19. The Most Momentous Five Minutes in the History of Warfare?
At 10:25 AM on the morning of June 4, 1942, Japan was mistress of the Pacific, had the world’s strongest naval aviation force, and was dictating the terms of war. By 10:30 AM, Japan had effectively lost World War II. That dramatically unexpected turnaround makes those five minutes some of the most momentous five minutes in the history of war. They reversed the momentum in the Pacific War, where Japan had gone on a rampage after her attack on Pearl Harbor left the American fleet there smoking and sinking mess.
Japan wanted a battle of annihilation, like Tsushima, followed by a negotiated favorable peace. Pearl Harbor was a success, but no Tsushima. So the Japanese figured an invasion of Midway Island might lure what was left of the US Navy into showing up for a climactic showdown. Assuming that the US Navy had only one or two aircraft carriers in the Pacific, the Japanese launched their operation with four fleet carriers. Unbeknownst to the Japanese, American cryptanalysts had cracked Japan’s secret codes and knew of the upcoming attack.