PELELIU AIRFIELD, Palau -- The muddy gravel airstrip on Palau's Peleliu Island, hacked out of tropical jungle by the Imperial Japanese Navy during wartime, has seen few flights over the past 20 years.

As the Marines and Army’s Wildcats prepared to storm Peleliu and Angaur, they could only watch as the USS Tennessee unleashed relentless barrages from her powerful 14-inch Mark IV guns. For over four ...