Millions of fighting men, hundreds of thousands of ships, airplanes, tanks and other weaponry, spread out over the European continent as well as four other continents and several oceans….and someone has to coordinate it all and lead the mean. That is why Aces High is saluting the commanders of World War 2 each week on our site. Behind every great soldier there was a brilliant, or not-so-brilliant, general. On this series of articles, we will highlight a few of the brilliant ones.
This week, sit back and learn about Chester W. Nimitz.
Nimitz began his naval career in 1906 aboard the USS Baltimore in San Francisco, and then served on several other ships from 1906 to 1913. In the summer of 1913, Nimitz studied diesel engines and diesel engine plants in Germany and Belgium, and during World War I he served mostly on the Maumee as a refueling ship officer in the Atlantic.
Between wars Nimitz continued to work his way up the ranks in the Navy, and eventually became an expert on submarines. By 1938 he was Commander, Cruiser Division 2, and then appointed Chief of the Bureau of Navigation in 1939. Once the United States entered the war, Nimitz was named Commander in Chief, Pacific Ocean Areas, with operational control over all Allied units (air, land, and sea) in that area.
It was under the command of Nimitz that the offense shifted to the Allies in the Pacific Theater, and he was in charge of victories at the Battle of the Coral Sea, Battle of Midway, and the Solomon Islands Campaign. In 1944, Nimitz was given the Fleet Admiral of the United States Navy, becoming the highest ranking officer in the Navy. Finally, after winning back control of the Pacific Ocean, Nimitz was on hand for the Japanese surrender on the Missouri in September, 1945.
Nimitz died in 1966 as the last surviving U.S. Fleet Admiral.
We at HiTech Creations salute Admiral Nimitz for his tireless and brilliant work during World War 2. It is because of men like Admiral Nimitz that our inspiration shines for our World War 2 flight simulator, Aces High. Now all of you can try Aces High, and move ships, planes and men around in battle, and experience in some small way what it must have been like to fight during World War 2.
Give us a try. We offer a free two-week download of our flight sim game, so download it and get ready for some great action.
