It was the turning point for the allied forces fighting the Japanese in the Pacific. The battle for Midway Island (actually two small islands situated about 1,300 miles west-northwest of Honolulu, Hawaii) began on June 4, 1942. The Japanese aimed to control Midway as a position from which its air force could launch further attacks on Hawaii. As the Japanese fleet approached the islands, which was home to a U.S. Navy base (established in 1941), U.S. forces attacked. Fighting continued until June 6. The Japanese were decisively defeated, losing four aircraft carriers; the United States lost one. The victory proved that Allied naval might could overcome Japan’s.