Although the history of armor in World War II has captured the attention of countless authors, no one has yet chronicled the extensive use of tanks in the Pacific--until now. In comprehensive detail Gene Eric Salecker describes the exploits of American tanks on the jungle islands where troops engaged in savage combat and encountered unforgiving weather and terrain. Stationed in the Philippines when the Japanese attacked the islands in 1941, the U.S. Army's independent tank battalions fought from the very start of the war. From New Guinea and the Solomons to the Ryukyus, American armor proved instrumental in winning World War II in the Pacific. First work dedicated solely to the use of Army tanks in the Pacific Theater Covers armor battles in the Philippines, Makin, the Solomons, Rabaul, New Guinea, Saipan, Guam, and Okinawa

First work dedicated solely to the use of Army tanks in the Pacific Theater. Covers armor battles in the Philippines, Makin, the Solomons, Rabaul, New Guinea, Saipan, Guam, and Okinawa.

Complete account of airborne operations in the Pacific theater. Firsthand descriptions from American and Japanese paratroopers. Detailed maps illustrate battles.

“An incisive, readable account of a group of National Guard tankers who fought in the Philippines in the opening phase of America’s war in the Pacific.” —Robert S. Cameron, Ph.D., military historian and author of Mobility, Shock, and Firepower: The Emergence of the U.S. Army’s Armor Branch, 1917-1945 The American Provisional Tank Group had been in the Philippines only three weeks when the Japanese attacked the islands hours after the raid on Pearl Harbor. Sent north to meet the Japanese landings in Lingayen Gulf, the men of the PTG found themselves thrust into a critical role when the Philippine Army could not hold back the Japanese. When General MacArthur ordered the retreat to Bataan, the PTG proved itself indispensable. During early months of 1942, the light tanks of the PTG patrolled Bataan’s beaches, encircling and destroying Japanese penetrations and small amphibious landings. By April 1942, the situation had become untenable, and 15,000 Americans, along with 60,000 Filipinos, surrendered in one of the worst defeats in U.S. military history. The Provisional Tank Group ceased to exist, and its men endured the Bataan Death March, the torture and starvation of POW camps, the hell ships that took them to Japan and Manchuria for slave labor, and the Palawan massacre. In an evocatively written book, Donald L. Caldwell reveals the largely ignored role of tanks in the Philippine campaign. Conducting impressive primary research to bring to life the combat history of the PTG, Caldwell has dug deeper to tell the stories of soldiers from each of the group’s six companies, recounting their service from enlistment, training, and combat to imprisonment, liberation, and return home. “Remarkable . . . [A] well-told history . . . highly recommended.” —Jay A. Stout, LtCol (Ret), USMC, author of Air Apaches

"A Native American healer, teacher, and activist, Rolling Thunder is known to millions of people all over the world through his stories and talks, through Doug Boyd's book about him, and the Billy Jack films, which were based upon incidents in this life. This book, long overdue by those who knew Rolling Thunder and his work, is a major legacy of his extraordinary life and the summation of his teachings and in his own words. As controversial and plain-speaking as Rolling Thunder himself, it exhorts, enlightens, and teaches through anecdotes and stories, forces us to listen and to think, and carries on his primary mission: to bring Indian knowledge to non-Indian people." -- Publisher's description

A full account of the Luzon campaign, from the planning stages to the surrender of the Japanese general Yamashita. The Luzon campaign of 1945 was the longest island campaign of the Pacific War, lasting from January 1945 to September 1945, and only ended with the surrender of Imperial Japan. It is often overlooked or mentioned in passing by most histories of that war, yet hundreds of thousands of Americans and Japanese fought in some of the worst conditions imaginable for eight months to clear Luzon of the invaders. This full account of the Luzon campaign stretches from planning stages to the end of the war and the surrender of over 50,000 Japanese troops under the noted Japanese general Yamashita. The landings at Lingayen Gulf, the Battle for Manila and the recapture of Corregidor are all included, as well as lesser-known battles for the summer capital of Baguio, the battle for Manila's water supply, constant jungle fighting, the raids to rescue Allied POWs, the recapture of Bataan, destruction of the only Japanese armored division to fight in the Pacific, American parachute drops on Corregidor and Aparri, and much more. Individual acts of heroism are highlighted as are the interactions among the senior commanders involved, including General MacArthur, General Krueger (6th Army) and General Eichelberger (8th Army). The book ends with the surrender of Imperial Japan and the end of the Luzon Campaign in September 1945.

Tanks, amphibian tanks, and amphibian tractors in action in all theaters, from Africa and Europe to the Pacific. How the battalions fought the war, often in the tankers' own words. Crystal-clear maps.