Today in World War II History—May 5, 1942

Navajo code-talkers on Bougainville, December 1943 (US Marine Corps photo)

80 Years Ago—May 5, 1942: Japanese land on Corregidor in the Philippines.

British land at Diego Suarez in Vichy-French Madagascar, fearing Japanese takeover and control of the Indian Ocean.

First 29 Navajo recruits begin boot camp with the US Marine Corps; they will pioneer code-talking.

Sugar rationing begins in the United States (Read more: “Make It Do—Sugar Rationing in World War II.”)

Fulmar fighters aboard carrier HMS Formidable off Madagascar, early May 1942 (Imperial War Museum: A 9710)