A new chapter in the Marine Corps legend was written. My uncle was there, a Radioman 3c, on an AKA. He was lucky, he only had to contend with the Kamikazes (which he noted weren’t as bad as the ones he later encountered, literally, at Okinawa).
Today I’ll be at The National Museum of the Pacific War to remember those who gave us so much by giving their all.
Semper Fi, my friends, Semper Fi…
(If anyone finds me there, I’ll buy you dinner. Just ask, “Are you Sparkey?” Contest not open to friends, family, co-workers, members of the communist party, insurgents, weirdos, or the humor impaired.)
The cited WSJ article errors with “all for an island whose future as a major air base never materialized. ”
In fact, twelve days before the island was secured the first crippled B-29 landed there. On April 7, 108 P-51 Mustangs left from Iwo to escort a daylight B-29 attack on Tokyo and within three months of the island’s fall more than 850 B-29s had made emergency landings there; without Iwo most of them would have been lost.
Comment by Don — 20050219 @ 0757
Alas, I will be at my Saturday job…
Comment by Sgt. Mom — 20050219 @ 0809
Don, you’re right. Many B29’s which would have been lost were saved by landing at Iwo. However, the crews feared landing on that PSP runway, as it was slick and not too stable, and B29’s were really heavy airplanes. If you’ve seen films of them landing there, it makes your butt want to suck buttermilk! It was really scary, and not all emergency landings there were successful.
Comment by Joe Comer — 20050219 @ 1538
I knew that, really I did.
That’s what I get for only reading half the article before posting. Can imagine my eye-roll when, on the plane to Austin, I read that? Serves me right.
Thanks for the catch guys.
BTW: Many B-29 pilots said that having Iwo was a real morale booster for them despite the perils of landing there.
Comment by Sparkey — 20050220 @ 2036
Pictures, Sparky! We want pictures!
Comment by sonarguy — 20050221 @ 1031
I miss Sparkey, I miss his kids too.
Comment by obershyster — 20050222 @ 1233
hey man, like reading ur stuff. How come none of the Japanese Internment Camp Link work?
Comment by Bo — 20050912 @ 2120