Transcript of an interview with John Ruddick, a Navy veteran, concerning his experiences while aboard the destroyer USS Melvin during World War II in the Pacific Theater. Ruddick discusses the Marianas invasion, the Carolines invasion, the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the Battle of Surigao Strait, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, Kurile operations, and the occupation of Japan.

Interview with Raymond F. "Hap" Halloran, businessman and U.S. Army Air Force WWII Veteran (878th Bomb Squadron, 499th Bomb Group, 73rd Bomb Wing, 20th Air Force) concerning his experiences as a prisoner-of-war of the Japanese during World War II.

Interview with David Braden, a member of the U.S. Air Force during World War II. He discusses his training in the U.S. to become a navigator; his deployment to Saipan with the 870th Squadron, 497th Bomb Group, 73rd Wing; initial attacks on Tokyo in a B-29 bomber at high altitude (during which the jet stream interfered with the bombing raids); a low-altitude fire-bombing mission over Tokyo in March, 1945; living conditions on base at Saipan; a mission in which the B-29 he was on ditched in the ocean and his subsequent rescue; Victory in Europe (V-E) Day on Saipan; completing 35 missions; and going home.

Interview with Joseph Brown, who was in the Marine Corps during World War II. He discusses going to Guadalcanal, various guns and artillery he used, the battle of Tarawa and getting malaria just before it, then going to Hawaii for more training before returning to the South Pacific and fighting on Saipan and Tinian. He also discusses being wounded on Saipan, having a bayonet run through his forearm and keeping the bayonet as a souvenir after the war, and he talks about some of his experiences and travels after the war.

Interview with Jerell E. Crow. He entered the Coast Guard in 1940 and trained in Florida and New York City. He served aboard a Landing Ship, Tank (LST) when those ships were first introduced. He traveled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to the Neville Island Shipyard operated by the Dravo Corporation as part of a crew that brought an LST down the Mississippi River to New Orleans. From there, the crew practiced operations at Biloxi, Mississippi. Eventually, Crow travelled to San Diego aboard the LST through the Panama Canal. From there, he went to Guadalcanal and unloaded tanks. Eventually, his ship was hit at Saipan and he was wounded. He also served aboard an LST during the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Afterwards, Crow's LST was present in Tokyo Bay for the surrender. He visited Hiroshima while on occupation duty after the atomic bomb was dropped. Eventually, his LST made its way back to San Francisco where he was discharged.

Interview with Sam H. Snoddy, a U. S. Marine during World War II. He served in the 3rd Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division. After training, he participated in the initial landing at Saipan where he was wounded in the knees and shoulder on the beach by shell fragments. He was loaded onto a hospital ship with several other casualties before going to Hawaii to recuperate. He participated in the Okinawa campaign and spent time at Nagasaki on occupation duty. After being discharged, he went to college on the G. I. Bill, and eventually settled in Texas, where he worked in the oil industry.

Interview with H. L. Obermiller, a Pharmacist's Mate during World War II. He discusses his involvement in the Battles of Tarawa, Saipan and Tinian, where he served as a Pharmacist's Mate. He remembers having Spam for Thanksgiving, meeting Navajo code talkers, and writing letters home.

Interview with David Braden, architect and Army Air Forces veteran. In the interview, Braden speaks about his impressions of General Curtis LeMay in the Pacific Theater during World War II, his assignment to Saipan, Mariana Islands, for bombing operations against the Japanese homeland, LeMay's arrival in the Marianas and changes in bombing techniques, the thirty-five mission limitation and improvement in aircrew morale, his functions as a B-29 navigator, LeMay's decision to conduct incendiary night rights at 5,000 feet, the strategic importance of Iwo Jima for bomber crews, and his assessment of how LeMay's policies made a decided difference in ending the war.

Interview with Glenn G. Morgan, a bugler in the U. S. Navy during World War II. He was a bugler aboard the USS Indianapolis and experienced a kamikaze attack during the Okinawa campaign. He also describes transporting the crate that contained the first atomic bomb to Tinian, the ship's sinking, and the four days and five nights he spent in a life raft waiting to be rescued.

Transcript of an oral interview with Al Heigel. When Heigel finished high school in June, 1944, he joined the Navy at Little Rock, Arkansas and went for boot training at San Diego. He was assigned as a radar operator and reported aboard the USS Independence (CVL-22) at Pearl Harbor. Heigel describes the light carrier and its construction and features. He also speaks of the time the Independence was hit by a torpedo off Tarawa in 1943. Heigel then describes events off Okinawa: watching the USS Franklin (CV-13) being bombed off Okinawa; locating and shooting down kamikazes; describing battle stations; aircraft water landings; being in a typhoon, etc. After the war ended, the Independence served as a troop transport taking GIs back home to the US. He describes bunks in the hangar deck and arriving in Portland, Oregon. As the Independence was being prepared for the Bikini Atoll atomic tests, Heigel got off becuase he had the requisite amount of points allowing him to be discharged. He then entered the lumber business, married and raised family.

Transcript of an oral interview with Al Heigel. When Heigel finished high school in June, 1944, he joined the Navy at Little Rock, Arkansas and went for boot training at San Diego. He was assigned as a radar operator and reported aboard the USS Independence (CVL-22) at Pearl Harbor. Heigel describes the light carrier and its construction and features. He also speaks of the time the Independence was hit by a torpedo off Tarawa in 1943. Heigel then describes events off Okinawa: watching the USS Franklin (CV-13) being bombed off Okinawa; locating and shooting down kamikazes; describing battle stations; aircraft water landings; being in a typhoon, etc. After the war ended, the Independence served as a troop transport taking GIs back home to the US. He describes bunks in the hangar deck and arriving in Portland, Oregon. As the Independence was being prepared for the Bikini Atoll atomic tests, Heigel got off becuase he had the requisite amount of points allowing him to be discharged. He then entered the lumber business, married and raised family.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Albert Finley. Finley joined the Marine Corps around December of 1943. He provides vivid details of his boot camp experiences. He served with Headquarters Company, 4th Marines, as a radar mechanic on Corsairs, repairing radio and radar gear. Beginning in September of 1944 they traveled to Guam, Kwajalein, Pearl Harbor and Majuro in the Marshall Islands. Finley shares a number of anecdotal stories, including working with POWs. He was discharged in the fall of 1946.

Interview with Cleatus A. LeBow, a serviceman in the U. S. Navy during World War II. LeBow joined the navy in 1943 and went from Lubbock, Texas to San Diego for recruit training. He shipped out to Pearl Harbor aboard an LST from San Francisco. At Pearl Harbor, he was assigned to a work detail aboard the USS Oklahoma, which had just been righted. Shortly thereafter, he boarded the USS Indianapolis to serve as a range finder operator on one of the gun turrets. Upon leaving Hawaii, the Indianapolis went to Tarawa and then the Marshall Islands. LeBow witnessed Japanese civilian suicides on Saipan. He also witnessed the flag-raising on Iwo Jima from his range finder position aboard the ship. LeBow describes being hit by a kamikaze off Okinawa. He also discusses delivering atomic bomb components to Tinian and being torpedoed on the way to the Philippines. He describes abandoning the ship and spending five days in the water, including his faith in God, hallucinations, rescue, and his recovery.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Al Jowdy. Jowdy enlisted in the Navy in July 1942 at the age of 15, with his parents’ consent. His first assignment was pulling bodies out of sunken ships in Pearl Harbor. At Guadalcanal, his ship was torpedoed. Due to the presence of enemy subs, he could not be rescued initially and spent two weeks floating in a raft. Then he joined a rescue effort to aid the USS Wasp (CV-7), only to be torpedoed again, spending another four days in the water. Jowdy was then assigned to the USS Salt Lake City (CA-25), patrolling the Bering Sea and participating in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands as a second loader on a 40-millimeter. After witnessing the Marianas Turkey Shoot and also seeing MacArthur film his famous return, Jowdy participated in the bombardment of Iwo Jima, amidst kamikazes and suicide boats. After the war, he survived a typhoon and served occupation duty in Japan, later transporting troops as part of the demobilization effort before being discharged in January 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Al Jowdy. Jowdy enlisted in the Navy in July 1942 at the age of 15, with his parents’ consent. His first assignment was pulling bodies out of sunken ships in Pearl Harbor. At Guadalcanal, his ship was torpedoed. Due to the presence of enemy subs, he could not be rescued initially and spent two weeks floating in a raft. Then he joined a rescue effort to aid the USS Wasp (CV-7), only to be torpedoed again, spending another four days in the water. Jowdy was then assigned to the USS Salt Lake City (CA-25), patrolling the Bering Sea and participating in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands as a second loader on a 40-millimeter. After witnessing the Marianas Turkey Shoot and also seeing MacArthur film his famous return, Jowdy participated in the bombardment of Iwo Jima, amidst kamikazes and suicide boats. After the war, he survived a typhoon and served occupation duty in Japan, later transporting troops as part of the demobilization effort before being discharged in January 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Abner Aust. Aust joined the Army Air Forces in September 1941 and completed flight school in April 1943. He was assigned to Venice, Florida, as an instructor, often receiving extra runway duty on account of his mischievous acrobatics. In October 1944, he joined the 506th Fighter Group, 457th Fighter Squadron, as flight commander. Upon familiarizing himself with the P-51, he flew his first missions out of Tinian, moving next to Iwo Jima. While escorting B-29s, he sometimes broke away to lead his group of eight fighters to strafe opportunistically. He is credited with five victories, the last of which occurred on 10 August 1945, distinguishing him as the last fighter ace of World War II. Aust then served in the Air Force and participated in the Vietnam War. Just before his retirement, he worked at Bolling Air Force Base to develop the F-15. After all of his experience in fighters, his favorite plane is the P-40N.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Abner Aust. Aust joined the Army Air Forces in September 1941 and completed flight school in April 1943. He was assigned to Venice, Florida, as an instructor, often receiving extra runway duty on account of his mischievous acrobatics. In October 1944, he joined the 506th Fighter Group, 457th Fighter Squadron, as flight commander. Upon familiarizing himself with the P-51, he flew his first missions out of Tinian, moving next to Iwo Jima. While escorting B-29s, he sometimes broke away to lead his group of eight fighters to strafe opportunistically. He is credited with five victories, the last of which occurred on 10 August 1945, distinguishing him as the last fighter ace of World War II. Aust then served in the Air Force and participated in the Vietnam War. Just before his retirement, he worked at Bolling Air Force Base to develop the F-15. After all of his experience in fighters, his favorite plane is the P-40N.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with James Carnes. Carnes joined the Navy in 1944 before he finished high school. In the Navy, he became a signalman and was assigned to USS Norton Sound (AVM-1). Carnes was aboard when the ship went to Okinawa, where he describes being attacked by kamikaze aircraft. When the war ended, Carnes went to Japan briefly before returning to the US and receiving his discharge.