Posted on 12/01/2019 3:22:05 PM PST by Retain Mike
Thanks for sharing your personal story.
OUTSTANDING informative, educational post. My Uncle Frank (RIP) was shot down in the Pacific. I’ve never heard the details, except that a sub or a carrier (can’t remember which) picked him up. I’ve got to talk to my cousin Barbara (his only child). He made it home from the war and managed to live a great life. Banking and then hotel ownership in upper Michigan. He gave me his set of barbells when I was in my early teens. I am still driving his last car (23 years old). Thanks very much for posting. Thanks to all who have served, all who are serving and all who will serve in the future.
love
I like the 1976 movie - if you zap out the human interest/love story crap. Some of the footage was filmed when they did Tora Tora Tora.
In the US Navy all crew are trained in damage control, especially fire fighting. The Japanese only had specialists trained to put out fires. A bad system.
The USN has perfected firefighting.
The Japanese Zeroes brutalized the Buffaloes, Airacobras and Hurricanes (and Spitfires) early in the war. Also many of the Zeroes kills were against hopeless Chinese pilots and aircraft. So 60 kills for Sakai is not impossible. German Aces sometimes had 300 or more kills. Neither AirForce rotated their pilots out of combat. They flew til they died. So big scores were likely.
We didn’t have the treasonous Press that we do now. Today they would make sure the world knew everything.
Polish Intelligence and its mathematicians did the initial work on the German Enigma codes. Then moved heaven and earth to get the information & expertise to the British.
“By the you got to history of the A-Bomb you knew it was absolutely the right decision for Americans and Japanese.”
The book, “The Navy at High Tide” goes into the Abomb subject in depth. People today who cry about it have no understanding of what they are talking about. There was absolutely no reason to believe that Tojo and his Army would ever surrender to an invasion. Or ever give in to being blockaded. They were willing to sacrifice every man woman and child in Japan on the altar of their perverted sense of honor. It took the Abomb to shock the Emperor into supporting surrender. It is foolish to think otherwise.
But apparently safe to do so from a distant future where nothing personal is at risk.
Sakai said in his book that the best pilot he ever faced was a Dutchman in his Buffalo. Sakai finally got him after a long pursuit.
He said if the Dutchman had been flying a better plane that he would have beaten Sakai.
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