Quote:
Originally Posted by ShadoWarrior
I think it wouldn't have made too much difference in how fast we got to Japan. By the time we got to Okinawa, the USN was running out of Japanese targets, especially merchant ones, to hit. They simply lacked the fuel to use their ships, military or civil.
|
America had a real slow start due to the fact that they couldn't interdict Japanese shipping effectively. This hindered the early battles as Japanese positions could receive reinforcement and supplies.
If America had been able to interdict Japanese shipping at an early point in the way then the first, bloody battles would of been shorter and less costly. Early victories would of made "how fast we got to Japan" a moot point as it doesn't matter how or when we get to japan if the Japanese can't hold onto anything beyond the home islands.
At Guadacanal the japanese landed 6000 troops via the "Tokyo" express, utilising Destroyers and Light Cruisers. It can be argued that if America had the capacity to interdict these ships properly then the campaighn would of been far less costly.