Kwajalein Atoll, also called Kwajalong, coral formation in the Ralik (western) chain of the Republic of the Marshall Islands, in the west-central Pacific Ocean.The string of some 90 islets has a total land area of 6 square miles (16 square km) and surrounds the world’s largest lagoon (655 square miles [1,722 square km]). By the start of day 4 (4 February) on the northern 100 yards of the island remained in Japanese hands. The Japanese expected the Americans to attack somewhere in the eastern Marshalls, and the move right into the heart of the island ground caught them out. It is shaped like a crescent, and is about two and a half miles long and 800 yards wide for most of its length and narrowing to 300 yards wide towards its northern tip. He has appeared on The History Channel as a featured expert. The 32nd Regimental Combat Team (Col. Marc. Allied losses in the battle numbered 372 killed and 1,592 wounded. The Japanese lost around 3,800 dead.
The total land area of the atoll amounts to just over 6 square miles (16 km ).
After the capture of Makin and Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands, the next step in the United States Navy’s campaign in the central Pacific was the Marshall Islands. This area contained the ruins of a large number of buildings and several defensive strong points, but most of these were facing out to sea. It comes with all the warts of the heat of the conflict - Japanese soldiers are … Most of the rest of the force was made up of back area staff, construction staff and other less effective troops, and of the 5,000 men only around 1,820 were fully effective combat troops. The night of 2-3 February passed quietly, without even the expected On day three (3 February) the Americans fought their way around the bend in the island and began to advance north, into the area with the most buildings, and a number of strong point on the ocean side of the island. On the Allied side, Designated Operation Flintlock, the Allied plan called for Rear Admiral Richmond K. Turner's 5th Amphibious Force to deliver Major General Holland M. Smith's V Amphibious Corps to the atoll where Major General Harry Schmidt's 4th Marine Division would assault the linked islands of Roi-Namur while Major General Charles Corlett's 7th Infantry Division attacked Kwajalein Island.
The massive naval and air bombardment before the invasion, and the improved planning for an amphibious landing helped reduce American casualties, but their biggest advantage was that the Japanese simply hadn’t expected a landing on Kwajalein.
A quarter of the island had already been conquered and six battalions were already ashore.On many occasions the first night after an amphibious landing saw the Japanese launch fierce counterattacks. Kwajalein Atoll had little involvement with the outside world until German occupation from 1899, and then a Japanese takeover after World War One.
Both positions were supported by two 150cm searchlights and a mix of 13mm and 7.7mm machine guns.
The Japanese were unable to take advantage of this temporary vulnerability, but they were able to hold up the 184th, as it attempted to advance through a rubble field. In addition, many of Akiyama's troops were labor/construction details or naval forces with little ground combat training. Kwajalein Atoll is an incredible diving site but also an restricted military base. ThoughtCo uses cookies to provide you with a great user experience. The surviving Japanese troops on both sides of the line also made a series of smaller scale attacks that gave everyone a restless night, while the guns at the north-eastern tip of the island were still in action.
Cue lots of aircraft being dumped off carriers.So so Interesting , I am a pilot in South Sudan . Kwajalein was the second most heavily defended island in the atoll. Kwajelain island is the largest island in Kwajalein Atoll.