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The Battle of Wake Island was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on Wake Island.The assault began simultaneously with the attack on Pearl Harbor naval and air bases in Hawaii on the morning of 8 December 1941 (7 December in Hawaii), and ended on 23 December, with the surrender of American forces to the Empire of Japan.
Wake Island Airfield (IATA: AWK, ICAO: PWAK, FAA LID: AWK) is a military air base located on Wake Island, which is known for the Battle of Wake Island during World War II. It is owned by the U.S. Air Force and operated by the 611th Air Support Group. The runway can be used for emergency landings by commercial jetliners flying transpacific ...
Winfield Scott Cunningham (February 16, 1900 – March 3, 1986) was the Officer in Charge, Naval Activities, Wake Island when the tiny island was attacked by the Japanese on December 8, 1941. Cunningham commanded the defense of the island against the massive Japanese attack. After 15 days, he surrendered the island to the Japanese.
The 33 survivors were sent to Osaka, Japan, where they stayed until the end of the war. In 1988, the Guam workers were given veteran status and POW medals for their participation in the Battle of Wake Island. [179] In 1975, there were at one point 8,700 Vietnamese refugees on the atoll when it was used as a waypoint in Operation New Life. [124 ...
Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal with Wake Island Device Henry Talmage " Hammerin' Hank " Elrod (September 27, 1905 – December 23, 1941) was a US Marine Corps aviator . He was the first aviator to receive the Medal of Honor during World War II , for his heroism in the defense of Wake Island .
He was the officer-in-charge (OIC) of the 1st Defense Battalion Detachment during the defense of Wake Island in December 1941. He was captured on Wake Island as a prisoner of war, along with his men, after a 15-day battle with the Japanese. After his release in September 1945, he concluded his military career as a colonel in 1948, where upon ...
Douglas SBD Dauntless from VB-6 taking-off from the deck of USS Enterprise to strike Wake on February 24, 1942. Admiral Nimitz ordered a series of raids on Wake Island, which was just recently captured by Japanese forces. In January 1942 the carrier USS Lexington led a raiding force. But after a Japanese submarine 'jumped' the task force and ...
Walter Lewis John Bayler (8 April 1905 – 8 December 1984) was a brigadier general in the United States Marine Corps who was famed during World War II as the "Last Man Off Wake Island" and the only American to see combat at Wake Island, Midway and Guadalcanal.