Operation Praying Mantis : Analysis

Imagine, the sweltering hot heat of the Afghan desert,scorching one hundred and twenty degree highs with arrid winds assaults your flesh sending sweat shooting down your brow. Fingers tighten around the pistol grip of your M4 ensuring it’s Locked and loaded. You are a United States Soldier and part of a group designated to protect and deliver supplies for the majority of your Battalion. Your group eases across the blazing expanse of pale nothingness enroute to a rendezvous.The heavy tires of the Humvee kick up a small tidal wave of sand in a sea of dirt and dust barreling you towards your destination. Suddenly from beneath the whirring of turned earth and the roar of the vehicle’s engine the sinister sound of an explosion is heard. It

”At the time of the attack I was in my room shaving. The word was passed "Away Fire and Rescue Party;" just as I was leaving my room the second word was passed for all hands to man their General Quartets Stations closely followed by a shock of a hit. I glanced at my clock as I was leaving my room and noticed the time was a few minutes before 8:00 A.M. I started for my station in Radio Central; as I was passing along the third deck up a port ammunition passageway, I felt two more hits. The lights went out in the passageway except for one battle light and two panel lights in the boat crane machinery space. By the time I reached the compartment abreast the armory the ship had picked up a ten to fifteen list to port; there were a couple of battle lights on in this compartment. Water and oil were bubbling up along the junction of the bulkhead and deck of the electrical work shop, port side”(D.L. Westfall)

In September 2009, I checked into my first command, eager to learn and ready to work. Unfortunately, my command was a shore command, meaning the command did not deploy people. Fortunately, my department arranged for my temporary attachment to a command that did deploy, a maritime security squadron whose mission was to protect US and Coalition warships as they transited in and out of port in Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates. I was deployed from April to November of 2010, living in Dubai and working at Jebel Ali. During that seven months, This deployment was the steepest learning curve I had experienced in my life to that point. I learned about waterborne tactics, Iran’s Naval power, and extremist groups operating in the Arabian Gulf. This was especially relevant when an al-Qaeda aligned group, Abdullah Azzam Brigades, attacked an oil tanker transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Our unit was responsible for making initial reports on the damaged tanker when it limped into port.

My first reason for this being left in the history books is that it showed America needed a stronger navy and army. Coming into this war America

The bombing of Pearl Harbor was a very startling attack that altered American history. It is a significant moment in American history that will not be forgotten. This confrontation happened between America and Japan for different reasons that are presented in this paper. America and Japan had weak negotiations and communications, which led to the attack on Pearl Harbor; however, America reacted on the attack effectively. Because of these circumstances, the rival led to the bombing and destruction of Pearl Harbor, America showed the world how tall and proud it can stand after a silent, sneak attack; however, America may have been knocked down, but ultimately not defeated.

America’s use of the atomic bombs on the Japanese cities also opened the door to other countries challenging them through their own use of nuclear bombs. Many have criticized that the atomic bomb was an act of “muscle flexing” due to the sheer power and destruction caused by the decision to drop the two bombs. (Nicholls, 67). Not only were these bombs a demonstration of the power that these nuclear weapons had, but they were a testament of power that the United States now held. Never before had a country surrendered in war without first being invaded, so the decision to drop the bomb and Japan's subsequent surrender were extremely significant (Baldwin, 39). These bombings didn’t just impact the Japanese, but the whole world and gave way to

The Battle at Midway was a critical turning point of the war in the Pacific during World War II. Attribution to American success is in direct relation to their ability to conduct signal collection and crypto-analysis leading to the battle. The elimination of this capability from consideration during the preparation for this battle will drastically influence the outcome. Through critical reasoning and battle analysis, this paper will determine the level of effect of the capability. The analysis will also seek to understand the change in outcome as a result of this change to history. The product of this analysis will be a thorough understanding of the importance of intelligence capability to United States success during World War II.

“Yesterday, December seventh, 1941, a date which will live in infamy, the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. We will gain the inevitable triumph, so help us God” (Franklin D. Roosevelt). Franklin D. Roosevelt said this during his speech on December 8, 1941, addressing the Pearl Harbor attack. During his speech he explains how the United States of America will defend itself but will make it very certain that this form of treachery shall never again endanger us. Furthermore says no matter how long it takes to overcome this invasion, the American people will win through absolute victory (“American Rhetoric”). On December 7, 1941, a total of 18 naval vessels heavily damaged or destroyed, 188 planes destroyed, and over 2,000 servicemen killed. That Sunday morning, began as a normal day for millions of Americans, but suddenly everything changed. As the news flashed from coast to coast, the bombing of Pearl Harbor mushroomed into a natural disaster. People could scarcely believe the reports pouring out of their radios. How could it have happened? Who was to blame? What could be done to guard against surprise attacks in the future? There were no easy answers, no quickly forged consensus (“Butow”). Pearl Harbor could have been prevented if

The Battle of Midway became one of the quintessential events in the struggle between the United States of America and the Empire of Japan. Though the official battle only lasted for three days, its outcome signified the turning point for the United States in the pacific theatre as well as the western front where the Allies had begun to achieve a foothold against Adolf Hitler’s Nazi Germany. Though it is just one small piece of World War II, The Battle of Midway shows how both technological and tactical advances by the United States Navy were able to outwit the numerically superior Japanese Navy. Japan was a formidable foe, its unyielding resolve pushed the United States to its limits and had it lost the battle it may have changed how historians view history.

Where were you on September 11, 2001? In order for senior leaders to pave the way for their juniors, they need to have a full understanding of historical data, mission capabilities and what that means to be a service member. This paper discusses the history, mission, and the symbolism of the USS NEW YORK.

It was all so incredible, than they were told of the ships off the coast, one was an aircraft carrier, which the Soldiers found hard to believe. The civilians told them

Naval warfare has been a crucial part of almost all conflict between nations including the United States. The naval warfare between Britain and the Patriots was a great display of naval warfare in United States history, and even wars after the Revolutionary War the U.S. used naval warfare to destroy its opponents. The Civil War in particular displayed a drastic change in the boiling waters of war. The Battle of Hampton Roads was a battle that displayed a crude and advancement of naval technology and the examples of theses advancements where the Confederate Merrimac and the Union Monitor. The Battle of Hampton Roads changed the way naval war was fought through the designs of the ironclads compared to traditional wooden warships, how and why the battle was fought, and the outcome of the battle and how it impacted naval war forever.

The battle at Midway was a pivotal moment in World War II. The United States Navy was in desperate need for victory, while the over-confident Japanese military force was riding on the tails of previous success. The U.S. gained intelligence and surprised the unsuspecting Japanese fleet. The battle was swift and just, with Japan sustaining a significant loss of life. Their loss of artillery, equipment and supplies proved to be unsurmountable. These losses led to a major shift in momentum towards the United States. The Japanese confidence level plummeted, in both the soldiers and the public. The U.S. celebrated the victory and built on that energy. Japan was forced to refocus military plans. Strategic initiatives changed from the Pacific theater to other, less desirable locations. A desperate focus to rebuild from the human and material loss was attempted. Carrier defense was strategized. Despite these refocus attempts; Japan was unable to regain triumph, making the Battle at Midway the most pivotal event in World War II history. Japan’s losses, change in momentum and forced military refocus proved to be the revolution necessary to provide U.S. the triumph.

Purpose: The purpose of Angelis’ study is mainly to analyze only one side of the argument of that the U.S. was not surprised of the attacking. Angelis examines stories as told by American soldiers who experienced the attack. Angelis also delves into official records recently declassified, to examine the political aspects of the attacking. In doing

It strikes me that the attack on Pearl Harbor in the world war Ⅱ in the last century is playing an important role in the world. In 1941, the Japanese military dispatched over 300 planes to foray the Pearl Harbor which is an important naval base for the USA. In this event, there are over 40 naval vessels sunk, almost 200 planes shot down and casualties numbered in the thousands. The next day, America declared war to Japan. The Pacific War erupted.