World War II, Pacific

JUNE 1945
    The war is over in Europe; men and material are being redeployed to the Pacific. B-29's bomb Japan daily, escorted by fighters from Iwo Jima. Fighting continues on Okinawa 400 miles from Japan, within range of Kamikazes attacking the U.S. fleet. The government of Japan must decide how to defend from the coming invasion as troops start withdrawal from China.
June 1. 458 B-29's attack city of Osaka.
148 P-51's escorts encounter severe weather , many of the fighters collide; 27 are lost
Mines sown by B-29's sink 6 and damage 6 ships.
June 2. Carrier TF 38 bombs airfields in southern Kyushu,¹ Japan.
Mines sown by B-29's sink or damage 12 more ships.
June 3. Carrier TF 38 bombs more airfields in southern Kyushu, Japan.
Marines land on Iheya Jima, Ryukyus
Mines sown by B-29's sink or damage 7 ships.
June 4. Subs, mines and aircraft sink 10 enemy ships, damage 7. Blockade and siege of fortress Japan is underway.
June 5. Typhoon off Okinawa badly damages 4 USN ships.
Kamikazes damage Mississippi (BB-41) and Louisville (CA-28).
473 B-29's pound city of Kobe with incendiaries.
June 6. Japanese government begins 3-day conference with Emperor to discuss the war.
Submarines continue daily sinking of Japanese shipping and escorts.
June 7. TG 74.3 of 4 light cruisers and 7 DD covers minesweepers and underwater demolition teams off Brunei Bay, N. Borneo.
409 B-29's, escorted by P-51's, drop incendiary and high explosive bombs on Osaka.
June 8. FarEast AirForce makes daily raids on Formosa, Hong Kong, and Borneo
Submarine HMS Trenchant sinks Japanese heavy cruiser Ashigara (CA) N. of Borneo while carrying 1600 troops from Batavia ; 400 Army troops and 850 crew rescued by escort, over 1200 troops and 100 crewmen went down with the ship.
TF 38 planes attack Kanoya Airfield, Kyushu, Japan.
Imperial Conference with Emperor : "the nation will fight to the bitter end."
June 9. Navy surface and air forces attacking in the Kurils² supported by 6 B-24's and 8 B-25's. B-25 shot down by Soviet AA.
Marines on Aguni Jima, Ryukyus.
Keeper of Privy Seal, Kido, begins search for "peace with honor" within civil government.
Jun 10. Australians invade Borneo, seize oil fields.
PB4Y Privateers from Okinawa, commence mining waters off Korea.
Six submarines sink 8 Japanese ships.
Radar picket ship Porter (DD-579) sunk by kamikaze.
Jun 11. Cruisers and DDs bombard installations on Matsuwa, Kurils, the island chain N of Japan
Six U.S .subs sink 6 ships.
Jun 12. Four U.S. subs sink 7 ships.
Cervantes, P.I, is secured in Battle of Bessang Pass.,
Jun 13. 750 U.S. aircraft are stationed on Okinawa.
Most of Third Fleet arrives Leyte after 3-months of continuous operations and kamakaze attacks off Okinawa.
Jun 14. British task group make air and surface attacks on Truk.
Marshall gives King a study on use of poison gas to decrease cost in American lives and shorten the war.
Jun 15. Court of Inquiry about ship losses in typhoon.
Jun 16. P-61 Black Widow's arrive on Ie Shima to take on night heckler missions against Kyushu.
Twiggs (DD-591) sunk by kamikaze torpedo bomber.
Jun 17. Final defenses on Okinawa are breached..
Jun 18. President Truman authorizes invasion of Kyushu, Operation Olympic.
Having burned out major cities, B-29's begin on smaller ones.
Jun 19. Alaskan B-24 flies longest mission, a 2,700-mi round trip lasting 15-1/2 hrs in N.Pacific.
British troops enter Thailand.
Jun 20. PB4Y-2s from Okinawa daily sow mines in waters of Korean archipelago.
Jun 21. 10th Army reachs south end of Okinawa. Conquest completed.
Kamikazes continue.
Jun 22. Gen Ushijima suicide. Mopping up continues
UN Conference ends.
Jun 23. U.S .casualties for Okinawa : 79,849
Troops : 7,613 killed ; 31,807 wounded ; 26,000 non-combat.
Sailors : 4,900 killed ; 4,824 wounded .
191 ships sunk or irreparably damaged, 250 ships damaged, mostly by kamikaze.
Jun 24. Japan asks Soviets to extend Neutrality Pact.
Australian forces capture Sarawak, N.W. part of Borneo.
Jun 25. Japanese continue to pullback troops from China to defend the home islands.
Jun 26. UN established in San Francisco
Four DD sink 4 subchasers in Kurils.
Marines land on Kume Jima.
B-29's hit oil refineries.
Jun 27. Luzon declared captured after 5-1/2 months of fighting.
Jun 28. Japanese submarine I 36 carries out unsuccessful kaiten attack on Antares (AKS-3)
Jun 29. Japan offers Soviets fishing concessions for oil.
Jun 30. Luzon declared secure [altho fighting continued until the end.]
Midyear count : USN vessels on hand, all types -- 67,952 .
Personnel : Navy-- 3,383,196 ; Marine Corps-- 476,709 ; Coast Guard-- 171,192. Total-- 4,031,097.
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1 . Kyushu is the south-most of the 4 islands that are Japan, target for invasion 1Nov'45.
2 . Kurils are an island chain continuing north of Japan, much as Okinawa is part of an island chain south. < May     home    July >