For almost three years, the Seventh Amphibious Force trained its personnel, fought a determined enemy, and carried Allied troops forward with accelerating pace and swelling power.
Daniel Barbey1Amphibious warfare, throughout military history, can be summarised in two steps: the movement of a military force by sea, and the landing of that force on the beach to seize an objective. These two steps are generally considered the most difficult and dangerous form of warfare. During World War II, US forces carried out 66 major amphibious landings.
2 A major amphibious operation is defined by two factors. In US military history, it is often noted that of the 66 amphibious landings, ten were conducted by the US Marine Corps, six were conducted by both the US Marine Corps and US Army, and 50 were conducted by the US Army.
3 Less acknowledged are the Australian Army’s five major landings: Lae, Finschhafen, Tarakan, Brunei Bay and finally Balikpapan.
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