Battles during World War II were fought by whatever means necessary to secure a victory. Technology had improved greatly since World War I. With the distance between islands and the natural and man made barriers on these islands-air strikes and naval bombardments were significant in the Pacific theater.

World War II had several unforgettable battles, battles that often left many dead and lessons learned. One of the bloodiest battles in American military history was the three day Battle of Tarawa, which started November 20, 1943.

Tarawa was just one of the stops during an island hopping campaign to take American air power closer to the island of Japan. The island of Tarawa was surrounded in part by a coral reef making it almost impossible for boats to get through. To add to the barrier problem; the Japanese had already been occupying the island and covered the beaches with mines and barb wire. Hundreds of concrete “gun emplacements and bunkers,” had been built by Korean slave labor.

The generals knew that the best way to attack the Japanese and take control of the island was to employ surprise frontal assaults. Under the command of Major General Julian Smith, the 2nd Battalion would deploy to the northern part of the island first assisted by a mere 125 amphibious tractors.

Proposed implementation of the attack did not go as planned. Before the attack even began, dangerous situations arose. Setting up for an attack in the dark was complicated enough, but “choppy seas made cross deck transfers between the small craft dangerous.”

The Plan for the first round of attacks included approximately thirty minutes of bombing air raids at roughly 0545. “Then the fire support ships would bombard the island from close range for the ensuing 130 minutes.”

Unfortunately for the American troops nothing went according to plan. The Japanese were aware of the activities going on out at sea and were the first to attack- almost forty minutes before the first round of air raids were scheduled. Although the battery ships; the Colorado and the Maryland were able to offer counter fire, the situation turned grimmer as the day progressed. Within moments communication had been lost between the admirals and pilots. Without knowing the timing of possible air raids, troops were sent to shore.

Nearly ten percent of the first battalion died, and as many as twenty percent of each group that followed. Even though the end of the three day battle for United States military meant a victory, it had come with a very important lesson. With the need for frontal assaults, also came the need for supporting air raids and ship bombardments. The bloody battle of Tarawa embedded the American generals with a better understanding of the importance of communication, planning, and strategic coordination.