U.S. Marines seek out Japanese on Saipan Island. A patrol of U.S.

U.S. Marines seek out Japanese on Saipan Island. A patrol of U.S. Marines follows Japanese communication lines to locate fortified enemy positions on Saipan Island before that strategic Marianas base was won by Americans on July 8, 1944. American troops dislodged the Japanese from carefully prepared defense positions, pounding back the enemy into a trap on the northern end of the Central Pacific island which is less than 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) from Japan. American control of the island cracks Japan's inner defense system. Saipan possesses excellent airfields, within U.S. Superfortress range of the Japanese homeland, and its deep-water harbors provide forward naval supply bases for units of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.