Interesting information on war in the Pacific

In October 1944, the Japanese circulated bulletins claiming that most of the ships in America's Third Fleet had been sunk or were retiring. "Our ships have been salvaged," Admiral Halsey drily replied, "and are retiring at high speed toward the Japanese fleet."

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Thanks Kai. I think he said that after the raid on Formosa? It is my favorite Halsey quote and was my Signature when I first joined the forum.

 

1st september 1939 germany invades poland,3rd september great britain, france, australia, new zealand and british india declares war on germany ww2 begins. September 6th 1939 south africa declares war on germany september 10th 1939 canada declares war on germany ring any bells

 

Halsey could be quite the trickster. During a wargame in the 1920's against a US Battleship Agressor Force, Halsey ordered his own destroyer flotilla to perform the desparate and suicidal manuver of deliberately sailing squarely between the twin columns of oncoming, aggresor battleships, firing torpedoes at them simultaneously from both port and starboard sides, as they came to bear. The Umpires ruled that Halsey's force was completely destroyed by BB counterbattery fire, but not before causing crippling damage to the majority of battleships present.

In reality, so many of Halsey's practice torpdedos struck the battleships, that they actually caused damage to their hull's watertight integrity, putting a number of them in the repair yards for weeks afterwards.

Needless to say, Halsey was hauled onto the carpet over this affair, but suffered no damage to his career.
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Interesting that commanders who show initiative and are capable of using new tactics in warfare are first punished and then perhaps later on given credit for their capability.

 

During World War II, future-president Richard Nixon served as a Navy supply officer ("sort of a Sergeant Bilko character," as one biographer described him). Nixon set up a hamburger stand called Nick's - the only such concession in the South Pacific - to dispense free burgers and Australian beer to flight crews.

Despite his low army salary, Nixon found the post remarkably lucrative. He was so successful at poker that he came home from the war with $10,000 (in 1945 currency).

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During the Battle of Iwo Jima, for example, American forces retrieved examples of the following Iwo Jima Garrison Song:

"Iwo Jima Garrison Song"
When dark tides billow in the ocean
A wink shaped isle of mighty fame
Guards the gateway to our empire:
IWO JIMA is its name.
... From dawn to dusk we train with zeal
At our Emperor's command
We'll bring the enemy to heel.
Oh, for Emperor and homeland
There's no burden we won't bear.
Disease, hardship, and foul, water;
These are less to us than air.
In the lonely mid-Pacific,
Our sweat a fortress will prepare.
If the enemy attacks us
Let him come, we will not care.

(Provided from a Japanese document captured at Iwo Jima by J. S. Harris, LT 1/27, Engineers.)

Japanese Military Propaganda (WWII - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)

 

Sidebar to this: My father was in the 2nd MarDiv at Okinawa. He related the story to me that Buckner (and several others) was killed by shrapnel from an artillery round that impacted a near-by rock outcropping by his HQ.

 

The Avalon Project : Nuremberg Trial Proceedings Vol. 3 - Sixteenth Day

Top-secret notes of a conference between Hitler and Japanese Ambassador Oshima on 14 December 1941, from 1300 to 1400 hours, in the presence of the Reich Foreign Minister Ribbentrop. The immediate subject matter is the Pearl Harbor attack, but the expressions therein typify Nazi technique. I quote from the second paragraph of the English translation which has not been previously read:

"First the Fuehrer presents Ambassador Oshima with the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the German Eagle in gold. With cordial words he acknowledges his services in the achievement of German-Japanese co-operation, which has now obtained its culmination in a close brotherhood of arms. "General Oshima expresses his thanks for the great honor and emphasizes how glad he is that this brotherhood of arms has now come about between Germany and Japan.

"The Fuehrer continues: 'You gave the right declaration of war.' This method is the only proper one. Japan pursued it formerly and it corresponds with his own system, that is, to negotiate as long as possible. But if one sees the other is interested only in putting one oft, in shamming and humiliating one, and is not willing to come to an agreement, then one should strike as hard as possible, indeed, and not waste time declaring war. It was heart-warming to him to hear of the first operations of the Japanese. He himself negotiated with infinite patience at times, for example, with Poland and also with Russia. When he then realized that the other did not want to come to an agreement, he struck suddenly and without formality. He would continue to go on this way in the future."

 

Modest Mountbatten

When Winston Churchill offered Mountbatten the Asian Command in 1943, he asked for 24 hours to ponder the offer. "Why?" Churchill snarled. "Don't you think you can do it?" "Sir," Mountbatten replied. "I suffer from the congenital weakness of believing that I can do anything."

 

Nice info and pics....

XII: Medical Arrangements for Home Defence Forces | NZETC

 

USS Bullhead (SS-332), a Balao-class submarine, was the very last US Navy ship sunk by enemy action during World War Two, probably on the same day that the first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Bullhead

The first submarine victim of enemy action was USS SEALION (SS 195).

http://www.csp.navy.mil/ww2boats/sealion.htm

 

In a document on Kamikaze pilots they told they received dolls from people as mascots and I guess all of them had one for good luck.

The Mystery of Mascot Dolls

They became especially popular during 1944-45, when many tokkotai (“kamikaze”) carried the dolls on their final missions.

kamikaze & doll on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

Lindbergh and Corsair

Lindbergh In World War II

During the first of his six missions in the Marshalls he dropped one 1000 lb. bomb. The next day he carried and dropped three 1000 lb. bombs. After several days spent devising a method of hanging a 2000 lb. bomb under the fuselage of a Corsair he then dropped the bomb, the heaviest ever carried by a fighter, on Jap-held Wotje Island. On his final two combat missions, flown September 12 and 13, 1944, Lindbergh carried one 2000 lb. bomb plus a 1000 lb. bomb under each wing—probably the heaviest bomb load ever attached to a Corsair!

 

According to a memorial plaque erected in downtown Toyokawa, the naval base was the target of an air raid by American bombers on the night of August 7, 1945. About 2500 people were killed in the raid (the spirits of some of these victims were later enshrined at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, where their photos can still be seen).

This air raid made Toyokawa the last place to be targeted using conventional explosive and incendiary bombs in the closing days of World War II. The significance of this event in history has been overshadowed by the fact that it occurred the day after Hiroshima was destroyed by an atomic bomb, and two days before an atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki.

Toyokawa, Aichi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

There were certainly more conventional weapon attacks on targets in Japan AFTER both the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic attacks. Toyokawa, attacked on 7 August, was not the last, not even on the 7th, and attacks to the Japanese home islands continued until the morning of 15 August:

TUESDAY, 7 AUGUST 1945
- 124 B-29s, escorted by VII Fighter Command fighters, bomb the naval arsenal at Toyokawa. 1 B-29 is lost. After escorting the B-29s on their bombing mission, P-51s attack railroad targets and shipping in and near Magarimatsu, Chofu, Atsugi, and Sagami.
- During the night of 7/8 Aug, 29 B-29s, escorted by FEAF P-47s, drop mines in Shimonoseki Strait, at Miyazu, Maizuru, Tsuruga, Obama and at Najin; 1 other mines an alternate target.
- P-47s cover the Twentieth AF B-29 strike against Kyushu targets; B-24s and A-26s over Kyushu pound Tsuiki Airfield and other B-24s start fires at Omura; B-25s hit bridges and other targets at Matsubase and Kawajiri; other B-25s hit Chiran and Izumi Airfields. fighter-bombers attack and considerably damage communications and transportation facilities throughout Kyushu.

WEDNESDAY, 8 AUGUST 1945
- Shortly before 1200 hours, 221 B-29s drop incendiaries on Yawata destroying 1.22 sq mi (3.16 sq km), 21% of the city; 6 others hit alternate targets; 1 B-29s is shot down by Japanese fighters and 3 are lost to mechanical reasons.
- Late in the afternoon, 60 B-29s bomb an aircraft plant and arsenal complex at Tokyo; 2 others hit alternate targets; 2 B-29s are lost to flak and 1 to mechanical reasons (these are the last B-29s lost in action by the Twentieth AF).
- During the night of 8/9 Aug, 91 B-29s hit Fukiyama with incendiaries destroying 0.88 sq mi (2.28 sq km), 73.3% of the city; 1 hits an alternate target.
- 100 plus fighters from Iwo Jima hit airfields, factory buildings, barracks, and rail installations in the Osaka, Japan area.
- Okinawa-based B-24s, B-25s, A-26s, P-51s, and P-47s carry out numerous strikes against targets on Kyushu Island, Japan; targets include the Usa and Tsuiki Airfields, communications and transport targets all over Kyushu, shipping between Kyushu and Korea.
- Twentieth AF B-29s claim 10 Japanese planes downed.

THURSDAY, 9 AUGUST 1945
- The second atomic bomb is dropped on Nagasaki
- During the night of 9/10 Aug, 95 B-29s bomb the Nippon Oil Refinery at Amagasaki; 2 others hit alternate targets.
- B-25s over Kyushu Island, bomb airfields at Kanoya, the town of Noma, shipping in Beppu Bay, bridges, factories, and oil storage at Tsurusaki, and shipping, coastal villages, and communications targets in the Tsushima Strait area; A-26s and A-20s hit Kanoya Airfield and the industrial areas of Kushikino, Minato, and Shimahira; B-24s over W Honshu Island bomb the airfield at Iwakuni; 200 plus P-47s and P-51s hit numerous targets on Shikoku and Kyushu Islands, and in the Ryukyu Islands including airfields, barracks, harbor installations,
bridges, shipping, vehicles, and various factories and storage facilities.
- USN carrier-based aircraft from TF 38 carriers pound Japanese shipping and airfields, ranging from northern Honshu and Hokkaido to the coast of Korea, sinking auxiliary submarine chasers Shintohoku Maru and 2 Kongo Maru and 6 Takunan Maru, minesweepers W.1 and W.33, and fleet tanker Juko Maru, and merchant cargo ship No.36 Banshu Maru off Hamada. USN (TF 38) and British carrier aircraft (TF 37) sink escort vessels Amakusa and Inagi off Onagawa.
- TU 34.8.1, battleships and cruisers, shells industrial targets at Kamaishi, Honshu. Two British light cruisers participate in the bombardment as well.

FRIDAY, 10 AUGUST 1945
- During the day, 70 B-29s, escorted by 2 groups of P-51s, bomb the arsenal complex at Tokyo; 3 others hit alternate targets.
- During the night of 10/11 Aug, 31 B-29s mine Shimonoseki Strait, Nakaumi Lagoon, and waters at Sakai and Yonago.
- 80 B-24s, 118 B-25s, and 220 plus P-47s and P-38s pound the Kumamoto area; 20 plus B-24s bomb the Oita area; 39 P-51s provide cover over both targets; nearly 40 B-25s attack destroyers, cargo ships, and small vessels during a shipping sweep between Kyushu Island and Korea; P-47s bomb Sasebo Harbor; P-51s hit various targets of opportunity on Honshu and Kyushu and B-25s bomb targets of opportunity in the N Ryukyu Islands.
- USN carrier-based planes attack Japanese shipping, airfields and railroads in northern Honshu. Planes from British TF 37 participate as well. TF 38 planes sink submarine chaser Ch 42 and minesweeper W.1 in Yamada Bay; auxiliary minesweeper No.2 Kongo Maru off Onagawa; merchant cargo ship Masayoshi Maru and tanker No.3 Nanki Maru in Sakata harbor; merchant cargo ship No.14 Horai Maru off east coast of Korea; and merchant cargo ship No.5 Nishiki Maru off Hachinohe harbor. TF 37 or TF 38 planes sink auxiliary submarine chaser No.6 Takunan Maru off Onagawa. TF 38 planes damage auxiliary minelayer Koei Maru off Ominato, and merchant cargo ship Toyotama Maru off Sakata.

SATURDAY, 11 AUGUST 1945
- Okinawa-based B-24s, B-25s, A-26s, A-20s, and fighters flying about 530 sorties cause extensive destruction to shipping and shore installations in the Inland Sea, in the Tsushima area, and of communications, transportation, and other targets throughout Kyushu Island.

SUNDAY, 12 AUGUST 1945
- B-25s and A-26s hit Chiran and Kanoya Airfields while other A-26s and A-20s and P-47s hit the towns of Kushikino, Akune, and Miyazaki; more B-25s and fighter-bombers hit shipping and communications targets on Kyushu, the N Ryukyu Islands, and between Japan and Korea; the aircraft claim several small merchant ships sunk and damaged, and numerous bridges, railroads, factories, and other targets of opportunity hit.

MONDAY, 13 AUGUST 1945
- B-24s and B-25s from Okinawa pound shipping in the waters off Korea and Kyushu Island and in the Inland Sea claiming several vessels sunk and damaged; P-47s over Keijo encounter 20
Japanese aircraft and claim at least 16 shot down.
- USN aircraft from fast carrier task force bomb targets in the vicinity of Tokyo.

TUESDAY, 14 AUGUST 1945
- 157 B-29s bomb the naval arsenal at Hikari; 4 others hit alternate targets.
- 145 B-29s bomb the Osaka Army Arsenal and 2 hit alternate targets; 160 plus P-51 escort the B-29s and attack airfields in the Nagoya area; 1 P-51 is lost.
- 108 B-29s bomb the railroad yards at Marifu; 2 others hit alternate targets.
- 132 B-29s bomb the Nippon Oil Company at Tsuchizakiminato.
- 81 B-29s drop incendiaries on the Kumagaya urban area destroying 0.27 sq mi (0.7 sq km), 45% of the city area.
- 86 B-29s drop incendiaries on the Isezaki urban area destroying 0.166 sq mi (0.43 sq km), 17% of the city area.
- 39 B-29s mine the waters at Nanao, Shimonoseki, Miyazu, and Hamada.
These were the last B-29 missions against Japan
- B-25s, P-47s, and P-51s attack shipping in Korea and Kyushu waters, claiming several vessels destroyed and damaged. P-47s over the Osaka-Nagoya, Japan area claim several Japanese aircraft shot down.

WEDNESDAY, 15 AUGUST 1945
- Before receiving the announcement of the end of hostilities, planes from fast carrier task force aid airfields in the vicinity of Tokyo, encountering heavy aerial opposition. Second strike is cancelled while it is en route to objectives; pilots jettison their ordnance and return to their carriers.

Offensive operation cease.

 

Oops! Maybe....

Japanese Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoye suffered from a severe case of hemorrhoids. "In April 1939," according to historian Roger J. Fadness, "the pain he experienced when sitting down was at least partly responsible for his refusal to ride with Minister of Foreign Affairs Yosuke Matsuoka to an important cabinet meeting. This lost opportunity to clear up a misunderstanding with Matsuoka about a U.S. peace proposal may very well have contributed to Japan's entry into World War II."

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My father was on the USS Cleveland and witnessed first hand the Jap shore guns opening up on the Cleveland, the Norman Scott and the Colorado. He was on the deck sunning himself when he saw the Jap guns open fire. The three ships were close ashore steaming in battle formation withe Norman Scott in the lead followed by the Cleveland and the Colorado. The Norman Scott and the Colorado were both hit and the Cleveland was straddled. My father, not so politely describes the Colorado "sailing away" after she was hit, never firing a round. To their credit, they were hit 22 times and their first thoughts were probably survival.

The Norman Scott was hit 6 times and was dead in the water. The Cleveland got between her and the shore guns. My father said their guns began to fire even before GQ was sounded. He was on the ship for 3 years and came home with 9 battle stars. He said he never heard the guns fire so fast and furiously. The ship was so enveloped in smoke from it's guns that other ships were reporting that the Cleveland had also been hit. He said the guns continued firing for a long time after the Captain was screaming "Cease Fire!" into the battle phones. A painting of this engagement was recently commissioned by the son of a man on the Norman Scott in honor of the crew of the Cleveland. Although it shows the 2 ships sailing in opposite directions, it is a beautiful painting and much appreciated by the crew and families of the USS Cleveland (CL55).

God's grace and blessings to the crews of all three ships.

 

"Another mishandling of intelligence occurred in the air battle of October 12-16,1944,off Taiwan, which prededed the battle of Leyte Gulf.Although the Japanese Air Force suffered major losses in this battle, the Imperial HQ ( via the Operation Department ) swallowed an overestimated report of kills from the frontline and officially announced the claims: 19 US aircraft carriers sunk ( in fact only 17 US aircraft carriers participated in the battle ) plus four battle ships(!!!!).The announcement filled the Japanese nation with joy. Staff officers such as Vice Admiral Shigeru Fukudome, commander-in-chief of the 2nd Air Fleet , did not take the reports at face value, and felt that the Japanese had sunk four or five carriers at most. Such estimations led to the launch of the Sho Ichi Go operation, which was regarded as the decisive fleet battle between the US and Japan."

From " Japanese Intelligence in WW2 " by Ken Kotani