Best Two Out of Three

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. II Burma Battles (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Dear Fred,

Now we're on the outskirts of Georgetown. It's weird to see it from the outside after growing up here in Dad's old house. Last night there were a series of gunflashes out at sea and rumor has it that the navy lads were finishing off that annoying E that kept bombarding us with its pop gun and some MTBs. More and more stuff is pouring in and we've quite an artillery park set up including a number of those big 5.5 inch guns. The captain says those are more for Singapore (can you imagine if we can get there) but we might as well use them here if we have them.

Letter from Samuel Weston, CPL Royal Army, to his Brother Frederick (used by permission of the family).

[John B.]

An Oral History of The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. VIII Silver Wings over the Home Islands (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965).

Target: Oil field

City: Fukuoka Japan

Date: July 18, 1944

Background: After the successful raid by XX Bomber Command B-29's on the Japanese oil installations on Taiwan, the XX Bomber Command is directed to attack the Home Islands for the first time in this conflict.

Altitude: 15,000 feet.

Time over Target: 13:45.

Expected Opposition: No significant anti-aircraft or fighter opposition is expected.

Warning Order XX Bomber Command July 17, 1944.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. I: Chinese Quagmire (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Hi Ma,

Sorry that it's been awhile but we've chased the Japs all the way back to some crazy place called Liuchow. Sounds like something we'd eat at Mr. Chang's restaurant doesn't it! Anyway, the bomber boys have been blasting them for awhile and a couple of Jarhead batteries had set up next to us. I guess the Japs have been waiting because as soon as our marines started shooting some of the biggest shells I've ever heard started exploding among our guns. I heard screams I wish I could forget but the next day we counted almost 100 destroyed guns. Makes me nervous about going over the top in a few days!

Love,

Drew ( July 24, 1944 Letter home from CPL. Andrew McMillins Americal Division)

[John B.]

The illustration for the previous post.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. III Central Pacific Ablaze (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

SECRET

After Action Analysis: July 24, 1944

Place: Hong Kong Harbour

Time of Attack: 1433

Participants: All airwings.

Losses: Heavy losses to dive bombers attributed to poor escort tactics and failure to fly any fighter sweeps. Flak losses very light indicating IJN flak not combat effective.

Results: Poor execution. Number of aircraft involved should have sunk all enemy carriers. Assigning all inbound dive bombers to a single altitude may have caused undue confusion when CAP penetrated the escort screen. In any event, one CVL confirmed dead another CVL probable. Other CVs damaged.

Battle Analysis For US Pacific Fleet completed August 1, 1944 (declassified Jan. 1, 1964).

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. III Central Pacific Ablaze (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Dear Diary,

I saw the oddest sight today. After the Jap carriers raided Manila last week (and sank four of our merchant ships) the brass wanted them hunted down. I was in the afternoon strike on Hong Kong after rain this morning prevented any action and we heard that the army boys had really plastered the airfield at Canton in the morning taking out a number of bombers. Nevertheless, a few seemed to have gotten airborne and, as I was back over the TF, I saw one diver bomber put one into the Saratoga. It must have hit something important because there was a huge orange fireball. She's still landing planes so I hope she'll be ok. But, what was really weird was a separate flight of Jap Dive bombers. They got over the Iowa, peeled over into their dives, and never pulled up. If it only happened to one plane you could figure that it was hit by flak or something, but this guys all went in and never wavered. At least one hit the Iwoa and did not seem to do much damage. I wonder what happened to all of those Jap pilots.

Diary entry for July 24, 1944 by Flt. Cmdr Johnes USS Enterprise (first recorded siting of a Japanese Kamikaze attack).

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. III Central Pacific Ablaze (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

I was on long range CAP today and found myself over the invasion forces assembling for Takao. It was a vast enterprise to say the least. Over 200 ships and clouds of smoke and steam on the horizon indicating more were gathering. I'm not sure how Japan thought that it could fight this type of war machine. I'm sure we have at least two full divisions, tanks, artillery combat engineers and what have combat loaded and ready to go. On a quick shore leave after our strike against Hong Kong I was chatting with an academy pal who is XO on a CA and he saw some Japs looking like they were deliberately diving on another CA. They took out the entire forward 8 inch turret. Makes me think of what I saw with the Iowa. Very odd.

Diary entry for August 2, 1944 by Flt. Cmdr Johnes USS Enterprise.

"Loose lips sink ships indeed. It's only today that we learned that the Japs knew we were coming to Takao. One of our so called diplomats got drunk at a party in Switzerland and let slip that after Luzon were were headed for Taiwan. The Italian ambassador (still a fascist at that time) passed word onto the Nazis who told their Asian pals. We all know what happened when our boys splashed ashore. I think that hanging is too good for that state department idiot!"

Sept. 23, 1954 Op Ed in the New York Times by Rear Admiral Jonathan Easaker. (Ed. Note, in other words, I was chatting with scott at a mutual friend's house and told him the next target. Ooops. Many electronic soldiers may die!)

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. II Burma Battles (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Once again our use of airborne troops helped turn the tables on well dug in Japanese forces. As we had the year before in Burma, we dropped Chindits and airborne on Kuala Lampur and it's neighboring town. This served to essentially cut the Japanese in Taiping out of supply. sure, some could flow around these bases through the jungle trails to the east and north, but the rail lines were cut and these Taiping troops were pretty much trapped. Once the main army reached Kuala Lampur we now had the airfields to reduce Singapore and start attacking the southern oil fields of Sumatra.

-- Author's interview of MGen Bernard Fitzsimmons Liaison to Allied Supreme Command Burma Theater.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. I: Chinese Quagmire (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Hi Ma,

Me again! We just liberated Liuchow. These Japs get dug into their tunnels and you have to blast them out yard by yard. I wish they'd let us use poison gas like we do against the ant tunnels back home but when I said that so the Sgt Major he told me to shut my pie hole. He was in France in the last war and told me I had no idea what I was talking about. Well, if you could have seen what these Japs did to some of the women and girls in Liuchow it might make you change your mind on the subject. In any event, I'm still kicking and lots of those Japs aren't, even some who tried to give up. We're all bone tired and the battalions are all mixed up but we're pushing on!

Love,

Theo


(letter home from CPL Theodore Epstein August 2, 1944) (used with Mr. Epstein's permission).

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. V: Duds and Depth Charges (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

To: Admiral King, C in C US Navy

From: Admiral Nimitz, Commander Pacific Fleet

Date: August 2, 1944

Re: Japanese Merchant losses to date.

Based on an analysis of all reported sinkings of Japanese merchant vessels our current estimate is that Japan has lost the following items from her merchant fleet:


1. AK: 459

2. AKL: 187

3. AP: 53

4. AO: 18

5. TK: 129

We have not included PBs in this estimate since, although the Japanese frequently use them to carry cargo, they are classified as combat ships. Based on our calculations, the Japanese merchant fleet in existence as of December 7, 1941 has largely been destroyed. Continued Japanese production means that they still have tonnage with which to attempt to move supplies and oil but the number of available hulls has been sharply curtailed. Japan's frequent attempts to run fuel convoys through our blockade despite heavy losses of both cargo ships and escorts indicates a measure of desperation on Japan's part to obtain necessary resupply. Japan is almost certainly eating into her strategic reserves to keep her war economy running.

Strategic appraisal memorandum declassified July 1 1962.

[Bif1961]

That's a lot of tankers.

[John B.]

It is. But 42 of them (and 4 AOs) have been sunk since the end of May 1944. Once I took Guam, Manila and Saigon I could put search planes over every route and send out surface TFs to intercept his convoys. He's in a tough spot with lots of oil in the south and the US navy between that and the home islands.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. II Burma Battles (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Honestly, I was a bit queasy about taking the Victorious into the Straits of Malacca. It was such an enclosed space and there were Jap bases to our starboard all the way down the coast of Sumatra. But, the Indian Paratroop boys were locked in a fight with the third IJA tank regiment on the coast near Kuala Lampur and our air cover was putting a dent into Japanese air strikes on our men. We decided to send a CL squadron down to Singapore to bombard the airfield there to give us a break in the air. The brain boys at Chittagong assured us the we had destroyed the 9" CD guns when the Japs took the city in 42 but I was still nervous about it! If we could get that tank regiment to back off we would really have the Japs to the north in a bottle.

Capt. R.H.Portal (Radio Interview on "BBC Retrospective" October 16, 1957).

[John B.]

Picture from last post.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. III Central Pacific Ablaze (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Take a knee jar heads. This time sunrise we're going to be on the beach in Takao, that's in Formosa for all you geography geniuses we got here. Mr. Jap don't care that you were good to your mommy or you got a puppy at home, they want to kill you and if you suffer for awhile that just make's em happier. You may have heard those rumors about Jap planes diving into some ships on purpose. Well S*** for B***s if they're going to do that with valuable planes you can sure as S*** bet they'll do it with their grunts. Remember the rules, a bullet in every body and then one more just to be sure, eat light tonight so you don't stink up the landing craft with your puke, look out for your buddy and stay low and keep moving. I will personally violate the corpse of any of you Mother F*****s who dies because he was to F***ing lazy to carry enough ammo. And anyone gets doused in raisin rum tonight will sit next to the diesel exhaust valve on the way in. If you're too scared and want your blanky you can always transfer into the Army. Any takers? Didn't think so! Make me proud and come back in one piece!

Pre-invasion pep talk by Gunnery Sgt. Falkson (1 Marine Division) recorded August 5, 1944 by US Armed Forces Radio and never released due to excessive profanity.

[Capt. Harlock]

The brain boys at Chittagong assured us the we had destroyed the 9" CD guns when the Japs took the city in 42 but I was still nervous about it!

I'd be nervous too -- they didn't mention anything about the 15-inchers! [:-]

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. II Burma Battles (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

We had been slogging and slipping our way down the Maylay peninsula for what seemed like for ever and now we were close, so close to Singapore. The Japs kept slipping away from us, delaying us, sniping at us, but we had crushing superiority. And, according to intel, there were only about 2 divisions in the city. We hoped to redeem the humiliation of 1942 by taking it soon.

Lt. Col Rigsby post war interview on the BBC "Where is Asia now" Sept. 1, 1952.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. III Central Pacific Ablaze (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

"Attention all hands, attention all hands, due to inclement weather the Captain has ordered that all crew are to don rain protective gear and follow safety protocol number. . . . JESUS H. CHRIST THOSE ARE JAP BATTLEWAGONS!!!"

Recording of captain's mate report at the start of the Battle of Ningpo.

"They came at us at just 1,000 yards. We had not seen anything in the heavy weather and one of their first shells wiped out our radar room so we'll never know who was asleep at the switch. But, it was like those old sailing movies with the two sides pounding each other at close range. We snapped to pretty quickly and managed to give better than we got, but the Pennsylvania was in sorry shape after the battle was over.

Report of Lt. Commander Jones on the Battle of Ningpo

[John B.]

And, the actual battle of Ningpo.

[John B.]

An Oral History The Great Asia Pacific War Vol. I: Chinese Quagmire (Harper Publishing & Co. 1965)

Our basic thinking at the time was to try to eliminate as much of Japan's productive capacity as we could before we stormed the home islands. To that end we had cut off her access to oil from the DEI and we also wished to capture major manufacturing centers such as Singapore and Shanghai. The other advantage to putting an effort into China is that it prevented Japan from using it as a reserve army area capable of supplying fresh troops to defend the home islands. Finally, the air bases and shipyards that close to the Home Islands would serve us well and reduced the commute time for resupply missions.

Admiral Nimitz, post war speech at the US Naval Academy, January 22, 1948.