The Pocket PTO (id:#65462)

(From The Cellar Pack #10 ID: FT299)   [next]   [previous]

Betio, Tarawa atoll, Gilbert Islands 1943-11-23 (9 others)

Overview:

The final holdouts of what would be the 76 hour battle for Betio were those Japanese elements located in the concave portion of the atoll located between Red Beach 1 and Red Beach 2. In this area, “the pocket,” the rikusentai of Commander Sugai’s 7th Sasebo Special Naval Landing Force, the best unit on the atoll, fought their remaining weapons, limited to light AA weapons, machine guns, rifles and grenades, with skill and tenacity, aided by infiltrators, who by night, who had made their way out to wrecked and abandoned LVTs to establish machine guns nests and sniper posts to provide enfilading fire to their comrades ashore. To seal this pocket, the Marines launched an attack in the morning in a double pincer movement off Red Beach 1 and Red Beach 2. In order to help pin the defenders in place a pair of M3 halftracks, mounting 75mm guns, were landed on the off-shore drying reef to the north of the pocket, along with a platoon of infantry and a machine gun section.

Defender: Japanese (7th Sasebo Special Naval Landing Force, 3rd Special Base Defense Force)  

Errata (source)