by King, Dan
Akikusa's father never got a letter from his son, but received word through his connections that his son left on a ship for Iwo Jima. He read the newspaper account of the gyokusai and initially feared the worst. However, Akikusa's mother insisted her son was alive. In April, Akikusa's father visited a soothsayer to see what, if anything, the spirits would say. The psychic-medium claimed she could see visions in her dreams. The following day she told them she had dreamed of their son hiding underground. Akikusa's parents clung to that bit of hope and continued to pray for his safe return.
Months later, a letter arrived from the Japanese Department of the Navy informing the Akikusa family of their son's death on Iwo Jima. There was also a voucher to cover his funeral expenses, as well as a stipend for their loss. The letter stated the family could retrieve his ikotsu bako (cremated remains box) at the town hall. The symbolic, but empty, cardboard box would be used at the funeral. Akikusa's parents took the box but refused to cash-in the funeral expense voucher because his mother just knew her son was still among the living.[74]
By March 25th, even though Iwo Jima was written-off by the Japanese High Command, Vice-Admiral Kinpei Teraoka wanted to get in the last word. He ordered eight Betty bombers from the K704th Squadron to set out for Iwo Jima on a night mission to seek revenge for the souls of the fallen. The planes would fly from Kisarazu Airfield in two echelons of four planes each and drop their payloads from 24,000 feet. Iwao Yamada recalled the heavy volume of accurate AA fire that they encountered during the previous bombing raid, and didn't expect to make it back a second time.
Vice-Admiral Teraoka gave the Betty crews a rousing speech to send them on their way. The first group of bombers left at 3:05 p.m., and Yamada's second group took off at 3:20 p.m.134 Teraoka sent two separate groups in case roving American night fighters destroyed one of them.
There was trouble from the start. One of the planes in the first group immediately developed engine trouble and returned to Kisarazu, leaving only three planes to carry on in the first group. The number of bombers was down to seven.
The Gremlins were busy with the second echelon as well. High winds caused two of the bombers in Yamada's second group to collide, forcing both planes to limp home. This left only five planes.135 At 5:45 p.m., when Yamada's two-plane echelon reached a pre-determined navigational turning point that required a 6-degree turn to port, inexplicably, the lead plane turned 6-degrees to starboard. Due to radio silence, Yamada could only watch the errant craft slowly drift off course into the purple haze of the setting sun. It was never seen again. Yamada thinks the navigational error was caused by a combination of exhaustion and freezing cold temperatures. Yamada's Betty bomber was now alone, about twenty minutes behind the first group of planes. Admiral Teraoka's "Last Word Attack" was down from eight to only four planes.
Roughly two hours later, Yamada was startled to see the tiny island bathed in brilliant lights. Was it a trap? Why weren't they under blackout conditions? Ensign Nemoto ordered the crew to drop some chaff and then changed course. The on-board radar operator reported no enemy air-to-air contacts. Far in the distance, Ensign Nemoto could see that the bombers in the lead group were taking heavy fire from US ships, which confirmed there were no night fighters nearby.
The first group of three Bettys dropped their bombs at 8:50 p.m., and headed back to Kisarazu, but only one actually made it back, the other two vanished without a trace.
There would be a twenty-seven minute gap between the first group of bombers and Yamada's lone Betty bomber.
Amidst a spider web of AA fire, Yamada's bombardier released the payload over the island at 9:19 p.m. The crew claimed to have visually confirmed eight bomb strikes that resulted in starting six fires. As the Betty fled, Yamada said he could see the glow from Iwo Jima all the way to the island of Kita Iwo Jima. Yamada's plane safely returned to Kisarazu at 1:15 a.m. "I can't explain how none of us were wounded," said Yamada.
Three-and-a-half hours later, General Kuribayashi ordered, or even possibly led, roughly 300-400 officers and men to their own "Battle of Little Big Horn" at Motoyama Airfield. Kuribayashi orchestrated the attack to occur at a secure aviation bivouac to cause the most damage possible to airmen who were asleep in their tents. The confused hand-to-hand fighting continued until dawn and left 44 American dead and 88 wounded.136 Among the casualties were four wounded Black Marines and two that lost their lives.[75] Two of the Afro-American troops, Privates James Whitlock and James Davis of the 36th Depot Company, earned bronze stars that night.137
To date, Kuribayashi's remains have not been identified, and there is debate in Japan as to where and how he died. Japanese survivors paint various pictures of Kuribayashi's final moments: Kuribayashi personally led the banzai charge; Kuribayashi shot himself and was buried inside his bunker; Kuribayashi fell apart mentally and leadership fell to another officer; Kuribayashi was shot by another officer when he suggested surrendering.
The destruction of Kuribayashi's command was the proverbial singing of the fat lady. There were still thousands of Japanese scattered across the island, but organized resistance would prove to be over.
Ōmagari, Akikusa and the others had no way of knowing that the island's supreme commander was dead. They received no new orders, so they followed the directive to "hold at all cost." Harunori Okoshi, the 17-year-old said, "We couldn't surrender, and were forbidden to retreat. The standing order was to defend our positions with our lives. What else could we do?"138
The Seabees
Ōmagari and Akikusa both separately remarked on the incredible transformation they witnessed due to the efforts of the American Seabees. Ōmagari, who had previously worked his men to the bone filling in bomb craters, was shocked at how quickly the Seabees graded, leveled and widened the airfields. He had never seen a bulldozer before and marveled at its simple design and brute strength. The amount of mechanical equipment the Americans were able to transport across the ocean was staggering. Ōmagari was angry with his own government for starting a war with a nation that had such industrial capabilities.
American bombers and fighters required vast amounts of aviation fuel. In order to more efficiently feed the thirsty planes, the Seabees built a ship-to-shore underwater pipeline. It was buoyed at its seaward end and brought ashore south of Tachikawa Point. In addition, Seabees built four 1,000-gallon gasoline storage tanks that also helped regulate the temperature of the high-octane aviation gas. The aircraft fuel for Iwo's fighters could now be delivered directly from tankers anchored off shore instead of being manually hauled ashore in 55-gallon drums. A second pipeline was later established on the west side of the island.139 On April 3rd, the beaver-like Seabees began work on the North Field (unfinished airfield No. 3). They also worked on improving the Japanese water catch basins to help meet the demand for water. In addition to building the airfield, fuel tanks and buildings, the Seabees made life more comfortable for the pilots. Army Captain Jerry Yellin was a P-51 pilot (78th Fighter Squadron, 21st Fighter Group) assigned to escort B-29s targeting Japan. On April 7th, he participated in his first eight-hour roundtrip escort mission. "When I got back to Iwo, my back and legs were so stiff I needed help getting out of the cramped cockpit. The Seabees quickly built tubs for us to soak in, complete with hot water on demand. Those Seabees were a great bunch of guys," said Yellin.140
Captain Jerry Yellin arrived on Iwo Jima on April 6th, and set about dropping napalm in the northern sector.141 "Napalm is horribly effective stuff. I pity anyone on the receiving end," Yellin said. Akikusa, Ōmagari and many other survivors shared the sentiment. "When I first saw liquid fire I was terrified," said Ōmagari. Akikusa said, "The rocks and sand were on fire. There was nothing for the fire to consume, yet it burned." Iwo Jima's Japanese survivors agree that napalm and flamethrowers were the two most dreaded weapons they encountered. The Japanese had flamethrowers too, but it was a weapon not suited for the defensive battle in which the Japanese foun
d themselves.[76]
PART 4
The Holdouts
The Field Hospital Surrenders
On Tuesday, April 10th, US soldiers from the US Army's 1st Battalion approached the Japanese 2nd Mixed Brigade's Field Hospital Bunker and sent in a POW to parlay with the occupants. PFC Shūji Ishii said that one of the hospital's lieutenants left the bunker with the POW to talk to the Americans. The officer returned and went straight to Captain Iwao Noguchi without saying a word. Rumors flew among the enlisted men about what would happen next. The following morning, Ishii asked his hanchō if he had heard anything. The man replied, "There was talk among the officers that we will be giving ourselves up to the protection of the Americans soon."
Upon hearing this, Ishii recalled a discussion he had with an NCO several days before; the man was examining the medic's field book. The NCO noted that according to the International Red Cross, medical personnel fell under a different category than combatants and would therefore not technically be considered prisoners-of-war. The man reasoned, that as a result, there would be no shame in exiting the bunker.
On the evening of April 15th, Captain Iwao Noguchi issued orders that all hands would exit the bunker the following morning to "accept the protection of the US Army." Captain Noguchi assured the men that he would take responsibility and asked that his men place their lives in his hands.142
Ishii said that he felt conflicted; he didn't want to bear the shame of surrender, yet desperately wanted to see his wife and two little girls. On the morning of April 16th, Captain Noguchi and the other officers pushed and coerced the others towards the one remaining entrance that hadn't been sealed shut. Ishii stated that several men refused to surrender and stayed inside the bunker. Army medic PFC Shūji Ishii joined seventy-five other Japanese who exited the bunker en masse to become the largest single group of Japanese to surrender on Iwo Jima. Ishii stated that even as the Japanese were surrendering, several US soldiers smiled and offered cigarettes and chocolate bars. He thought, "We were lied to about Americans being evil, cruel beasts."
The Americans proudly posed for photographs holding a large Japanese national flag and a hospital flag bearing a red cross.
The hospital POWs were trucked to a holding compound near the beach on the western side of the island and questioned by a Nisei interpreter. After a thorough medical examination by a US Army doctor, the holdouts were provided the opportunity to bathe with seawater. They were issued American uniforms with the letters "PW" painted on them, and then sprayed with DDT.
The POW compound that Ishii was in was home to roughly 300 Japanese who were awaiting transport to Guam. During the ensuing roll call, Ishii vomited and passed out. A US Army doctor re-examined him and sent him in a marked ambulance to a smaller compound for sick and injured POWs. There were about sixty other patients at the POW field hospital, which was comprised of tents surrounded by barbed wire.
Ishii said that he was given a bar of Lux soap and allowed to take a shower with fresh water, the first time he had washed with fresh water in over a year. He was then given a comfortable set of flannel pajamas. At 5:30 p.m., an orderly brought him a stainless steel tray. He looked at the tray in wonderment. "They gave me two slices of bread, a serving of corned beef, mashed potatoes, spinach, slices of pineapples and a cup of coffee. I could not believe my eyes, such a banquet of food! I had forgotten the taste of pineapple and coffee and felt like I was tasting them for the first time," wrote Ishii.143
The Naval Construction Battalion Bunker
In mid-April, Ōmagari decided to leave the undisciplined Army bunker and make for the 204th Naval Construction Battalion (Setsuei tai) bunkers. He reasoned that the naval engineers would welcome him and his men. Ōmagari had previously seen their exceptionally well-crafted shelters and was impressed with the quality of workmanship. Ōmagari and ten others traveled through the night to one of the Naval Construction Battalion bunkers but were disappointed when the engineers refused their request for asylum. Ōmagari and his men returned to the Army bunker. Several day later, Ōmagari came back to the Japanese Construction Battalion bunker to ask again for permission to enter, only to discover it was partially flooded, and most of the occupants were dead. Ōmagari thought, if the engineers would have let us in we'd be dead, too. This was one of countless "what if" scenarios he experienced on Iwo Jima.
Over the next week, the Americans began to surround the air raid shelter where Ōmagari was hiding. During the day there were calls to surrender made by Japanese POWs, while during the night, American machine gun positions sprouted up. The Americans threatened to dynamite the shelter if the Japanese didn't surrender.
Corporal Edward Mervich was trained as an artilleryman with the US Army 147th Regimental Combat Team. He came ashore on March 20, 1945, but due to the nature of the terrain in the assigned area, the 147th Regiment couldn't use their cannons. As a result, he was made a rifleman.144 Corporal Edward Mervich said that he was involved in daytime patrols and dangerous night ambushes. "The Japanese stayed hidden during the day and came out at night to forage for food," Mervich said. The US soldiers were often on edge and exhausted from the combination of day patrols and night ambushes.
Mervich said that his men would set up trip wires and place empty cans filled with pebbles on the wires that would rattle if disturbed. They also rigged trip flares that would shoot off if a trip wire were tugged. Mervich said that one night while on an ambush patrol, the trip flare went off and a few nervous men began shooting at shadows. Mervich chuckled saying that he saw a cat scampering away, "Why a cat was out there, I'll never know."
The men from the US Army's 147th Regimental Combat Team worked hard to walk a fine line between providing security and convincing the stragglers to give up. "Whenever we found them in the caves, we tried to get them to surrender. Our superiors told us that the enemy was more valuable alive because they could write letters home to their families and tell them how good we were treating them. The plan was to convince the Japanese not to resist our invasion of their homeland," said 90-year-old Edward Mervich.
Mervich explained the use of POWs in convincing the stragglers to surrender, "We got the POWs to write notes to their friends that were hiding out. They told their friends that we'd give them water, food and medical care."
Ōmagari saw similar notes from captured Japanese and didn't believe the so-called "propaganda." Ōmagari decided that they needed to escape from their current spot and make another attempt at the Naval Construction Battalion bunker. Even if it was half-flooded and full of dead men, it was better than staying where they were. Ōmagari and a few others crawled out through a gap in the perimeter after midnight.
Once Ōmagari reached the Navy Construction Battalion bunker, he noted the seawater had receded to reveal only a few wounded men who offered no protest. Within a day or two, some Army stragglers arrived, and soon, there were fifty people inside. Ōmagari thinks the food-scroungers weren't careful in hiding their tracks, or were greedy in their pilfering, because the Americans returned threatening to flood the bunker.
The following day, the Americans gave the stragglers another chance to surrender. When none came out, men from the 147th Infantry Regiment's Pioneer Unit ran a hose down into the entrance and began pumping seawater into the bunker. Ōmagari said that the men bumped into each other in the darkness as they tried to get away from the frigid rising tide. Within less than an hour, the waist-high water drowned several who were unable to get to a high spot due to their injuries. The salt water carried lifeless bodies down the corridors. The Americans then poured in oil mixed with diesel fuel, which they then ignited with explosive charges. Ōmagari and a few moved to upward-sloping side tunnels and were spared the flames that raced along the surface of the water. The black fumes that rose from the ventilation ports proved that the bunker was larger than the Americans had thought. Those who crawled out of the bunker's various exits were mowed down.
After the flames died out, the Americans didn't attempt to enter the bunker. However, fearing the Americans might flood the cave again, Ōmagari snuck out late that night using a connecting tunnel with several men in tow, including Ensign Kōhei Kikuta.145
The Nanpō Bunker
Ōmagari, Kikuta and the handful of enlisted men found a new hiding place. They squeezed into a small air raid shelter where they spent the next few days. One night, while scrounging for food, Ōmagari ran into three sailors who had been ejected from the Nanpō bunker. Each man was armed with only a hand grenade. They were told to kill an American and take his weapon. Ōmagari was surprised that an officer could send men out on kirikomi attacks at this stage in the battle. The trio said there were about 100 personnel inside the Nanpō bunker, with water and limited rations. Ōmagari asked the men to take him to the hidden bunker entrance, but they claimed they would be shot on sight. All they would do was point to the general area before they departed. Ōmagari returned to the small shelter and had a discussion with Kikuta. They were determined to get into the Nanpō bunker; after all, it was Ōmagari's original combat station.
Deep inside the Nanpō HQ bunker was the wounded radioman Tsuruji Akikusa. LtCdr Tachikawa would not permit anyone to leave the bunker, even to forage for food. LtCdr Tachikawa's solution to the dwindling water and food supply was to send small numbers of enlisted men to their deaths in kirikomi attacks. Men were regularly ejected from the bunker armed with nothing but a grenade and told to kill as many enemy troops as they could. They were ordered not to return to the bunker, or face charges of "cowardice in the face of the enemy" and receive a summary execution. This was a legal way for LtCdr Sosonosuke Tachikawa to conserve food and water by reducing the number of mouths to feed. Tachikawa could claim he was following orders by holding out to the last man, even if it that last man turned out to be himself.