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Wreckage Of WWII Aircraft Carrier Found In The South Pacific Ocean

  

Category:  News & Politics

Via:  kavika  •  5 years ago  •  55 comments

Wreckage Of WWII Aircraft Carrier Found In The South Pacific Ocean

S E E D E D   C O N T E N T





8-visible-on-hull-from-online-room-2-503





A researcher examines the underwater hull of the USS Hornet CV-8, which played a role in several key events of World War II.



Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen's Vulcan Inc


More than 75 years after the aircraft carrier USS Hornet sank in a World War II battle, researchers have uncovered its wreckage 3 miles under the South Pacific Ocean.

The Hornet played a role in several key events of the war — including the Doolittle Raid on Japan and the pivotal Battle of Midway.

Since it sank, its resting place has been a mystery. An expedition crew, funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen,   has been searching   for "historically significant shipwrecks" using the Research Vessel Petrel.

"We had   Hornet   on our list of WWII warships that we wanted to locate because of its place in history as an aircraft carrier that saw many pivotal moments in naval battles," Robert Kraft, director of subsea operations for Allen's company Vulcan, said in a statement.




The team used data from national and naval archives, along with a dive from an autonomous underwater vehicle, to find the ship. They located it in the ocean around the Solomon Islands late last month.

Photos released by the research team show an anti-aircraft gun and other weapons in the wreckage deep under the ocean.


5-inch-gun_custom-695e6861aba6bd0c0dcc0c




A weapon on the USS Hornet, which was found by researchers last month in the South Pacific Ocean.



Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen's Vulcan Inc


The Hornet was sunk by Japanese forces in the Battle of Santa Cruz Island in October 1942. Japanese bombers and torpedo planes heavily damaged the ship, eventually causing its crew to abandon it.

"When they left, we were dead in the water," Richard Nowatzki, who was a gunner on the ship and survived the battle,   told CBS News . "They used armor piercing bombs, now when they come down, you hear 'em going through the decks ... plink, plink, plink, plink ... and then when they explode the whole ship shakes.

Two Japanese destroyers eventually launched an additional torpedo attack, sinking the Hornet. It was in commissioned service for just over a year,   according to a Navy history .

"With the loss of   Hornet   and serious damage to   Enterprise,   the Battle of Santa Cruz was a Japanese victory, but at an extremely high cost," retired Rear Adm. Samuel Cox, director of naval history and heritage command, said in a statement. "About half the Japanese aircraft engaged were shot down by greatly improved U.S. Navy anti-aircraft defenses. As a result, the Japanese carriers did not engage again in battle for almost another two years."




Most famously, during the   Doolittle Raid   in April 1942, 16 B-25 planes took off from the ship and bombed targets in Japan, including Tokyo. The heavily laden bombers — which were not designed to land on an aircraft carrier — were forced to try to land in China or the Soviet Union.



ap_4204180261-c3f96834a28c887baf9abc1a98





One of Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle's B-25 bombers takes off from the flight deck of the USS Hornet for the initial air raid on Tokyo on April 18, 1942.



AP


"While the material damage inflicted by Doolittle's raiders proved small," the Navy said, "the effect of the air raid on the Japanese capital itself proved enormous." The researchers added that "this was the first air-operation to strike Japan and proved an important American morale boost since the devastating Pearl Harbor attack."

The ship also fought in the Battle of Midway, where U.S. carriers sank four Japanese aircraft carriers. Many naval historians view Midway as the   turning point   in the war in the Pacific. The Hornet received four battle stars for its service in the war.


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Kavika
Professor Principal
1  seeder  Kavika     5 years ago

Another amazing discovery...

Since it sank, its resting place has been a mystery. An expedition crew, funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, has been searching for "historically significant shipwrecks" using the Research Vessel Petrel.

Kudos to Paul Allen. They have discovered a number of ships of historical importance. The ''Indianapolis'' being another.

 
 
 
Bob Nelson
Professor Guide
2  Bob Nelson    5 years ago

Cool seed, K. Thank you.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
2.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  Bob Nelson @2    5 years ago

The continuing discoveries by Paul Allen are a huge contribution to our naval history in WWII. 

 
 
 
1stwarrior
Professor Participates
3  1stwarrior    5 years ago

Though the Doolittle Raid did show the Japanese that they were no longer "safe" from attack by air.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
3.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  1stwarrior @3    5 years ago
Though the Doolittle Raid did show the Japanese that they were no longer "safe" from attack by air.

That is true, but it was the Chinese that paid the price since most of the bombers made it to China and Japan took the vengeance on the Chinese civilian population. 

 
 
 
Buzz of the Orient
Professor Expert
3.1.1  Buzz of the Orient  replied to  Kavika @3.1    5 years ago

I read the story you linked with horror. Even though I now live in Chongqing (previously known as Chungking), the home of the American Flying Tigers, which was relentlessly bombed during the war, I was unaware of the devastation, terror, murder and savage cruelty that matched the Rape of Nanching (Nanking) about which I had long ago learned.  When I learned of the Rape of Nanching, seeing Japanese newsreels that were exceptionally explicit, I realized why the Chinese despised the Japanese as much as they did, and now, having read this story, I realize why the Chinese will NEVER forgive the Japanese and I fully agree with them.

I wonder, if America knew what the result of their raid would wreak upon the Chinese, would they have carried it out? 

 
 
 
FLYNAVY1
Professor Guide
3.1.2  FLYNAVY1  replied to  Buzz of the Orient @3.1.1    5 years ago

"I wonder, if America knew what the result of their raid would wreak upon the Chinese, would they have carried it out?"

I think so Buzz.  The US was looking for something that would boost American spirit.  From Pearl Harbor on, it seemed like there was no stopping the Japanese.  The raid itself was meaningless from a military standpoint, but the strike on Tokyo from the Hornet greatly boosted American resolve in the Pacific.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
3.1.3  seeder  Kavika   replied to  Buzz of the Orient @3.1.1    5 years ago
I wonder, if America knew what the result of their raid would wreak upon the Chinese, would they have carried it out? 

Yes, we probably did know. To the extent of the horrors that the Japanese would inflict on the Chinese probably not. 

Yes, I can fully understand the Chinese feelings toward the Japanese. This horror is soul searing. 

 
 
 
TTGA
Professor Silent
3.1.4  TTGA  replied to  FLYNAVY1 @3.1.2    5 years ago
but the strike on Tokyo from the Hornet greatly boosted American resolve in the Pacific.

More than that FLY.  Besides raising American morale, it shook that of the Japanese, causing them to divert forces for home islands defense that would otherwise have been assigned to the Coral Sea and Midway battles.  I don't know if it made the difference between victory and defeat in those actions, but it certainly increased the US chances.

Besides the Doolittle raid, Hornet was the carrier that sent off Torpedo Squadron 8 to attack the Japanese carriers at Midway.  The only survivor of that action, Ensign (later LtCdr) George Gay died in 1995.  While Torpedo Squadrons 6 and 8 paid a heavy price and did not cause any direct damage to the Japanese carriers, they did draw down the combat air patrol fighter planes of the Japanese, making the attack of the accompanying dive bombers more likely to succeed, which it did by sinking all of the Japanese carriers engaged.

Great article Kav.  Wasn't it this same group that located the resting place of the USS Ward, the destroyer that fired the first shots at the miniature subs off Pearl Harbor?

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
3.1.5  seeder  Kavika   replied to  TTGA @3.1.4    5 years ago
Wasn't it this same group that located the resting place of the USS Ward, the destroyer that fired the first shots at the miniature subs off Pearl Harbor?

I think that it was TTGA...Paul Allen and his crews have made some amazing discoveries. And they are still out there looking for more. Kudos to them. 

 
 
 
JohnRussell
Professor Principal
4  JohnRussell    5 years ago

Isnt WWII the only time in history when planes from aircraft carriers attacked each others fleet?  It was a unique time in history.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
4.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  JohnRussell @4    5 years ago
Isnt WWII the only time in history when planes from aircraft carriers attacked each others fleet?  It was a unique time in history.

Yes it was JR...Truly a very unique time in history.

 
 
 
FLYNAVY1
Professor Guide
4.2  FLYNAVY1  replied to  JohnRussell @4    5 years ago

Correct John.... The battle of the Coral Sea, in May of 42, was the first naval battle where the surface ships were never in sight of one another and opposing aircraft carriers were jointly engaged in battle.

There is a plaque that memorializes the USS Hornet CV-8, and her WWII contributions mounted on Pier 3 adjacent to what was Alameda Naval Air Station/California. (see link)  When my Squadron was assigned to the USS Enterprise CVN-65 in the early 1980s, we tied up at that same pier. A piece of history.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?view=detailV2&id=25534641010098EAB2CF0F2CFEA4574061772DE3&thid=OIP.BlWMydH74N_eWEA54PXStQHaFB&mediaurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.navsource.org%2Farchives%2F02%2F020849.jpg&exph=672&expw=992&q=Hornet+memorial%2c+alameda&selectedindex=155&ajaxhist=0&vt=0&eim=1,2,6

    

 
 
 
Nowhere Man
Junior Guide
4.2.1  Nowhere Man  replied to  FLYNAVY1 @4.2    5 years ago

Yep the dock they loaded the B-25's from..... They landed, were directed dockside, before they rolled onto the dock they were asked if they had any issues with the aircraft, those that did were turned away towards a parking area, those that didn't were led onto the dock and when they came to a halt, the crews were all over them hooking them up and lifting them to the deck, a few, before the props even stopped turning....

The crews barely had time to exit the aircraft before they were hoisted onto the deck.

That was a hell of a time.....

 
 
 
Snuffy
Professor Participates
4.3  Snuffy  replied to  JohnRussell @4    5 years ago
Isnt WWII the only time in history when planes from aircraft carriers attacked each others fleet?  It was a unique time in history.

Actually no, not the only time. Definitely holds the most,  but there was a small fracas between the UK and Argentina down near the Falkland Islands in 1982 where the aircraft from UK carriers sank several Argentinian ships.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
4.3.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  Snuffy @4.3    5 years ago

I think that he meant that two aircraft carriers faced off against one another. At least that is my interpertation of the comment.

 
 
 
Nowhere Man
Junior Guide
6  Nowhere Man    5 years ago

This is how I prefer to remember her.....

original

Pictured as loaded the day before she left Alameda Naval Station (San Francisco Bay) after loading the 16 B-25's for Doolittle's Raid....  Painted in Measure 21 modified (shortly after her commissioning in the Caribbean in 1941) absolutely gorgeous. (her mahogany deck was never stained dark blue, there just wasn't enough time) She is still carrying the Wildcat fighters she was originally issued. The newest Aircraft Carrier in the Navy at the time the first to strike against Japan. She had a short but valiant life....

Rest in peace ye old girl, comfort those who remain with you forever.

Thank you for your service.

 
 
 
Freefaller
Professor Quiet
6.1  Freefaller  replied to  Nowhere Man @6    5 years ago

Wow those first few bomber crews in the lineup must have been sweating bullets looking up the deck before taking off 

 
 
 
Nowhere Man
Junior Guide
6.1.1  Nowhere Man  replied to  Freefaller @6.1    5 years ago

Actually they had trained for three weeks (March '42) at Elgin Field Florida in extremely short takeoffs. They were all volunteers and didn't have a clue they would be flying off an aircraft carrier. The Hornet, Based out of Norfolk VA at the time actually had two standard B-25's loaded aboard and tested the take-off technique off the North Carolina coast. The standard B-25 didn't have the range for the mission so 24 of them were sent to Minneapolis MN for modification by Mid-Continent Airlines into the B-25B. They were modified to carry almost twice the fuel they usually carried and most of the armament was removed. (It was considered a highly risky, almost suicide mission) After the testing and final acceptance fitting, the Hornet left and transited for the pacific and NS Alameda.

The B-25's were brand new aircraft amongst the first of the type delivered to the army air corp and hadn't seen any combat. The Hornet was brand new having been commissioned into the fleet in December '41 The pilots were young and just learned to fly the B-25.....

They were all very brave men......

At Alameda, they loaded 16 B-25's on the Hornet, it was also the first time many of the pilots saw an Aircraft Carrier. The mission was designed around fifteen B-25's, the first B-25 was intended to take off shortly after putting to sea and return to Alameda to show the AAC pilots that such a take-off could be done. That idea was scratched at the last minute. Preparations were made to heave the aircraft overboard in case they encountered any Japanese forces on the trip to rendezvous with the Enterprise out of Pearl Harbor who would provide the air cap for the mission. 

It was a huge gamble......

 
 
 
Freefaller
Professor Quiet
6.1.2  Freefaller  replied to  Nowhere Man @6.1.1    5 years ago

Lol I believe you that this was a gamble and the crew were brave and well trained, but still there's a mental difference between looking down a long runway and having to take off before a line painted on it and looking down the short deck of a carrier and seeing nothing but waves and ocean past the end.

 
 
 
FLYNAVY1
Professor Guide
6.1.3  FLYNAVY1  replied to  Freefaller @6.1.2    5 years ago
...but still there's a mental difference between looking down a long runway and having to take off before a line painted on it and looking down the short deck of a carrier and seeing nothing but waves and ocean past the end. You got that right.......!  Plus the bombers were stripped of all of their defensive armament, and they were not carrying full bomb loads.  The B-25s were nothing more than flying gas cans!
 
 
 
Vic Eldred
Professor Principal
7  Vic Eldred    5 years ago

The Hornet saw a lot of action in the early years of the war in the Pacific. It is remembered mostly for launching the "Doolittle Raid". As I understand it, none of those 16 B-25's made it to their landing area's in China.

Thanks for the article

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
7.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  Vic Eldred @7    5 years ago
As I understand it, none of those 16 B-25's made it to their landing area's in China.

15 of the planes reached China, Vic. I don't believe that any of them landed where they were assigned to. 4 of them crashed into the mountains. 

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
7.1.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  Kavika @7.1    5 years ago

Sometime back I posted a long article of the Battle of Samar...An epic Naval battle and considered the U.S. Navy finest hour. A small force of Destroyers and Destroyer escorts and some baby flat tops held off the might of the Japanese navy, including 4 battleships which included the Yamamoto the largest battleship in the Japanese navy. 

I may repost it since many Americans are unaware of this epic battle. 

 
 
 
FLYNAVY1
Professor Guide
7.1.2  FLYNAVY1  replied to  Kavika @7.1.1    5 years ago

A really good read is "The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors".

This outlines the battle at Battle of Samar you make reference to Kavika.   Where a handful of lightly armed US destroyers charged headlong into a line of Japanese heavy cruisers and battleships in an effort to defend the Marine beach landing at Leyte.  The engagement is considered one of the greatest upsets in naval conflict.  The accounts of the men fighting their ships in an impossible situation is incredible. 

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
7.1.3  seeder  Kavika   replied to  FLYNAVY1 @7.1.2    5 years ago

Commander Ernest Evans (Cheek/Cherokee) of the destroyer Johnston was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions in the battle. Commander Evans and his crew set the standard for bravery. 

Commander Robert Copeland of the destroyer escort Samual B Roberts uttered these unforgettable words as he and his crew took the Roberts into heart of the enemy...

'' "This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can." 

 
 
 
TTGA
Professor Silent
7.1.4  TTGA  replied to  Kavika @7.1.1    5 years ago
I may repost it since many Americans are unaware of this epic battle. 

Definitely re post it Kav.  It was a most impressive article.  Although it was off Samar, the battle was called Leyte Gulf.  I think that I posted at the time that my dad watched the battle while standing on the beach at Samar, at least as much as you can see a Naval battle from the shore; what you mostly see is columns of smoke.  He was with the 100th Seabee Battalion, who built the airfield on Samar (I believe that the airfield still exists and is now the airport for the city of Taiclobin; when those guys built them, they built to last).

which included the Yamamoto the largest battleship in the Japanese navy. 

The battleship was the Yamato, the largest ever built by any navy.  Yamamoto was the Admiral in command of the Japanese Navy, although he had been killed by the time Leyte Gulf was fought.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
7.1.5  seeder  Kavika   replied to  TTGA @7.1.4    5 years ago

Correct, my mistake on the name of the battleship...I was thinking of Admiral Yamamoto. 

Going from memory I believe that the tonnage of the Yamoto was greater then the combined weight of the Taffy 3.

I remember the comment about your dad watching the battle from shore...Incredible.

 
 
 
FLYNAVY1
Professor Guide
7.1.6  FLYNAVY1  replied to  Kavika @7.1.3    5 years ago

One of the accounts I remember was that the heavy armor piercing shells being fired by the Japanese ships would go straight through the thin decks and hulls of the destroyers without exploding.  The American ships became nothing more than blocks of Swiss cheese with five-inch gun mounts attached.

Later on, the Japanese moved to high explosive rounds that sent the US destroyers to the bottom.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
7.1.7  seeder  Kavika   replied to  FLYNAVY1 @7.1.6    5 years ago

A one time a member of NT father was assigned to a gun crew on the Samuel B. Roberts...He survived. 

 
 
 
Nowhere Man
Junior Guide
7.1.8  Nowhere Man  replied to  Kavika @7.1    5 years ago
15 of the planes reached China, Vic. I don't believe that any of them landed where they were assigned to. 4 of them crashed into the mountains. 

The original mission profile was for them all to land in Vladivostok but negotiations with the soviets failed. The soviets had a treaty with the Japanese and with their army fully engaged in the east against the Germans they didn't want to piss off the Japanese, so they rejected the offer of the B-25's as lend lease.... They finally got Chaing Kai Sheck to allow them to overfly and land in China. 12 of them crashed in China, three of them ditched at sea. One of them landed in Vladivostok, and the crew was interned by the Russians.

 
 
 
Nowhere Man
Junior Guide
7.1.9  Nowhere Man  replied to  Kavika @7.1.5    5 years ago
Going from memory I believe that the tonnage of the Yamoto was greater then the combined weight of the Taffy 3

The Yamato, was 80,000dwt and carried 18.1" main guns about 20k more than the combined dwt of Taffy 3......

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8  dave-2693993    5 years ago

Thank you for this article Kavika. The war in the Pacific was something else.

The first things I think about after Pearl Harbor regarding that theater of war are my uncles, the effort of this Carrier, the Indianapolis and Lindbergs unsanctioned flights in the P38 which ultimately led to vastly improved range simply by a few changes in how the pilots cruised their craft.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
8.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  dave-2693993 @8    5 years ago

The learning curve in the early part of the war was really steep and costly for us, dave.

The Marine landing on Tarawa was another hard lesson in the learning curve and very costly to the Marines that fought there. We also learned from that that the Japanese chose to fight to the last man rather than surrendering. 

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8.1.1  dave-2693993  replied to  Kavika @8.1    5 years ago

There certainly some missing lessons learned going in to that war.

My uncles in that theater were USMC Riflemen of the slightly different sort having been issued '03 Springfields where they could put their backwoods hunting skills to work.

Having gone from, basically black powder for their high powered rifles, they knew some of the folks back home would appreciate the bolt action Arasakas they shipped back home...something we wouldn't see happening much today.

They actually thought they had an unfair advantage over their adversaries and had feelings of guilt of their Marines having to slog it through the conventional warfare.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
8.1.2  seeder  Kavika   replied to  dave-2693993 @8.1.1    5 years ago
They actually thought they had an unfair advantage over their adversaries and had feelings of guilt of their Marines having to slog it through the conventional warfare.

My dad was one of the Marines that hit the beach at Tarawa..

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8.1.3  dave-2693993  replied to  Kavika @8.1.2    5 years ago

Imagine what was going through your dad's mind during that landing. It must have felt like an eternity. Probably many memories he wished he never had, going straight into the gates of hell.

I know you have mentioned it before Kavika, yet my mind is drawing a blank, how did your father fare?

My uncles hit their beaches along with the rest of the landing parties. Then their "job" was to disperse into the landscape and begin taking out the enemy command and control.

The most common phrase from them was "they never saw it coming".

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
8.1.4  seeder  Kavika   replied to  dave-2693993 @8.1.3    5 years ago
I know you have mentioned it before Kavika, yet my mind is drawing a blank, how did your father fare

He survived the war, four purple hearts and a silver star...

 
 
 
Bob Nelson
Professor Guide
8.1.5  Bob Nelson  replied to  Kavika @8.1.4    5 years ago

Wow... Respect!

 
 
 
Split Personality
Professor Guide
8.1.6  Split Personality  replied to  dave-2693993 @8.1.3    5 years ago

On the Italian side of my extended family

5 Domincs, all cousins, all landed in Normandy, walked up and down the beaches, found each other and took those little sepia pictures of each others foxholes.

Everything was a competition. My uncle collected cigarettes, chocolate and gum and wandered into the french countryside,

returning the next day with fresh bread and dozens of eggs.

Thus began several promising black market careers. 

They each collected much collectable memorabilia which they mailed back to the states along with bags of cash.

All 5 survived.  They returned to Montgomery County, bought mortgage free homes,

and put what they learned to use, starting an excavation, paving and construction company

which still thrives today, though the "5" are all gone now.

Impressive shadow boxes for a bunch of engineers, lol.

 
 
 
Bob Nelson
Professor Guide
8.1.7  Bob Nelson  replied to  Split Personality @8.1.6    5 years ago

Cool.

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8.1.8  dave-2693993  replied to  Kavika @8.1.4    5 years ago
He survived the war, four purple hearts and a silver star...

And I think for sure one son who he was very proud of.

He was a brave warrior.

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8.1.9  dave-2693993  replied to  Split Personality @8.1.6    5 years ago

Great story SP.

That was a different and desperate era in so many ways.

 
 
 
katrix
Sophomore Participates
8.2  katrix  replied to  dave-2693993 @8    5 years ago
The war in the Pacific was something else

If you ever make it to Austin, they have an amazing Museum of the Pacific War Theater.  You need at least an entire day there. 

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
8.2.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  katrix @8.2    5 years ago

I wasn't aware of the one in Austin. I've been to the one in Fredericksburg around 50 or 60 miles from Austin. Is that the same one?

 
 
 
katrix
Sophomore Participates
8.2.2  katrix  replied to  Kavika @8.2.1    5 years ago

Maybe so ... I was visiting family in Dripping Springs but don't remember how far away the museum was.  So it probably is the one in Fredericksburg. 

My mom was in the Navy, so of course she was fascinated! 

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8.2.3  dave-2693993  replied to  katrix @8.2    5 years ago

Thank you katrix. There was a time a traveled regularly between the San Antonio and Austin areas, and I didn't know about this museum.

This makes the second place I will have to see the next time I am in the area.

 
 
 
katrix
Sophomore Participates
8.2.4  katrix  replied to  dave-2693993 @8.2.3    5 years ago

If you want to read, see, and hear everything, see all the interactive exhibits, you may want to plan 2 days, or a day and a half.  Part of the museum is a few blocks away and you would need to make sure they have an interactive exhibit scheduled if you want to see it.  It's not an always-available exhibit.

 
 
 
dave-2693993
Junior Quiet
8.2.5  dave-2693993  replied to  katrix @8.2.4    5 years ago

Thank you for that tip and have a good day.

back in a while.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
8.2.6  seeder  Kavika   replied to  katrix @8.2.2    5 years ago
My mom was in the Navy, so of course she was fascinated! 

I'm sure that she was. It's an incredible museum and well worth the visit. 

 
 
 
pat wilson
Professor Participates
9  pat wilson    5 years ago

Great article. My dad was stationed on Guam and flew 35 missions from there.

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
9.1  seeder  Kavika   replied to  pat wilson @9    5 years ago

Thanks pat, and a big salute to your dad.

 
 
 
Nowhere Man
Junior Guide
10  Nowhere Man    5 years ago

Trying to stay off this article, but please give a moment of thanks to the men and women that fought and won the greatest war man has ever endured, pray that there isn't another one.

Most of our fathers or grandfathers served in some capacity in this war.....

My Father was at Leyte beach and saw the columns of smoke from the burning Japanese Battleships after the battle of Surigao Strait. After getting the army troops ashore and spending three day unloading supplies he helped build the Tacloban runway.... He claimed that he watched the seven different takes MacArthur made when he went ashore for his "I have returned" speech from about 40 ft away.....

Five weeks later he was at Lingayan Gulf taking troops ashore over the same beaches the Japanese has landed upon in '42....

To all the fathers and grandfathers who served.....

THANK YOU!

 
 

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