During the decades between the world wars the Japanese worked extensively to develop a strong amphibious assault capablility. The relative independence of the two branches of the Japanese military resulted in the Army and Navy both creating landing forces tailored to different missions. The two separate approaches to the assault from the sea would work well for the Imperial military during the aggression against China in the 30s and in the initial blitzkrieg against American and Allied possessions in the Pacific. However, the inherent weaknesses in the divided approach would be exploited by the Allies later in the decisive campaigns of the Pacific war.
Sources:
Military Innovation in the Interwar Period, Williamson Murray & Allan R Millet, eds.
ONI-225 J "Japanese Landing Operations and Equipment", US Navy Office of Naval Intelligence, 1943
As well as online research from Wikipedia and combinedfleet.com
12 апр 2021
