Submitted by Eric K Chandler.
This is a story I wrote yesterday after I read a TNT article entitled, “The Battle of Iwo Jima, A History”. I decided to put together something about where my Father was on 23 FEB 1945, because I can remember very well what he told us about his experience on this special day….But first, allow me to set the stage:
My Dad, Charles William Chandler, worked as a Navy Surgical Technician (HA1c, Hospital Apprentice, 1st-Class), assigned to “C” Company, 5th Medical Battalion Hospital, of the 5th Marine Division. This division, and my Dad, participated in the battle for Iwo Jima, which started on 19 FEB 1945 (D-day). The 5th Marine Division’s first objective was to take Mt Suribachi.
At that time Dad was slightly off-shore on the 5th Medical Battalion’s Hospital Ship, LST 807 (Landing Ship, Tank), whose doctors were operating on wounded men received from the battle zone via landing craft. These small boats had to pick up the wounded from the beach; drive the boat to the Hospital ship; transfer the wounded; and then return to the beach to pick up more wounded. They performed these duties as the battle on the beach raged around them for nearly four days, almost without rest or relief.
On 22 FEB (D+3), because the 5th Division’s casualties were getting too numerous for the small boats to handle effectively, LST 807 (my Dad’s unit) was ordered to the beach to provide immediate medical-aid to the Division’s mounting wounded Marines. During the first night there, the 5th Medical Battalion’s Hospital took in 200 casualties, of which only 2 died.
On 23 FEB (D+4), (80 years ago today) the United States flag was raised by 5th Division Marines on Mt Suribachi, which is located at the South end of Iwo Jima.
During this auspicious event, my Dad was on the beached Hospital LST’s-deck where he heard ship whistles as well as a loud, hearty cheers coming from all around him. He was standing next to an officer who was looking through his binoculars at the sight while explaining what was going on. My Dad, in an excited state, grabbed the binoculars from the officer so he could see the flag, almost yanking the officer off of the ship.
And the rest of the story is…..
On D+6, 25 FEB, Company C, 5th Medical Battalion was ordered from its LST, currently working from the beach, to set up the 5th Division’s hospital at the southern-most tip of Japanese Airfield Number 1, about 1.5-miles Northeast of Mt Suribachi. By this time the active battle line was located roughly 1-mile North of the hospital.
By 5 MAR (D+14), “the 5th Division hospital was handling nearly 300 casualties daily, and a staff of 16 doctors and 150 Corpsmen [including Pop] from the 5th Medical Battalion worked around the clock. Wounded men, some of them quiet under morphine, filled the dug-in hospital tents and awaited their turn in the busy operating rooms. Many Marines were unable to tell where their wounds were or what had hit them. Outside the hospital, the procession of jeep ambulances from the front was never-ending. Men wounded in the north saw the southern part of Iwo for the first time in many days, and those who could get there went to see the airfields which they remembered as pitted open spaces raked by enemy fire. Air evacuation of the seriously wounded to Guam began, and before the campaign ended, 2,358 wounded had been flown out in the big planes.“ (i.e., taken from the website listed below)
The battle for Iwo Jima ended on 26 MAR 1845 (D+34), one day after my Dad’s 20th birthday.
For a complete history of the 5th Marine Division’s fight for Iwo Jima, click on this link:
http://www.5thmarinedivision.com/the-battle-of-iwo-jima.html
A salute to your father, sir!
Thank you for this inspiring story Eric. What bravery and courage those men showed.
Excellent read, Eric! We have something in common now—my dad was there as well—on the USS Sanborn. Interesting stories of valor for sure—but we could rarely get him to talk about it. Thanks for sharing.
Thanx for your reply Jason (by the way, my youngest son is Jason).
Welllll, how ‘but them apples !?! Most interesting that your Dad was there as well.
Pop finally “let loose” on his Iwo and Occupation-of-Japan experiences when he was in his 70’s. In fact he even was part of a Living History project where he was interviewed and filmed….I have a copy of it someplace in my office. Oh yeah, part of his interview was included in the DVD entitled Iwo Jima…36 Days in Hell.
In 1994, almost on the 50th anniversary of the battle, I had the honor to attend, with my Dad, the annual gathering of the 5th Marine Division Association, consisting mostly of Iwo Jima Veterans, which happened to be in Seattle.
One of the topics discussed was, of course, the 50th Anniversary of the battle in the next year. One of the Association Officers said they were having some difficulty getting the then current Japanese government to allow US Iwo Jima veterans to visit the island.
The room went silent, until an old Marine Warrant Officer roared oit, “What the Hell !! By God…..we took that island from them almost 50 years ago, and we can take it again !!!”
Lots of laughter and applause ensued, me included.
Well, guess what….several of those old Marines were able to visit the island again in 1995. My Dad went to Camp Pendleton instead and absolutely enjoyed the celebration, which included him meeting and talking with then-current, active-duty Navy Doctors about his experiences 50 years in the past.
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Thank you for sharing your Father’s story. It’s a perspective we should never forget, or repeat in any manner.
Thank you, Eric, for sharing your Dad’s story. The reason we are all here today is because of what all of those brave young men did for us all of those years ago. God bless!
Thanks for sharing this great story
The assault on Iwo Jima in February 1945 was one of the bloodiest battles of World War II, but its necessity remains debated. The island was taken at a tremendous cost—nearly 7,000 American lives and over 20,000 Japanese defenders killed—yet its strategic value was questionable.
Why the Assault Was Unnecessary:
1. Limited Strategic Importance – The primary justification for invading Iwo Jima was to provide an emergency landing site for B-29 bombers and a fighter escort base. However, most B-29s could already reach their targets from bases in the Mariana Islands, and relatively few bombers ended up using Iwo Jima as a landing site.
2. Japanese Defenses Were Isolated – The island’s garrison posed no direct offensive threat to U.S. forces. The Japanese were dug in but had no ability to significantly disrupt U.S. air or naval operations. A strategy of bypassing and neutralizing the island, rather than invading, could have achieved the same effect.
3. High Casualties for Minimal Gain – The battle resulted in staggering American losses for an island that did not dramatically alter the course of the Pacific War. The cost in human lives outweighed its limited operational benefits.
Better Alternative Course of Action:
1. Blockade and Bombardment – Instead of a costly ground assault, the U.S. could have used naval and aerial bombardment to neutralize Iwo Jima’s defenses, cutting off supplies and rendering the Japanese forces ineffective over time.
2. Bypass and Isolate – As done with Rabaul and other Japanese strongholds, Iwo Jima could have been left to “wither on the vine.” With U.S. air and naval superiority, the island could have been contained without direct invasion.
3. Focus on Okinawa and Mainland Japan – The resources and manpower used at Iwo Jima could have been better spent preparing for the much more strategically valuable Okinawa campaign, which was essential for the planned invasion of Japan.
In hindsight, while the bravery of U.S. Marines at Iwo Jima was undeniable, the necessity of the battle remains questionable. A blockade and bypass strategy could have achieved the same goals with far fewer casualties.
First of all, Somalia Veteran Alderete, thank you for your service and…welcome home my friend…I’m glad you made it back, when far too many others did not.
I am a veteran as well…I retired from the US Army as a Chief Warrant Officer in 1987. Early on in my career, I spent 11 months in Vietnam, initially as a Computer Repairman in Camrannh Bay and Long Binh. In my last 6 months I was a Combat Artist for the 1st Signal Brigade traveling all over Vietnam, including 3 days at the 101st Airborne’s Fire Base Bastogne.
I do appreciate your reply and information you provided to me and other readers about Iwo Jima. Much of what you said is understandable, but I believe this is so only because you missed some key reasons WHY Iwo was so important to the US and its allies.
Most of what follows is take from the National WWII History Museum’s website….
“Lying within the Japanese inner defensive zone, Iwo Jima sits at almost equal distance between Tokyo and the American bombers based in the Marianas (around 2,000 miles round-trip). Code-named Operation Detachment, the landing aimed to achieve several objectives:
1. remove the enemy garrison providing early warning of inbound B-29 strikes;
2. eliminate Japanese nuisance air raids over the Marianas;
3. establish an emergency airfield for aircrews;
4. protect the American right flank for the invasion of Okinawa;
5. and provide a location for fighter aircraft escorting bombing missions over the home islands.”
As you can see this small island held significant strategic importance for several reasons. Let us look at each Objective in detail to see IF, as you suggested, Iwo Jima had been bypassed and NOT been taken by US Marines….
OBJECTIVE 1: Even with: continuous bombing by B-24 Liberator Heavy Bombers for 16 days; bomb, rocket, and napalm attacks by US Carrier Aircraft before-and-after the US Marine landings; as well as 3 days shelling by US battleships, Heavy & Light Cruisers, Destroyers, and Multi-Rocket-Launching smaller ships. Because the Japanese garrison of over 21,000 was ensconced in caves, 11 miles of underground tunnels and rooms in an 18-square-mile island; along with heavy, concrete bunkers, there were negligible Japanese casualties…..so, this OBJECTIVE COULD NOT HAVE BEEN MET IF IWO HAD BEEN BYPASSED. If it had been bypassed, the Japanese on Iwo would have continued to be an Early Warning Station for mainland Japan.
OBJECTIVE 2: This MIGHT HAVE BEEN MET THROUGH BYPASSING Iwo Jima, but….ONLY IF the US Air Force could provide near-continuous US attacks on the three airfields of Iwo: Motoyama #’s 1 and 2 which were active, whereas #3 was still under construction. But committing their B-24’s to months of prolonged bombing of a single target would have been most-unusual and counter-productive to meeting other requirements…..they were needed elsewhere.
OBJECTIVE 3: WOULD HAVE NOT HAVE BEEN MET THROUGH BYPASSING IWO. Two-thousand-four-hundred (i.e., 2,400) B-29 Super-fortress bombers used Iwo Jima as an emergency airfield. Japan is about 1000 miles from the Mariana Islands, one way. So, a single strike meant that any aircraft had to fly 2,000 miles, to get back to their base. Whereas, a B-29 in trouble had only 500 miles to fly to get to Iwo from Japan. In fact, all B-29s that landed on Iwo were for Emergency reasons. Each bomber had a crew of 11, so that means 26,400 crewmen made it back to American protection on Iwo Jima. That does not include the countless other aircrew lives that made it to Iwo. Without the three airbases on this island those 26,400, or more, would have likely died.
OBJECTIVE 4: WOULD HAVE NOT HAVE BEEN MET THROUGH BYPASSING IWO. If Iwo Jima had been bypassed and only 500 miles away, Japanese Kamikaze/Divine /Wind/Suicide aircraft could have been flown from Japan to the Motoyama airfields on Iwo. With 20,000-plus soldiers at his disposal, Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi could have had his men maintain these airfields, sufficient to allow Kamikaze bombers to have been used to inflict even-more devastating losses to the US Navy in ships and lives. If this had occurred, there would have been additional suicide aircraft attacking the US Fleet at Okinawa from its open, Right Flank, only 800 miles away, which is well-within the range of Japanese Army bombers. This could have prolonged or perhaps even aborted the US attack on Okinawa. It needs to be understood that this ALMOST occurred because of the US Navy losses off Okinawa from just ONE direction….JAPAN. As it was, the US Navy, alone, suffered 4,907 deaths and 4,824 wounded. The US also lost 36 ships that were sunk and 368 that were damaged.
OBJECTIVE 5: WOULD HAVE NOT HAVE BEEN MET THROUGH BYPASSING IWO. In June 1944, B-29s started to attack Japan from Chinese airbases, around 3,000 miles round-trip. These bombers had first come from India, and they received their bombs, fuel, and bullets from India over the “Hump”….the Himalaya mountains. Prior to attacking Japan, their mission was to hit Japanese military targets only within China. Mustangs arrived in China in early 1944, but were unable to provide support for the B-29s after they started making bombing runs over Japan because their operational range was restricted to about 1,400 miles, even with fuel-drop-tanks. Because the B-29 attacks from China were found ineffective due to re-supply issues, other B-29 units had started to bomb Japan from the Mariana Islands using a 2,000-mile round trip for each mission. Once again, this was too far for any fighter support. Whereas, with Iwo Jima in US hands, P-51 round-trips were reduced to 1,000-miles, well within their range using fuel drop tanks. They could then attack targets of any sort on the Japanese mainland, as well as provide cover for the B-29s.
As you can see, Iwo, even as the most costly battle in Marine History, was a necessity so as to shorten the time and distance for all of the allied-nation’s forces to succeed in defeating Japan.
And, on 4 MAR 1945, while Japanese troops still contested the island, a B-29 Super fortress (nicknamed “Dinah Might”) was the FIRST to use Iwo Jima for an emergency landing.
My Dad, who was at the 5th Marine Division Hospital, located at the South end of Airfield #1, saw this aircraft land and told me that one of the crewmen climbed up on the tail; sat down on its top; and, with a huge grin on his face, waved both arms in celebration.
Here’s the full story:
“The “Dinah Might” was running low on fuel. Part of the US Army Air Forces’ 313th Bomb Wing stationed at Tinian, the plane was returning from a raid over Japan and in the vicinity of the island of Iwo Jima. The pilot, First Lieutenant Fred Malo, had three options. He could ditch the plane and crew into the ocean, or have the crew bail out by the nearby island and make for the shoreline. His third option was landing at the recently captured Motoyama Airfield #1 near the base of Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima. The small eight-square-mile island housed the Japanese-built airfield, along with a second completed field in the island’s center and a third under construction. With US Marines still engaged in deadly combat with Japanese forces, Malo chose the third option and landed at Airfield #1. Hitting a field telephone pole while on final approach, the plane safely reached terra firma. As enemy troops fired at the shiny bomber hoping to score a hit, the crew quickly repaired a faulty fuel valve. After some 30 minutes, the Super-fortress lumbered back into the air and continued home. As Marines cheered the plane’s departure, what they did not know is that Dinah Might’s was the first of many such emergency landings.”
Now, take a look at the battle for Peleliu if you wish to find a true waste of life, on both sides.
Thank you for telling his story and for his Service.
Eric Chandler,
THANK YOU for sharing your dad’s experience. It was a questionable objective (take v. suppress, w/ Guam in hand), and portent of difficulty next stop, Okinawa. But Iwo Jima ranks among the epic battles of human history, and one epitomizing our war in the Pacific.