Truk Atoll
Truk Atoll, Caroline Islands. Aerial reconnaissance photo of Japanese facilities at Truk taken by a Marine Corps PB4Y-1 Patrol Bomber, from Bougainville, on 4 February 1944.
U.S. Naval Institute Photo Archive

Target: Truk Atoll

Culled from ships’ war diaries, here is a vivid, you-are-there account of the U.S. offensive against Japanese forces in the Caroline Islands in February 1944.
By Aryeh Wetherhorn
April 2021
Naval History Magazine
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Truk Atoll is located in the center of the Caroline Islands. It is almost due north of the eastern tip of New Guinea, and, of course, Australia. The Carolines were once part of the German Empire. Japan got them as a reward for picking the winning side in World War I. Truk, itself, is one of the largest and best sheltered lagoons in the entire Pacific. The Japanese were quick to appreciate the strategic position of Truk and adopted it as a major anchorage and base for the Combined Fleet in World War II.

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This story is based on the war diaries for February 1944 from the following ships:
USS Iowa (BB-61)
USS New Jersey (BB-62)
USS Minneapolis (CA-36)
USS New Orleans (CA-32)
USS Burns (DD-588)
USS Izard (DD-589)

Aryeh Wetherhorn

Mr. Wetherhorn has a rich background in naval history: He began collecting small-scale ship models while still in high school. At its peak, the collection numbered over 6,000 ship models and more than 3,000 aircraft, all in scale 1:1,200. A 1962 graduate of the University of Michigan, he served as a Naval Reserve officer in the Vietnam War, earning a Naval Achievement Medal for his performance of duty in the USS Okinawa (LPH-3).

More Stories From This Author View Biography

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