Reference Entry
OPERATION HAILSTONE AND BIG WEEK
In mid-February 1944, two linked air operations signaled how the United States was using airpower to reshape two different theaters of war. On February 17th, fast carriers of the U.S. Pacific fleet launched Operation Hailstone against Truk Lagoon, a major Japanese base in the Central Pacific. Waves of aircraft struck ships at anchor, airfields, and support installations, sinking and damaging a large portion of the enemy fleet’s local strength and reducing Truk’s value as a forward bastion.
Dated Historical Context
A RECORDED MOMENT IN HISTORY
Operation Hailstone and the opening of “Big Week”
In mid-February 1944, two linked air operations signaled how the United States was using airpower to reshape two different theaters of war. On February 17th, fast carriers of the U.S. Pacific fleet launched Operation Hailstone against Truk Lagoon, a major Japanese base in the Central Pacific. Waves of aircraft struck ships at anchor, airfields, and support installations, sinking and damaging a large portion of the enemy fleet’s local strength and reducing Truk’s value as a forward bastion. Just days later, beginning on February 20th, American heavy bombers in Europe opened the campaign popularly known as “Big Week,” a concentrated series of raids on German aircraft factories and related targets. Although losses were heavy, long-range escort fighters increasingly turned the air battle in favor of the Allies. Together, these operations showed how the United States was using sea-based and land-based airpower to hollow out enemy fleets and air forces before major ground offensives like the invasion of Normandy and the advance across the Central Pacific.
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