Aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) held a wreath-laying ceremony June 4 to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the Battle of Midway.
A flag detail paraded the colors as the bugler played “Taps” to honor the sacrifice made by those who fought that day.
The battle is considered the turning point of the war in the Pacific. The battle began June 4, 1942, with the Imperial Japanese Navy’s foiled attempt to ambush the U.S. Navy just off the coast of Midway. Adm. Chester Nimitz led the U.S. fleet to victory six months after the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, inflicting overwhelming damage to the Japanese fleet.
By the end of the Battle of Midway, 307 Sailors and Marines had fallen, the Yorktown and USS Hammann (DD 412) were sunk and 145 aircraft were destroyed.
The Japanese lost 3,057 sailors, 4 aircraft carriers, the heavy cruiser Mikuma and 228 aircraft.
Image: US Navy