Central Pacific 1943-45: Seventh Air Force’s Island-Hopping War

96 pages

Dr James Bosbotinis

In Central Pacific 1943-45, the author seeks to provide an account of the oft-overshadowed US Army Air Force’s (USAAF) Seventh Air Force and its contribution to victory against Japan. While the US Navy’s Fast Carrier Force and the Marianas-based B-29 Superfortresses tend to garner the most attention, the Seventh Air Force “was arguably the most diverse Air Force the USAAF had ever fielded in terms of missions, aircraft, equipment, and geographic deployment”, and its “combat sorties comprised some of the longest of the war (thousands of miles) as well as the shortest (hundreds of yards).” Moreover, the Seventh Air Force was responsible for the defence of Hawaii and while it was able to shoot down 11 of the Japanese attackers during the Pearl Harbor raid, it suffered substantial losses: “Of its 231 aircraft early on December 7, 1941, only 79 survived the attack in a useable state.” In this book, the author sets out how the Seventh Air Force was reconstituted and then provided the core of USAAF contribution to the island-hopping campaign across the Central Pacific.

Central Pacific 1943-45 follows the established Osprey campaign study format, that is, a context-setting introduction, chronology, chapters covering the capabilities and campaign objectives of the ‘attacker’ and ‘defender’ respectively, with a detailed account of the campaign, and concise ‘Aftermath and Analysis’. The text is accompanied by a commendable selection of photos, useful maps, and the excellent illustrations by Gareth Hector (including one of a night intercept by a P-61 Black Widow). The author, Brian Lane Herder, a military historian and legislative librarian for the Kansas state government, has ably crafted an account that, although focused on the Seventh Air Force and the airpower contribution to the Central Pacific campaign, also gives sufficient treatment to what was “a fully joint offensive comprising the US Navy, Army, Marine Corps, and Army Air Forces.” As Lane Herder highlights, the Seventh Air Force was, until July 1945, under the operational control of Admiral Nimitz as Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Ocean Areas (CINCPOA), with the former working “in conjunction with [the US Navy’s carriers] in a symbiotic relationship.” As the author discusses with regard to Operation GALVANIC, the invasion of the Gilbert Islands in November-December 1943 – “the first truly large deep sea amphibious operation in history”, carrier- and land-based airpower was harnessed in mutual support. There were also on occasion, interservice tensions, which, as the author details, were promptly resolved.

In Central Pacific 1943-45, Brian Lane Herder has provided a well-written, highly detailed yet readable account of the Seven Air Force’s contribution to the Central Pacific campaign, which will certainly appeal to those with an interest in the Pacific War or airpower. The book also provides a valuable case study of a cross- and multi-domain campaign emphasising the importance of interservice cooperation and coordination – something that distinctly hampered, for example, Japan’s defence of its Home Islands. In all, Central Pacific 1943-45 is certainly recommended.