What Iwo-Jima Looks Like Today
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- Опубликовано: 14 окт 2024
- Late 2022 footage of Iwo-Jima (Io-to) with news audio from 1945.
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My oldest 1st cousin, J. T. Hillman died on Iwo 6 days after he landed. His remains were returned to his mother in 1957. He is interned with his parents in the Hope Mausoleum in New Orleans, LA. RIP. He was 19 years old.
Such carnage. And then it turned out that we never did land on mainland Japan (though we did bomb it)
Bodies buried there did not turn into bones at all, because of the sulphur they got mummified.
Thank You J.T. Hillman!!!
10,000 bodies of Japanese soldiers are still missing.
The families search the island every year, but it is difficult to find them because of the harmful volcanic gases and the fact that the entire island rises and changes its topography.
The whole island looks like a giant tombstone.
@@muffs55mercury61 we didn’t because it was going to cost … many lives
My Dad fought on Iwo. PFC Thomas H. Williams, WIA D-3. Just died a few years ago. I've got his original foot locker with all his gear in it.
I would be proud of him, too.
Many thanks to your Dad for his service.
I don't know how anyone could have fought in that battle and remained sane. The island didn't look pretty like this in those days. It was pockmarked with craters, littered with body parts, splattered with blood, and stank of death, gunpowder, and constant fear. 29,000 people died in an area less than 8 square miles. You couldn't walk 10 feet without stepping over a body. Iwo Jima may have possibly been the most terrifying, horrific, battle in all of human history. The bravery of those who fought that battle gives me chills.
@@vasaaviarionI would say that is more than an accurate description. Humans were not cut for what happened there and dealing with it mentally if they survived.
@@vasaaviarion There are more than a few battles in ancient history where 50,000+ men were cut down to the last man in pitiless sword, spear and bow combat... all in one day. But it was still a terrible battle.
I came to Iwo Jima in December 2016 and June 2017 for two historical tours with my job. I stood on this very beach and on Mount Suribachi twice. Still, have about 6 pounds of black sand in a ziplock bag in my closet. The weather was just like this in the video and I actually went in one of the tunnel systems and went down about twenty feet. It was hot and humid in the tunnel even in the winter due to the volcanic activities. You can smell the sulfur on top of the mountain and that was when I realized why it was called Sulfur Island. I could not imagine how the Marines and Japanese soldiers could fight and survive the hellish battle field for so long. I have mad respect for both sides and feel even more proud to be a Marine.
Great comment Chad, thank you!
Why the hell do people like to keep soil... is like to owning cemetery soil
@@Scriptum_1 Joe Rosentahl brought back a vial of the sand and it was in the Navy/Marine Corps Museum on Treasure Island.
Then read: WITH THE OLD BREED, by E.B. Sledge & feel even PROUDER. Hoo-Rah !
Good that you went. A lot of men died for that black sand.
My father, 18 at the time, was wounded while his LSM (LSM-46) was on the beach off loading flame throwing tanks and barrels of napalm. The mortar blast threw him back onto the barrels in the back of the bay. Was able to be treated, recover and rejoin the crew later, earning The Purple Heart
I served a 2 week tour of duty on IWO in 1957 when with the US Airforce . Virtually no restrictions as to where you were allowed to explore . Walked most of the island and top of Surabachi . Still at the time much of the stuff from WW2 laying around . IWO video of today looks so much different than what it was during my time there. I remember sitting on the cliffs overlooking the ocean{ invasion side } watching the sunset . So different from just 12 years earlier when fierce battles were taking place .
8523, my father was stationed there for I believe one year in 1955-56. What did the air force do on the island? I don't remember ever asking him.
@@diffened I'm not sure, however I think its purpose was for refueling aircraft . We went to and from Tachikawa via MATS C124 . As I recall the AF maybe had a hundred personnel. There also was a Navy installation at the opposite end from the invasion beach. Was supposedly secret At the time the prop planes didn't have the range and had to refuel there and at Wake.
My uncle who since passed away was in 4th Marine div on Iwo, he received 2 bronze stars and 2 Purple Hearts through the island campaigns. I have his unit book shows all the islands they fought on and names of all the men kill, wounded. I still look at it from time to time in amazement what they went through. I served in USN 71-75.
My best friend from high school which goes back to the early 70's. His Dad was part of the soldiers who landed on Iwo Jima. He said his Dad never ever wanted to talk about what he saw there.
Semper Fi ❤️🤍💙🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼🇺🇲🦅🇺🇲
God Bless America
From the Halls of Montezuma to the Shores of Tripoli
Rip ~ Thank You For Your Service and Your Sacrifice.
~ Blessings.
As an ex Infantry Veteran, I would love to visit Iwo Jima even though as an Australian none of us fought there. I can't imagine how horrible it would have been with the heat, lack of cover, water and food and the many friendly fire accidents.
Happy Anzac Day! 🇦🇺🇳🇿🇦🇺🇳🇿
The battle for Okinawa was worse, & the taking of Peleliu, "pound for pound," was perhaps (the roughest) of ALL Pacific islands fought on by American Marines & Army combatants.....
@@blusnuby2 Yes it was !
Looks like it would been freezing cold, average temp of 65f, a lot perished from hypothermia I’m sure! RIP.
Currently, the island is home to the Self-Defense Forces and U.S. military facilities in Japan.
Civilians are basically prohibited from entering the island, and only former residents (those who emigrated during the war) and family members of soldiers who died on the island are allowed to enter on a limited basis.
Incidentally, the official name of this island is Iwo-Tou, not Iwo-Jima.
There exists an Iwo Jima with the same spelling in a different location than here, and the U.S. military got the designations mixed up.
I was on the U.S.S. New Orleans ( now a coral reef of of Hawaii} We pulled up off the coast of Iwo Jima one Sunday morning' musta been 90 or 91 and had a prayer service, the flight deck was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
My Uncle Martin Edward Montgomery Survived What he called the meat grinder of Iwo as part of a 105 howitzer crew and was emotionally traumatized from that battle until he passed in 1972 he never wanted to speak about what he did or seen my aunt said he would awake at night screaming and in cold sweats I can't imagine what happend to him.😢
Really puts things in perspective on the loss of life while seeing how tiny the island is.
My grandfather, Cpl.Louis Basso was a Marine 147th Infantry Regiment who fought at Iwo Jima. He returned from the war physically unharmed. Sadly, I never got to know him. He died before I was born. He was only 39. He returned very traumatized, as most did. I guess he only spoke of the war a couple of times. Without going into specifics, let's just say that ultimately, that battle killed him.
My grandfather was an Italian immigrant. His parents (my great -grandparents) immigrated to American when he was a baby. This is also why he was sent to Asian territory during the war. (Descendants from Italy were not sent to Europe during the war for obvious reasons.) My grandfather was proud of his Italian heritage but even more proud to be an American and fight for his country. He was also a devout Catholic. Apparently he got into a battle with the enemy in a foxhole at Iwo Jima and had to kill a man. Even though it was the enemy and he was in a situation of kill or be killed, it affected him deeply. He never got over it.
It may seem weird to mourn a grandfather that I never knew...but I do. 😔
🙏
I went within a couple miles of Iwo Jima on a ship when I was 20. To think so many young men had their lives cut short on that tiny protrusion is one of the saddest times of my life.
God bless the Marines that fought lived and died in one of the most hard fought horrific battles in history. 🇺🇸
Very haunting video it made images come into your mind and think of those men on both sides dying for that little piece of land , really well filmed
Imagine fighting a battle knowing that 5000+ others have already been killed. An awful toll.
Ira Hayes was from my home state of Arizona and he died in 1955 just 45 miles from where we lived. He is not forgotten
He was an honorable and brave American.
Bob Dylan sang a Song..
Remember Him..
Never heard Dylan's song but Johnny Cash did the popular "Ira Hayes".@@finddeniro
@@finddeniroJohnny Cash did as well
My step uncle was a marine who first fought on Makin atoll, then on Iwo Jima. He was permanently handicapped due to injuries inflicted on Iwo.
Rip John Bowen ! Your stories of this island won’t be forgotten!
the bravery and fanaticism of the japanese on iwo jima and okinawa and the casualties the US suffered in these operations was a significant factor in the decision to use the atomic bomb rather than a land invasion of the home islands.
Indeed. Many thanks for commenting!
Hiroshima and nagasaki were more likely firebombed. Nobody would be living there if atomic bombs were used.
They wouldn’t stop , fight til the death , every man woman and child. The Japanese were tough
@@robinpreeseI don't think tough is the right word since they tortured men women and children wherever they went .
@@MikeJones-rk1un
On the battlefields of mainland China and Southeast Asia, there were many Chinese guerrilla soldiers who were women and children.
At one port in China, women dressed in kimonos smiled and waved at Japanese soldiers who had landed. When the soldiers approached to greet them, the women fired their concealed guns and shot the unwary soldiers dead.
There is also a story of a mother and her child, who were working in a field while the soldiers were moving through a rural area, pulling a rifle out of a basket and shooting them from behind.
As a result, the Japanese military became more suspicious of civilians and tougher in areas close to the front lines.
I believe events similar to this were experienced by the US military several times during the Vietnam War.
My ship USS Brister DER-327 visited Iwo-Jima several times in 1964 as an extension to our patrols of the Marianas Islands. This is a somber reminder of those visits. Making it more poignant, I learned our executive officer served as a landing craft coxswain during the battle for Iwo-Jima.
I remember watching and rewatching a program about this battle when I was a kid. There’s always been something that fascinated me about it.
My grandfather had a shell land near him on Iwo Jima, setting off a bunch of white phosphorous he was carrying. He had horrendous burns over the whole lower half of his body. They never healed. I remember watching my grandmother change his bandages in the 80s. He died in his early 60s as a result of those wounds.
My dad worked for Patton, and his last tour of duty was Germany in the mid 60's...he feared no man, but he was scared of us (we were little kids then) maybe coming across a white phosphorus bomb while playing outside in the woods...I do remember finding two exploded incendiary bombs, we would mark the location and alert the MPs...Iwo maybe took the fighting to it's zenith, but everywhere the war left scars...my dad never spoke of what he did or saw, but a thunderstorm would send him to bed, and it was years before I realized how a storm sounds just like artillery fire...
嘘つくな
My Marine daughter, Captain C-130 pilot, re-enlisted her sergeant on the flag raising site on Suribachi a few years ago.
If you really want to know why Truman decided to drop the atomic bombs on Japan, just read the book "Bloody Okinawa" by Joseph Wheelan. The Japanese would not stop fighting until they were completely wiped out. It happened on Saipan, on Iwo Jima. Total War. Never again.
Major General Fred Haynes, USMC dec...totally agreed with him. The Japanese would have never surrendered. The casualties on all sides would have been horrendous..yes worse than the bombs.
As Churchill said:
"Everyone talks about fighting to the death
....the Japanese do it."
As a Marine, I would love to visit Iwo Jima. I was stationed at Okinawa in the 80s, I kept my ears open for a flight going to Iwo. (I was at Futenma, hoping to catch a C-130 flying there, no dice)
I was right there with you in the 80's. Loved my time in Okanawa and camp Fuji Japan. Good times. So long ago now.
@@rhugh02I loved Okinawa. That was a great duty station.
My uncle was killed while clearing out the caves. He was 17 years old.
There are two versions of the classic "Flag Raising On Iwo Jima". One is a still photograph taken by Joe Rosenthal that caused the sensation about the Flag Raising when it was published. The other was a movie of the Flag Raising
ruclips.net/video/LEtukwfLX90/видео.html
filmed by Marine Corps Combat Cameraman Bill Genaust.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Genaust
He is still on the Island.
They were exploring a Japanese Cave and needed a flashlight. Bill had one so he went in. There was a fire fight in the Cave and Bill was killed. Because the Japanese still held the cave - the entrance was collapsed with explosives.
There were several attempts over the years to find Bill's body - but they couldn't do it.
So - the man who was looking through the range finder of the motion picture camera that took that moving image of the flag Raising - the man whose eyes you are seeing that through - is still there.
.
Spent 4 days there with a Marine battle study group in 89. It's a very humbling experience walking the invasion beaches., inspecting the numerous tunnels and standing atop Mt. Suribachi.
As a young journalist in the Bay Area in the early 1970s, I met Joe Rosenthal -- who took the famous photo of the Marines raising the flag on Mt. Suribachi--at a news conference. He was shooting for the SF Chronicle at that time. My newspaper's photographer was with me. Joe ambled up to us--he knew Gordon, the photographer with me--and ended up telling us about how he got that famous shot during the battle of the Marines raising the flag at Iwo. The flag raising was actually the second of two--the flag being too small in the first. The Marines ordered a second raising with a larger flag. He was such an unassuming character for having taken one of the most famous war photographs ever. Joe was on the short side, and wore a black beret. Very soft spoken. I wonder how Joe and the thousands of Americans who died or were wounded there would feel about the Japanese flag now flying over the island? Such is the irony of history.
Thank you for sharing this, Tom.
It's a flag. Get over it. Semper Paratus.
Alot of them do not like it. We did it during the Vietnam wore. We were transporting troops to Vietnam thru Japan. The Japanese didnt like it. So we returned Iwo to sweeten the deal. We still have some rights.
@@BonnieHaynes-gg4nk I was merely making an observation about the irony of war in general. The island belonged to Japan before the war, so, it's logical the island would be returned to Japan post-war. The Vietnamese are big fans of the U.S. these days despite what we did to them in war. I visited North Vietnam some years ago, and was amazed at how friendly everyone was to me and my traveling buddy.
@@Thom3748 I have heard that from even my daughter. But it looks like a really hard trip. I would love to go.
Army 68-71. Spent some time on Okinawa. Saw remnants of that battle as well. I can’t even imagine.
The island has risen an average of more than 15 meters over the past 100 years due to volcanic activity, increasing the island's area by nearly 20%.
There were no port facilities on the island, so the U.S. military sunk unneeded ships and used them as scaffolding for berthing.
Those ships also appeared on the surface as the island rose.
This has resulted in more human remains being uncovered, with the possibility of some very delayed homecomings.
@@travelphotofilmthats so creepy
Iwo Jima is one of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world. It sits in a caldera that was formed by a catastrophic eruption, and the uplift means that one day another catastrophic eruption will obliterate the current island and cause damage throughout the Pacific Rim.
That means the island grows 15 cm a year.If that is growth average, the island, this is a supposition of mine, didn't still exist when Jesus Christ had been born.Geologists know better.😮🤤🤔
@@anibalcesarnishizk2205 scientists can't say precisely when the last island was wiped out, but it was over 850 years BC(and I won't add the E). The next big one could happen within the next thousand years.
Magnificent record of a battlefield. Well done !!!
Thank you, Peter!
Thanks for this very moving footage, with the original commentary it sends a stark message that war is hell!
Well done video.
Without ever being there myself, can tell it has changed a lot since those dark days of WW2. Noted the island itself has risen up some due to volcanic activity, human remains have been found. I know the Japanese commander body was never found but would be historical significance if it ever is.
Semper Fi in honor of my father Burlin C. Beam PFC 4th Marine Div. Iwo Jima
If you venture there, be quiet and respectful, many souls are still there..looking for their friends.
I can't imagine the actual physical amount of ordinance that makes up that landscape. Hundreds of thousands of artillery shells, bombs, and bullets. You probably can't take a step without stepping on American steel and lead.
My dad was a B-29 side gunner and was so grateful for the efforts of those who fought on Iwo, allowing the Seabees to construct airfields. He had to fly from Tinian to bomb Tokyo one last time after Hiroshima and Nagasaki on a mission called "The Convincer". His plane ran low on fuel and they had to land on Iwo. He survived the war and we went to DC on an Honor Flight in May 2013. He passed away 6 months later on Thanksgiving 2013.
My Dad's Buddy Bill Juntlan Died the FIRST Day 😢 Bar Man 18 yrs old 6'4" All Marine GOD BLESS Him
Three iconic American moments:
- The Revolution and birth of the first free nation since Ancient Greece.
- The Apollo Space program.
- The Marines fighting their way up and planting the Stars & Stripes atop that dormant volcano.
We’re dying now, but we were once remarkable. RIP America.
Sad that the people liberated from the camps in 1945 are the people who killed you and all the rest of us.
What American Exceptionalist nonsense. Here are other iconic moments in history as the greatest nation of freedom as appointed by White Jesus:
1) Writing of the United States Constitution, which in its 5th paragraph established slaves as 3/5ths of a human being.
2) Civil war, where half of the states were willing to tear America apart and kill their own brother to preserve murder, torture, and rape of slaves.
3) Plessy v. Ferguson (1896): The United States Supreme Court ruled that "separate but equal" (segregation) was constitutional, thus ushering in 68 years of second-class citizenship for black Americans. Directly referenced by Adolf Hitler when planning his treatment of German Jews.
4) 19th Amendment (1920): women finally get the vote, only 144 short years after "...first free nation since Ancient Greece" was founded.
5) The International Jew: The World's Problem (1920): Series of articles by Henry Ford published into a book admired by Adolf Hitler.
6) Indian Citizenship Act (1924): Native Americans finally recognized as citizens of the place they already existed in before whites arrived.
7) Buck v. Bell (1927): the U.S. Supreme court upheld Virginia's Eugenical Sterilization Act, authorizing forced sterilization. Also cited by Hitler as being a really, really good idea for undesirable groups in Germany.
8) January 6th, 2021: after losing the most secure election in history, Donald Trump attempts a fascist takeover of the county in a violet assault of a joint session of Congress in the nation's capitol. Even the 9/11 attackers were unable to get to the U.S. Capitol, but Trump could.
America holds great promise for freedom, but unfortunately throughout most of its history, that promise has not been realized.
Time heals all wounds.
Too bad that time cannot heal the horrific memories of the Marines who fought there and experienced the horrors.
There was a filmed documentary of some American survivors going back to the island in 1985 for the 40th anniversary and none of them had a straight face later and many broke down bawling. Time heals but not entirely.
Wounds may heal but scars remain.
As the wife of an Iwo Marine, that is not always true.
Thank-you so much for posting. I have read a few books on Iwo Jima - it was great to see what it looks like now.
Very pleased you enjoyed it!
I talked to a vet from Iwo once at the VA. He showed me his elbows and they were all marked up. He told me that the black sand on Iwo was more like crushed up rock in some places and crawling around in it tore up their elbows.
Looks spooky. Though crazy how peaceful it looks today
The hand of death has truly pass over that island alot of lost souls still walk it.
Unfortunately, I have never had the chance to tour battlefields outside of the Continental US. But I have been to a good many American Civil War and American Revolution battlefields.
I hate to sound like I am telling ghost stories but it has never ceased to amaze me how there just seems to be an almost unexplainable feeling on these battlefields. They just so often seem to have an energy that exists there that lets you know that something significant happened there. You get the feeling that even if you were completely ignroant of the history, you'd still know that something significant happened there. I imagine that is true of battlefields all over the world.
I don't think I have ever seen a battlefield that gave you that same feeling just from seeing film footage on the internet like I see here with Iwo Jima.
Even now, all these decades after the battle Iwo Jima just has an intimidating looking presence about it.
I have been to Antietam, Shiloh, Gettysburg and other Civil War battlefields and would just get that feeling like the hair on the back of my neck would stand up. But there was also a strange peacefulness to these places, especially on a nice warm sunny day with the breeze blowing and an almost deafening silence with the exception of the birds singing. That serenity is just such a stark contrast to the history that made these places famous.
But here, just watching this clip, I don't get that serene feeling. Just looking at that clip gave such an ominous and intimidating feeling. I can only imagine what it would feel like to actually be there. It seems to me that it would be quite a spooky experience.
Excellent vid........soundtrack and unspoken images totally effective. To see these images now and think of the realty in 1945. Nearly 7000 marines gave their lives for this postage stamp on the Pacific, with many wounded.....24,000 casualties in all....not forgetting the Japanese garrison, killed almost to the man; 22,000.
USMC, Heaven is for Heroes, May They R.I.P. Semper-Fi
God bless our soldiers. Past, present, and future. May their sacrifice never be in vain
I wish I could go there and visit. Not sure why. I just wish I could. I guess I just want to pay my respects to the thousands who fought and died there.
Thank you sirs for your heroic bravery and valiant service to our country RIP 🇺🇸
Gorgeous landscape. I would love to visit.
Actually it’s literally a rock with very little vegetation. The airfield was the only important asset. Today, the island is unoccupied and authorization is required to visit the island as the cemetery of about 30,000 and 5,000 dead soldiers.
I have these recordings on cassette. So funny when they talk to 'The Goat.' 😊
The father of a girlfriend of mine received the Medal of Honor as a result of what he did on Iwo Jima. He was often asked to be a guest on various historical tours to Iwo. But, he never went back & he never talked about what he did there.
I was honored enough to visit in 2007 time-frame. VMGR 152 SUMOS
My uncle was a Marine Raider on Iwo, never wanted to talk about.
Just a note, 1 out of every 3 Marines killed in WW 2 were killed on Iwo Jima.
Great job on this video.
I served in the USMC. 83-89.
Marine Detachment USS Iowa BB61 & Echo 2/8.
Thank you for the comment! Glad you enjoyed it!
My grandfather was 18 when he ran a landing craft carrying round after round of young marines to their deaths on the beaches of iwo jima. I was fortunate he survived the war.
My grandfather enlisted in the Navy in 1943 at 17 years old. He says he brought marines ashore and took wounded back to the command ship. He passed away 2 years ago
I remember reading about Iwo Jima back in the ‘70s.
I remember reading that you could still smell death on the island 30 years after the fight.
Don't believe everything you read.
My great, uncle was just coming over the ridge and watched the first flag go up , and my father during the Korean conflict , training for the invasion of Formosa ( Taiwan ) , but the Chinese never invaded , have all of Dad's Iwo pictures , while he was there !!! 😎
My father was stationed on Iwo Jima in 1955-56, as a US air force captain. He said that while exploring the caves they would sometimes find parts of bodies and I believe it was standard practice to send the remains back to Japan. Don't know what they did on the island, but they would occasionally fly to Japan for R&R/vacation time.
Thank you gor this amazing video.
MY grandpa on my dads side served in this very pacific theater. Pvt. Louis Green. U.S Army.
I wonder sometimes how haunted these places could POSSIBLY be, if at all?
I’ve walked the beaches of Iwo Jima and have sand from there too.
It’s humbling to walk around the island and know what the outcome was.
Excellent. Thank you
Iwo Jima was returned to Japan in 1968 and now has a small Japanese military base
I thought the island is unoccupied and operated as the grounds for the approx 30,000 dead Japanese soldiers station there.
@@tonymanero5544 No civilians live there just military
A little fly speck island in the middle of nowhere that had meant nothing to the world through the ages was turned into hallowed ground over the course of a few days. Somehow it became a place where thousands of people went to and died before it was for most intents and purposes abandoned back to nature again.
My Grandfather lost his life March 26, 1945, on Iwo Jima. 1 or 9 marines to die in the last battle. RIP to all the brave soldiers that lost their lives fighting on IWO
My one of my HS teachers fought on IWO was a great man I’m friends with his son rip
And thank you very much for sharing this video
What madness it must have been to fought and survived this battle for a spec in the ocean in some island chain you can’t find on the globe for it’s size.
Dude all that flat land, the hill being so fucking close with the best view down at just plain fields. Fuck that shit
Incredibly well done
Could you let us know the source for the audio. Apologies if you’ve already been asked - I looked but didn’t see it.
I was lucky enough to be able to meet Charles Lindberg, the last survivor of the first flag raising, while I was on leave in August of 2001. I got hurt in a off duty accident four days after September 11th. I was with the fifth Marine regiment, and my battalion was over seas when we invaded Iraq, and my battalion got held over in Japan and they got tongo there. I got a print that talks about the two flag raisings when my mom, little sister and I went and visited with in in August of 02.
Imagine without the two atomic bombs, the Japanese were going to turn their whole country into Iwo Jima
My Uncle Joe was a Marine and he was in the flag raising photo, bottom row second one from left. I will say he survived the war made it home and was eventually killed by a drunk driver while he was walking back to the farm house after the war was over. God bless and have a great day today.
Young Men on Both sides. Never had a Chance to Live a Full Life, Buy a Home. Marriage, Children. Enjoy a Sunset or Sunrise . SUCH A WASTE...........War.
Hallowed ground. Semper Fi, older brothers!
The dog tags hanging were cool
The bloodiest battle,The Somme,Belleau Wood,etc etc
My grandpa was on iwo jima after my dad passed away I found letters that my grandpa had written to him I would say that there are small bits of iwo soil in the fibers of the paper I cherish those letters I have only read them once as they are to fragile to handle
Had all Japanese generals been like Kuribayashi, the war in the Pacific would have been a much worse nightmare.
Semper Fi to all the United States Marines and we ask God to bless and protect them all.
Such a small Island and area that saw extreme suffering and violence. That's one beach I especially wouldn't want to walk on alone at night.
My grandmas brother Franki was killed their . Soon as they landed family was told . Mortar fire. My dad was 1 yr old I'm 56 and have his death certificate signed . My dad just gave me
Fun Fact: It's also home to a volcano as I think the shore of which they fought was at sea level, now the place where they fought has been uplifted by the magma and is now 15 meters above. Correct me if I am wrong.
The island is the top of a massive volcano that someday will blow its top in a cataclysmic eruption and blast Iwo Jima out of existence.
The actual landing beaches are inland now. The Island is rising 6" every year. So the black sand you see is not the actual landing area (if you will). There is also an active volcano in this area that has formed a new island. Iwo Jima is VERY active - before much longer the island will resemble nothing as it does today.
"Bloodiest battle in history?"
Stalingrad would like a word if you have a moment...
And Gettysburg
@@robertsole9970
Antietam remains the bloodiest day in American military history
It wasnt even the bloodiest battle the marines fought in 1945…
@@briantoplessbar4685
Okinawa
Iwo Jima was taken for the airstrip which was needed badly for escort fighter planes to fly cover for B-29's & as an emergency airfield for B-29's having trouble with damage or engine problems who could not make it all the way back to Tinian or Saipan.
The number of air crews saved might have exceeded the number of men killed to take the island, if IIRC...it is an unfortunate truth that command has to make such decisions, often with conflicting intelligence, even today...
The human losses during the Iwo Jima landings were twice the losses in the Normandy landings. The Japanese stationed on Mount Suribachi left the marines on the beaches for half an hour, and then the meat grinder began.
Surprisingly very green theses days compared to the hell hole it was in the mid forties!
Crazy how time and nature masks the scars of war a strange beauty to This
This place is on my bucket list of places to go see before I expire.
As an American veteran, that's the least I can do.
It is hard to get to, but certainly worth the trip!
Welp time to go back play battlefield 5
The latest Battlefield game worth playing 👍
good footage
The volcanic activity must have subsided there. If you see film clips from 1945 there was practically no vegetation. And the ground in certain spots was somewhat hot from the volcanic activity.
Before landing on the island, they were firing heavily on the Japanese positions.
And the ground continues to rise from volcanic activity.
The island was bombed for months before the landing. Not a blade of grass was left when the Marines came ashore.