Iwo Jima (LPH 2) - Naval Cruise Book

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At 10:15 on 23 February, a patrol from F Company, Second Battalion, under command of Lieutenant Harold G. Schrier, fought its way to the top of Mt. Suribachi. In the midst of a hot firefight, Schrier and five of his men raised the Stars and Stripes to signal that their objective had been gained. This bit of drama served to inspire Americans for the rest of the war and was indelibly inscribed by photographer joe Rosenthal's classic photo- graph. Fighting continued until 16 March before Iwo Jima was secured. 4,590 Americans gave their lives, and more than 20,000 japanese were killed in the bloody battle. The conquest of Iwo jima led to the eventual surrender of japan. Americans will never forget the valorous deeds and heroism that took place on that small island in the Pacific early in the spring of 19451 and the USS IWO JIMA is a living monument to that epic struggle. The Ship The IWO IIMA was launched on 17 September 1960 at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, Washington, and commissioned there on 26 August 1961. She first entered. her home port of San Diego on 11 November 1961 and began intensive training to marry ship and crew into a combat-ready unit. In April of 1962, the IWO JIMA was deployed to the central Pacific to participate in the nuclear tests conducted by joint Task Force Eight. The ship returned from this assignment in August to prepare for its first WESTPAC deployment. On the 17th of October, the IWO jIMA,departed San Diego for Pearl Harbor on the first leg of its journey to the Western Pacific. In mid-ocean she was directed to return to San Diego where she was hastily loaded with elements of the First Marine Division and departed for Cuban waters with other units of Amphibious Group Three. The Panama Canal was transited in early November. After long days on station and ready for any eventuality, the Cuban Crisis was resolved and IWO entered Guantanamo Bay to load additonal Marines and equipment for the long trip back to San Diego. An interim overhaul at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in May-june of 1963 was followed by intensive refresher and amphibious training in the San Diego area. On 30 August 1963, the IWO HMA departed San Diego for her first deployment with the SEVENTH Fleet. 4.,Lf?1T-..'..,,v . 4.4:-4' f Mm 'Wham iii

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USS IWC JIMA The Name The Island of Iwo JlIT1d v as the scene of a hlstorxc battle fought In the South Paclflc late W In orld War II The japanese conquest by February 1945 had turned Into a desperate defense of thelr homeland Ther surrender seemed lnevltable but before vlctory could be assured Unlt' C1 St les lolcf s engaged them ln several encounters Fanaucal, battle tralned lapanese troops fortlf ed In 1 a most xmprcgnable Island posltlons were determmed to dle In a last dltch effort to save the homeland Such names as Guadalcanal Tarawa, and Oklnawa thus became symbols of nattonal prlde to Amerlcans One of the most famous of these 11lSfOI'lC battlegrounds was the Island of Iwo jlma WhlCh held a strateglc posltlon for both s de 1 s To the Amerlcans, It was an alr base from whlch tO launch strlkes agalnst japan Itself For the Ja anes ermlned to w1n the ensulng battle at all costs A Jolnt expedltlonary force of 495 shlps lncludlng 17 alrcraft carrlers and 1 170 planes attacked Iwo jlma on Februar 19 1945 y Included In the flghtlng were 111 308 U S TrO0P5 of whlch 75 144 were actlvely engaged ln the assault Strategy requlred the U S 4th and 5th M arlne Dlvlslons to push across the narrow soufh ern part of the lsland before wheellng north and soutl t f 1 o mally destroy the dtvlded japanese Forces At the southwestern tlp of Iwo Jlma stood Mount Surlbachl a vrtal posltlon In the enemy s defenses The 28th Marlne Reglment was asslgned to conquer the 550 foot summit By lsolatlng the extmct volc f ano rom the rest of the Island the 28th began a concentrated probmg of japanese reslstance The japanese were f l lrm y entrenehed In thelr dugouts and caves and held a domlnant os1t1 f p on rom whlch they could defllade thelr attackers It took untll 23 February for the leathernecks to battle thelr way to the peak 7 , . . I I 1 A - . . . - ' ' X I .1 .1 I q , ' 3 -, - J ' Q' .1 . Q 3.x ' .x ' 4, ' A le, ages: ' :5 ' U J . ' ' . J. A Iv, .i3g. . F J. .. , ' J J Y J I , A ' ' ' .x A ' '- ' Q 1 ' ' . - I ' -' f' ' ' ' . p Q e, it was a vital defense bastion forthe homeland. Both sides were det A ' ' J -X ' , . . . . . , . . , , v , J - 5 Q - 3 , . - , A Q ,, ' ' 1 1 .x as ' 4 ' F W J ' ' A U J , , . ., , . . . u A ' .x 1 3 f ' 3 ' S w N ' J - -w . Lx ' .x sw - ' , . A A

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CAPTAIN LEONARD E. HARMON UNITED STATES NAVY Captain Harmon, a native of Cranston, R. I. , and a l938 grad- uate of the Naval Academy, first served aboard the aircraft carrier SARATOGA as an Ensign. He lat- er reported to the Pensacola, Flo- rida, Naval Air Station for train- ing as a pilot. After completing flight training, he was assigned to Patrol Squadron 31, later redes- ignated Patrol Bombing Squadron 105, where he served as Commu- nications, Flight, Executive, and finally, Commanding Officer. In june of l945, Captain Har- mon returned to the Naval Academy serving as an instructor until 1946, when he entered Post-Graduate School. He subsequently received a Bachelor of Science degree in Aeronautical Engineering and later attained the professional degree of , Aeronautical Engineer. Ccpfaln Horrnon Captain Harmon has served as Bureau of Aeronautics Represent- ative in Burbank, California, and as Operations Officer of the escort aircraft carrier BADOENG STRAIT. From August to December of 1953, he had temporary duty aboard the French aircraft carrier BOIS BELLEAU as Operations Officer of a Navy Mobile Training Unit. His next assignment was with Commander Carrier Division l7 until October of 1955, when he was ordered to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations as a member of the Intelligence Division. From March 1956 to june 1958, Captain Harmon commanded the Naval Air Reserve Training Unit, Anacostia, D. C. and later became Commanding Officer of Fleet Air Tactical Support Squadron 24. He then commanded the attack cargo ship RANKIN before becoming Commander, Airborne Early Warning Wing, Atlantic. Among his numerous service medals and decorations, Captain Harmon wears the Distinguished Flying Cross with gold star, Bronze Star Medal with V and gold star, Air Medal with three gold stars, the British Distinguished Flying Cross, Russian Order of Glory fthird classjg Navy Unit Commendationg American Defense Service Medal with two bronze stars, the World War II Victor Med 1' d bronze stars. y a , an the Korean Service Medal with three