The Battle of Midway was a naval battle fought between the United States navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy near the American Pacific Base at Midway, from the 4th to the 7th of June, 1942. It was the most decisive battle in the pacific theater as the American Navy inflicted serious damage on the Japanese Navy, which they would never recover from. The machinery used in the battle were mainly aircraft carriers, submarines, ships, and aquatic vehicles as it was a naval battle. Grenades, missiles, and torpedoes were also used heavily as a means of taking out the opponent.
The Japanese fleet consisted of 4 aircraft carriers around 4 task forces. They also had the biggest battleship in the world called ‘Yamato’, and smaller battleships like ‘Nagato’ and ‘Mutsu’. The Americans, in comparison, had 3 aircraft carriers and a Midway Island airstrip.
The commander in chief, Admiral Yamamoto did not realise the potential an aircraft carrier had as it could deliver an enormous blow to the enemy at a greater distance than a battleship could. This, along with his belief that the carrier was a support vessel of the battleship, contributed to America’s success in this battle.
On the 3rd of June, American B17 planes dropped bombs on Japanese transport bombs, but the initial attack from Japan signaled the beginnings of the battle with Aichi D3A and Nakajima B5N diver and torpedo bombers, damaging the US base.
When Zero fighters returned to their carrier decks to be refueled and rearmed, the Japanese fleet were extremely vulnerable. The Americans took this opportunity to send 67 Dauntless dive bombers, 29 Devastator torpedo bombers and 20 Wildcat fighters to attack them in two waves. The first wave attacked the flight deck of the Akagi aircraft carrier and within minutes the carrier was doomed. Other dive bombers hit the Kaga aircraft carrier, which sunk in 2 hours, and the Soryu, which was abandoned. Meanwhile, Japanese planes attacked the Yorktown so severely it was abandoned. The Japanese submarine I-168 penetrated the American fleet, sinking 2 torpedoes and the Yorktown.
In this battle, the Japanese lost 4 aircraft carriers (Akagi, Kaga, Soryu and Hiryu) which were vital to the Pacific campaign whereas the Americans lost only the carrier Yorktown and a destroyer. Along with Japan’s loss of their aircraft carriers, they also suffered more than 3,000 casualties, much of those who were trained pilots and maintenance crewmen.