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Post by okla on May 5, 2011 21:09:59 GMT 8
Hey John....Isokoru Yamamoto, the wily fox that he was, might have considered, if repulsed, "dumping" his remnants on, maybe, the "big island" and awaited reinforcements. He actually might have had this in mind anyhow. Landing, unopposed on Hawaii, building up his forces and then securing the other islands (including Oahu) at his leisure. Here, again, the strength of available USN forces would play a huge role and he was fighting the clock. The whole Japanese time table, as you are well aware, was based on knocking out all Allied opposition and digging in before the huge American industrial machine kicked in and retribuution was at hand. Didn't he say something, to the effect, that "he could run wild for a year/18 months and then Japan wold be in deep "doo doo" if the US hadn't sued for peace by then". Taking Oahu, initially, with three divisions, just seems out of the question, even with a much reduced US Naval presence. Looking back, with that good 'ole 20- 20 Hindsight that Harry Truman so fondly referred to, our position in Mid Pacific in the summer of 1942 was certainly tenuous. Scary times indeed, methinks.
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Post by Deleted on May 5, 2011 22:50:04 GMT 8
Hey John....Isokoru Yamamoto, the wily fox that he was, might have considered, if repulsed, "dumping" his remnants on, maybe, the "big island" and awaited reinforcements. He actually might have had this in mind anyhow. Landing, unopposed on Hawaii, building up his forces and then securing the other islands (including Oahu) at his leisure. Here, again, the strength of available USN forces would play a huge role and he was fighting the clock. The whole Japanese time table, as you are well aware, was based on knocking out all Allied opposition and digging in before the huge American industrial machine kicked in and retribuution was at hand. Didn't he say something, to the effect, that "he could run wild for a year/18 months and then Japan wold be in deep "doo doo" if the US hadn't sued for peace by then". Taking Oahu, initially, with three divisions, just seems out of the question, even with a much reduced US Naval presence. Looking back, with that good 'ole 20- 20 Hindsight that Harry Truman so fondly referred to, our position in Mid Pacific in the summer of 1942 was certainly tenuous. Scary times indeed, methinks. If I remember correctly, when the 25th Infantry Divisions was formed on Oahu from the old "square" 24th Infantry Division, its all-Japanese Niesei National Guard contengent was broken away and left an orphan. This Nisei unit was sent to garrison the big island of Hawaii and later formed the backbone of the famous 442nd "Go for Broke" Regimental Combat Team that fought so well in Italy.l
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Post by okla on May 5, 2011 23:28:38 GMT 8
Hey John....Well, as per usual, I learn something new every day on this forum. If that was the outfit that was sent to garrison the "big island" then it was in good hands. They could probably whip the whole Imperial Japanese Army. lol. Seriously, they were one of the best units in the ETO.
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Post by Deleted on May 6, 2011 10:53:09 GMT 8
Hey John....Well, as per usual, I learn something new every day on this forum. If that was the outfit that was sent to garrison the "big island" then it was in good hands. They could probably whip the whole Imperial Japanese Army. lol. Seriously, they were one of the best units in the ETO. And well I know it, Okla! The 442nd suffered well over a 100% casualty rate during its existance and virtually none of its members came through the war without at least one Purple Heart to their name.
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Post by okla on May 7, 2011 1:53:15 GMT 8
Hey John....Hawaii US Senator Daniel Inouye is still living proof of what you say as to Purple Hearts garnered by the 442nd. He and Former Senator Bob Dole, it is said, used to "joke", if one can joke of such things, about only having two good arms between them, Dole losing most of the use of one of his and the Hawaii Senator having an arm amputated. Tough Dudes, these Senators.
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Post by Deleted on May 7, 2011 11:52:46 GMT 8
Hey John....Hawaii US Senator Daniel Inouye is still living proof of what you say as to Purple Hearts garnered by the 442nd. He and Former Senator Bob Dole, it is said, used to "joke", if one can joke of such things, about only having two good arms between them, Dole losing most of the use of one of his and the Hawaii Senator having an arm amputated. Tough Dudes, these Senators. Agreed. Two more members of the all too quickly shrinking "Greatest Generation."
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Post by The Phantom on May 26, 2011 6:20:51 GMT 8
A quote from the aforementioned book by a Japanese Lieutenant on Guadalcanal in December 1942.
In his diary he recorded an unfailing formula for which he calculated the life expectancy of his fellows at the turn if the year.
Those who can stand--30 days Those who can sit up--3 weeks Those who cannot sit up--1 week Those who urinate lying down--3 days Those who stopped speaking--2 days Those who have stopped blinking--tomorrow
It is said by another officer, " If you loose your appetite it is the end."
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Post by Karl Welteke on Jul 17, 2016 16:36:43 GMT 8
KAENA POINT BATTERY ON OAHU, HAWAII Better late than never; in 2005 I looked at it and even put pictures in an album. But only this week did I write descriptions. Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu, had some coastal artillery. According to this URL (http://corregidor.proboards.com/thread/959/midway-hawaii) in WWII these guns were installed there: Kaena Point M.R. / KK #409/ 2-8"/ BCLRN/ 1942 NC/ tunneled into rock. Kaena / 2-4" NP / 1942 / later converted to 155 mm site After the war they were removed. After my retirement I made this exploration walk to Kaena in 2005-06-14. Hawaii is my 2nd home, if I could not live in the Philippines (1st Home) I would move there. I was home ported there but only explored after I retired from the Navy. These 62 pictures were shot on the 14th of June 2005 and not as it is indicated on the images. The menu on my Kodak camera was not functioning anymore. From 2004 to 2007 I was often in Hawaii with my family and I got out into the bushes sometime. This is the URL for this album: s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Hawaii/Hawaii%20Fortifications/Kaena%20Point%20Artillery%20Battery%202005-06-15?sort=9&page=1Here are 13 sample pictures but they are much smaller: W946 Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu, in WWII had some coastal artillery. This is a Google Earth image of Kaena Pt. I marked in points of interest of things I saw in 2005-06-14. W947 Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu, in WWII had some coastal artillery. This is a Google Earth image of Kaena Pt. I marked in points of interest of things I saw in 2005-06-14. W948, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are looking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. I think I see two places were the guns were most likely installed. W949, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. This is the road and area of the suspected WWII 8 inch gun positions. W950, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. A little above the suspected 8 inch gun positions is a concrete deck for a structure, berthing? W951, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. At some distance above the suspected 8 inch gun positions is this concrete structure, it looks like a bath tub gun control stations. W952, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. At some distance up the Kaena Pt. Ridge we saw across this concrete bunker and antenna foundations, for radio? W953, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. At some distance up the Kaena Pt. Ridge we saw across this concrete bunker and antenna foundations, for radio? W954, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. Further up the Kaena Pt. Ridge we saw, entered the actual gun control station. W955, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. Further up the Kaena Pt. Ridge we saw, entered the actual gun control station. W956, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands and we are walking up the Kaena Pt. ridge line. Further up the Kaena Pt. Ridge we saw, entered the actual gun control station. Yours truly, 63 years young and lighter then now. W957, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands. The next 5 images belong to the Kaena Battery but I do not remember the location in relation to the other structures but they are also high on the ridge. W958, 2005-06-14, at Kaena Point, NW corner of Oahu in the Hawaiian Islands. The next 5 pictures are about a structure complex, a little higher than the road level and a little to the north side of the point, but I am sure also belong to the Kaena Battery.
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Post by Karl Welteke on Feb 16, 2020 0:58:07 GMT 8
Fort Barrette, three interesting URLs. I have temporary moved to Hawaii for family reasons but my interest in history remains. There is a lot of history in Hawaii, after all the Pacific War started here. Not far from my new residence is the former Fort Barrette. I actually visited it in 2005 and took a lot of pictures and I want to visit it again. But this time I looked at the internet first and found three interesting URLs. Ze524. In this picture the 16-inch Mk II gun on a railway bogie was being installed in the battery. It was able to shoot two ton explosive shells 28 miles out to the sea. The scale of the gun was larger than main guns on U.S. battle ships. The casemate was installed later during the war. Note from Karl: That is not accurate. This picture came from this URL, it has a lot of pictures as the fort looks now much later after the war and after it was abandoned. The City and County of Honolulu owns it and it lets and archery group use it. This is the URL: sakurasakujapan.web.fc2.com/maineng/battlefield/hawaiioahu/area11.html#site2Ze525. This seems to be a machinery room; I think only these two people have seen it. On my 2005 visit I did not enter this room nor did I know that it exists. Ze626. It seems these two visitors entered that machinery room this way. Their web page also has many pictures as the former Fort Barrette looks now. The above two pictures came from this web page: www.hawaiifunshine.com/2016/11/18/from-artillery-to-archery/Ze527. Fort Barrette was one of many such gun emplacements around O'ahu, and by the end of World War II, the island was one of the most heavily defended places in the world. On Dec. 7, 1941, the Japanese strafed the then-uncovered gun emplacement, and Cpl. Joseph A. Medlen was killed. According to William H. Dorrance in "O'ahu's Hidden History," the Army in 1942 began to "casemate" or provide overhead protection for the guns with eight to 12 feet of concrete. The above picture and text came from this URL, click here or copy and paste the URL: The above picture and text came from this URL: Note from Karl: This URL seems more accurate than the two previous URLs. Kapolei fort defended coast, Honolulu Advertiser the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2009/Apr/22/ln/hawaii904220401.html
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Post by Karl Welteke on Feb 16, 2020 6:23:36 GMT 8
Ft. Barrette Fire Control Station on Pu’upalailai Hill 2020-01-26 I had visited the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station before in 2005 and have pictures from that visit also. Nothing has changed, but for this posting I will use these 2020-01-26 pictures. The surrounding area, getting to it, is more restricted now do to the increased development of Kapolei Town. The fire control station and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. ------------------------------------------------- I established albums with 46 images into 2 different accounts, take your pick: Uploaded to Karl’s web page: philippine-sailor.net/2020/02/15/ft-barrette-fire-control-station-on-puupalailai-hill-2020-01-26/Uploaded to Photobucket: s74.photobucket.com/user/PI-Sailor/library/Hawaii/Hawaii%20Fortifications/Fire%20Control%20Fort%20Barrette%202020-01-26If you are going to watch this on Photobucket, they are drowning you with advertisements. Try to click slide view right away, then click slow and full screen. ------------------------------------------------------- 13 sample images are presented here: Zo141. The Pu’upalailai Hill view, with the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station, from the Kapolei Town on Oahu in Hawaii. Zo142. One of two maps that show the location of the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station in Kapolei Town on Oahu in Hawaii. Zo143. One of two maps that show the location of the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station in Kapolei Town on Oahu in Hawaii. Zo144. One of 9 images of my track, path to the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. It seems the crater was used as a landfill at one time and pipes are laid to harvest bio gas or it was done in the past. A fence separates the crater from the area and cattle is roaming. Zo145. One of 9 images of my track, path to the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. It seems the crater was used as a landfill at one time and pipes are laid to harvest bio gas or it was done in the past. A fence separates the crater from the area and cattle is roaming. Zo152. One of 4 images from the east side of the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. Here is a small concrete structure and some debris is laying around. The fire control station and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Zo154. One of 4 images from the east side of the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. Here is a small concrete structure and some debris is laying around. The fire control station and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Zo160. One of 8 images of the lowest of four (4) levels at the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. The fire control station with 4 levels and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Zo162. One of 8 images of the lowest of four (4) levels at the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. The fire control station with 4 levels and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Zo166. One of 5 images of the second of four (4) levels at the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. The fire control station with 4 levels and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Zo181. One of 2 images with views from the top level at the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. The fire control station with 4 levels and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Some of the views are Barbers Point, the ex-Naval Air Station Barbers Point, the Kalaeloa Airport, Campbell Industrial Park, Hanokai Hale, Barbers Point Harbor and the Coast Guard Reservation, Kapolei, ex-Ft. Barrette, Iroquoise Point Zo182. One of 2 images with views from the top level at the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. The fire control station with 4 levels and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. Some of the views are Barbers Point, the ex-Naval Air Station Barbers Point, the Kalaeloa Airport, Campbell Industrial Park, Hanokai Hale, Barbers Point Harbor and the Coast Guard Reservation, Kapolei, ex-Ft. Barrette, Iroquoise Point. Zo186. One of 4 images from the north-east side of the Fort Barrette Fire Control Station on the west rim of the Pu’upalailai Hill, -Crater. There is a heavy steel box with views how it is situated to the control station. The fire control station and Fort Barrette are located in what is now the Kapolei Town on Oahu, Hawaii. --------------------------------------------------------- I have another page of Fort Barrette already, click here or paste this URL. philippine-sailor.net/2019/09/17/fort-barrette-in-kapolei-oahu-hawaii/
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