Chapter 26 Chapter 22 A Second Attack Is Necessary

The Midway garrison mustered the courage and determination to endure the test.At 6:30, the battalion command post notified the subordinate troops: open fire when the target comes within my range. [Note: Report by Shannon. 】At this time the sky was clear and the visibility was good for anti-aircraft artillery fire.Sandbag fortifications and sand-built artillery bunkers on Sand Island and East Island provide good protection for artillery.Those who were not on the anti-aircraft gun emplacements and other automatic firearms posts were crammed into anti-aircraft shelters, trenches, and similar fortifications. [Note: Interview with Kems. 】

The star officer Thompson also hopes to fight a few times in person.He and the timekeeper brought a telephone from the waiting room of the VMSB squadron, and a machine gun and some ammunition from a scrapped SB2U|3, and set them up in a nearby machine gun bunker. [Note: Thompson's talk. 】The torpedo boat in the lagoon has also been dispatched, and the machine guns on the boat, even the rifles and pistols are on alert. [Note: Letter from the commander of the No. 1 Squadron of Torpedo Boats to the Commander of the US Pacific Fleet dated June 9, 1942.Content: Report on the battle with the enemy at Midway Island on June 4th and 5th.Hereinafter referred to as the report of the first squadron of torpedo boats. 】

John Ford waits on the roof of the East Island Power Station.He marveled at the strangely calm, almost languid atmosphere in which the defenders waited for the impending attack, as if they had always lived in such an atmosphere. [Note: Ford's narrative. 】 The newly installed radar on Sand Island is one of only a few capable of providing range, bearing and altitude.From it it could be seen that enemy bombers were still approaching Midway.The fierce air battle had little effect on the Japanese bombing missions.The knowledgeable Marines noted with admiration that Tomonaga's pilots kept formation with skill and discipline.After a bomber was shot down, the other aircraft in the V formation regrouped and continued to maintain their original heading and speed. [Note: Armistead's talk; Bard's interview with Carey, July 1, 1966. 】

The level bombers were the first to reach over Midway.One of their tasks was to suppress enemy anti-aircraft artillery fire, clearing the way for dive bombers and low-altitude attack Zeros before bombing airfields and other installations.The planes on the Flying Dragon concentrated on attacking Sand Island.The planes on the Canglong were divided into two batches. The first squadron cooperated with the planes on the Hiryu to fight over Sand Island, and the second squadron bombed Dongdao.In Nagumo's words, the two bombers on the Hiryu were shot down by fierce anti-aircraft fire before the two batches of planes had time to drop their bombs. [Note: Narratives of Japan, forty-second | pages forty-three and sixty-eight. 】

Lieutenant Thompson noticed that the shells seemed to explode aft of the enemy plane's fuselage, but he also saw one shell hit the target and explode in the air.He grabbed the binoculars and saw the plane break away from formation and plummet, but no one jumped out. [Note: Thompson's talk. 】 Many eyewitnesses assumed that the Japanese lead plane had been hit by flak.In fact, although Tomonaga's left wing fuel tank of the bomber was hit, he still flew back to the Hiryu.After returning to the voyage, he made a report on the heroic death of Captain Kikuchi Rokuro who was hit by anti-aircraft artillery fire.Knowing that he was going to die, Kikuchi opened the hatch and waved goodbye to his comrades, then closed the hatch and fell down. [Note: "The Battle of Midway Island", one hundred and sixty-four | page one hundred and sixty-five. 】

As soon as Kikuchi's plane fell, a clever black cook ran to the wreckage and dragged the pilot's body out.Ramsay followed suit.He checked the dead man's pockets for something of informative value.At this time, the first wave of attack planes was already in the air, and bombs were pouring down like raindrops.Ramsay and Semad jumped into the bunker. [Note: The Unprecedented Battle of Midway, page fifty-six. 】 Those on the torpedo boat clearly saw the second plane go down.They saw the bomber burst into flames and splash into the lagoon, the bombs from the plane landed not far from where the plane had splashed down, and both nearly landed on the torpedo boat. [Note: The report of the deputy squadron leader of the torpedo boat. 】

Horizontal bombers concentrated on Shadao.Hiryu's No. 1 Squadron hit the oil tanks on the northeast corner of the island, and Soryu's No. 1 Squadron silenced an anti-aircraft artillery emplacement. [Note: Narration in Japan, page 43. 】Because the horizontal bombers and dive bombers attacked together from the beginning, it is impossible to accurately explain the record of each aircraft. The American fighter jets first went all out to deal with the leading level bombers in the Japanese fleet, and then they had to use all their talents to deal with the annoying Zero planes. Therefore, the dive bombers on the Akagi and Kaga flew over Midway without being hurt. A vellus hair is safe and sound when it flies away, which is really enviable.The mission of Chihaya and other pilots was to attack the hangars and other aviation facilities on East Island, and they did not suffer any losses.Of all the dive bombers led by Lieutenant Ogawa and the planes on the Kaga, one was shot down by anti-aircraft guns, and four were damaged, but not yet scrapped. [Note: Ibid., page 44 | page 45. 】

When Sand Island was attacked by dive bombers, Lt. Robert W. Vaupel, pilot of VMCR | 241 Squadron, was temporarily grounded as mechanics were busy changing the spark plugs on his plane.He saw the flak hit an enemy plane.He later recalled that the plane continued to fly in formation for a long time after it caught fire, until it finally lost control and spun. [Note: Conversation by Second Lieutenant Robert W. Vaupel of the U.S. Marine Corps Volunteer Reserve (Type III) on June 7, 1942.Hereafter referred to as Vaupel's talk. 】 No one will forget what happened when the East Island was first attacked by air.Suddenly, the leader Japanese plane left the group. When it dived to about a hundred feet above the ground, it flipped the fuselage and flew over the tarmac leisurely on its back. [Note: Ford's narrative. ] The driver was seen putting his thumb on his nose in mockery. [Note: The Unprecedented Battle of Midway, page fifty-six. 】Is this intentionally distracting the defenders, or is it showing contempt for these mediocre enemies in front of the First Air Fleet?Or is it pure bluster?Who knows?Regardless of the pilot's motives, the American was so stunned that he forgot to shoot for several seconds.Then all of a sudden, one of the marines said what the hell was going on, and he fired at the plane and hit it.It staggered into the sea. [Note: Ford's narrative. 】

All the bombs that fell on East Island fell north of runway two.A bomb fell in the middle near the eastern end of runway one.This was apparently done by the second level bomber squadron aboard the Soryu.A dive bomber from Chihaya had blown a large crater on the same runway five hundred yards from the east end.Another dive bomber hit the ammunition supply pit of VMF | 221 Squadron squarely, decoying eight 100-pound bombs and 10,000 rounds of 0.5-inch rounds, killing four maintenance personnel. [Note: Narration by Japan, p. 43; Kems' report. 】 Ford, acting on directorial instinct, turned the camera on the hangar.He thought it would be the prime target for bombing.Sure enough, it was hit by a lucky Japanese, and must have hit some of the explosives inside, so the whole hangar went up into the sky.Ford, who suffered bullet wounds to the elbow and shoulder, was a little stunned.But he got the shot.This is a memorable scene in his later official documentary "The Battle of Midway Island": a huge explosion fragment flew straight towards the camera.

A young marine bandaged Ford's wound and told him sincerely: Don't go to the military doctor, we will take care of you [Note: Ford's narration. 】 At 6:38, a dive bomber blew up the power station, thereby crippling the island's electricity supply and a distilled water plant.This was perhaps the greatest damage done to the East Island.Level bombers also blew up oil pipelines in the dock area and the main oil storage area, causing considerable damage.These pipelines were in a mess before the attack, and since then, the American task force has had to manually add the 3,000 barrels of gasoline borrowed from Sand Island to the plane day and night. [Note: Interview with Kems; Marines at the Battle of Midway, 32, 38 | pp. 39. 】Ford found that the Japanese did not bomb the airfield itself, and he guessed that the Japanese wanted to reserve the airfield for the Japanese aircraft that landed at the airfield later in the day. [Note: Ford's narrative. 】

The kitchen of the Marine Corps was bombed, pots and pans flew into the sky, and all the usual food was turned into powder.The Marines had to eat emergency rations until the battle was over. [Note: "The Myth of Midway", page 142. 】The commissary with the army was bombed so that it could not open.Beer cans were blown up like shotguns.A can hit a Heavy on the temple, knocking him unconscious.He woke up gasping and said: I never drink beer on an empty stomach!The bomb also shook open the cardboard boxes containing the cigarettes, and even the cigarette packs.A white rain of cigarette smoke fell everywhere.The marines happily picked up the extra money, and whoever picked it up would get it. [Note: The Unprecedented Battle of Midway, p. 56; Shannon's Report. 】 Most of the Japanese attention is on Sand Island.Three oil storage tanks were completely blown up.The bomb was probably dropped by a level bomber of the 1st Squadron aboard Hiryu.The oil in these oil tanks burned for two days, and the billowing smoke made the whole loss look much larger than it really was.The firepower of anti-aircraft guns was also affected by the thick smoke. A pipe that draws water from the sea to the Marine Corps garrison is broken by a bomb.A seaplane hangar was blown up by a dive bomber from the Kaga and caught fire.The confinement room was also blown up, but fortunately there was no one in it at the time.Other types of buildings, some were bombed, some were bombed nearby, some were shrapneled, and some were impacted by air waves, all of which were damaged to varying degrees and shook. A naval dispensary with a giant red cross painted on its roof was razed to the ground by two bombs and subsequent fires.The Navy Laundry was also hit by a bomb, and a part of it collapsed, and all the clothes in it were reduced to ashes.Ramsay was left with nothing but the clothes he was wearing.It is said that he was still wearing the same clothes when he was summoned by Nimitz after returning to Pearl Harbor on June 12.Nimitz whispered: I know, you are full of hawks.Maybe you'll like these silver eagles.He immediately showed him the recommendation for the promotion of Ramsay to colonel. [Note: Narratives of Japan, pages 43 and 45; The Unprecedented Battle of Midway, page 56. 】 Immediately behind the bombers were swarming fighter jets.They strafed all targets they found and engaged in a final grappling with the remaining Brewsters.Lieutenant Hughes noticed that just as the front foot of the level bomber left, the rear foot of the dive bomber rushed down in the direction of the sun.He saw two F2F planes fighting the Japanese plane, and one American plane fell down.A heavy covering fire on the ground saved the life of the second American plane.When the Type Zero attacked them, both of them seemed to be tied by a rope. Hughes said angrily, I believe that as long as our aircraft is half as good as the Type Zero, we can completely stop it This air raid. [Note: Hughes' conversation. 】 Lieutenant Owen managed to bring two Zeros into the anti-air network, but he found that ground flak fire didn't really scare the Zeros.He said afterwards: The Japanese didn't pay attention to our ground anti-aircraft guns at all, because the shells always exploded behind the target.Owen saw only one Japanese fighter jet shot down by ground fire.The plane was flying only about a hundred feet when it strafed, and the flak guns would certainly not miss it. [Note: Owen's conversation. 】 Second Lieutenant Vopel also witnessed the shooting down of the Japanese plane.According to him, the Japanese plane flew even lower, only about twenty-five feet.It fell not far from the VMF squadron waiting room. [Note: Talk by Vaupel. ] Lieutenant Thompson and his timekeeper fired heavily at the dive bombers with machine guns and rifles respectively, but to no avail.They saw the Flak hit the Zero's fuel tank, and the whole plane burst into flames. After Thompson fired at about half a dozen Japanese planes, the machine gun jammed.He fixed the fault, and together with his good helper, he fired at the Japanese plane flying close to their machine gun bunker.He said afterwards: Not many planes approached us because the enemy seemed not interested in targets near us.They found that the enemy stopped coming to the center of the airport after shooting a pass. [Note: Thompson's talk. 】 At this time, none of the defenders on the island, especially the survivors of VMF|221 Squadron, who had been beaten to the ground, wanted to show kindness to the pilots of the Zero aircraft.So far, if the battle has been one-sided, the battle itself has been fought aboveboard.However, the scene of Major Parkes' tragic death made everyone feel very sad and angry.Major Warner, the liaison officer of the Army Air Corps, was filled with grief and indignation, and it was difficult to put into words.He scribbled a report, ignoring the spelling, grammar, and punctuation that should be noted in an official report: the Japanese came at him as soon as he fired, even when he landed on the reef.This enemy is downright ruthless, although I disagree with the notion that the brat will hit people with planes or take risks that aren't worth the risk.Don't be fooled into thinking that the devils want to live as much as we do, this has been proven time and again [Note: Werner's report. 】 The crew of the torpedo boat witnessed the Zero strafing the parachuted Parkes.Two life rafts tried to reach the scene, but were blocked by reefs and could not pass.But they saved Captain Merrill.After Merrill made a forced landing on the sea near the reef, the third-class sailor E.J. Stuart jumped into the sea from the life raft, ignoring the impact of the piercing reef and the waves hitting the reef, and swam up to rescue the drowning Merrill from danger. rescued. [Note: The deputy squadron leader of the torpedo boat reported. 】 At 6:43, Nagumo received a telegram from Tomonaga that we had completed our mission and were returning. [Note: Narration in Japan, page 14. 】Five minutes later, the radar on Midway Island reported to the battalion command post that many enemy planes left along the 300-degree bearing. [Note: Report by Shannon. 】But it was not until 7:15 that Saimad issued the alarm to disarm the air raid, recalled the aircraft and counted the losses with the staff.Kems telegraphed to VMF | 221 Squadron: Fighter planes landed, and refueled by unit, with the fifth unit refueling first.He got no answer, so he repeated the order a few more times, and then again: All fighters land, refuel and ammunition.Kermes later recalled that very few fighters returned after receiving the message.We all figured no more planes would land. [Note: Kems' report. ] He was quite right.Fourteen of the twenty-six pilots would never answer the roll call.Several others were injured.There are only two fighters left that can continue to fight. [Note: The Unprecedented Battle of Midway, page fifty-six. 】 They paid such a high price, but what is the result of the battle?For a long time, both sides were uncertain about the outcome of this air battle and the number of aircraft shot down by the anti-aircraft artillery on Midway Island.In his official report, Nagumo stated that forty-one enemy planes were definitely shot down in this battle, and nine others were probably shot down as well. [Note: Narration in Japan, page 56. ] There were only twenty-six planes in total, but fifty were shot down. People have to admit that this kind of shooting technique is simply too superb.If the fighters of the Marine Corps in the air are divided into two in the eyes of the enemy, their combat must be extremely heroic.Indeed, judging by the quality of the planes they were flying, it is a miracle in itself that they managed to survive, let alone the losses they inflicted on the Japanese. The air combat record reported by the Americans at that time was also exaggerated.They said the Japanese had lost forty to fifty planes in the air battle, and another ten were shot down by ground fire. [Note: NAS diary; June 18, 1942 letter from the NAS commander at Midway Island to the Commander of the Pacific Fleet, content: report on the battle situation at the Battle of Midway Island on May 30 | June 7.Hereafter called Saimad's report; "Marines in the Battle of Midway", p. 32. ] Nagumo listed six aircraft losses in the combat process report (four bombers and two Zeros).Most of the Japanese claims are consistent with this figure.Later, under the column of losses suffered, Nagumo admitted to losing a total of eight aircraft.He broke down the losses in the statistics section of the report.Five planes were lost in the air battle (three level bombers and two Zero planes), and another four were shot down by anti-aircraft artillery (two level bombers, one dive bomber and one Zero plane).The number of planes shot down by the anti-aircraft artillery mentioned here is completely consistent with the recollection of the American eyewitnesses.In addition, Nagumo listed the number of damaged aircraft: sixteen level bombers, four dive bombers, and twelve Zeros.Two of the Zeros were scrapped after returning to the aircraft carrier due to excessive damage. [Note: Narratives of Japan, 7th, 43rd | 45th, 67th pages. ] Of course, these figures are not accurate.For example, Nagumo did not list the damage to the high-altitude bomber on Hiryu, but readers already know that Tomonaga's plane was hit, and he reported to Nagumo by radio at that time, [Note: Japanese narrative, tenth four pages. ] But Nagumo and his staff had too many pressing issues to deal with to consider how to reconcile these inconsistent reports of damage. Saimad made an optimistic estimate of the Japanese losses, because he firstly compared the extent of the destruction of Midway Island with the size of the Japanese attacking force initially discovered, and secondly, he miscalculated the number of Japanese planes flying over Midway Island and the third hopefully estimated that the downed Americans fought at least as well as the survivors.Kems recalled with some bewilderment that the surviving pilots felt that it was a contradiction between seeing a large number of enemy planes when the engagement began, but the number of bombs they dropped was very small. [Note: Kems' report. 】There must be a mistake in the calculation, either the number of planes, the number of bombs, or both.If only counting the enemy planes that were hit and caught fire as seen by the returning pilots, then it is certain that eight bombers were shot down, another one may be shot down, three Zeros must have been shot down, and one may also be shot down. shoot down.Calculated in this way, the total obtained is more realistic, and it is almost the same as the official figure released by Japan.It is understandable that the pilots of the Marine Corps aircraft squadron wished to think that every teammate who died had shot down at least one Japanese aircraft.However, a more logical view should be: the ones who really shot down the enemy planes were those pilots who had good skills and good luck, fought against the zero planes and survived. All in all, none of this matters.Even if the 6th Battalion were to deal entirely with Tomonaga's fleet, even if fighter jets were sent to cover the land-based bombers of the aircraft carrier force seeking to destroy Nagumo when the defenders on the island came out of cover, the fate of Midway would not change much. . In fact, the situation on Midway Island was better than expected.About twenty people died on the ground, a fairly small number.The runway suffered minor damage.Saimad can only think this way: the Japanese deliberately did not bomb the runway, so as to keep it for their own use.The camouflage on the island is very effective.Post-strike inspections found that most of the damaged facilities could be repaired.As a result, everyone mobilized to restore power, repair water and sewer pipes, extinguish sporadic fires, and remove debris. [Note: McCall's report. 】 Because Tomonaga had to do everything possible to get the damaged planes to fly back to the rendezvous point, he could not know exactly how the attack on Midway was.He was later killed in the naval battle of the aircraft carrier, so what was going through his mind as he weighed what he saw against his own air strike mission is unknown.But he obviously won't be satisfied.He encountered no bombers or patrol planes, which Nimitz called heavy guys, and the runway was intact.These planes can land on the runway when they return to the island.In addition, the anti-aircraft guns on Midway Island continued to conduct anti-aircraft fire.The Japanese landing force may be greeted with enthusiasm. This must be the essence of Tomonaga's logic.His transmitter was damaged by machine gun bullets, so he wrote his suggestions on a small blackboard.He held up the blackboard so his number two could see it, and sent the suggestion to Nagumo in his name. [Note: Toshio Hashimoto’s reply to the questionnaire.Hereinafter referred to as Hashimoto's statement. ] This advice was issued at 07:00: A second attack is necessary. [Note: Narration in Japan, page 14. ]