# Okinawa ground order of battle

This is the order of battle for the US invasion of the island of Okinawa, the largest island of the Ryukyu chain. This offensive, called Operation Iceberg by its planners, was the final Allied offensive in the Pacific Theater of Operations in World War II.
The defending Japanese military was determined to inflict a casualty rate so high that the U.S. government would choose not to invade the Japanese home islands. To this end, the southern portion of Okinawa had been covered with the most extensive system of fortifications and interlocking fields of fire the Americans had yet encountered in the Pacific Theatre. In anticipation of this level of resistance, five full divisions, two Marine and three Army, were committed to the struggle.
The initial American landings took place on 1 April 1945 and the island was not declared secure until 22 June, a period of 82 days, far longer than was expected by US planners. Four days before the end of the campaign, Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr. became the highest ranking U.S. military officer to be killed in action in the Second World War.

## Summary of opposing ground forces

United States
US Tenth Army Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr., USA (KIA 18 Jun)
    III Amphibious Corps
    Major General Roy S. Geiger, USMC
       Left: 6th Marine Division (24,356 officers and enlisted)
       Right: 1st Marine Division (26,274 officers and enlisted)
    XXIV Army Corps
    Major General John R. Hodge, USA
       Left: 7th Infantry ("Bayonet") Division (21,929 officers and enlisted)
       Right: 96th Infantry ("Deadeye") Division (22,330 officers and enlisted)
       Reserve: 27th Infantry ("New York") Division (16,143 officers and enlisted)
Japan
For most of the war, the Japanese had not considered Okinawa vital to their defensive arrangements. US progress in the Central Pacific led them to activate the Thirty-Second Army on the island in April 1944. In June, 5,000 men of the 44th Independent Mixed Brigade were lost at sea when their transport was torpedoed by a US submarine. The 9th Division, a veteran unit, was intended for Okinawa but was stranded on Formosa when the high command decided it couldn't risk more slow-moving transports in the East China Sea. The unprecedented American casualty figures would almost certainly have been considerably higher had these men made it to Okinawa.
Japanese Thirty-Second Army Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima (seppuku 22 Jun) Approx. 67,000 men under arms, incl. 5,000 Okinawan conscripts
    24th Division
    62nd Division
    44th Independent Mixed Brigade

## American forces

US Tenth Army Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr., USA (KIA 18 Jun) Major General Roy S. Geiger, USMC (18 Jun thru 23 Jun) General Joseph W. Stilwell, USA (from 23 Jun)

### Northern Landing Area

III Amphibious Corps Major General Roy S. Geiger
    Chief of Staff: Brigadier General Merwin H. Silverthorn
    Chief of Corps Artillery: Brigadier General David R. Nimmer
Embarked in Task Force 53 under Rear Admiral Lawrence F. Reifsnider

#### Left Beaches

    6th Marine Division
    Major General Lemuel C. Shepherd Jr.
       Asst. Div. Cmdr.: Brigadier General William T. Clement
       Chief of Staff: Colonel John C. McQueen
       G-1 (Personnel): Major Addison B. Overstreet
       G-2 (Intelligence): Lt. Colonel Thomas B. Williams
       G-3 (Operations): Lt. Colonel Victor H. Krulak
       G-4 (Logistics): Lt. Colonel August Larson (to 16 May), Lt. Colonel Wayne H. Adams
    Left zone – Green beaches
       22nd Marine Regiment
       Colonel Merlin F. Schneider (to 16 May), Colonel Harold C. Roberts (KIA 18 Jun), Lt. Col. August Larson
       Exec. Ofc.: Colonel Karl K. Louther (to 16 May), Lt. Col. August Larson (to 17 Jun), Lt. Col. John B. Baker (to 20 Jun), Lt. Col. Samuel R. Shaw
          1st Battalion (Major Thomas J. Myers (KIA 15 May), Major Earl J. Cook (WIA 17 Jun), Lt. Col. Gavin C. Humphrey)
             CMoH recipients: Navy Corpsman Fred F. Lester (KIA 8 Jun)
          2nd Battalion1 (Lt. Col. Horatio C. Woodhouse Jr. (KIA 30 May), Lt. Col. John G. Johnson)
             CMoH recipients: Major Henry A. Courtney Jr. (KIA 15 May), Cpl. James L. Day
          3rd Battalion Lt. Col. Malcolm "O" Donohoo (WIA 16 May), Major George B. Kantner (to 19 May), Lt. Col. Clair W. Shisler)
    Right zone – Red beaches
       4th Marine Regiment
       Colonel Alan Shapley
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. Fred D. Beans (to 14 Apr), Lt. Col. Fred D. Beans (from 1 May)
          1st Battalion (Major Bernard W. Green, Lt. Col. Fred D. Beans, Lt. Col. George B. Bell)
             CMoH recipient: Cpl. Richard Earl Bush
          2nd Battalion (Lt. Col. Reynolds H. Hayden (to 26 May), Major Edgar F. Carney Jr.)
          3rd Battalion (Lt. Col. Bruno A. Hochmuth)
    Reserve – Landed D-Day
       29th Marine Regiment
       Colonel Victor F. Bleasdale (to 14 Apr), Colonel William J. Whaling
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. Orin K. Pressley
          1st Battalion (Lt. Col. Jean W. Moreau (WIA 16 May), Maj. Robert P. Neuffer (to 25 May), Lt. Col. Samuel S. Yeaton (to 14 Jun), Lt. Col. Leroy P. Hunt Jr.)
          2nd Battalion (Lt. Col. William G. Robb (WIA 19 Apr))
          3rd Battalion (Lt. Col. Erma A. Wright (To 14 Jun), Lt. Col. Angus N. FraServ)
             CMoH recipient: Pvt. Robert M. McTureous Jr. (KIA 7 Jun)
    Artillery
       15th Marine Regiment (Artillery)
       Colonel Robert B. Luckey
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. James H. Brower
          1st Battalion (Major Robert H. Armstrong)
          2nd Battalion (Major Nat M. Pace)
          3rd Battalion (Lt. Col. Joe C. McHaney)
          4th Battalion (Lt. Col. Bruce T. Henphill)
             CMoH recipient: PFC Harold Gonsalves (KIA 15 Apr)
    Service troops
       6th Engineer Battalion (Maj. Paul F. Sackett)
       6th Medical Battalion (Cmdr. John S. Cowan, USN)
       6th Motor Transport Battalion (Lt. Col. Ernest H. Gould)
       6th Pioneer Battalion (Lt. Col. Samuel R. Shaw (to 10 May), Maj. John G. Dibble (to 8 Jun), Lt. Col. Samuel R. Shaw (to 18 Jun), Maj. John G. Dibble)
       6th Service Battalion (Lt. Col. George B. Bell (to 25 Apr), Lt. Col. Alexander N. Entringer)
       6th Tank Battalion (Lt. Col. Robert L. Denig Jr.)

#### Right Beaches

    1st Marine Division
    Major General Pedro A. del Valle
       Asst. Div. Cmdr.: Brigadier General Louis R. Jones
       Chief of Staff: Colonel Robert O. Bare
       G-1 (Personnel): Major Harold O. Deakin
       G-2 (Intelligence): Lt. Colonel John W. Scott, Jr.
       G-3 (Operations): Lt. Colonel Russell E. Honsowetz
       G-4 (Logistics): Lt. Colonel Harvey C. Tschirgi
    Left zone – Blue beaches
       7th Marine Regiment
       Colonel Edward W. Snedeker
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. James M. Masters Sr.
          1st Battalion (Lt. Col. John L. Gormley)
          2nd Battalion (Lt. Col. Spencer S. Berger)
          3rd Battalion (Lt. Col. Edward H. Hurst (WIA 19 Jun), Lt. Col. Stephen V. Sabol)
    Right zone – Yellow beaches
       5th Marine Regiment
       Colonel John H. Griebel
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. John D. Muncie
          1st Battalion (Lt. Col. Charles W. Shelburne)
             CMoH recipient: PFC Albert E. Schwab (KIA 7 May)
          2nd Battalion (Lt. Col. William B. Benedict (to 20 Jun), Major Richard T. Washburn)
             CMoH recipients: Navy Corpsman Robert Eugene Bush, Navy Corpsman William D. Halyburton Jr. (KIA 10 May)
          3rd Battalion (Major John H. Gustafson (WIA 1 Apr), Lt. Col. John C. Miller, Jr. (4 Apr to 16 May), Major Frank W. Poland (to 8 Jun), Jr., Lt. Col. Robert B. Hill)
    Reserve
       1st Marine Regiment
       Colonel Kenneth B. Chappell (to 5 May), Colonel Arthur T. Mason
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. Richard P. Ross, Jr. (to 20 May), Lt. Col. James S. Monahan
          1st Battalion (Lt. Col. James C. Murray, Jr. (WIA 9 May), Lt. Col. Richard P. Ross, Jr. (to 12 May), Lt. Col. Austin C. Shofner)
             CMoH recipients: Cpl. John P. Fardy (KIA 7 May), Cpl. Louis J. Hauge Jr. (KIA 14 May)
          2nd Battalion (Lt. Col. James C. Magee, Jr.)
             CMoH recipient: Pvt. Dale M. Hansen (KIA 7 May)
          3rd Battalion (Lt. Col. Stephen V. Sabol (to 20 May), Lt. Col. Richard P. Ross Jr.)
             CMoH recipients: PFC William A. Foster (KIA 2 May), Sgt. Elbert L. Kinser (KIA 4 May)
    Artillery
       11th Marine Regiment (Artillery)
       Colonel Wilburt S. Brown
       Exec. Ofc.: Lt. Col. Edson L. Lyman
          1st Battalion (Lt. Col. Richard W. Wallace)
          2nd Battalion (Lt. Col. James H. Mofatt Jr.)
          3rd Battalion (Lt. Col. Thomas G. Roe)
          4th Battalion (Lt. Col. Leonard F. Chapman Jr.)
    Service troops
       1st Engineer Battalion (Major Theodore E. Drummond)
       1st Medical Battalion (Lt. Cmdr. Francis Giuffrida, USN))
       1st Motor Transport Battalion (Lt. Col. Marion A. Fawcett (to 15 Apr), Lt. Col. Calvin C. Gaines)
       1st Pioneer Battalion (Lt. Col. Robert G. Ballance)
       1st Service Battalion (Lt. Col. Calvin C. Gaines (to 17 Apr), Col. John Kaluf)
       1st Tank Battalion (Lt. Col. Arthur J. Stuart (WIA 13 Jun))
       3rd Armored Amphibian Battalion, Provisional (Lt. Col. John L. Williamson, Jr. (to 7 May), Major Arthur M. Parker, Jr.)
       1st Amphibian Tractor Battalion (Lt. Col. Maynard M. Nohrden)
       8th Amphibian Tractor Battalion (Lt. Col. Chalres B. Nerren (to 13 Apr), Major Bedford Williams (to 17 Apr), Lt. Col. Chalres B. Nerren)
    1st Provisional Antiaircraft Artillery Group
       Colonel Kenneth W. Benner

### Southern Landing Area

XXIV Army Corps Major General John R. Hodge
Embarked in Task Force 55 under Rear Admiral John L. Hall

#### Left Beaches

    7th Infantry ("Bayonet") Division
    Major General Archibald V. Arnold
       Infantry
          17th Infantry Regiment – Purple Beaches
          32nd Infantry Regiment – Orange Beaches
          184th Infantry Regiment – Reserve
       Artillery
          48th, 49th, 57th Field Artillery Battalions (105mm)
          31st Field Artillery Battalion (155mm)
       Division troops
          7th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
          13th Engineer Combat Battalion
          7th Medical Battalion
          7th Counter Intel Corps Det

#### Right Beaches

    96th Infantry ("Deadeye") Division
    Major General James L. Bradley
       Infantry
          381st Infantry Regiment – White Beaches
             CMoH recipient: Sgt. Beauford T. Anderson
          382nd Infantry Regiment – Reserve
             CMoH recipients: PFC Clarence B. Craft, Lt. Seymour W. Terry
          383rd Infantry Regiment – Brown Beaches
             CMoH recipient: PFC Edward J. Moskala (KIA 9 Apr)
       Artillery
          361st, 362nd, 921st Field Artillery Battalions (105mm)
          363rd Field Artillery Battalion (155mm)
       Division troops
          96th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
          321st Engineer Combat Battalion
          321st Medical Battalion
          96th Counter Intel Corps Det

#### Reserve – Landed L+8

    27th Infantry ("New York") Division
    Major General George W. Griner Jr.
       Infantry
          105th Infantry Regiment
          106th Infantry Regiment
          165th Infantry Regiment
             CMoH recipient: Sgt. Alejandro R. Ruiz
       Artillery
          104th, 105th, 249th Field Artillery Battalions (105mm)
          106th Field Artillery Battalion (155mm)
       Division troops
          27th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
          102nd Engineer Combat Battalion
          102nd Medical Battalion
          27th Counter Intel Corps Det

### Western Islands (Ie Shima, etc.)

    77th Infantry ("Statue of Liberty") Division
    Major General Andrew D. Bruce
    Embarked in Task Group 51.1 under Rear Admiral Ingolf N. Kiland
       Infantry
          305th Infantry Regiment – landed 17 Apr Red Beaches 1 & 2
             CMoH recipients: Sgt. John W. Meagher, Sgt. Joseph E. Muller (KIA 16 May)
          306th Infantry Regiment – landed 17 Apr Green Beach
          307th Infantry Regiment – landed 17 Apr Red Beaches 3 & 4
             CMoH recipients: Cpl. Desmond Doss, PFC Martin O. May (KIA 21 Apr)
          One Marine BLT
       Artillery
          304th, 305th, 902nd Field Artillery Battalions (105mm)
          306th Field Artillery Battalion (155mm)
       Division troops
          77th Reconnaissance Troop (Mechanized)
          302nd Engineer Combat Battalion
          302nd Medical Battalion
          77th Counter Intel Corps Det

### Air Forces

    Tactical Air Force, Tenth Army
       Major General Francis P. Mulcahy, USMC (to 11 Jun)
       Major General Louis E. Woods, USMC (from 11 Jun)

## Japanese forces
### Thirty-Second Army

Lieutenant General Mitsuru Ushijima (seppuku 22 Jun) Approx. 67,000 men under arms, incl. 5,000 Okinawan conscripts
    24th Division
    Lt. Gen. Tatsumi Amamiya (KIA 30 Jun)
       22nd Infantry Regiment
       32nd Infantry Regiment
       89th Infantry Regiment
    62nd Division
    Lt. Gen. Takeo Fujioka (suicide 22 Jun)
       63rd Brigade
       67th Brigade
    44th Independent Mixed Brigade
    Maj. Gen. Suzuki Shigeji (died 22 Jun)