19 févr. 1945 - Start of the Battle of Iwo Jima

Description:

American leaders wanted to get within bombing distance of Tokyo with B-29 bombers. However, they did not have enough fuel to fly to Tokyo and back to the nearest controlled island. Experts suggested the island of Iwo Jima. However, this island had a volcano and many caves. The Japanese created very strong defenses there. The U.S. Marines landed on Iwo Jima on February 19th, 1945 and were, up against about 23,000 Japanse soldiers. The Marines used flamethrowers to clear Japanese bunkers quickly.