Existing comment:
Kamikaze Fragment:
A fragment from one of the hundreds of kamikazes that attacked the American fleet off Okinawa. This plane crashed into the forward smoke stack of the destroyer Newcomb on 6 April 1945.
Kamikaze:
The Okinawa operation was the deadliest of the war for the US Navy. In just under three months of combat, the Japanese launched more than 1,450 kamikazes. The pickets, destroyers and small craft the surrounded the island to warn the large ships of incoming aircraft, became convenient targets. Attack formations called "kikusui" sank thirty ships and heavily damaged another 368; more than 4,900 sailors were killed or missing.
On 12 April 1945, the battleship USS Tennessee was steaming in an air-defense formation when she was attacked by a half-dozen planes. Five were shot down, but the sixth crashed into the ship and its bomb detonated. Twenty-men were killed, 107 wounded.
The USS Laffey was attacked by 25 Japanese aircraft at Okinawa. Four bombs and five kamikazes hit the destroyer, killing 32 men. Despite the damage, the ship survived for many more years of service.
Destroyer minelayer USS Aaron Ward was hit by at least seven kamikazes and two bombs on the afternoon of 3 May 1944. Amazingly, the ship stayed afloat and was towed to safety.
The Final Thrust:
With the reoccupation of the Philippines underway, and long-range bomber bases secured in the Marianas, victory was in sight. But how to secure the capitulation of a foe that resisted in the face of fire bombings of its cities and submarine blockade of its country. Planned envisioned an invasion of Japan. Critical was securing a staging point. Okinawa seemed ideal.
While MacArthur's troops spread out over the Philippines, the Central Pacific Command focused again on the invasion of the Japanese mainland. Two islands south of Japan, Iwo Jima and Okinawa, became the next targets.
Iwo Jima -- 19 February 1945:
The Army Air Force wanted Iwo Jima. Under Japanese control, it was a deadly nuisance, as fighter aircraft from the island harassed American B-29s. Under Allied control, it would be an asset, an unsinkable carrier for damaged bombers or those low on fuel.
After 74 days of aerial bombardment from Air Force planes, ships blasted the island for an hour and a half, pausing only to let more than 100 Navy planes bomb the beaches. The relentless fire ceased just before the Marines landed.
Okinawa Secured:
Americans landing on Okinawa encountered fierce fire as they fanned out from their initial beachhead. The Fifth Fleet, which supported of [sic] land operations, sustained kamikaze attacks. The Japanese sank 36 American ships, and damaged 368 ships.
In the end, overwhelming superiority in men and material gave United States forces staying power. By the campaign's conclusion, Turner's Army-Marine amphibious forces totaled more than 200,000 men.
When Okinawa was secured in July of 1945, the Allies had total losses of 12,000 men (7,613 ashore) and 31,800 wounded. Of the 77,000 defenders on Okinawa, all but 7.400 Japanese were killed.
Franklin's Ordeal:
On March 19, 1945, the USS Franklin was a mere fifty miles off the coast of Japan -- the closest distance to the mainland reached [by] any Allied aircraft carrier. A lone Japanese plane spotted the carrier; two of the plane's bombs found their mark.
Franklin suffered 724 men killed and 265 wounded that day, but more might have died had it not [been] for the exceptional courage of the entire crew. Two among them stand out: Chaplain O'Callahan and Lt Jg Gary, both of whom were awarded the Medal of Honor.
Joseph T. O'Callahan (1905-1964):
Father O'Callahan, Franklin's chaplain, administered last rites to dying men, organized and directed firefighting efforts and rescue parties. He also led an effort to wet down magazines that threatened to explode. For his outstanding efforts, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Donald Gary (1901-1977):
Gary discovered three hundred men trapped in a mess compartment. He located an escape route and repeatedly returned to the compartment to lead the men to safety. For the disregard of his own safety, Gary received the Medal of Honor. |