| Preface | vii |
| Abbreviations | xxiii |
| Introduction: Fast Carrier Operations, 1943-1945 | xxvii |
| Part I | The Recovery of the Western Aleutians, June 1942-August 1943 | |
| I | Nine Months' Arctic Warfare, 15 June 1942-18 March 1943 | 3 |
| 1. | Aleutians Situation | 3 |
| 2. | Bombardment of Kiska, 7 August | 9 |
| 3. | Adak and Amchitka | 12 |
| 4. | Bombardment of Attu, 18 February | 19 |
| II | The Battle of the Komandorski Islands, 26 March 1943 | 22 |
| III | Attu Regained, April-May 1943 | 37 |
| 1. | Preparations and Approach | 37 |
| 2. | The Landings, 11 May | 41 |
| 3. | One Week's Struggle | 44 |
| 4. | The Final Assault, 19-29 May | 49 |
| IV | The Aleutians Secured, May-October 1943 | 52 |
| 1. | Airfields and S-boats | 52 |
| 2. | Concentrating on Kiska | 54 |
| 3. | A Slick Evacuation, 28 July | 56 |
| 4. | Bootless Bombardment and Bloodless Occupation | 61 |
| 5. | Aleutians Secured | 65 |
| Part II | The Gilbert Islands Recovered (Operation "Galvanic") | |
| V | Plans and Preparations | 69 |
| 1. | The Spider's Web | 69 |
| 2. | Micronesia in Pacific Strategy | 79 |
| 3. | Organization and Training | 85 |
| 4. | Preliminary Operations | 92 |
| a. | Fast Carrier Strikes, 1 September-6 October | |
| b. | Baker Island Reoccupied | |
| c. | Photographic Reconnaissance | |
| VI | Logistics Afloat in the Pacific | 100 |
| VII | Organization and Approach, November 1943 | 114 |
| VIII | Makin, 19-29 November 1943 | 121 |
| 1. | Plan and Initial Landings | 121 |
| 2. | Lagoon Landings | 127 |
| 3. | Makin Taken | 132 |
| IX | Japanese Reaction and Counterattack, October-November 1943 | 136 |
| X | Tarawa, 19-23 November 1943 | 146 |
| 1. | The Japanese Defensive System on Betio | 146 |
| 2. | Plan, Leaders, Approach | 149 |
| 3. | Betio Assaulted, 20 November | 156 |
| 4. | "Issue in Doubt" | 163 |
| 5. | Betio Secured | 172 |
| XI | Tarawa and Abemama Secured, 24-27 November 1943 | 175 |
| 1. | Bairiki to Buariki | 175 |
| 2. | Abemama | 179 |
| 3. | Conclusions and Casualties | 182 |
| XII | Scouting Submarines and Carrier Strikes, 13 November-8 December 1943 | 187 |
| 1. | Loss of Corvina and Sculpin | 187 |
| 2. | Strikes on Kwajalein and Nauru, 4-8 December | 189 |
| Part III | The Conquest of the Marshalls | |
| XIII | Getting Set for the Marshalls, June-December 1943 | 201 |
| 1. | Which Marshalls? | 201 |
| 2. | Amphtracs and Logistics | 208 |
| 3. | Air and Submarine Preparation | 211 |
| 4. | Enemy Preparations | 222 |
| XIV | Majuro, 31 January-8 February 1944 | 225 |
| XV | Kwajalein (Operation "Flintlock"), 31 January-7 February 1944 | 230 |
| 1. | The Atoll, the Plan and the Approach | 230 |
| 2. | Initial Landings in the North, 31 January | 236 |
| 3. | Roi and Namur, 31 January-2 February | 240 |
| 4. | The Southern Attack Force | 251 |
| 5. | Initial Landings in the South, 31 January-2 February | 253 |
| 6. | The Assault on Kwajalein Island, 1-6 February | 257 |
| 7. | Ebeye and Minor Islets, 2-6 February | 272 |
| 8. | Conclusion and Comment | 278 |
| XVI | Eniwetok (Operation "Catchpole"), 31 January-4 March 1944 | 282 |
| 1. | Preliminaries | 282 |
| 2. | Engebi, 17-18 February | 288 |
| 3. | Eniwetok Island, 19-23 February | 294 |
| 4. | Parry, 19-23 February | 300 |
| XVII | Marshalls' Mop-up, February-June 1944 | 305 |
| 1. | Development of Bases | 305 |
| 2. | Neutralizing Enemy-held Atolls | 307 |
| 3. | Occupation of Minor Atolls | 310 |
| XVIII | First Strike on Truk (Operation "Hailstone"), 17-18 February 1944 | 315 |
| Appendix I | Forces Engaged in the Capture of Attu (Operation "Landcrab"), 11-29 May 1943 | 333 |
| Appendix II | Forces Engaged in Gilbert Islands Operation (Operation "Galvanic"), 10 November-10 December 1943 | 336 |
| Appendix III | Forces Engaged in Marshall Islands (Operations "Flintlock" and "Catchpole"), 29 January-23 February 1944 | 343 |
| Appendix IV | Forces Engaged in Strike on Truk, 17-18 February 1944 | 352 |
| Index | 355 |
