On 24 August, during the naval Battle of the Eastern Solomons between aircraft carrier forces of Japan and the U.S. east of the Solomon Islands, Japanese Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo sent the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) light carrier "Ryūjō" ahead of the main Japanese warship force to send an aircraft attack force against Henderson Field. The "Ryūjō" mission was most likely in response to a request from Nishizo Tsukahara, the naval commander at Rabaul, for help from the Japanese combined fleet in neutralizing Henderson Field. At 12:20 and northeast of Guadalcanal, the "Ryūjō" launched six "Kate" bombers and 15 A6M Zero fighters to attack Henderson Field in conjunction with an attack by 24 "Betty" bombers and 14 Zero fighters from Rabaul. Unknown to the "Ryūjō" force, the Rabaul aircraft had encountered severe weather and returned to their base at 11:30. The "Ryūjō"'s aircraft arrived over Henderson Field at 14:23 and tangled with 14 Marine Wildcats and four Army P-400s while bombing the airfield. In the resulting engagement three Kates, three Zeros, and three Marine fighters were shot down and no damage was done to Henderson Field. Two Marine pilots were killed in the engagement as well as eight Japanese aircrewmen. All of these Japanese aircraft were eventually lost because, while they were attacking Henderson Field, the "Ryūjō" was sunk by aircraft from the aircraft carrier USS "Saratoga", forcing the Japanese aircraft to ditch in the ocean upon returning to the previous location of their carrier.