Today in World War II History—Feb. 17, 1944

US Marines landing on Eniwetok, 17 February 1944 (US Marine Corps Photo)

US Navy SBD Dauntless bombers over Truk Atoll, 16-18 February 1944 (US National Archives)
75 Years Ago—Feb. 17, 1944: US Army & Marines land on Eniwetok Atoll in Marshall Islands.
Soviets close Korsun pocket and take 18,000 German POWs; 28,000 Germans break out of the pocket, but thousands drown crossing a swollen river.
US Navy carriers strike Japanese base at Truk in the Pacific, sinking 37 ships, shooting down 121 Japanese fighter planes (the highest one-day total in the Pacific war to date), and destroying 150 Japanese planes on the ground.