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» Forum Name: PT Boats - General
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» Topic:
70th Anniversary
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Today is the 70th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. I was at PT Base 17 Samar P.I. at the time. We were informed of the bombing by a news letter put out by the base but we had no idea of the magnitude of a atomic bomb and never thought too much about it. 5 days later Japan surrendered which was one happy day for us PT boys. We were preparing for the invasion of Japan. It was rumored that the PT Boats were to go into the harbor of the invaded island and strafe the shore line. PT Boats were to be used since our wooden hulls were less likely to be mined. Ha Ha The atomic bombing saved the lives of many many service men probably me included. Today's atomic bomb protestors of our bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki sure were not on the front looking to make the invasion like we were.
C. J. Willis
Posted By: CJ Willis | Posted on: Aug 9, 2015 - 11:07am
Total Posts: 464 | Joined: Nov 5, 2006 - 5:02pm
Thank you C.J. for sharing this story. So glad you boys didn't have to head to Japan, tough choice for the President but I think a good one.
Posted By: Frank Andruss | Posted on: Aug 9, 2015 - 12:10pm
Total Posts: 3964 | Joined: Feb 9, 2007 - 11:41am
In a documentary I recently saw, the US Military had estimates that had we been forced to invade Japan, the Japanese Government was pushing the idea that every man woman and child sacrifice their lives for the Emperor. Some conservative estimates placed the expected Japanese loss of life in efforts to repel an all out invasion would have been 3-4 MILLION dead, while other estimates placed that figure even higher. This is many times higher than the actual Japanese casualties from the two bombs at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. ( I think in the area of 105,000) So not only did the decision to use these bombs save at least a Million US lives, it also saved even more Japanese lives from being lost in a hopeless cause. It was a very sobering thought and a good comeback to those knee jerk protesters. (P.S. I edited the death toll from 50K to 105K after looking it up)
Jerry Gilmartin
PT658 Crewman
Portland OR
Posted By: Jerry Gilmartin | Posted on: Aug 9, 2015 - 2:49pm
Total Posts: 1473 | Joined: Oct 8, 2006 - 11:16pm
A fact lost upon those who feel the bombs were inhumane or barbaric fail to acknowledge more people died in the fire attacks on Dresden Germany and Tokyo Japan than in either of the atomic attacks.
Larry
62 Bel-Air
260 Eagle EXP
79 Cole TR-2
Posted By: bubbletop409 | Posted on: Aug 9, 2015 - 8:42pm
Total Posts: 164 | Joined: Apr 22, 2013 - 11:48pm
If it saved one American life, I have no problem with it.....
Will
Posted By: Will Day | Posted on: Aug 9, 2015 - 9:17pm
Total Posts: 1955 | Joined: Oct 8, 2006 - 4:19pm
I've said this before. My dad was in the 82nd Airborne getting ready to be sent out for the invasion of Japan. If dad had survived I can't imagine how he might have been changed. If we had not used the atomic bomb I may not be here today. That's my selfish view.
The bomb was a terrible thing to have to unleash on Japan and her citizens but there is not doubt it was better than the alternative, whatever that might have been. It brought men like my dad and CJ back home and ended a terrible military regime. I hope it never has to happen again. Thanks for sharing the memory CJ.
Dave
David Waples
Posted By: David Waples | Posted on: Aug 10, 2015 - 5:53am
Total Posts: 1679 | Joined: Jan 2, 2007 - 9:55pm
My Father-in-Law was on a transport back to the Philippines after advance training at Melville when he heard that the war was over. He shared that he felt very lucky to have completed his first tour in the Solomons and escaped relatively unscathed. He always said that the A-bomb saved his life.
It amazes me that recent revisionist theories hold that The Emperor was ready to surrender and if we'd only have waited. BULL I say. Even after Nagasaki there were members of the Japanese inner circle who wanted to continue the fight. Harry Truman made the correct call.
Rick Schaefer
Splinter PT 63
TM2c John E Mirus
Solomon Islands
Dec 43 - Jan 45
Posted By: rickas | Posted on: Aug 10, 2015 - 5:24pm
Total Posts: 82 | Joined: Dec 26, 2013 - 5:16pm
Rick;
That is so true, they didn't find all of those suicide boats for nothing.The SHINYO production numbers were:6,200 for the Japanese Navy and 3000 for the Japanese Army. Now combine this with Kamikaze's and Kaiten(suicide mini subs type l and type ll) , it was going to be a long fight.
When the Japanese High Command got wind that the Emperor was contemplating surrender, the tried to kidnap him, just to keep him quiet. It happened on the night of 14–15 August 1945, and it is known as the Kyujo Incident, and was an attempted Military coup.
After the original surrender broadcast by the Emperor on 15 August, a second coup was attempted, an upraising on 24 August was called the Matsue Incident by Members of the Japanese Empire Voluntary Army, totals vary but the largest is 48(of this group 8 were women, but another source says 16 were women).
Yeah they were not going to give up so easy
[image]http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p249/ptboats/Ted%20Walther/SHINYO-Suicide-boat.jpg[/image]
A Shinyo being tested by Lt Col James F. Doyle USA commanding officer 2nd Bn. 305th Infantry 77th Division
Take care,
TED
P.S. here is the rest of the list ONI and Army Intell found out:
THE KAITEN, a suicide human guided torpedo, was extremely effective against landing craft, freighters, and other American vessels. This Kamikaze weapon carried a 3,400 pound TNT warhead. Launched by a submarine, this 48 foot craft guided by one man was almost impossible to defend against.
KUGISHO MXY7-K1 OHKA, carried a 2646 pound high explosive warhead in the nose. It was actually a flying torpedo. 750 were actually constructed.
FUKURYU - Japanese swimmers became a human mine when explosives were strapped to them and they swam to the target ship to destroy themselves and the ship.
NIKAKU - The suicide soldier had explosives strapped to his body. He would then crawl under a tank or other vehicle and blow it up.
Other suicide methods were used, some not fully developed before the wars end. A Ki-67 Kai (PEGGY) twin engine bomber with all guns and interior removed had a 6,400 thermite bomb installed. Under development in 1945 only two are known to have been built with no reported success.
KAIRYU - A small midget submarine first used at Pearl Harbor. All five were destroyed. Some 300 were built which carried special warheads of crashing into ships same as the KAITEN.
KORYU - Five hundred 5 man submarines were under construction at the end of the war. 115 were already completed, thought to be used in the coming invasion by the U.S.
Also remember this does not include the Imperial Volunteer Army(civilians) who were also trained in "Homeland defense"
Posted By: TED WALTHER | Posted on: Aug 10, 2015 - 7:03pm
Total Posts: 3059 | Joined: Oct 16, 2006 - 7:42am
As referenced by bubbletop409, on March 9-10, 1945, 25% of Tokyo was destroyed by fire bombing leaving between 80,000-100,000 dead and a million homeless. Sadly, there's no moral highground in choosing to kill people with hundreds of 4 lb. incendiaries rather than an atomic bomb.
Both my father and my uncle returned from Europe in the summer of 1945 to undergo transition training from the B-24 to the new B-29. They both felt they owed their lives to Harry Truman's decision.
Ross Fisher
ross@dupagels.lib.il.us
Posted By: ROSS FISHER | Posted on: Aug 10, 2015 - 9:39pm
Total Posts: 82 | Joined: Jul 23, 2008 - 10:03am
CJ — What boat were you on at the time?
Posted By: PT127 | Posted on: Aug 15, 2015 - 2:59pm
Total Posts: 35 | Joined: Aug 21, 2011 - 1:32pm
I was never assigned to a boat at Base 17 in the Philippines. We Ron 19 guys that had been relieved off 242 in the Solomons after 15 months overseas and given 30 days leave and R and R for a couple of months in Boston were due to be assigned to boats at Base 17 just anytime when the war ended. I had various duties while at Base 17 - drove a dump truck filling in the swamp around the base for a while - Stevedore, unloading cargo off ships (worked nights) etc. They always found something for us to do.
C. J. Willis
Posted By: CJ Willis | Posted on: Aug 15, 2015 - 7:14pm
Total Posts: 464 | Joined: Nov 5, 2006 - 5:02pm
CJ
Wow! Driving a Dump Truck! That's no work an experienced PT Boat Torpedoman should be doing! Well you know what they say? A sailor with no work usually gets in trouble![:-laughing-:]
[image]http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p249/ptboats/Ted%20Walther/TM3%20C.J.%20WILLIS%20RON%2019%20PT%20242.jpg[/image]
TM 3/C C.J. Willis PT 242, RON 19 and 23
P.S. If there was no Atomic Bomb, you and Earl probably would have been scooped up by another RON heading towards Japan.
Posted By: TED WALTHER | Posted on: Aug 17, 2015 - 2:33pm
Total Posts: 3059 | Joined: Oct 16, 2006 - 7:42am
Yes Ted you are right we would have been placed on boats of other squadrons. Our Ron 19 was decommissioned May 15, 1944 when we were in Green Island. We (PT 242) were then placed in Ron 23. After we were relieved they went to the Philippines and our old boat 242 somehow wound up in Ron 16.
P.S. Ted at Base 17 there was',nt much there for us to get in any trouble. We got 2 beers a week which had to be drunk at the time of issue in a fenced in compound. We couldn't even take it back to our tent.C. J. Willis
Posted By: CJ Willis | Posted on: Aug 17, 2015 - 3:14pm
Total Posts: 464 | Joined: Nov 5, 2006 - 5:02pm