Gilbert Islands Naval Order of Battle

The naval forces assigned to capture the Gilberts formed the largest armada yet assembled by either side in the Pacific, considerably larger than the Allied force that mounted the invasion of Guadalcanal and dwarfing the Japanese force that attacked Pearl Harbor. They fought between November 20 and November 23, 1943. The forces can be summarized as follows:

TF 50 – Carrier Force:

  • 6 fleet carriers, 6 light carriers, 5 battleships, 3 heavy cruisers, 3 anti-aircraft light cruisers, 21 destroyers

TF 52 – Northern Attack Force (Makin):

  • 3 escort carriers, 4 battleships, 4 heavy cruisers, 16 destroyers, 9 transports & landing ships

TF 53 – Southern Attack Force (Tarawa):

  • 5 escort carriers, 3 battleships, 2 heavy cruisers, 2 light cruisers, 22 destroyers, 2 minesweepers, 18 transports & landing ships

Command Structure

Naval commanders
Adm. Chester W. Nimitz
Vice Adm. Raymond A. Spruance
Rear Adm. Richmond Kelly Turner

Ground force commanders
Maj. Gen. Holland M. Smith
Maj. Gen. Julian C. Smith
Maj. Gen. Ralph C. Smith

The roles of Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas (CINCPOA) and Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet (CINCPAC), were both exercised by Admiral Chester W. Nimitz from his headquarters at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

Since the Gilberts and Marshalls lie in the Central Pacific, their capture was the responsibility of the U.S. Fifth Fleet, led by Vice Admiral Raymond A. Spruance from aboard his flagship, heavy cruiser Indianapolis.

The ships and troops of Operations Galvanic (landings on Tarawa Atoll) and Kourbash (landings on Makin Atoll) were under direct operational command of Rear Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner aboard battleship Pennsylvania.

In case Admiral Mineichi Koga attempted to disrupt Fifth Fleet's operations, Spruance was to strip all combat ships not needed to cover the landings, join with the fast carrier forces and engage the Japanese. In the event, Koga's Combined Fleet never stirred from its anchorage at Truk Lagoon in the Carolines.

Ground troops

V Amphibious Corps (Maj. Gen. Holland M. Smith, USMC)

Both Admiral Turner and General Holland Smith sailed with the Northern Attack Force even though it was obvious that Tarawa would be the scene of the main ground action. If the Japanese mounted a counterattack, it was most likely to come from the Marshalls since the closest Japanese bases to the Gilberts were located there. Nimitz and Spruance wanted the two highest-ranking officers to sail with the forces that would be the first to encounter any such enemy response. Unbeknownst to the Americans, the Japanese had stripped almost all their naval and air assets from the Marshalls in an attempt to resist the Allied effort in the Central Solomons. Thus, no counterattack materialized.[1]

TF 50 Carrier Force

Rear Adm. Charles A. Pownall

Rear Adm. Charles A. Pownall in Yorktown

TG 50.1 Carrier Interceptor Group

Rear Adm. Charles A. Pownall in Yorktown

2 Fleet Carriers:

1 Light Carrier:

Battleship Division 6 (Rear Adm. E. W. Hanson):

Screen (Lr. Cmdr. A. J. Hill):

TG 50.2 Northern Carrier Group

Rear Adm. Arthur W. Radford in Enterprise

1 Fleet Carrier:

2 Light Carriers:

Battleship Division 6 (Rear Adm. G. B. Davis):

Screen (Cmdr. H. F. Miller):

TG 50.3 Southern Carrier Group

Rear Adm. Alfred E. Montgomery in Essex

2 Fleet Carriers:

1 Light Carrier:

Cruiser Division 5 (Rear Adm. E. G. Small):

Screen (Capt. J. T. Bottom):

TG 50.4 Relief Carrier Group

Rear Adm. Frederick C. Sherman in Saratoga

1 Fleet Carrier:

1 Light Carrier:

Cruiser Division 2 (Rear Adm. L. J. Wiltse):

Screen:

TF 52 Northern Attack Force (Makin)

Rear Adm. Richmond Kelly Turner

Rear Adm. Richmond Kelly Turner in Pennsylvania

TG 52.1 Transport Group

Capt. D. W. Loomis

165th Regimental Combat Team and 105th Battalion Landing Team of the 27th Division (Major General Ralph C. Smith, USA)

4 Attack Transports:

1 Attack cargo ship:

1 Landing ship dock:

Screen:

TG 52.2 Fire Support Group

Rear Adm. Robert M. Griffin in New Mexico

Unit 1:

Unit 2:

Unit 3:

TG 52.3 Air Support Group

Rear Adm. Henry M. Mullinnix (killed 24 Nov) in Liscome Bay

3 Escort Carriers:

Screen:

TG 54.4 Makin LST Group No. 1

Cmdr. A. M. Hurst

  • 3 Landing Ship Tanks – 31, 78, 178, each carrying an LCT
  • 1 Farragut Class Destroyer – Dale DD-353 (Lt. Cmdr. C. W. Aldrich)

TF 53 Southern Attack Force (Tarawa)

Rear Adm. Harry W. Hill

Rear Adm. Harry W. Hill in Maryland

TG 53.1 Transport Group

Capt. H. B. Knowles in Monrovia

2nd Marine Division, reinforced (Maj. Gen. Julian C. Smith, USMC)

Transport Division 4 (Capt. J. B. McGovern):

Transport Division 6 (Capt. T. B. Brittain):

Transport Division 18 (Capt. Knowles):

Screen (Capt. E. M. Thompson)

TG 53.2 Minesweeper Group

Lt. Cmdr. H. R. Peirce

TG 53.4 Fire Support Group

Rear Adm. Howard F. Kingman

Section 1:

Section 2 (Rear Adm. L. T. DuBose):

Section 3:

Section 4 (Cmdr. H. Crommelin):

Section 5:

TG 53.6 Air Support Group

Rear Adm. V. H. Ragsdale

5 Escort Carriers:

Screen:

TG 54.5 Tarawa LST Group No. 1

Lt. Cmdr. R. M. Pits

References

  1. ↑ Wright, Tarawa 1943: The Turning of the Tide, p. 22
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