GILBERT ISLANDS
INFANTRYMEN MOVING FORWARD, 22 November, the day they took the east tank barrier on the island. Flanking machine gun and rifle fire from the enemy in the battered Japanese sea plane (upper right) harassed American troops on the 21st. This fire was silenced by the 75-mm. guns of medium tanks. Coordination between the infantry and tanks was good on the second day.
GILBERT ISLANDS
AMERICAN LIGHT TANKS M3A1 on Butaritari Island on D Day. Tank in foreground had bogged down in a water-filled bomb crater (top). The remains of a Japanese light tank which did not get into battle (bottom). During the morning of the first day American tanks could not make much headway against the combined obstacles of debris, shell holes, and marsh, but by afternoon they were able to render assistance to the infantry. The enemy had only two tanks on the island but they were not used since when they were found wooden plugs were still in the barrels of their guns.
GILBERT ISLANDS
