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US Army Small Ships Section
The US Army Small Ships Section was an improvised civilian fleet mobilized by Douglas MacArthur to provide logistical support to Allied Operations in the Pacific War. Between 1942 and 1945, over 4,372 Allied Merchant seaman served aboard commandeered civilian vessels "from Buna to the Philippines" - providing critical logistics under enemy fire. History During the Philippines campaign, the Japanese offensive led to the entrapment of US Forces at Bataan - beyond the reach of assistance from a stretched United States Navy. As the campaign wore on, explorers John and Adam Fahnestock conceived the idea of improvising a civilian fleet to deliver supplies to the entrenched forces, under the codename 'Mission X.'''Small Ships Section, Southwest Pacific Area of World War II'', by Richard E. Killblane (United States Army Transportation Corps), pg. 1. From an affluent yachting family, their acquaintance with President Roosevelt may have played a role in the mission's ultimate authori ...
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Lend-Lease
Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (), was a policy under which the United States supplied the United Kingdom, the Soviet Union and other Allied nations with food, oil, and materiel between 1941 and 1945. It was given on the basis that such help was essential for the defense of the United States; this aid included warships and warplanes, along with other weaponry. It was signed into law on March 11, 1941, and ended on September 20, 1945. In general, the aid was free, although some hardware (such as ships) were returned after the war. Canada, already a belligerent, supplemented its aid to Great Britain with a similar, smaller program called Mutual Aid. A total of $50.1 billion (equivalent to $ in ) worth of supplies was shipped, or 17% of the total war expenditures of the U.S. In all, $31.4 billion went to the United Kingdom, $11.3 billion to the Soviet Union, $3.2 billion to France, $1.6 billion to Chi ...
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Australian Honours And Awards System
The Australian honours and awards system refers to all orders, decorations, and medals, as instituted by letters patent from the Monarch of Australia and countersigned by the Australian prime minister at the time, that have been progressively introduced since 14 February 1975. The Australian honours and awards system excludes all state and local government, and private, issued awards and medals (although a few can be recognised in the order of wearing, like those in the Order of St John). Honours and awards have been present in Australia since pre-Federation, primarily from the Imperial honours and awards system. This Imperial system remained in place until its full phase out in 1994 (although the Monarch of Australia may still confer some of these honours to Australians in their personal capacity). Between 1975 and 1992, the Australian honours and awards system and the Imperial honours and awards system operated in parallel, although the last Imperial awards to be made were i ...
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Battle Of Cebu (1945)
250px, Map of U.S. operations in Southern Philippines, 1945 250px, Japanese troops surrender to the 40th Division, September 1945 The Battle of Visayas (Filipino: ''Labanan sa Visayas;'' Visayan languages: ''Gubat sa Kabisay-an'') was fought by U.S. forces and Filipino guerrillas against the Japanese from 18 March – 15 August 1945, in a series of actions officially designated as Operations Victor I and II, and part of the campaign for the liberation of the Philippines during World War II. The battle was waged to complete the recapture of the central portions south of the archipelago and secure them from remaining Japanese forces. Background Within two weeks of ordering the seizure of Palawan and the Zamboanga peninsula, General Douglas MacArthur directed the capture of the isolated Visayan islands of Panay, Negros, Cebu and Bohol in the central Philippines. With Filipino guerrillas controlling most of the countryside in these islands, some thirty thousand Japanese troops h ...
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Invasion Of Lingayen Gulf
The Invasion of Lingayen Gulf ( fil, Paglusob sa Golpo ng Lingayen), 6–9 January 1945, was an Allies of World War II, Allied Amphibious warfare, amphibious operation in the Commonwealth of the Philippines, Philippines during World War II. In the early morning of 6 January 1945, a large Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen from Lingayen Gulf, on the island of Luzon. United States Navy, U.S. Navy and Royal Australian Navy warships began bombarding suspected Empire of Japan, Japanese positions along the coast of Lingayen from their position in Lingayen Gulf for three days. On "S-Day", 9 January, the Sixth United States Army, U.S. 6th Army landed on a roughly beachhead at the base of the Gulf between the towns of Lingayen and San Fabian, Pangasinan, San Fabian. Background During World War II, the Lingayen Gulf proved a strategically important theater of war between American and Japanese forces. Shown in the center of the fi ...
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Battle Of Leyte
A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force commitment. An engagement with only limited commitment between the forces and without decisive results is sometimes called a skirmish. The word "battle" can also be used infrequently to refer to an entire operational campaign, although this usage greatly diverges from its conventional or customary meaning. Generally, the word "battle" is used for such campaigns if referring to a protracted combat encounter in which either one or both of the combatants had the same methods, resources, and strategic objectives throughout the encounter. Some prominent examples of this would be the Battle of the Atlantic, Battle of Britain, and Battle of Stalingrad, all in World War II. Wars and military campaigns are guided by military strategy, wherea ...
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Battle Of Hollandia
The Battle of Hollandia (code-named Operation Reckless) was an engagement between Allies of World War II and Japanese forces during World War II. The majority of the Allied force was provided by the United States, with the bulk of two United States Army infantry divisions being committed on the ground. Air and naval support consisted largely of U.S. assets, although Australia also provided air support during preliminary operations and a naval bombardment force. The battle took place between 22 April and 6 June 1944 and formed part of the New Guinea campaign. The operation consisted of two landings, one at Tanahmerah Bay and the other at Humboldt Bay, near Hollandia. The landings were undertaken simultaneously with the amphibious invasion of Aitape ("Operation Persecution") to the east. The battle was an unqualified success for the Allied forces, resulting in a withdrawal by the Japanese to a new strategic defense line in the west of New Guinea and the abandonment of all posit ...
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Battle Of Cape Gloucester
The Battle of Cape Gloucester was fought in the Pacific theater of World War II between Japanese and Allied forces on the island of New Britain, Territory of New Guinea, between 26 December 1943 and 16 January 1944. Codenamed Operation Backhander, the US landing formed part of the wider Operation Cartwheel, the main Allied strategy in the South West Pacific Area and Pacific Ocean Areas during 1943–1944. It was the second landing the US 1st Marine Division had conducted during the war thus far, after Guadalcanal. The objective of the operation was to capture the two Japanese airfields near Cape Gloucester that were defended by elements of the Japanese 17th Division. The main landing came on 26 December 1943, when US Marines landed on either side of the peninsula. The western landing force acted as a diversion and cut the coastal road near Tauali to restrict Japanese freedom of movement, while the main force, landing on the eastern side, advanced north towards the airfie ...
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Sixth United States Army
Sixth Army is a theater army of the United States Army. The Army service component command of United States Southern Command, its area of responsibility includes 31 countries and 15 areas of special sovereignty in Central and South America and the Caribbean. It is headquartered at Fort Sam Houston. The Sixth Army saw extensive service in the South Pacific during World War II, including in New Britain, New Guinea, and the Philippines. Postwar it served stateside training army forces until its inactivation during force reduction in 1995. The army was reactivated in 2007. History The Sixth United States Army was activated in January 1943, commanded by Lieutenant General Walter Krueger. Under the code name Alamo Force, it assumed control of the majority of US Army units involved in Operation Cartwheel, the campaign to isolate and neutralize the Japanese base at Rabaul in New Britain. Following the completion of Cartwheel, Sixth Army joined the Australian Army and other US force ...
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2nd Engineer Brigade (United States)
The 2nd Engineer Brigade was a military engineering brigade of the United States Army, that was subordinate to United States Army Alaska and had its headquarters at Fort Richardson, Alaska, prior to deactivation in 2015. History World War II The 2nd Engineer Amphibian Brigade was activated at Camp Edwards on 20 June 1942, with the 532nd Engineer Shore Regiment and 592nd Engineer Boat Regiment assigned. Colonel William F. Heavey, who was appointed its commander on 6 August 1942, and was promoted to brigadier general on 10 September, led the brigade for the rest of the war. It quickly expanded to 6,000 men, but lost 1,500 in September to the 540th Shore Regiment. On 1 October, the brigade was reorganized; the 532nd and 592nd became engineer amphibian regiments and the 542nd Engineer Amphibian Regiment was formed. The brigade, less the 542nd Engineer Amphibian Regiment, moved by rail to Camp Carrabelle on 15 October. On 7 November, the brigade moved to Fort Ord, California, where ...
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2/7th Battalion (Australia)
The 2/7th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army raised for service during World War II. Formed as part of the 6th Division shortly after the outbreak of the war as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force, the 2/7th Battalion's initial personnel were recruited primarily from the state of Victoria, although later reinforcements were drawn from most other Australian states. Basic training was completed in Australia, after which the battalion embarked for the Middle East as part of the first batch of Australian troops to deploy overseas. Further training was undertaken in Palestine before the battalion went into action against the Italians in January 1941. After participating in the successful capture of Bardia and Tobruk, it was committed to the disastrous Battles of Greece and Crete, where the battalion was essentially destroyed after the majority of its personnel were captured. Rebuilt in Palestine, the 2/7th undertook garrison duties ...
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Salamaua–Lae Campaign
The Salamaua–Lae campaign was a series of actions in the New Guinea campaign of World War II. Australian and United States forces sought to capture two major Japanese bases, one in the town of Lae, and another one at Salamaua. The campaign to take the Salamaua and Lae area began after the successful defence of Wau in late January, which was followed up by an Australian advance towards Mubo as the Japanese troops that had attacked Wau withdrew to positions around Mubo. A series of actions followed over the course of several months as the Australian 3rd Division advanced north-east towards Salamaua. After an amphibious landing at Nassau Bay, the Australians were reinforced by a US regimental combat team, which subsequently advanced north up the coast. As the Allies kept up the pressure on the Japanese around Salamaua, in early September they launched an airborne assault on Nadzab, and a seaborne landing near Lae, subsequently taking the town with simultaneous drives from ...
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