Why Japan lost the Battle of Midway

Has the balance of power ever changed so much in so little time than at the Battle of Midway? In the space of just 5 minutes, American dive bombers scored hits on three Japanese aircraft carriers, dramatically turning the tide of the war in the Pacific.

But this pivotal moment was a product of more than chance. It was the culmination of decisions made not only in the heat of battle but in the preceding weeks and months. To truly grasp the significance of this critical juncture and how it happened, we have to go right back to the beginning of the pacific war.

In this video, IWM curator Adrian Kerrison examines the timeline of events that lead to the Battle of Midway and the crucial decisions that doomed the Japanese to defeat.

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[TallDude]

Just to add, the US torpedo bombers not only drew away and exhausted the Japanese combat air patrol, but more importantly brought the Zeros down to sea level, so they weren't in position to attack the dive bombers at their height before the US planes made their attack dives.

[wassup]

Any hardcore history fans going to mention that Yorktown was still afloat after Hiryu's first counter-attack and its damage repair crews did such a good job putting out the fires that the second attack wave mistook it for an untouched carrier, saving Enterprise and Hornet. Even after the second attack it was STILL afloat, they attempted to salvage it but a submarine finally finished the job.

[johnvan]

One thing that is over looked in most videos about Midway is that it wasn't so much the loss of the four aircraft carriers, but the loss of the pilots and aircrew .
Later in the war Japan was able to build new carriers but was never able to replace the highly skilled veteran aircrew .
What replacements that were put aboard were easily shot down .

[joesantamaria]

Lest we forget the acts of incredible heroism by the likes of McClusky, Kleiss, Best, and their comrades. Great men all.

[dx]

When I was a kid we had a neighbor who was personally responsible for the loss of 26 Japanese aircraft in WWII. He was the worst mechanic in the Japanese military.

[playerzedra]

The Japanese planes did not finish off the USS Yorktown, but it was a japanese submarine that did. She was able to stay afloat after being bombed by the japanese. She was, then, being pulled by one of her allied ships, but was hit by a torpedo attack.

[cesaravegah]

The fact that the same pilot delivered the killing blows to two carriers is almost incredible, the courage and skill of most of the Americans was impressive but the performance of Richard H Best that day was the stuff of legends, the fact that his name was actually "Best" is the kind of thing were reality was more strange than fiction.

[brianhourigan]

Wade McClusky, from Buffalo, NY, made a gutsy call that allowed it all to happen.

[chryse]

One of the more understated outcomes of the Battle of Midway, beyond the loss of the four Japanese fleet carriers, was the severe losses the IJN suffered in their naval aviator corps. The so many of them were highly trained veterans of actions over China and in air strikes against British holdings in Ceylon (Sri Lanka today). They were the best naval aviators in the world at the time of Pearl Harbor and the Battle of the Coral Sea. So many were lost at Midway that the IJN could not really recover. This was because the Japanese pilot training program was not designed to pump out replacements at the rate needed to man expended carrier air groups. Whereas combat experienced American aviators were rotated home to train new pilots. Many of the IJN squadrons were sent into the South Pacific and operated from Rabaul against American action in and around Guadalcanal, where they experienced more attrition. It became a negative feedback loop they would never recover from.

[footballtbone]

God bless these men. And let us never forget the their sacrifices....we owe these men everything.

[timpos]

Let's not forget Roosevelt. He pushed to start building those carriers in the late thirties.

[onenote]

Montemayor has an excellent set of animated videos showing how Midway proceeded from the Japanese point-of-view, using only the data that Japanese commanders had and showing why they made their decisions on the day.

[Stilicho]

This is the best (and briefest) explanation of the Battle of Midway of those I have watched on YouTube.

[mitchellhawkes]

Jolly good job. Instead of taking an hour to explain this action (like so many others), you summed it up well in 16 minutes. That's what we like.

[SuperGarri]

McClusky’s actions at Midway strongly helped to win the battle; which was the turning point in World War 2 Pacific Theater. One could argue this one man’s actions helped to saved not just thousands of American lives at the Battle of Midway but also thousands who would have died of America lost its all of its aircraft carriers. This battle cost Japan 4 of its total 6 carriers. With McClusky’s decisions helping to sink 3 of the 4. He is a true legend of World War 2. He was honored with Tombstone Promotion; to Rear Admiral. 🇺🇸

[triggerfish]

The American studs who fought, died and will raised again on the last day are heroes beyond measure. My dear, brave dad, WW II, 12th Armoured Division, the Hellcats, survived and along with his brave MEN and WOMEN, saved the entire world from Hitler and Hirohito/Tojo...🙏✌️♥️🇺🇸

[FUBAR]

The US damage control teams are what made a huge difference

[edwardloomis]

I love Catalinas/PBYs. They're slow, they're ugly in a way, but they always seem to be in the right place at the right time, like 6:47 and 8:13 of this video and during the hunt for the Bismarck. Only recently have I learned about the "Black Cat" night operations in the Pacific, which increased my love for them even more.

[russkinter]

Hearing and reading about this battle never fails to send chills down my spine.

[jamespriddy]

I’ve read exhaustively about this. The consensus, though all opinionated, is that the intelligence in breaking the code was most instrumental in the victory.
It was weeks before the news reach all of America. My childhood mentor served in the Army in the war. He had never heard of the Midway battle in his life. When I recounted the story to him, he was 92. I must have told it well. He was mesmerized and asked how come I knew so much about it. LOL