Akinosuke Oka

Infobox Military Person
name= Akinosuke Oka
lived=
placeofbirth=
placeofdeath=


caption=
nickname=
allegiance= flagicon|Japan|alt Empire of Japan
branch=
serviceyears=
rank= Colonel
commands=
unit=
battles= World War II
oBattle of the Philippines (1941-42)
oGuadalcanal campaign
awards=
laterwork=

nihongo|Akinosuke Oka|岡明之助 was a colonel in the Imperial Japanese Army and a commander of Japanese troops during the strategically significant Guadalcanal campaign in the Pacific theater of World War II. Oka commanded a portion of Japanese troops from the 35th Infantry Brigade in a losing effort during the Battle of Edson's Ridge in September, 1942. He later successfully defended the Matanikau River area during the September, 1942 Matanikau action. During the Battle for Henderson Field, Oka led the 1,200 troops of the 124th Infantry Regiment across the Matanikau and attacked U.S. Marine defenses early on October 26, 1942 but his attack was thrown back with heavy losses to his men, contributing to the overall decisive Japanese defeat in this battle.

At the Battle of Mount Austen, the Galloping Horse, and the Sea Horse in January 1943, Oka and the 1st and 3rd Battalions from the 124th unsuccessfully attempted to defend a terrain feature called the Sea Horse from American attacks. After losing possession of the feature and surrounding areas, Oka and his surviving troops escaped to friendly lines. Some sources state that Oka was killed soon after this, but others suggest he may have been evacuated with the rest of the Japanese forces during Operation Ke and survived the campaign.

References

Books

*cite book
last = Frank
first = Richard
authorlink = Richard B. Frank
year = 1990
title = Guadalcanal: The Definitive Account of the Landmark Battle
publisher = Random House
location = New York
id = ISBN 0-394-58875-4
*cite book
last = Griffith
first = Samuel B.
authorlink =
coauthors =
year = 1963
chapter =
title = The Battle for Guadalcanal
publisher = University of Illinois Press
location = Champaign, Illinois, USA
id = ISBN 0-252-06891-2
*cite book
last = Smith
first = Michael T.
authorlink =
coauthors =
year = 2000
chapter =
title = Bloody Ridge: The Battle That Saved Guadalcanal
publisher = Pocket
location = New York
id = ISBN 0-7434-6321-8
*cite book
last = Rottman
first = Gordon L.
authorlink =
coauthors = Dr. Duncan Anderson (consultant editor)
year = 2005
chapter =
title = Japanese Army in World War II: The South Pacific and New Guinea, 1942-43
publisher = Osprey
location = Oxford and New York
id = ISBN 1-84176-870-7

Web

*cite web
last = Hough
first = Frank O.
authorlink =
coauthors = Ludwig, Verle E., and Shaw, Henry I., Jr.
date =
year =
month =
url = http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/I/index.html
title = Pearl Harbor to Guadalcanal
format =
work = History of U.S. Marine Corps Operations in World War II
pages =
publisher =
language =
accessdate = 2006-05-16
accessyear =
*cite web
last = Shaw
first = Henry I.
authorlink =
coauthors =
date =
year = 1992
month =
url = http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-C-Guadalcanal/index.html
title = First Offensive: The Marine Campaign For Guadalcanal
format =
work = Marines in World War II Commemorative Series
pages =
publisher =
language =
accessdate = 2006-07-25
accessyear =
*cite web
last = Zimmerman
first = John L.
authorlink =
coauthors =
date =
year = 1949
month =
url = http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USMC/USMC-M-Guadalcanal.html
title = The Guadalcanal Campaign
format =
work = Marines in World War II Historical Monograph
pages =
publisher =
language =
accessdate = 2006-07-04
accessyear =

Notes