Japanese General Harukichi Hyakutake in front of his headquarters on Rabaul before his deployment to Guadalcanal

Japanese General Harukichi Hyakutake in front of his headquarters on Rabaul before his deployment to Guadalcanal
On 13 October, in order to help protect the transit of an important supply convoy to Guadalcanal that consisted of six slower cargo ships, the Japanese
Combined Fleet commander Isoroku Yamamoto sent a naval force from Truk —commanded by Vice-Admiral Takeo Kurita —to bombard Henderson Field. Kurita's force—consisting of the battleships Kongō and Haruna , escorted by one light cruiser and nine destroyers—approached Guadalcanal unopposed and opened fire on Henderson Field at 01:33 on 14 October. Over the next 83 minutes, they fired 973 14 in (360 mm) shells into the Lunga perimeter, most of them falling in and around the 2,200 m 2 (24,000 sq ft) area of the airfield. The bombardment heavily damaged the airfield's two runways, burned almost all of the available aviation fuel, destroyed 48 of the CAF's 90 aircraft, and killed 41 men, including six CAF aircrew. [18]
Despite the heavy damage, Henderson personnel were able to restore one of the runways to operational condition within a few hours. Over the next several weeks, the CAF gradually recovered as Allied forces delivered more aircraft, fuel, and aircrew personnel to Guadalcanal. Observing the Japanese deliveries of troops and supplies to the island, American forces were expecting an imminent offensive by Japanese ground forces, but they were not sure where and when it would take place.