The Original Strategy to fight Japan was code named "Orange." This formerly top secret plan (the US had a plan for nearly all main power nations, Germany's plan was code "Black') was geared to fight Japan "at sea", moving closer to her main islands (home land) then engage in one big decisive "Armageddon" type battle. This plan was based upon the use of "Dreadnaughts" (Battleship Fleets). The plane was designed before the coming of the aircraft carrier & nuclear weapons. The actual WWII fighting involved an "Island Hopping" campaign; designed around the world's new weapon, the aircraft carrier. This strategy involved "hitting them where they ain't." Instead of having a blood bath on every fortified Japanese Island, they would by pass them (hop over the islands-Island Hopping). Only fighting for the Islands that were absolutely necessary for advancing towards the Japanese Empire itself.
Leyte Gulf
'Island Hopping'
Island hopping, also called leapfrogging, was an important military strategy in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The strategy was to bypass heavily fortified Japanese positions and instead concentrate the limited Allied resources on strategically important islands that were not well defended but capable of supporting the drive to the main islands of Japan
The capture of the airfields that the Japanese had built upon the island were important to the Allies because it would have prevented interdiction of the Japanese air-forces on Allied supply lines/shipping and the airfields , in Allied hands , were of strategic importance to the Allied strategy of 'Island Hopping' although USMC General H.M."Howlin Mad" Smith felt it was an island of limited importance and could be bypassed leaving the Japanese there stranded on the island and essentially out of the war .
Their strategy was to split the Allied Forces in the Pacific. MacArthur lead forces in the SW Pacific. He was based in Australia. His force went after the Japanese to repel them from the islands. They had to cut off the communications lines of the Japanese by re-taking some of the islands the Japanese occupied near China. Nimitz led the Naval force that went after islands starting from the Coral Sea and on up to the mainland island of Japan. They began an island hopping campaign to take back American possessions and liberate the islands the Japanese had invaded. It took them three years to accomplish this because they had to build up the Naval fleet again. The other problem they had was their enemy. The Japanese were very fierce warriors making them difficult to defeat. They were clever too. They would hide underground or fight only at night. The Naval Japanese leaders tricked and trapped the US Naval vessels too. But the strategy the Allied Forces chose to use did work. They won the war.
Leyte Gulf
Allied forces captured a few strategic pacific islands from the Japanese and then used those reclaimed islands as bases from which to advance the remaining targets
"Island-Hopping" .
island hopping in the pacific
To by pass the islands and not fight for every island
Island Hopping
'Island Hopping'
Only islands that were not well defended.
Island hopping, also called leapfrogging, was an important military strategy in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The strategy was to bypass heavily fortified Japanese positions and instead concentrate the limited Allied resources on strategically important islands that were not well defended but capable of supporting the drive to the main islands of Japan
The Allied Naval Forces went after the Japanese island by island in the South Pacific. That strategy was called island hopping. Admiral Chester Nimitz was in charge of the Pacific Theater naval actions. So he earned the name Island Hopper.
When the US entered World War II in 1941, its strategy was to send most of its troops to the Pacific to battle Japanese forces. Later, from 1943-1945 the US led the allied war effort in Europe.
The capture of the airfields that the Japanese had built upon the island were important to the Allies because it would have prevented interdiction of the Japanese air-forces on Allied supply lines/shipping and the airfields , in Allied hands , were of strategic importance to the Allied strategy of 'Island Hopping' although USMC General H.M."Howlin Mad" Smith felt it was an island of limited importance and could be bypassed leaving the Japanese there stranded on the island and essentially out of the war .