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00:00In late 1944, the Pacific War is building to a brutal climax.
00:06One island swallows an entire marine regiment.
00:10We were in a death trap on payload.
00:14Another becomes a beacon of bravery.
00:17Iwo Jima was 36 days of pure health.
00:21Japan fights with ferocity.
00:24America fights with fire, igniting the war's deadliest day.
00:30It was as though Tokyo had dropped through the floor of the world.
00:33With rare home movies and frontline stories, hear the voices and feel the fight.
00:41My heart pounded as we churned toward that inferno.
01:01I became part of a proud, high-spirited, elite outlet.
01:0720-year-old Eugene Sledge is just joining the first Marines as they trained in the Pacific in 1944.
01:16The division was gutted in battles for Guadalcanal and Cape Gloucester.
01:23They are full of replacements like Sledge.
01:2785% are not yet 21.
01:32The veterans taught the replacements all the ins and outs of combat with a ruthless foe.
01:40They're on a tropical South Pacific island called Pavuvu.
01:44Sounds like paradise.
01:48The first Marines think it's a hellhole.
01:54We led a Spartan existence.
01:57Warmed over sea rations and stale coffee passed for chow.
02:03Space is so tight, they have to march in circles.
02:08Every drill is a battle with bugs.
02:13Some joke that they'll welcome a return to combat.
02:20Until they're loading up for their next battle.
02:25We, not being fools, were all scared to death.
02:29The veterans because they knew what to expect.
02:32The new men, because we didn't.
02:50I hung weakly to the side of the tractor.
02:53Prayed that I would do my duty, survive, and not wet my pants.
03:01One minute.
03:03Sledge inches closer to his first combat.
03:08The scene before him is pure hell.
03:13The beach was a sheet of flame.
03:16Backed by a huge wall of black smoke.
03:19As though the island was on fire.
03:27The beach is already smoldering with twisted metal and blood.
03:34My heart pounded as we churned toward that inferno.
03:41We got to the beach amid erupting shell bursts.
03:49And the rattle of enemy machine gun bullets against the steel Amtrak.
03:57Within an hour, casualties number in the hundreds.
04:02While the advance is measured in yards.
04:06The first marines are taking it on the chin.
04:15Americans want Pelou in case it interferes with a bigger invasion on the way.
04:19The Philippines.
04:25Japanese film shows them overrunning the American territory in 1941.
04:31Taking control of 16 million Filipinos and 7,000 American POWs.
04:39Ever since, Army General Douglas MacArthur has been itching to take it back.
04:45At every opportunity, he repeats his mantra.
04:48I shall return.
04:51He makes the promise.
04:53America makes the plan.
04:57It includes sending marines to take the small airfield at Pelou,
05:01which could be a nuisance to the Army's Philippines offensive.
05:07This isn't lost on the troops,
05:09who dubbed themselves MacArthur's Marines.
05:16We were ordered to capture the airfield.
05:18We started across at a trot in the searing heat.
05:23The ground rocked and swayed from shell concussions.
05:29Streets of machine gun tracers streaked past our ears.
05:35Within hours, the wounded start piling up.
05:45The Japanese are lobbing their repelling fire from this craggy jumble of peaks.
05:51The first marines nickname it, Bloody Nose Ridge.
05:59One of the officers approaching the ridge is New Yorker, George Haggerty.
06:09When my company went in, we were 250 strong, with six officers.
06:17A few days later, I found my commander, and he said,
06:20you and I are the only officers left.
06:23And we only have about 20 men.
06:26Down to a skeleton unit,
06:28the commander sends Haggerty and six others
06:31to find a hidden Japanese emplacement
06:33that already bloodied much of the company.
06:41He said, when you get there, signal me and we'll come up.
07:08Haggerty gets close enough to signal his commander for reinforcements.
07:14We signaled and signaled that nothing happened.
07:20Instead, our own armored LBT's came up and started firing at us.
07:27They thought we were Japanese.
07:32Haggerty stumbles back with shrapnel wounds from enemy and friendly fire.
07:47I went back to look for my commander and ask him why he hadn't brought the reinforcements.
07:52I found him with a little hole between his eyes
07:56and the whole back of his head blown off.
08:00That was the end of the war for my battalion.
08:04We didn't have any more troops left.
08:12From the air, Peleliu looks like the moon.
08:19Underneath, there's an old network of mining tunnels
08:22that the Japanese transform into a front unto itself.
08:28There never was a front line on Peleliu.
08:31The whole island was a front line.
08:36Japanese are everywhere, but nowhere to be seen.
08:41Americans end up shooting blindly into the ground.
08:47They think they win a hill,
08:49only to smell Japanese cooking wafting up from below ground.
08:57The subterranean maze is so confounding
09:00that the Americans resort to blasting shut any hole they see,
09:05whether they think anyone's inside or not.
09:12It takes two bloody weeks to secure the airfield,
09:15and they're uncertain it was ever a real threat.
09:21The first Marine's overall strength is down by nearly 60%.
09:27MacArthur's Marines are fading fast.
09:33With Bloody Nose Ridge surrounded
09:35and the main airfield secure,
09:37Americans turn to the smaller airfield
09:40on the islet of Ngecebus.
09:45They don't know what lies across the shallow reef
09:48dividing the islands,
09:51so they don't tiptoe.
09:54They bring all the might they can muster.
10:10A textbook landing goes off without a problem,
10:14but there's no payoff.
10:18The airfield is useless,
10:21with unfinished runways made of soft sand.
10:27The battle for the rest of Peleliu will drag on.
10:32But with both airfields secure,
10:34the invasion of the Philippines is about to begin.
10:48Pre-dawn bombardment illuminates MacArthur
10:52on the day he's been waiting for.
11:00The choreography of an invasion is now well rehearsed.
11:04But each man knows the Philippines are different.
11:09The size of the islands.
11:12Sixteen million civilians.
11:15Thousands of allied prisoners.
11:18And the half million Japanese defenders,
11:21waiting somewhere behind the veil of smoke,
11:24now rising from the coast.
11:28Americans land first on Leyte,
11:31hoping to win it before invading Luzon
11:33and the capital, Manila.
11:37Unlike Peleliu,
11:38the beach is not heavily defended.
11:40By afternoon, MacArthur wades ashore.
11:45As the news cameras roll,
11:47he swaggers onto the sand without a helmet.
11:52There may be no combat on the beach,
11:55but there is some dark comedy.
11:59The scale of the invasion strains the supply chain.
12:04On the first day,
12:07107,000 tons come ashore.
12:10But not in the right order.
12:14In the rush to unload,
12:16urgent supplies are buried under less important ones.
12:20And it's the rainy season.
12:24Captain John Hanna takes home movies
12:27of the muck his unit has to navigate.
12:31It's thick,
12:34slick,
12:36and inescapable.
12:39Though the water buffalo
12:40don't seem to mind.
12:44Back on his ship,
12:46Hanna films locals approaching in canoes.
12:50They're looking for safe harbor
12:51in the shadows of American ships
12:53that now blanket Leyte Gulf.
12:57But so many ships in one place
12:59make an irresistible target.
13:04American carriers provide the only air support
13:07for the invasion.
13:09If Japan can disable this lifeline,
13:12they can isolate the Americans on land.
13:17The Imperial Japanese Navy decides to attack.
13:25American ships buzz to life.
13:30The Battle of Leyte Gulf
13:32will decide the future
13:34the future of the Philippines.
13:44Naval battles often boil down
13:46to pilot versus pilot.
13:56In the air,
13:58Americans continue to dominate.
14:08As Japanese fighters fall away,
14:11an American gets a clear shot
14:14at an enemy ship.
14:16He doesn't miss.
14:21Out of desperation,
14:24Japan changes tactics.
14:28Their planes dive closer
14:30to American ships.
14:36Hidden in the smoke,
14:38this one punches through
14:39staccato anti-aircraft fire.
14:42Flying lower than anyone expects.
14:49Navy man Charles Ripper
14:51is shocked at what he sees next.
14:54Coming towards us
14:56was a Japanese plane
14:57just skimming over the water.
15:00We jumped for cover.
15:03It lands a suicidal blow.
15:16These are the first
15:17organized kamikaze attacks
15:19of the Pacific War.
15:22They will not be the last.
15:26Over four days,
15:28America loses six warships,
15:30but Japan loses 26.
15:34The seas around the Philippines
15:36are now American waters.
15:39The ground war will be bloody
15:42and Manila awaits.
15:44But only one side
15:46will have air and sea support.
15:48The other will slowly choke.
15:53Back on Peleliu,
15:55the first Marines
15:57have to finish
15:57what they started.
16:00They fire grenades
16:02with rifles.
16:06They throw Molotov cocktails.
16:11And they deploy a new weapon
16:13called the Navy Mark I
16:15flamethrower.
16:19It shoots a blazing laser
16:21of napalm
16:22up to 150 yards.
16:28We were limited
16:29by not being able
16:30to use poison gas.
16:32Other than that,
16:34just about anything went.
16:40Americans also drop
16:41napalm from the air.
16:43It's a new tactic,
16:45getting its first
16:46big tryout
16:46on Peleliu.
16:49They hope to scorch
16:51Japanese they can't see.
16:55They provide
16:56powerful fireworks.
16:58But they have little effect
17:00on deep Japanese positions.
17:07Killing the enemy
17:08from a distance
17:09isn't working.
17:11It's going to take
17:13close combat.
17:15As a private
17:16first class,
17:17your war lies
17:19within 15 feet
17:20of you.
17:21It's kind of like
17:22Gettysburg.
17:23Fred Fox
17:24is an Army
17:25infantryman
17:26attached to
17:27the first Marines.
17:29His entire
17:30World War II
17:31combat career
17:31is 48 hours
17:33on Peleliu
17:34at age 18.
17:36I was only
17:37in one battle.
17:39But the two days
17:40that I fought
17:41at Peleliu
17:42marked my life
17:44more than anything else.
17:47Here,
17:48a medical evacuation
17:49gets burned
17:50into memory.
17:57three
17:58lie wounded.
18:00Enemy fire
18:01pins down
18:02two corpsmen
18:03just yards away.
18:06Five lives
18:07hang in the balance.
18:11A thousandth
18:13of a second.
18:14A hundredth
18:15of an inch.
18:16And that's
18:17the difference
18:17between whether
18:18I was dead
18:19or not.
18:21The corpsmen
18:22struggle to carry
18:23the stretcher case.
18:26The other two
18:27combine whatever
18:28strength they have
18:29left to get
18:29themselves out.
18:34The scene
18:35is repeated
18:36over and over
18:37as the war
18:38plays out
18:38on the tiny
18:39stage
18:40of Peleliu.
18:42You're talking
18:43about an island
18:44that's about
18:44two miles wide
18:45and you get
18:47maybe 11,000
18:48Japanese
18:49and 28,000
18:50Americans
18:51mad at each other.
18:54The first Marines
18:55are trapped
18:56on this cage
18:57of an island
18:57that seems determined
18:59to swallow them all.
19:01Some mention
19:02a premonition
19:03of when they're
19:03going to die.
19:05One sergeant
19:06in the tent
19:06with me
19:07been through
19:08Guadalcanal
19:09and New Britain.
19:10On Peleliu
19:11he said
19:11I don't want
19:13to go out there.
19:14I'm not
19:15going to make this.
19:20And he didn't.
19:24He didn't make it
19:26two minutes.
19:34in their third year
19:36of war
19:36and sixth week
19:37on Peleliu
19:38the first Marines
19:39are in no mood
19:41to play by the rules.
19:43We never took prisoners
19:45even when some
19:46tried to give up.
19:49We routinely
19:50shot both dead
19:51and wounded
19:52in the head
19:53to make sure
19:54they were dead.
20:00by the end
20:01of October
20:01it's still
20:02not over
20:03but it is
20:04for the first Marines.
20:07Almost a third
20:08of their men
20:08are dead
20:09or wounded.
20:12MacArthur's Marines
20:13load up
20:14and leave Peleliu
20:15for the army
20:15to finish.
20:17It will take
20:18another month.
20:23Peleliu
20:24becomes one
20:25of the enduring
20:25question marks
20:26of the Pacific War.
20:291,800 dead
20:328,000 wounded
20:35all for some
20:36dusty airfields
20:37that may not have
20:38been a threat
20:39after all.
20:41All too many
20:42young Americans
20:43were sent
20:44to Peleliu
20:45and into
20:47oblivion
20:48before they
20:49had ever
20:50really lived.
20:53In the march
20:54toward Japan
20:54America
20:55seems lost
20:56in the
20:57Southwest Pacific.
21:00In the
21:01Central Pacific
21:02the path
21:03is more clear.
21:04Island hop
21:05toward Japan
21:06with daring
21:06and distant
21:07amphibious
21:08assaults.
21:09Americans
21:10have advanced
21:10as far
21:11as the
21:11Mariana Islands.
21:15Saipan
21:16Guam
21:17and Tinian
21:18are all
21:18recently captured
21:19and at the
21:20mercy of
21:21American machinery.
21:23They are paving
21:24the way
21:24for a brand
21:25new aircraft
21:27the B-29
21:29Superfortress.
21:31But from
21:31the factory
21:32to the flight
21:33line
21:33it's plagued
21:35with problems.
21:36Deliveries
21:37are delayed.
21:40In Kansas
21:41Raymond
21:42Halloran's
21:43crew
21:43has been
21:43training
21:44on other
21:44aircraft
21:45instead.
21:46We had
21:4711 people
21:48in our
21:49B-29
21:49crew.
21:51They were
21:51from 11
21:52different states.
21:54We sort
21:55of Americana.
21:57The gunner
21:58was from
21:59Michigan.
22:00Radar man
22:01from Oklahoma.
22:04You wonder
22:04where these
22:05kids are all
22:05coming from.
22:09One day
22:10we came out
22:12to this ramp
22:12and out
22:13there was
22:14a brand
22:14new
22:15silver
22:15B-29.
22:17What a
22:18beautiful
22:19thing.
22:21That was
22:22going to be
22:22ours to
22:23take overseas.
22:24We were
22:25so excited.
22:29For the first
22:30time
22:31they are flying
22:32untethered
22:32from a
22:33training script.
22:35Unsupervised
22:36by superiors.
22:39Halloran
22:39is 21
22:40years old.
22:44You're going
22:46alone.
22:47It was
22:48crystal clear.
22:51We climbed
22:51to about
22:5220,000 feet
22:53moving west.
22:56They fly over
22:57the familiar
22:58landscape of
22:59home.
23:00heading toward
23:01a distant
23:02abstract war
23:04somewhere in
23:06the direction
23:06of the
23:07setting sun.
23:08Heading 270
23:09degrees.
23:11There was
23:12very little
23:13said for a
23:14while.
23:17Then we
23:18got out
23:18over the
23:18Pacific.
23:20There wasn't
23:21a sound in
23:22the plane.
23:24Nothing.
23:25Nobody
23:26said a
23:27thing.
23:28I had a
23:29definite
23:30feeling that
23:30I'm leaving
23:31everything
23:32behind.
23:34My mother
23:35and father
23:37and my
23:38training.
23:40And I'm
23:41going into
23:41combat.
23:43I think
23:44on that
23:45evening,
23:46at that
23:46time,
23:47at that
23:48altitude,
23:50I converted
23:51from youth
23:52to manhood.
23:55I could
23:56do the
23:56job
23:57of a
23:57man.
24:03Also
24:04on the
24:04way to
24:05the
24:05Marianas
24:05is
24:06General
24:06Curtis
24:07LeMay.
24:08These
24:08are his
24:09home
24:09movies
24:09from the
24:10war,
24:10which
24:11have
24:11never
24:11been
24:11broadcast
24:12before.
24:14He's
24:14arriving
24:15from
24:15India,
24:16where his
24:16bombing
24:17group had
24:17trouble
24:17striking
24:18Japan
24:18from such
24:19a
24:19distance.
24:21He
24:21hopes
24:21the
24:22Marianas
24:22will
24:22change
24:23the
24:23B-29
24:24equation,
24:24if he
24:25can whip
24:26his
24:26men
24:26into
24:26shape.
24:28We had
24:29crews that
24:30weren't
24:30trained,
24:31and we
24:31had outfits
24:32that weren't
24:32organized.
24:33Everything
24:34was wrong.
24:35As he
24:36comes in
24:36for a
24:37landing at
24:37his new
24:37headquarters,
24:38LeMay's
24:39reputation is
24:40already circulating
24:41on the
24:41ground.
24:43We called
24:44him Old
24:45Iron Pants
24:46because he
24:46was a
24:47tough cookie.
24:48He was the
24:48George Patton
24:49of the
24:50Air
24:50Force.
24:53In the
24:54winter of
24:541944,
24:56hundreds of
24:56brand new
24:57B-29s
24:58began streaming
24:59into the
25:00Marianas like
25:01giant
25:01migratory
25:02birds.
25:04We had
25:05just six
25:06weeks to
25:06move B-29s
25:07to bases
25:08in the
25:08Marianas,
25:10fly a few
25:11shakedown
25:12flights,
25:12and launch
25:13an operation.
25:16American
25:16air power
25:17is building
25:18up like a
25:18storm cloud.
25:19in the
25:20central
25:20Pacific.
25:21Japan can
25:22only guess
25:23when it
25:24will thunder
25:24overhead.
25:30Japan is
25:31rattled.
25:32Americans are
25:33encroaching
25:34dangerously
25:34close.
25:38Japanese
25:39film shows
25:40a geography
25:41lesson turning
25:42into a dire
25:43warning.
25:44The teacher
25:45pinpoints the
25:46Marianas and
25:47draws an arc
25:48that includes
25:49Tokyo.
25:53Air ray drills
25:55signal a tense
25:56new reality.
26:01In public,
26:03one admiral
26:04describes the
26:04defeat in
26:05measured language.
26:10our garrison on
26:11Saipan fought bravely.
26:13All of them died
26:14a heroic death.
26:18In private,
26:19another admiral
26:20is more blunt,
26:21saying simply,
26:23hell is upon us.
26:26Bombs are wheeled up
26:28to a B-29
26:29super fortress
26:29on Saipan
26:30island.
26:31It is only the
26:32beginning,
26:33as these mighty
26:34bombers prepare
26:34for the first
26:35raid on Tokyo
26:36in two and a
26:37half years.
26:40American newsreels
26:41paint the B-29
26:42as a savior,
26:43but it can
26:44barely soar.
26:48They labor
26:49to take off
26:50with 10,000
26:51pounds of bombs.
26:52This one almost
26:54runs off the runway.
26:57When they picked
26:58up that B-29,
27:00you could almost
27:01see it screaming.
27:07In January
27:08of 1945,
27:10B-29s begin
27:11raids on Japan.
27:13The entire
27:14rationale for
27:15island hopping
27:15will now be
27:17put to the test.
27:19En route,
27:21crews review
27:21their targets,
27:22what little
27:23they know
27:24about them.
27:25We didn't
27:26really know
27:27anything about
27:28Japan.
27:29We didn't
27:31have any
27:31secret agents
27:32creeping around,
27:33sending us
27:34information.
27:36But an
27:37even bigger
27:37problem looms
27:39at 25,000
27:40feet.
27:41A roaring
27:42tailwind.
27:43We were
27:44scooting across
27:45Tokyo at
27:46500 miles
27:47an hour.
27:50Bombs drop
27:51into this
27:51lashing wind
27:52and scatter
27:53like feathers.
27:55We not
27:56only missed
27:57the target,
27:57I'm not
27:58even sure
27:58we hit
27:59Tokyo.
28:03Americans
28:04try flying
28:04the missions
28:05into the wind.
28:08One plane
28:09tried that
28:09one day
28:10and they
28:10found out
28:11they were
28:11going
28:11three miles
28:12an hour
28:12backwards.
28:15The B-29
28:17was built
28:17to bomb
28:18from the
28:18safety
28:18of high
28:19altitude.
28:19altitude.
28:21No one
28:22imagined its
28:22payload
28:23splashing
28:23harmlessly
28:24into the
28:25sea.
28:26Heading
28:27back to
28:27Saipan,
28:28the first
28:29super fortress
28:30mission over
28:30Tokyo is a
28:32success.
28:33Kurt LeMay
28:34knows it
28:35really isn't.
28:38The B-29
28:39still isn't
28:40landing the
28:40knockout punch
28:41it was made
28:42for.
28:44In Guam,
28:45this one
28:46doesn't even
28:46make it off
28:47the runway.
28:50General LeMay
28:51films the
28:52wreckage himself
28:52and he can
28:54feel the
28:54heat in
28:55every way.
28:57They said
28:58if you don't
28:59get results
29:00you'll be
29:00fired.
29:01If you
29:02don't get
29:03results
29:03it'll mean
29:04a mass
29:05amphibious
29:05invasion of
29:06Japan.
29:08One way
29:09to improve
29:09results is
29:10to keep
29:10more B-29s
29:12from crashing
29:12along the
29:13way.
29:15Americans
29:16look for
29:16a place
29:16to land
29:17a broken
29:17B-29
29:18between
29:19the
29:19Marianas
29:20and
29:20Japan.
29:22There's
29:22only one
29:23choice
29:23Iwo Jima.
29:33Raymond
29:34Halloran's
29:35crew
29:35fresh from
29:36Kansas
29:36gets its
29:37very first
29:38combat
29:38orders.
29:45The mission
29:46was to go
29:47to Iwo Jima
29:47650 miles
29:49away
29:50to bomb
29:51the runway.
29:52By now
29:53the Army Air
29:54Force is
29:55trying to
29:55prove the
29:56value of
29:57the B-29
29:57any way it
29:58can.
30:00The Air
30:01Force wanted
30:01to come in
30:02and saturate
30:02every square
30:03inch of Iwo Jima
30:04because there
30:05were no
30:05civilians
30:06and all
30:07we'd have
30:07to do
30:08is walk
30:08on the
30:09beach
30:09put up
30:10the flag
30:10and bury
30:11dead
30:11Japanese.
30:13From above
30:14the island
30:15looks lifeless.
30:16Halloran
30:17quickly finds
30:18out otherwise.
30:21They opened
30:22up with
30:23anti-aircraft
30:23fire.
30:25Japanese
30:26footage reveals
30:27guns aiming
30:28straight up
30:29at the
30:29incoming
30:29bombers.
30:49Halloran's
30:49crew gets
30:50a little
30:50nicked up
30:51over
30:51Iwo Jima.
30:52Americans
30:53hope the
30:53ground
30:54invasion
30:54is just
30:55as harmless.
31:03For centuries
31:05Mount Suribachi
31:06crowned a
31:07barren island
31:08of little
31:08value.
31:11But in
31:121945
31:13two armies
31:14wanted
31:15badly.
31:17Japan is
31:18using it
31:18to attack
31:19B-29s
31:20passing
31:20overhead.
31:23America
31:23sees it
31:24as an
31:24emergency
31:25landing
31:25strip.
31:28They will
31:29both now
31:29use it
31:30as a
31:30slaughterhouse.
31:34I went
31:35topside
31:36just about
31:36the time
31:36we were
31:37leaving
31:37and I
31:38saw that
31:39rock.
31:40It was
31:40the most
31:41desolate
31:41looking piece
31:42of real
31:42estate I
31:43ever saw
31:43in my
31:44life.
31:48As
31:49landing
31:49craft
31:50circle
31:50waiting
31:51for the
31:51signal
31:52Americans
31:53fear the
31:53enemy
31:54will
31:54fight
31:54back
31:54with
31:55fire
31:56and
31:56explode
31:57barrel
31:57bombs
31:57of
31:58fuel
31:58on
31:58the
31:58beach.
32:00Marines
32:01smear
32:01their
32:01faces
32:02with
32:02white
32:02anti-flash
32:03cream
32:03to guard
32:04against
32:04birds.
32:09At
32:109.02
32:10AM
32:11the first
32:12wave
32:13hits the
32:13sand.
32:19the beach
32:20is steep
32:21and loose.
32:23They
32:24struggle
32:24in the
32:25fine
32:25volcanic
32:26ash.
32:28But
32:28resistance
32:29is light.
32:30There
32:31are no
32:32barrel
32:32bombs
32:32of
32:32fuel.
32:35But
32:36as more
32:36waves
32:36come ashore,
32:37more men
32:38and machines
32:39get stuck
32:40in the
32:40sand.
32:42You
32:43were walking
32:43in mush
32:44almost up
32:44to your knees.
32:45It
32:46was a
32:46struggle.
32:48Soon,
32:49the crowd
32:49on the beach
32:50reaches critical
32:51mass.
32:53That's
32:53when the
32:54Japanese
32:54open up.
33:05I
33:05could look
33:06up
33:06from my
33:06box hole
33:07and it
33:08was just
33:0820,
33:0930 mortars
33:10in the
33:10air at a
33:10time.
33:14By
33:159.20
33:15AM,
33:16it's an
33:17unceasing
33:18ear-splitting
33:19barrage.
33:24No
33:25Japanese
33:25are on
33:26the beach
33:26itself.
33:27Most
33:28are
33:28entrenched
33:29on
33:29Mount
33:29Suribachi.
33:31Inside
33:32the mountain
33:32is a
33:33maze of
33:33tunnels
33:34and monster
33:35pillboxes
33:35with walls
33:36up to
33:37four feet
33:37thick.
33:39The
33:39Japanese
33:39can
33:40pummel
33:40the entire
33:41beach
33:41with lead.
33:43Marines
33:44are trapped
33:45within yards
33:45of where
33:46they landed.
33:47There's
33:47no place
33:48to go
33:48except
33:49down.
33:50We
33:51decided
33:51we'd
33:51clean out
33:52a shell
33:52hole
33:52and make
33:53it a
33:53little
33:53deeper
33:53for a
33:54shelter.
33:55And
33:55we
33:55hit
33:56something
33:56down
33:56there.
33:58When
33:58we
33:58uncovered
33:59it,
34:00it was
34:01a
34:01marine.
34:03Bodies
34:04are buried,
34:05trapped,
34:07and torn
34:08apart.
34:10Suribachi
34:10is like a
34:11hunting
34:11stand,
34:12and
34:13Americans
34:13are
34:14easy
34:14prey.
34:14away.
34:17The barrage
34:18continues
34:18into the
34:19night.
34:21Here,
34:22the
34:23Japanese
34:23score a
34:24hit on
34:24an
34:24American
34:25ammo
34:25dump
34:25on the
34:26beach.
34:32It was
34:32bullets,
34:33and all
34:33kinds of
34:34ammunition
34:34exploding
34:35all
34:35around.
34:36It was
34:37like
34:37Chinese
34:37fireworks.
34:39The first
34:39day on
34:40Iwo Jima
34:41ends with
34:41the beach
34:42on fire,
34:43and supplies
34:43going up
34:44in smoke.
34:46Americans
34:46resolve to
34:47turn the
34:48tide the
34:48next day
34:49by scaling
34:50Suribachi.
34:52Suribachi,
34:53Suribachi,
34:53Suribachi,
34:54Suribachi,
34:55Suribachi,
34:59the
34:59assault
35:00on
35:00Mount
35:00Suribachi
35:01begins
35:02by
35:02punching
35:02it
35:02from
35:03the
35:03air
35:03and
35:04sea.
35:09Americans
35:09make
35:10the
35:10dormant
35:10volcano
35:11seem
35:11alive
35:12again.
35:18Then,
35:19Marines
35:20start
35:20to
35:20climb
35:21up.
35:24Soon,
35:25blood
35:25starts
35:26to
35:26flow
35:26down.
35:32One
35:33unit
35:33supported
35:34by
35:34tanks
35:35pushes
35:35up
35:35for
35:36six
35:36hours,
35:37advances
35:38only
35:39200
35:39yards,
35:40and
35:41tallies
35:41162
35:43dead
35:43and
35:44wounded.
35:45As
35:46usual,
35:47Americans
35:47rarely see
35:48the
35:48Japanese,
35:50so they
35:50pour
35:51fire
35:51into
35:52every
35:52hole.
36:11after four
36:12days of
36:13relentless
36:13fighting,
36:14a handful
36:15of Marines
36:15get to the
36:16top.
36:17They plant a
36:18small flag
36:19tied to some
36:20old Japanese
36:21pipe.
36:24a few
36:24hours later,
36:25a larger
36:26flag goes
36:27up.
36:30Gilberto
36:30Mendez
36:31can see it
36:32from his
36:32troop ship
36:32and his
36:33emotions go
36:34into
36:34overdrive.
36:36He's about
36:37to come
36:37ashore
36:37to join
36:38the fight.
36:39two.
36:40My
36:40heart
36:40was
36:41beating
36:41a
36:41thousand
36:42times
36:42a
36:42minute.
36:43My
36:43skin
36:44was
36:44like
36:44chicken
36:45skin.
36:46I
36:46lost
36:46my
36:46fear.
36:47If
36:48those
36:48guys
36:48made
36:48it,
36:48I
36:49could.
36:50But
36:51it was
36:51false,
36:51that
36:52feeling,
36:53because
36:53the good
36:54stuff
36:54hadn't
36:55started
36:55yet.
37:01This
37:02is home
37:02movie
37:03footage
37:03of
37:03pre-war
37:04Manila.
37:05As
37:06the
37:06capital
37:06of
37:06a
37:06U.S.
37:07territory,
37:07it's
37:08infused
37:09with
37:09American
37:10style,
37:11from
37:11western
37:11clothes
37:13to
37:13neon
37:14glitz.
37:19But
37:19when
37:20the
37:20allies
37:20return
37:21to
37:21wrestle
37:21it
37:21back
37:21from
37:22the
37:22Japanese,
37:23it's
37:23a
37:24different
37:24city.
37:28Now
37:29ashen
37:29and
37:30hollow.
37:31It's
37:32the
37:32bombed-out
37:33backdrop
37:33for
37:34the
37:34biggest
37:34urban
37:35battle
37:35of
37:35the
37:35Pacific
37:36War.
37:43MacArthur
37:44prohibits
37:45airstrikes,
37:46trying to
37:46spare
37:47civilians.
37:51It
37:52takes
37:52street
37:53by
37:53street
37:53guerrilla
37:54warfare.
38:02American
38:03tanks roll
38:03into the
38:04University
38:04of the
38:05Philippines.
38:07campus
38:08is under
38:08siege.
38:09Here,
38:11University
38:11Hall
38:11becomes a
38:12gun
38:12nest.
38:14Japanese
38:15rifles
38:16crack
38:16from the
38:16top
38:17floor.
38:20Allies
38:21fire
38:22back,
38:23taking
38:24chunks
38:25out of the
38:25colonial
38:26façade.
38:34The
38:34Pacific
38:35war
38:35is
38:36turning
38:36Manila
38:37to
38:37dust.
38:42Finally,
38:43the city
38:43goes
38:43quiet.
38:58civilians
38:59are in
39:00survival
39:01mode.
39:10American
39:10POWs
39:11enjoy their
39:12first taste
39:13of freedom
39:13in more
39:14than two
39:14years.
39:20Kneeling
39:21over this
39:21body is
39:22serviceman
39:23Dan Rocklin.
39:24He films
39:25the horrors
39:25that now
39:26litter
39:26Manila.
39:28Manila
39:35But he
39:36also captures
39:37Filipinos
39:38striving for
39:39normalcy.
39:42Rocklin's
39:43film has
39:44never been
39:44broadcast
39:45before.
39:48His footage
39:49reveals a
39:50blossoming
39:50hope
39:53that the
39:54storm
39:54of war
39:55may
39:55finally
39:56be
39:56passing.
40:01Almost
40:01a week
40:02into the
40:02battle
40:02for
40:03Iwo
40:03Jima,
40:04fresh
40:05troops
40:06come ashore
40:06to reinforce
40:07depleted
40:08units.
40:09As
40:10replacements,
40:11we were
40:11a nobody
40:12group.
40:13We went
40:13wherever we
40:14were needed.
40:15I didn't
40:16know
40:16anybody.
40:17But
40:18Gilberto
40:18Mendez
40:19gets to
40:19know
40:20Iwo
40:20Jima
40:20in a
40:21hurry.
40:22The
40:23first
40:23days
40:23I
40:24was
40:24on
40:24the
40:24ground
40:24I
40:26urinated
40:26in my
40:27pants
40:27because
40:27I
40:28thought
40:29if I
40:29dropped
40:29my
40:29rifle
40:30to
40:30pee
40:30I
40:31would
40:31be
40:31killed.
40:33The
40:34flag
40:34already
40:34flying
40:35on
40:35Mount
40:35Suribachi
40:36is
40:36the
40:36enduring
40:37symbol
40:37of
40:38Iwo
40:38Jima.
40:39But
40:39the
40:39north
40:40is
40:40where
40:40the
40:40marines
40:41have
40:41to
40:41win
40:41it.
40:43The
40:43Japanese
40:44have
40:44abandoned
40:45Banzai
40:45charges
40:46and
40:46costly
40:47counterattacks.
40:49Now
40:50they simply
40:50wait to
40:51ambush
40:51advancing
40:52Americans
40:56including
40:57Gilberto
40:57Mendez.
41:00I
41:00saw
41:01something
41:01shine.
41:02It
41:03was
41:03a
41:03Japanese
41:03officer
41:04sword
41:04and
41:05he
41:05was
41:05leading
41:06his
41:06men
41:06out
41:06of
41:06a
41:06cave.
41:08The
41:09bullets
41:09were
41:09flying.
41:13When
41:14I
41:14saw
41:14below
41:15his
41:15neck
41:15I
41:16pulled
41:17the
41:17trigger
41:17one
41:18shot
41:18after
41:18another.
41:20They
41:21found
41:2113
41:22holes
41:22in
41:22his
41:22body.
41:23I
41:24made
41:24hamburger
41:25out
41:25of
41:25him.
41:28More
41:29and
41:29more
41:29bodies
41:30litter
41:30the
41:30volcanic
41:31landscape.
41:33In
41:33Japanese
41:34Iwo Jima
41:35means
41:35sulfur
41:36island.
41:38The
41:38steam
41:38smells
41:39like
41:39rotten
41:39eggs.
41:42Freshly
41:43dug
41:43foxholes
41:44are
41:44too
41:44hot
41:44to
41:45get
41:45into.
41:46You
41:46couldn't
41:47stay
41:4715
41:48minutes
41:48in
41:48one
41:49place
41:49because
41:50your
41:50boots
41:50would
41:50get
41:51too
41:51hot.
41:51One
41:52Marine
41:52even
41:53tries
41:53on
41:53the
41:54boots
41:54of
41:54a
41:54dead
41:54Japanese
41:55soldier
41:55hoping
41:56they
41:57might
41:57keep
41:57his
41:57feet
41:58from
41:58burning.
42:00Combat
42:00is
42:01close
42:04fiery
42:08and
42:08exhausting.
42:14Two
42:15weeks
42:15into
42:16the
42:16battle
42:16nearly
42:1710,000
42:18American
42:18wounded
42:19have
42:19been
42:19evacuated.
42:22including
42:22Gilberto
42:23Mendez
42:24with
42:24a
42:24head
42:24injury.
42:28An
42:29explosion
42:30picked
42:30me up
42:30and
42:31I
42:31hit
42:31the
42:31ground
42:32again
42:32with
42:33a
42:33terrible
42:33ringing
42:34in
42:34my
42:34ear.
42:36I
42:37was
42:37choking
42:37on
42:38my
42:38own
42:38tongue.
42:39A
42:39corpsman
42:40tried
42:40to
42:40pull
42:41my
42:41tongue
42:41out
42:41by
42:42piercing
42:42it
42:43with
42:43a
42:43big
42:44safety
42:44pin.
42:46Under
42:47tents
42:47and
42:47inside
42:48hospital
42:48ships
42:49doctors
42:50and
42:50nurses
42:51tend
42:51to
42:51injuries
42:52beyond
42:52description
42:57and
42:58some
42:59beyond
42:59repair.
43:04But
43:04soon
43:04the
43:05reason
43:05for
43:05all
43:06this
43:06carnage
43:06comes
43:07into
43:07view.
43:13Those
43:13planes
43:13were
43:13coming
43:14back
43:14shot
43:14full
43:15of
43:15holes
43:15and
43:15tore
43:16are
43:16all
43:16to
43:17pieces.
43:18On
43:19March 4th,
43:20the first
43:20B-29
43:21comes in
43:22for a
43:22forced
43:22landing.
43:25Hundreds
43:25more
43:26will sputter
43:26into
43:27Iwo Jima
43:27from raids
43:28in Japan.
43:29This
43:30one is so
43:31crippled
43:31it can't
43:32even make
43:32the runway.
43:33way.
43:38But the
43:39crew
43:39will be
43:40spared.
43:43Even
43:44with
43:44Iwo Jima
43:45as a
43:45life raft,
43:46B-29
43:47raids
43:47into
43:48Japan
43:48are
43:49failing.
43:50The
43:51overall game
43:52plan
43:52still
43:53isn't
43:53working.
43:54So
43:55Curtis
43:55LeMay
43:56changes
43:57the rules.
44:02We
44:03weren't
44:03going
44:04to
44:04be
44:04able
44:04to
44:04defeat
44:05Japan
44:05using
44:06high
44:06altitude
44:06precision
44:07bombing.
44:08I
44:09had
44:09to
44:09do
44:09something
44:09radical.
44:12The
44:12entire
44:13premise
44:13of
44:13island
44:14hopping
44:14now
44:15rests
44:15on
44:15Kurt
44:16LeMay's
44:16command.
44:17So
44:18he
44:18designs
44:18a
44:19drastically
44:19different
44:20kind
44:20of
44:20mission.
44:22David
44:22Braden
44:23remembers
44:23the
44:24briefing.
44:25We
44:26were
44:26going
44:26to
44:26fly
44:26in
44:27at
44:275,000
44:28feet.
44:28A
44:29surprise
44:29attack
44:29probably
44:30around
44:30midnight.
44:32LeMay
44:33thinks
44:33going
44:34in
44:34low
44:34will
44:34solve
44:35the
44:35problem
44:35of
44:35high
44:36winds
44:36and
44:36blinding
44:37clouds.
44:38But
44:39that's
44:39not
44:39the
44:39only
44:39change.
44:42We
44:43were
44:43to
44:43carry
44:4310
44:44tons
44:44of
44:45incendiary
44:46bombs.
44:47Until
44:48now
44:48America's
44:49use
44:49of
44:50napalm
44:50has
44:50been
44:51specific
44:51to
44:51a
44:52target.
44:53A
44:54cave
44:54or
44:54a
44:54jungle
44:55hideout.
44:57Now
44:57LeMay
44:57has
44:58something
44:58bigger
44:59in
44:59mind.
45:02Tokyo
45:03would
45:03be
45:03our
45:04target.
45:05The
45:05primary
45:06target.
45:07The
45:07secondary
45:08target.
45:09And
45:10the
45:10only
45:10target.
45:22325
45:22B-29s
45:24take
45:24off
45:24in
45:24the
45:25afternoon
45:25skies.
45:27Double
45:28the
45:28number
45:28ever
45:29used
45:29in
45:29a
45:29single
45:30raid
45:30before.
45:40They
45:41fly
45:41in
45:41groups
45:42at
45:43night.
45:43Lights
45:44off.
45:46Flying
45:47in
45:47low,
45:48the
45:48big
45:48slow
45:49planes
45:49could
45:49be
45:50easy
45:50targets.
45:52Crews
45:53fear
45:53they're
45:54on
45:54a
45:54suicide
45:54mission.
45:57We
45:57were
45:57saying
45:58we
45:58are
45:58going
45:59to
45:59be
45:59the
45:59American
45:59kamikazes
46:00and
46:01they're
46:01going
46:01to
46:01shoot
46:01us
46:02down
46:02like
46:02crazy.
46:06Then
46:06Tokyo
46:07appears
46:08below.
46:13The
46:14first
46:14of
46:14more
46:15than
46:15three
46:15million
46:16pounds
46:16of
46:16firebombs
46:17drop
46:18into
46:18the
46:18night.
46:24A
46:25firestorm
46:25started.
46:26The
46:27updrafts
46:28from the
46:28heat of
46:29the
46:29fires
46:29threw
46:29the
46:29airplanes
46:30all
46:30over
46:31the
46:31sky.
46:37It
46:38was
46:38frightening.
46:39There'd
46:39be
46:39an
46:40aircraft
46:40right
46:41next
46:41to
46:41you
46:41and
46:41you
46:42didn't
46:42even
46:42know
46:42the
46:43guy
46:43was
46:43there.
46:46Air
46:46is
46:47swirling
46:47with
46:47ashes.
46:49The
46:49crews
46:50can
46:50smell
46:50burning
46:51flesh
46:51at
46:525,000
46:53feet.
46:55The
46:56firestorm
46:57consumed
46:57so much
46:58oxygen
46:58that
46:59those
46:59who
47:00did
47:00not
47:00die
47:00by
47:00the
47:01flames
47:01simply
47:02suffocated.
47:08The
47:09next
47:09morning
47:09Japan
47:10is
47:11in
47:11shock.
47:16It
47:17was
47:17as
47:17though
47:18Tokyo
47:18had
47:19dropped
47:19through
47:19the
47:19floor
47:20of
47:20the
47:20world
47:21and
47:22into
47:22the
47:22mouth
47:23of
47:23hell.
47:2716
47:28square miles
47:29of
47:29central
47:30Tokyo
47:30are
47:31in
47:31ashes.
47:35An
47:35estimated
47:36100,000
47:37are
47:38killed,
47:38mostly
47:39civilians.
47:43It's
47:44the single
47:45deadliest
47:45day of
47:46the
47:46Pacific
47:46War.
47:48Neither
47:48atomic
47:49bomb
47:49will kill
47:50this
47:50many
47:50on the
47:51day
47:51it
47:51drops.
47:55To
47:56LeMay,
47:57it's
47:57an
47:57unqualified
47:58success.
48:01He
48:02draws
48:02up
48:02plans
48:03to
48:03firebomb
48:03other
48:04cities,
48:05bring
48:05Japan
48:06to
48:06its
48:06knees,
48:07and
48:08force
48:08surrender.
48:12We
48:12had
48:13stockpiled
48:13enough
48:14incendiaries
48:15to follow
48:15the
48:16Tokyo
48:16raid
48:16with
48:17just
48:17about
48:17all
48:18the
48:18major
48:18urban
48:19areas
48:19in
48:19Japan.
48:23For
48:23LeMay,
48:24the
48:24fire
48:25is
48:25only
48:25starting.
48:32by
48:33late
48:33March,
48:34Iwo Jima
48:34is
48:35finally
48:35under
48:36American
48:36control.
48:39Supplies
48:40drop
48:40down
48:41that
48:41will
48:41help
48:41turn
48:42this
48:42arid
48:42rock
48:43into
48:43a
48:43full-fledged
48:44military
48:44base.
48:49Japanese
48:49troops
48:50will keep
48:50pouring out
48:51of this
48:51underworld
48:52for months.
48:55they
48:56too
48:56are
48:56exhausted
48:57but
48:57unwilling
48:58to
48:58quit.
49:02Here,
49:03Americans
49:04liberate
49:05Koreans
49:05who
49:05had
49:05been
49:06toiling
49:06at
49:06Japanese
49:07gunpoint.
49:19They
49:20report
49:20Japanese
49:21are
49:21still
49:21inside
49:22and
49:22won't
49:23surrender.
49:25Once
49:26all the
49:26Koreans
49:27are
49:27out,
49:28a
49:29demolition
49:29team
49:30seals
49:30the
49:30cave
49:31shut.
49:36Iwo Jima
49:37is now
49:38an
49:38island
49:39of
49:39tombs.
49:41Some
49:4120,000
49:42Japanese
49:43and 7,000
49:44Americans
49:45are
49:45dead.
49:47We
49:48were
49:48told
49:48the
49:48whole
49:48operation
49:49would
49:49take
49:49only
49:49three
49:50to
49:50four
49:50days.
49:50It
49:51turned
49:51out
49:51to
49:52be
49:5236
49:52days
49:53of
49:53pure
49:54hell.
50:00Japan
50:01can
50:01sense
50:02the
50:02pressure
50:02coming
50:02from
50:03all
50:03fronts.
50:03ships
50:05ships
50:05from
50:05the
50:05sea,
50:08boots
50:09on
50:09the
50:09ground,
50:13and
50:13fire
50:14from
50:14the
50:14sky.
50:20The
50:20Japanese
50:21empire
50:21is on
50:22the verge
50:23of
50:23collapse,
50:24but there
50:24is no
50:25sign
50:25of
50:26surrender.
50:28Americans
50:29have one
50:30more
50:30island to
50:31take before
50:31invading
50:32Japan
50:33itself.
50:37Survivors
50:38of
50:38Peleliu
50:38and
50:39Iwo Jima
50:40are on
50:40their way
50:41to
50:42Okinawa.
50:45Don't
50:45ask them
50:46which one
50:47is worse.
50:49I can't answer
50:50that.
50:51How do you compare
50:53hell
50:53to hell?
50:55Iw
50:58don't
51:00take
51:00away
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