On August 29, 1942, Rear Admiral John S. McCain, Sr. messaged Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Chester W. Nimitz: “Cactus can be a sinkhole for enemy air power and can be consolidated, expanded, and exploited to [the] enemy’s moral hurt. The reverse is true if we lose Cactus.” In these two sentences, he described the crucial importance of the Guadalcanal campaign. Upon receiving orders to attack Pearl Harbor in November 1941, Japanese fleet commander Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto had replied, “In the first six to twelve months of a war with the United States and Great Britain I will run wild and win victory upon victory. But then, if the war continues after that, I have no expectation of success.” He was off by four days, with Kido Butai’s offensive power destroyed at Midway on June 4, 1942, four days short of six months from the Pearl Harbor attack. However, the Japanese were still strong, and were determined to force the United States to recognize their expansion by defeating our forces in battle before the inherent industrial superiority of the United States could be brought to bear on the outcome. Thus, the battle of Guadalcanal, the first offensive operation undertaken by the United States and her allies in the Pacific War, was a testing ground of which side would prevail. “Cactus,” the code name for the island, did indeed become a sinkhole for enemy air and naval power, forces whose losses could never be made good by replacements of equal quality. The week following the Pacific War’s first anniversary, Yamamoto informed the Japanese high command that the surviving troops on Guadalcanal must be evacuated if possible. After that he could only hope to delay the Allied reconquest of the Solomons and expulsion of Japanese forces from the South Pacific. The air battles during the three months between August 20, 1942, when the first Marine air unit arrived on the island, and November 15, when the last attempt by the enemy to send reinforcements to retake the island was defeated, were perhaps the most important three months of the Pacific War. After November 15, 1942, the United States never looked back as its forces moved across the Pacific to the war’s inevitable conclusion, growing stronger every month as the enemy grew weaker.
By:
Eric Hammel,
Thomas McKelvey Cleaver
Foreword by:
Dr Richard P. Hallion
Imprint: Osprey
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions:
Height: 234mm,
Width: 153mm,
ISBN: 9781472851079
ISBN 10: 1472851072
Pages: 336
Publication Date: 10 January 2023
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Out of Print
CHAPTER 1: BEFORE – January 4–July 31, 1942 CHAPTER 2: RXI – May 25–August 6, 1942 CHAPTER 3: HEAVY BOMBERS – June 10–August 6, 1942 CHAPTER 4: HELPLESS – August 7–August 20, 1942 CHAPTER 5: THE CAVALRY ARRIVES – August 20, 1942 CHAPTER 6: FIRST CONTACTS – August 21–August 25, 1942 CHAPTER 7: EARLY DAYS – August 26–September 4 CHAPTER 8: EDSON’S RIDGE – September 1–September 13, 1942 CHAPTER 9: GROWING INTO THE JOB – August 30–September 15, 1942 CHAPTER 10: DECISIONS – September 1942 CHAPTER 11: TIT FOR TAT – September 15–30, 1942 CHAPTER 12: NIMITZ – September 1942 CHAPTER 13: STORMY WEATHER – October 1–11, 1942 CHAPTER 14: THE NAVAL BATTLE OF CAPE ESPERANCE – October 12, 1942 CHAPTER 15: CRISIS – October 13–15, 1942 CHAPTER 16: RELIEF – October 16–18, 1942 CHAPTER 17: DOG DAYS – October 19–23, 1942 CHAPTER 18: THE MOST DIFFICULT TIME – October 23–30, 1942 CHAPTER 19: BACKS TO THE WALL – November 1–14, 1942
The late Eric Hammel is recognized as one of the leading American military historians, with more than 40 well-received books that are considered authoritative on their subjects published over a 50-year career. Co-author Thomas McKelvey Cleaver is one of Osprey's most successful authors and is also a recognized authority on the Pacific War with his best-selling books Pacific Thunder and Tidal Wave and he brings a lifetime of study to the project.
Reviews for The Cactus Air Force: Air War over Guadalcanal
Hammel and Cleaver have once more brought Guadalcanal front and center. Theirs is a harrowing tale of unpreparedness, intelligence and leadership failures, of learning hard lessons in the furious crucible of war, of sacrifice and loss, of great courage, and, ultimately, of a great victory secured at a fearsome cost. * Richard P. Hallion, former Historian of the US Air Force * Overstating Eric Hammel’s impact as a military historian is impossible. His focus on aviation—and Guadalcanal in particular—has seen few equals. Today, we benefit not only because Hammel had the foresight to capture the first-person accounts of thousands of veterans, but also because he possessed the knowledge to place them in the proper context. * Jay A. Stout, author of 'Jayhawk: Love, Loss, Liberation and Terror Over the Pacific' * Eric Hammel’s research, done when no one else was interested in learning these stories, has allowed a story we all think we know well to be told anew, through the words of those whose stories were never told before. The Cactus Air Force is a vital contribution that provides new information about this crucial battle. * Barrett Tillman, author of 'Whirlwind: The Air War Against Japan, 1942–1945' * Eric Hammel was outstanding among us in finding participants and conducting interviews. His best work glowed that way, notably in his Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima publications. * Richard B. Frank, author of 'Guadalcanal: The Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle' * This superbly written description of the conflict in the Pacific chronicles these battles with reference to official records and, more importantly, personal accounts of the US participants taken from interviews and diaries. These graphic and moving accounts create a vivid narrative for the reader. * Flypast *
