Ken Beaton: The miracle at Midway

From Dec. 7, 1941 to April 18, 1942 every American was at a spiritual low. The question on American minds was, "Where’s the next Japanese invasion? Maybe Hawaii or America’s west coast?”

American males who passed their physical were at our Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard or the Merchant Marine’s recruiting offices. There was a single mindset, enlist and soundly defeat the Axis nations of Germany, Italy and Japan. There wasn’t any good news until the morning of April 18, 1942 when 16 twin-engine B-25 bombers took off from CV-8, the aircraft carrier USS Hornet, to bomb Japanese targets, shocking every Japanese citizen from the emperor to ordinary Japanese citizens

The meaning of the term Midway is, “Halfway between two points, parts or places.” This commentary will refer to the movie, “Midway,” released on Nov. 8, 2019. The movie begins in December 1937 with a Japanese conversation between Japan’s Admiral Yamamoto and the U.S. Navy’s Lt. Commander Edwin T. Layton in Tokyo.

Next, the movie had scenes of Japan’s sneak attack at Pearl Harbor followed by Doolittle’s B-25s bombing several Japanese cities. After the Pearl Harbor attack, Admiral Nimitz wanted to attack the Japanese and give them “a jolting right” cross to let them know the U.S. wasn’t laying down for them.

US Navy’s Station HYPO was located in a basement, “the dungeon” in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Lt. Commander Joseph J. Rochefort led the code breakers at Station HYPO. They had deciphered Japan’s JN-25b code and the details of the IJN’s plans to attack Midway. Lt. Commander Edwin T. Layton was an intelligence analyst. Layton and Rochefort were Annapolis classmates fluent in Japanese. Before WWII, they served together as assistant U.S. Navy attaches in Tokyo.

The Navy’s code breakers knew the Japanese were planning to attack “AF.” The cryptanalysts needed confirmation of “AF’s” location. So, they sent a regular radio message, not in code, that Midway needed a new evaporator to make fresh water. The Japanese Navy sent a message that “AF” was short of water. BINGO, our cryptanalysts had confirmation that “AF” was Midway which would be attacked on June 4 or 5, 1942.

Aircraft from four of the six IJN aircraft carriers that attacked Pearl Harbor six months earlier, Akagi, Kaga, Soryu and Hiryu began strafing and bombing Midway’s airfield and buildings. One of the U.S. Navy’s PBYs reported the location of the enemy carriers. Our TBD Devastator torpedo-bombers and SBD-5 Dauntless dive-bombers were launched from our carriers, the Hornet, Yorktown and Enterprise, “The Big E.”

The Devastators arrived first without any fighter cover, a SNAFU. Every Devastator was shot out of the skies by Japanese Zeros and anti-aircraft fire. The four IJN carriers were rearming and refueling their planes on their carriers’ flight deck when our Dauntless dive-bombers dove at 500 mph! Within five minutes the Akagi, Kaga and Soryu were hit with secondary explosions in their hangar deck right below the flight deck. After several hours all three carriers were resting in “Davy Jones Locker,” at the bottom of the Pacific. On June 5 the IJN lost the Hiryu. If the IJN carriers had hangar deck ventilation with better trained damage control crews, they would cut their losses.

By June 7 the IJN had lost four of the six carriers that had attacked Pearl Harbor six months earlier. They lost one cruiser, 292 aircraft, 3,057 men, many of their best and most experienced pilots. The remains of their “fleet” limped back to Japan with their tails between their legs. The Allied victories at El Alamein, Stalingrad, and Midway were the turning points of the War.

The US Navy lost CV-5, the USS Yorktown, one destroyer and 145 aircraft and 362 USN sailors. They were buried at sea in weighted white canvas sacks attended by their shipmates.

Midway was the first naval battle where the opposing surface ships never made visual contact being separated by 200 plus miles of Pacific Ocean. The entire battle was between America’s carrier aircraft and the IJN’s superior numbers of carrier aircraft.

Can you recall a movie you’ve seen or a book you’ve read about a big battle or military campaign that showed wives or girlfriends emotionally supporting each other while waiting for news about the battle?

In the movie as the battle of Midway raged, the pilots’ wives gathered at the home of one of the wives. Their children played outside while the wives were in the kitchen to verbally and emotionally support each other while waiting for news, any news, about their naval aviator. If you ever had to wait hours for news, you know the mental torture of waiting. The worst part is not knowing how much longer you have to wait.

Have you ever flown from Reno to the East Coast? Maybe your connecting flight was in Chicago at either O’Hare Airport or Midway Airport. O’Hare Airport was named after Lt. Commander Edward “Butch” O’Hare, a U.S. Navy fighter pilot killed in action in November 1943.

Midway Airport is named after the Battle of Midway. If you have time between flights, or your connecting flight is at another Concourse, when you’re at the intersection of Concourses A, B, and C, look above you. There’s an SBD-5 Dauntless dive bomber suspended from the ceiling above you. If you have time, read the displays and look at the pictures of our brave sailors and naval aviators. “All gave some, some gave all.”

If the men of the USS Enterprise, USS Hornet and USS Yorktown, had not won the Battle of Midway, the next Japanese invasion would have been Hawaii. Followed by the west coast cities of Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego. You’d be reading and speaking Japanese today. Before you close your eyes tonight, thank God for our Naval aviators, the aviation machinist mates, with their shipmates and all the “Rosie the riveters” who built the SBD-5s.

Have you read the backside of a red Honor Flight t-shirt given to every Vet who has made the trip to Washington, D.C. The backside says, “If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you can read this in English, thank a veteran.” If you’re a person who prays, tonight thank God for the U.S. an assist at Midway!