Japanese occupation of Kiska The Japanese occupation of Kiska took place between 6 June 1942 and 28 July 1943 during the Aleutian Islands Campaign of the Pacific War . The Japanese occupied Kiska and nearby Attu Island in order to protect the northern flank of the Japanese Empire . Occupation . Initially , the only American military presence on Kiska was a ten - man weather station . The Japanese stormed the station , killing two Americans and capturing the remaining eight . The eight prisoners of war were sent to Japan . The attack on Pearl Harbor and beginning of the Pacific Theatre in World War II , coupled with Japanese threats to the west coast of North America and the Aleutian Islands , had already made the construction of a defense access highway to Alaska a priority . On 6 February 1942 , the construction of the Alaska Highway was approved by the U . S . Army and the project received the authorization from the U . S . Congress and President Franklin D . Roosevelt to proceed five days later . Reacting to the Japanese occupation , American and Canadian air forces waged a continuous air bombardment campaign against the Japanese forces on Kiska . Also , U . S . Navy warships blockaded and periodically bombarded the island . Several Japanese warships , transport ships , and submarines attempting to travel to Kiska or Attu were sunk or damaged by the blockading forces . In 1943 , U . S . forces landed on and destroyed the Japanese garrison on Attu . In response , the Imperial Japanese Navy successfully evacuated the Kiska garrison on 28 July , ending the Japanese presence in the Aleutian Islands . Not completely sure that the Japanese were gone , the Americans and Canadians executed an unopposed landing on Kiska on 15 August , securing the island and ending the Aleutian Islands campaign . Naval operations . On 19 June 1942 , American aircraft attacked and sank the Japanese oiler " Nissan Maru " in Kiska Harbor and on 30 June American naval forces bombarded the island . The American submarine attacked and sank one Japanese destroyer east of Kiska Harbor on 5 July , two other destroyers were also heavily damaged . Over 200 Japanese sailors were killed or wounded while the Americans sustained no losses , it became the single bloodiest engagement during the operations on and around Kiska . was attacked by three Japanese submarine chasers while patrolling Kiska Harbor on 15 July . In response , she fired on and sank two of the Japanese ships and damaged the third . " Grunion " was lost a few weeks later off Kiska on 30 July with all hands , she is suspected of being sunk after one of her own torpedoes circled back when she attacked the " Kano Maru " . On 8 August , the Japanese cargo ship " Kano Maru " was sunk at Kiska Harbor by PBY Catalina s . Days before , the cargo ship was damaged by one of " Grunion " s torpedoes . Troopship " Nozima Maru " was also bombed and sunk in Kiska Harbor on 15 September . On 5 October , the Japanese steamer " Borneo Maru " was sunk at Gertrude Cove and on 17 October , the destroyer " Oboro " was sunk by American aircraft . sank off Kiska on 4 November , " Montreal Maru " on 5 January 1943 , and " Uragio Maru " on 4 April . was grounded and abandoned by her crew on 23 June while assisting in removing Kiska ' s garrison . She was chased onto the rocks by .