What mistake did the Japanese make at Midway?

Another major flaw in Japan’s Midway strategy was the attitude of the Japanese Navy planners. Believing that Japan was invincible in war, the Japanese planners made the fatal mistake of underrating American military capabilities and response.

What might have happened if Japanese forces had won the battle of Midway?

One logical conclusion is that Midway would have fallen to the Japanese; although heavily defended, the island would have been surrounded. With the U.S. carriers gone, the Japanese would have had aerial dominance, allowing Imperial warships and aircraft to bomb the defenders at will.

Did the Japanese break American codes?

While researching secret codes used prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor 60 years ago, the young Japanese American professor stumbled upon a document, declassified by the CIA about five years ago, that proved that Tokyo had succeeded in breaking the U.S. and British diplomatic codes.

In which Battle did the US intelligence break the Japanese naval code?

the Battle of Midway
Perhaps the most dramatic success that resulted from breaking the Japanese naval code was the Battle of Midway in June 1942.

Who cracked JN25?

John Tiltman with some help from Alan Turing (at GCSB) had “solved” JN25 by 1941, i.e. they knew that it was a five-digit code with a codebook to translate words into five digits and there was a second “additive” book that the sender used to add to the original numbers “But knowing all this didn’t help them read a …

What was the significance of the Japanese naval codes and ciphers?

The vulnerability of Japanese naval codes and ciphers was crucial to the conduct of World War II, and had an important influence on foreign relations between Japan and the west in the years leading up to the war as well.

What was the significance of the Battle of Midway?

While Midway was a stunning victory for the U.S.—sinking four Japanese carriers for the loss of one U.S. carrier—that was enabled by intelligence and broke the uninterrupted string of defeats and draws the Imperial Japanese navy had inflicted on the U.S. Navy, much hard fighting remained and more stinging defeats awaited the U.S. in the Pacific.

How did Japanese naval codes work in WW2?

Japanese naval codes were unlike German codes in World War II. They were primarily “book” ciphers, while German codes used mechanical encipherment—the famous Enigma and Lorenz machines. Book ciphers work like this: The sender composes his message and then consults the code book.

How did Japan confirm Midway as Midway?

The radio message was duly intercepted by Japan and reported by a message encoded in JN25 stating that AF ’s desalinization plant was out of order. That message was intercepted by Station HYPO. AF was thus confirmed as Midway. There remained the question of the timing of the attack.