Qualla: Battle of the Komandorski Islands

Battle of the Komandorski Islands: Introduction

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. At 0840 on March 27, 1943, the heavy cruiser Nachi opened fire on the light cruiser USS Richmond at a range of 20,000 yards. The second and third salvos straddled the target. Within minutes, the waters south of the Soviet Komandorski Islands -- one of the loneliest stretches of the North Pacific -- erupted into what would become one of the last pure ship-to-ship gunnery engagements in naval history. No aircraft attacked. No submarines lurked beneath the gray swells. Two fleets slugged it out with their guns alone, as navies had done for centuries, in a battle that lasted nearly four hours and ended with the stronger force turning away.

Image: Unknown author | Public domain

Battle of the Komandorski Islands: The Aleutian Gambit

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. The battle's origins lay in one of the war's strangest campaigns. In June 1942, Japanese forces had occupied the western Aleutian islands of Kiska and Attu, the only American territory seized by a foreign power since the War of 1812. The occupation was a northern feint tied to th...

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Battle of the Komandorski Islands: Outgunned at Dawn

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Public domain. American intelligence estimated the next Japanese convoy escort at one heavy cruiser, one light cruiser, and four destroyers. They were wrong. The Japanese 5th Fleet had been reinforced, and the actual escort comprised two heavy cruisers -- Nachi and Maya -- two light cruisers, a...

Image: Public domain

Battle of the Komandorski Islands: Four Hours of Gunfire

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. What followed was a running battle across cold, heaving seas. Richmond drew first blood, landing 6-inch shells on Nachi's signal bridge at 0850, killing 11 and wounding 21 sailors, then hitting the flagship's torpedo compartment and control room in quick succession. Nachi's radio...

Image: Unknown author | Public domain

Battle of the Komandorski Islands: The Destroyers' Charge

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Unknown author, Public domain. With their heavy cruiser motionless and helpless, the American destroyers did the only thing they could: they charged. Bailey, Coghlan, and Monaghan turned toward the Japanese cruiser line for a torpedo attack while Richmond and Dale laid smoke screens to shield Salt Lake City. I...

Image: Unknown author | Public domain

Battle of the Komandorski Islands: The Battle That Closed a Supply Line

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Naval History and Heritage Command, Public domain. Then, at 1230, the Japanese turned away. Hosogaya, concerned about fuel and ammunition after the prolonged engagement, and wary of the air attack he assumed must be coming, ordered his ships westward. The convoy never delivered its supplies. The decision cost Hosogaya his career ...

Image: Naval History and Heritage Command | Public domain