A detailed re-examination of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the Day of Infamy that saw the USA enter World War II.In this the first comprehensive treatment of Pearl Harbor since the early 1990s. respected Pacific War naval historian Mark E. Stille traces the road to war and the Japanese attack itself. He examines the role of the man behind the operation, Japanese Admiral Yamamoto, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the plan. The American preparations ...

Launching Osprey's new Fleet series, this is a spectacularly illustrated, concise and comprehensive account of the Imperial Japanese Navy's striking force at the height of its power.The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) entered the Pacific War as one of the most formidable navies in the world, and its combat power was concentrated into one force, the Combined Fleet. In the months that followed Pearl Harbor it enjoyed an unrivaled string of victories, shattering American...

A detailed and comprehensive study of the carrier formations of the Pacific War, including their origins, development and key battles from the Coral Sea, through Midway and Guadalcanal to the battle of the Philippine Sea.The defining feature of the Pacific Theatre of World War II was the clash of carriers that ultimately decided the fate of nations. The names of these battles have become legendary as some of the most epic encounters in the history of naval warfare....

A detailed account of the dramatic success and failures of Hitler's U-boats in the mid-war years during the best-known naval campaign of World War II**.**At the start of 1942, the Germans benefited from the lack of American preparations to defend shipping along the US East Coast, and this 'Second Happy Time' saw serious Allied losses between January and July 1942. After this Allied disaster, Admiral Dönitz planned to shift his focus to the North Atlantic. This was ...

Fully illustrated, this is a history of airpower in the decisive stage of the New Guinea campaign, when the Allies could finally go on the offensive to shatter Japanese forces.In mid-1943, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF) took over responsibility for New Guinea air operations from the Imperial Japanese Navy. In its first large-scale contest against the USAAF, the IJAAF was challenged to defend its bases, defend the sea lanes supporting numerous Japanese...

A comprehensive overview of the strategy, operations and vessels of the United States Navy from 1941 to 1945.Although slowly building its navy while neutral during the early years of World War II, the US was struck a serious blow when its battleships, the lynchpin of US naval doctrine, were the target of the dramatic attack at Pearl Harbor. In the Pacific Theatre, the US was thereafter locked into a head to head struggle with the impressive Imperial Japanese Navy, ...

A highly illustrated examination of the key ships, tactics and operations of the Imperial Japanese Navy in the War in the Pacific in World War II.The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) was the third most powerful navy in the world at the start of World War II, and came to dominate the Pacific in the early months of the war. This was a remarkable turnaround for a navy that only began to modernize in 1868, although defeats inflicted on the Russians and Chinese in successiv...

A detailed re-examination of Midway, one of the most significant battles in the Pacific Theater of World War II.In April 1942, the Combined Fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy was at the zenith of its power. It had struck a severe blow against the US Navy at Pearl Harbor in December 1941, before spearheading the Japanese advance through Southeast Asia and rampaging across the South Pacific. Only a few months later, in June 1942, the US Navy managed to inflict a dec...

A fascinating re-examination of the battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval encounter in history and probably the most decisive naval battle of the entire Pacific War, and one that saw the Imperial Japanese Navy eliminated as an effective fighting force and forced to resort to suicide tactics.Leyte was a huge and complex action, actually consisting of four major battles, each of which are broken down in detail in this book, using original sources. The plans of both...

Illustrated throughout, an expert account of the US Pacific Fleet in the crucial six months between Pearl Harbor and its revenge at Midway.Despite the damage inflicted at Pearl Harbor, the Pacific Fleet still had the ability to hit back. In this book, US Navy expert Mark Stille explains and assesses the fleet's response to the apparent disaster, and how its actions led to the decisive victory at Midway.He explains how although unable to mount a large-scale ...

The dramatic conclusion to the Battle of the Atlantic series, highlighting how the Germans lost their edge in the water at the end of the war.In May 1943, Admiral Dönitz's U-boat force suffered a decisive loss in the North Atlantic. Forced to abandon the attacks, he switched the focus of U-boat operations to the central Atlantic, but was met and defeated by US Navy escort carrier groups. In September 1943, Dönitz attempted to resume North Atlantic operations. Howev...

The savage naval battles of Guadalcanal, New Guinea and the Solomons were transformative for the US Navy. Fully illustrated, this analyses the fleet's capabilities and combat in this period.The naval battles of 1942–43 around Guadalcanal and in the Solomons were some of the fiercest and most closely contested of the Pacific War. The campaigns included most of the surface actions of the war, as well as two carrier battles, three major amphibious landings, and a subm...