The Battle of the Philippine Sea

A Japanese B6N Renzen dive-bomber Set Aflame While Trying to Attack the Light Carrier U.S.S. Katin Bay

After the taking of Tarawa, the U.S. Navy was in planning on how and where to strike the Japanese next.In 1944, Boeing Airplane Company created a new heavy bomber; the Boeing B-29 Superfortress.This bomber had the range needed to strike the home islands of Japan.But, there was one problem.The Allies did not have a Pacific base close enough.So, naval planners came up with a plan.They proposed that the U.S. Navy land troops Saipan, Tinian, and Guam in the Marianas Island chain.So, Admiral Halsey decided to land there in hopes of luring out the Japanese Combined Fleet into a final showdown.On the Japanese side, Admiral Nobutake Kondo (the new Combined Fleet commander) came up with a similar plan.Operation A-Go.This plan called for the use of their carrier forces.Now, something you have to realize here is that most Japanese planes had a longer range than the American planes, and usng their long range, they would destroy the American fleet and never be in range of the American carrier forces.
Vice Admiral Raymond Spruance had at his disposal 15 carriers and with that, 956 aircraft.On the other hand, Kondo and Ozawa had only 343 aircraft, but Kondo thought that with the island air bases of Guam and Saipan and their aircraft would tip the balance in their favor.On June 11th, the invasion began with the bombardment of the airfields on Guam, and Ozawa didn't realize the loss until a week later.On June 19th, Ozawa sent out his scout planes to find the Americans.They spotted a part of Task Force 58, and at 0830, he sent the first of four waves of attacking aircraft at them.As the second wave took off, the Taiho was hit by a torpedo from a U.S. submarine, but damage appeared to be light.In the meantime, Admiral Marc A. Mitcher sent out his intercepting F6F Hellcats to get the first wave, only 50 miles away.None of the first wave and only 20 planes from the second wave got through and they only inflicted minor damage to the Wasp and Bunker Hill.At 1220, the Shokaku was taking on her planes from the second wave when she was struck by a torpedo from the submarine Cavalla.The Shokaku blazed for three hours until she sank.Then, at 1532, the Taiho, Ozawa's flagship, exploded and sank.

Almost 300 Japanese aircraft were shot down in what was to be called "The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot", but, the battle was not quite over.Ozawa didn't withdraw until late afternoon on June 20, so, Mitcher decided to attack.His planes sank the Hiyo, and damaged the Zuikaku and Chiyoda.But, of the 216 American aircraft that attacked, only 43 found their way back to their carriers (It was night time by the time they got back).Mitcher, though, was dissapointed that he didn't meet the Japanese face-to-face, but the Americans won a great victory.They so completly wiped out Japanese air power that their carriers were now useless, and, they sank three Japanese heavy carriers.

Some Afterthoughts

The Battle of the Philippine Sea was the last time the Japanese got to fight the Americans on equal terms.After the battle, they had so few pilots and planes that left their carriers useless and, eventually, targets.

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