Lunga Point (CVE 94) - Naval Cruise Book

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PAR r IV IWO JIMA 1 hfit camr llif Imrdisl fi)iii; il hallli- nf llum alt: Iit ' o Jiiiia jusi (Itdti ' t want to fall. But our ij liling Marines had a diffirint idea. Tliev km-tf the l.uiiga Point ' s fdanes itrre near; So they forged ahead with grim determination To win another i ictory o ' er the Jafyanese . ation. Saturday, lo February 1945: 12-16 Anchored as before. 1239 Underway on various courses and speeds from Ulithi Atoll. Western Caroline Islands. Captain at the conn. E. eeuti e Ollicer and . ' a i ;ator on the bridge. In one of his customary fireside chats that night, the .skipjx-r told us over the general announrint; system that u ' - were underway for the in asion of Iwo Jima. We already knew that Iwo Jima was way up in the ' olcano Islands, and right in the Jap ' s front yard. The Captain didn ' t mince any words in telling us that it was destined to Ix- a tough scrap, becau.se the Japs W(juld undoubtedly light to the last man in attempting to hold this air base so near their front door. He l(jld us. however, that he knew we had what it took to carry out our part of the invasion successfully. The importance of Iwo Jima as an air base in our Pacific strategy could easily be .seen by the mighty force of warships of all cla.sses that were sent to insure the success of the ofx-ration, and it was really an inspiration to be a part of the powerful Ta.sk Force that set its course for Iwo Jima. J southwest beach at Iwo Jima ju t before H hour (0830) on D day ( 19 February) Smoke and aerial bombardment almost obscures the island. Mt. Suribachl is seen at upper left. 76

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AIR SUPPORT yVO JIMA ACT ON RtPOR US6 LVUCA POfN iOFiBRUARV lp4 11 MARCH 1945

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En route, we stopped for a day at Saipan and passed by Guam, arriving off Ivvo Jima several days prior to D Day, which was to be 19 February. While it was in the cards that we would have a ' hot time militarily speaking, it was quite a relief to find ourselves far enough north to enjoy the first really cool weather we had had since leaving the States. As a matter of fact, most of us broke out our blankets and they really felt good. Immediately on arrival, our planes took to the air and began their bombing and strafing of Iwo Jima ' s military installations co-incident with the withering gunfire of the many battle- ships, cruisers and destroyers lying close in- shore. This was to be a 100 per cent Marine invasion by the 3rd, 4th and 5th Marine Divi- sions. Many of us had close friends and rel- atives among those Marines, just as we did among the Army Divisions at Luzon, which made us want to try even harder to do our job while those brave Marines went through that living Hell on earth just a few miles from where we cruised up and down, waiting for our planes to come back from their mission of paving the way for the Marines. Tho.sc men, of whom we are so proud, hit the Iwo Jima beaches right on schedule at 0830 on D Day and brought glory to their Corps and to our Nation, but not without days of bitter fighting and heavy casualties. It is our guess that, as a result of this battle, there will be another erse added to The Halls of Monte- zuma, and somewhere in that verse will be the words, To the Shores of Iwo Jima. While not as gigantic an operation as Luzon, Iwo Jima did prove to be the more spectacular, and by far the most terrific operation in which we have participated, if not, for its size, the most terrific of the War in the Pacific. Not only was the taking of Iwo Jima the most costly of the Marine invasions — a combination of Saipan and Tarawa — but it also provided us with our toughest fight and most narrow es- cape. The Japs, even though foreseeing de- feat, literally dug into the rugged cliffs and the volcanic lava and held on with the tenacity of fanatics, preferring annihilation to surrender. The whole island was virtually honey-combed with pill boxes and caves, from which could be seen only the muzzles of their guns. The only way we e er got them out was by constant Marine artillery and mortar fire, flame throw- ing, Naval bombardment from the sea, and bombs, rockets and strafing from our planes in the air. Some, of course, would finally venture out in search of water, but they never went back. From our station off shore, we could see the Naval bombardment of the island and it went ' round the clock, the night sky being brilliantly illuminated by star shells, so that accuracy could be a.ssured in night firing. When those fighting Marines and Sons of Heaven slept, we just don ' t know. The Ma- rines came through as usual, though, and not long after D Day, the Star Spangled Banner was flying serenely abo ' e olcanic Mount Suribachi, meaning that we had one more U.S. J.O.O.D. and helmsman on watch in pilot house. 77