"Once Truk had been eliminated as an effective base, and the Japanese Navy driven from the environs, the Americans could complete their invasions of the Marshall Islands unmolested. Next, they set their sights on the Marianas. From these islands, long-range American B-29 aircraft would have the ability to hit the Japanese Home Islands. The Japanese were well aware of this fact, and planned a Decisive Battle to stop it. Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa's plan was to use the longer range of his aircraft to good effect by shuttling them between his carriers and the airbases on Guam and Saipan, hitting the Americans coming and going, while keeping his carriers out of range of an American counterstrike.
Unfortunately for Ozawa, the American fleet quickly devastated the Japanese airfields in the area, meaning that Ozawa's flyers would be walking into a buzzsaw when they tried to land. Few of them had a chance to do so, however, as the majority were destroyed attempting to attack the American task forces. Spruance had arranged his warships such that any Japanese aircraft had first to evade a very effective radar-vectored combat air patrol (the US Navy flew more defensive CAP sorties than the Japanese launched in total sorties of all kinds), and then fly directly through the immensely powerful anti-aircraft fire of the screening battleships and cruisers, which had been deployed across the front of the formation in a Gun Line. American technological and pilot superiority were telling, and exacted hideous losses from the Japanese attackers.
Meanwhile, Ozawa was having difficulties with American submarines. Carrier Taiho was torpedoed, and though she took only a single hit, poor damage control technique led to a catastrophic gasoline-fumes explosion which destroyed her. That same afternoon, veteran Shokaku had been sunk by another US sub. Follow-up strikes by American aircraft would also add carrier Hiyo to the list of victims, with several other major warships damaged. The Japanese carrier arm, its carefully rebuilt air groups slaughtered almost to a man, had virtually ceased to exist as an implement of war…"
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Amicalement
Armand
tries the naval wargame in the Axis & Allies series.