Allied Offensive 1942-1944 after the Battle of Midway the Allies went on the offensive in Asia the U.S. divided the Pacific into two areas of command: the Pacific Ocean area under the command of Admiral Chester Nimitz and the South-West area under the command of General Douglas MacArthur (included Australian and British forces) August 1942 the Americans attacked Japanese air bases on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands and begin landings on the Solomon Islands > it took the American marines six months before they defeated the Japanese in Guadalcanal as Japanese resistance was fierce and hand-to-hand combat routine on the "island of death" this type of fighting would be repeated on other Japanese held islands such as Iwo Jima and Okinawa and Japanese resistance would intensify as the Americans advanced towards the Japanese home islands November 1943 U.S. forces landed on the Gilbert Islands and Nimitz captured the Gilbert Islands in late 1943, then moved on to the Marshall Islands in December and captured the Marshall Islands in February 1944 and landed in the Marianas Islands in June 1944 after the Battle of the Philippine Sea which enabled B-29 bombers to bomb Japan Battle of Leyte Gulf October 1944
Allied Offensive 1942-1944 after the Battle of Midway the Allies went on the offensive in Asia the U.S. divided the Pacific into two areas of command: the Pacific Ocean area under the command of Admiral Chester Nimitz and the South-West area under the command of General Douglas MacArthur (included Australian and British forces) August 1942 the Americans attacked Japanese air bases on Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands and begin landings on the Solomon Islands > it took the American marines six months before they defeated the Japanese in Guadalcanal as Japanese resistance was fierce and hand-to-hand combat routine on the "island of death" this type of fighting would be repeated on other Japanese held islands such as Iwo Jima and Okinawa and Japanese resistance would intensify as the Americans advanced towards the Japanese home islands November 1943 U.S. forces landed on the Gilbert Islands and Nimitz captured the Gilbert Islands in late 1943, then moved on to the Marshall Islands in December and captured the Marshall Islands in February 1944 and landed in the Marianas Islands in June 1944 after the Battle of the Philippine Sea which enabled B-29 bombers to bomb Japan Battle of Leyte Gulf October 1944