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$Unique_ID{COW02711} $Pretitle{294O} $Title{Oceania Appendix A. Selected Events of World War II Involving the Pacific Ocean} $Subtitle{} $Author{Donald M. Seekins} $Affiliation{HQ, Department of the Army} $Subject{forces american japanese land new guinea air february island naval} $Date{1984} $Log{} Country: Oceania Book: Oceania, An Area Study: Strategic Perspective Author: Donald M. Seekins Affiliation: HQ, Department of the Army Date: 1984 Appendix A. Selected Events of World War II Involving the Pacific Ocean __________________________________________________________________________________ Date Event __________________________________________________________________________________ 1941 December 7-10 ..... Japanese forces land on the east coast of Malaya; attack Pearl Harbor, Hong Kong, Guam, and Wake and Midway islands; conduct air strikes on the Philippines; bomb Nauru and Ocean Island (present-day Banaba); land on the north coast of Luzon in the Philippines; capture Guam December 16 ....... Japanese forces land on Borneo December 18 ....... Japanese forces land on Mindanao in the Philippines December 19 ....... Japanese forces move into Burma in strength December 24 ....... Japanese forces occupy Wake Island December 25 ....... Hong Kong falls 1942 January-March ..... American forces begin arriving in Australia January 2 ......... Japanese forces occupy Manila January 11 ........ Japanese forces take Kuala Lumpur; land on Celebes in the Netherlands East Indies January 23 ........ Japanese forces land at Rabaul on the island of New Britain and on the island of New Ireland; begin building a major base at Rabaul February 1 ........ American naval forces shell Gilbert and Marshall islands February 3 ........ Japanese aircraft bomb Port Moresby on the island of New Guinea February 15 ....... Singapore falls February 19 ....... Japanese aircraft bomb Darwin, Australia February 23 ....... President Franklin D. Roosevelt orders General Douglas A. MacArthur to leave then Philippines for Australia February 24 ....... American naval air strike on Wake Island February 27-28 .... Battle of the Java Sea; Japanese forces invade Java in the Netherlands East Indies March 3 ........... Australian air strike on New Britain; Japanese air strike on Port Moresby and sites in northern Australia March 8 ........... Japanese forces land at Lae and Salamaua on New Guinea March 9 ........... Dutch and other Allied forces in Java surrender March 10 .......... Japanese forces land on Buka in the Solomon Islands March 17 .......... MacArthur appointed supreme commander, Allied forces, Southwest Pacific; Admiral Chester W. Nimitz appointed commander in chief, Pacific Ocean areas April 18 .......... Air raid on Tokyo and other Japanese cities May 3-8 ........... Japanese forces occupy Tulagi in the Solomons; Battle of the Coral Sea ends Japanese attempt at a seaborne invasion of Port Moresby May 6-9 ........... Filipino and American resistance in the Philippines ends June 4 ............ Battle of Midway; Japanese fleet heavily damaged by Allied fleet July 6 ............ Japanese forces land on Guadalcanal in the Solomons July 21-29 ........ Japanese forces land at Gona on New Guinea and advance to capture Buna and then Kokoda August 7-9 ........ American forces land on Guadalcanal and Tulagi; capture Tulagi; naval battle of Savo Island isolates American forces on Guadalcanal August 11 ......... Japanese Combined Fleet relocates eastward from Japan to Truk Island in the Caroline group August 23-25 ...... Naval battle in the eastern Solomons prevents reinforcement of Japanese on Guadalcanal August 23 ......... Japanese forces occupy Nauru and Ocean Island August 26 ......... Japanese forces land at Milne Bay in New Guinea in an attempt to outflank Port Moresby, but American and Australian defenders force their withdrawal September 5 ....... Japanese troops begin night landings of reinforcements on Guadalcanal September 11 ...... Japanese advance halts 50 kilometers north of Port Moresby September 13 ...... Battle of Bloody Ridge, Guadalcanal September 23 ...... Australian forces counterattack against Japanese forces north of Port Moresby October 11- November 30 ...... Series of naval battles for control of waters around Guadalcanal; Japanese eventually repulsed October 13-16 ..... Japanese heavy artillery and bombers pound American positions on Guadalcanal November 1 ........ American counteroffensive on Guadalcanal begins December 2 ........ First controlled nuclear chain reaction initiated at the University of Chicago December 14 ....... Japanese reinforcements land at Buna 1943 January 2 ......... Australian and American forces capture Buna February 1 ........ Japanese evacuate Guadalcanal; withdraw from Wau on New Guinea March 2-5 ......... Battle of the Bismarck Sea thwarts Japanese attempt to reinforce New Guinea from Rabaul March 25 .......... American forces bomb Japanese airfield on Nauru April 18 .......... Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku, commander in chief, Japanese Combined Fleet, killed May 18 ............ Australian forces capture Mubo on New Guinea June 22-30 ........ American forces take Woodlark and Trobriand (Kiriwina) islands to set up airfields June 29-30 ........ American forces land at Nassau Bay on New Guinea to set up supply bases; land on Rendova and New Georgia, both in the Solomon Islands, to begin assault on Munda airfield on New Georgia July 5-16 ......... Japanese reinforce New Georgia from New Britain; naval battles of Kula Gulf and Kolombangara Island August 5 .......... Munda airfield captured August 13-18 ...... American air raids on Balikpapan on Borneo and Wewak on New Guinea August 15 ......... American and New Zealand forces land on Vella Lavella in the Solomons to set up airfields September 4-16 .... Australian and American forces land at Lae and Nadzab on New Guinea; advance to capture Salamaua September 18 ...... American naval air strike on Tarawa in the Gilberts September 22- October 2 ....... Australian forces attack and take Finschhafen on New Guinea October 5 ......... American air strikes on Wake Island October 6-7 ....... American forces land on Kolombangara in the Solomons; naval battle during Japanese evacuation of Vella Lavella October 20 ........ Japanese forces begin reinforcement of Rabaul October 27- November 6 ...... New Zealand forces take Treasury Islands in preparation for assault on Bougainville in the Solomons November 1 ........ American forces land on Bougainville to establish airfields November 5-11 ..... Air strikes on Rabaul November 12 ....... Surviving Japanese carrier planes and warships withdrawn from Rabaul to Truk November 20-23 .... American forces take Tarawa and Makin in the Gilberts; heavy losses on both sides; begin to build airfields December 4 ........ American air strikes on Kwajalein in the Marshalls December 8 ........ American battleships shell Nauru December 15-30 .... American forces land on New Britain, capture Cape Gloucester airstrip, and establish control over Vitiaz and Dampier straits 1944 January 2 ......... American forces land at Saidor on New Guinea to establish airfields January 31- February 1 ...... American forces land at Kwajalein and Majuro atolls in the Marshalls February 10 ....... Japanese Combined Fleet relocates westward from Truk to the Palau Islands February 15 ....... Australian and New Zealand forces take Green Islands near New Ireland February 17-22 .... American forces attack and secure Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshalls February 29- March 9 ......... American forces land in the Admiralty Islands north of New Guinea and begin construction of a major naval base on Manus March 20 .......... American forces land in the Bismarck Archipelago to complete the ring of airfields around Rabaul March 30 .......... American naval air strikes against the Palau Islands April 22-26 ....... Preceded by weeks of air strikes, American forces land at Hollandia in West New Guinea and Aitape in northeastern New Guinea; secure airfields at Hollandia; Australian forces build airfields at Aitape May 17-18 ......... American forces land at Arare in West New Guinea and on offshore island of Wakde May 27 ............ American forces invade Biak in the Netherlands East Indies, where Japanese forces are deeply dug in June 11-15 ........ American forces bomb, then invade Saipan in the Marianas June 19-21 ........ Battle of the Philippine Sea deals severe blow to the Japanese Combined Fleet July 2 ............ American forces land on Noemfoor off New Guinea to seize airfields July 7-9 .......... American forces secure Saipan after suicide assault by Japanese July 10-13 ........ Japanese counteroffensive at Aitape on New Guinea met by Australian and American forces July 21 ........... American forces land on Guam after extensive naval bombardment of the island July 24 ........... American forces land on Tinian in the Marianas July 28 ........... Organized Japanese resistance on Biak ends July 30-31 ........ American forces land at Sansapor to complete the occupation of the northern coast of New Guinea and to set up airfields to strike the northern Philippines and the Netherlands East Indies July 31 ........... American forces secure Tinian August 10 ......... Japanese forces withdraw from Aitape toward Wewak on New Guinea; American forces begin bombardment on Iwo Jima August 12 ......... Guam secured September 15-20 American forces land on Peleliu and Angaur islands in the Palau group; meet fierce resistance September 23 ...... American forces occupy Ulithi Atoll in the Carolines to build naval base October 10-21 ..... Regular naval air strikes commence on Philippines, Formosa, and Ryukyus October 17-25 ..... American forces land on Philippine island of Leyte to begin work on airfields; Battle of Leyte Gulf demolishes core of the Japanese fleet despite the first organized use of kamikaze attacks November 24 ....... American forces begin first B-29 raids on Tokyo and other Japanese cities November 25 ....... Organized Japanese resistance on Peleliu ends December 25 ....... American forces secure Leyte 1945 January 9 ......... American forces land on Luzon February 19 ....... American forces land on Iwo Jima after prolonged air and naval bombardment; meet stiff resistance March 3 ........... Japanese resistance in Manila ends March 15 .......... American forces secure Iwo Jima April 1 ........... American forces land on Okinawa April 2 ........... President Roosevelt dies; President Harry S Truman assumes office May 11 ............ Battle of Wewak, the last Japanese stronghold on the northern coast of New Guinea June 22 ........... Organized resistance on Okinawa ends July 4 ............ MacArthur announces the liberation of the Philippines July 16 ........... First atomic bomb tested in New Mexico August 6 .......... United States drops atomic bomb on Hiroshima August 9 .......... United States drops atomic bomb on Nagasaki August 14 ......... Japan surrenders unconditionally September 2 ....... Surrender formally signed __________________________________________________________________________________ Note-Accepted dates may vary according to observer's location relative to the international date line. See figures 1, 5, 7, 8, 14, and 22 for locations of place-names.