Leyte Gulf-80 year anniversary

LEYTE GULF - The Battle of Leyte Gulf was, in naval terms, the largest sea battle ever fought. Over 200,000 personnel were involved, including 21 aircraft carriers, 2 hybrid battle-carriers, and 19 battleships, topped off with 2000+ planes and 200 destroyers and escorts. Leyte Gulf was, of course, not a single battle, but it consisted of 5 separate battles; Palawan Passage, Sibuyan Sea, Surigao Strait Samar, and Cape Engano were the battles the Imperial Japanese Navy fought against the heavily superior United States Navy. This article will be divided into separate sections due to the largeness of the battle and the greatness as one of the highest victories ever fought by the US Navy's 3rd and 7th fleet.

1. Beginnings-Japanese

The Pacific War had not been going so well for the Japanese Navy, and they knew it, so the high-ranking officials ordered the veteran commander Takeo Kurita to stop Douglas MacArthur's invasion of the Philippines, a country that MacArthur had sworn to "return". The basic plan of the Japanese was to hurl all of their resources and ships in an all out mega-kamikaze attack. The objective was to cause as much damage as possible and to prevent the landings on the island of Leyte. Kurita's force would split into three different forces: The Center Force, which was commanded by Kurita and held the two super-battleships Yamato and Musashi. The two enormous behemoths had 9 18.1-inch guns placed on 3 triple turrets. They also carried 7 seaplanes and 6 6.1-inch guns taken from the heavy cruiser Mogami. The Southern Force, commanded by Soji Nishimura, consisted of the sister battleships Fuso and Yamashiro, known for their "Pagoda" looking Conning Towers. The Northern Force, commanded by Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa, consisted of the veteran carrier Zuikaku, which had participated in every major Pacific War battle, (Except Midway, because her squadrons had all been eaten up at the Battle of the Coral Sea.) and the light carriers Zuiho, Chitose, and Chiyoda. The Northern Force was supposed to bait the Americans into attacking the plane-less aircraft carriers. 

2. Beginnings-Americans

On March 17, 1942, just before fleeing Manila on a PT-boat, Douglas MacArthur proclaimed these words: "I Shall Return!", and he meant it. The American plan was to invade the Philippines, retaking it in a reverse-blitzkrieg. But to complete this perilous action, support from the US Navy was severely vital. If the unguarded landing ships proceeded with the landings, Japanese warships could arrive at anytime and decimate the helpless landing ships. So, MacArthur met with the JCS (Joint Chiefs of Staff), and confirmed that the US Navy's Seventh Fleet, led by Adm. Thomas Kinkaid would protect the landings and repulse any attack made by the Japanese.

3. The Battle of Palawan Passage

Adm. Kurita's Center Force left Brunei (northern Borneo), and by October 22nd, the submarines Darter and Dace locked on the massive fleet and radioed officials. At 05:24, Darter fired a spread of 6 torpedoes at Kurita's flagship, the Atago, and boasted 4 hits. A few moments later, Darter fired more torpedoes at Atago's sister, Takaeo. Dace, after firing a spread of torpedoes, hit the Atago's Other sister, the Maya. Atago and Maya were quickly sunk, and Kurita was forced to swim to a Yugumo-class destroyer. The heavily damaged Takaeo then returned to Brunei with two destroyers, yet again followed by the two submarines. On October 24, Darter ran aground and the crew was forced to scuttle her. She can still be seen here.  

4. The Battle of the Sibuyan Sea - part one

On October 22nd, Halsey ordered two of his carrier task forces back to Ulithi atoll for resupply, which, unfortunately, were the two strongest task forces of the Third Fleet, leaving San Bernadino Strait lightly defended. On October 24th, Vice Admiral Takijiro Onishi directed three of his forces based in Luzon to attack Task Force 38. The fighters from the USS Essex led by commander David McCampbell, shot down an astonishing amount of 9 planes. However, one Yokosuka D4Y3 Judy penetrated the defenses, and at 9:38, landed one 551 lb bomb on the light aircraft carrier Princeton. Fires started spreading, and the light cruiser Birmingham moved out of formation to assist the stricken carrier. Soon, the Birmingham accidentally rammed into the Princeton, severely damaging both ships. At 5:50 P.M., the light cruiser Reno scuttled the exploded light cruiser, which by then had suffered 108 casualties.  

5. The Battle of the Sibuyan Sea - part two

In spite of the  Japanese attack, planes from the carriers Cabot and Intrepid  conducted strikes against Kurita's center force, striking hits on the super-battleships  Yamato and Musashi. A second wave, performed by the Intrepid, Essex, and Lexington also attacked, scoring 10 hits on the Musashi. Another wave from the Franklin  scored 11 bomb hits and 8 torpedo hits, knocked the Musashi  permanently out of action. A few hours later, she capsized. Thus ended the battle of the Sibuyan Sea, and Kuritaś center force advanced nevertheless. 

6. The Battle of Surigao Strait

The Battle of Surigao Strait was more of an unfair battleship-vs-battleship battle because the Japanese forces led by Soji Nishimura were outgunned both by caliber and number. Before the battle unfolded, Admiral Jessie Oldendorf was commanded to protect Surigao Strait, one of the Philippines' many choke points. In Oldendorf's command were the old dreadnought battleships West Virginia, Maryland, Tennessee, California, and Pennyslvania, which were all damaged from the attack on Pearl Harbor. The battleship Mississippi, and a cadre of cruisers were also a supplement to Oldendorf's "21-knotter" battle force. At 10:36 PM, the PT-131 made contact with the incoming Japanese Forces. The PT boats repeatedly attacked the Japanese warships, but scored no hits, although they did report the sightings to Oldendorf, who ordered his battleships to form a line of broadside. At about 3:00 AM the next early morning, the Japanese Task Force ran out of luck. Though passing though the PT-boats untouched, the battleships soon fell prey to the American destroyers, and the IJN Fuso was torpedoed and split into two halves. Sadly, the Fuso sank one hour later. At 3:06 AM, the West Virginia fired at the Yamashiro 13.0 miles away. Soon, the other battle wagons opened salvoes, and the Yamashiro and the heavy cruiser Mogami were severely damaged by the incoming fire. At 4:20 AM, the Yamashiro breathed her last. The destroyer Bennion torpedoed the warship, and the flagship of the Southern Attack Force was lost with all hands, including Nishimura. This battle singly ended an age in which crossing the T was the most ingenious situation.

7. The Battle off Samar

The full article about this battle can be found here

8. The Battle off Cape Engaño

Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa, the commander of the Northern Force, steered his four aircraft crriers, the Zuikaku, Zuiho, Chiyoda, and Chitose south towards the Philippines. Ozawa's force was first detected on October 24, likely by Task Force 38, which was patroling the area. The commanding officers then reported this to Halsey, who was very ecstatic to find aircraft carriers laying there. Halsey at once moved his forces, which consisted of  5 fleet carriers, 5 light carriers, 6 battleships, and 8 cruisers. At 2:00 AM the next morning, Halsey detached Task Force 34, which then headed toward the Japanese Force. Around dawn, Ozawa launched 70 aircraft toward the Task Force, although most were shot down by american forces and some made their way to land at Luzon. Task Force 38 began launching planes and soon bombed and destroyed each of the four carriers-a comparison to Midway. Ozawa escaped on the destroyer Akizuki, and soon placed his flag on the cruiser Oyodo. The quick battle had ended, and both sides ad succeeded. The American forces had destroyed the final onslaught of the Japanese Navy, and the Japanese had succeeded in baiting Halsey's force. Therefore, the final battle of the Battle of Leyte Gulf was ended.

9. Analysis

Certainly the most controverisal part of Leyte Gulf was the big question: what would happen if Halsey was no baited? This question was widely sourced by historians and was finally solved: Halsey was very much into attacking carriers over guarding the San Bernadino strait. 

10. Conclusion

Therefore, the Battle of Leyte Gulf can best be described as a series of small battles where the Imperial Japanese Navy was defeated by the Naval and Air Forces of the United States of America. Heavy casualties existed on both sides, and the recapture of the Philippines took place after this large battle. Warship Texas celebrates the 80th anniversary of this forsaken battle in the stories of sailors, battles, and sides of this conflict.

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