The Decisive Year

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1944

• The Decisive Year

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Island Hopping Campaign Continues

• Kwajalein (quah juh LEAN)

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• The Japanese were taken by surprise when the
  Americans invaded Saipan
• They were expecting the Americans to go after the
  Caroline Islands

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• Japan felt they had rebuilt their aircraft
  carrier fleet and were ready to attack.
• So they sent their aircraft carriers and their
  land based planes to attack the Americans
• This became known as the Battle of the Philippine
  Sea

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• The Japanese launched several attacks from
  carriers and land based aircraft
• The biggest problem was that the quality of
  Japanese pilots had seriously deteriorated
• Japan had to rush pilots through their training
  programs, their pilots just didnt have enough
  training time
• The Americans annihilated the planes that were
  sent to attack them.
• Then American planes counter attacked and sank 3
  more Japanese carriers

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• The Japanese lost 600 planes and 3 aircraft
  carriers to Americas approximately 40 aircraft
  and no ships
• Americans nicknamed it the Marianas Turkey
  Shoot
• Significance Japan would never again have a
  carrier strike force
• America captured air bases that put their new
  long range bombers within range of the Japanese
  home islands.

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Capture of Rome

• Capture of Rome June 4, 1944
• After 9 months of hard fighting in Italy, the
  Allies had moved about half way up the Italian
  Peninsula.
• The Germans had abandoned it for a better
  defensive position and to keep the city from
  being destroyed
• The excitement of capturing Rome would be very
  short lived as they were overshadowed by bigger
  events

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D-Day

• The Allied invasion of France was known as D-Day.
• Why D-Day?
• Code named Operation Overlord
• One of the greatest invasions in history.
• 5,000 Ships
• 150,000 Troops
• 30,000 Vehicles
• 800 transport planes dropped 13,000 paratroopers

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• Planning for D-Day began years before
• Requirements good beaches, within air cover
  distance, and a major harbor
• Rommel and the Atlantic Wall delay them on the
  beaches and used mobile armored forces to drive
  them into the sea
• Pas de Calais
• Where the Germans were
• Deception Patton and fake army
• Dead body and plans
• Build up of troops

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Pas de Calais
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• The plan
• American, British and Canadian beaches
• Isolate the landing area with Air interdiction
  bridges and trains were destroyed to isolated the
  invasion area so it would be hard for the Germans
  to reinforce
• German air forces withdrawn to Germany to protect
  against bombing

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• Paratroops would capture bridges and disrupt
  enemy movements
• Paratroops are elite, but they were weaker than a
  regular army force because they lack equipment
  and they cant be reinforced
• Hard decision for Eisenhower

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• Weather another big concern
• A few days good weather, Eisenhower decides to go

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• Omaha beach
• Progress good on most beaches
• Omaha was exception
• Good German unit defending this section of the
  beach
• Currents were stronger and pushed troops off
  course
• Most of the DD tanks sank in the water

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U.S. / UTAH 197
U.S. / OMAHA 2,000
U.K. / GOLD 413
CAN. / JUNO 1,204
U.K. / SWORD 630

• They considered abandoning Omaha, but as the day
  progressed, small units led by junior officers
  and NCOs started to make progress
• Losses at the 5 beaches

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• Good fortune Rommel strafed,
• Hitler taking sleeping pills and could not be
  disturbed during the critical 1st few hours of
  the battle, so the panzers could not be released
  w/o his authority

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• Clip of Saving Private Ryan

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• Most pictures and footage are from British
  beaches because US footage fell in the water and
  was ruined
• By the end of the day, the Allies had a firm hold
  on the beaches. The Germans lost their chance to
  stop the Allies.