I'm 85--born in 1935--lost an uncle in the Pacific--flying B24's--lost high school mates in Korea--lost squadron mates in Viet Nam--My main
interests are "WW2 history and British Cars'--Mainly the Pacific war in WW2. When i was commissioned in 1958 as an Ensign, US Navy--took the oath
of office with words --containing phrases like "defending the constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic"- I have always been in the
habit of reading the local obits--4 out of 5 men (and some women)--born between about 1923 and 1927 were WW2 veterans--(Veteran's
day was monday)
It is not uncommon for children and grandchildren of WW2 vets to say that they weren't aware of their dad's or granddad's experience in WW2--
Until they read their obit, by a squadron or army mate--the old vet, when questioned--would refuse to talk about it--too
many painful memories. Many of them had nightmares for years to come--or never got over it--mental hospitals-suicide--or wondering
on the fringe of society, never fitting in.
What has the this to do with the title above "would I have served honorably"? When I received my "Wings" as a Naval Aviator, 1959--
I was fully qualified and trained to fly from both Aircraft Carriers and land bases and engage the enemy, as my oath of office dictated.
If I had received my commission and wings in 1943, I would have flown off a carrier --Battle of Leyte Gulf--Guadalcanal--Battle of
the Philippine Sea--(otherwise known as the "Marianis (sp) Turkey Shoot" Tarawa--Iwa Jimi--Okinawa--and dozens of other lesser
known battles only briefly mentioned in history books--would I at 24 have served honorably? I would have been the oldest pilot
in the squadron--most pilots in WW2 were 19 to early 20's--some were even 17 and 18--lied about their age--The first
president Bush was 19 when he was shot down in the Pacific and rescued by a US submarine--
So, the original question "would I have served honorably? I don't know--very few of us are ever really tested for courage
in the face of adversity--such as having to fly through anti-aircraft fire from a Japanese ship that you're trying to bomb, and kill
as many of the sailors as you can, while trying not to remind yourself that the sailors are young men like yourself, only doing
their duty to their country and their Emperor.
Reading personal histories of Japanese pilots who survived the war is very interesting--some Japanese military members
were very well educated before the war and after the war went on to rebuild their country--
A side note---for years after WW2, there were 100's of Japanese soldiers holding out on islands in far away places. waiting to be rescued--
The last holdout was on Guam 1967 or 68--interesting--I was flying in and out of Guam for Pan Am then and running in the hills where
he was holdup--probably watching me--American soldiers of Japanese descent would go in to the jungle and try to tell him the war over and come out--
He said he would surrender if his "commanding officer" ordered him to---surprisingly enough, he survived the war, located in Japan--
flown to Guam--and ordered the holdout to come out and surrender--he came out--saluted his commanding office--and surrendered ,
with both American and Japanese reporters in attendance----
I often wondered what he thought about over the years back in Japan--
interests are "WW2 history and British Cars'--Mainly the Pacific war in WW2. When i was commissioned in 1958 as an Ensign, US Navy--took the oath
of office with words --containing phrases like "defending the constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic"- I have always been in the
habit of reading the local obits--4 out of 5 men (and some women)--born between about 1923 and 1927 were WW2 veterans--(Veteran's
day was monday)
It is not uncommon for children and grandchildren of WW2 vets to say that they weren't aware of their dad's or granddad's experience in WW2--
Until they read their obit, by a squadron or army mate--the old vet, when questioned--would refuse to talk about it--too
many painful memories. Many of them had nightmares for years to come--or never got over it--mental hospitals-suicide--or wondering
on the fringe of society, never fitting in.
What has the this to do with the title above "would I have served honorably"? When I received my "Wings" as a Naval Aviator, 1959--
I was fully qualified and trained to fly from both Aircraft Carriers and land bases and engage the enemy, as my oath of office dictated.
If I had received my commission and wings in 1943, I would have flown off a carrier --Battle of Leyte Gulf--Guadalcanal--Battle of
the Philippine Sea--(otherwise known as the "Marianis (sp) Turkey Shoot" Tarawa--Iwa Jimi--Okinawa--and dozens of other lesser
known battles only briefly mentioned in history books--would I at 24 have served honorably? I would have been the oldest pilot
in the squadron--most pilots in WW2 were 19 to early 20's--some were even 17 and 18--lied about their age--The first
president Bush was 19 when he was shot down in the Pacific and rescued by a US submarine--
So, the original question "would I have served honorably? I don't know--very few of us are ever really tested for courage
in the face of adversity--such as having to fly through anti-aircraft fire from a Japanese ship that you're trying to bomb, and kill
as many of the sailors as you can, while trying not to remind yourself that the sailors are young men like yourself, only doing
their duty to their country and their Emperor.
Reading personal histories of Japanese pilots who survived the war is very interesting--some Japanese military members
were very well educated before the war and after the war went on to rebuild their country--
A side note---for years after WW2, there were 100's of Japanese soldiers holding out on islands in far away places. waiting to be rescued--
The last holdout was on Guam 1967 or 68--interesting--I was flying in and out of Guam for Pan Am then and running in the hills where
he was holdup--probably watching me--American soldiers of Japanese descent would go in to the jungle and try to tell him the war over and come out--
He said he would surrender if his "commanding officer" ordered him to---surprisingly enough, he survived the war, located in Japan--
flown to Guam--and ordered the holdout to come out and surrender--he came out--saluted his commanding office--and surrendered ,
with both American and Japanese reporters in attendance----
I often wondered what he thought about over the years back in Japan--
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