Key Facts
- Dates
- 4–7 June 1942
- Japanese carriers sunk
- 4 (Akagi, Kaga, Sōryū, Hiryū)
- Japanese personnel lost
- ~3,000
- U.S. ships lost
- Carrier Yorktown and destroyer Hammann
- Distance from Oahu
- ~1,300 mi (2,100 km) northwest
Strategic Narrative Overview
U.S. code breakers deciphered Japanese intentions, allowing Admiral Nimitz to position carrier forces under Fletcher and Spruance in ambush before the Japanese arrived. On 4 June 1942, Japanese aircraft began bombing Midway while Nagumo's carriers prepared for a follow-up strike. American dive bombers caught the Japanese carriers in a vulnerable rearming state, sinking all four fleet carriers in rapid succession. Japan's sole surviving carrier, Hiryū, briefly struck back, badly damaging Yorktown, before it too was sunk.
01 / The Origins
After Japan's surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, and the subsequent Doolittle raid on Tokyo in April 1942, Japan sought to extend its Pacific defense perimeter and eliminate the U.S. carrier fleet that had survived Pearl Harbor. Admiral Yamamoto devised a plan to seize Midway Atoll and draw out the U.S. Pacific Fleet, expecting to destroy it in a decisive engagement that would secure Japanese dominance in the Pacific.
03 / The Outcome
All four Japanese fleet carriers and the heavy cruiser Mikuma were lost, along with approximately 3,000 men and scores of irreplaceable veteran pilots. The United States lost the carrier Yorktown and destroyer Hammann. Japan's ability to mount large offensive carrier operations was permanently crippled. Combined with the subsequent Guadalcanal campaign, Midway marked the end of Japanese strategic offensive capability in the Pacific.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Isoroku Yamamoto, Chuichi Nagumo.
Side B
1 belligerent
Chester Nimitz, Frank Jack Fletcher, Raymond Spruance.
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.