Advantages/Disadvantages America had to deal with an area known as "The Slot". "The Slot" is a sea channel separating the eastern and western Solomon's. This is were all of the Japanese trade came in. The U.S. could stop some of the Trade during the day but could do very little during the night. This caused the Japanese to be much more supplied than the Americans at Henderson Field. It proved to be a major advantage for the Japanese and a major disadvantage for the Americans.
America had another major problem. The terrain. The island was full of volcanic slopes, thick decaying jungles, and malaria ridden swamps. Some of the spines were so sharp that they could open a man's skin like a knife. Ferocious-looking land crabs, spiders the size of golf balls,and white ants that left terrible bites haunted the men at night in their tents. Mosquitoes were also quite a problem to the men. The Japanese were more use to this, but it still made fighting a lot more intense and dangerous for both sides of the battle. America was not alone during the battle though. Since they were in the South-Pacific, Australia was there to help. They helped supply the marines at Henderson Field with food and weaponry. They even helped with Naval Cruisers to fight the Japanese. |
Strategies The Japanese attacked mostly at night to catch the enemy when they weren't expecting it. Every Japanese sailor was tested to see if they had good night vision to be part of the navy. The best of them were made lookouts on the naval ships. This strategy let the Japanese be able to use "The Slot" at night, and defeat the Americans in battles such as the Battle of Savo Island.
|