Everything about Okinawa made it key in the battle for control of the Pacific during  WWII. Strategically, its location near the southern tip of Japan would allow American bombers to fly into the heart of enemy territory. Topographically, it was also a perfect airbase — no fewer than four runways were located along the 60-mile long, two-mile wide island. The Americans needed it, and the Japanese knew the Americans needed it. As with Iwo Jima and the Philippines before that, both sides threw everything they had into the fight.

On this day, April 1, 1945, preceded by an artillery bombardment of 300 warships and more than 1,000 supporting vessels, U.S. Marines began landing on the island of Okinawa.

The Okinawa fight was particularly tough because of its proximity to the Japanese mainland. Kamikaze planes no longer needed carriers or the airstrips on the island to take off, and wave after wave came at the Americans. Most were shot down, but the ones that did get through destroyed more than 60 ships and heavily damaged many more. The U.S. finally secured the island in July of 1945, after enormous casualties on both sides.