Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr.

Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr. ( ; July 18, 1886 – June 18, 1945) was a lieutenant general in the United States Army during World War II. He served in the Pacific Theater of Operations and commanded the defenses of Alaska early in the war. Following that assignment, he was promoted to command the Tenth Army, which conducted the amphibious assault on the Japanese island of Okinawa on April 1, 1945. He was killed during the closing days of the Battle of Okinawa by enemy artillery fire, making him the highest-ranking United States military officer lost to enemy fire during World War II. He would remain the highest-ranking U.S. military member to be killed by a foreign armed action until the death of Lieutenant General Timothy Maude during the September 11 attacks.
Buckner, Lesley J. McNair, Frank Maxwell Andrews, and Millard Harmon, all lieutenant generals at the time of their deaths, were the highest-ranking Americans to be killed in World War II. Buckner and McNair were posthumously promoted to the rank of four-star general on July 19, 1954, by a Special Act of Congress (Public Law 83-508).
Early life and education.
Buckner was the son of Confederate general Simon Bolivar Buckner and his wife Delia Hayes Claiborne. His father was Governor of Kentucky from 1887 to 1891, and was the Gold Democratic Party's candidate for Vice President of the United States in 1896. Buckner was raised near Munfordville, Kentucky, and accompanied his father on his 1896 presidential campaign when he served as the running mate of ex-Union general John M. Palmer.
Military career.
Buckner attended the Virginia Military Institute. When he turned 18 in the summer of 1904, his father asked President Theodore Roosevelt to grant him an appointment to West Point. Roosevelt granted this request and Buckner graduated in the class of 1908. He served two military tours in the Philippines, and wrote about his adventures in "Tales of the Philippines – In the Early 1900s". During World War I, he served as a temporary major, drilling discipline into aviator cadets.
Inter-war period.
For the 17 years beginning May 1919, Buckner's assignments were not with troops but with military schools as follows: four years as tactical officer at the United States Military Academy, West Point, New York; one year as student at The Infantry School at Fort Benning, Georgia; four years at the Command and General Staff School, Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas, with the first year as a student (distinguished graduate), then three years as instructor; four years at the Army War College, Washington, D.C., with year one as student then three years as Executive Officer; four more years at West Point, as Assistant Commandant and Commandant of Cadets. At West Point, "His rule is remembered for constructive progressiveness, with a share of severity tempered with hard, sound sense, and justice." However, one cadet's parent commented: "Buckner forgets cadets are born, not quarried".
Buckner was with troops for the rest of his career. In September 1936 he became Executive Officer of the 23rd Infantry Regiment at Ft. Sam Houston in Texas. Promoted to colonel in January 1937, he was given command of the 66th Infantry (Light Tank) at Ft. Meade in Maryland. In September 1938, he commanded of the 22nd Infantry at Ft. McClellan, Alabama. From November 1939 to August 1940 he was Chief of Staff of the 6th Division at Camp Jackson in South Carolina, Ft. Benning in Georgia, and Camp Beauregard in Louisiana.
World War II.
Alaska.
Buckner was promoted to Brigadier General in 1940 and was assigned to fortify and protect Alaska as commander of the Army's Alaska Defense Command. He was promoted to Major General in August 1941. Alaskan waters, including areas along the Aleutian Islands and into the Bering Sea coastline, had previously been reconnoitered by Imperial Japanese Naval vessels in the 1930s.
The potential for some kind of action was considered seriously by both US and Canadian Forces. When the US was finally drawn into World War II, the defense of Alaska had already been underway - but no one knew the where, when or how the Japanese would attack. It came in a stunning surprise attack on Dutch Harbor 3–5 June 1942; farther west, Imperial Japanese forces seized the islands Kiska and Attu, bringing ashore some 7,000 troops (at Kiska) and nearly 3,000 at Attu.
Buckner gave orders in June 1942 for the indigenous Aleut people to be evacuated and for their villages to be burned. The Aleut people were not allowed to return until 1945, after the war was over.
The campaign to take back Attu Island took nearly a year. The Battle for Attu, Operation Landcrab, occurred across three weeks in May 1943. The casualties on both sides were high. On shore, some 549 US soldiers were killed, 1148 were wounded, and 1,814 suffered cold and disease. Of the 2,900 Japanese garrison, only 28 survived. Off shore and in the air overhead, many dozens of airmen and sailors of both sides forfeited their lives during the months of the Aleutian Campaign.
Subsequently, in August 1943, Kiska was invaded by Canadian and US soldiers. Just as at Attu, the weather conspired to aid the enemy. An estimated 5,400 soldiers and sailors had been secretly withdrawn by the Imperial Navy under cover of fog prior to the arrival of allied forces. Allied commanders refused to believe that the Japanese could have completely evacuated Kiska. For eight days, troops searched the island, firing into the dense fog and sometimes accidentally shooting their comrades. 24 Allied soldiers were killed by friendly fire, four by Japanese booby traps, and a further 71 died when the ship "Abner Read" struck a floating mine. 168 Allied soldiers were wounded or fell ill on Kiska. The bombardment and invasion of the deserted island was written off as a “training exercise,” and the Aleutian Campaign officially ended after 439 days of warfare. This constituted the Aleutian Islands campaign. In 1943, he was promoted to Lieutenant General.
Battle of Okinawa.
In July 1944, Buckner was sent to Hawaii to organize the Tenth Army, which was composed of both Army and Marine Corps units. The original mission of the Tenth Army was to prepare for the invasion of Taiwan; however, this operation was canceled, and Buckner's command was instead ordered to prepare for the Battle of Okinawa. Beginning on April 1, 1945, this turned out to be the largest, slowest, and bloodiest sealandair battle in American military history. Despite historic amphibious assets, Buckner insisted on a frontal assault on the dug-in Japanese, causing massive American casualties. Late in the battle, Buckner failed to realize that the Japanese were pulling back to a secondary defensive line, allowing the Japanese to escape destruction with a significant force. Reducing this force in the southern part of the island cost enormous casualties, especially among the civilian population, who were trapped in the battle zone.
A quote of his from 1945 was reported in the newspapers back home when he said that he intended to Christianize the Japanese and that "the best way to do that was to give them a Christian burial".
Death.
On June 18, Buckner arrived in his command jeep which was flying its standard 3-star flag to visit a forward observation post on a ridge approximately 300 yards behind the front lines, as Marine infantry advanced on the Japanese-held Ibaru Ridge. Visits from the general were not always welcome as his presence frequently drew enemy fire, usually as he was departing. Buckner had arrived with his standard three stars showing on the front of his steel helmet and a nearby Marine outpost sent a signal to Buckner's position stating that they could clearly see the general's three stars on his helmet. Told of this, Buckner replaced his own helmet with an unmarked one.
As Buckner stood at the outpost, a small flat-trajectory Japanese artillery shell of unknown caliber (estimated 47mm) struck a coral rock outcropping near him, and fragments pierced his chest. Buckner was carried by stretcher to a nearby aid station, where he died on the operating table. He was succeeded in command by Marine General Roy Geiger. Total American deaths during the battle of Okinawa were 12,513.
Buckner was interred in the family plot at Frankfort Cemetery in Frankfort, Kentucky.
Personal life.
Buckner was married to Adele Blanc Buckner (1893–1988). They had three children: Simon Bolivar Buckner III, Mary Blanc Buckner, and William Claiborne Buckner.
Legacy.
Named in honor of Buckner:
Military awards.
Buckner's military decorations and awards include:


Operation Kingpin (World War II)

Operation Kingpin was part of the run-up to Operation Torch, the planned Allied invasion of North Africa during World War II. It was a successor to Operation Flagpole, in which a secret meeting between U.S. General Mark W. Clark and diplomat Robert Murphy, representing the Allies, and General Charles E. Mast, the leader of a group of pro-Allied Vichy France officers in French North Africa, was arranged to secure their cooperation with the invasion. In Operation Kingpin, French General Henri Giraud, code-named "Kingpin", was released from confinement and brought to Gibraltar to meet with Operation Torch commander General Dwight D. Eisenhower and Clark in order to secure his cooperation with the invasion.
Background.
General Giraud was under house arrest by the Vichy government at Toulon in southern France for his anti-Nazi leanings. Giraud was already planning for the day when American troops landed in France. He had agreed to support an Allied landing in French North Africa, provided that only American troops were used, and that he or another French officer was the commander of the operation. He considered this latter condition essential to maintaining French sovereignty and authority over the Arab and Berber natives of North Africa.
Giraud designated General Charles Mast as his representative in Algeria. At a secret meeting on October 23 with U.S. General Mark W. Clark and diplomat Robert Murphy, the result of Operation Flagpole, the invasion was agreed on, but the Americans promised only that Giraud would be in command "as soon as possible". Giraud, still in France, responded with a demand for a written commitment that he would be commander within 48 hours of the landing, and for landings in France as well as North Africa. Giraud also insisted that he could not leave France before November 20. However, Giraud was persuaded that he had to go earlier.
The Operation.
On October 26, 1942, Captain Jerauld Wright of the United States Navy was directed to take part in the mission to extract Giraud, code-named Operation Kingpin. Because Giraud flatly refused to deal with the British, and there were no American submarines within , Winston Churchill devised a subterfuge to appease the French general. , under the command of Lieutenant Norman "Bill" Jewell, briefly became "USS "Seraph"", flying the U.S. Navy ensign. Nominally, the sub came under the command of Wright, although Jewell took care of actual operations. In the spirit of things the British crew affected American accents that they imitated from the movies. Of course, it fooled nobody—including Giraud, who had been told of the deception by Wright.
As Captain G. B. H. Fawkes of the Royal Navy, the commander of 8th Submarine Flotilla in the Mediterranean, noted:
It was, I think, unique in the history of the two nations that a United States Naval officer should be placed in nominal command of a British submarine thereby making her the only warship on active duty to be commanded by two captains.
On October 27, "Seraph" had been ordered to set sail to the coast of southern France for a secret rendezvous. "Seraph" was ordered to patrol up and down the coast until she received a signal giving her the name of the port from which she was to pick up her passengers. She arrived at a location some east of Toulon on October 30, and on November 5 the boat took onboard Giraud, his son, and three staff officers. Two days later, her charges were transferred to a PBY Catalina flying boat that was sent from Gibraltar to search for her after they lost contact with the sub due to a problem with her main radio. The Catalina proceeded to the Operation Torch headquarters on Gibraltar, where Giraud's meeting with Generals Eisenhower and Clark would take place.
Results of the meeting.
At the meeting, Eisenhower asked Giraud to assume command of French troops in North Africa during Operation Torch and direct them to join the Allies. But Giraud had expected to command the whole operation – the job which had been given to Eisenhower – and adamantly refused to participate on any other basis. He said "his honor would be tarnished" and "Giraud will be a spectator in this affair. However, by the next morning, Giraud relented. He refused to leave immediately for Algiers, but rather stayed in Gibraltar until November 9.
Pro-Allied elements in Algeria had agreed to support the Allied landings, and in fact seized Algiers on the night of November 7–8; the city was then occupied by Allied troops. However, resistance continued at Oran and Casablanca. Giraud flew to Algiers on November 9, but his attempt to assume command of French forces was rebuffed; his broadcast directing French troops to cease resistance and join the Allies was ignored.
Instead, it appeared that Admiral François Darlan, who happened to be in Algiers, had real authority. Even Giraud realized this. Despite Darlan's Vichyite reputation, the Allies recognized him as head of French forces, and he ordered the French to cease fire and join the Allies on November 10.
On November 11, German forces occupied southern France. Negotiations continued in Algiers; by November 13, Darlan was recognized as high commissioner of French North and West Africa, while Giraud was appointed commander of all French forces under Darlan. All this took place without reference to the Free French organization of General Charles De Gaulle, which had claimed to be the legitimate government of France in exile.
Then on December 24, Darlan was assassinated under mysterious circumstances. With the strong backing of the Allies, especially Eisenhower, Giraud was elected to succeed him.
Aftermath of Operation Kingpin.
Captain Jerauld Wright was awarded his first Legion of Merit in recognition of his participation in Operation Kingpin. The citation read, in part: "For meritorious service of a high degree in connection with a mission by submarine to Algeria, and negotiations with the French near that city prior to the occupation of North Africa by Allied Forces. In this duty he displayed good judgment, tact, and soldiery qualities that reflect great credit to the United States Navy."


John Brown Jr. (Navajo)

John Brown Jr. (December 24, 1921 – May 20, 2009) was an American Navajo Code Talker during World War II.
Biography.
Brown was born in Chinle, Arizona. He was the son of Nonabah Begay and John Brown. Brown was educated in Chinle Boarding School and Albuquerque Indian School. He graduated from the latter in 1940.
Brown joined the United States military right after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He was one of the original 29 code talkers, who were the ones who actually developed the code.
Later on, for a time, Brown served as a member of the Navajo Tribal Council.
Brown was a Latter-day Saint.
Brown and his wife, the former Loncie Polacca, were the parents of seven children.


Operation Neuland

Operation Neuland (New Land) was the German Navy's code name for the extension of unrestricted submarine warfare into the Caribbean Sea during World War II. U-boats demonstrated range to disrupt United Kingdom petroleum supplies and United States aluminum supplies which had not been anticipated by Allied pre-war planning. Although the area remained vulnerable to submarines for several months, U-boats never again enjoyed the opportunities for success resulting from the surprise achieved by the submarines participating in this operation.
Background.
The Caribbean was strategically significant because of Venezuelan oil fields in the southeast and the Panama Canal in the southwest. The Royal Dutch Shell oil refinery on Dutch-owned Curaçao, processing eleven million barrels per month, was the largest in the world; the refinery at Pointe-à-Pierre on Trinidad was the largest in the British Empire; and there was another large refinery on Dutch-owned Aruba. The British Isles required four oil tankers of petroleum daily during the early war years, and most of it came from Venezuela, through Curaçao, after Italy blocked passage through the Mediterranean Sea from the Middle East.
The Caribbean held additional strategic significance to the United States. The southern United States Gulf of Mexico coastline, including petroleum facilities and Mississippi River trade, could be defended at two points. The United States was well positioned to defend the Straits of Florida but was less able to prevent access from the Caribbean through the Yucatán Channel. Bauxite was the preferred ore for aluminum, and one of the few strategic raw materials not available within the continental United States. United States military aircraft production depended upon bauxite imported from the Guianas along shipping routes paralleling the Lesser Antilles.
United States Navy VP-51 Consolidated PBY Catalinas began neutrality patrols along the Lesser Antillies from San Juan, Puerto Rico on 13 September 1939. The United Kingdom had established military bases on Trinidad; and British troops occupied Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire soon after the Netherlands were captured by Nazi Germany. The French island of Martinique was perceived as a possible base for Axis ships as British relationships with Vichy France deteriorated following the Second Armistice at Compiègne. The September 1940 Destroyers for Bases Agreement enabled the United States to build bases in British Guiana, and on the islands of Great Exuma, Jamaica, Antigua, Saint Lucia and Trinidad.
Concept.
Declaration of war on 8 December 1941 removed United States neutrality assertions which had previously protected trade shipping in the Western Atlantic. The relatively ineffective anti-submarine warfare (ASW) measures along the United States Atlantic coast observed by U-boats participating in Operation Paukenschlag encouraged utilizing the range of German Type IX submarines to explore conditions in what had previously been the southern portion of a declared Pan American neutrality zone. A 15 January 1942 meeting in Lorient included former Hamburg America Line captains with Caribbean experience to brief commanding officers of , , , and about conditions in the area. The first three U-boats sailed on 19 January with orders to simultaneously attack Dutch refinery facilities on 16 February. "U-161" sailed on 24 January to attack Trinidad, and "U-129" followed on 26 January. sailed on 2 February to patrol the Windward Passage between Cuba and Hispaniola; and five large Italian submarines sailed from Bordeaux to patrol the Atlantic side of the Lesser Antilles. These eleven submarines would patrol independently to disperse Allied ASW resources until exhaustion of food, fuel or torpedoes required them to return to France.
Implementation.
"U-156".
The second patrol of "U-156" was under the command of Werner Hartenstein. On the evening of 15 February,"U-156" surfaced after nightfall, two miles off Aruba. Hartenstein commenced his attack at 0131 on 16 February, when he fired two torpedoes at the tankers SS "Pedernales" and SS "Oranjestad" laying at anchor outside San Nicolaas. Ten minutes later, "U-156" moved to within 3/4 mile of the Lago refinery and prepared to bombard it with her 10.5 cm deck gun. However, a crewman failed to remove the tampion from the muzzle, and the first shell detonated in the barrel. One gunner was killed, another was seriously injured, and the muzzle of the gun barrel was splayed open. Following the attack, "U-156" sailed past Oranjestad, 14 miles to the west, and fired three torpedoes at the Shell tanker "Arkansas" berthed at the Eagle Pier. One struck the ship, causing minor damage, one missed its mark and disappeared in the water, and the third beached itself. A few days later, four Dutch marines were killed as they attempted to disarm the beached torpedo.
Hartenstein kept "U-156" submerged north of Aruba after daybreak. At nightfall the crew buried the sailor who died when the gun exploded, and the captain received permission to sail to Martinique, where the injured crewman was put ashore. The crew used hacksaws to shorten the damaged gun barrel by 40 centimeters, and used the sawed-off gun to sink two ships encountered after all torpedoes had been expended sinking two other ships. "U-156" started home on 28 February 1942.
"U-67".
The third patrol of "U-67" was under the command of Günther Müller-Stöckheim. In coordination with the attack on Aruba "U-67" moved into Curaçao's Willemstad harbor shortly after midnight on 16 February to launch six torpedoes at three anchored tankers. The four bow torpedoes hit, but failed to explode. The two torpedoes from the stern tubes were effective on the third tanker.
"U-502".
The third patrol of "U-502" was under the command of Jürgen von Rosensteil. In coordination with the attacks on Aruba and Willemstad, "U-502" waited to ambush shallow draft Lake Maracaibo crude oil tankers en route to the refineries. After three tankers were reported missing, the Chinese crews of surviving tankers refused to sail; and Associated Press broadcast a report that tanker traffic had been halted in the area. "U-502" moved north and started home via the Windward Passage after launching its last torpedoes on 23 February.
"U-161".
The second patrol of "U-161" was under the command of Albrecht Achilles. Achilles and his first watch officer Bender had both visited Trinidad while employed by Hamburg America Line before the war. "U-161" entered Trinidad's Gulf of Paria harbor at periscope depth during daylight through a deep, narrow passage or "Boca". An electronic submarine detection system registered its passage at 0930 on 18 February 1942, but the signal was dismissed as caused by a patrol boat. After spending the day resting on the bottom of the harbor, "U-161" surfaced after dark to torpedo two anchored ships. "U-161" then left the gulf with decks awash and running lights illuminated to resemble one of the harbor small craft; and then moved off to the northwest before returning to sink a ship outside the "Boca". After sunset on 10 March 1942 "U-161" silently entered the shallow, narrow entrance of Castries harbor surfaced on electric motors to torpedo two freighters at dockside; and then raced out under fire from machine guns. The two freighters had just arrived with supplies to construct the new US base; and the harbor previously considered immune to submarine attack was later fitted with an anti-submarine net. "U-161" started home on 11 March 1942.
"Luigi Torelli".
"Luigi Torelli" under the command of Antonio de Giacomo sank two ships.
"U-129".
Under the command of Nicolai Clausen "U-129" spent its fourth patrol intercepting bauxite freighters southeast of Trinidad. The unexpected sinkings caused a temporary halt to merchant ship sailings. The Allies broadcast suggested routes for unescorted merchant ships to follow when sailings resumed. The U-boats received the broadcast and were waiting at the suggested locations.
"Leonardo da Vinci".
 under the command of Luigi Longanesi-Cattani sank one Allied ship and a neutral Brazilian freighter. There were no survivors from the Brazilian ship, and the sinking was not revealed.
"U-126".
"U-126" patrolled the Windward Passage under the command of Ernst Bauer.
"Enrico Tazzoli".
The large 1,331-ton "Enrico Tazzoli" under the command of Carlo Fecia di Cossato sank six ships.
"Giuseppe Finzi".
The large 1,331-ton "Giuseppe Finzi" under the command of Ugo Giudice sank three ships.
"Morosini".
Marcello class submarine "Morosini" under the command of Athos Fraternale sank three ships.
Results.
The Aruba refinery was within deck gun range of deep water. Grand Admiral Erich Raeder would have preferred shelling the refinery as the opening action of Operation Neuland. On the basis of experience with the relative damage caused by deck guns in comparison to torpedoes, U-boat officers chose to begin by torpedoing tankers to cause large fires of spreading oil. Results of the initial attacks on Aruba and Curaçao were diminished by weapon failures; and subsequent attempts to shell the Aruba refinery were discouraged by defensive fire from larger numbers of larger caliber coastal artillery and patrols by alerted aircraft and submarine chasers.
An important link in petroleum product transport from Venezuelan oil fields was a fleet of small tankers designed to reach the wells in shallow Lake Maracaibo and transport crude oil to the refineries. Approximately ten percent of these tankers were destroyed on the first day of Operation Neuland. Surviving tankers were temporarily immobilized when their Chinese crews mutinied and refused to sail without ASW escort. Refinery output declined while the mutineers were jailed until sailings could resume.
Torpedoing ships within defended harbors was relatively unusual through the battle of the Atlantic. U-boats more commonly deployed mines to permit a stealthy exit. Although results were perceived as less significant, the difficulty of attacks in the Gulf of Paria and Castries by "U-161" was comparable to Günther Prien's penetration of Scapa Flow.
Patrol of the Windward Passage by "U-126" was well timed to exploit dispersion of ASW forces north and south. "U-126" sank some ships within sight of Guantanamo Bay Naval Base.
"Neuland" and "Paukenschlag" were opened with similar numbers of U-boats; but the effectiveness of "Neuland" was enhanced by coordination with Italian submarines. The level of success by Italian submarines against a concentration of undefended ships sailing independently was seldom repeated and marked a high point of effective Axis cooperation in the battle of the Atlantic.


William O. Eareckson

Colonel William "Eric" Olmstead Eareckson (May 30, 1900 – October 26, 1966) was an U.S. Army Air Forces combat commander during the World War II Battle of the Aleutian Islands.
William O. Eareckson was the son of Thomas B Eareckson and Sarah Caroline Eareckson (née Tucker). He was born in Baltimore, Maryland.
Eareckson enlisted in the Army at age 17 and fought in France during World War I, where he was wounded. After the war he remained in the Army and received a presidential appointment to West Point. While at West Point he composed a fight song for the football team titled "Gridiron Grenadiers". After graduation in 1924, he attended pilot training, but washed out. He then applied to the become a balloon pilot and was successful.
In 1928, then-Lieutenant Eareckson, together with Captain William E. Kepner, won the National Balloon Elimination Race and the accompanying Paul W. Litchfield Trophy. It was only two years later, at the relatively advanced age of 30, that Eareckson finally won his airplane pilot rating. In 1939 he was given command of the 36th Bombardment Squadron.
During the Aleutians fighting, Eareckson was famed for his innovative tactics. For example, on August 17, 1942, he used radar-equipped B-17s to guide P-38s to a position from where they shot down two of three raiding Japanese Kawanishi H6K bombers. He also pioneered low-level bombing raids against the enemy to counteract the effects of the consistently poor and unpredictable Aleutian weather.
During the Battle of Attu, Eareckson joined frontline infantrymen, borrowed a rifle, and entered the fray --- but was quickly wounded by a Japanese sniper. He was awarded a Purple Heart, but was castigated by General Buckner, Commander of the Alaska Defense Command, for "being where you had no business being".
In early 1943, midway through the Aleutians campaign, Eareckson was transferred to General Buckner's staff as Deputy Chief of Staff for the Eleventh Air Force. He continued to lead combat missions in that capacity. Later he became a member of Admiral Chester Nimitz's staff. Nimitz, the Commander in Chief of the Pacific Area, had earlier presented Eareckson with a Navy Cross to complement the Distinguished Service Cross, Silver Star and other combat decorations he had earned in the Aleutians.
He served as the Support Aircraft Commander, Fifth Amphibious Force, South Pacific where he took part in the planning for the Hollandia-Atape landings and served as Support Aircraft Commander aboard the amphibious command ship at the Makin and Tarawa landings.
Although widely respected for his bravery and leadership skills, Eareckson was viewed by some of his Army Air Forces superiors as caustic, outspoken, and difficult to control. These liabilities prevented him from being considered for promotion. When he retired as a colonel in 1954, he had held that rank for 13 years.
Namesake.
Eareckson Air Station, a military airbase located on the island of Shemya in the Alaskan Aleutian Islands, is named after Eareckson.


Battle of Bannockburn

The Battle of Bannockburn ( or ) on 23 and 24 June 1314 was a victory of the army of King of Scots Robert the Bruce over the army of King Edward II of England in the First War of Scottish Independence. Although it did not bring an end to the war, as victory would only be secured 14 years later, Bannockburn is still a major landmark in Scottish history.
King Edward II invaded Scotland after Bruce demanded in 1313 that all supporters still loyal to ousted Scottish king John Balliol acknowledge Bruce as their king or lose their lands. Stirling Castle, a Scots royal fortress occupied by the English, was under siege by the Scottish army. King Edward assembled a formidable force of soldiers to relieve it – the largest army ever to invade Scotland. The English summoned 25,000 infantry soldiers and 2,000 horses from England, Ireland and Wales against 6,000 Scottish soldiers, that Bruce had divided into three different contingents. Edward's attempt to raise the siege failed when he found his path blocked by a smaller army commanded by Bruce.
The Scottish army was divided into three divisions of schiltrons commanded by Bruce, his brother Edward Bruce, and his nephew, the Earl of Moray. After Robert Bruce killed Sir Henry de Bohun on the first day of the battle, the English were forced to withdraw for the night. Sir Alexander Seton, a Scottish noble serving in Edward's army, defected to the Scottish side and informed them of the English camp's position and low morale. Robert Bruce decided to launch a full-scale attack on the English forces and to use his schiltrons again as offensive units, a strategy his predecessor William Wallace had not used. The English army was defeated in a pitched battle which resulted in the deaths of several prominent commanders, including the Earl of Gloucester and Sir Robert Clifford, and capture of many others.
The victory against the English at Bannockburn is the most celebrated in Scottish history, and for centuries the battle has been commemorated in verse and art. The National Trust for Scotland operates the Bannockburn Visitor Centre (previously known as the Bannockburn Heritage Centre). Though the exact location for the battle is uncertain, a modern monument was erected in a field above a possible site of the battlefield, where the warring parties are believed to have camped, alongside a statue of Robert Bruce designed by Pilkington Jackson. The monument, along with the associated visitor centre, is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the area.
Background.
The Wars of Scottish Independence between England and Scotland began in 1296 and initially the English were successful under the command of Edward I, having won victories at the Battle of Dunbar (1296) and at the Capture of Berwick (1296). The removal of John Balliol from the Scottish throne also contributed to the English success. The Scots had been victorious in defeating the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297. This was countered, however, by Edward I's victory at the Battle of Falkirk (1298). By 1304, Scotland had been conquered, but in 1306 Robert the Bruce seized the Scottish throne and the war was reopened.
After the death of Edward I, his son Edward II of England came to the throne in 1307 but was incapable of providing the determined leadership his father had shown, and the English position soon became more difficult.
In 1313, Bruce demanded the allegiance of all remaining Balliol supporters, under threat of losing their lands, as well as the surrender of the English garrison at Stirling Castle. The castle was one of the most important castles held by the English, as it commanded the route north into the Scottish Highlands. It was besieged in 1314 by Robert the Bruce's younger brother, Edward Bruce, and an agreement was made that if the castle was not relieved by mid-summer it would be surrendered to the Scots.
The English could not ignore this challenge and prepared and equipped a substantial campaign. It is known that Edward II requested 2,000 heavily armoured cavalry and 25,000 infantry, many of whom were likely armed with longbows, from England, Wales and Ireland; it is estimated no more than half the infantry actually arrived, but the English army was still by far the largest ever to invade Scotland. The Scottish army probably numbered around 6,000 men, including no more than 500 mounted forces. Unlike the English, the Scottish cavalry was probably unequipped for charging enemy lines and suitable only for skirmishing and reconnaissance. The Scottish infantry was likely armed with axes, swords and pikes, and included only a few bowmen.
The precise numerical advantage of the English forces relative to the Scottish forces is unknown, but modern researchers estimate that the Scottish faced English forces one-and-a-half to two or three times their size.
Prelude.
Edward II and his advisors were aware of the places the Scots were likely to challenge them and sent orders for their troops to prepare for an enemy established in boggy ground near the River Forth, near Stirling. The English appear to have advanced in four divisions. The Scots assembled defensive formations known as 'schiltrons', which were strong defensive squares of men with pikes. Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray, commanded the Scottish vanguard, which was stationed about a mile south of Stirling, near the church of St. Ninian, while the king commanded the rearguard at the entrance to the New Park. His brother Edward led the third division. The fourth division was nominally under the youthful Walter the Steward, but actually under the command of Sir James Douglas. The Scottish archers used yew-stave longbows and, though these were not weaker than or inferior to English longbows, there were fewer Scottish archers, possibly only 500. These archers played little part in the battle. There is first-hand evidence in a poem, written just after the battle by the captured Carmelite friar Robert Baston, that one or both sides employed slingers and crossbowmen.
Battle.
Location of the battlefield.
The exact site of the Battle of Bannockburn has been debated for many years, but most modern historians agree that the traditional site, where a visitor centre and statue have been erected, is not correct.
A large number of alternative locations have been considered but modern researchers believe only two merit serious consideration:
First day of battle.
Most medieval battles were short-lived, lasting only a few hours, so the Battle of Bannockburn is unusual in that it lasted two days. On 23 June 1314 two English cavalry formations advanced. The first was commanded by the Earl of Gloucester and by the Earl of Hereford.
They encountered a body of Scots led by Robert the Bruce. Bruce and Henry de Bohun, nephew of the Earl of Hereford, faced off in what became a celebrated instance of single combat. Bohun charged at Bruce and, when the two passed side by side, Bruce split Bohun's head with his axe. The Scots then rushed the English forces under Gloucester's and Hereford's command, who retreated, struggling back over the Bannockburn.
The second English cavalry force was commanded by Robert Clifford and Henry de Beaumont. Their forces included Sir Thomas de Grey of Heaton, father of the chronicler Thomas Grey. The younger Grey described the battle:

Second day of battle.
During the night the English forces crossed the stream known as the Bannockburn, establishing their position on the plain beyond it. A Scottish knight, Alexander Seton, who was fighting in the service of Edward II of England, deserted the English camp and told Bruce that English morale was low and encouraged him to attack.
In the morning the Scots advanced from New Park. Not long after daybreak, Edward was surprised to see the Scottish pikemen emerge from the cover of the woods and advance towards his position. As Bruce's army drew nearer, they paused and knelt in prayer. Edward reportedly said in surprise, "They pray for mercy!" "For mercy, yes," one of his attendants replied, "but from God, not you. These men will conquer or die."
The Earl of Gloucester had argued with the Earl of Hereford over who should lead the vanguard into battle. He had also tried to persuade the king that the battle should be postponed. This led the king to accuse him of cowardice. Goaded by the accusation, the Earl of Gloucester advanced to meet the Scots. Few accompanied Gloucester and, when he reached the Scottish lines, he was quickly surrounded and killed.
The English were gradually pushed back and ground down by the Scots' schiltrons. The English longbowmen attempted to support the advance of the knights but were ordered to stop shooting, as they were causing casualties among their own. The English then attempted to deploy their English and Welsh longbowmen to flank the advancing Scots, but they were dispersed by 500 Scottish cavalry under the Marischal Sir Robert Keith. (Although the Scottish cavalry is sometimes described as light cavalry, this appears to be a misinterpretation of Barbour's statement that these were men-at-arms on lighter horses than those of their English counterparts.)
The English cavalry was hemmed in against the Bannockburn, making it difficult for them to manoeuvre. Unable to hold their formations, they broke rank. It soon became clear to Aymer de Valence and Giles d'Argentan (reputedly the third-best knight in Europe) that the English had lost the battle and Edward II needed at all costs to be led to safety. Seizing the reins of the king's horse, they dragged him away, closely followed by 500 knights of the royal bodyguard.
Once they were clear of the battle d'Argentan turned to the king and said: "Sire, your protection was committed to me, but since you are safely on your way, I will bid you farewell for never yet have I fled from a battle, nor will I now." He turned his horse to charge back into the ranks of Scottish, where he was overborne and slain.
English retreat.
Edward fled with his personal bodyguard and panic spread among the remaining troops, turning their defeat into a rout. King Edward with about 500 men first fled for Stirling Castle where Sir Philip de Moubray, commander of the castle, turned him away as the castle would shortly be surrendered to the Scots. Then, pursued by James Douglas and a small troop of horsemen, Edward fled to Dunbar Castle, from which he took a ship to Berwick. From the carnage of Bannockburn, the rest of the army tried to escape to the safety of the English border, south. Many were killed by the pursuing Scottish army or by the inhabitants of the countryside they passed through.
Historian Peter Reese wrote that "only one sizeable group of men – all foot soldiers – made good their escape to England." These were a force of Welsh spearmen who were kept together by their commander, Sir Maurice de Berkeley. The majority of them reached Carlisle. Weighing the available evidence, Reese concludes that "it seems doubtful if even a third of the foot soldiers returned to England." If his estimate is accurate, of 16,000 English infantrymen, about 11,000 were killed. The English chronicler Thomas Walsingham gave the number of English men-at-arms who were killed as 700, while 500 more men-at-arms were spared for ransom. The Scottish losses appear to have been comparatively light, with only two knights among those killed.
Aftermath.
The immediate aftermath was the surrender of Stirling Castle, one of Scotland's most important fortresses, to King Robert. He then slighted (razed) it to prevent it from being retaken. Nearly as important was the surrender of Bothwell Castle where a sizeable party of English nobles, including the Earl of Hereford, had taken refuge. In exchange for the captured nobles, Edward II released Robert's wife Elizabeth de Burgh, sisters Christina Bruce, Mary Bruce and daughter Marjorie Bruce, and Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow, ending their 8-year imprisonment in England.
The defeat of the English opened up the north of England to Scottish raids and allowed the Scottish invasion of Ireland. These finally led, after the failure of the Declaration of Arbroath to secure diplomatic recognition of Scotland's independence by the Pope, to the Treaty of Edinburgh–Northampton in 1328. Under the treaty the English crown recognised the full independence of the Kingdom of Scotland, and acknowledged Robert the Bruce, and his heirs and successors, as the rightful rulers.
Notable casualties.
The following are the notable casualties and captives of the battle.
Legacy.
Bannockburn Visitor Centre.
In 1932 the Bannockburn Preservation Committee, under Edward Bruce, 10th Earl of Elgin and Kincardine, presented lands to the National Trust for Scotland. Further lands were purchased in 1960 and 1965 to facilitate visitor access. A modern monument was erected in a field above the possible site of the battle, where the warring parties are believed to have camped on the night before the battle. The monument consists of two hemicircular walls depicting the opposing parties. Nearby stands the 1960s statue of Bruce by Pilkington Jackson. Although the statue was conceived by Pilkington Jackson he commissioned Thomas Taylor Bowie of the Ontario College of Art in Toronto to create the statue. The monument, and the associated visitor centre, is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the area. The battlefield has been included in the Inventory of Historic Battlefields in Scotland and protected by Historic Scotland under the Historic Environment (Amendment) Act 2011.
The National Trust for Scotland operates the Bannockburn Visitor Centre (previously known as the Bannockburn Heritage Centre), which is open daily from March through October. On 31 October 2012 the original building was closed for demolition and replacement by a new design, inspired by traditional Scottish buildings, by Reiach and Hall Architects. The project is a partnership between the National Trust for Scotland and Historic Environment Scotland, funded by the Scottish Government and the Heritage Lottery Fund. The battlefield's new visitor centre – now rebranded as the Bannockburn Visitor Centre – opened in March 2014. One of the attractions created by a £9m redevelopment of the centre and the nearby battlefield memorial is a computerised multiplayer game.
On 11 June 2020, during the George Floyd protests in the United Kingdom, the statue was defaced with graffiti.
Arts.
"Scots Wha Hae" is the title of a patriotic poem by Robert Burns. The chorus of Scotland's unofficial national anthem "Flower of Scotland" refers to Scotland's victory over Edward and the English at Bannockburn. Many artworks depict the battle. John Duncan and Eric Harald Macbeth Robertson both painted Bruce's encounter with de Bohun. John Phillip painted Bruce receiving the sacrament on the eve of the battle. John Hassall painted a similar theme.
A painting by William Findlay depicts Bruce at the battle.
The battle is referenced in the "" episode Journey to Where, in which a major character speaks English as a result of acquaintance with some English prisoners 25 years earlier.
The closing scene of the 1995 film "Braveheart" shows the moments before the Battle of Bannockburn. Departing from history, in the film King Robert decides to do battle spontaneously.
"The Last Stand" album by "Sabaton" features the song "Blood of Bannockburn".


Report from the Aleutians

Report from the Aleutians is a 1943 documentary propaganda film produced by the U.S. Army Signal Corps about the Aleutian Islands Campaign during World War II. It was directed and narrated by John Huston.
Plot.
In contrast to the other technicolor films made in the Pacific war, "Report from the Aleutians" has relatively little combat footage, and instead concentrates on the daily lives of the servicemen on Adak Island, as they live and work there while flying missions over nearby Kiska. The film opens with a map showing the strategic importance of the island, and the thrust of the 1942 Japanese offensive into Midway and Dutch Harbor. Photographs of the pilots who beat the Japanese back at Dutch Harbor are passed before the camera. "There is no monument to these men. If you want to see their monument, look around you."
The American forces dug in at Adak Island, and there commenced daily bombing missions over the Japanese who had taken Kiska. The film focuses on their routine activities such as harbor patrols, messes, news boards and mail call. "Ask any pilot. He'd tell you he'd gladly fly an extra trip over Kiska to get just one letter." One pilot's crash landing is shown, and his funeral is filmed.
The last twenty minutes or so of the film is taken from footage taken over a mission over Japanese positions. The monotony of the one-hour trip there is emphasized, noting that some have taken up "mental solitaire" on the way over. But at Kiska there is no lack of excitement, as several loads of bombs are dropped over the Japanese, and fire is exchanged by the tailgunner. At the end of the film the servicemen at Adak are shown rejoicing that all of their comrades have returned.
Huston included shots showing the monotony of Army life, e.g. latrine digging and cigarette smoking, and Army authorities objected to the inclusion of these scenes. However, Huston fought for the inclusion of these scenes and eventually prevailed, although after a delay of a couple of months.


Fort Sumner Municipal Airport

Fort Sumner Municipal Airport is a village owned, public use airport located two nautical miles (4 km) northeast of the central business district of Fort Sumner, a village in De Baca County, New Mexico, United States. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015, which categorized it as a "general aviation" airport.
History.
The airfield's origins date to the 1920s when the Transcontinental Air Transport airline built an airfield in Fort Sumner as part of its coast-to-coast air passenger network, but the site was abandoned when the airline's ambitious plans collapsed in the Great Depression.
The airfield was reopened in February 1941, and was rebuilt in 1942 by the United States Army Air Forces as a World War II training airfield. It was assigned to the AAF Flying Training Command West Coast Training Center and was known as Fort Sumner Army Air Field. The flying cadets at the airfield were trained in advanced twin engine aircraft as phase three of their pilot training. The airfield had at least seven auxiliary landing fields, two of which have been identified:
On August 6, 1944, the airfield was transferred to Second Air Force, where it became a replacement facility for B-17 Flying Fortress and B-24 Liberator crew training.
The facility was inactivated on November 15, 1945 and returned to civil control. It is now a public airport providing general aviation service.
The airport retains the large parking ramp from its training use. Two of the three wartime runways are still in use, the 00/18 runway now abandoned. The cantonment area street pattern still exists, with large numbers of foundations of wartime buildings still in evidence, including the foundations of a large cluster of what were probably the barracks of the POW Camp on the north side of the station.
NASA use.
In the 1980s, the airport was chosen as a launch site for NASA's high-altitude balloon program. NASA spent about $100,000 to construct large insulated walls and air conditioning inside the one remaining wartime hangar so payloads could use the place in a controlled environment. Three bays with tall sliding doors that opened into the main hangar area provided a workable area for scientists and their payloads with large steel A-frames used to suspend the payloads. Other NASA buildings were constructed at the airport.
Current two operational balloon launch campaigns are conducted at the airport each year. These occur in the May–June and September–October timeframe surrounding the two stratospheric turnaround events. The NASA Ft. Sumner facility has grown in capability over the years and now includes a machine shop and still utilizes the old World War II hangar as a work area, storage area for support vehicles, and a hangar for NSBF aircraft during balloon flight operations.
Facilities and aircraft.
Fort Sumner Municipal Airport covers an area of 960 acres (388 ha) at an elevation of 4,165 feet (1,269 m) above mean sea level. It has two asphalt paved runways: 3/21 is 5,802 by 75 feet (1,768 x 23 m) and 8/26 is 5,254 by 60 feet (1,601 x 18 m).
For the 12-month period ending April 9, 2011, the airport had 150 general aviation aircraft operations, an average of 12 per month. At that time there were five aircraft based at this airport: 60% single-engine and 40% multi-engine.


Operation Starfish (World War Two)

Operation Starfish was an operation by Australian special forces in World War II on the island of Lombok.


Operation Whale

Operation Whale ("Unternehmen Wal" or "Unternehmen Walfisch" in German) was the name of two separate German Intelligence (Abwehr) plans conceived in 1940.


Peyton Company

Peyton Company also called Peyton Marine Service and Supplies was a wooden shipbuilding and dry dock company in Newport Beach, California. Peyton Company built civilian boats, yachts and fishing boats, in Newport Harbor. To support the World War 2 demand for ships Peyton Company shipyard switched over to military construction and built: US Army Harbor Tugboats and US Navy Sub chasers. Peyton Company leased Newport Harbor waterfront land to build the Navy and Army ships. The shipyard was started by J. W. Peyton (1875-?), born in Texas and his wife Anabel Peyton (1886-?). The shipyard was later owned by his sons: C. R. Peyton (1911-?) and R. P. Peyton (1919-?), a Naval Architect. Peyton Company purchased the shipyard from Balboa Marina Hardware Company owned by Westin T. Jay. After the war, in 1945 the shipyard closed, partly due to the two deaths in the family. The shipyard office was at 901 Pacific Coast Hwy, Newport Beach.


Stockton Metropolitan Airport

Stockton Metropolitan Airport is a joint civil-military airport three miles southeast of downtown Stockton, a city in San Joaquin County, California. It is owned by the County of San Joaquin.
The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems categorized it as a "primary commercial service" airport. Federal Aviation Administration records say it had 36,935 passenger boardings (enplanements) in calendar year 2008, 28,368 in 2009 and 50,632 in 2010.
History.
In the months preceding World War II, the U.S. Army entered into the first of many lease agreements with the City of Stockton (on August 15, 1940) to build and operate an Army training facility at Stockton Municipal Airport.
World War II.
Stockton Army Airfield was initially garrisoned by the 68th Air Base Group (Special) under the Air Corps Advanced Flying School. Between 1940 and 1945, Stockton Field served as a training installation under the West Coast Training Center (later Western Flying Training Command) headquartered at Santa Ana Army Air Base. Known sub-bases and auxiliaries of Stockton AAF were:
In May 1944 all of the facility was consolidated into the 3033rd Army Air Forces Base Unit. Given the airfield's proximity to logistical facilities under the Army Air Forces and Army Service Forces, the site soon became a logistical hub for the U.S. Army in general and the Army Air Forces in particular. This resulted in an increased number of transport aircraft passing through Stockton Field. Military warehouse facilities included of tracks connected to the adjacent Southern Pacific and Western Pacific Railroads for delivery and distribution of a daily average of 200 railcars of military supplies.
On March 2, 1945 the final class completed training and Stockton AAF was transferred from the control of the Western Flying Training Command to the Air Transport Command. With this transfer, the 3033rd AAFBU was redesignated as the 591st AAFBU.
Postwar use.
In October 1946 Stockton AAF was declared surplus. As 1,044.18 acres were in the process of being transferred to the War Assets Administration for disposal, 71.36 acres, consisting of a major portion of the former cantonment area including housing, storage facilities, and a sewage disposal plant, were leased to U.S. Army's Stockton General Depot located to the south in nearby Lathrop.
The City of Stockton and the County of San Joaquin resumed operating the former Stockton Municipal Airport on December 16, 1946 under a joint (interim) license. On the 1,044.18 acres of leased land (950 acres of which comprise the airport now under license) there were approximately 175 buildings, including 50 airport-related structures which were included in the above described license. The buildings were primarily the Quartermaster 700-series and 800-series type construction with concrete foundations, wood floor, composition roof, and wood lap siding.
United States Army use.
On January 29, 1947 the 71.36-acres of former Stockton Field retained by the U.S. Army was officially named the Stockton General Depot Field Annex, then renamed Sharpe General Depot Field Annex in 1948, when Stockton General Depot was redesignated as Sharpe General Depot. The U.S. Army, with the exception of the Sharpe General Depot Field Annex, left Stockton Field by January 31, 1948; the same date that the City of Stockton and the County of San Joaquin jointly assumed administration over the airport (Stockton Record 1964).
Korean War use.
Sharpe General Depot Field Annex was formed from two parcels of land adjacent to the southwest portion of the current Stockton Metropolitan Airport. Sharpe General Depot Field Annex was operated by the U.S. Army as a separate, self-contained military post under Sharpe General Depot. With the rapid expansion of depot operations and facilities that occurred with the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950, Sharpe General Depot Field Annex's name was changed to Sharpe General Depot Troop Field Annex to reflect its support mission. During this period, the site was used primarily for family housing, recreational, and other support facilities for Sharpe General Depot. One of the tenants was the 164th Field Artillery Battalion of the California Army National Guard, who occupied a small part of the Sharpe General Depot Troop Field Annex until a new National Guard Armory was built on State-owned land south of the site in 1952.
Sixth Army & Army Material Command use.
On July 8, 1957 the City of Stockton transferred half of its interest in the Stockton Municipal Airport by Grant Deed, and San Joaquin County assumed administration over the airport (subject to certain reservations, restrictions and conditions according to the "Agreement" with the United States of America dated December 23, 1948 (Appendix A)).
The end of the Korean War caused more mission changes at Sharpe General Depot and the Sharpe General Depot Troop Field Annex. Sharpe was selected as a location for Cold War storage of surplus military diesel locomotives. After application of lubricant preservatives, each locomotive was placed within an individual cocoon protected by an electrically operated, automatically controlled dehumidifying system. In 1958, the Sharpe General Depot received a Fourth Echelon Air Maintenance Support mission on U.S. Army aircraft within the Sixth U.S. Army Area. The Site then served as home to the Sixth U.S. Army Aircraft Field Maintenance Activity operated by Detachment 3, 6932nd Service Unit. This unit provided maintenance support to U.S. Army rotary and fixed-wing liaison aircraft in the Sixth U.S. Army area and occupied Buildings 1000, 1001, and 1003. The site also was the home of the 30th Engineer Group (Topographic) and the 521st Engineer Company (Topographic, Aviation).
During 1959 and 1960, construction of a new airstrip, hangar and shop at Sharpe Army Depot curtailed the military's use of Stockton Airport. In June 1961, the Aircraft Field Maintenance Activity was transferred to Fort Ord, California. By July 1962, the Army Material Command was established with several sub-commands, including the Supply and Maintenance Command. This brought about another name change when Sharpe General Deport became Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex.
Vietnam War use.
On July 11, 1964, Stockton Municipal Airport was officially renamed the Stockton Metropolitan Airport, reflecting its changing role as a civil airport. Thirty new military family housing units were also built in 1964 at Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex, resulting in the closure of older family housing units at the site.
In the last months of 1965, support to Army Aviation expanded again as a result of the U.S. Army's role in Southeast Asia. As the Vietnam War continued, so did Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex's mission. Sharpe became the Army Material Command's key west coast installation and the Army's chief provider of supplies for United States military personnel in Vietnam. Cocoons were removed from fourteen of the stockpiled diesel locomotives. Twelve of the locomotives were sent to other military bases while two remained at Sharpe to accept delivery and expedite distribution of a daily average of thirty carloads of military supplies. Rail movements represented approximately 38 percent of all freight handled at the base. In April 1966, the first units of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 56th Quartermaster Depot began to arrive at the Site, followed by units of the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 58th Field Depot in July.
By 1967, the Headquarters Commandant of the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex had the responsibility to command troops assigned to Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex. This included the supervision of all attached and tenant units, Special Services, Annex Services, Education Center, Officers Open Mess and Non-commissioned Officers Club, including support for Army Reserve, Army National Guard and transient units.
In January 1966, an Army clothing store was transferred from Sacramento Army Depot and reopened in Building T-88 at the Site. An AAFES Branch Exchange of the Presidio of San Francisco was also established in Building T-137. On-post housing at Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex was limited, causing 44 sets of "inadequate quarters" to be established at the site, whereby old barracks buildings were converted into "apartment-type quarters" with two apartments upstairs and two downstairs. To further accommodate the increase in soldiers now stationed at Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex, the site now provided many additional services such as laundry, dry cleaning, and medical facilities.
In the early 1970s, the need for soldiers garrisoning Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex decreased as military positions were converted to Department of the Army Civil Service positions. Due to the shift in staffing, Sharpe Army Depot determined that it no longer required the Field Annex site and began the process of disposing of the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex.
Deactivation (Regular Army).
Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex was vacated in 1973, ending the U.S. Army's presence on the field with all of the land and buildings reverting to San Joaquin County. A few original World War II structures still remain including the American Legion Sharpe General Depot Post 632 currently occupying a World War II era mess hall on the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex property located at Building 372, 1700 Northrop Street.
Military facilities and activities.
Although the active duty Regular Army departed the airport location following the closure of the Sharpe Army Depot Field Annex, the airport continues to retain a military presence in the form of both ground and Army Aviation activities of the California Army National Guard. These facilities include a National Guard Armory, Field and Combined Support Maintenance Shops, and an Army Aviation Support Facility (AASF) just south of the former Field Annex site. The Army National Guard aviation presence accounts for the airports continued designation as a joint civil-military airport. The main aviation units at the airport are Headquarters and Headquarters Company and Company A of the 3rd Battalion, 140th Aviation Regiment, operating the CH-47 Chinook and the UH-72 Lakota.
Civil use: airline service.
United Airlines served Stockton from 1946 until 1980; it had Stockton's first jet flights, in late 1968.
Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) and successor USAir operated from 1971–72 to 1980 and from 1984 to 1991.
The original Frontier Airlines (1950-1986), followed by Continental Airlines, flew from Stockton to Denver Stapleton International Airport from 1980 to 1988.
Southwest Airways and successors Pacific Air Lines, Air West and Hughes Airwest, served Stockton from 1955 until about January 1979.
Commuter turboprop airline flights ended in 1995. America West Express, the regional affiliate of America West Airlines, started Canadair CRJ-200 flights to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport in 2000, but dropped them in 2001 and vacated the terminal in 2003.
Past jet service.
Past passenger jet service include United Airlines, which operated Boeing 727-200s and 737-200s.
Before its merger with USAir, PSA flew Boeing 727-100s, 727-200s, 737-200s, McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s and BAe 146-200s.
Before its acquisition by Republic Airlines, Hughes Airwest operated McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s.
USAir flew BAe 146-200s after its acquisition of PSA.
Continental Airlines (before its merger with United Airlines) and Frontier Airlines operated Boeing 737-200s and 737-300s.
Pacific Express flew BAC One-Elevens.
Flights to Mexico.
Aeromexico had expressed interest in starting service in 2006 to Guadalajara and Morelia, but the airport was unable to secure a customs facility. Federal officials saw no need for such facility as they already existed in larger airports like Sacramento, Oakland, Fresno, San Francisco and San Jose with global capabilities.
Local officials filed an appeal and Congressman Richard Pombo also persuaded officials to approve a facility. Federal officials then reconsidered and approved the plans. Despite the approval, San Joaquin County Supervisors decided against financing the project
In June 2015, the airport was seeking funding for construction of a temporary customs inspection station at the airport, to allow for possible service on Mexican airlines Volaris and Aeromexico.
Current.
Allegiant Air jet service.
In June 2006 Allegiant Air began round trip flights to Las Vegas and this service continues at the present time.
On October 26, 2007, Allegiant Air began flights to Phoenix–Mesa and on July 1, 2010 to Long Beach; however, both routes were then discontinued.
On October 28, 2011, Allegiant Air began twice weekly MD-80 flights from Stockton to Palm Springs but then discontinued this service as well.
On November 18, 2012, Allegiant Air began flying twice weekly Boeing 757-200 nonstop flights from Stockton to Honolulu. This service has since been cancelled. The Boeing 757 was the largest aircraft ever to serve the airport with scheduled passenger flights.
Allegiant Air flies one or two flights on average per day to Las Vegas. Allegiant also recently resumed non-stop service to Phoenix–Mesa with two weekly flights on Sundays and Thursdays, and also serves San Diego on a seasonal basis.
Load factors for Allegiant are reported to be about 90 percent for their flights from Stockton.
Cooperation agreement with Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport.
In August 2015, airport officials signed a statement with visiting counterparts from Chengdu Shuangliu Airport, promising "strategic cooperation" between the two airports. The agreement mentions the possibility of air services between the two airports, but no such services currently exist or are planned.
Cargo flights.
In February 2016, Amazon.com began daily chartered air cargo flights into Stockton Metropolitan Airport as part of their Project Aerosmith, a project by Amazon.com to test the idea of starting their own air cargo operation. The flight is operated daily to Airborne Airpark by Air Transport International on behalf of Amazon, now known as Prime Air utilizing a Boeing 767-300 aircraft. The trial flights from Wilmington, OH were originally operated into Oakland International Airport at the start of Project Aerosmith, but soon after operations were shifted over to Stockton airport.
As of October 2, 2017, there were two daily flights operating from Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport with one continuing on to Ontario International Airport while the second returns to Cincinnati. These aircraft are both leased and operated by Atlas Air.
General aviation.
Atlantic Aviation is the sole fixed-base operator for general aviation services at Stockton Airport. Atlantic provides both Jet-A and Avgas for the entire airport - including Amazon Air and Allegiant, as well as leased hangar space.
United Express.
On August 16, 2019 United Express began service to LAX, where travelers were able to connect to other United destinations, as well as destinations served by other Star Alliance air carriers. There were two daily flights using a Bombardier CRJ-200 operated by SkyWest from SCK. This service was discontinued early 2020 due to COVID-19.
Stockton Field Aviation Museum.
Stockton Metropolitan Airport is home to the Stockton Field Aviation Museum, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving Stockton's rich aviation history. The museum has a special emphasis on WWII aviation and the equipment that was used by the people who designed, built, maintained and flew the aircraft of our country's "Greatest Generation". The museum hosts an annual Bomber Camp fundraiser, which allows participants to fly in WWII bombers (B-17 and B-24) and drop concrete bombs from the air to a ground target.
Facilities.
The airport covers 1,552 acres (628 ha) at an elevation of 33 feet (10 m). It has two asphalt runways: 11L/29R is 10,249 by 150 feet (3,124 x 46 m) and 11R/29L is 4,448 by 75 feet (1,356 x 23 m). It has one concrete helipad, H1, 70 by 70 feet (21 x 21 m).
The airport also has a 44,355 sq. ft. terminal building, capable of holding almost 400 passengers in its hold room, as well as up to five aircraft at a time once upgrades of the apron are complete. The airport is also seeking to add customs facilities to attract new international flights to Mexico.
In the year ending April 30, 2019, the airport had 82,714 aircraft operations, average 226 per day: 92% general aviation, 3% military, 2% air taxi, and 3% airline. 180 aircraft were then based at this airport: 120 single-engine, 20 military, 16 multi-engine, 20 jet, three helicopter, and one ultralight.
Ground transportation.
The airport is located south of Downtown Stockton, between Interstate 5 and Highway 99. Motorists are instructed to take Arch Airport Road from either of those two freeways to South Airport Way, then head south to the intersection of South Airport Way and C.E. Dixon Street, and then turn east to the airport entrance at C.E. Dixon and Longe Streets.
Daytime parking is free while overnight parking is charged a fee. The airport is also served by Lyft and the Yellow Cab Company of Stockton.
, San Joaquin Regional Transit District buses do not directly serve the airport (the closest line, Express Route 44, only reaches Arch Airport Road from downtown).


Operation Lobster I

Operation Lobster I ("Unternehmen Hummer I" in German) was an Abwehr plan to infiltrate three German agents into Ireland, in July 1940. It was part of a wider series of missions carried out within the framework of Operation Lobster during World War II.
Infiltration of agents to Ireland.
The first agent recruited for the mission was Christian Nissen, aka Hein Mueck. In June 1940 he had been called to the Sabotage School at Brandenburg and asked to find a boat suitable for transporting three agents to Ireland. Nissen had served in World War I aboard the Imperial German Navy full-rigged ship "Melpomene". "Melpomene" had been captured by the Royal Navy west of the port of Queenstown, now Cobh, in County Cork. He was interned first at Templemore, then in Oldcastle, County Meath, and finally on the Isle of Man, so Nissen was familiar with the area.
Nissen selected "Soizic", a luxurious yacht from the harbour in Brest Bay for the voyage. The boat was fitted out like a French fishing vessel and had previously belonged to the French military attaché in Bern. "Soizic" was missing its propeller, but Nissen decided that the vessel could make it to Ireland under sail alone.
The three men selected for the mission were two South African Germans, Herbert Tributh and Dieter Gärtner, and Indian national Henry Obéd. Their mission was to make their way to England to engage in espionage activity. Tributh and Gärtner were both students, and neither spoke English well. Obéd was to act as their guide and interpreter. Obéd passionately hated the British and had worked for the Abwehr before the invasion of Belgium after being recruited by Kurt Haller. He had not performed as expected in an aborted mission to sabotage Royal Navy ships stationed in Belgium. A late addition to the crew was made on the day of departure when a Breton fisherman appeared to aid Nissen in navigation.
"Soizic" departed on 3 July 1940, bound for Fastnet Rock, Baltimore Bay, County Cork. The vessel flew the French tricolor. On the third day out, west of Fastnet Rock, two Royal Navy Town class cruisers, were spotted on the horizon. A British seaplane patrolling the area buzzed the yacht, but "Soizic" continued unmolested to Baltimore Bay where Nissen awaited nightfall.
Capture of agents.
The three agents boarded a dinghy and landed on the shore on 7 July 1940 without being challenged. The landing took place in the area of Traspaleen Sound, Castletownshend. They were carrying suitcases filled with Abwehr-supplied equipment, and were expected to split up immediately and attempt infiltration to Britain. They received no orders to contact the resident German liaison to the IRA – Captain Hermann Görtz – or the German Legation in Dublin.
Later that day, the three men, still travelling together, asked some locals for the fastest way to get to Dublin. On being directed to Skibbereen, the three men took a bus there and then hitched a lift to Drimoleague. They were then apprehended by the Garda Síochána (Irish police) trying to take a bus to Cork. They were asked to allow their luggage to be inspected and who they were. The agents claimed they were sight-seeing students, but were unable to verify their statements further. They were arrested, and the arresting officers called Dublin for assistance. Special Branch officers, dispatched to interview the men, quickly established they were foreign agents. They did this, most likely, by searching their luggage which was found to contain:
Each of the men was sentenced to seven years hard labour.
The Abwehr II diary entry for 18 July 1940 recorded:
Message received from Dr. Hempel [head of the German Legation in Dublin, Eduard Hempel] that agents landed in operation Lobster I have been arrested. Equipment provided incriminating evidence. By director's decision further sabotage acts against England are not to be made via Ireland but direct against England.
Hempel bitterly complained to his seniors about the botched operation. Firstly, he had been entirely unaware of it. Secondly, he was concerned about how it might affect fragile German-Irish relations. Hempel was right to be concerned; the operation had increased the fears of Irish Military Intelligence G2 Branch and saw the beginning of co-operation between them and MI5 throughout the rest of the war.
Upon his return to France, Nissen informed the Brest Amt (regional Abwehr office) that he had successfully completed his mission. He then went to north-western Brittany, where he would wait until called on for his next mission to Ireland, Operation Lobster II.
IRA involvement.
There was no known IRA involvement with or knowledge of Operation Lobster I at the time of the mission.


Planning for the Battle of Iwo Jima

In anticipation of the Battle of Iwo Jima, Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi prepared a defense that broke with Japanese military doctrine. Rather than defending the beaches, Kuribayashi devised a defense that maximized enemy attrition. The American plan of attack was made in anticipation of a standard defense.
Japanese planning.
Even before the fall of Saipan in June 1944, Japanese planners knew that Iwo Jima would have to be reinforced significantly if it were to be held for any length of time, and preparations were made to send sizable numbers of men and quantities of materiel to that island. In late May, Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi was summoned to the office of the Prime Minister, General Hideki Tōjō, and told that he had been chosen to defend Iwo Jima to the last. Kuribayashi was further apprised of the importance of this assignment when Tojo pointed out that the eyes of the entire nation were focused on the defense of Iwo Jima. Fully aware of the implications of the task, the general accepted, and by 8 June 1944, Kuribayashi was on his way to convert Iwo Jima into an impregnable fortress.
When he arrived, some 80 fighter aircraft were stationed on Iwo Jima, but by early July only four remained. A United States Navy force then came within sight of the island and bombarded it for two days, destroying every building and the four remaining aircraft.
Much to the surprise of the Japanese garrison on Iwo Jima, there was no American attempt to invade the island during the summer of 1944. There was little doubt that in time the Americans would attack, and General Kuribayashi was more determined than ever to exact the heaviest possible price for Iwo Jima, although the lack of naval and air support meant that Iwo Jima could not hold out indefinitely against an invader with sea and air supremacy.
By late July, Kuribayashi had evacuated all civilians from the island. Lieutenant General Hideyoshi Obata, commanding general of the 31st Army, early in 1944 had been responsible for the defense of Iwo Jima prior to his return to the Marianas. Following the doctrine that an invasion had to be met practically at the water's edge, Obata had ordered the emplacement of artillery and the construction of pillboxes near the beaches. General Kuribayashi had a different strategy. Instead of attempting to hold the beaches, he planned to defend them with a sprinkling of automatic weapons and infantry. Artillery, mortars, and rockets would be emplaced on the foot and slopes of Mount Suribachi, as well as in the high ground to the north of Chidori airfield.
The reason for Kuribayashi's departure from the water's edge defense strategy, which had been the normal practice for the Japanese Imperial Army, was that he predicted that American air and naval bombardments would destroy any defenses on the beaches. It had been used at Saipan to great losses for the Japanese. For water's edge defense to work, it needed support from the air and sea, none of which the Japanese Imperial Navy was capable of mounting at this point anymore. However, other military branches, especially the navy, were still insistent on the water's edge defense and demanded that Kuribayashi see to it. In the end Kuribayashi had some pillboxes built at the beach as a token measure. The pillboxes were destroyed by American bombardment.
Caves, bunkers and tunnels.
A prolonged defense of the island required the preparation of an extensive system of caves and tunnels, for the naval bombardment had clearly shown that surface installations could not withstand extensive shelling. To this end, mining engineers were dispatched from Japan to draw blueprints for projected underground fortifications that would consist of elaborate tunnels at varying levels to assure good ventilation and minimize the effect of bombs or shells exploding near the entrances or exits.
At the same time, reinforcements were gradually beginning to reach the island. As commander of the 109th Infantry Division, General Kuribayashi decided first of all to shift the 2nd Independent Mixed Brigade, consisting of about 5,000 men under Major General Kotau Osuga, from Chichi to Iwo Jima. With the fall of Saipan, 2,700 men of the 145th Infantry Regiment, commanded by Colonel Masuo Ikeda, were diverted to Iwo Jima. These reinforcements, who reached the island during July and August 1944, brought the strength of the garrison up to approximately 12,700 men. Next came 1,233 men of the 204th Naval Construction Battalion, who quickly set to work constructing concrete pillboxes and other fortifications.
On 10 August 1944, Rear Admiral Rinosuke Ichimaru reached Iwo Jima, shortly followed by 2,216 naval personnel, including naval aviators and ground crews. The admiral, a renowned Japanese aviator, had been crippled in an airplane crash in the mid-twenties and, ever since the outbreak of the war, had chafed under repeated rear echelon assignments.
For the remainder of 1944, the construction of fortifications on Iwo also went into high gear. The Japanese were quick to discover that the black volcanic ash that existed in abundance all over the island could be converted into concrete of superior quality when mixed with cement. Pillboxes near the beaches north of Mount Suribachi were constructed of reinforced concrete, many of them with walls four feet thick. At the same time, an elaborate system of caves, concrete blockhouses, and pillboxes were established. One of the results of American air attacks and naval bombardment in the early summer of 1944 had been to drive the Japanese so deep underground that eventually their defenses became virtually immune to air or naval bombardment.
While the Japanese on Peleliu Island in the Western Carolines, also awaiting American invasion, had turned the improvement of natural caves into an art, the defenders of Iwo Jima developed it into a science. Because of the importance of the underground positions, 25% of the garrison was detailed to tunneling. Positions constructed underground ranged in size from small caves for a few men to several underground chambers capable of holding 300 or 400 men. In order to prevent personnel from becoming trapped in any one excavation, the subterranean installations were provided with multiple entrances and exits, as well as stairways and interconnecting passageways. Special attention had to be paid to providing adequate ventilation, since sulphur fumes were present in many of the underground installations. Fortunately for the Japanese, most of the volcanic stone on Iwo was so soft that it could be cut with hand tools.
General Kuribayashi established his command post in the northern part of the island, about 500 m northeast of Kita village and south of Kitano Point. This installation, 20 m underground, consisted of caves of varying sizes, connected by 150 m of tunnels. Here the island commander had his own war room in one of three small concrete enclosed chambers; the two similar rooms were used by the staff. Farther south on Hill 382, the second highest elevation on the island, the Japanese constructed a radio and weather station. Nearby, on an elevation just southeast of the station, an enormously large blockhouse was constructed which served as the headquarters of Colonel Chosaku Kaidō, who commanded all artillery on Iwo Jima. Other hills in the northern portion of the island were tunnelled out. All of these major excavations featured multiple entrances and exits and were virtually invulnerable to damage from artillery or aerial bombardment. Typical of the thoroughness employed in the construction of subterranean defenses was the main communications center south of Kita village, which was so spacious that it contained a chamber 50 m long and 20 m wide. This giant structure was similar in construction and thickness of walls and ceilings to General Kuribayashi's command post. A 150 m tunnel 20 m below the ground led into this vast subterranean chamber.
Perhaps the most ambitious construction project to get under way was the creation of an underground passageway designed to link all major defense installations on the island. As projected, this passageway was to have attained a total length of almost . Had it been completed, it would have linked the formidable underground installations in the northern portion of Iwo Jima with the southern part of the island, where the northern slope of Mount Suribachi alone harbored several thousand yards of tunnels. By the time the Marines landed on Iwo Jima, more than of tunnels had been completed.
A supreme effort was required of the Japanese personnel engaged in the underground construction work. Aside from the heavy physical labor, the men were exposed to heat from , as well as sulphur fumes that forced them to wear gas masks. In numerous instances a work detail had to be relieved after only five minutes. Renewed American air attacks struck the island on 8 December 1944 and became a daily occurrence until the actual invasion of the island. Subsequently, a large number of men had to be diverted to repairing the damaged airfields.
Artillery.
Next to arrive on Iwo Jima were artillery units and five anti-tank battalions. Even though numerous supply ships en route to Iwo Jima were sunk by American submarines and aircraft, substantial quantities of materiel did reach Iwo Jima during the summer and autumn of 1944. By the end of the year, General Kuribayashi had available to him 361 artillery pieces of 75 mm or larger caliber, a dozen 320 mm mortars, 65 medium (150 mm) and light (81 mm) mortars, 33 naval guns 80 mm or larger, and 94 anti-aircraft guns 75 mm or larger. In addition to this formidable array of large caliber guns, the Iwo Jima defenses could boast more than 200 20 mm and 25 mm anti-aircraft guns and 69 37 mm and 47 mm antitank guns.
The firepower of the artillery was further augmented with a variety of rockets varying from an eight-inch type that weighed 90 kg and could travel 2–3 km, to a giant 250 kg projectile that had a range of more than 7 km. Altogether, 70 rocket guns and their crews reached Iwo Jima.
Tanks.
In order to further strengthen the Iwo defenses, the 26th Tank Regiment, which had been stationed at Pusan, Korea after extended service in Manchuria, received orders to head for Iwo Jima. The officer commanding this regiment was Lieutenant Colonel Baron Takeichi Nishi, a 1932 Olympic gold medallist. The regiment, consisting of 600 men and 28 tanks, sailed from Japan in mid-July on board the "Nisshu Maru". On 18 July 1944, as the ship, sailing in a convoy, approached Chichi Jima, it was torpedoed by an American submarine, . Even though only two members of the 26th Tank Regiment were killed, all of the regiment's 28 tanks went to the bottom of the sea. It would be December before these tanks could be replaced. The 22 tanks which finally reached Iwo Jima included medium Type 97 Chi-Ha and light Type 95 Ha-Go tanks. Neither of these types were near comparable to the better armed and better armored M4 Sherman medium tanks fielded by the Americans.
Initially, Colonel Nishi had planned to employ his armor as a type of "roving fire brigade", to be committed at focal points of combat. The rugged terrain precluded such employment and, in the end, the tanks were deployed in static positions under the colonel's watchful eyes. They were either buried or their turrets were dismounted and so skillfully emplaced in the rocky ground that they were practically invisible from the air or the ground. The headquarters of the 26th Tank Regiment, which was located near the village of Maruman, was moved to the eastern part of the island when the battle began.
Defense planning.
While Iwo Jima was being converted into a major fortress with all possible speed, General Kuribayashi formulated his final plans for the defense of the island. This plan, which constituted a radical departure from the defensive tactics used by the Japanese earlier in the war, provided for the following major points:
In this connection, Kuribayashi stressed once again that he planned to conduct an elastic defense designed to wear down the invasion force. Such prolonged resistance naturally required the defending force to stockpile rations and ammunition. To this end the island commander accumulated a food reserve to last for two and a half months, ever mindful of the fact that the trickle of supplies that was reaching Iwo Jima during the latter part of 1944 would cease altogether once the island was surrounded by a hostile naval force.
During the final months of preparing Iwo Jima for the defense, General Kuribayashi saw to it that the strenuous work of building fortifications did not interfere with the training of units. As an initial step towards obtaining more time for training, he ordered work on the northernmost airfield on the island halted. In an operations order issued in early December, the island commander set 11 February 1945 as the target date for completion of defensive preparations and specified that personnel were to spend 70% of their time in training and 30% in construction work.
Despite intermittent harassment by American submarines and aircraft, additional personnel continued to arrive on Iwo until February 1945. By that time General Kuribayashi had under his command a force totaling between 21,000 and 23,000 men, including both Army and Navy units.
Lines of defense.
General Kuribayashi made several changes in his basic defense plan in the months preceding the American invasion of Iwo Jima. The final strategy, which became effective in January 1945, called for the creation of strong, mutually supporting positions which were to be defended to the death. Neither large scale counterattacks, withdrawals, nor banzai charges were contemplated. The southern portion of Iwo in the proximity of Mount Suribachi was organized into a semi-independent defense sector. Fortifications included casemated coast artillery and automatic weapons in mutually supporting pillboxes. The narrow isthmus to the north of Suribachi was to be defended by a small infantry force. On the other hand, this entire area was exposed to the fire of artillery, rocket launchers, and mortars emplaced on Suribachi to the south and the high ground to the north.
A main line of defense, consisting of mutually supporting positions in depth, extended from the northwestern part of the island to the southeast, along a general line from the cliffs to the northwest, across Motoyama Airfield No. 2 to Minami village. From there it continued eastward to the shoreline just south of Tachiiwa Point. The entire line of defense was dotted with pillboxes, bunkers, and blockhouses. Colonel Nishi's immobilized tanks, carefully dug in and camouflaged, further reinforced this fortified area, whose strength was supplemented by the broken terrain. A second line of defense extended from a few hundred yards south of Kitano Point at the very northern tip of Iwo across the still uncompleted Airfield No. 3, to Motoyama village, and then to the area between Tachiiwa Point and the East Boat Basin. This second line contained fewer man-made fortifications, but the Japanese took maximum advantage of natural caves and other terrain features.
As an additional means of protecting the two completed airfields on Iwo from direct assault, the Japanese constructed a number of antitank ditches near the fields and mined all natural routes of approach. When, on 2 January, more than a dozen B-24 Liberator bombers raided Airfield No. 1 and inflicted heavy damage, Kuribayashi diverted more than 600 men, 11 trucks, and 2 bulldozers for immediate repairs, rendering the airfield operational within only 12 hours. Eventually, 2,000 men were assigned the job of filling the bomb craters, with as many as 50 men detailed to one crater. By the end of 1944 American B-24 bombers were over Iwo Jima almost every night, and U.S. Navy carriers and cruisers frequently sortied into the Ogasawaras. On 8 December 1944, American aircraft dropped more than 800 tons of bombs on Iwo Jima, which did very little real damage to the island defenses. Even though frequent air raids interfered with the Japanese defensive preparations and robbed the garrison of badly needed sleep, work was not materially slowed.
As early as 5 January 1945, Admiral Ichimaru conducted a briefing of naval personnel at his command post in which he informed them of the destruction of the Japanese Fleet at the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the loss of the Philippines, and the expectation that Iwo would shortly be invaded. Exactly one month later, Japanese radio operators on Iwo reported to the island commander that code signals of American aircraft had undergone an ominous change. On 13 February, a Japanese naval patrol plane spotted 170 American ships moving northwestward from Saipan. All Japanese troops in the Ogasawaras were alerted and occupied their battle positions. On Iwo Jima, preparations for the pending battle had been completed, and the defenders were ready.
American planning.
The origins of the battle lie in the complex politics of the Pacific theater, in which operational control was divided between the South West Pacific Area (command) of General Douglas MacArthur and the Pacific Ocean Areas (command) led by Admiral Chester Nimitz. The potential for interservice rivalry between the Army and Navy created by this partition of responsibility was exacerbated by similar divisions within the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) in Washington. By September 1944, the two services could not come to an agreement about the main direction of advance towards the Japanese home islands in the coming year. The Army was pressing for the chief effort to be an invasion of Formosa (Taiwan), in which MacArthur would be in overall command and in which it would predominate.
The Navy however preferred the idea of an operation against Okinawa, which would be a mainly seaborne effort. Seeking to gain leverage and so break the impasse, on 29 September Nimitz suggested to Admiral Ernest King that as a preliminary to the Okinawa offensive the island of Iwo Jima could be taken. The tiny island lacked harbors and so was of no direct interest to the Navy, but for some time General Henry Harley Arnold of the U.S. Army Air Forces had been lobbying to take Iwo Jima. He argued that an airbase there would provide useful fighter escort cover for the B-29 Superfortresses of his XX Bomber Command, then beginning its strategic bombing campaign against the Japanese home islands (the later role of Iwo Jima as a refueling station for B-29s played no part in the original decision-making process). Arnold's support in the JCS enabled the Navy to get Okinawa rather than Formosa approved as the main target on 2 October. At this time the Iwo Jima invasion was expected to be a brief prologue to the main campaign, with relatively light casualties; King assumed that Nimitz would be able to reuse three of the Marine Corps divisions assigned to Iwo Jima for the attack on Okinawa, which was originally scheduled to take place just forty days later.
On 7 October 1944, Admiral Chester Nimitz and his staff issued a staff study for preliminary planning, which clearly listed the objectives of Operation Detachment. The overriding purpose of the operation was to maintain unremitting military pressure against Japan and to extend American control over the Western Pacific. Three tasks specifically envisioned in the study were the reduction of enemy naval and air strength and industrial facilities in the home islands; the destruction of Japanese naval and air strength in the Bonin Islands, and the capture, occupation, and subsequent defense of Iwo Jima, which was to be developed into an air base. Nimitz's directive declared that "long range bombers should be provided with fighter support at the earliest practicable time", and as such Iwo Jima was "admirably situated as a fighter base for supporting long range bombers."
On 9 October, General Holland Smith received the staff study, accompanied by a directive from Admiral Nimitz ordering the seizure of Iwo Jima. This directive designated specific commanders for the operation. Admiral Raymond A. Spruance, Commander, Fifth Fleet, was placed in charge as Operation Commander, Task Force 50. Under Spruance, Vice Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner, Commander, Amphibious Forces, Pacific, was to command the Joint Expeditionary Force, Task Force 51. Second in command of the Joint Expeditionary Force was Rear Admiral Harry W. Hill. General Holland Smith was designated Commanding General, Expeditionary Troops, Task Force 56.
It was not accidental that these men were selected to command an operation of such vital importance that it has since become known as "the most classical amphibious assault of recorded history." All of them had shown their mettle in previous engagements. One chronicler of the Iwo Jima operation put it in the following words:
Primary plan.
The U.S. V Amphibious Corps (VAC) scheme of maneuver for the landings was relatively simple. The 4th and 5th Marine Divisions were to land abreast on the eastern beaches, the 4th on the right and the 5th on the left. When released to VAC, the 3rd Marine Division, as Expeditionary Troops Reserve, was to land over the same beaches to take part in the attack or play a defensive role, whichever was called for. The plan called for a rapid exploitation of the beachhead with an advance in a northeasterly direction to capture the entire island. A regiment of the 5th Marine Division was designated to capture Mount Suribachi in the south. Map of the Plan
The detailed scheme of maneuver for the landings provided for the 28th Marine Regiment of the 5th Marine Division, commanded by Colonel Harry B. Liversedge, to land on the extreme left of the corps on Green 1. On the right of the 28th Marines, the 27th Marine Regiment, under Colonel Thomas A. Wornham, was to attack towards the west coast of the island, then wheel northeastward and seize the O-1 Line. Action by the 27th and 28th Marines was designed to drive the enemy from the commanding heights along the southern portion of Iwo, simultaneously securing the flanks and rear of VAC. As far as the 4th Marine Division was concerned, the 23rd Marine Regiment, commanded by Colonel Walter W. Wensinger, was to go ashore on Yellow 1 and 2 beaches, seize Motoyama Airfield No. 1, then turn to the northeast and seize that part of Motoyama Airfield No. 2 and the O-1 Line within its zone of action. After landing on Blue Beach 1, the 25th Marine Regiment, under Colonel John R. Lanigan, was to assist in the capture of Airfield No. 1, the capture of Blue Beach 2, and the O-1 Line within its zone of action. The 24th Marine Regiment, under Colonel Walter I. Jordan, was to be held in 4th Marine Division reserve during the initial landings. The U.S. 26th Marine Regiment, led by Colonel Chester B. Graham, was to be released from corps reserve on D-Day and prepared to support the 5th Marine Division.
Division artillery was to go ashore on order from the respective division commanders. The 4th Marine Division was to be supported by the 14th Marine Regiment, commanded by Colonel Louis G. DeHaven; Colonel James D. Waller's 13th Marine Regiment was to furnish similar support for the 5th Marine Division.
The operation was to be timed so that at H-Hour 68 Landing Vehicle Tracked (LVT), comprising the first wave, were to hit the beach. These vehicles were to advance inland until they reached the first terrace beyond the high-water mark. The armored amphibians would use their 75 mm howitzers and machine guns to the utmost in an attempt to keep the enemy down, thus giving some measure of protection to succeeding waves of Marines who were most vulnerable to enemy fire at the time they disembarked from their LVTs. Though early versions of the VAC operations plan had called for the Sherman tanks of the 4th and 5th Tank Battalions to be landed at H plus 30, subsequent studies of the beaches made it necessary to adopt a more flexible schedule. The possibility of congestion at the water's edge also contributed to this change in plans. In the end, the time for bringing the tanks ashore was left to the discretion of the regimental commanders.
Alternate plan.
Since there was a possibility of unfavorable surf conditions along the eastern beaches, VAC issued an alternative plan on 8 January 1945, which provided for a landing on the western beaches. However, since predominant northerly or northwesterly winds caused hazardous swells almost continuously along the southwest side of the island, it appeared unlikely that this alternative plan would be put into effect.