The Battle of Okinawa, codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army and United States Marine Corps forces against the Imperial Japanese Army. The initial invasion of Okinawa on 1 April 1945 was the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific Theater of World War II. The Kerama Islands surrounding Okinawa were preemptively captured on 26 March by the 77th Infantry Division. The 82-day battle lasted from 1 April until 22 June 1945. After a long campaign of island hopping, the Allies were planning to use Kadena Air Base on the large island of Okinawa as a base for Operation Downfall, the planned invasion of the Japanese home islands, 340 mi (550 km) away.
Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan. It has a population of 1,457,162 and a geographic area of 2,281 km2.
The United States Forces Japan (USFJ) is a subordinate unified command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command. It was activated at Fuchū Air Station in Tokyo, Japan, on 1 July 1957 to replace the Far East Command. USFJ is headquartered at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo and is commanded by the Commander, US Forces Japan who is also commander of the Fifth Air Force.
Yomitan is a village located in Nakagami District, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan.
Iejima, previously romanized in English as Ie Shima, is an island in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, lying a few kilometers off the Motobu Peninsula on Okinawa Island. The island measures 20 kilometres (12 mi) in circumference and covers 23 square kilometres (8.9 sq mi). As of December 2012 the island had a population of 4,610. Ie Village, which covers the entire island, has a ferry connection with the town of Motobu on Okinawa Island.
IX Corps was a corps of the United States Army. For most of its operational history, IX Corps was headquartered in or around Japan and subordinate to US Army commands in the Far East.
Marine Corps Base Camp Smedley D. Butler is a United States Marine Corps base located in the Japanese prefecture of Okinawa. It was named after Marine Corps Major General and twice Medal of Honor recipient Smedley D. Butler.
Uruma is a city located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. The modern city of Uruma was established on April 1, 2005, when the cities of Gushikawa and Ishikawa were merged with the towns of Katsuren and Yonashiro. As of 1 October 2020, the city has an estimated population of 125,303 and a population density of 1,500 people per km2. The total area is 86.00 km2. The city covers part of the east coast of the south of Okinawa Island, the Katsuren Peninsula, and the eight Yokatsu Islands. The Yokatsu Islands include numerous sites important to the Ryukyuan religion, and the city as a whole has numerous historical sites, including: Katsuren Castle, Agena Castle, and Iha Castle and the Iha Shell Mound. It is home to the largest venue for Okinawan bullfighting. The Mid-Sea Road, which crosses the ocean and connects the Yokatsu Islands to the main island of Okinawa, is now a symbol of Uruma.
Canadian Forces Base Calgary, also CFB Calgary, was a Canadian Forces Base located in Calgary, Alberta.
Giretsu was an airborne commando unit of the Imperial Japanese Army formed from Teishin Shudan, in November 1944 as a last-ditch attempt to reduce and delay Allied bombing raids on the Japanese home islands. The Giretsu commando unit was commanded by Lieutenant General Michio Sugahara.
Shuri is a district of the city of Naha, Okinawa, Japan. Formerly a separate city in and of itself, it was once the royal capital of the Ryūkyū Kingdom. A number of famous historical sites are located in Shuri, including Shuri Castle, the Shureimon gate, Sunuhyan-utaki, and royal mausoleum Tamaudun, all of which are designated World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
The 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) (1st SFG) (A) is a unit of the U.S. Army Special Forces operating under the United States Pacific Command. It is designed to deploy and execute nine doctrinal missions throughout the Indo-Pacific Command area of operations: unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, direct action, counter-insurgency, special reconnaissance, counter-terrorism, information operations, counterproliferation of weapon of mass destruction, and security force assistance.
Yontan Airfield is a former military airfield located near Yomitan Village on the west coast of Okinawa. It was closed in July 1996 and turned over to the Japanese government in December 2006. Today it is home to the Yomitan Village Office and community complex, including baseball fields, running tracks, and community facilities.
United States Army, Japan (USARJ) is a Major Command of the United States Army. It consists of operating port facilities and a series of logistics installations throughout Honshū and Okinawa. USARJ participates actively with the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force in bilateral training exercises and the development of bilateral plans. It commands and supports United States Army assigned units, attached units, and augmentation forces and employs these forces in support of the commander. USARJ maintains and strengthens the credibility of deterrent power in the Pacific through maintenance of defense facilities, war reserves and operational project stocks. USARJ is headquartered at Camp Zama.
Fort Buckner is a United States Army base located immediately south of Camp Foster, near Futenma, on Okinawa, Japan. The 78th Signal Battalion and E Co. of the 53d Signal Battalion (SATCON) are the only units on this small installation. All local Army-specific support for the unit is located on Torii Station, but due to the joint force nature of United States military operations on Okinawa, many ancillary services for Fort Buckner units are located on Camp Foster and Kadena Air Base. Fort Buckner was named in honor of Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr., who was killed in action while commanding the Tenth Army during the Battle of Okinawa during World War II.
The 8th Theater Sustainment Command, as the senior Army logistics command in the United States Pacific Command's Area of Responsibility (AOR), provides command and control of all assigned and attached and units under its operational control (OPCON); trains, equips and tailors forces, as required; plans and generates expeditionary combat support/combat service support (CS/CSS) capability; and provides timely and robust support of joint and combined forces across the full spectrum of military operations in order to maintain peace and stability, deter aggression, and fight and win in the Pacific AOR.
The 10th Support Group is a United States Army logistical support unit located in Okinawa, Japan. It is the senior U.S. Army unit on the island, and has coordinating responsibilities for U.S. Army activities there.
The 78th Signal Battalion is a strategic Signal Battalion subordinate to the 516th Signal Brigade and headquartered at Camp Zama, Japan. The battalion supports the United States Army Japan (USARJ). The battalion has four subordinate units - Headquarters and Headquarters Detachment (HHD), US Army Network Enterprise Center-Camp Zama, US Army Network Enterprise Center-Okinawa (Okinawa), and US Army Defense Satellite Communications System (DSCS) -Okinawa(Okinawa).
Marine Aircraft Group 43 (MAG-43) was a fixed wing aviation group in the United States Marine Corps Reserve based at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Willow Grove, Pennsylvania.
Naval Base Okinawa, now Naval Facility Okinawa, is a number of bases built after the Battle of Okinawa by United States Navy on Okinawa Island, Japan. The naval bases were built to support the landings on Okinawa on April 1, 1945, and the troops fighting on Okinawa. The Navy repaired and did expansion of the airfields on Okinawa. United States Navy Seabees built or repaired the facilities on the island. The bases on Okinawa put the United States Armed Forces only 350 miles from Japan's home islands. Most facilities closed after the war, but some are still in use today by all branches of the United States Armed Forces.
