One of the bloodiest battles of the war in the Pacific. Operation Detachment, the invasion of Iwo Jima, on February 19, 1945, was the first campaign on Japanese soil, and it resulted in some of the fiercest fighting of the Pacific campaign. United States Marines supported by the U.S. Navy and Air Force fought the Japanese both over and underground on the island of volcanic ash, in a battle which was immortalized by the raising of the Stars and Stripes above Mount Suribachi. It was a battle that the Japanese could not win, but they were determined to die trying; of the 18,000-strong garrison, only 200 were taken prisoner. The Americans lost more in the 35-day battle, but at the end they had possession of three airfields in range of the Japanese mainland. This book gives a clear, concise account of those dramatic days in 1945, supported by a timeline of events and orders of battle. Over fifty photographs illustrate the events during this momentous battle.