The Battle of Eniwetok, 1944

Part of America's "island hopping" strategy in the Pacific was the invasion of Eniwetok* Atoll in the Marshall Islands. That attack, known as "Operation Catchpole," began on this date in 1944. It occurred during a simultaneous operation against the Japanese naval and air base at Truk Atoll, 670 miles southwest, on the 16th-17th.

Following up on the success in the Battle of Kwajalein, the Americans set their sights on an airfield and harbor from which to launch attacks on Japanese strongholds in the Mariana Islands further north. The capture of the Eniwetok atoll would provide just what the Allies needed.

Like the other atolls in the Marshall Islands, Eniwetok was a harbor surrounded by tiny coral and sand islands. The circumference of the 30-island ring is 64 miles, with a maximum elevation of only 15 feet above sea level. Three entrances provided passage in and out of the lagoon.

Source: Stamford Historical Society, Inc.

The naval bombardment began on the February 17th. The next day, Marines landed on Engebi Island, the larger of the northern islands, taking it in only 6 hours. On the 19th, Army infantry landed on Eniwetok Island in the south. Fighting there was more difficult, and the island was not secured until the 21st. On the 22nd, Marines took neighboring Parry Island. By the following day, the remaining islands were also under American control. In total, the atoll was secured at a cost of 339 Americans killed and missing, and 2,677 Japanese.

Marine assault waves on the well-bombed Engebi Island, February 18, 1944
Source: US Military Challenge

With the capture of Eniwetok Atoll control of the Marshall Islands, which had been in Japanese hands since 1914, passed to the United States. Eniwetok immediately became a major forward operating base for the Navy and an airbase for the Marines. In June 1944, my dad, Frank Dolan, will arrive on his newly commissioned repair ship, USS Hector, to begin 3 1/2 months of repair jobs. Nearly 500 Allied ships could be seen present in the lagoon when Hector arrived.

* In 1974 the official spelling was changed to "Enewetak."

Sources: Frank L. Dolan's Service Records; The Two-Ocean War, Samuel Eliot Morison

The Battle of Kwajalein, 1944

While my dad, Frank Dolan, completed his training in San Diego for duty on the new repair ship, USS Hector, the war against Japan continued in the Pacific. In November of 1943, the U.S. and its Allies drove Japanese occupiers from Makin and Tarawa in the Gilbert Islands. The Americans' next objective was the Marshall Island chain. The Battle of Kwajalein, the opening of Marshall Islands Campaign, was fought from January 29 to February 3, 1944.

A small group of 29 atolls and 5 islands in the Northern Pacific settled by ancient Micronesian peoples, the Marshalls were under Japan's control into the Second World War. The islands, located about 2,900 miles east of Japan, formed a key part of the Empire's outer perimeter defense. The location of the islands also made them offensively strategic for the Japanese Navy.

By this point in the war, the Japanese were withdrawing from advanced positions in the Pacific, choosing to defend their nation closer to home. Their strategy for the island chain was to use its defense as a delay action while establishing a new defensive perimeter closer to Japan. They fortified garrisons on the eastern and southern perimeter islands, which were most exposed to attack by the Americans.

The American plan for taking the Marshall Islands, known as "Operation Flintlock," called for hopping over the fortified outer islands and directly attacking Kwajalein, the world's largest coral atoll, and center of Japanese control over the islands.

Source: World War II Database

U.S. aircraft carriers began their air offensive against Kwajalein on today's date in 1944. On January 31, U.S. Marines landed on Majuro Atoll and took it without any casualties, preparing it as a forward base for the full invasion. After overwhelming air and naval bombardment, Kwajalein was stormed by Marines and Army troops on February 1, and declared secured on the 7th, with a loss of only 372 Marines and soldiers killed. In contrast, the Japanese death toll was 7,800. On February 12th, Marines landed on Arno Atoll and began a series of mopping-up operations in the remaining minor atolls of the Marshall Islands.

The capture of Kwajalein allowed the Navy high command to step up its operations in the Marshalls and invade the important Eniwetok Atoll on February 17, 1944. In early April, Dad will sail with the Hector on its maiden voyage to Hawaii. By June, Hector will be repairing ships at the new forward naval base at Eniwetok.

Sources: Frank L. Dolan's Service Records; The Two-Ocean War, Samuel Eliot Morison; World War II Database;