Module VIII - World War II 1939-45 A Turning Point for Alaska

Essential Question:  Explain how Alaska's location was considered 'strategic' during World War II. What were the war activities/events that supported the perspective of 'strategic' Alaska?

Even today, Alaska is in a strategic location. Most notably, the Aleutian Islands sit on Pacific Great Circle routes. The Aleutian Islands Risk Assessment website reads: "A great circle is the shortest distance between two points on a sphere. Vessels transiting an ocean between two continents may follow a great circle route because it is the shortest distance, or they may deviate from the great circle route where favorable weather and sea states allow for faster travel. 


On many map projections a great circle route is not a straight line.  Above, Figure 1 shows a gnomonic map projection of the North Pacific where the great circle route is a straight line. As seen on this map, a great circle route from Yokohama, Japan to Seattle passes through Unimak Pass and the Aleutian Islands. Figure 2 shows this same route on a Mercator projection where, because the map is flat and the earth is curved, the route appears as a “great circle,” or more accurately, a semi-circle."

Alaska’s strategic location. Map courtesy of The
State of Alaska, Office of Governor Sean Parnell.

Remember way back in Module II where General Billy Mitchell in the 1930's came up with the idea that Alaska is at the center of the earth?  He also stated to the U.S. Congress in 1935, "I believe that in the future, whoever holds Alaska will hold the world. I think it is the most important strategic place in the world."   The U.S. thought that if Japan got a foothold in the Aleutians, they could mount an aerial attack on the Western United States.  The Japanese were thinking this way also.  They believed that their presence in the Aleutians would prevent a U.S. attack on Japan through the Northern Pacific.  Both sides saw the strategic value that the Aleutians had on controlling the Pacific Great Circle routes.

Major Marvin R. Marston also felt strongly about the importance of Alaska's strategic location.  He said, “The nation’s whose air bases are nearest the North Pole will be feared most and have the least to fear.”

Lend-lease B-25s and P-39s on the runway at Ladd Field, Alaska,
prior to testing by the Soviet Purchasing Commission,
September 1942. (U.S. Air Force photo)

Another event that took place later in the war that utilized the  strategic location of Alaska was the Alaska -Siberia Project (ALSIB).  This was Alaska's version of the Lend-Lease program that was being used to support other Allied forces in other battlefronts.  In it, airstrips, airports and radio ranging stations were built in British Columbia, the Yukon and Alaska to facilitate the transport of U.S. made military planes to the Soviet Union. Between September 1942 and September 1945, the Soviet Union accepted almost 8,000 aircraft at the official transfer point, Ladd Field in Fairbanks. Once transferred to Soviet control, Russian pilots took them another 3,500 miles through Nome to the Soviet Union.  Even though there were no hostilities along the route, the Alaskan weather accounted for its share of downed planes.


This Douglas A-20G Lend Lease aircraft in Alaska awaits
delivery to the Soviet Air Force. Note the long range fuel
tank mounted in the bomb bay and the engines being
heated prior to start. (U.S. Air Force photo)

Examine Question:  Describe the recruitment, training, and the role of the Alaska Scouts.

I really hope that this is OK, but I changed this examine question a little. I came across the Alaska Scouts and could not stop reading about them.  As a matter of fact, it probably took me more time to find the information about them as it did to actually read about them.  However, what I found was fascinating.

Some of Castner's Cutthroats

Only six months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, in June of 1942, the Japanese bombed Dutch Harbor and invaded the Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska.  Lieutenant General Simon Buckner was given the task of taking back Alaska.  Because of the primitive conditions and lack of roads and communications.  Colonel Lawrence Castner, one of Buckner's intelligence officers, proposed recruiting an elite unit of Alaskan natives, trappers, and hunters to act as scouts for the army.  These men needed to be and were at home in the wilds of Alaska.  These "Alaska Scouts" were officially known as the 1st Combat Intelligence Platoon (Provisional), later to become known as Castner's Cutthroats.  The reason they took on this added moniker was because they did not have to conform to military protocols.  They dressed in their own civilian clothes with little or no military markings.  They were given the freedom to choose weapons based on personal preference.  Even shaving and bathing were optional.

Alaska Scout William "Billy" Buck

Recruitment and training went hand in hand.  These men were already experienced hunters and outdoorsmen.  As recruits, they were were intensively trained in commando operations.  By design, they travelled with a minimal amount of gear.  They lived off the land and did so quite well.  During the Aleutian Campaign, the Cuttrhoats would be the first to land on a new island and give a report back to the military leaders.  On Adak Island, their mission was to locate a suitable site for an airstrip for a forward air base.  Finding no enemy when they landed and finding no place for a suitable landing strip, they suggested draining a sandy bottom lagoon.  Once it was built, the Americans now had a landing field half way between Dutch Harbor and the Japanese.

After that, the Cutthroats were given the task of taking Amchitka, just 50 miles east of Japanese occupied Kiska.  The landing was perilous due to a nasty winter storm and even though 14 sailors drowned, all the Cutthroats survived.  Once again, no Japanese were found on the island, the all clear was given and 2,000 GI's landed.  Unfortunately, due to the same storm, most of the food supplies were lost.  Castner's Cutthroats saved them from exposure and starvation by teaching them how to survive with the resources at hand.

(Courtesy Elmendorf Air Force Base History Office, Alaska)
Seventh Infantry Division troops landing at Massacre Bay, Attu, May 1943. 

For the final push, they proved invaluable.  Hiking across 30 miles of treacherous terrain, they set up an observation post to view enemy activities on Kiska.  They were able radio back to the airfield letting them know of bombing raids headed their way.  When it came time for the invasion of Attu, the Cutthroats led the way.  Spread out between units as guides and sharpshooters, the outdoorsmen used their lethal hunting skills by stalking and killing Japanese snipers and machine gun crews.  After a year of intense struggle, Alaska was back in American hands, thanks to the homegrown scouts who guided the way and helped the unprepared U.S. Army survive the extreme environment.


Three Blog Reviews:
I liked Niki's use of pictures and links  I flowed well and kept me engaged.

Claire did a nice job of using local history.  Interesting.

Betty also did a nice job of using local history and great pictures.


Evaluate:  This Module was just packed with all kinds of really great stuff to look up and learn about.  As I said above, I just couldn't stop reading and looking for more information on the Alaska Scouts aka Castner's Cutthroats.  Here's an expert from the Alaska Veteran's Museum:  "Lt. Acuff and Sgt. Walker came to Alaska from different wartime posts in the Lower 48. Neither of them fit in nor liked to follow the rules, they said, but both were good outdoorsmen and survivalists.....Walker first met Acuff on a remote Aleutian island. Acuff was dispatched to the island to watch for Japanese planes. He was told to keep radio silence unless he saw the enemy. The Army never heard from Acuff and thought he was dead. Walker and a few men were sent to recover Acuff's body. Walker first spotted Acuff on a mountain as Walker's boat approached the beach.

“He came down that mountain, and I swear he was taking 10-foot steps,” Walker said. “He came down that mountain and up the beach and he wasn't even breathing hard. He was one super man.”

It turned out that Acuff hadn't seen any enemy planes and was enjoying living off of king crab, ptarmigan and halibut.

The men had many adventures together during the war; they slept in spruce-bough beds in tents on Fort Richardson; they caught and cooked their own food on post, built smokehouses to smoke two tons of salmon, managed dog teams and trained other soldiers to live off the land."