75th Anniversary Commemoration of the Battle of Leyte Gulf

In October 1944, following indications of impending Allied landings in the Philippines, the Japanese Imperial Navy’s First Mobile Fleet launched Operation Shō. Shō pulled together the majority of Japan’s remaining battleship, cruiser, and carrier forces in a desperate, multi-pronged attempt to interdict and destroy Allied landing forces off of Leyte in the central Philippines and inflict crippling damage on U.S. naval forces. The limited strike capabilities of severely depleted Japanese carrier air groups were to be augmented by land-based naval and army aviation units based in Formosa (Taiwan) and the Philippines. The stage was set for the multiple, widely separated engagements that made up the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

2019 marks the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, arguably the largest naval battle in history. To commemorate this anniversary the NWC Museum and Hattendorf Historical Center will be hosting a panel discussion with experts on the battle. Professors Craig Symonds, Milan Vego, James Holmes and Douglas Hime will discuss the key decisions and events of the battle and its modern use in Professional Military Education at the Naval War College.