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Night bounceI was an O-4 down in Iwo Jima, the same island of World War II fame, and now an outermost air defense outpost, containing a small picket of Japanese Air Self-Defense Force personnel. They “flew” F-104’s mostly, or at least they were rumored to August 11th, 2006 | Tags: sea stories | Category: Flying
22 comments to Night bounce |
Credo"Sign on, young man, and sail with me. The stature of our homeland is no more than the measure of ourselves. Our job is to keep her free. Our will is to keep the torch of freedom burning for all. To this solemn purpose we call on the young, the brave, the strong, and the free. Heed my call, Come to the sea. Come Sail with me." -- John Paul Jones "Pardon him, Theodotus; he is a barbarian, and thinks that the customs of his tribe and island are the laws of nature" --George Bernard Shaw, "Caesar and Cleopatra" "And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music."--Friedrich Nietzsche "A kind Providence has placed in our breasts a hatred of the unjust and cruel, in order that we may preserve ourselves from cruelty and injustice. They who bear cruelty, are accomplices in it. The pretended gentleness which excludes that charitable rancour, produces an indifference which is half an approbation. They never will love where they ought to love, who do not hate where they ought to hate."--Edmund Burke "Μολὼν λαβέ" -- Leonidas "Blogito Ergo Sum" -- Neptunus Lex Relocating? SponsorsNearly 60k hits and 130k page views per month - low rates! Advertise with Lex! For the Effort!Recent PostsPopularPagesTags1st Amendment afghanistan Araby army Blogging buffoonery china culture economy education Flying Friday Musings geopol GWOT Headlines History iran iraq Israel issues media Memory Lane Military Navy norks Oz pakistan people piracy politicians politics Politics and Culture pundits Russia seals sea stories silliness Small Stuff SoCal technology UAVs UK usaf usmc weapons WP Cumulus Flash tag cloud by Roy Tanck requires Flash Player 9 or better. Spam Blocked |
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Thanks for reviving some memories of Japan Lex. That post is you at your very best…
R – Brian
With the move to Iwakuni ( One of the stupidest moves the US government has ever initiated…the Japanese did not ask for it) the Japanese are talking about allowing FCLP at one of their fields on Honshu (somewhere in Igate prefecture). I’ll beleive it when I see it, but Iwo is farther from Iwakuni than Atsugi and so the powers that be are looking at options.
The Iwakuni runwary will be right on the water, ( the new one that will be complete in 2009) so there are some misguided Navy folks who think the wing will be able to bounce right there in Iwakuni.
What’s always amazed me is the that the average Minkanjin (Citizen Sato..) does not really care about the noise per se, its the city governments who do that so they squeeze more money from the Federal government. And sadly, the US government goes along with it.
Me, I’d put the wing in Guam where they have long dual runways and lots of real estate. Poor some money into FDM and allow aircraft to be able to take off with live ordnance 365 days a year.
Which is why we won’t do it. Makes too much sense.
And here I was yesterday wishing for another of your Tales of the Sea Service…
Thanks for that lovely description. As always, you make what could be mundane fascinating instead.
I’ve flown by it a coupla tines on Westpac cruises and even did a flyover. Small forbidding looking place. Japan has it back but we won it..once. Instantly reminded me of James Brady’s books- “Flags of Our Fathers” & “Flyboys”…Sacred ground.
As usual, fantastic description of an aviation picture I can see in my minds eye from other days and times. Not vertical, albeit. I’ll bet that’s one dark place for night FCLPs.
One must be very careful flying in the vicinity of those pieces of rock called Jima’s..I sadly recollected another flight which didn’t have the same end as yours:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20040814-9999-7m14aviators.html
B2
Lex,
A great piece, but for me, all of it just set the stage for your description of your wingman breaking through the cloud deck.
Awesome. When we walked those flight lines, we wanted to fly. That word picture reminds me of why.
SF,
ASAM826
bodbob,
You mentioned the second of James Brady’s books, “Flyboys”. Rumors I heard was that he had a political agenda when he wrote it. Was that the case? If not would you recommend the book?
Warmest,
The FlooseMan
Atlanta, GA
Six pack? The limit was a case (at least) last time I was there.
I remember after “procuring” some scooters from the JNs for a night ride around the island we had to offer a gomen for a little damage to said scooters. When we tried to give the JNs cash they insisted we get them beer from the NEX canteen. We gave them a couple of cases of Bud and low and behold when it came time to rig the A-gear for our afternoon bounce period we had to CNX because the JNs were all gooned up. Lot of laughs, memories and moments looking over the beaches and wondering “how did those Marines do this?”.
Thanks for taking me back to Iwo.
Cheers,
Gordo
F-man,
If it did have an agenda I read right through it for the individual stories of the men who were shot down in combat and criminally murdered as POWs…During that war the Japanese Army made the Islamic terrorist look like an amatuer…
Perhaps he injected a little moral relativism while he was describing strategic air war against Japan. He reported the tonnage and results, including fat-boy on their cities, but because I firmly believe we did the right thing at the time, I already had my own mind made up. I’ve been to their ground zero so I’ve seen both sides. To have attempted Japan itself, after Iwo and Okinawa as indicators, would have cost us over a million more US dead. Countless millions more of Japanese too…..
I say read ahead. True facts never lie.
B2
F-Man,
Concur with B2, great book. I’m pretty good at ignoring (being ignorant of?) people’s agendas.
It is an interest portrait of how we fought a war and strengthens my belief that although we don’t WANT to fight a war, if we decide to do it, we should put 100% of our resolve into defeating our foes. That is what we had to do in the Pacific theater in 1940’s.
Nose
F-man;
“Flyboys” opened with some interesting reading on what happened in the opening of the 21st Century and captured some letters/reports of none too kind treatment of local populations by US troops. The Philippines was one place of note that I recall. Decriptions contained the “ethinic refrenences” from top leadership as well as troopers and some political figures. I found that tough reading, but understand history is just that. I can only contemplate the agenda was to show we, too, have been known to do things unnecessary and that did anything but win hearts and minds.
The next portion of the book then discussed the Japanese conquest of major portions of China. That was incredible gruesome, and from what followed later of the Chi Chi Jima events, showed a side of humanity we hope will never again manifest itself.
Then the main part of the story came, including Bush 41’s first parachute jump. That was great reading, and also difficult, once more for the brutality.
As B2 says, it shows the Islamo-fascists are merely wanna be school boys, when compared to the Japanese of the era. Thankfully for the world, they reconsidered and adopted an entirely new world view.
For all the faults of our military and political leadership in some of the early 21st century misconduct by the US, we never approached anything of scale the Japanese did.
If anyone enjoys this type of reading, a great book on Okinawa is “Tennozan”. The author found some Japanese survivors to tell their side of the story, as well as the US side. It tells how committed the Japanese were to slaughtering us, at the risk of losing their own lives, the most senior officer speaking was a Japanese battalion commander (Major), who we badly wounded and woke up shortly before being captured.
Lex;
Great story! Geez….and all because of bad eyes, I never got the chance…:(
When is the novel coming out in dead tree format? C’mon, Capt, you’re great…get out there and unseat Clancy!
In August Japanese TV always has war dramas on TV. Its interesting to watch. They are not historical dramas so much as stories of families in the middle of the war. Last year they did one about a family that lived in Manchuria, this year is one about a family in Okinawa……
Say what you will, the Japanese at least came around well
Marvellous.
Excellent read.
Skippy,
We agree. They came around and have done pretty well, The major thanks going to an imperious military man named McArthur, an Emperor who had the screen taken off him violently and a present from America along with occupation: a new constitution. What a price. What a success story.
We’ll do the same in Iraq and for the others left behind by history if we don’t cut n run…..
B2
B2,
But who will be the new MacArthur? Plus give the Japanese some credit where credit is due. They were and are light years ahead of the Iraqis. If Iraq had a society like Japans, they would be farther along too. Then again, Japan is not encumbered by religion—–God Bless `em
I submit to you that it is the Japanese people who made the turnaround happen. In Iraq they are working with substandard material……..
“Then again, Japan is not encumbered by religion”
Uh…Skippy…didn’t the Japanese military use Shinto as a backbone for it’s military ethos pre-WW2?
And I’m proud to say, that my father-in-law was a “Flyboy”. He was a B-17 co-pilot, and was shot down on a mission to northern Italy, managing to safely get his aircraft to Switzerland, where he and his crew were interned by some very pro-fascist Swiss.
They may have then, but my observation of the Japanese approach to religion is that it is one of more traditonal things than of deep seated belief. They certainly don’t let it get in the way of their weekends!
I submit the Japanese copied the desire for conquest from their European teachers. And being Japanese, they tried to get it done in 1/4 of the time the Europeans did. They wanted their Empire because they learned it from what Britain did.
This is way off thread but..
re- “Then again, Japan is not encumbered by religion…”
Skippy- that is a downright falsehood. I say you should do more than just drink the beer there and listen to bartalk… Ancestor worship, Shinto and Buddahism were predominate in Japan before the war, after the war and even now. Tell them it isn’t a religion. Maybe you’ve been talking with the wrong type barflies?
re- “..working with substandard material”
Again your own predjudice hasn’t been clutched by your brain before engaement….
You keep shooting off that pellet gun and getting hit by howitzers!
B2
B2, those were my thoughts exactly…Skippy, did you go native?
B2, Nose & Curt,
Thank you so much for the recommendations and warnings. “Flyboys” has now been added to my ToDo List.
Warmest To All.
The FlooseMan
Yea, I went native. What’s so wrong with that. When America gets decent public transportation, less pushy women, and flights to Thailand that don’t take all day, I’ll consider moving back.
Actually I know more about Japanese culture than I think you realize. I speak and read the language rather well and I have done more than go to bars and chase women there. My observations are based on watching the people as they go about their daily business ( which has included attending 2 Shinto funerals…..a chore I hope I never have to repeat).
Perhaps its on the things they emphasize and what they don’t emphasize. They are not hung up about things that Westerners get hung up about. That tells a lot about a culture. I live among Japanese and with (a) Japanese every day. Do you?
As for my views about Arabs, yea its predjudiced. I know it. I’m just tired of feeling like I have to apologize for it. So I’ve stopped apologizing for it. I knew exactly what I was writing. I have a clutch, and I know when to use it. When the Arabs get their stuff together, and stop killing and trying to kill westerners and create decent places to visit, I’ll go back to apologizing to them. Seems they owe me and every other American an apology first though. Over ,599+256+4000+114+241+……. apologies to be exact.
Hell, my comments are tame compared to what my Israeli friend says!