Lost and Spy

"Information confirmation?"

"Yes, according to the Japanese Navy code provided by the Strategic Intelligence Agency and deciphered by the telegram we intercepted, the Japanese Navy combined fleet is retreating from Truk to the Palau Islands!"

"Report to General Nimitz immediately!"

"Yes!"

"OSS, Peter Lin? The hero who saved us in Cairo?"

"Yes, Colonel, that's him!"

"Damn it, where did he get this code book?"

"I don't know, Colonel, maybe you should ask him."

At the end of March 1944, according to the information provided by Colonel Peter Lin, the head of the Pacific Intelligence Department of the US Strategic Intelligence Agency, he deciphered and grasped all the movements of the Japanese Navy.

The US aircraft carrier formation set off from Majuro Atoll to attack the Japanese combined fleet!

Because the U.S. military had mastered all the dynamics of the combined fleet in advance, the combined fleet suffered another failure and was forced to retreat to the Linga anchorage in Singapore again.

At the same time, the U.S. submarine force actively attacked and seriously damaged the Japanese sea transportation line, making the Japanese garrison in Mariana gradually isolated and helpless.

And all of this is to prepare for a bigger action by the US military:
Battle of Saipan!
Saipan is the second largest island in the Mariana Islands. The terrain is high in the center and low in the surrounding areas. There are many peaks, hills, ravines, and caves on the island. The commanding height is Tapocho Peak, which is 450 meters above sea level in the center of the island.

There is a coral reef covering the entire beach on the west coast of the island. Garapan Cape divides it into two parts, and the north side forms a natural harbor-Tanapan Port.

The port is also the economic and cultural center of Saipan and the Mariana Islands. To the south is the flat Macchiches Beach, which is an ideal beachhead for landing.

Saipan is not only the central island of the Japanese army in the Mariana Islands, but also the core of defense in the Central Pacific region. The No. 30 Army Headquarters of the Army and the Central Pacific Fleet Command of the Navy are located on the island.

Therefore, capturing Saipan is equivalent to laying the most solid foundation for victory in the entire battle of the Mariana Islands!

Since the major islands of the Mariana Islands are relatively large in size and the Japanese defense force has tens of thousands of troops, the U.S. military must invest superior forces and implement a wide-frontal landing in order to advance quickly. This poses a high challenge to logistics transportation Require.

Mariana is 1000 nautical miles away from Enewetak, the westernmost base of the U.S. military in the Central Pacific, 3500 nautical miles away from Pearl Harbor, and 5000 nautical miles away from the continental United States. The logistics supply line is very long, and transport ships can only go back and forth twice a year. , and round-trip transportation is not possible.

At the same time, the Allied forces in Europe are also organizing the Normandy landing, and it is impossible to mobilize more ships to the Pacific theater in the short term.

Therefore, all the troops participating in the war must be assembled in the Mariana Sea, but there are not enough landing craft and amphibious tracked vehicles to organize troops to land on several islands at the same time. They have to capture Saipan first, and then attack Tinian and Guam.

In this way, when the U.S. army attacked Saipan, the Japanese troops in Tinian and Guam were likely to take the opportunity to strengthen their defenses. Therefore, quickly capturing Saipan was the key to this battle.

For such a large-scale landing campaign, it took the U.S. military only three months from the formulation of the combat plan to the completion of the campaign preparations. It cannot but be said to be a miracle in the history of war.

However, the U.S. military knew very little about the situation in the Mariana Islands except for Guam, and it knew nothing about the fortification of the Japanese army.

This is extremely deadly for a critical war.

In such a situation, Peter Lin and his Pacific intelligence department of the US Strategic Intelligence Agency volunteered to undertake the task of investigating the deployment of Japanese troops in the Mariana Islands.

From the end of March to June 1944, Tian Qi and his intelligence team entered the main islands of the Mariana Islands in 3 batches.

Among them, 21 batches entered Saipan alone.

There were 140 intelligence officers who died, were arrested, and disappeared.

But their efforts have brought out a lot of precious information.

The number of Japanese troops on Saipan, the deployment of firepower, and the defense of the airport.

The US military made outstanding contributions to the attack on Saipan.

In addition, after the U.S. military conquered Eniwetok, it sent several planes equipped with the most advanced photographic reconnaissance equipment to conduct systematic photographic reconnaissance on the Mariana Islands. The U.S. military finally grasped the deployment of the Japanese troops in the Mariana Islands.

Among them, Tian Qi is undoubtedly the most amazing.

The information he brought back was simply jaw-dropping.

这些情报中包括日军在塞班岛上兵力是陆军步兵No.40三师团、步兵独立混成No.40七旅团、工兵独立第七联队、坦克第九联队、山炮独立第三联队和高炮No.20五联队等部，共2.8万人，火炮211门，坦克39辆。

The Navy has the 55th Garrison of the Fifth Marine Police District and the Yokosuka First Marine Corps, etc., with a total of 1.5 people, 49 artillery pieces, and 10 tanks. The total force is 4.3, with 260 artillery pieces and 49 tanks.

Na Yun, commander of the Central Pacific Fleet of the Navy, basically does not care about ground combat command.

The defense is actually in the charge of Lieutenant General Saito Yoshiji, head of the No.40 Third Division.

The U.S. military could hardly believe it!
This is not accurate anymore!

This, this is simply the Japanese sending all the core defense secrets of Saipan to the Americans!
There is only one explanation:
Tian Qi directly participated in the Japanese defense plan in Saipan!

In June 1944, after the US Marine Corps officers and soldiers used a 6mm M105 howitzer to bombard the Japanese positions, the Battle of Saipan officially broke out.

According to the precise information obtained in advance, the U.S. military began to implement aviation and naval artillery firepower preparations on June 6, basically destroying most of the ground fortifications on the island.

1944年6月15日，美国第2陆战师、第4陆战师在塞班岛西岸查兰干诺地区登陆，傍晚占领登陆场。

On July 7, the U.S. military advanced to Mapi Point, the northernmost point of Saipan Island, and basically occupied the entire island.

But what the U.S. military could not imagine was that a horrific mass suicide took place on the edge of the cliff at Mapi Point. Not only Japanese soldiers fired grenades, but many civilians also jumped into the sea to commit suicide, and even many mothers jumped off the cliff with their children in their arms.

The U.S. military has repeatedly expressed this through interpreters, Japanese prisoners of war, and civilians.There will be no slaughter waiting for them, only food and safety.But the suicides have not stopped, and thousands of people have lost their lives.

The war continued until September 9th.

The surviving Japanese army, led by Captain Sakae Oba, entered Tapochao Mountain for guerrilla warfare.

At this point, the organized resistance of the Japanese army on Saipan ended.

In the Battle of Saipan, the Japanese army and navy suffered more than 4.1 casualties, and nearly 2000 were captured.

The US military suffered more than 1.6 casualties.

The U.S. military seized Saipan, which created conditions for the capture of other islands in the Mariana Islands, greatly boosted the morale of the U.S. military, and hit the arrogance of the Japanese Communist allies.

At the same time, more importantly, it provides a base for the B-29 long-range strategic bombers to bomb the Japanese mainland.