Introduction

World War II raged across the globe on virtually every continent, across the seven seas and in the air.

For the 9-part 1997 documentary Warbirds of World War II look here.

Outline

After Midway the Japanese Navy tried to regain the initiative by engaging the US naval forces in the southern Solomon Islands supporting the Guadalcanal landings.

While the Japanese naval air arm did damage the Enterprise, sink the Wasp and severely damage the Saratoga, the Japanese air crews were decimated again at the battle of Santa Cruz.

The Marianas Turkey Shoot in the Solomons in June 1944 virtually ended the Japanese naval air arm with only 35 planes left fit to fly of the 473 at the start of the battle.

The next tactic by the Japanese was the Kamikaze attacks against American carriers at the battle of Leyte Gulf and then at Okinawa.

By March 1945 there were only 500 fighters left for the Japanese air forces for air defence of the Home Islands.

The dropping of the atomic bombs in August 1945 ended the war.

Warbirds of World War II Series

You can find a full index of Warbirds of World War II (2008) here.

Production & Filming Details

• Production: Valorous TV.
• Distributor(s): Valorous TV.
• Release Date: 2008.
• Running Time: 10 x 60 minutes (600 minutes total running time).
• Country: US.
• Language: English.