Monthly Archives: August 2020
Pin-up Girls Helped Win WWII
America’s entrance into WWII triggered the golden age of WWII Pin-ups — pictures of smiling women in a range of clothing-challenged situations. The racy photos adorned lonely servicemen’s lockers, the walls of barracks, and even the sides of planes. For the first time in its history, the U.S. military unofficially sanctioned this kind of art: pin-up pictures, magazines and calendars were shipped and distributed among the troops, often at government expense.
No history of any military unit would be complete without some info on its favorite pin-ups. Keep in mind that in the days prior to women being in every military unit, soldiers would be in the field or in combat for months on end, or years as in WWII, without seeing or hearing a female voice.
Although a little revealing at times, pin-ups were not what you would recall pornography. No one knows for sure when this trend began, but it is known that Napoleon’s soldiers carried pin-ups with them.
Usually pin-ups were wholesome American girls – movie stars, singers, dancers or just well-known celebrities, but occasionally, some of them were a bit on the “wild side”. Some pin-ups were not real women at all, but drawings, like the well-known ones by Vargas.
“Gravy for the Navy”, Alberto Vargas
What would become the familiar pin-up began to take shape in 1917, when Wilson’s administration created the Division of Pictorial Publicity. The art form’s ever-growing popularity bled over into other mediums, such as Hollywood, who jumped onto the bandwagon and movie execs began using sexually-charged imagery to promote their films.
This had such a success, it came as little surprise in WWII that pin-ups were used in recruitment posters and war bomb purchasing material. Many considered this to be the pin-up’s “Golden Age” and thousands of images were commissioned to raise soldier morale while fighting overseas. A U.S. soldier couldn’t go anywhere without seeing a pin-up girl: in barracks, on submarine walls and carried in pockets – they were never far away from a reminder of why they were fighting.
Nose art for US aircraft regulations were eased and through WWII and into the Korean War, aircraft artistry would be in its ‘golden age.’ This not only helped the morale of the men, but it made a plane easier to identify rather than its serial numbers. Although the art would also be of cartoon characters (“Thumper”) or hometowns (“Memphis Belle”), the majority were of women like “Lady Eve”, Forbidden Fruit” “Miss Behavin” and “Little Gem”, for example.
Adak Island, AK pin-up collection
The woman who became the champion pin-up girl was Betty Grable and winning that that title was a tough fight as she was up against such names as Hedy Lamarr, Dorothy Lamour, Ann Sheridan, Rita Hayworth, Lana Turner, Esther Williams and many others.
For further research on pin-ups in aviation and nose art, Pierre Lagacé’s blog ‘Preserving the Past’ click HERE!
Or ‘Preserving the Past II’ article HERE!
This information was condensed from stories found in “The Voice of the Angels” 11th Airborne newspaper.
For the 11th Airborne Division, the main woman was Olivia de Havilland, whose story will be in the next post.
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Current News – 
To watch the vintage WWII aircraft flyover in honor of the 75th anniversary of the end of World War Two, Please check here for the count down and link for you to watch!!
For my post concerning the 2 September 2020 flyover. Please click here!!
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Military Humor –
blind dates
‘Only one man in 1,000 is a leader of men. The other 999 follow women!’
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Farewell Salutes –
Max Abram – Carthage, MI; US Army, WWII, Lt. Colonel (Ret. 37 y.)
John Childs – Jacksonville, TX; US Army, Vietnam, 2/506/101st Airborne Division, Lt. Col. (Ret. 21 y.)
Robert Butler – Lismore, MN; US Army, WWII, ETO, decoder
David Iggo (101) – Christchurch, NZ; RNZ Air Force # 415697, WWII, Flt. Lt., 457th Squadron
Wayne Kellog – North Hornell, NY; US Army Air Corps, WWII, ETO, Sgt.
Vincent P. Marketta – Brick, NJ; US Army, SSgt., 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (A)
Edward ‘Mike’ Reuter – Tacoma, WA; US Army, WWII, ETO
Tyler M. Shelton – San Bernadino, CA; US Army, Sgt., 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (A)
Margaret Shinners (100) – Middletown, RI; Civilian, US Naval photographer
Donald F. Wright – Coffeyville, KS; US Navy, WWII, PTO, PT-150/Ron 12
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Arctic Operation Haudegen Dr. Wilhelm Dege
The weather station where 11 German soldiers were trapped, forgotten by the fallen Nazis.
I thank Klausbernd for bringing this story to Pacific Paratrooper about the last German to surrender. Not wanting any part of war, Dr. Dege became part of Operation Haudegen….
Weather played an important role during the Second World War. It dictated the outcome of Naval battles and decided the routes of military convoys. Weather and visibility affected photographic reconnaissance and bombing raids. Much of D-day planning revolved around the weather, and the landing itself was delayed by 24 hours because of choppy seas. Weather information was so sensitive that it was transmitted encoded from weather stations.
By August 1941, the Allies had captured many weather stations operated by the Germans on Greenland and on Spitsbergen, in the Svalbard Archipelago in Norway. These stations were critical because the air over Svalbard told a lot about what was coming over the North Atlantic and continental Europe. Svalbard Archipelago lies in the Arctic Ocean about a thousand kilometres from the North Pole. When Norway came under German occupation in 1940, the Nazis took control of the oil fields and the weather stations there. The Germans made many attempts to set up weather stations on Spitsbergen, but all failed or fell to the Allies.
Geologist Wilhelm Dege, head of Operation Haudegen. Photo: From the archive of Wilhelm Dege
In September 1944, the Germans set up their last weather station, code named Operation Haudegen, on Nordaustlandet, one of the most remote and northerly of the main islands in Svalbard. A U-boat and a supply vessel deposited eleven men, along with equipment, arms, ammunitions and supplies on the island and hurriedly retreated back to Norway before they could be discovered by Allied warships. The men set up the weather station and erected two inconspicuous flat-roofed huts using wooden panels and camouflaged with white nets.
Operation Haudegen started in December 1944. Five times a day, the station transmitted encrypted weather forecasts to the German naval command at Tromsø. In addition, once a week, they sent a hydrogen-filled weather balloon to 8,000 meters to obtain data from the upper atmosphere. The remaining time was spent exploring the island and learning about science, geography, philosophy and mathematics from the leader of the expedition, Dr. Wilhelm Dege. The young men built a sauna and helped themselves to the ample food supplies, enjoying delicacies like reindeer meat which most Germans at that time could only dream of in their bomb cellars.
The approximate location of the weather station of Operation Haudegen. Political map of Svalbard by Peter Hermes Furian/Shutterstock.com
Siegfried Czapka, the 18-year-old radio operator, told the German magazine Der Spiegel in 2010: “It was an unforgettable experience; we had everything but beer.”
But of course, life in the Arctic was harsh. Temperatures went well below freezing, there were snow storms and daylight was scarce. Polar bears were another threat. The men had to carry rifles with them every time they went outside. The men had been given rigorous training to deal with the hardship. They learned to ski, rappel down cliffs, build igloos, cook and bake, pull teeth, attend to gunshot wounds, and even amputate frozen limbs.
On May 8, 1945, the men received a message from their commanders in Tromsø that Germany had surrendered and the war was over. They were ordered to dispose of explosives, destroy secret documents and send weather reports unencoded. Then there was complete radio silence. The men tried contacting base but there was no reply. They started transmitting their coordinates on the wave lengths the Allies used but no ship or aircraft appeared. The men had two years worth of ration, but the idea of getting stuck on ice for any amount of time held little appeal. The men worried about their families back in Germany, whether they were still alive or killed by air raids. In desperation, they started transmitting on Allied distress channels.
Towards the end of August, a reply was received. Norwegian authorities assured the stranded men that a ship would set sail for Spitsbergen in early September. Their joy was boundless when on the night of September 3rd and 4th, a vessel arrived in the fjord near the weather station. It was a seal-hunting ship that was chartered by the Norwegian navy in order to pick up the Germans.
The Norwegians came ashore and they all had a big celebratory meal together. Then the commanding officer of the Germans formally surrendered—four months after the war ended—by handing over his service pistol to the Norwegian captain.
“The Norwegian stared at it and asked ‘Can I keep this then?’, recalled Dr. Eckhard Dege, the son of Wilhelm Dege, the commanding officer. “My father explained that he could because they were surrendering.”
The men were taken to Tromsø where they became prisoners of war for three months. In December 1945, they returned to their homes, to a divided country. Some found themselves on East Germany, others on the West. The men of the unit tried to meet each other, but it became impossible due to the tensions between East and West Germany. It was only 60 years after the incident, that two of the survivors were reunited for a trip to the island.
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Military Humor – 
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Farewell Salutes –
Bernis Allardyce – Beaumont, TX; US Army, Lt.Colonel (Ret. 25 y.)
Willard Alverson – Grand Rapids, MI; US Army, Korea, Ranger, Colonel (Ret. 31 y.)
Harold ‘Ron’ Hawkins – Tempe, AZ; US Army, Vietnam, 6th Special Forces, Sgt.
Emil ‘Gene’ Jemail – Newport, RI; US Army, 11th Airborne Division / JAG office Austria
James A. McNeill – Brooklyn, NY; USMC, Afghanistan, SSgt., 3rd Marine Logistics Group, KIA (Okinawa, non-combat)
Mavis Poe – Topeka, KS; Civilian US Navy, WWII, driver
Pleasant Rourke Jr. – Charleston, SC; USMC, WWII, PTO, Purple Heart
Mark Sertich (99) – Duluth, MN; US Army, WWII, ETO / world’s oldest ice hockey player
James Weber Jr. – Louisville, KY; US Navy, WWII Corpsman
Catherine Young – Napier, NZ; WRNZ Navy # 234, WWII
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First-hand account: Okinawa
Louis Meehl, WWII
It wasn’t always the enemy they had to contend with…
Louis Meehl
After the war started, I decided I had to get into the service, this didn’t make my folks very happy, especially my dad, but I just had to go. So, I enlisted in the Army Air Corps. They made me a gunner and sent me to the Pacific. I flew on A-20’s in the 417th Bomb Group, B-24’s in the 90th and B-25’s in the 38th. I was on the islands all through the western Pacific, New Guinea, the Philippines, the Ryukyus, and even up to Japan later on.
It was after the war had ended and we’d moved up to an airstrip on a little island called Ie Shima, right next to Okinawa. It was the island where Ernie Pyle was killed. We were living there in the usual primitive conditions that we’d put up with on all the islands – tents, C and K rations, nothing to do but fly missions. The airstrip there was right near the beach, well, the island was so small that everything was right near the beach, and of course our tents were close to the coast.
Ernie Pyle, le Shima
We got word that a storm was coming and the pilots flew our squadron’s planes off somewhere. The rest of us on the flight crews and the ground crews were left behind to fend for ourselves. The wind started blowing, the rain was coming down, and we were trying to hold on to our tents to keep them from blowing over,
Well, it turned out this storm was a typhoon and the wind blew stronger and stronger, and the rain was being driven horizontally. What a storm! I’d never experienced anything like it. After a while, we couldn’t hold the tents up anymore. First one of the tents blew down, then another, and pretty soon all the tents were down, and we were outside in the weather.
There was no other shelter – our bombing and the Navy’s shelling when we’d taken the island had flattened all the trees and it was just bare sand and rock. And the wind just kept blowing harder!
Okinawa, naval typhoon damage
Next thing we knew the tents and everything inside them started to blow away, right off the island and out into the ocean. We just couldn’t hold on to them under those conditions – the wind just ripped anything out of our hands if you tried to hold on to it. So after the tents and everything was gone, all we could do was huddle together and try to protect ourselves. It was like we were just a bunch of wet, cold sheep huddled together – and the wind kept blowing even harder.
We’d rotate the guys on the outside of the huddle toward the middle because the rain was being blown so hard it hurt when it hit you. We all took our turns on the outside of the group. Some of us had bruises from that rain afterwards.
Okinawa, typhoon tent
[ I was unable to locate le Shima photos of the storm, hence the Okinawa pictures. I suppose everyone’s camera went to sea. ]
This seemed to go on for hours, and the whole time we just stayed there huddled together, When the wind and rain finally started to let up, it dawned on us that everything we had was gone. I had a lot of photos from all the islands we’d been on, some souvenirs, and of course the rest of my clothes and personal effects, and they were just gone.
Our planes came back and they flew in more tents for us, but later when I shipped back to the States I didn’t have much more to take home with me that the clothes I had on the day the storm started!
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Military Humor –
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Farewell Salutes –
Bernice Cooke – Toronto, CAN; RC Air Force, WWII, nurse
George C. Evans – Bay Village, OH; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, 457 Artillery/11th Airborne Division
Reynaldo ‘Chita’ Gonzolaz – Newton, KS; US Army, Korea, Sgt., 2nd Division
Peter Hanson – Laconia, NH; US Army, Vietnam, Captain, 101st Airborne Division
Christopher Knoop – Buffalo, NY; US Army, Desert Storm, 810th MP Co., communications
Donald Ottomeyer – St. Louis, MO; US Army, Lt., 101st Airborne Division
John D. Roper – Nashville, TN; US Navy, WWII, PTO, USS Westmoreland & Pontiac
Juan Serna Sr. – Pharr, TX; US Army, WWII / National Guard (Ret. 25 y.)
Michael Stickley – Broad Channel, NY; US Army, Vietnam
Pansy Yankey (100) – Brashear, TX; Civilian, North American Aviation, WWII, drill press operator
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Okinawa 75 years ago
Front page of Stars and Stripes, 22 May 1945
By PFC. WILLIAMS LAND | STARS AND STRIPES May 22, 1945
Stars and Stripes presents these archive reports as they were written by the reporters in the field. The graphic and politically incorrect language used may be offensive to some readers.
Editor’s Note: A fortnight ago Bill Land, one of our battlefront reporters, learned that he was a father. Back to us by radio came this story of Oki’s orphans. Unable to go home to see his own daughter in Baton Rouge, La., Bill let himself go on Oki’s orphans – being left to die by the Sons of Heaven. But the GIs wouldn’t let the kids die…
Front page, 15 May 1945
OKINAWA – Here’s a story you could call “The Children’s Hour.” Ever since I got that radio about my new baby daughter I’ve had in mind writing a children’s story, especially since the material is so plentiful.
It is said that there are more children on Okinawa than there are goats, and, brother, that is some statement.
Very rarely does one see a woman who isn’t carrying either a born or unborn child around and most of the time it’s both.
For doughboys and leathernecks, the care of children started on the first day of the invasion, and from the way it keeps on, it looks as though “the Children’s Hour on Okinawa” will outlast Lillian Hellman’s play on Broadway.
Medic on Okinawa, 1945
Military government has even set up an orphanage, probably the first the island has seen.
“Since the natives showed interest only their own babies, we had to do something to care for children whose parents were killed or missing,” said Army Capt. W. W. McAllister of Iowa City, Ia., the officer in charge.
Nipples are made from surgical gloves and the orphans seem to take kindly to their new diet of canned milk through a glove.
In another part of the island, Chief Pharmacist’s Mate Hugh Bell of Iberia, La., found himself playing the role of a mother when his outfit, a Marine reconnaissance unit, was scouting for suspected enemy installations and suddenly came upon a whole colony of natives hiding in a cave. Most of them were starving and sick and 35 children required immediate medical attention.
Bell, being the only “doctor in the house,” had all of them on his hands. For 24 hours he treated them, giving them plenty of food and feeding them canned milk while his buddies drank their coffee black.
“The kids thought I had used magic to fix them up,” he said, “and followed me around whenever I went. The headman of the group of cave dwellers told the unit command later that Bell was called “Mother” whenever they referred to him.
It is not at all a strange sight to see kids running around in cut-off GI woolen underwear or rompers made of fatigues, but Sally’s diapers made of green camouflage cloth really take the cake. Sally’s one of the orphans.
Sitting on the hard coral rock playing with the ration can, it looks as if she selected a soft tuft of grass to place her little behind on.
Pfc. John J. Stroke of Olmsted Falls, Ore., found her. She’s a two-year-old girl, and Stroke supervised her bath and sprinkled her with anti-vermin powder. Then, with the help of marine fatigues, a jungle knife and couple of pins, he went into the diaper business.
Marine First Lieutenant Hart H. Spiegal of Topeka, Kansas, uses sign language as he tries to strike up a conversation with two tiny Japanese soldiers captured on Okinawa. The boy on the left claims he is “18” while his companion boasts “20” years.
With most able-bodied Japs in the Imperial army or navy there seems a definite shortage of obstetricians among civilians and therefore many deliveries have to be performed by American soldiers and medics.
Relating his first attendance at childbirth here, First Class Pharmacist’s Mate Richard P. Scheid of Napoleon, O., warned, “I knock down anybody who calls me a mid-wife.”
As in the play, “The Children’s Hour,” and everywhere else, for that matter, there are good little children and naughty ones.
The other day, Sgt. Elvis Lane, marine combat correspondent from Louisville, Ky., ran across a couple of them who didn’t want to take to the American way of life at first. Dressed in a ragged Jap soldiers’ suits, they kept hoping to fight the “American devils” who were soon to be blasted by superior Japanese power.
That night, enemy units attacked the camp in which the two boys were staying and the air was filled with screams of the Jap wounded, the rat-tat-tat of machine gun fire and explosions of hand grenades. When morning came, the boys stared in horror at the Jap bodies and one of them said:
“Jap is a big liar. I think my brother and I want to be like our father – farmers.”
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Current News –
6th Civil Engineer Squadron Explosives Ordnance Disposal Team
Live missile found at Lakeland, Florida airport.
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Military Humor –
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Farewell Salutes –
Lucy Amat – Providence, RI; US Army WAC, WWII
Michael Burke – Montreal, CAN; RC Air Force, WWII, radar mechanic, attached to RAF 106th Squadron
Richard Gentz – Jackson, MI; US Navy, Admiral (Ret. 33 y.), pilot, Naval Academy grad ’57
Warren “Bud” Henke – South Bend, IN; US Army, WWII, ETO, 2 Silver Stars, Bronze Star
Harold Mendes – Cleveland, OH; US Army Air Corps, Japanese Occupation, 11th Airborne Division
Bryan Mount – Parawan, UT; US Army, Iraq & Syria, Calvary scout/gunner, Sgt. KIA
John E. Norman – Powell, TN; US Army, Vietnam, 101st Airborne Division
Patrick Tadina – Fayetteville, NC; US Army, Vietnam, CSgt. Major, 2 Silver Stars
Floyd Welch – Burlington, CT; US Navy, WWII, PTO, USS Maryland, Pearl Harbor survivor
Henry Zajac – Elyria, OH; US Merchant Marines, WWII, Merchant Marine Academy graduate
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National Airborne Day 16 August 2020 80 years
The history of United States Airborne Forces did not begin on the training fields of Fort Benning, Georgia, as some believe. In fact, the origin of Airborne Forces in the U.S. military began with a familiar name to American military history, Brigadier General William L. “Billy” Mitchell (1879-1936).
As well as being considered the spiritual father of the United States Air Force, which he advocated for fiercely during his tenure in the military, BG Mitchell was the first to imagine airborne tactics and sought the creation of U.S. Airborne Forces.
Billy Mitchell
It is not recorded exactly when he organized a demonstration of Airborne Infantry for U.S., Russian and German observers. However, according to records at Ft. Benning, Georgia, it is confirmed that BG Mitchell held the demonstration “shortly after World War I” at Kelly Field, in San Antonio, Texas. During the demonstration, six soldiers parachuted from a Martin Bomber. After landing safely, the soldiers assembled their weapons and were ready for action in less than three minutes after they exited the aircraft.
Reprinted and broadcast countless times, High Flight is regarded as one of the world’s great war poems and the greatest anthem of aviation. It is the official poem of the Royal Canadian Air Force and the Royal Air Force. First year cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy are required to memorize it. Extracts have been quoted in a variety of occasions. The most famous example occurred on Jan. 28, 1986, when President Ronald Reagan, speaking of the Challenger, Space Shuttle disaster, closed his address with the sentence: “We will never forget them, nor the last time we saw them, this morning, as they prepared for their journey and waved goodbye and ‘slipped the surly bonds of Earth’ to ‘touch the face of God.’”
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I’ve climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
of sun-split clouds, – and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of – wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov’ring there,
I’ve chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air . . .
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I’ve topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark nor even eagle flew –
And, while with silent lifting mind I’ve trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.
– Pilot Officer John Gillespie Magee, Jr.
AIRBORNE ALL THE WAY !
These men with silver wings
Troopers from the sky above
In whom devotion springs
What spirit so unites them?
In brotherhood they say
Their answer loud and clear.
“Airborne All the WAY!”
These are the men of danger
As in open door they stand
With static line above them
And ripcord in their hand.
While earthbound they are falling
A silent prayer they say
“Lord be with us forever,
Airborne All the Way.”
One day they’ll make their final jump
Saint Mike will tap them out
The good Lord will be waiting
He knows what they’re about
And answering in unison
He’ll hear the troopers say
“We’re glad to be aboard, Sir,
Airborne All the Way!”
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Military, Airborne Humor –
Para-Toast.
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Farewell Salutes –
Robert Abney – Richmond, IN; US Army, Vietnam, 173rd Airborne Division, Purple Heart
Lynn Adams – Pocatello, ID; US Army, Vietnam, 82nd Airborne Division
James Cook – OH; US Army Air Corps, Japan Occupation, 11th Airborne Division
William Farrell – Augusta, GA; US Army, WWII & Korea, 504/82nd Airborne Division, US Army War College grad, Capt. (Ret. 20 y.)
Trevor Goldyn – USA; USMC, Bahrain, Sgt., 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade
Albert Hayden – Capr Giradeau County, MO; US Army Air Corps, WWII
Hershel Hegwoods – Forest, MS; US Army Air Corps, WWII, 11th Airborne Division, Purple Heart
John Latham (100) – Chicago, IL; US Army Air Corps, WWII, B-17 mechanic, TSgt. (Ret.)
Debrah Lepley – Coshocton, OH; US Army, 101st Airborne Division
Allan Stoll – Bossier City, LA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO
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Follow up story for the Battle of Savo Island
Eric Geddes and his crew
With thanks to Pierre Lagacé for finding this information. [Should anyone require research on WWII, especially the ETO, this is the man to know!]
Battle of Savo Island in art
Battle of Savo Island
Sole survivor fights to clear WWII shadow
For the follow-up video….
https://www.abc.net.au/7.30/sole-survivor-fights-to-clear-wwii-shadow/4468200
Eric Geddes WINS!!!
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-10-27/raaf-veteran-wins-fight-to-clear-crews-name/5844958
CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE.
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Military Humor –
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Farewell Salutes –
Donald Arnold – Des Plaines, IL; US Army, WWII, ETO
Shirley Hugh Barker (104) – Beloit, WI; US Army, WWII, 82nd Airborne Division
Raymond Dietrich – Muscatine, IA; US Army, 11th Airborne Division
Ira Edmondson – Texarkana, AR; US Army, WWII, 42nd “Rainbow Division”
Jack Frisch – Colorado Springs, CO; US Army, German Occupation, 547th Ordnance / NFL running back
Philip A, Goddard – Morrisville, VT; US Army, Medical Unit/82nd Airborne Division, doctor
Carl Humpfer Jr. – St. John, IN; US Navy, WWII / US Army, Korea
Kenneth Kokrine – Tanana, AK; US Army, Vietnam, radioman
Charles Mirachi – NYC, NY; US Navy, WWII, PTO, USS Enterprise / Civilian, US Navy
Ronald Perry – New Haven, CT; US Army, Vietnam, 1st Calvary, Col. (Ret.), Silver Star, 2-DFC’s, 3 Bronze Stars, Purple Heart
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The Wreck of the IJN Chokai
IJN Chokai, 1942 -by: Paul Wright
Chokai was the last of the four-strong Takao class of heavy cruisers built for the Imperial Japanese Navy in the late 1920s. Imperial Japanese designers worked for several years under the restrictions of the Washington Naval Treaty to make warships that were superior in quality to their American and British opponents, but the tonnage limitations imposed by the treaty made designs that would satisfy the General Staff almost impossible.
In WWII, Chokai participated in several of the early operations in Southeast Asia, including convoy escort, assisting in the Hunt for Force Z, and the destruction of ABDA forces.
In March 1942, the IJN made a raid into the Indian Ocean with impressive results. The British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes, the heavy cruisers Cornwall and Dorsetshire, and the destroyers Tenedos and Vampire were all sunk. Additionally, several ports were raided on the island of Ceylon and the Indian mainland, and more than 25 merchant vessels were sunk for the loss of around 25 Japanese aircraft.
After a short refit at Yokosuka, Chokai was assigned to the occupation force for the Midway Invasion operation, with the intention of providing support to the Special Naval Landing Forces while they assaulted the atoll. However, the destruction of the Kido Butai and the resulting loss of Japanese air cover on June 4th resulted in the failure of the operation, and Chokai returned to Japan.
IJN heavy cruiser Chokai at Ruk 20 Nov. 1942, Yamato in background
On the night of August 9th, Chokai acted as the flagship for Vice Admiral Mikawa as the 6th Cruiser Division went into the Battle of Savo Island, a mostly one-sided beating of the Allied naval forces in the waters off the island. Four Allied heavy cruisers were sunk (Canberra, Astoria, Vincennes, and Quincy) by the combined weight of gunfire and torpedoes from the Japanese force, and another survived with heavy damage. Despite the surprise of the attack, two Japanese cruisers were damaged by return fire, including Chokai. Quincy and Astoria succeeded at hitting Chokai’s Number I turret, disabling it and killing 34 of the crew inside. Repairs are made at Rabaul over the next several days.
For the rest of 1942, Chokai participated in bombardments of Henderson Field and escorted Tokyo express convoys to the island. For several more months most of Chokai’s time was spent escorting convoys, and in some minor refits that added newer radar and more AA guns. In June 1944, she was part of the Mobile Force at the Battle of the Philippine Sea, a colossally one-sided battle that saw the loss of three Japanese aircraft carriers, three more carriers damaged, damage to several surface combatants, and the loss of more than 700 aircraft. Chokai emerged unscathed from the battle.
October 1944 would see the end of Chokai. In an effort to halt the American landing on the island of Leyte, the IJN put together a massive operation to divert the main striking power of the US navy away from the island, so that their battleships and cruisers could attack the vulnerable transport ships in the gulf.
IJN Center Force departing Brunei Bay, Borneo, for P.I. 22 Oct. 1944 w/ Yamato & Musashi
The Center Force under Admiral Takeo Kurita comprised four battleships (including Yamato and Musashi, the largest battleships ever built), ten heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, and fifteen destroyers. Despite two devastating attacks on the 23rd and 24th by American submarines and aircraft (which sank two of her sister ships and critically damaged another), Chokai made it into the gulf for what would have been the main event.
During the Battle off Samar on October 25th, the Center Force totally failed to utilize its advantage in survivability and firepower and was turned back by the boldness and audacity of the Americans in the small task forces that were supporting the marines on the island. For the loss of an escort carrier, two destroyers, a destroyer escort, several aircraft, and damage to several other warships, the Japanese lost three more heavy cruisers and another three were seriously damaged.
At 0558 the Center Force opened fire on Taffy 3, by 0850 Chokai started to take 5” shellfire from the guns on the escort carriers and destroyer escort Roberts. It is probable that several of them were from USS White Plains (CVE-66). Less than ten minutes later, reports indicate a large explosion, long believed to be from Chokai’s torpedoes detonating from a near hit by a 5” shell. Her engines and rudder were disabled, and she fell out of formation. At 0905, a flight of four TBM Avengers from Kitkun Bay scored a hit with a 500 pound bomb on the stern, and they reported billowing smoke.
Towards the end of the hour, the heavy cruiser Tone reports that Chokai is dead in the water. Kurita orders the destroyer Fujinami to escort the stricken cruiser away a few minutes after 1000, and the destroyer takes off the survivors. At last, at 2148 hours Fujunami reports that she had scuttled Chokai with torpedoes.
But even after their ship was sunk, Chokai’s crew weren’t safe. On October 27th, while diverting to pick up more survivors from another lost Japanese ship, aircraft from USS Essex attacked Fujinami in the afternoon. Fujunami was sunk with all hands, including all of the survivors from Chokai.
On May 5th, 2019, the R/V Petrel located Chokai at a depth of 16,970 feet (5,173 meters), and on May 30th they conducted an ROV survey of the wreck. Chokai is resting upright, her bow broke off in front of the Number I turret and is resting about 980 feet (300 meters) away, an aircraft catapult also broke away, and the rear deck has fallen in.
Aside from that, most of the ship is in one piece.
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Military Humor – Navy Chief style –
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Farewell Salutes –
Leon Ahlquist – Scarborough, ME; US Navy, WWII, USS Antietam
Daniel H. Bergolc – Euclid, OH; US Army, Iraq & Afghanistan, Captain, 2 Bronze Stars, 2 Purple Hearts
Jack Childress – Ridgeland, MS; USMC, WWII, PTO, 1st marine Division, 3 purple Hearts
Robert Dishmond – Science Hill, KY; US Army, Korea, 101st Airborne & 3rd Infantry Division
Charles Gwinn – Silverdale, WA; US Army Air Corps, WWII, PTO, Co. B/674 Artillery/11th Airborne Division
Norris Halstead – Notomine, WV; US Navy, WWII
Fred Kerhoff – Lena, IL; US Army, WWII
Laverne Mertz – Walnut, IA; US Navy, WWII, PTO
Oliver Williams Jr. – New Orleans, LA; US Navy, WWII, PTO, USS Hutchins
Thomas Francis Wills – NYC, NY; US Navy, WWII, ETO & PTO, radioman 1st Class, USS Upshur Inshore Patrol/10th ND/Navy 116; USS Chickadee, Monitor & Dyess
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Current News – 75th Anniversary of the end!
The 75th Anniversary of the End of World War II Commemoration, which includes events in Washington, D.C., and Honolulu, Hawaii, will continue with adjustments and safety precautions to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, according to organizers.
The events in Hawaii – which will include aerial parades and a dinner – will begin Aug. 29 and end Sept. 2, the anniversary of the official end of World War II. A ceremony will be held on the USS Missouri, the ship on which the official surrender documents were signed in 1945.
B-29 bomber “Fifi”
“Commemoration events are in place to pay tribute and thank our veterans of World War II, the Greatest Generation, for their service and sacrifice on behalf of the United States,” Mike Carr, president and CEO of the Battleship Missouri Memorial, said in a press release. “We have worked very hard to ensure this important anniversary would not go unnoticed and look forward to recognizing those who fought for our ultimate freedom.”
World War II veterans attending events in Hawaii or Washington, D.C., will have a “travel bubble.” For Hawaii, that means a 14-day quarantine once arriving in the state, which is now required for all people entering Hawaii. For Washington, D.C., Block said there are ongoing conversations with veterans and their families about who will attend and how that will happen.
B-25 Mitchell bomber “Old Glory” being lifted aboard the USS Essex for trip to Hawaii.
“We have had some [flyover] pilots come forward and say, ‘Well, if [the veterans] want to go I’ll bring them in my private aircraft.’ So they wouldn’t be flying commercially, and some of them live close enough where they could drive,” Block said.
“It’s such an honor. It’s just a really, really epic thing to be part of,” Block said. “And I know everybody really, really wanted to do it this year, particularly.”
The B-17 Flying Fortress, the P-47 Thunderbolt and the B-29 Superfortress are among the about 60 airplanes scheduled to take part in the September flyover. The aircraft will fly in various formations, which represent the war’s major battles. The aircraft are expected to be over the Lincoln Memorial at 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 25.
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Major Bill White, USMC, 105.
Oldest Living Marine Veteran, Major Bill White, celebrates his 105 birthday with a drive-by parade in Inglewood, CA
His name will be familiar to many, as he received tens of thousands of Valentines cards from many of you!!
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Purple Heart Day – 7 August
Purple Heart
Veteran and military organizations hold remembrance meetings for fallen heroes and special events to thank soldiers, veterans, and Purple Heart recipients on this day. Many people fly the American flags at their homes and businesses as a way to show their solidarity with the troops.
The Purple Heart Foundation, the fundraising arm of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, recommends donating time and money to the foundation or to other organizations working with Purple Heart recipients and their families on this day. They also encourage people to listen to soldiers and veterans and learn more about their life stories and their military service.
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Military Humor –
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Farewell Salutes –
Joseph T. Allbaugh – Folsom, CA; US Army, Afghanistan, 1st Lt., 2/44/108th ADA Brigade, KIA (Kandahar)
Marion Beall Jr. – Bronson, TX; US Navy, WWII, Corpsman w/ 1st Marine Division
HONOR
Modesto “Mike” Chemotti (106) – Solvay, NY; US Army, WWII, ETO
Fred DePonte – New Haven, CT; US Army, WWII, ETO, 128th AAA Gun Battery, weapons specialist, Purple Heart
John Fruzyna – Northlake, IL; US Army, Korea, HQ Co./187th RCT
Thomas Hatfield Jr. – Lutcher, LA; US Coast Guard, WWII, Seaman 2nd Class
Kathleen Hunter – Thunder Bay, CAN; RC Army, WWII, nurse
Alexander Klass – Willamina, OR; US Army, Operation Joint Guardian, Pfc., 2/162/41st Infantry Brigade Combat Team, KIA (Kosovo)
Davis Sanders – Burlington, WA; US Navy, WWII, aviation metalsmith
George Viney – Lawton, OK; US Army, WWII, PTO, 2 Silver Stars, Bronze Star, Colonel (Ret. 32 y.)
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Sports in the WWII Military
1926 Army/Navy game ticket, Nimitz Museum
The relationship between sports and the American armed forces reached a climax during WWII The military broadened its athletic regimen, established during WWI, and thereby reproduced a patriotic sporting culture that soldiers had known as civilians. The armed services provided equipment, training, and personnel rather than rely on private agencies, as had been done in WWI. The entry of numerous prominent athletes into military service represented a public relations boon for the Department of War and cemented a bond between professional sports, athletes, and patriotism.
American football was glorified as everything masculine and befitting the U.S. military experience. As organized sports became even more closely linked with fitness, morale, and patriotism, both within the ranks and on the home front, football became a fixture on military bases at home and abroad. Football was the favored sport among the military brass, as Generals George Marshall, Dwight Eisenhower, Douglas MacArthur, and Omar Bradley all thought that football produced the best soldiers. Army and Navy were the two leading collegiate football powers during the war (Army was unbeaten from 1944 to 1946) and their games were broadcast over Armed Forces Radio.
For the 11th Airborne Division, Gen. Swing ordered a Japanese auditorium to be transformed into the 11th Airborne Coliseum. The complex was large enough to hold a theater that would seat 2,500, four basketball courts, a poolroom with 100 tables, a boxing arena that held 4,000 spectators, six bowling alleys and a training room.
In the fall of 1945, an Olympian was held in Tokyo for all the troops stationed in Japan and Korea. Football became the highlighted game. The 11th A/B Division coach, Lt. Eugene Bruce brought them to winning the Japan-Korea championship. They then went on to take the Hawaiian All-Stars in Mejii Stadium with a score of 18-0. This meant that the 11th Airborne Division held the All-Pacific Championship. The troopers went on to win in so many other sports that by the time the finals were held for the boxing tournament at Sendai, the headlines read in the Stars and Stripes sports section:
Ho-Hum, It’s the Angels Again”
Fellow blogger, Carl D’Agostino at “i know i made you smile”, sent me his father’s pictures and information. Arthur D’Agostino had been with the 8th Armored Division. They were stationed at Camp Campbell, KY until 1943, when they were moved to Camp Polk, LA to prepare for combat. The division was sent to the European Theater on 5 December 1943, but Mr. D’Agostino was in recovery from surgery and was spared the journey. Tank Sergeant D’Agostino became a middleweight boxing instructor and gave exhibitions around the camps. Carl’s blog can be found HERE. I know he’ll make you laugh!
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4 August 1790 – 2020 U.S. Coast Guard Birthday – 
https://pacificparatrooper.wordpress.com/2015/08/03/us-coast-guard-225th-birthday/
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Military –
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Farewell Salutes –
Frank L. Athon – Cincinnati, OH; USMC, WWII, PTO, Pfc. # 486357, Co. A/6/2nd Marine Division, KIA (Tarawa)
Raymond Battersby – Chicago, IL; US Navy, WWII, coxswain, USS Adair
Traditions of Honor & Respect
Herman Cain – Memphis, TN; Civilian, US Navy ballistics analyst / media contributor, President candidate
Clarence Gilbert – Oklahoma City, OK; US Navy, WWII, PTO, POW / Korea
Lucille Herbert (100) – Manchester, NH; US Army WAC, WWII, 2nd Lt., nurse
Joe Kernan – South Bend, IN; US Navy, Vietnam, USS Kitty Hawk, pilot, POW, 2 Purple Hearts / mayor, governor
Conrad Robinson – Los Angeles, CA; US Army, Operation Joint Guardian, SSgt., medical specialist, 155/26/44th Medical Brigade, KIA (Kosovo)
Vinson Rose – Menifae County, KY; US Army, Vietnam, Sgt. Major (Ret. 22 y.), 82nd & 101st Airborne, 1964 Soldier of the Year, 4 Bronze Stars
Catherine Smalligan – Detroit, MI; Civilian, US Navy Recruiting Office (Kalamazoo)
Floyd Warren – North Bloomfield, OH; US Army, WWII, Lt. Col., Purple Heart, Bronze Star
Those lost to us during the Camp Pendleton training exercise…..
— Pfc. Bryan J. Baltierra, 19, of Corona, a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4, 15th MEU.
— Lance Cpl. Marco A. Barranco, 21, of Montebello, a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4.
— Pfc. Evan A. Bath, 19, of Oak Creek, Wis., a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4, 15th MEU.
— U.S. Navy Hospitalman Christopher Gnem, 22, of Stockton, Calif., a hospital corpsman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4.
— Pfc. Jack Ryan Ostrovsky, 21, of Bend, Ore., a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4.
__ Lance Cpl. Guillermo S. Perez, 20, New Braunfels, TX; USMC, rifleman with Bravo Co./ BLT
— Cpl. Wesley A. Rodd, 23, of Harris, Texas, a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4.
— Lance Cpl. Chase D. Sweetwood, 19, of Portland, Ore., a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4.
— Cpl. Cesar A. Villanueva, 21, of Riverside, a rifleman with Bravo Company, BLT 1/4.
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Pacific Paratrooper 