Operation Magic Carpet/ part 1

A WW II LOGISTICAL HEADACHE!
The second war to end all wars was over. In 1945, when it ended, there were over 12 million service members, including the Coast Guard. 8 million men and women who served overseas in that war were scattered across the globe. The fighting was over. It was time to bring the heroes home. Their eagerness to return to civilian life was matched by the eagerness of their loved ones to see them. How Did They Get Home? It would be a massive logistical headache. They were scattered across four continents in 55 war theaters from every branch of service.

Operation Magic Carpet was the means used to repatriate those millions of American military personnel. It is recognized as one of the greatest achievements of the war. Nearly 400 ships and troop transports were used to bring the American soldiers back home from Europe and Asia. Lasting just over 14 months (June 1945 – September 1946), Operation Magic Carpet was the largest combined air and sealift ever organized. It got its name from the biblical passage Exodus 19:4, “ Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.”

As early as 1943 US Army Chief of Staff General George Marshall began thinking about how to repatriate returning soldiers. He had served as General Pershing’s Chief of Staff during WWI and had witnessed firsthand the Army’s demobilization failures. Its failures had left the Army seriously undermanned. It was predicted after D-Day June 6, 1944, that the war in Europe would end within six months. The war lasted much longer than predicted. Marshall and his team had more questions than answers.

Even though Germany and Japan had yet to be defeated, he recognized that bringing service members home would be a major statistical obstacle if preliminary planning was not begun. Sending soldiers home in a prompt manner based on objective criteria was critical. To not do so would risk provoking widespread protest from restless soldiers overseas who had no more enemies to fight. Soldiers’ frustration with the Army could have a significant impact on America’s public support for military spending after the war.

On May 8, 1945, Germany surrendered to the Allies. The US Army suddenly faced an enormous new task. Millions of men who fought in Europe had to be fairly, equitably identified, and discharged. Still hundreds of thousands of them had to redeploy halfway across the world for an expected invasion of Japan. It was the job of Operation Magic Carpet to repatriate and redeploy the American men and women serving in the military overseas. 8 million American service members were stationed overseas. Nearly 4 million of them were on the European front. During the European Theater of Operations, the WSA shipped on average 148,000 soldiers per month to that front. After VE day movement back home would average more than 435,00 per month for the next 14 months.

How it Worked!

The operation officially began in June 1945. During the operation 22,000 + Americans were transported every day. Back on February 7, 1942, President Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9054 which created the WSA (War Shipping Administration). Its purpose was to control and operate all American vessels, except those assigned to the Army and Navy, ensuring the efficient movement of war materials and troops across the ocean.

The WSA, headed by Admiral Emory Land, was in control of a vast armada of cargo carriers, the Army and its wartime fleet, and the Coast Guard with its force of assault troopships. All would be available, once Germany was defeated, to ferry American service members back home to ports on the East Coast.

One of the most critical phases of the planning was to establish a means of prioritizing the personnel to be returned. Some, of course, had to stay at their foreign posts. But who would get to come home first and on what basis? The Advance Service Rating Score (ASRS) was created to establish those priorities.

It was a pecking order based upon the principle that “those who had fought longest and hardest should be returned home for discharge first”. Points were awarded for months of service, months of service overseas, combat awards, wounds, marital status, and dependent children. The more points scored, the greater the priority for shipping home and discharge. 85 points were needed to be considered for demobilization. With the end of the war getting closer, the Points System was revised almost every 3-4 months.

Soldiers with children got priority toward demobilization. Each child under 18 was worth 12 points with a maximum of three children. Bill Maudlin, a War cartoonist, drew a cartoon of an American soldier greeting his child after his return home and calling him “Wonderful little twelve-point rascal!”

Victory in Europe was declared on May 8, 1945. On VE Day there were 8 million American service members stationed overseas. Nearly 4 million of them were on the European front. The US needed to bring the warriors home. But the Navy was preparing for a likely invasion of the Japanese Home Islands. Consequently, they were unwilling to relinquish their contingency of attack transports and warships for transportation roles.

So, until Japan was defeated, getting the repatriated service members home was the sole responsibility of the Army, Coast Guard, and the Merchant Marine.

August 14, 1945, was the day President Truman announced that Japan had surrendered. So, what about those serving in the Pacific?