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Description The Landing on Emirau (20-27 March 1944) was the last of the series of operations that made up Operation Cartwheel, General Douglas MacArthur's strategy for the encirclement of the major Japanese base at Rabaul. A force of nearly 4,000 United States Marines landed on the island of Emirau on 20 March 1944. The island was not occupied by the Japanese and there was no fighting. It was developed into an airbase which formed the final link in the chain of bases surrounding Rabaul. The isolation of Rabaul permitted MacArthur to turn his attention westward and commence his drive along the north coast of New Guinea toward the Philippines.
My Participation in This Battle or Operation
From Month/Year
March / 1944
To Month/Year
March / 1944
Last Updated: Mar 16, 2020
Personal Memories
People You Remember We were sitting on coconut logs watching a movie one night when it was announced on the loudseaker to report back to camp and pack our sea bags. The next morning, March 17th, we boarded the USS Callaway. We didn't know where we were going! We thought we might be going back to Bougainville as the Japs had pulled some counter attacks and the army was having problems.It took three days to go to Emirau. We landed and there were no Japs. They had left a few days before. We set up guns on the beach, as we had to stand watch for a counter attack. We were bombed at night by a stray Jap plane. It was a pretty and nice sandy beach. Our guns were under big trees-camouflaged. Emirau was a small island where the US wanted to build an airstrip, so the Seabees built one. March 25th I wrote a V-Mail letter telling Helen it was the first day I could write, and told her in code that I was on Emirau. I practically lived in the ocean; it was the only way to keep cool, and the sand felt good to my feet.
April 4th, the moon was shining bright, and it was misting rain, so there ws a pretty rainbow at night.
We would swim out to the end of the coral reef, take a hand grenade, pull the pin and drop the hand grenade to the bottom of the ocean. It would stun the fish, and they would come to the top. Then we would have fish to eat. We now call the Emirau operation "Bloody Emirau".
We left Emirau on the USS DuPage April 12th and were back on Guadalcanal on the 15th.
