Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 4:41:31-4:42:57

Iwo Jima and the value of a recovery position

The defence of the Iwo Jima decision centres on contemporary information, imperfect systems and retaining somewhere to recover if operations went wrong.

AirfieldsBattle Of Iwo JimaOperational PlanningPacific War
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Question

Was taking Iwo Jima for its airfields a mistake?

Short answer

A recovery position gave planners a fallback if imperfect systems failed, which is the reason offered for the decision.

Notes

The case against taking Iwo Jima is acknowledged as an argument that can be made. The defence of the decision rests on the statistics planners were reading and the capabilities they had available. Their systems were imperfect, so they sought a recovery position in case operations went wrong. Judging the decision also means considering what would have happened if the island had been bypassed and that fallback proved necessary.