, the rest had fallen. On the American side there were 262 dead and 757 wounded. 77 Americans are missing.
After taking the Eniwetok Atoll, the Americans succeeded in taking the eastern Marshall Islands by June 14, 1944. Air landing bases were built there, which were used until well after the Pacific War.
The sea units
For the protection of the company lay the destroyers USS Aylwin , USS Dale , USS Dewey , USS Farragut , USS Franks , USS Haggard , USS Halley , USS Hazelwood , USS Heerman , USS Hoel , USS Hull , USS Johnston , USS McCord , USS Monaghan and the USS Trathen in front of the atoll.
The cruisers USS Indianapolis , USS Louisville and USS Portland , and the battleships USS Colorado , USS Pennsylvania and USS Tennessee under Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf provided the necessary artillery support .
The air intervention group under Rear Admiral Van H. Ragsdale with escort carriers USS Chenango , USS Sangamon and USS Suwanee , as well as the destroyers USS Ellet , USS Hughes , USS Morris and USS Mustin were also available.
See also
literature
- L. C Kukral: Marines in the Marshalls (WWII fact sheet). Navy & Marine Corps WWII Commemorative Committee, 1994.
Web links
- Operation Catchpole on ibiblio.org (English)