The Unknown Battle of Midway: The Destruction of the American Torpedo Squadrons

Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. "Forward, the Light Brigade! "Charge for the guns!" he said: Into the valley of Death Rode the six hundred.

Many people remember the battle of Midway as the turning point of the war in the Pacific due to the sinking of four Japanese aircraft carriers, and rightly so. But would the American success at Midway been possible without the heroic actions of their torpedo squadrons? Probably not. In this eye-opening account of the battle, author Alvin Kernan sheds much new light on these intrepid airmen who, flying obsoloete aircraft and using defective torpedoes, cleared the way for the SBD Dauntlesses to deliver the crushing blows on the Japanese carriers. After sighting the enemy carriers, the three American flattops began launching their torpedo bombers, dive bombers, and fighters in the hopes of making a coordinated attack on the Japanese fleet. However, while en route to the target, almost all of the squadrons became separated and the USS Hornet's contingent of fighters and dive bombers never even made it to the Japanese fleet. Its aircraft either returned to the carrier or ditched in the sea. Meanwhile, ,the planes from USS Yorktown and USS Enterprise were not able to coordinate their attacks. Thus, the torpedo planes attacked without fighter protection. These planes were thrown into a virtual meat grinder of anti aircraft fire and pursuit from Japanese fighters. Out of a compliment of 51 planes, 44 were shot down. One man, Ensign George Gay, survived from Torpedo squadron 8. Not a single American torpedo hit the Japanese fleet. However, this sacrifice was not in vain, for a few minutes later, the SBDs found the Japanese and in the span of a few minutes sent three Japanese carriers to the bottom. The fourth followed later in the day. The author brings up some interesting points in the book. For example, he mentions the confusing flight plan of the Hornet's commander Ring, who, for some reason, chose to fly a course which would take him well north of the Japanese fleet. He then failed to write an after action report upon returning to the Hornet. The author also describes the inferiority of the American aircraft, specifically, there extremely limited range which, in the end, caused the American fighters to turn back. Also, the fighters that did make it to the Japanese fleet never flew down to help out the lumbering Devastators. In all intents and purposes, the SBDs happened to end up in the right place at precisely the right time. If they had not, the battle could have turned out much differently. This is a fascinating book. I've read several books about the battle of Midway, but none have went into the depth of exploring the destruction of the torpedo planes as this one does. The writer, a former member of the Enterprise's air group, describes the battle as only a true eyewitness could. He raises some alarming quetions which I had never thought about before reading this book. Although the book itself is somewhat short, it does a masterful job of covering the plight of the torpedo planes. I highly recommend this fine book. If yo

This tome is a part of The Yale Library of Military History, a series which appears to deserve serious scrutiny. Kernan was a crew member on one of the carriers that participated in the Battle of Midway. It is, in fact, sometimes difficult to separate personal memoir from history in this book, which is not detrimental. Kernan's view is intensely personal and he takes time to further slam the reputation of one of the battle's decidedly lesser lights. He is also fulsomely critical of the Navy bureaucrats, special interests and politicians who sent torpedo bombers and submarines into the war with clearly defective torpedoes. Kernan's singular focus on the destruction of the torpedo bomber squadrons lays the basis for a uniquely personal history, which is absolutely fascinating. In 144 pages, Kernan illuminates both the tragedy and glory of war in a way that is rarely seen. If nothing more, he gives voice to the names and souls of the brave young men who put their country first and went bravely to their deaths in their country's name. Not a spirit you see put forth much these days. Ironically, were it not for such young men as Kernan describes --- and as he himself was --- today's carpers and critics might not enjoy their freedom to denigrate the United States. Kernan provides a unique critique of both the strategic and tactical failures that made the Battle of Midway such a close-run affair, truly as Kernan affirms, a matter more of luck than anything else. His analysis of the lack of communication between Admirals on aircraft carriers just 10 miles apart, fighters patrolling at 20,000 feet while torpedo bombers were being slaughtered below, the foolishness of a group commander over his more daring and soon dead squadron leader all resonate with a condemning sadness rarely seen in any but first-hand accounts of war. Kernan was a first-hand participant one-step removed: he was an 18 year old enlisted sailor. But everything he says feels like it was collected from the participants themselves, although he also relies very heavily on personal memoirs of others and official reports. The amount of detail Kernan squeezes into so few pages is amazing. There is an obvious degree of anger that some officers who should have been court martialled for their performance were papered over by other career officers to spare them embarassment and keep their future careers alive. All in all, for any student of American history, this is a must read. Jerry

This book is an expansion of the account contained in his memoir "Crossing the Line." He provides details that few others will have found in the conventional histories. His point of view is that of an 18-year-old ordnanceman for a torpedo squadron. Another review has complained of his criticism of the navy and some of the officers. There are standard hagiographies that would suit such critics. Those of us who have served in the military are aware that not everyone is a superman. The fact remains that Midway was won with fantastic luck. Wade McCluskey found the Japanese carriers and few remember his name. I wish someone would write a biography of McCluskey. Alvin Kernan might just be the right person. This book is indispensible to anyone who wants to study the history of the Second World War in the Pacific.

This book is amazing. There is no other way to describe what lies within the pages of this book. For those of us who like to explore every possible angle during the Battle Of Midway, here is a story that very much needs to be told. This is a "must read" for those of us who cannot get enough of history during one of the most challenging times in American History. Get this book as soon as you can.