Operation Cartwheel

Toenails: The Landings
in New Georgia

South Pacific Organization

by James Miller, jr.

The South Pacific's tactical and logistical planning for the invasion of New Georgia (TOENAILS, or Operation A) involved all the major echelons of the complex command that was Admiral Halsey's. Halsey's position was somewhat unusual. As he phrased it, the joint Chiefs' orders of 28 March "had the curious effect of giving me two 'hats' in the same echelon." (Halsey and Bryan, Admiral Halsey's Story, p. 154.)

His immediate superior in the chain of command was Admiral Nimitz, who was responsible, subject to decisions by the joint Chiefs, for supplying him with the means of war. For the strategic direction of the war in the Solomons, MacArthur was Halsey's superior.

South Pacific Organization

Whereas MacArthur's headquarters followed U.S. Army organization, Halsey's followed that of the Navy. (Unless otherwise indicated this section is based on The History of the United States Army Forces in the South Pacific Area [USAFISPA] During World War II: 30 March 1942-1 August 1944, MS, Pt. II, Chs. I-II, IV, and Pt. III, Vol. I, Ch. 1, OCMH.)

There were many more subordinates, such as island commanders, reporting directly to Halsey than reporting to MacArthur, and the South Pacific was never organized as simply 'as the Southwest Pacific. Halsey, by the device of not appointing a single tactical commander of all naval forces, retained personal control of them. There was a single commander of landbased aircraft, but there was never a single ground force commander with complete tactical authority. (Chart 5)

Naval forces, designated the Third Fleet in March 1943, came generally from the U.S. Navy and the Royal New Zealand Navy. Except for New Zealand ships, no warships were ever permanently assigned; as need arose Nimitz dispatched warships to the South Pacific. The South Pacific Amphibious Force (Task Force 32), on the other hand, was a permanent organization to which landing forces were attached for amphibious operations. In command was Rear Adm. Richmond K. Turner who had led the Amphibious Force in the invasion of Guadalcanal the year before.

Land-based air units from all Allied services in the South Pacific were under the operational control of the Commander, Aircraft, South Pacific, Admiral Fitch. Fitch's command, Task Force 33, was made up of Royal New Zealand and U.S. Army, Navy, and Marine Corps air units. Principal administrative organizations within Task Force 33 were General Twining's Thirteenth Air Force and the 1st and 2d Marine Air Wings. The most important tactical organization in Fitch's force was the interservice, international outfit known as Air Command, Solomons, that had grown out of the exigencies of the Guadalcanal Campaign. (During the Guadalcanal Campaign the senior naval aviator on the island commanded all aircraft there, with the informal title of COMAIR CACTUS.)

Fitch issued general directives which were executed under the tactical direction of the Commander, Aircraft, Solomons, who until 25 July 1943 was Rear Adm. Marc A. Mitscher.

There were two principal ground force commanders in early 1943. The first, General Harmon, an experienced airman who had served as Chief of Air Staff in Washington, was the commanding general of U.S. Army Forces in the South Pacific Area; his command embraced air as well as ground troops. His authority was largely administrative and logistical, but he also advised the area Commander on tactical matters and Halsey throughout the period of active operations relied heavily on him. Under Harmon, in early 1943, were four infantry divisions, the Americal, 25th, 37th, and 41nd, as well as the Thirteenth Air Force. The Americal and 25th Divisions had fought in the Guadalcanal Campaign. The 43nd Division had seen no fighting but had received valuable experience when elements of the division took part in the invasion of the Russells, The 37th, which had gone out the year before to garrison the Fijis, was as yet untried.

In addition to these divisions, which usually fought under the tactical command of the XIV Corps, there were, in Harmon's command, the Army garrison troops in the island bases and a growing number, but never enough to satisfy the local commanders, of service units. By mid-1943 Harmon's command embraced about 275,000 men.

The Marine Corps counterpart to Harmon's command, as far as ground forces were concerned, was the I Marine Amphibious Corps. This organization, under Maj. Gen. Clayton B. Vogel, USMC, had administrative responsibility over all Marine Corps units, except ships' detachments and certain air units, in the South Pacific-two Marine divisions, one raider regiment, six defense battalions, one parachute regiment, and service troops. The 1st Marine Division in the Southwest Pacific was nominally administered by the I Marine Amphibious Corps but drew its supplies from Southwest Pacific agencies.

The highest logistic agency, the Service Squadron, South Pacific Force, operated directly under Halsey. It controlled all ships, distributed all supplies locally procured, assigned shipping space, designated ports, and handled all naval procurement. An equally important logistic agency was the Army's Services of Supply, South Pacific Area.

In early 1943 under Maj. Gen. Robert G. Breene it was an expanding organization which was playing an important part in South Pacific affairs.

The organization of the South Pacific, as set forth on paper, seems complicated and unwieldy. Perhaps it could have functioned awkwardly, but the personalities and abilities of the senior commanders were such that they made it work. There is ample testimony in various reports to attest to the high regard in which the aggressive, forceful Halsey and his subordinates held one another, and events showed that the South Pacific was able to plan and conduct offensive operations involving units from all Allied armed services with skill and success.

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