Rabaul 1943–44

Reducing Japan's great island fortress

Rabaul 1943–44 cover

Rabaul 1943–44

Reducing Japan's great island fortress

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Description

The story of how Allied air power took the great Japanese base of Rabaul out of the Pacific War with an innovative strategy of aerial siege, backed by the courage and capability of the pilots who flew against the heavily fortified island.

In 1942, the massive Japanese naval base and airfield at Rabaul was a fortress standing in the Allies' path to Tokyo. It was impossible to seize Rabaul, or starve the 100,000-strong garrison out. Instead the US began an innovative, hard-fought two-year air campaign to draw its teeth, and allow them to bypass the island completely.

The struggle decided more than the fate of Rabaul. If successful, the Allies would demonstrate a new form of warfare, where air power, with a judicious use of naval and land forces, would eliminate the need to occupy a ground objective in order to control it. As it turned out, the Siege of Rabaul proved to be more just than a successful demonstration of air power – it provided the roadmap for the rest of World War II in the Pacific.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Chronology
Attackers' Capabilities
Defenders' Capabilities
Campaign Objectives
The Campaign
Aftermath and Analysis
Bibliography
Index

Product details

Published 25 Jan 2018
Format Paperback
Edition 1st
Extent 96
ISBN 9781472822444
Imprint Osprey Publishing
Illustrations Illustrated throughout with around 60 photos and at least 14pp of colour illustrations
Dimensions 248 x 184 mm
Series Air Campaign
Short code ACM 2
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Mark Lardas

Mark Lardas has always been fascinated by things r…

Illustrator

Mark Postlethwaite

Mark Postlethwaite was born in Leicestershire in 1…

Resources

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