Battle Of Midway - WWII in colour

The one remaining Japanese carrier launched an attack, striking the USS Yorktown and dealing it a mortal blow. However, planes previously launched from the Yorktown found and sank this last Japanese carrier. This decisive victory for the United States resulted in the loss of four Japanese Fleet carriers, 322 planes, and 3,500 men, including their best aviators, marking Japan's first naval defeat in 300 years. The US lost the USS Yorktown and over 140 planes, but many American flyers were rescued.

The Battle of Midway was a critical turning point in the Pacific War. As a senior Japanese official noted, the Americans 'avenged Pearl Harbor.' Japan's significant loss of carriers at Midway would severely hamper their efforts in subsequent conflicts, notably impacting their ability to defend against America's first major land offensive in the Pacific, Guadalcanal.

In June 1942, Midway Island was America's last defense in the Central Pacific. US Naval intelligence, having broken the Japanese radio code, learned of an impending attack between June 4th and 6th. On June 3rd, US search planes located the Japanese task force, which included seven carriers, eleven battleships, and over 400 planes, significantly outnumbering American forces. This intelligence gave the US a crucial element of surprise.

On the morning of June 4th, B-17 bombers from Midway unsuccessfully attacked the Japanese invasion fleet. The men on Midway then awaited the inevitable Japanese attack, which began with 108 planes from the carrier task force striking the island. Despite heavy damage to the airfield and structures, including the Marine command post and airplane hangers, the Japanese failed to destroy the Airfield, and the Stars and Stripes continued to fly.

After pinpointing the Japanese carrier task force on June 4th, US carriers Hornet, Enterprise, and Yorktown launched 150 planes to attack the four main Japanese carriers. The first waves of US aircraft caught the Japanese with their decks full, rearming planes. While initial torpedo plane attacks were largely unsuccessful, a lost group of US dive bombers arrived overhead, destroying three of the four Japanese carriers within five minutes, dramatically shifting the balance of power in the Pacific.