Martinez, L. G. Iwo Jima. Krieg im Pazifik

In early February 1945, the Americans had already penetrated the innermost ring of Japanese apron defences and were preparing for the final, decisive thrust into the heart of the Empire. The Japanese air forces no longer posed a serious threat after battles of attrition with heavy losses, and the Japanese navy had also worn out its last reserves in the vain attempt to stop the North Americans off the Philippines in Leyte Gulf. The USA had not only deprived the Japanese of any confidence of victory, they were now even threatening the motherland, the hallowed ground of Nippon. The American planners saw the small island of Iwo Jima - located about halfway between the Mariana Islands and Japan - as an ideal base for the combat missions of their B-29 long-range heavy bombers and their escort fighters against Japan. On 19 February 1945, the assault on this small island in the Nampo archipelago began. The supposed sideshow was to become one of the bloodiest battles of the entire Pacific War: In barely 20 days, both sides had lost a combined total of some 45000 casualties.