Midway - the turning point

El Alamein was the turning point of the war in North Africa. The battle of Stalingrad was the turning point of the war in Russia. A third great battle was also fought in 1942, this one in June - and at sea. Like the others, it was also a turning point since it put a stop to Japan's stream of victories and proved that they could be beaten.

The battle of Midway was the first sea battle in history in which the opposing fleets never sighted each other. It was fought by aircraft launched from aircraft carriers. The Japanese lost four aircraft carriers, sunk by bombs and torpedoes dropped by American dive-bombers. The US fleet lost just one. Midway bought the United States valuable time to add new carriers to its fleet. Within nine months of Midway, the US had 19 carriers to Japan's 10. The Pacific war would be won by aircraft carriers and the United States had the industrial power to mass produce them quickly.

Neil Demarco: The era of the Second World War; Oxford University Press, 1993/2000, page 53