King - A Tomb Called Iwo Jima: Firsthand Accounts from Japanese Survivors

Copyright 2014 by Dan King.

First Published July 21, 2014 by Pacific Press
Revised November 11, 2014

All rights reserved. With the exception of quoting brief passages for the purposes of review, no part of this publication may be reproduced without prior written authorization of the author. The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge.

To contact the author, or order signed or personalized copies visit
www.historicalconsulting.com

Or write to: Dan King
P.O. Box 14872
Irvine, Ca. 92623

ISBN-13: 978-1500343385
ISBN-10: 1500343382

Edited by Linda Ryan
Cover Design by Alexander Mukai Jr.
Illustrations and Photo layout by Rusty Shackleford
Promotional Video by Jocelyne Leger, narrated by Roger Wyatt
Japanese calligraphy by Satoru Ogawa
Back cover photos by author and Adam Surrey

Poem on back cover by Sabur Kojima. He penned it in 1944, a year prior to his kamikaze mission to Iwo Jima. It reads, "If I become a shield for the Emperor, I will have no regrets even should I become a rotting corpse lying in a field or floating on the sea."

Proudly printed in the United States of America
CreateSpace
North Charleston, SC

To Bradd Smith,
a man who shares my passion for Pacific War history.

To my parents Marvin and Virginia King.
Dad became a POW during the Korean War when his B-29 bomber (307th BG) was shot down by Russian MIG-15 jet fighters on April 12, 1951.
Mom gave me her sense of humor, curious nature, and interest in other cultures. I miss them both.

To my wonderful daughter Cindy Tilley,
whose high-voltage smile can light up the darkest night.
Always remember, "ai rabyutte."

I never met a man I didn't like.
Will Rogers

Special thanks to:

Nobuhiro Nakamura A Japanese naval historian who has been generous with his time, energy and support.

MGySgt John "Oni Gunso" Edwards (USMC-ret) - For valuable advice, editing support and technical review.

I acknowledge the following for their assistance with information and photographs:

James Atwater
Steve Baer
David Coleman
James Crawford (Col.,US Army)
Ray Elliot
Scott Freund (SFR Productions)
Bonnie Haynes
Bruce Hirt
Sachio Kageyama
Diane Kuebler
Christopher Marks
Harue Masuda
Takashi Matsuda
Jim McGee
Tom McLeod
James C. McNaughton, PhD
Doug "Ridge Runner" Meny
Gary Meyers
Yoko Nagasaka-Myers
Ron "00 Witch" Nichols
Dale Quillen
Sheila Quinlan
Junko Sakashita
Yukie Sasa
Katsuhiko Shirakata
Shoko Seina Shiraishi
LtGen Lawrence Snowden
Tom Stanton
Mark Steinhauer
Mark Stevens
Kji Takaki
Hiroshi Ujita
The late Jir Yoshida
Bill Zieman

Legend Flyers:
Bob Hammer, Mike Anderson, Ben Johnson, Nick Cirelli, Paul Ferrara, Jon Anderson, and Chris Stuart.

Military Historical Tours:
Col. Warren Wiedhahn (USMC-ret), LtCol. John Powell (US Army-ret), and Anne Swenson. (www.miltours.com)

The following people's contributions are greatly appreciated:

Martin T. Bennett, Spencer Chen, Phil Corless, Bob Dupre, John Eckhardt, John Edwards, Tony Evans, Cindy Good, Vicki Hawkins, Jareth Holub, Wilson Horde, William Jayne, Dustin King, Michael Kinkaid (in memory of father Charles Kinkaid), Cindy King, Dr. Crystal Koerbles, Diane Kuebler, Doug Lister, Matt Marsala, Josh Martinez, Josh Melnychuk, Doug Meny, Masashi Nagadoi, Patrick "Padi" New, Ron Nichols (in memory of Major General E. M. Nichols Jr.), David Ojerholm, Vickie Prosser, Stirling Rasmussen, Ginger Crick Reeves, Jim Richard, Terry Ricks, Sydney Rodriguez, Mark Stevens, Bradd Smith, Michael Sweeney, Steve Tilley, Randy Van Dyken, Pete Winer.

Japanese and American combatants in alphabetical order:

Tsuruji Akikusa - Navy radioman, Nanp Shot Naval Air Group

Yoshinobu Hakuta - Captain, commander Independent 314th Infantry Battalion

Genichi Hattori - 1st Lt, Executive Officer, Independent 10th Anti-Tank Battalion

Genji Hattori - Army Captain, Genichi Hattori's younger brother

Rinosuke Ichimaru - Rear Admiral, commander of 27th Naval Air Flotilla

Shji Ishii - Corporal, Army medic, 2nd Mixed Brigade Field Hospital

Shoji Kageyama - Seaman 1/C, Navy radioman, Akikusa's friend

Shichi Kawai - Sergeant, Army Radioman, Independent Mixed 17th Infantry Regiment Communications Unit

Sabur Kojima - Chief Petty Officer, Navy Kamikaze, 601st Naval Air Group

Yasuo Kumakura - Seaman 1/C, Navy radioman, Akikusa's friend

Tadamichi Kuribayashi - General, commander of 109th Division

John McKenzie - Boatswain's Mate 3/c, USS Darke, USN

Edward Mervich - Corporal, US Army 147th Regimental Combat Team

Haruji Mita - Seaman 1/c, aircraft maintenance, 301st Naval Air Group

Tadashi Mita - Akikusa's childhood friend

Isamu Miyazaki - Warrant Officer, Zero pilot with the 252nd Naval Air Group

Yasuhiko Murai - 1st Lieutenant, Independent 314th Infantry Battalion

Masayoshi Nemoto - Ensign, navigator, plane captain of a Betty bomber, K704th Squadron

Shinjir Nishi - Corporal, Army maintenance, 23rd Sentai Army Air Group

Takeichi Nishi - LtCol, 26th Tank Regimental commander, Olympic medalist "Baron Nishi"

Satoru magari - Lieutenant (jg), Navy aircraft maintenance, Nanp Shot Naval Air Group

Ivan Prall - Sgt, US Army combat correspondent, Seventh Air Force

Sabur Sakai - Chief Petty Officer, Zero pilot, Yokosuka Naval Air Group

Sadasue Senda - MajGen, commander of the Army's 2nd Mixed Brigade

James Short - Lieutenant, platoon commander, 5th Tank Battalion, USMC

Lawrence Snowden - Captain, company commander, F/2/23 USMC

Kinpei Teraoka - Vice Admiral, commander of the Third Air Fleet

Minoru Tada - Ensign, Navy anti-aircraft battery commander in Keibitai unit

Kazuo Tsunoda - Chief Petty Officer, Zero pilot, 252nd Naval Air Group

Hershel "Woody" Williams - Corporal, USMC, Flamethrower operator, 1st Battalion, 21st Regiment, Third Marine Division, Medal of Honor recipient

Iwao Yamada - PO1/C, Navy radioman aboard a Betty bomber, K704th Squadron

Jerry Yellin - Captain, US Army P-51 pilot, 78th Fighter Squadron, 21st Fighter Group

Haruo Yoshino - Ensign, plane captain of Type-97 torpedo bomber, submarine patrols

While much has been written on the battle of Iwo Jima from the American perspective, there has been very little published in English to share what the Japanese veterans experienced. I believe this is largely due to three factors: the complex nature of the Japanese written language; the high cost of traveling to Japan to interview WWII veterans; and the general reluctance of former POWs to speak about their experiences.

The battle of Iwo Jima continues to inspire generations of Americans, and has sent hundreds of thousands of young men and women to Marine Corps enlistment centers. While the battle of Iwo Jima was primarily a Marine Corps battle, the US Navy, US Army, Coast Guard, and Seabees all contributed to the effort and deserve recognition.