Here is a U.S. Navy report written in the post-war era summing up the remarkable roll that naval aviation played throughout the last half of the war with Imperial Japan:
"In the advance across the Central Pacific the carrier task force with it's extreme flexibility and mobility had been the dominant factor. It established the conditions under which long-range amphibious advances were possible. It never failed to gain command of the air at the required time and place, successively overwhelming the air garrisons not only of the Japanese perimeter but of the major fortresses of Formosa and the Philippines, and maintained command of the air until shore-based air forces could be established."
You can read about W.W. II carrier warfare here...
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From Amazon: A Copy of the Japanese Army
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