Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands - Pacific War #49 DOCUMENTARY

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Kings and Generals' historical animated documentary series covering the Pacific War week by week continues. Last week, we covered the failed third Japanese attempt at retaking the important island of Guadalcanal. The unmitigated disaster that was the Battle for Henderson Field would prove to be the last attempt of the invaders to contest the Americans in what they believed to be the most decisive campaign of the war. Yet at the same time, two American carriers would take on four Japanese carriers in a battle that would decide the fate of the Japanese garrison on this Island of Death. In a theater decided by air power, join us as we delve into the fourth carrier battle of the Pacific War: the crucial Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands.
Pacific War Podcast: thepacificwar.podbean.com
#1 - Pearl Harbor: • Attack on Pearl Harbor...
#2 - Japanese Invasion of Malaya: • Japanese Invasion of M...
#3 - Japanese attack Guam, Wake, the Philippines: • Japan Attacks Everywhe...
#4 - Japan Continues Attacking: Borneo, Philippines: • Japan Continues Attack...
#5 - Wake Island: • Fall of Wake Island - ...
#6 - Kampar: • Battle of Kampar - Pac...
#7 - Slim River: • Battle of Slim River -...
#8 - Battle for the Dutch East Indies: • Battle for the Dutch E...
#9 - Invasion of New Britain: • Invasion of New Britai...
#10 - Fall of Malaya: • Fall of Malaya - Pacif...
#11 - Makassar: • Battle of Makassar Str...
#12 - Fall of Singapore: • Fall of Singapore - Pa...
#13 - Invasion of Sumatra: • Japanese Invasion of S...
#14 - Invasion of Timor: • Japanese Invasion of T...
#15 - Fall of Java: • Fall of Java - Pacific...
#16 - Fall of Rangoon: • Fall of Rangoon - Paci...
#17 - US Response to Pearl Harbor: • How the US Responded t...
#18 - Tojo: Bringing Japan Into The Pacific War: • Hideki Tojo: Bringing ...
#19 - Japanese Raids in the Indian Ocean: • Japanese Raids in the ...
#20 - Fall of Bataan & The Bataan Death March: • Fall of Bataan & The B...
#21 - Doolittle Raid: • Doolittle Raid: Americ...
#22 - Japanese Advance on Burma Road: • Japanese Advance on Bu...
#23 - Australia's Pearl Harbor: • Australia's Pearl Harb...
#24 - Battle of the Coral Sea: • Battle of the Coral Se...
#25 - Fall of the Philippines: • Fall of the Philippine...
#26 - Fall of Burma: • Fall of Burma - Pacifi...
#27 - Operation Sei-Go: • How Japan Responded to...
#28 - Midway: • Battle of Midway - Pac...
#29 - Japanese Invasion of Alaska: • Japanese Invasion of A...
#30 - Japanese Attack on Sydney: • Japanese Attack on Syd...
#31 - MacArthur and the Philippines Disaster: • How MacArthur Caused t...
#32 - Attacks New Guinea: • Japan Attacks New Guin...
#33 - Biological Warfare in China: • Japanese War Crimes: B...
#34 - Japan Attacks the Continental United States: • Japan Attacks the Cont...
#35 - Invasion of Buna-Gona: • Invasion of Buna-Gona ...
#36 - Kokoda: • Battle of Kokoda - Pac...
#37 - Invasion of Solomon Islands: • Invasion of Solomon Is...
#38 - Savo Island: • Battle of Savo Island ...
#39 - Raid on Makin Island: • Raid on Makin Island -...
#40 - Battle of Eastern Solomons: • Battle of Eastern Solo...
#41 - Isurava: • Australia's Thermopyla...
#42 - Milne Bay: • Battle of Milne Bay - ...
#43 - Bloody Ridge: • Battle of the Bloody R...
#44 - Ioribaiwa: • Battle of the Ioribaiw...
#45 - Matanikau: • Battle of Matanikau - ...
#46 - Cape Esperance: • Battle of Cape Esperan...
#47 - Kokoda Track Counteroffensive: • Kokoda Track Counterof...
#48 - Henderson Field: • Battle for Henderson F...
Support us on Patreon: / kingsandgenerals or Paypal: paypal.me/kingsandgenerals or by joining the youtube membership: / @kingsandgenerals We are grateful to our patrons and sponsors, who made this video possible: docs.google.com/document/d/1o...
Video: Zakuan Musa ( / @vectorhistoria7767 )
Script: Ivan Moran, Craig Watson ( / thepacificwarchannel )
Narrated: Officially Devin ( / @offydgg & / @gameworldnarratives )
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Production Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound: www.epidemicsound.com
#Documentary #PacificWar #WorldWar

[@KingsandGenerals]

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[@stewartsingal4599]

Thanks for your new video, just keep doing. ❤️

[@Spartan111MS]

Hey KnG, I think your Pacific war playlist might be messed up. The videos are out of order. Might just be me, might not. Could y'all give it a check regardless? Edit. Thank you

[@chaunceyroberts6187]

@@stewartsingal4599 77777 3-11 3-11 3-11 3-11 is is for 4 and and for 4744⁴4744 4744 is is for 4⁴4 47 and 472 4444 for for and years a of of 4 4 is 4⁴4 4 44 44 and and in is years the ⁴is is is be be for for for 447 years 4 ⁴and I 4 it to 4to 4 ⁴I I it ⁴and and and and ⁴to I the it of I is it it it it to me me ⁴7 I I 47 ⁷you ⅞and your ⅞toes

[@yousseph777]

I am embarrassed to admit that the ongoing pacific wars videos are not only part of my weekly routine but they are a highlight. 😆 well done!

[@ADogNamedStay]

I remember when the slow burn started and I wasn't even interested, now I have to go back and start over.

[@jonbaxter2254]

Literally gets me through the week, that and WW2 with Indie.

[@chrismelcaroful]

Agree, looking forward to the next, thank you

[@qx0ni]

Thats nothing to be ashamed of!!

[@ChrisSmith-kw4gn]

This is my workout music

[@theawesomeman9821]

The name "Good Enough" tells how much the discoverer really cared about the island.

[@lukea3544]

That depends... When you really consider all that is good and bad, good enough is pretty good. What the discoverers were going through personally, may have been reflective of the name. Things like that are hard to know accurately and to judge. Still, I think you might be hinting to the problems of colonialism. Which I completely agree with.

[@SantomPh]

The island was actually named after British naval commodore James Graham Goodenough (pronounced Goowd-ehn-oh)

[@recoil53]

Found something to plant the flag on, good enough. Let's head back home.

[@adamalton2436]

Knowing all the Big E had survived, it’s an even worse shame that it wasn’t preserved at war’s end. It would be the sole surviving prewar carrier.

[@usslexingtoncva-1639]

Dont forget Saratoga CV-3 and Ranger CV-4 as well XD

[@cloudjumper8868]

I was thinking the same thing. She was a very lucky ship!

[@adamalton2436]

@@usslexingtoncva-1639 don’t get me wrong, having Ranger and Saratoga (the surviving Lexington-class conversion) would have been great. I’m just sad that there was a drive to preserve Enterprise and it fell through. That said, the USS Lexington Museum does have an amazing trove of Enterprise artifacts.

[@apexnext]

So true. It's almost unbelievable what that carrier did. So many amazing ships are scraped or sold off. I suppose it's the best viable option for recouping some of the insane costs. But that ship was living history.

[@MrRjh63]

Least we still have some of out ships as museum ships the British scrapped all of their big ships

[@Martijn_Steinpatz]

It's important to note two things at this stage of the war. The Japanese aircraft in this theater either operated from flight decks or from Rabaul. In the case of the latter this meant flying missions of at least 500 to 1000 miles. The other thing to note is the corrupted bushido code of death before dishonor. If an American plane was lost, the pilot still could be safed. A Japanese pilot on the other hand either was lost at sea or would kill himself before getting captured. This meant that Japanese pilots flew extraordinary long missions where the change of failure to return was big. Meaning that the Japanese fleet lost a disproportionate amount of pilots, leading to a severe downgrade in the effectiveness of the quality. As you can see this would have a huge effect on the war in the years to come.

[@louievelayo4100]

Yeah, I mean look at Saipan... They even got the civvies thinking the same way...

[@Martijn_Steinpatz]

Indeed. The army thoroughly corrupted the Bushido code. Whatever benefits they got out of it, the disadvantages were too great in the end.

[@tobyalder42]

The main reason an American pilot survived is because he wasn't shot down, but rather ditched due to fuel exhaustion or lost his aircraft on the board of the carrier. In the Santa Cruz Islands battle the Americans lost only 17 planes shot down, the rest were lost because of the lack of Hornet and flight decks to recover them or destroyed on the board, while the Japanese lost 65 shot down. The Japanese had worse planes or were worse aerial fighters, and of course the American anti-aircraft fire was more deadly. As for committing suicide to avoid capture, it doesn't really change things, since a captured pilot is still a permanent loss to his army/navy

[@larcomj]

i just realized this is episode 49, that means we've been watching this for almost a year.... wow.

[@model-man7802]

Dad was at Coral Sea, Midway and Eastern Solomons on the Yorktown and Enterprise.

[@jamesforreal]

Win the battle, lose the war. As a Veteran, I occasionally run into a kid who says "US never loses". Then I have to break their little hearts... Great video, I really enjoy this series.

[@JohnnyElRed]

Naval battles of this kind are always interesting.

[@jonbaxter2254]

Just imagining all these planes flying about at every altitude must have been something to watch.

[@stephendean2896]

USS Smith was able to put out many of the fires on its deck caused by the Japanese torpedo strike by steering into the wake of the battleship USS South Dakota dousing the smaller ship in sea water

[@apexnext]

Woah that's crazy! I didn't know this. 👍

[@louievelayo4100]

I'm sure Battle 360 covered that as well...

[@moalzaben5554]

@@louievelayo4100yes it did cover it well

[@bjorndevlieger8565]

Besides the number of ships one of the reasons the Japanese faced heavier AA is because at that point the 40mm Bofors began seeing greater usage over the old 28mm, sure they accelerated the acquisition of the Bofors since the Pearl Harbour attack but this was the first battle were the 40mm Bofors was the most common type of medium range AA on US ships. Enterprise had been refitted with them while she was being repaired and in a way it helped her out.

[@omarbradley6807]

Also the battleships had a lot of AA.

[@paulsteaven]

Nah, it's the 20mm Oerlikon not the 40mm Bofors.

[@nooneatall8072]

@@paulsteaven Don't forget the 5"/38s on the South Dakota and the AA cruisers.

[@nooneatall8072]

Yep. The Enterprise had 40mm. I don't think that the Hornet had any. The US now had the 'complete package' - 5" for long range (and dive bombers at altitude), 40mm for medium range, and 20mm for close-in.

[@paulsteaven]

@@nooneatall8072 yes 5"/38 on Atlanta class cruisers and above as most of the treaty cruisers (especially CAs) has 5"/25.

[@Z020852]

My favorite part about this battle is the Smith using the South Dakota's wake to extinguish the fires on board.

[@fighter5583]

One thing I believe was missed about this engagement is that Enterprise wasn't initially spotted by the Japanese attack force despite trailing a bit further north or east of Hornet. The reason is believed to be caused by Enterprise's taskforce being obscured by a rain squall around the time the Japanese approached, leaving only Hornet visible to be attacked.

[@orlandopena2731]

I believe at this point, the Japanese had also thought they sunk the Enterprise... which is why is was given the name the Grey ghost. I don't they brought up the fact on how fast it was repaired and operating back in the Pacific to effect the Campaign again, cause that's also a very interesting and inspiring fact that occurred....

[@wolfu597]

The Japanese losses in terms of naval aviators, over the last 5 months, in the Coral Sea, at Midway, the Eastern Solomons, and now Santa Cruz, has been so high, that it would take close to a decade to replace them. Time the Empire doesn't have. And they still haven't employed a system to cope with these loses, not to mention upgrading their air fleet.

[@donaldmack3572]

What's crazy about this is after the battle of the canal the US Navy would overhaul the last carrier enterprise as well as new carriers putting more guns and firepower as well as new planes plus new radar equipment those last planes they have eventually wash out completely

[@recoil53]

By the end of this battle, the Japanese Navy lost 409 of 765 aviators from the Pearl Harbor attack. IIRC they started the war with 800 combat flight hours. A lot of those lost were leaders of dive bomber and torpedo bomber groups, making the few new pilots less effective. So the Japanese technically won, but the war was pretty much lost at this point.

[@anikdey4608]

US sanctions hit hard on Japanese economy and war machines. Japan didn’t have sufficient war grade steels to replace lost aircrafts & carriers. R&D was on making better fighter aircrafts but lack of materials left them on papers. And US was working with allied powers for R&D but Japan was completely isolated.

[@jeroylenkins1745]

The aircraft exchange screen is an excellent addition. This is a very good visual representation to support the narrative and really tell the story. Carry this one forward please.

[@samwill7259]

It must have been terrifying. On a tiny island, knowing the enemy is RIGHT there, you just don't know where and you won't know until somebody opens fire. You might die terrified without ever seeing what hit you.

[@destroyer0685]

Another excellent video. I echo the comments on the impact of the 40mm had on the battle. A big reason that the ENTERPRISE may have survived was that the SOUTH DAKOTA followed her as she maneuvered. Another impact was the presence of the ATLANTA, SAN JUAN and JUNEAU in the screens of the US carriers. These anti-aircraft crusiers were in their element and brought tremendous firepower to the defense.

[@nooneatall8072]

Wasn't at least one of them thought to have been damaged and on fire due to the sheer volume of 5" AA that they were pumping out? The continuous muzzle flashes of those 5" guns appeared as a singular fire on board the ship. The 5"/38 and the 40mm really did make an impact in this battle. Wasn't Enterprise fitted out with several as part of her repairs after the last carrier battle?

[@nooneatall8072]

Several of the returning Japanese pilots appeared to have suffered shell-shock from the AA and were almost incoherent when they were debriefed after landing.

[@destroyer0685]

@@nooneatall8072 yes in response to above. Another unsung hero is the impact of radar controlled AA fire. This makes up for the poor disposition of the defending CAP.

[@timzerby3312]

@@xWarLegendx in general terms a screen is a barrier used to protect something from something else (think: windscreen or insect screen) but in this case the "screen" is referring to the ring of ships, and their aa guns, protecting the carriers from enemy attack

[@recoil53]

@@nooneatall8072 I believe that was at Savo Island (thought to be on fire).

[@jeffmcdonald4225]

Those Australian boys were almost unbelievably brave.

[@marvinm8343]

The IJN sorely missed Hiyo in this battle. Had the sister ships Junyo and Hiyo done a combined strike, the Enterprise would probably been sunk. Despite the criticisms, Nagumo actually performed well in this battle.

[@chicken_burgers]

Very good point their coordinated strike really is something else

[@scottkrater2131]

If if's and but's were candy and nuts, Japan would have won, but they didn't, end of story, period.

[@marvinm8343]

@@scottkrater2131 Relax, Cpt. Obvious. Don't get your panties in a bunch.

[@scottkrater2131]

@@marvinm8343 than why make a comment on speculation? Stick to the facts, not conjecture IJN fan boy.

[@JosephSchneider26]

@@scottkrater2131 History plays a big part in determining individual and collective responsibility, like who was responsible for WW1. So these "ifs" are actually very important, because they help outline the horizon of individual decisions. (Edit: typo)

[@adamndirtyape]

This series has been fabulous.

[@ph89787]

18:47. First. Smith was hit by a damaged Kate that exploded on the bridge. Also, You left out that Enterprise was manoeuvring like crazy to avoid the Torpedoes. First by hard right rudder and then after avoiding the Smith. Another hard turn combing through the second drop. Once again, Lucky E.

[@Wayne.J]

3 Torpedoes from 1st chutai hit Portland, and were all duds Kate crashed on Smith's No2 turret and fell into the sea. Torpedo loosen and eventually ended up against No1 turret. When the timer ran out, the turret was blown into the sea... And Arima Keiichi got a 2nd bomb hit on Enterprise after hitting her at Eastern Solomons.

[@paulsteaven]

21:26 It is really weird that Nagumo was only relieved after another disaster as he should have been replaced by Ozawa after the Battle of Midway. As Ozawa has complete grasp of IJN carrier aircrafts and tactics based on his battle plan during the Battle of Philippine Sea wherein he chose to use the impressive range of their aircrafts against the US Navy's.

[@ajnaughtin1]

The Midway attack was Yamato's idea and was foiled by intelligence. You cant blame Nagumo for that. He was a cautious commander though.

[@omarbradley6807]

That is far from a "disaster", they just fell short of achieving supremacy in the Pacific, that would have been another story, but certainly a victory is far from "disaster", Also Ozawa, inherited the same plans from Yamamoto, and Koga and did not adequate it to the situtation thus leading to the Philipine sea disaster.

[@paulsteaven]

@@ajnaughtin1 might be, but he and his staff made huge blunders during the battle tho. Even though the famous "Nagumo's dilemma" is understandable, he could have used the available ordinances fitted on Kates and Vals to attack the American carriers just like what the Taffy 3 did at the Battle off Samar. Some of the huge blunders committed by the Kido Butai during the Battle: 1. When the recon aircraft of Tone detected the American carriers, why they sailed towards them in the first place when Japanese carrier aircrafts outranges them? 2. After the damages dealt to 3 Japanese carriers, why did he let Yamaguchi to use Hiryu in an attempt to force a surface action with US carrier task forces when both Haruna and Kirishima were enough to outmatch any of their enemy's cruiser escorts? Nagumo and his staff committed many blunders during the battle but my main criticism to him is that he's a 'by the book' character and didn't made any out of the box decisions. He's well loved by his men tho.

[@nooneatall8072]

@@paulsteaven You mean Kates and Vals if you are referring to Midway. 😉 There were only a couple of Judys (I think they were Judys) on board (mabye 4?) and they were used for reconnaissance. Nagumo's issues stemmed partly from his decision to recover the 1st Midway strike (and not let it run out of fuel and ditch into the sea) and then the subsequent penny-packet attacks from the American torpedo squadrons. He had to keep his flight decks clear for his CAP to rotate in and out. He needed abuot 40 or so minutes to get a strike group up on the decks and he didn't get that. Of course, being the 'by-the-book' admiral that he was, he wanted to get an entire balanced strike group together, so all 4 of his carriers had to get strike plans on their decks. Absolutely agree re. turning towards the Americans and charging them later with the Hiryu alone. That seemed to be a cultural or intuitional thing in the Japanese Navy at the time. Dying with honor was preferable to coming back defeated. And everything must be done in an attempt to win a given battle, no matter the cost. Blame can also be placed on Yamaguchi for pursuing this (he of all people should have known better), as well as the escort commander who allowed it as well while he was in command while Nagumo changed his flagship.

[@paulsteaven]

@@nooneatall8072 yeah, it should have been Vals instead of Judys. It's just that I always remember D4Y's allied reporting nams more often due to it being more common name compared to Val's.

[@mq9047]

I love the head-to-head comparison of the planes to show the numbers & losses from both sides. Great work K&G!

[@ggtt2547]

Hey Kings and Generals, i am the biggest fan and i thank you for the top quality you are offering us for free. I say all this so you don't take my suggestion the wrong way. Since you make the big effort to upload subtitles to your videos (which is greatly appreciated), maybe you could try to find some other place to put the "info boxes" that appear now and then at the bottom of the screen? They appear behind the subtitles and are impossible to read without pausing to turn them off. It's a tiny inconvenience for us who, as i said, are enjoying top quality documentaries for free, but since you do read the comments, i thought i should mention it. With all the love from Greece!!

[@KingsandGenerals]

Good point, didn't think about it

[@mohdfaeizyusop9775]

completely agreed on this 👏👏. Again, one of the best documentaries by K&G

[@Coffeeguyzz]

Agree whole-heartedly. Those info boxes are a great enhancement, but somewhat difficult to read. Great series, as usual.

[@Vinny6962]

Thank you to those guys at Kings and Generals. You guys do great quality educational work.

[@rodgermurphy5721]

The Japanese combined arms attack on the Hornet was a textbook perfect attack. The Japanese were damn good in WW2....but so was the US

[@haskenvonbern5404]

Interesting that this is the only battle which went according to Japanese doctrine, even though there was no night surface engagement the aggressive charge of Abe’s forces was enough to force the Americans to abandon Hornet

[@luislugo1289]

Espectacular video, y sin duda una batalla que cuestiona un poco la narrativa popular de que Midway fue el canto del cisne de la armada imperial japonesa. Y sin duda mi capitulo favorito del documental de Batalla 360.

[@theawesomeman9821]

Didn't know the US navy ever lost a battle before. My cousin joined the navy over army because the recruiter told her the navy never lost a battle before.

[@nicholasm7822]

Probably the one time in history a military recruiter told a lie to get someone to sign up. 🤔

[@yoseipilot]

Sounds like, the Americans/Allies really love to creating some Propaganda Event.

[@JohnSmith-pm3ew]

Oh boy.... who's going to tell him?

[@prabhjap]

the americans actually were unable to scuttle the Hornet and it was The Japanese that found and sunk her after deeming her too damaged and too risky to capture.

[@mccabber24]

Take a shot every time Nagumo turns North

[@sfr7916]

😅

[@donaldshotts4429]

The Guadalcanal campaign is endlessly fascinating imo. The Japanese could've possibly won imo if they used their big surface ships in a rotating manner as heavy artillery and permanently put Henderson Field out of action. They still had big advantages in capital ships although they obviously would've lost more then they did. In the end they were too divided amongst themselves to pull it off, but that one heavy bombardment from 2 Japanese battleships was the low point for the Marines so the untapped potential they had was enormous

[@n1k2jfan96]

The Japanese did exactly that. On the night of 14/15 October, just one day after the bombardment from the battleships Kongo and Haruna, Henderson Field was bombarded again by the heavy cruisers Kinugasa and Chokai. This was followed less than 24 hours later by another bombardment, this time from the heavy cruisers Myoko and Maya. It wasn't until after the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, during which the USN turned back two Japanese attempts to bombard Henderson Field and sank two Japanese battleships, Hiei and Kirishima, that the Japanese commanders finally conceded defeat in the battle for Guadalcanal. In the end, the Japanese naval bombardment missions failed to achieve their objectives, both individually and collectively, but it certainly wasn't for a lack of trying.

[@donaldshotts4429]

@@n1k2jfan96 I apologize in that I didn't explain what I meant fully, but I'm talking about the Japanese hitting Henderson Field 3-4 times a week! They had atleast 10-11 battleships and God knows what a 3000 lb shell from Yamato would do to ground targets. They basically sunk or damaged every American carrier at the time but Enterprise so who would've stopped them? The Japanese army & navy didn't work well together so it never happened, but idk how the Marines could've dealt with that? Dead or shell shocked or disabled by a concussion. It would've forced the American Navy to fight the "decisive battle" Japan wanted or evacuate Guadalcanal

[@issacfoster1113]

@@donaldshotts4429 Japanese has no planes to spare. Sending Yamato would make a sitting duck for Henderson field. Fuel is scarce. And Admiral Lee's BBs would reck havoc on them .

[@donaldshotts4429]

@@issacfoster1113 The Japanese had more carriers then America plus land based planes from Rabaul. True enough that fuel was always a factor, but they had enough when they needed it in 1942. As for our battleships? We might've had 4 at the time at the most?

[@n1k2jfan96]

@@donaldshotts4429 Yamato arrived at Truk on 28 August, 1942, but she would remain there throughout the Guadalcanal campaign without ever taking part in it. Yamamoto decided against using her to shell Henderson Field because of a lack of 18-inch gun ammunition suitable for shore bombardment, uncharted seas around Guadalcanal (she was almost the size of two Kongo-class battleships with a 36-ft draft), and her high fuel consumption. The super battleship did serve one important function during this time. On 1 November, 1942, a festive dinner was held aboard Yamato for all captains stationed at Truk to celebrate the victory at the Battle of Santa Cruz.

[@historyinbits]

As a European interested in WW2 history, I have to admit I know only about an eighth about the Pacific war theatre than I know about the European WW2

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

“Tis but a scratch!” - USN

[@Warmaker01]

There have been 6 battles in World War II where Carriers were at opposing sides, all but 1 of them in the Pacific. Coral Sea, 1942 Indian Ocean Raid, 1942 Midway, 1942 Eastern Solomons, 1942 Santa Cruz Islands, 1942 Philippine Sea 1944, a.k.a. "The Marianas Turkey Shoot" Of these 6 Carrier Duels, 3 of them have been in the same region in the South Pacific: Coral Sea, Eastern Solomons, Santa Cruz Islands. Very heavy air and naval action in this part of the world in WWII. Santa Cruz Islands was a "must critically win" battle for the Imperial Japanese Navy. They knew the Essex-class carriers would start being commissioned very soon. Essex herself would commission in December 1942, and her sisters will slowly start entering service. Another would enter service in February 1943, and April 1943. By April 1943, the US Navy would have 3 new Essex-class, along with new planes (Hellcats) that will enter service. It will take time for training up their crews and assigned air groups. Essex would see her first combat in the Pacific with a raid on Wake Island in May 1943. So in the months after, the tidal wave of the Essex-class would hit hard. The IJN desperately needed to sink both Enterprise and Hornet, while still preserving their own Carriers. They basically needed to hit a baseball Grand Slam for this battle. IF they could do it, their 2 Fleet Carriers of the Shokaku-class and several Light Carriers would have superiority until the Essex-class started arriving in strength in mid-1943. Before the Essex-class Tidal Wave, the IJN would have to only deal with Saratoga. But Enterprise survived. Shokaku herself was badly damaged. Just as bad for the IJN, they suffered horrific aircrew losses in this battle, losing more of their ever dwindling pre and early war experienced pilots. They could never replace that experience. The losses would be so heavy that the IJN would not sortie their carriers again with full air groups until 1944. Even then, the quality of those aircrews in 1944 were a pale shadow of the ones from 1941-1942. These are the guys that get butchered in the "Marianas Turkey Shoot" against seasoned, well trained US Navy pilots.

[@gaiusoctavius6107]

The battle of cape engano in 1945 should also be included

[@robbabcock_]

What a great video! Thanks. 🇺🇸 🇯🇵

[@brokenbridge6316]

So in essence this battle played a big role in Japan losing many future air battles. Great video.

[@cnlbenmc]

I need from Drachinifel's channel that the Surviving veteran IJN pilots were stunned and demoralized by the veritable storm of Anti-Air munitions being thrown at them by the American Ships in this battle. But this was quite some time before the infamously massive AA battery arrays on US Navy vessels had been fully realized and yet they were stunned by what they faced.

[@realmcb7331]

US torpedoes not working 80% of the time in 1942, yet one of the few that did work sunk their own destroyer... Good job bureau of ordinance

[@christopherbentley7289]

I spotted that as well. So, that was how awful U.S. torpedoes really were, then? It's quite remarkable how much better an aircraft the Grumman TBF-1 was than the Nakajima B5N, in all manner of respects, such as self-sealing fuel tanks, better armour protection, higher speed and much heavier rearward-facing defensive armament, all making it much more likely to get to the dropping point through a heavy fighter defence and then it gets to drop the torpedo and it's all downhill from then on in!

[@davidhimmelsbach557]

The history I heard was that the radar boys WERE detecting the IJN as they came in. BUT. The air controller didn't have enough bandwidth to contact the CAP. He was on one frequency -- the same as all the pilots. When everyone began yelling at once -- direction broke down. Worse, the air director kept using vectors based on where HE was. With all of the motion, the pilots could no longer figure out who was where. Prior exercises never revealed the flaws in the USN doctrine. The epic error: holding at 10,000 feet. What a boner. For the period, there was no substitute for altitude superiority. It took minutes to rise 6,000 feet... even in fighter planes.

[@delftac]

I had never even heard of this battle! So cool to finally learn about it!

[@theawesomeman9821]

same

[@lespaulguitarist92]

yall must be young. first heard of it on history channel: battle 360 enterprise..

[@MrNicoJac]

@@lespaulguitarist92 He probably meant the ground attack on the tiny island, Mr Fossil ;-)

[@saxonrains]

Excellent as always.

[@mortillery2306]

Please teach WW2 history at university level. This is the most amazing thing I have ever seen.

[@blockmasterscott]

Enterprise against Japan! For anyone wondering what that means, someone made a big sign saying that and posted it on the deck of the Enterprise when it was the only operating carrier in the Pacific.

[@ph89787]

The situation was such that her crew viewed it as an even fight.

[@paulsteaven]

Good morale booster but not really, as the succeeding battles in the Guadalcanal were between destroyers and cruisers.

[@ph89787]

@@paulsteaven and it was planes from Enterprise and Henderson field that helped stop the Japanese troop convoys.

[@nooneatall8072]

@@ph89787 And planes from the Saratoga. And some from the Hornet and maybe even the Wasp. As the US carries were damaged, their squadrons rotated into Henderson Field and fought alongside the Marine pilots.

[@padurarulcriticsicinic4846]

@@xWarLegendx Yes, on the 15th of September 1942.

[@timwilliamson1604]

Great job, very educational presentation. I noticed on the battle summary you labeled the US carriers as Heavy cruisers, FYI.

[@loupiscanis9449]

Thank you , K&G . 🐺

[@JagdJota_23]

The best YT channel of history telling, nice work.

[@icewaterslim7260]

Most comprehensive account of this battle that I've come across . . . so far.. There are some other good ones on the tube that give insight to how hard fought and deadly this one was and well worth their watching but this one has lots of background and details.

[@Superlegend56]

Was waiting for this episode 😁

[@LichsuhoathinhDrabattle]

Loving the battle graphics, great work guys ❣❣💕💕

[@SJKraken]

Awesome series! but just to be more awesome, could use the correct profiles for the vessels? for example the I-1 is portrayed like a midget submarines, its a detail but you guys are so close to a epic production and make those mistakes! but just a detail keep the great work

[@-RONNIE]

Thank you for the quality information

[@allgood6760]

Thanks for this 👍

[@gooner72]

Awesome job, fellas......... absolutely outstanding video and an absolutely outstanding channel, love it!!!!

[@impostor101]

I thought i have to wait 2 more days to watched dis episode...it was completely surprise for me and for that i am grateful 🙏

[@vsquared86]

Best WWII mini-series in show business!

[@christopherhanton6611]

very good video. the battle of Santa Cruz Islands was strange one indeed. Also, something neat was the for USA CVS that were lost in 1942 would be replaced with 4 new ones of Essex-class. Each the name of the former ship Yorktown, Lexington, Hornet and Wasp. they all would have long career with navy 3 of 4 are still around as Muesum ships but sadly Wasp was broken up in 1970s. Also, something neat Lexington was training ship for last 22 years of its life training Navy pilots with takeoffs and landings on a carrier

[@ph89787]

Pity about the two survivors of the 1942 meatgrinder. As one was blown up at Bikini Atoll and the other was unceremoniously scrapped in 1958.

[@christopherhanton6611]

@@ph89787 yep Saratoga on bottom. Enterprise was scrap to may way for second one. And that's what doing for second one nuclear going to be recycled ♻️ and most or all will be put into the new one that just started to be built.

[@davidkaminski615]

Hornet was later used as a recovery ship for NASA and has an interesting space artifact exhibit onboard.

[@christopherhanton6611]

@@davidkaminski615 yep recovered several Gemini space capsules.

[@louievelayo4100]

@@ph89787 Yeah, dem fates of Sara and E were *VERY* unfortunate... Sara's was quick and painless, E's was just... ugh... General Eisenhower could've saved her when he was running Whiskey Hotel...

[@darthveatay]

The Hornet couldn't be scuttled. Despite everything the Americans did sink her. So they abandoned her there. The Japanese found Hornet abandoned and managed to sink her

[@rig.veda200]

Love this channel! So visually entertaining !!!

[@nathang5630]

Keep them coming!

[@denniscleary7580]

Making my Sunday mornings even more interesting 😁👍

[@13thravenpurple94]

Great work Thank you

[@coreycochran3983]

good vid keep it going

[@markusskram4181]

Interesting video as always

[@lostinspacestudio]

Very good graphics style in this episode.. just a little confused about the range arcs of the aircraft from the carriers being much shorter than where the aircraft appear in action though.

[@stynkanator]

Based on the performance of the US it sometimes shocks me that they won in the end. I guess being about to take a punch is super important.

[@jaythompson5102]

It took you guys a while to figure out naval/carrier warfare in WW2. In some ways the Japanese were great teachers.

[@jonbaxter2254]

"It's not how hard you hit, it's how hard you get hit and keep moving forward."

[@paulsteaven]

US is destined to be the victor of WWII as they could outbuild any country during that time and they were protected by 2 big oceans.

[@friedzombie4]

It's been said that the US only had 1 thing impressive in its repotoire from both sides of the Axis: Overwhelming Logistics; if you can outsupply your enemy in all regards it doesn't matter if you lose resources. You will win from sheer attrition alone.

[@MythicFool]

@@friedzombie4 American logistics were a massive factor, true, but US doctrine of sending experienced pilots home to train new air crews significantly helped create a pool of experienced pilots to draw from whereas the Japanese, as mentioned, didn't. Also, don't undersell the damage control systems and actions of the US sailors.

[@shyuebrady]

USS San Juan going backwards at 19:49.

[@joeshmoe8345]

Awesome thanks

[@Chris-um3se]

Well done --Thanks

[@oe78922]

What a unexpected surprise 🔥

[@antoniocarrascosa6060]

Magnífico video,,,enhorabuena

[@irishpsalteri]

Thanks. Episode 49 and only up to October 1942, great.

[@andreiacsinia5088]

Small correction: at 03:47 it should be Brooklyn Class Light Cruiser (not Carrier).

[@paulsteaven]

Contrary to popular belief, this is the battle where the Japanese Kido Butai lost most of its experience pilots and air crews not during the Battle of Midway.

[@MrNicoJac]

@Paul, Can you explain why that's the case? Specifically, how did the Japanese recover most of their air crews after Midway? I thought all carriers were on fire at the end, and don't see how their returning planes could have landed.

[@MrNicoJac]

Also, I heard that most survivors involved in Midway were shipped to remote backwater posts, so the loss of the Kido Butai wouldn't become known to the people. Apparently, that must have applied to the naval personnel, but not the aviators, then?

[@MrNicoJac]

@@xWarLegendx I would guess the pilots had to ditch their planes, and get rescued by destroyers. But I'd love to hear from someone who knows rather than guesses 😅

[@darrenmcpherson8093]

The visuals & the summaries are excellent. Really enjoy the videos. A couple small critiques are the misspelling of Fitch's name (not Flich) and some pronunciation. Other than that, outstanding!

[@eyblender5896]

Nagumo had the chance to crush the US navy completely and maybe even destroy henderson field. It looks like he is too shy as a commander clearly. Yamamoto should have led his force HIMSELF.

[@stevinharper3551]

This series is really good I've watched a few wizards and warriors video cause of these

[@jongason660]

Thankyou

[@aquilamario8300]

Fantastic.

[@crasyhorse44]

at 3:50, USS Phoenix is a Cruiser not a Carrier fyi...

[@somewhere6]

As usual, the extensive details are what make your videos stand out.

[@xpompompomx]

Plz tell me there will be an episode next Tuesday/Wednesday as well 😁

[@MoldyChese]

This makes me want to play Battlestations Pacific

[@rig.veda200]

LOL. There's another game called "Air Conflicts Pacific Carriers". It's really good.

[@MoldyChese]

@@rig.veda200 do you only fly planes in the game you just said

[@rig.veda200]

@@MoldyChese Yes but the graphics are insane because it was released after BSP

[@MoldyChese]

@@rig.veda200 Dude idc about the graphics i care about nostalgia and there is a BSP Remaster on steam if you already have it you cant buy it on steam anymore

[@yousarrname3051]

Awesome timing, just about to eat dinner.

[@Matthew10950]

Just had breakfast, where are you?? Lol

[@Jobe-13]

Pretty epic

[@oe78922]

When's the latest video coming out ? Can't wait :)

[@mohammadsaadnadeem5924]

Can you do a Medival Battle Please

[@markandrewsotoy7103]

Do you have a video about.. D-day landing in normandy

[@rhor1882]

Just when I thought Goodenough island was amusingly named, incomes rear admiral Kinkaid.

[@deliadimaano612]

Can you do battle of Jutland

[@m.steward9146]

Funny how you mentioned that Halsey scuttled the Hornet when it was destroyers Akigumo and Makigumo that delivered the coup de grace with their torpedoes. Apparently, Halsey, couldn't even scuttle a burning wreck properly.

[@imperators1012]

Man power baby.

[@minoru5760]

In the naval battle, K&G also showed us a wonderful video! As a result of continuing aweaken of air power, IJN was forced to approve kamikaze attack two years later, rather than adding damage on enemy with only damaged planes.

[@omarbradley6807]

The Kamikaze were product of the disater at the Philipine Sea, and the attrition at New Georgia, not because this battle.

[@minoru5760]

@@omarbradley6807 Including underwater suicide attacks. It's my fault to wrote kamikaze that I thought it would be easier for English speakers. Sorry

[@moalzaben5554]

19:14 just to point out that the USS porter was the lead ship of her class and not a Mahan class destroyer

[@RoboticDragon]

American Carriers must have been built so well, they take tons of hits and keep going. Yes they had superior fire control systems, but damn they just keep sailing.

[@ph89787]

What wasn’t said in the video. Was that at the time Hornet had taken her third torpedo hit. Her damage control crews almost restored power. Jon Parshall speculated that even with this hit. It would have still been possible for Hornet to be repaired and towed out. But with the IJN vanguard force bearing down. There was no longer the time and with Enterprise damaged, there was no air cover.

[@tomaszp.9424]

Awesome idea to show planes fight :)

[@finitewehosh6542]

Good enough island!

[@droctavius1862]

isn't the fourth damaged aircraft purposely crashed into the uss smith and the torpedo carried it was detonated shortly after impact?

[@nooneatall8072]

There was a Japanese torpedo plane that crashed into a US destroyer. This is likely what u are thinking of. Didnt' the Smith get itself into the wake of the South Dakota to get its fires put out?

[@LazyB00M]

I must admit the entire series is a great educational material. While having extended knowledge about the WWII actions in Europe, and the Pacific war reduced mainly to Perl Harbor, Midway and Hiroshima & Nagasaki, one can understand the struggle allies had facing the superior enemy. Japanese were actually better equipped, trained and motivated. It is truly remarkable how did allies managed to hold on with limited resources and eventually push back. It is now clear that the nature of military actions in the Pacific theater was of a high complexity where a minor mistake would cost the victory. German clash with USSR is obviously proportionally more impressive due to it's scale. But the Pacific was completely different, employing completely different set of skills and needs. And the China! The ferocious resistance is amazing. Too bad Mao took over. China could had been a democratic prosperous nation and not turning into another tyrannical empire ruled by criminals.

[@covertops19Z]

Great brief..but the Japanese didn't have a Marine Corps SNLF = Rikusentai, which were Sailors trained in light Infantry tactics and amphibious landings..