Operation Iceberg Research Paper

Engineers are an essential part of military strategy and have been integral in many conflicts that have been observed throughout military history. During World War II, the engineers played a crucial in the success of the amphibious and land attacks. The Army Engineers that supported (mobility, counter-mobility, survivability, general engineering, & geospatial engineering) allowed for successful landings as well as a consistent forward movement towards the Empire of Japan. The culmination of Engineers and their efforts came during The Battle of Okinawa or as it was code named “Operation Iceberg” Operation Iceberg was an invasion that created the foothold that would lead to the surrender of the Japanese Empire. This Battle was the culmination of 4,000 miles of ocean, and more than three years of war that separated Okinawa from Pearl Harbor. In 1942 and 1943 the Americans had contained the enemy and thrown him back; in 1944 their attack gathered momentum, and a series of fierce island campaigns carried them toward the Japanese inner stronghold in great strides. The ultimate goal of American operations in the Pacific was the industrial heart of Japan, along the southern shores of Honshu between the Tokyo plain and Shimonoseki. American strategy aimed to reach this

This section is almost entirely under cultivation and contains three-fourths of the population of the island. The airfields and the large towns-Naha, Shuri, Itoman, and Yonabaru are also located here. It was in this area that the battle for Okinawa was mainly fought (STEVENS 2001). The terrain was highly favorable for the imperial forces and created many natural defenses that compromise of hills, lime stone plateaus and ridges, as well as untreated soil with pour drainage that turned the ground into clay like mud in the event of a heavy