Carrier War
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Window 3 · VMF‑213, Second Posting · Leg 3

Carrier War

Aboard USS Essex, VMF-213 sorties out of Ulithi into the enclosed South China Sea and back, then north to strike Tokyo itself and cover the invasion of Iwo Jima.

5ship's-track legs
~90days
~5,540n. miles
115°E 125°E 135°E 30°N 20°N 10°N N JAPAN SOUTH CHINA SEA PHILIPPINE SEA CAROLINE ISLANDS Formosa Luzon Hong Kong &China coast 1 · sortie out, Jan 1–9 2 · return, Jan 21–26 3 · sortie north, c. Feb 10–16 4 · Feb 17–19 5 · return, c. March ULITHI fleet anchorage · between pushes SOUTH CHINA SEA Task Force area · Jan 3–25, 1945 OFF HONSHU Task Force area · Feb 10–25 TOKYO struck Feb 16–17 & 25 IWO JIMA CAS · Feb 19–March 1945
Schematic map, not to navigational scale — the ship's own track (gold) is drawn hub-and-spoke from Ulithi; the fainter teal spokes to Formosa, Luzon, Hong Kong, and Tokyo are strike missions flown from the task force's position, not the carrier's own movement. Tap or hover any marker for details. Drawn from 01_Hack_Timeline.md and DANFS (USS Essex, CV-9).
USS Essex's own track
Strike mission (aircraft only, ship stays offshore)
Task force position / objective
Struck target

Full itinerary

#RouteNotesDateDistance
1 Ulithi → South China Sea Formosa strike (combat debut) en route, Jan 3 Jan 3–9, 1945 ~1,390 nm
2 South China Sea → Ulithi Two typhoons weathered en route Jan 21–26, 1945 ~1,390 nm
3 Ulithi → off Honshu Approach for Tokyo strikes c. Feb 10–16, 1945 ~1,380 nm
4 Off Honshu → Iwo Jima Task force moves south to support the invasion Feb 17–19, 1945 ~490 nm
5 Iwo Jima → Ulithi Return after the close-air-support phase c. March 1945 ~890 nm