My dad was a Marine...38-46 but never talked about anything he did, even when I asked, since I was always interested in WW2. He passed before my 17th birthday, so he never got to see me join the Marines, 68-70 and be a Nam Vet. I know he’d be proud as hell.
When I was a kid, my school bus driver made FOUR beach landings in the pacific: Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. He was a Navy Corpsman. I got the feeling his experiences made him seek out a quiet, peaceful life, around children. He also was a scoutmaster. I used to talk to him until we arrived at my stop. I have thought about him through the years, and always wondered whatever happened to "Charlie".
@Allen Loser Yes, I can see where I wrote a confusing sentence. He made the beach landings in the 1940s, he drove the school bus in the 1960s. School bus driver Charlie would have popped you in the nose I bet for referencing him with communist.
My Dad was there on the battleship USS North Carolina. He would always tell me war stories about all the engagements he fought in, especially when we watched war movies when I was a kid in the 1970's. Dad passed away in 1997 at age 73. I really miss him.
The USS North Carolina is a permanent museum in Wilmington, NC. I visited with my family as a child and this inspired me to enlist in the Navy in 1977.
@@scottdunn2178 If you have not visited the USS NC, please do! You will be amazed! It's maintained by volunteers, and occasionally you will meet someone who served on her. Unfortunately, there are not many WWII Veterans left. God Bless the Greatest Generation! Fair Winds and Following Seas Shipmates.
@@dereksuddreth8672 Thank you. Yeah, it was something I would have loved to have done for dad, to take him back to visit the "Showboat", but sadly, it will never happen. Yes, I do hope to make it down there next spring or summer. I have been in contact with the staff for several years, they said they'd give me the VIP treatment. They're all anxious to read dad's battle diary I have. Best Regards.
@@scottdunn2178As a native, I say "Welcome to the Tarheel State" in advance! BTW, there is a nuclear fast attack submarine recently commissioned the North Carolina, which carries on the proud name of The Old North State. They actually installed some artifacts from the battleship, including a piece of wood decking. Now those modern sailors walk on history!
My father was there. He passed away in 1985 at the veterans hospital he had to go every month to see the doctor. He was disabled from injuries he received. He was a strong man but i guess all the men who was there had to be. I love you dad
My Dad was involved in this, and many other of island hopping campaigns all the way to Japan. He was on the BattleShip, USS. California. She was a tough S.O.B. She brought my dad and over 1,000 navy men back to the shores of America. “When” he told he stories, it sent chills up and down our spines. We miss and love you DAD.
@Russ Gallagher mostly just ,, escort destroyers ,an small carriers , mostly carrying munitions for shore bombardment ,an antipersonnel ,,, Not expecting an attack from capital ships from the enemy ,,
I was stationed there from 2015-2018. As a history buff, it was surreal to tour those battlefields as the fourth generation of soldiers to set foot on the island over 70 years later. The scars and remnants of that conflict are still ever present, from memorialized caves where Japanese citizens committed mass suicide to crumbling old bunkers and concrete artillery emplacements. The discovery of live ordinance and the ensuing evacuations are still a monthly occurrence.
My Grandfather, as well! He was really good with training dogs, before he entered the Marine Corps. So, that is what he did when he became a Marine. He got injured by a grenade, while clearing tunnels. I only know what he talked about with my Mother, though. Unfortunately, Alzheimer's Disease took his memories, before I was old enough to ask him about any of his time in this battle. My Mother gave me his Purple Heart, that he received from shrapnel wounds to his legs. I'm always honored to meet another Grandchild, from a WWII Veteran. My deepest condolences and I am very grateful, for your Grandfather's Service and Sacrifice to this Country.
Watching this as a Iraq (2nd war) veteran. I did 3 tours over there and during my first tour I watched as my troop took 13 Bradleys and 12 Tanks with B troop pulling screen line around Samara. It was supposed to be a snatch and grab mission getting a target designated at a insurgent leader. I was a mechanic so I just had to block a lone road that headed into and out of the town. From 3 am till 9 am my troop fought a running battle with the insurgents. I will never forget the sight of seeing all 13 Brads open up with 25MM HE rounds and seeing those rounds fly through the city as the insurgents sent MG and RPGs back in return. Watching this was in allot of ways reliving that battle. I wish I could say that would be as close as I came to seeing the worst of Iraq. But my 2nd tour was just awful. I know that what we went through in Iraq can never even compare to the hell guys from WW2 and WW1 and the other awful wars my country has been in. But I will say my experiences have given me a much deeper understanding of what those guys went through versus when I was still a civilian and completely clueless. These guys get all of my respect for their bravery and sacrifices.
C'mon man. I bet those WWII guys in this vid said the same about WWI vets and so on and so forth. You're experience needs to be owned by you. What you describe is hell. I can't imagine the terror nor do I want to. Look after yourself - I'm thinking about you.
My dad's ship, the USS MAYFIELD VICTORY, delivered powder bags to battlewagons and cruisers off Okinawa. L-Day was also April Fool's Day and Easter Sunday.
My Dad was there at Okinawa - he fought hard, was wounded twice and survived. He was 19-20 years old. He's 95 currently. ( he also survived a tornado that directly hit the building he was in -and completely demolished that restaurant his brother owned - that was in 1965! )
Thanks for uploading this video. I served as an USMC artillery officer from 1990-1996, and one of those years was on Okinawa with the 4th Battalion, 12th Marines. I also went to last Naval Gunfire (NGF) School class at the US Naval Base in Subic Bay in November 1991. Good memories.
All of the Army and Marine troops on shore during this hell are some of the greatest American heroes ever. I simply cannot imagine the horrible conditions they had to not just live in, but fight in. Another reason my flag NEVER comes down! God bless all of our American heroes past and present. And God bless America!!🇺🇸
Dwayne Koblitz, Absolutely, without the teamwork and determination the men and women of the ALLIED forces the war in the Pacific would have still been successful but prolonged, hats off to every single allied forces personnel, in every single theatre of operation, without them the war would have just been an even bigger waste of human life. 😀👍🇬🇧🏴
No kidding; it was a heavy rap! He was just one of many young men & teenagers freshly out of high school, & they all were part of the greatest generation of the 20th century.
Same for my grandpa who was an ancient 30 year old infantryman. Most of the people he served with were younger and they all looked up to him. When they were coming ashore in the first wave, the other boys all shuffled around until he was in the front near the ramp. And my grandpa turned to them and said, "You sons of bitches." But he helped keep a lot of them alive and for years after that got visitors and letters from family members thanking him for saving their lives and helping them. His name was John Red Zayachek. Died at 93. USMC
Okie was on Apr 1 of 45, IWO was on Feb 19 of 45, no combat units on IWO were available for Okie landings. What type of unit and service was your uncle in?
The Marines walked thru before the Battle of Okinawa and saved my mom and her family. Maybe that's one reason she married my dad. He was active 22 years and saw Vietnam from start to finish. Still battling the effects of agent orange (Myeloma,etc)and healthcare killers ,still suffering the attacks of retired professors from the U of O, he is still a happy guy and never a complaint. All who served are the best of the best.
@@rickvelocity5578 I assume you are being sarcastic, because it's actually clear that the narrator wasnt in any way insinuating that the battle was easy. His point was merely that, even though he was illustrating the effectiveness of the naval gunfire, he didn't want to take away from the HARD, TOUGH work done by the other services.
Amen, anyone that's spent a couple weeks straight inside one, under one, everything but the head can attest to the claustrophobic environment. Man. I'd have taken the beach over that.
My father was on the battleship USS Colorado. They fired on Okinawa continuously, night and day for over a month. I cannot imagine the horrors all those brave Americans went through. Thank God we dropped the bombs to end the war. Invading Japan would have cost a million lives.
Robert Arias I must assume your uncle has passed by now. If he is still with us I would love to be able to shake his hand and thank him for his service. They all were heroes, every one of them. I make it my mission to shake the hand of every WW2 veteran that I come across. There are less and less every day. Of course now with social distancing, I would give them a salute. I served for six years in the late 60s early 70s, never saw action thank God. I just can’t imagine the hell those men and women who did, went through. God bless them all.
My father was there too, on the radar picket destroyer/minesweeper USS Macomb. Its crew fended off all but one kamikaze. The one that got through damaged the Macomb heavily. One crewman was burned over 90% of his body, and died the next day. A decade later, my father would still wake from nightmares of that battle.
@@samchin3812 You ain't going to have freedom until all of the Satanists are removed from power who just so happened to engineer these massive blood sacrifice rituals.....
They were actually destroying the Hapsburg architecture with those bombardments. World War II was primarily about selective breeding, while destroying the evidence of true history was a secondary goal. Same with Vietnam, the North Vietnamese gov't was in cahoots with the US military all along.
My father-in-law was on a Yard Minesweeper. They had to clear the operation area before any other ships could move in. After that was done, they'd hang out off shore but lots of times the battleships would be launching shells over top of them. He said those 16'" shells would really tear up a beach.
I can't imagine what it must have been like to be a Japanese soldier and having 14" and 16" shells landing around you. The power of those shells are truly immense and incredible, it had to be bone jarringly terrifying to be shelled for over 40 days, truly hell on earth..
The navy had to fight off the worst kamakaze attacks of the war at Okinawa. I was aboard USS Twining, DD540. We did a lot of shore bombardments, especially at night, from very close to shore. We were noted for accuracy, and were requested by name!
My father came back after the war, married, had 9 children, nearer spoke of his experience,,,,,,,,,ever! Died at forty nine with his youngest 5 yr’s old. He was not bitter or remorseful, his Catholic faith carried him to the end. My mother died nine years later. I had so many questions.
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My cousin was killed there in April by a sniper. I have the letter written by the chaplain to his mom. She never recovered from her loss and became another casualty to this event.
My grandfather Frank Cormeir was on the Heavy Cruiser Tuscaloosa from 1937-45, he two stations over that time were the crane operator as assigned, and a gunners mate in the #2 turret during battle. Before the US entered the war they escorted convoys to England and Russia, dodging torpedoes and such...then, bombardment support for the Landings at Morocco, Salerno, Anzio, southern France, Utah beach on D day, and finished up bombarding Cherborg, When the fighting moved inland, beyond their artillery, they were sent to the Pacific....The Philippines, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. All Marines that fought on Iwo Jima were taken to San Francisco immediately after the battle, the island secured I dont know about Army or Navy troops
3:50. That would be indirect support. Direct support is most always used for a line of sight target, that is, a target you can see. Indirect support (some may say indirect fire) is for a target hidden,like behind a hill.
I think they meant direct support in that naval guns were firing to directly support specific maneuver units as opposed to firing on pre-planned targets, H&I fire, and other such roles. It was indirect fire used to directly provide tactical support for the infantry.
Always fascinated by history and major events in the past. The organization and planning in the invasion of the Okinawa was the culmination of many assault landings prior. Our Navy, Army and Marines learned some hard lessons about taking fortified islands in the Pacific campaign in WWII. Most interesting aspect of this video is the major part played by Naval Gunfire. The heavy battleships and cruisers were able to concentrate their fire effectively, taking out fortified positions and counterattacks. Our current Navy no longer has such gunfire support-and abandoned it many years ago in favor of very expensive missile technology. The latter is very costly to deploy and we seem to have overlooked how “older” Naval gunfire can still support Marine/land forces in a major campaign. We won’t see battleships again, and we have to wonder if reliance on such expensive missile technology or even air launched munitions is to our long-term advantage.
The hate was what Japan did to those they conquered in Korea, China, the Phillipines, Thailand, what is now Myanmar, Malaysia, Laos, Viet Nam, Cambodia, and many Pacific Islands.
NGFS is still available. The USN hasn't invaded a beach with the USA or USMC in this century. 5inch gun still available all DDGs have them. Warfare has changed BBs and CAs and CLs aren't around. Helos and Ospreys deliver troopers. Aircraft take out bunkers and cave fortifications. Different era.
@@timan2039 Beirut is un Lebanon not Syria . I remember this well. The New Jersey was deployed after the USMC barracks bombing. True she used her guns. She was also wildly inaccurate and caused tremendous damage to non combatants. Lebanese civil war was exacerbated by her gunfire inaccurately.
@@donlove3741 I didn't intend to bring up the efficacy of off shore bombardment but rather simply that the vessel was active. The area shelled was under Syrian control but that of course does not excuse my comments lack of accuracy.
So many young men dying for virtually nothing. The Japanese Command is to blame for this, they fought on although it was clear the war was already lost for them!
Richard Feynman the battle may have been lost, but the Japanese command wanted to make it as bloody as possible. This way the Americans would have to think about the price they would have to pay to take the main islands. Pushing there hope for a surrender with conditions or no attack at all
@@reilleyluoma9675 yes the Soviets under Stalin. Like Hitler he was interested in some extra land so grabbed some in Manchuria as Japanese power faded and the A bomb arrived. Just like Mussolini declared war on France after she was beaten. During the war Soviet union kept strict neutrality with Japan. Russia helped start the war by joining Hitler. You tell us about wonderful Soviets.
As impressive as they are there's no need for them anymore. As a proud U.S. Navy veteran I love Naval xessels of all types. But as technology advances some equipment just becomes less effective and less efficient. A single Navy frigate today has more firepower, more range, and more accuracy than any two battleships had then. And then there's the stuff you don't see. Hint, they're UNDER those frigates. And when you see a carrier group at sea be assured, they're not alone. ✌🏻🇺🇸
This was commissioned after the war by the Navy as a way to say "Please don't take away all our battleships!" to the public and pols. A good thing, we did have use for them a few years later, and a few years after that, and...
I was there when the nukes were dropped,and there was not one man of our 330 man crew who were unhappy about it. Ditto for their families back home. If your ass was not on the line at the time,then screw your opinions.
Luckily for us, the Japanese underestimated the value of coastal defenses and had no fortifications and artillery comparable to European and US types. Most of the targets of naval guns were unprotected factories and cities. Aircraft bombs could have done just as well. A well-protected large caliber coast gun is worth 3-4 battleship guns.
Lycos Surfer, I'm sure you're being sarcastic, but I, for one, am grateful that the poster includes the ORIGINAL WARTIME WARNINGS against sharing "RESTRICTED" material with those who would deliberately compromise U.S. security. Although it, seems SO long ago, be aware that this film was not a 21st-century action adventue, but a contemporary account of miltary tactics in a REAL war which was yet to be won. Since very few of us were around during "The Big One", we really cannot understand the significance of, "LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS!"
ShareCropper Express lol don’t try to act like everyone today is a snowflake, or how everyone back then was an überman. This was the generation where a majority of people lost their shit if a brown person drank from a certain water fountain.
My friend's dad was a flame thrower trooper on this and some other islands. Big quiet guy. He hung himself in 1979 in the basement. Left a suicide note as he was out of work had been an unemployed chemist, etc. His wife was a real sweetheart I knew more from Boy Scouts where she would pick us up and drive us now and then.
The US Navy attacked Pearl Harbor; the pilots who couldn't be trusted to keep their mouths shut about it died at Midway when their sabotaged planes crashed. WWII is a series of lies.
Man you know you have problems when you have 16 inch artillery shells landing on your ass. Shame they let all those big guns disappear. It's foolish to rely entirely on missiles. They can be destroyed mid-air too easily. Nothing is going to stop a 16 inch round from hitting whatever you fired it at.
Wrong description for this video. Weird! It had a different title when I clicked on it. Now the description says Anti submarine warfare.... the video I am watching is about artillery used on Okinawa and the taking of the island
Off the coast of Vietnam I worked in combat information center we were in direct radio contact with Army and Marines a shore. We plotted TBE position of targets and fired on them..radar was to determine our position so we could aim our guns.I always worried about the possibility of hitting our friendly forces.
Fakenews Mindcontrol, If not for ALL of their other shipmates who got them there AND all the folks who built their ships & ammo, the Gunner's Mates would only have had other Gunner's Mates' asses to kick.
@@j.d.schultzsr.9215 They used to tell us in A school that if you tank out that you would be sent to a carrier to be a deck ape.Ships are a projection of power,their sole purpose is to rain down hell on the enemy and that's what we do. I've seen tons of cross cannons tattoos but never typewriter ones lol.
As new weapons come out to defeat guided missiles big naval guns could be great again...They were never taken as far technologically as they could go, A shell that weighs as much as a truck headed at a ship at mach 3 or 4 on an arc would be hard to stop with a phalanx or sea-whiz. Newer ships have minimal armor plate compared to the old hulks. Last time used in a military encounter? Lebanon...Jimmy Carter ordered a ship out of moth balls to shell the SOBs.
Fyi, it was President Reagan, not Carter. I think it was in 1984. It was an impressive site to see. They said that the shell from the 16" guns weights the same as a VW bug and goes over 20 miles and hits it's target. Impressive indeed.
The more I see of battleship support to the landing forces the more apparent it becomes that the loss of life would be staggering had the battleships not been there. By most accounts the presence of the battleship was what caused the capitulation of enemy governments. I think we made a grave mistake in eliminating the battleship element of our armed forces. Anywhere the battleships were returned to service was a place where the opposition was short lived. Consider how cost effective a shell is in place of million dollar/ piece guided missiles. The price comparison can’t be ignored.
The battle of Okinawa had a larger naval force present than at the Normandy Invasion. The British battle ship King George the V, and the American Battle ship USS Massachusetts was the last Battle ships to fire their main guns during WW2 this battle never should of happened after Japanese lost the battle of Iwo Jima they should of surrendered.
@james carr, This is a US NAVY film, period. You should appreciate the AMERICAN soldiers, sailors, and airmen, because you would be speaking German and licking the boots of your nazi masters if it wasn't for AMERICANS
I understand your thoughts but this is an American Navy film. I watch films all the time about the British in WW2. In those films there is no mention of other allied forces that fought. Well because it was made by the British military. Heroes all of them.
@@robert7984 Look up shell accuracy... One literally fired a HUNDRED or two hundred shells to take out a SINGLE target. It was abysmal. WWI it was even worse. Why they talk about a shattered landscape and mountains of mud... Well yea, several hundred shells later, the terrain was a moonscape and with any rain turned instantly into bottomless mud.
@@w8stral No it was not. It was accurate. They could hit within a 300 yds at 20 mi for a 16 inch gun and that was accurate enough for use on large warships. As the distance is cut, accuracy improves proportionately. They started at half that and moved in much closer as time went on and larger land guns were silenced.
Afraid you missed some steps. First the grunt on the ground has to send up a request for fire support, which has to be reviewed by a senior NCO or junior officer of his command who then compiles the request for fire into a powerpoint presentation to brief the O-6 and his staff. Once they kick it back a time or two for spelling errors or omissions of background info on target they MAY give the goahead and send the request to the Naval or Air Force liaison who will then review it and try to find a O-6 or above and staff to review and approve it. IF they do, the orders will be sent to the combat air units who will then do the same process in reverse to document they considered all possible impact on possible damage to civilian buildings, civilians themselves, and impact on local moral of civilian population. IF it passes those checks and the pilot/aircrew is given the gohead to release ordinance, the aircrew is on the hook for ensuring they do at least 1 'show of force' where the expose themselves to fire afterwhich IF they can personally see (from 10k feet AGL) positive id enemy combatants they can release *A* bomb.
if u.s would have had todays armament , ww2 would have been over in a short time.. keep in mind that a missle fired today from a submarine can destroy 80 targets in various cities or factories in a few minutes. one battle ship has the power to destroy an area the size of europe pushing one button. i doubt any foot troops would be needed. this is why nobody has the guts to attack the us. i'm 83 now and want to thank all warriors in the pacific and europe campaigns and our 18-19 year old boys who took tarawa in the pacific
I wish they would've fired these big naval guns on certain holidays so we can hear the full power of what the ships were capable of. It would help younger generations like mine put into perspective what was going on back then, just like the experience of being able to hear the Saturn five moon rocket takeoff.
Kevin Guthrie The USS North Carolina, now a museum in Wilmington, NC, puts on a "Light Show" on certain summer nights and holidays, firing powder in her 16" guns. Come visit the Tar Heel State!
For sure. Not every ship in the NAVY is a formidable weapon. The less sexy supply ships have equally important roles filled with equally brave sailors.
I think it was a dam shame that those Japanese subjected the Okinawan civilians to all that bombardment. Making them stay in those caves to die when the Americans had provided safe places for the civilians. That's because the Japanese had high disdain towards the Okinawans. You don't hear them talking about that.
On Okinawa the US Marines often had to advance to the base of one of the many ridges that crossed the island, and use that as cover to throw grenades up and over onto the defending Japanese while their companions passed boxes of grenades forward. A long and bloody battle, it was by far, the worst for the US in WWII.
I'm always amazed at the lengths people will go to, to kill each other. And now our weapons are even more destructive. Why do I find no comfort in this?
Because you have a failed socialist education that teaches we have to treat others that are trying to kill us off as we would treat our grandmother. If not you are morally defective, which is the heart of socialist brainwashing for their takeover of the US.
@elviade So pleasing to read an intelligent and considered response to the typical revisionist armchair theorist! There will always be aggressors who wish to dominate others and conquer territory. This, like your example of the mugger, is part of the human condition. Wise heads do try to avoid conflicts, but if the Allies had not stood against the Nazis and Japanese, the world would have become ruled by these fanatics. None of the latter-day revisionist historians or opinionated näive pontificators have any idea what a nightmare such a world would have been. Living under tyranny or totalitarianism is a hell ... ask the North Koreans or any of the other relatively current peoples who have suffered under these types of brutal regimes. The revisionists make their statements from their comfortable and safe homes, paid for by the lives of those soldiers and sailors and aviators and supporting civilians who gave their lives so that we may live in peace. They always forget this salient fact.
The narrator mentioned the “Baca” bomb. The Japanese name for it was the “Ohka” or Cherry Blossom bomb. It was actually a manned, rocket powered, suicide, winged bomb used in the final days of the war. The Americans called it the Baka bomb. Baka means "fool” or “idiot" in Japanese. The reason the Americans tacked this name on it was it wasn't very accurate and the large, slow plane carrying it to the release point was easy to shoot down. The Americans considered it a foolish waste of the lives of those “pilots” flying it.
I wish they would've fired these big naval guns on certain holidays so we can hear the full power of what the ships were capable of. It would help younger generations like mine put into perspective what was going on back then, just like the experience of being able to hear the Saturn five moon rocket takeoff.
You have to feel for those Japanese foot soldiers under that kind of sustained barrage from all sides. The only up side is that death would come as a relief.
My dad was a Marine...38-46 but never talked about anything he did, even when I asked, since I was always interested in WW2. He passed before my 17th birthday, so he never got to see me join the Marines, 68-70 and be a Nam Vet. I know he’d be proud as hell.
Thank you for your service. I am glad you made it out of Nam alive.
Im proud of you, and the younger you from back when......
I’m sure he would be proud! Welcome home sir!
When I was a kid, my school bus driver made FOUR beach landings in the pacific: Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. He was a Navy Corpsman. I got the feeling his experiences made him seek out a quiet, peaceful life, around children. He also was a scoutmaster. I used to talk to him until we arrived at my stop. I have thought about him through the years, and always wondered whatever happened to "Charlie".
@Allen Loser Yes, I can see where I wrote a confusing sentence. He made the beach landings in the 1940s, he drove the school bus in the 1960s. School bus driver Charlie would have popped you in the nose I bet for referencing him with communist.
@@papawx3 now that is the realest thing I've heard all day
My Dad was there on the battleship USS North Carolina. He would always tell me war stories about all the engagements he fought in, especially when we watched war movies when I was a kid in the 1970's. Dad passed away in 1997 at age 73. I really miss him.
The USS North Carolina is a permanent museum in Wilmington, NC. I visited with my family as a child and this inspired me to enlist in the Navy in 1977.
@@dereksuddreth8672
Dad would have been proud of you.
Thank you for your service.
@@scottdunn2178 If you have not visited the USS NC, please do! You will be amazed! It's maintained by volunteers, and occasionally you will meet someone who served on her. Unfortunately, there are not many WWII Veterans left. God Bless the Greatest Generation! Fair Winds and Following Seas Shipmates.
@@dereksuddreth8672
Thank you. Yeah, it was something I would have loved to have done for dad, to take him back to visit the "Showboat", but sadly, it will never happen. Yes, I do hope to make it down there next spring or summer. I have been in contact with the staff for several years, they said they'd give me the VIP treatment. They're all anxious to read dad's battle diary I have.
Best Regards.
@@scottdunn2178As a native, I say "Welcome to the Tarheel State" in advance! BTW, there is a nuclear fast attack submarine recently commissioned the North Carolina, which carries on the proud name of The Old North State. They actually installed some artifacts from the battleship, including a piece of wood decking. Now those modern sailors walk on history!
My father was there. He passed away in 1985 at the veterans hospital he had to go every month to see the doctor. He was disabled from injuries he received. He was a strong man but i guess all the men who was there had to be. I love you dad
My Dad was involved in this, and many other of island hopping campaigns all the way to Japan. He was on the BattleShip, USS. California. She was a tough S.O.B. She brought my dad and over 1,000 navy men back to the shores of America. “When” he told he stories, it sent chills up and down our spines. We miss and love you DAD.
@Russ Gallagher mostly just ,, escort destroyers ,an small carriers , mostly carrying munitions for shore bombardment ,an antipersonnel ,,,
Not expecting an attack from capital ships from the enemy ,,
I was stationed there from 2015-2018. As a history buff, it was surreal to tour those battlefields as the fourth generation of soldiers to set foot on the island over 70 years later. The scars and remnants of that conflict are still ever present, from memorialized caves where Japanese citizens committed mass suicide to crumbling old bunkers and concrete artillery emplacements. The discovery of live ordinance and the ensuing evacuations are still a monthly occurrence.
My grandpal fought there. God bless you all you are not forgotten !! I hope that I get to meet these guys someday.
My Grandfather, as well! He was really good with training dogs, before he entered the Marine Corps. So, that is what he did when he became a Marine. He got injured by a grenade, while clearing tunnels. I only know what he talked about with my Mother, though. Unfortunately, Alzheimer's Disease took his memories, before I was old enough to ask him about any of his time in this battle. My Mother gave me his Purple Heart, that he received from shrapnel wounds to his legs. I'm always honored to meet another Grandchild, from a WWII Veteran. My deepest condolences and I am very grateful, for your Grandfather's Service and Sacrifice to this Country.
Watching this as a Iraq (2nd war) veteran. I did 3 tours over there and during my first tour I watched as my troop took 13 Bradleys and 12 Tanks with B troop pulling screen line around Samara. It was supposed to be a snatch and grab mission getting a target designated at a insurgent leader. I was a mechanic so I just had to block a lone road that headed into and out of the town. From 3 am till 9 am my troop fought a running battle with the insurgents. I will never forget the sight of seeing all 13 Brads open up with 25MM HE rounds and seeing those rounds fly through the city as the insurgents sent MG and RPGs back in return. Watching this was in allot of ways reliving that battle. I wish I could say that would be as close as I came to seeing the worst of Iraq. But my 2nd tour was just awful. I know that what we went through in Iraq can never even compare to the hell guys from WW2 and WW1 and the other awful wars my country has been in. But I will say my experiences have given me a much deeper understanding of what those guys went through versus when I was still a civilian and completely clueless. These guys get all of my respect for their bravery and sacrifices.
C'mon man. I bet those WWII guys in this vid said the same about WWI vets and so on and so forth.
You're experience needs to be owned by you. What you describe is hell.
I can't imagine the terror nor do I want to.
Look after yourself - I'm thinking about you.
I always liked this narrator in military films from the last war.
My dad's ship, the USS MAYFIELD VICTORY, delivered powder bags to battlewagons and cruisers off Okinawa. L-Day was also April Fool's Day and Easter Sunday.
My Dad was there at Okinawa - he fought hard, was wounded twice and survived. He was 19-20 years old. He's 95 currently.
( he also survived a tornado that directly hit the building he was in -and completely demolished that restaurant his brother owned - that was in 1965! )
Thanks for your story. true heroes
Thanks for uploading this video. I served as an USMC artillery officer from 1990-1996, and one of those years was on Okinawa with the 4th Battalion, 12th Marines. I also went to last Naval Gunfire (NGF) School class at the US Naval Base in Subic Bay in November 1991. Good memories.
I was the Artillery Repair Chief with 3/12 at Camp Foster Okinawa. That was from 10/1984 till 10/1985.
My dad was there on a D E. May he rest in peace. And all the others too
My father was also on a DE, hull # 188, USS O'Neill.
Keep it up periscope films. Thanks for posting these great pieces of history!
All of the Army and Marine troops on shore during this hell are some of the greatest American heroes ever. I simply cannot imagine the horrible conditions they had to not just live in, but fight in. Another reason my flag NEVER comes down! God bless all of our American heroes past and present. And God bless America!!🇺🇸
Dwayne Koblitz, Absolutely, without the teamwork and determination the men and women of the ALLIED forces the war in the Pacific would have still been successful but prolonged, hats off to every single allied forces personnel, in every single theatre of operation, without them the war would have just been an even bigger waste of human life. 😀👍🇬🇧🏴
My uncle survived iwo, then they shipped him to Okinawa...he survived that one too. 18-19 years old. Pretty heavy rap for a kid.
My dad the same at 17
No kidding; it was a heavy rap! He was just one of many young men & teenagers freshly out of high school, & they all were part of the greatest generation of the 20th century.
Same for my grandpa who was an ancient 30 year old infantryman. Most of the people he served with were younger and they all looked up to him. When they were coming ashore in the first wave, the other boys all shuffled around until he was in the front near the ramp. And my grandpa turned to them and said, "You sons of bitches." But he helped keep a lot of them alive and for years after that got visitors and letters from family members thanking him for saving their lives and helping them. His name was John Red Zayachek. Died at 93. USMC
Not much of a turn around, those events were close together,
one ended in March, the other started in April
Okie was on Apr 1 of 45, IWO was on Feb 19 of 45, no combat units on IWO were available for Okie landings. What type of unit and service was your uncle in?
The Marines walked thru before the Battle of Okinawa and saved my mom and her family. Maybe that's one reason she married my dad. He was active 22 years and saw Vietnam from start to finish. Still battling the effects of agent orange (Myeloma,etc)and healthcare killers ,still suffering the attacks of retired professors from the U of O, he is still a happy guy and never a complaint. All who served are the best of the best.
Where/how was he exposed to AO? I was wondering how they knew...
00:33~~ "In this film the emphasis on Nval Guns in no way detracts from the parts played by other Services.'...humility, we need more of it.
Thats right he kinda makes it sound like Okinawa was a piece a cake to doesn't he?
@@rickvelocity5578 I assume you are being sarcastic, because it's actually clear that the narrator wasnt in any way insinuating that the battle was easy. His point was merely that, even though he was illustrating the effectiveness of the naval gunfire, he didn't want to take away from the HARD, TOUGH work done by the other services.
Amen, anyone that's spent a couple weeks straight inside one, under one, everything but the head can attest to the claustrophobic environment. Man. I'd have taken the beach over that.
So much for being about destroyer escorts and anti-sub warsfare.
We owe the USA a huge debt of thanks for their heroism and sacrifices in WW2
ttr I wish the US would've stayed out of the whole thing even after Pearl Harbor.
My father was on the battleship USS Colorado. They fired on Okinawa continuously, night and day for over a month. I cannot imagine the horrors all those brave Americans went through. Thank God we dropped the bombs to end the war. Invading Japan would have cost a million lives.
Amen Brother, Amen!
Go
Go
Go
Richard Hansen My uncle also served on the battleship USS Colorado 1942-1945. He was a young west Texas brave man.
Robert Arias I must assume your uncle has passed by now. If he is still with us I would love to be able to shake his hand and thank him for his service. They all were heroes, every one of them. I make it my mission to shake the hand of every WW2 veteran that I come across. There are less and less every day. Of course now with social distancing, I would give them a salute. I served for six years in the late 60s early 70s, never saw action thank God. I just can’t imagine the hell those men and women who did, went through. God bless them all.
Please never stop releasing these!
My Husband Was There On The Battleship USS. NEVADA !
My father was there too, on the radar picket destroyer/minesweeper USS Macomb. Its crew fended off all but one kamikaze. The one that got through damaged the Macomb heavily. One crewman was burned over 90% of his body, and died the next day. A decade later, my father would still wake from nightmares of that battle.
tell your husband thank himfor my freedom
Awesome
Thanks for your and your husband’s service to our great country
@@samchin3812 You ain't going to have freedom until all of the Satanists are removed from power who just so happened to engineer these massive blood sacrifice rituals.....
great example of the destructive power of naval bombardment. thanks for sharing your product so we armchair types can watch them as well
ludditeneaderthal has
They were actually destroying the Hapsburg architecture with those bombardments. World War II was primarily about selective breeding, while destroying the evidence of true history was a secondary goal. Same with Vietnam, the North Vietnamese gov't was in cahoots with the US military all along.
Scott Koningisor u sound high
@@midnightrave19 Naval Intelligence sabotaged John McCain's plane.
My father-in-law was on a Yard Minesweeper. They had to clear the operation area before any other ships could move in. After that was done, they'd hang out off shore but lots of times the battleships would be launching shells over top of them. He said those 16'" shells would really tear up a beach.
"Continued this bombardment deep into the enemies rear" haha greatest wording in the history of the English language in my opinion
I can't imagine what it must have been like to be a Japanese soldier and having 14" and 16" shells landing around you. The power of those shells are truly immense and incredible, it had to be bone jarringly terrifying to be shelled for over 40 days, truly hell on earth..
Good film shows how we Navy men supported the Army and Marines during WW2.
The navy had to fight off the worst kamakaze attacks of the war at Okinawa. I was aboard USS Twining, DD540. We did a lot of shore bombardments, especially at night, from very close to shore. We were noted for accuracy, and were requested by name!
May these brave Soldiers rest in peace
Yes, the Japanese fought on bravely against all odds, even when almost starving to death.
Fantastic....miss you grandpa
My father came back after the war, married, had 9 children, nearer spoke of his experience,,,,,,,,,ever! Died at forty nine with his youngest 5 yr’s old. He was not bitter or remorseful, his Catholic faith carried him to the end. My mother died nine years later. I had so many questions.
My uncle Joe was in Okinawa after they created a base of operations, and was the first functioning X Ray machine that was going on the continent
Ok, the smoke ring at the end was just too cool. 🇺🇸
By the end of the campaign those "BOYS" : JUST ANOTHER DAY AT THE OFFICE !
I liked that smoke ring at the end!!!
There was my buddies lefty and knuckles,,great video.
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My cousin was killed there in April by a sniper. I have the letter written by the chaplain to his mom. She never recovered from her loss and became another casualty to this event.
My grandfather Frank Cormeir was on the Heavy Cruiser Tuscaloosa from 1937-45, he two stations over that time were the crane operator as assigned, and a gunners mate in the #2 turret during battle. Before the US entered the war they escorted convoys to England and Russia, dodging torpedoes and such...then, bombardment support for the Landings at Morocco, Salerno, Anzio, southern France, Utah beach on D day, and finished up bombarding Cherborg,
When the fighting moved inland, beyond their artillery, they were sent to the Pacific....The Philippines, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
All Marines that fought on Iwo Jima were taken to San Francisco immediately after the battle, the island secured
I dont know about Army or Navy troops
Edifying. Thanks for posting.
3:50. That would be indirect support. Direct support is most always used for a line of sight target, that is, a target you can see. Indirect support (some may say indirect fire) is for a target hidden,like behind a hill.
I think they meant direct support in that naval guns were firing to directly support specific maneuver units as opposed to firing on pre-planned targets, H&I fire, and other such roles. It was indirect fire used to directly provide tactical support for the infantry.
@@stevemeska7784 The troops were directly supported with indirect fire.
Great video.
My Gramps was there, wounded twice and kept fighting.
My grandfather was on The Tennessee for the duration of the war following her repair after damage she sustained in The Pearl Harbor Attack.
Always fascinated by history and major events in the past. The organization and planning in the invasion of the Okinawa was the culmination of many assault landings prior. Our Navy, Army and Marines learned some hard lessons about taking fortified islands in the Pacific campaign in WWII. Most interesting aspect of this video is the major part played by Naval Gunfire. The heavy battleships and cruisers were able to concentrate their fire effectively, taking out fortified positions and counterattacks. Our current Navy no longer has such gunfire support-and abandoned it many years ago in favor of very expensive missile technology. The latter is very costly to deploy and we seem to have overlooked how “older” Naval gunfire can still support Marine/land forces in a major campaign. We won’t see battleships again, and we have to wonder if reliance on such expensive missile technology or even air launched munitions is to our long-term advantage.
Hardcore, power, destruction and loss of life! Makes me thankful for my boring life!
33,000 tons of projectiles! That's a lot of hate raining down on you
The hate was what Japan did to those they conquered in Korea, China, the Phillipines, Thailand, what is now Myanmar, Malaysia, Laos, Viet Nam, Cambodia, and many Pacific Islands.
Leftist spew and live hate and then cry for a safe place when they are put on the defensive..
"Fair Winds and Following Seas" Brothers
Good video.
This is what our navy lacks today, and as long as we have a Marine Corp. we will need it.
Duh, that's why there are Tomahawk cruise missiles on capital ships, subs, and USAF aircraft have smart bombs.
NGFS is still available.
The USN hasn't invaded a beach with the USA or USMC in this century.
5inch gun still available all DDGs have them.
Warfare has changed BBs and CAs and CLs aren't around. Helos and Ospreys deliver troopers.
Aircraft take out bunkers and cave fortifications.
Different era.
@@donlove3741In 1984 the USS New Jersey pounded on Beirut Syria for a few hours.
@@timan2039 Beirut is un Lebanon not Syria .
I remember this well.
The New Jersey was deployed after the USMC barracks bombing.
True she used her guns.
She was also wildly inaccurate and caused tremendous damage to non combatants.
Lebanese civil war was exacerbated by her gunfire inaccurately.
@@donlove3741 I didn't intend to bring up the efficacy of off shore bombardment but rather simply that the vessel was active. The area shelled was under Syrian control but that of course does not excuse my comments lack of accuracy.
So many young men dying for virtually nothing. The Japanese Command is to blame for this, they fought on although it was clear the war was already lost for them!
Richard Feynman the battle may have been lost, but the Japanese command wanted to make it as bloody as possible. This way the Americans would have to think about the price they would have to pay to take the main islands. Pushing there hope for a surrender with conditions or no attack at all
@@reilleyluoma9675 that was what they expected, what they got was two of the first atom bombs used in a war.
Idog carlson and the russians don’t forget about them! 😂
@@reilleyluoma9675 yes the Soviets under Stalin. Like Hitler he was interested in some extra land so grabbed some in Manchuria as Japanese power faded and the A bomb arrived. Just like Mussolini declared war on France after she was beaten. During the war Soviet union kept strict neutrality with Japan. Russia helped start the war by joining Hitler. You tell us about wonderful Soviets.
As impressive as they are there's no need for them anymore. As a proud U.S. Navy veteran I love Naval xessels of all types. But as technology advances some equipment just becomes less effective and less efficient. A single Navy frigate today has more firepower, more range, and more accuracy than any two battleships had then. And then there's the stuff you don't see. Hint, they're UNDER those frigates. And when you see a carrier group at sea be assured, they're not alone. ✌🏻🇺🇸
Yep. And as cool as they are, they weren't needed when they were re-commissioned in the 80's.
Sorry, but FFG's are useless for Gun fire support.
Thanks 4 return back freedom
650,000 rounds 5-inches or greater, for practically three months... Wow.
This was commissioned after the war by the Navy as a way to say "Please don't take away all our battleships!" to the public and pols. A good thing, we did have use for them a few years later, and a few years after that, and...
80 Day's to take this small Island. And the anti nuke idiots say we shouldn't have used the bombs. I say easy for you to say unless you were there...
I was there when the nukes were dropped,and there was not one man of our 330 man crew who were unhappy about it. Ditto for their families back home. If your ass was not on the line at the time,then screw your opinions.
Luckily for us, the Japanese underestimated the value of coastal defenses and had no fortifications and artillery comparable to European and US types. Most of the targets of naval guns were unprotected factories and cities. Aircraft bombs could have done just as well. A well-protected large caliber coast gun is worth 3-4 battleship guns.
Since I'm a civilian watching a "Restricted Film" I'll report to my draft board tomorrow
You'll never make it kid. 😉
Claim bonespurs.
Lycos Surfer,
I'm sure you're being sarcastic, but I, for one, am grateful that the poster includes the ORIGINAL WARTIME WARNINGS against sharing "RESTRICTED" material with those who would deliberately compromise U.S. security.
Although it, seems SO long ago, be aware that this film was not a 21st-century action adventue, but a contemporary account of miltary tactics in a REAL war which was yet to be won.
Since very few of us were around during "The Big One", we really cannot understand the significance of, "LOOSE LIPS SINK SHIPS!"
Greatest Generation....they didnt have safe spaces...they didnt wear skinny jeans...and werent concerned about pronouns.
And they knew which bathrooms to use
Yeah, well most of those that need safe spaces these days are severely vaccine damaged....
ShareCropper Express lol don’t try to act like everyone today is a snowflake, or how everyone back then was an überman. This was the generation where a majority of people lost their shit if a brown person drank from a certain water fountain.
Fascinating
My friend's dad was a flame thrower trooper on this and some other islands. Big quiet guy. He hung himself in 1979 in the basement. Left a suicide note as he was out of work had been an unemployed chemist, etc. His wife was a real sweetheart I knew more from Boy Scouts where she would pick us up and drive us now and then.
私は沖縄県人だが君の父親は罪もない民間人を何人焼き殺したのか？
you really should think twice, before attacking the US
Probably a third and fourth time too . It doesn't usually end well for any country dumb enough
Yes, you could get a stupid tweet from the president.
The US Navy attacked Pearl Harbor; the pilots who couldn't be trusted to keep their mouths shut about it died at Midway when their sabotaged planes crashed. WWII is a series of lies.
That's what the Islamofascists in Iran are finding out today
Lot of commie and Islamic ass kissers in the comments. Must suck to be you.
Yup, can imagine how a few portable 16-inch guns would come in handy...
Man you know you have problems when you have 16 inch artillery shells landing on your ass. Shame they let all those big guns disappear. It's foolish to rely entirely on missiles. They can be destroyed mid-air too easily. Nothing is going to stop a 16 inch round from hitting whatever you fired it at.
Wrong description for this video. Weird! It had a different title when I clicked on it. Now the description says Anti submarine warfare.... the video I am watching is about artillery used on Okinawa and the taking of the island
I Wonder how much the Chinese have studied the pacific landings and logistics in possible preparation for Taiwan and Japan.
Off the coast of Vietnam I worked in combat information center we were in direct radio contact with Army and Marines a shore. We plotted TBE position of targets and fired on them..radar was to determine our position so we could aim our guns.I always worried about the possibility of hitting our friendly forces.
Gunners mates kicking ass!
Fakenews Mindcontrol,
If not for ALL of their other shipmates who got them there AND all the folks who built their ships & ammo, the Gunner's Mates would only have had other Gunner's Mates' asses to kick.
@@j.d.schultzsr.9215 They used to tell us in A school that if you tank out that you would be sent to a carrier to be a deck ape.Ships are a projection of power,their sole purpose is to rain down hell on the enemy and that's what we do. I've seen tons of cross cannons tattoos but never typewriter ones lol.
As new weapons come out to defeat guided missiles big naval guns could be great again...They were never taken as far technologically as they could go, A shell that weighs as much as a truck headed at a ship at mach 3 or 4 on an arc would be hard to stop with a phalanx or sea-whiz. Newer ships have minimal armor plate compared to the old hulks. Last time used in a military encounter? Lebanon...Jimmy Carter ordered a ship out of moth balls to shell the SOBs.
Fyi, it was President Reagan, not Carter. I think it was in 1984. It was an impressive site to see. They said that the shell from the 16" guns weights the same as a VW bug and goes over 20 miles and hits it's target. Impressive indeed.
Blessedly, such things are no longer really possible. One outer-space electromagnetic pulse would end all electronics for a long time.
Nice and sanitary.
Out - of - sight documentary! Or historical film. Tech Order. Whatever... once we got past the opening fanfare, that was really riveting!
The more I see of battleship support to the landing forces the more apparent it becomes that the loss of life would be staggering had the battleships not been there. By most accounts the presence of the battleship was what caused the capitulation of enemy governments. I think we made a grave mistake in eliminating the battleship element of our armed forces. Anywhere the battleships were returned to service was a place where the opposition was short lived. Consider how cost effective a shell is in place of million dollar/ piece guided missiles. The price comparison can’t be ignored.
I was on Okinawa in 1994 to 95, at camp Schwab
Spectacular
No mention of the British ships that were there--as usual. My fathers ship, HMS Indefatigable was hit by Kamikazes off Okinawa.
Thank you for your Nation's and your Father's service!!
Probably because this is a U.S. Navy film .
Thanks to your Nation and your Father for their service.
The battle of Okinawa had a larger naval force present than at the Normandy Invasion. The British battle ship King George the V, and the American Battle ship USS Massachusetts was the last Battle ships to fire their main guns during WW2 this battle never should of happened after Japanese lost the battle of Iwo Jima they should of surrendered.
@james carr,
This is a US NAVY film, period. You should appreciate the AMERICAN soldiers, sailors, and airmen, because you would be speaking German and licking the boots of your nazi masters if it wasn't for AMERICANS
I understand your thoughts but this is an American Navy film. I watch films all the time about the British in WW2. In those films there is no mention of other allied forces that fought. Well because it was made by the British military. Heroes all of them.
Now you whistle up a JDAM, Excaliber, GMLRS etc guided weapon and one or two bombs/shells later you move on
A few bombs? Not on this scale.
@@robert7984 Look up shell accuracy... One literally fired a HUNDRED or two hundred shells to take out a SINGLE target. It was abysmal. WWI it was even worse. Why they talk about a shattered landscape and mountains of mud... Well yea, several hundred shells later, the terrain was a moonscape and with any rain turned instantly into bottomless mud.
@@w8stral No it was not. It was accurate. They could hit within a 300 yds at 20 mi for a 16 inch gun and that was accurate enough for use on large warships. As the distance is cut, accuracy improves proportionately. They started at half that and moved in much closer as time went on and larger land guns were silenced.
@@larrytischler8769 Dear fool, actually read an engagement and number of Shells fired. World of Warships is complete Bull Shit.
Afraid you missed some steps. First the grunt on the ground has to send up a request for fire support, which has to be reviewed by a senior NCO or junior officer of his command who then compiles the request for fire into a powerpoint presentation to brief the O-6 and his staff. Once they kick it back a time or two for spelling errors or omissions of background info on target they MAY give the goahead and send the request to the Naval or Air Force liaison who will then review it and try to find a O-6 or above and staff to review and approve it. IF they do, the orders will be sent to the combat air units who will then do the same process in reverse to document they considered all possible impact on possible damage to civilian buildings, civilians themselves, and impact on local moral of civilian population. IF it passes those checks and the pilot/aircrew is given the gohead to release ordinance, the aircrew is on the hook for ensuring they do at least 1 'show of force' where the expose themselves to fire afterwhich IF they can personally see (from 10k feet AGL) positive id enemy combatants they can release *A* bomb.
if u.s would have had todays armament , ww2 would have been over in a short time..
keep in mind that a missle fired today from a submarine can destroy 80 targets in various
cities or factories in a few minutes. one battle ship has the power to destroy an area the
size of europe pushing one button. i doubt any foot troops would be needed. this is why nobody
has the guts to attack the us. i'm 83 now and want to thank all warriors in the pacific and
europe campaigns and our 18-19 year old boys who took tarawa in the pacific
Mass carnage is not the goal.
NEED to find 4K vid of this
I wish they would've fired these big naval guns on certain holidays so we can hear the full power of what the ships were capable of. It would help younger generations like mine put into perspective what was going on back then, just like the experience of being able to hear the Saturn five moon rocket takeoff.
Kevin Guthrie The USS North Carolina, now a museum in Wilmington, NC, puts on a "Light Show" on certain summer nights and holidays, firing powder in her 16" guns. Come visit the Tar Heel State!
Cost about $3000 per shot of a 16 inch gun!
80 days and 80 nights the island was shelled. It's amazing those ships could carry that much ammo.
They also had ammo and powder ships to resupply the battle wagons.
For sure. Not every ship in the NAVY is a formidable weapon. The less sexy supply ships have equally important roles filled with equally brave sailors.
Chuck Stephens That’s right. Every job matters. 👍
@@N324F
I would say those who served aboard Navy ammunition ships were even braver than those on the battleships.
@Chuck Ster Agreed. So much danger, even without the presence of an adversary.
The Japanese wanted to make the kill rate so horrible for the Marines on Okinawa that they could sue for peace.
Were the ships re-supplied with ammunition at sea or did they carry enough ammunition for the full campaign?
They get resupplied at sea by A and O ships.
Worthy.
we no longer have these gun platforms in the us navy. What will do the next time they a needed ? They will be needed again.
bobbymac1947 cruise missiles and Jdams
@@appa609 They are for precision targets. They are useless as area fire weapons. they are also not reloadable.
@Simply The Best Artillery still has a place.
"interlocking naval gunfire" "from 270 degrees"
got to hand it to the Japanese for being tenacious.
Nevada got a train up doing a great job at Normandy, France (D Day) prior to Okinawa..
"Keep the Fleet to Keep the Peace". I wonder......
When in doubt use main battery battleship fire power
75 years ago today.
I think it was a dam shame that those Japanese subjected the Okinawan civilians to all that bombardment. Making them stay in those caves to die when the Americans had provided safe places for the civilians. That's because the Japanese had high disdain towards the Okinawans. You don't hear them talking about that.
@ 9:38 one hand grenade see how much damage it does, inside would nothing but minced meat ?
That must have been a secondary explosion.
On Okinawa the US Marines often had to advance to the base of one of the many ridges that crossed the island, and use that as cover to throw grenades up and over onto the defending Japanese while their companions passed boxes of grenades forward. A long and bloody battle, it was by far, the worst for the US in WWII.
WAY TO HUSEL NAVY!! MY FATHER HAD TORPEDO DUTY. HE PASSED N14.
Was that a ring knocker at 10:00?
why is there no films of gunfire support during the Vietnam war?
I'm always amazed at the lengths people will go to, to kill each other. And now our weapons are even more destructive. Why do I find no comfort in this?
Because you are human.
Because you have a failed socialist education that teaches we have to treat others that are trying to kill us off as we would treat our grandmother. If not you are morally defective, which is the heart of socialist brainwashing for their takeover of the US.
@@larrytischler570What a moronic comment
@elviade So pleasing to read an intelligent and considered response to the typical revisionist armchair theorist! There will always be aggressors who wish to dominate others and conquer territory. This, like your example of the mugger, is part of the human condition. Wise heads do try to avoid conflicts, but if the Allies had not stood against the Nazis and Japanese, the world would have become ruled by these fanatics. None of the latter-day revisionist historians or opinionated näive pontificators have any idea what a nightmare such a world would have been. Living under tyranny or totalitarianism is a hell ... ask the North Koreans or any of the other relatively current peoples who have suffered under these types of brutal regimes. The revisionists make their statements from their comfortable and safe homes, paid for by the lives of those soldiers and sailors and aviators and supporting civilians who gave their lives so that we may live in peace. They always forget this salient fact.
I wonder what the IJN high command in late 1944 and early 1945 thought about the wisdom of Pearl Harbor? "Boy ! Did we poke the bear!" or what?
The narrator mentioned
the “Baca” bomb. The Japanese name for it was the “Ohka” or
Cherry Blossom bomb. It was actually a manned, rocket powered,
suicide, winged bomb used in the final days of the war.
The Americans called it
the Baka bomb. Baka means "fool” or “idiot" in
Japanese. The reason the Americans tacked this name on it was it
wasn't very accurate and the large, slow plane carrying it to the
release point was easy to shoot down. The Americans considered it a
foolish waste of the lives of those “pilots” flying it.
That island was bombed so much you can smell gun powder through out the island today .
I spent a one year unaccompanied tour there. Didn’t smell any gunpowder. Did smell Some good Japanese food depending on where I was at.
Those big Naval guns and battle ships still could be effective in todays Navy..... hmmm...
Anti-ship missiles have made them obsolete. Their range and accuracy is too good.
I wish they would've fired these big naval guns on certain holidays so we can hear the full power of what the ships were capable of. It would help younger generations like mine put into perspective what was going on back then, just like the experience of being able to hear the Saturn five moon rocket takeoff.
Nope... Battle Ships are yesterday's Dinosaurs
@@harrykuheim6107
Sad but true. Impressive machinery for the time. State of the art. ( U.S. Navy vet)
You have to feel for those Japanese foot soldiers under that kind of sustained barrage from all sides.
The only up side is that death would come as a relief.
Yeah, nothing good about it. However this is one rare case where you can say they literally asked for it.
Too bad no one thought of having the B-29 Super Forts drop Napalm on those hills and burn all the hiding spots out and even the underground area.
Everyone was there, apparently.