Naval history of World War II 4–7, 1942, the United States Navy decisively defeated a Japanese naval force that had sought to lure the U.S. carrier fleet into a trap at Midway Atoll. The Japanese fleet lost four aircraft carriers to the U.S. Navy's one American carrier and a destroyer. After Midway, and the exhausting attrition of the Solomon Islands campaign, Japan's shipbuilding and pilot training programs were unable to keep pace in replacing their losses while the U.S. steadily increased its output in both areas. Military historian John Keegan called the Battle of Midway "the most stunning and decisive blow in the history of naval
Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II "Shōkaku", "Zuikaku", and the new carrier which had an armored-deck, sortied to meet the Americans in the Philippine Sea. The resulting clash was the largest carrier battle in history. The battle did not turn out as the Japanese had hoped. In reality their decisive battle ended in total defeat for the Japanese and resulted in the virtual end of their carrier force. On June 19, a series of Japanese carrier air strikes were shattered by strong American defenses. On the same day, "Shōkaku" was hit by four torpedoes from the submarine and sank with heavy loss of life. The "Taihō"