1. WWII in the Pacific
Closing the War

2. Island Hopping
We would hop from island to island, fighting for the important ones and jumping over the unimportant ones.
Each jump took us closer to the Philippines and Japan.

3. Our path to Japan

4. On the Move Guadalcanal – August 1942
19,000 U.S. troops invaded Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands
Six months later, Japan abandoned the island, marking their first defeat on land.

5. War Atrocities in the Pacific
The Japanese were incredibly brutal and some Americans became incredibly brutal as well.
The Japanese were seen as less than human in much of the propaganda.

6. Life Magazine 1943
“Arizona war worker writes her Navy boyfriend a thank you note for the Jap skull he sent her.”

7. Saipan & Tinian Saipan June 15 – July 9, 1944
Tinian July 24 – Aug. 1, 1944
Both were strategic islands that were important to launch air attacks on main land Japan.
In the Island Hopping campaign, islands with air strips were particularly important.
Saipan
U.S.
Japan
Strength
71,000
31,000
Dead
3,426
24,000+
5,000 suicides
Wounded
10,364
921 Prisoners
Tinian
U.S.
Japan
Strength
30,000
8,810
Dead
328
8,010
Wounded
1,571
313 prisoners

8. The War - It’s Killing You
1. On what day does the segment begin?
2. What is the smell on the beach?
3. When did the final bonzai charge come on Saipan?
4. Where did the civilians on Saipan retreat too?
5. How many civilians committed suicide on Saipan?

9. Fighting for the Philippines
Leyte Gulf, Philippines – Oct , 1944
General MacArthur waded ashore and announces “I have returned”

10. Leyte Gulf 10/23-10/26/44
178,000 U.S. Troops and 738 ships converged on Leyte.
Japan threw everything they had at Leyte.
424 Kamikaze planes sunk 16 ships and damaged 80 others
Losses
U.S.
Japan
Dead
3,000
10,500
Lost Ships & Planes
1 Light Carrier
2 Escort Carriers
2 Destroyers
200+ Planes
1 Fleet Carrier
3 Light Carriers
3 Battleships
10 Cruisers
11 Destroyers
500+ Planes

11. Kamikaze Attack

12. Arlin McRea
Iwo Jima

13. Iwo Jima 2/19 – 3/26/45 Volcanic Island with an Air Base near Japan
22,700 Japanese were dug into caves on the island.
Iwo Jima
U.S.
Japan
Strength
70,000
22,700
Killed
6,821
21,844
Wounded
19,217
216 prisoner

14. The War – There are Civilians Here
Where is Iwo Jima located in relationship to Saipan and Japan?
Why was it important to capture Iwo Jima?
What date did the Marines start to land on Iwo?
What color was the sand on Iwo?
What kind of resistance did the first waves face?

15. Okinawa – On to Japan The last big battle of the war in Pacific.
The U.S. hoped to use it as a base to invade Japan.
The largest amphibious attack in the Pacific Theater.
82 day battle lasted from late April 1 through June 22, 1945.
Okinawa
U.S.
Japan
Strength
183,000
120,000
Killed
12,513
95,000+
Wounded
38,916
7,400-10,755 prisoner

16. Okinawa by the Numbers
The U.S. lost over 12,000 men while the Japanese lost over 95,000
Japan used over 1900 kamikaze attacks
Sunk 30 ships, damaged over 300, killed over 5000 seamen
This caused us to rethink our invasion plans. It was predicted that it cost 1,000,000 lives to take Japan

17. Ending the war Firebombing raids on Tokyo, March 1945
Decision to use Atomic Bomb
August 6, 1945—Hiroshima; August 9, 1945, Nagasaki
Formal Surrender on U. S. Missouri, September 2, 1945.

18. Total Destruction

19. Nagasaki