Background
On 3 June, a Japanese light carrier strike force, under the command of Rear Admiral Kakuji Kakuta, comprising the light carriers Ryūjō and Jun'yō, plus escort ships, sailed to 180 mi (160 nmi; 290 km) southwest of Dutch Harbor to launch air strikes at the facility to support a Japanese offensive in the Aleutians and in the central Pacific at Midway. The Japanese planned to occupy islands in the Aleutians in order to extend their defensive perimeter in the north Pacific to make it more difficult for the U.S. to attack Japan from that area. Dutch Harbor was ringed with anti aircraft artillery batteries from the 206th Coast Artillery (Anti Aircraft), Arkansas National Guard,. The 206th CA (AA) was deployed to Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands, Alaska in August 1941 and had been on station for approximately four months when the Japanese Navy attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December. The 206th CA was equipped with the 3 in (76 mm) M1918 Gun (an older model with a vertical range of 26,902 ft (8,200 m)), .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns, and 60 in (150 cm) Sperry searchlights. The 206th had one radar in position at Dutch Harbor at the time of the attack.
Read more about this topic: Battle Of Dutch Harbor
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