Midway Battle 1942 - Myth on unwise IJN battle deployment

 I was surprised to find out, that some people really believe IJN plan for Midway operation was to send Nagumo’s carriers into US ambush, while deliberately keeping other forces too far away to help. 

Of course, this is incorrect. IJN forces were to be spread broadly only during an approach march. For battle IJN forces to be organized into 3-5 mutually supporting groups. Their deployment to be covered with submarine picket lines (crimson dotted line) and air reconnaissance, which covered whole area of planned battle with US fleet (yellow dotted line). See planned IJN disposition for the battle with US fleet - in crimson.

Of course, IJN had no idea that USN was reading their codes and waited for IJN in an ambush. So part of IJN fleet was ambushed and destroyed during pre-battle operations. And USN was too cautions to get lured into ambush, organized by IJN as “plan B”. So IJN had to withdraw.

I expect a logical question: why IJN couldn’t approach battle area in few mutually supporting groups? It could hardly help Nagumo’s carriers, but “plan B” could be played much better. The reason is weird belief of IJN leadership, that USN is lacking will to fight. If the whole might of IJN will arrive to Midway, US fleet will “chicken out” and remain in Pearl Harbor.

So the bait was necessary: big enough to send whole US fleet to defeat it, but small enough to be easily defeated by US fleet. Nagumo’s carriers and Kondo’s cruisers were this bait. And the rest of the IJN fleet has to hide until US fleet will approach Midway.

This was the reason for IJN forces spreaded so broadly during an approach march – even if US submarine will find one group by accident, it won’t be able to report the actual strength of whole fleet.

This part of IJN plan actually worked – USN was unable to uncover full IJN order of battle and thought IJN forces were much smaller, than they actually were. The irony – this lack of knowledge allowed US commanders act way bolder, then if they knew they are facing almost whole IJN fleet.