POR:SECRET ety rant é | MIDWAY, TO AIR LINES, MORE DISRUPTION TO SHIPPING AND ESSENTIALLY NONE EVACUATION AT SHOT TIME, BECAUSE OF LARGE GARRISON, BECOMES A MAJOR PROBLEM, IN THIS REGARD, I AM ASSUMING SHOT ISLAND OR ATOLL IN ALL CASES MUST BE EVACUATED AT SHOT TIME AND LOGISTIC DIFFICULTIES WOULD PREVEN? FIRING FROM KURE. PROBABLY ADEQUATE FOR ESSENTIAL STATIONS, LAND MASS » SECURITY COULD BE HELD UNTIL JUSI BEFORE SHOT, BUT ENTIRELY NEW TEMPORARY-DANGER AREA MUST BE SET UP, ESSENTIAL NORMAL MILITARY PATROL ACTIVITIES FROM MIDWAYWOULD BE DISRUPTED SOMEWHAT, JOHNSON, . IMPORTANP DISRUPTION TO AIR AND SEA TRAVEL IN VIEW OF CLOSENESS TO EaWAII PORTS. EVACUATION MANAGEABLE. LAND MASS SMALZ, BUT PERHAPS ADEQUATE, NEW TEMPORARY-DANGER AREA NEEDED, SECURITY COULD BE KEPT UNTIL LATE, CLOSENESS TO HAWAII MIGHT LEAD TO SOME SERIOUS REPERCUSSION THERE, PARTICULARLY IP NECESSARY RIGIDLY TO CONTROL AIR FLIGHTS AT SHOT TIME, CHRISTMAS, MOST FAVORABLE FROM POINT OF VIEW OF LAND MASS, ISOLATION FROM NORMAL AIR AND SEA LANES, AND EVACUATION OF SHOT AREA, SECURITY PROBABLY COULD BE HELD LONGEST, SCME 300 TO 500 PERSONS ON PALMYRA, WASHINGTON, FANNING, VARVIS (ND MALDEN WOULD NEED BE CONTROLLED, BUT THESE ARE WARDS OF US AND UK AND NOT OF THE UN AS A WHOLE, PROBLEM APPEARS MANAGEABLE, TIME WOULD BE LOST IN NEGOTIATING FOR USE AND FITTING INTO UK ACTIVITIES THERE, TEMPORARY-DANGER AREA ESTABLISHMENT WOULD PROBABLY CAUSE LESS IMPACT THAN FOR OTHER SOLUTIONS, | COULD YOU PROVIDE ME BY TUESDAY AS MUCH INFORMATION AS POSSIBLE ON THE FOLLOWING: . | A, IS WAKE OUT OF THE QUESTION FOR SOME REASON I DO NOT SEE, B. WHAT WOULD BE YOUR ESTIMATE AS TO THE DELAY IN FIRING ENTAILED iN MOVING TO EACH OF THE FOUR LOCA'TONS NAMED ~ 23 - TAD. CGE Giniesr te SINT Tl Appencix "Cc!