The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Roy Burley. Burley was born in Halletsville, Texas 29 October 1923. Following his graduation from high school in San Antonio, he attended Prairie View A & M College. While in college, he served for three years in the Enlisted Reserve Corps. In May 1943 he was called to active duty and went to Camp Maxey at Paris, Texas. Selected to continue his college education, he was sent to Howard University in Washington DC. After completing one semester he was ordered to report to the 1318th Engineer General Service Regiment as a surveyor. After working on the construction of an air strip in North Carolina, he volunteered to attend Officers Candidates School. After ninety days of training at Fort Benning, Georgia, he was commissioned a second lieutenant. He then went to Fort Huachuca, Arizona, where he joined the 372nd Infantry Regiment as a rifle platoon leader in Company C. After the unit had set sail for Hawaii a message was received that the 372nd was deactivated. Upon arrival in Hawaii, he was assigned to the Transportation Corps and sent to the Philippines where he reported to a trucking battalion. …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James G Rabalais. Rabalais joined the Army in 1943 and volunteered for parachute school. He joined the 188th Parachute Regiment in the Philippines, training on bazookas and flamethrowers while there. He was assigned to patrol jungle areas and never encountered any enemies. In preparation for the invasion of Japan, he made test jumps out of modified B-24 bomb bays; normally, he would jump from C-46 Commandos and C-54 Skymasters. After the surrender, he was instructed to scale a mountain in Japan with the goal of contacting people on the other side, but the snow was too deep. Rabalais returned home and was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Leslie Collins. Collins joined the Army in 1942. He completed eight weeks of infantry training and then traveled to Australia and New Guinea with the 41st Division and participated in eleven beach landings. While overseas he volunteered to serve as a combat medic, though having had little training. He provides some details of combat in the jungles of New Guinea, the natives and the materials he used as a medic on the island. Collins was one of 33 in his medical outfit, and only 2 were not killed or wounded. They made a landing on Hollandia, where Collins describes the Japanese bombing their outfit. He also served in the Philippines until August of 1945. He was discharged in January of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Herbert Hinckley. Hinckley joined the Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Upon completion of radio school he was assigned to USS LST-391. Shuttling supplies between Oran and Tunisia, he survived extensive bombings which haunted him for some time after the war. At Sicily, with Army Air Forces paratroopers caught in friendly fire, Hinckley frantically relayed a ceasefire message to an unsympathetic captain who was more concerned with the Stukas overhead. After taking Palermo, Hinckley was sitting at a dinner table when German soldiers arrived, asking to surrender. In Salerno, his LST took badly burned men onboard, and at Naples he was strafed. His LST was then fitted with rails to enable delivery of boxcars to France. Hinckley’s LST brought Patton’s jeep to Normandy. After Hinckley’s LST was sunk three times in Cherbourg, he was reassigned to the Pacific, finishing the war on LST-112. After his discharge in January 1946, he embarked on a career in the Air Force, ultimately becoming chief of flight medicine at Dyess Air Force Base.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with John Frasher. Frasher joined the Marine Corps in September of 1943. He provides details of his training. He served as a pilot in a Corsair in Marine Aircraft Group 51 (MAG-51). He served on the carrier USS Gilbert Islands (CVE-107). He provides some details of his experiences catapulting off, and landing on, the carrier. Beginning in April of 1945 he participated in the Battle of Okinawa, covering landings and completing daily bomb runs in the Sakishima Islands. He also covered Australian landings that occurred in Balikpapan, Borneo. He strafed air strips on Formosa and made over 50 carrier landings. He shares some of his experiences of life aboard the carrier. He was discharged in December of 1945.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with Leslie Collins. Collins joined the Army in 1942. He completed eight weeks of infantry training and then traveled to Australia and New Guinea with the 41st Division and participated in eleven beach landings. While overseas he volunteered to serve as a combat medic, though having had little training. He provides some details of combat in the jungles of New Guinea, the natives and the materials he used as a medic on the island. Collins was one of 33 in his medical outfit, and only 2 were not killed or wounded. They made a landing on Hollandia, where Collins describes the Japanese bombing their outfit. He also served in the Philippines until August of 1945. He was discharged in January of 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Herbert Hinckley. Hinckley joined the Navy after the attack on Pearl Harbor. Upon completion of radio school he was assigned to USS LST-391. Shuttling supplies between Oran and Tunisia, he survived extensive bombings which haunted him for some time after the war. At Sicily, with Army Air Forces paratroopers caught in friendly fire, Hinckley frantically relayed a ceasefire message to an unsympathetic captain who was more concerned with the Stukas overhead. After taking Palermo, Hinckley was sitting at a dinner table when German soldiers arrived, asking to surrender. In Salerno, his LST took badly burned men onboard, and at Naples he was strafed. His LST was then fitted with rails to enable delivery of boxcars to France. Hinckley’s LST brought Patton’s jeep to Normandy. After Hinckley’s LST was sunk three times in Cherbourg, he was reassigned to the Pacific, finishing the war on LST-112. After his discharge in January 1946, he embarked on a career in the Air Force, ultimately becoming chief of flight medicine at Dyess Air Force Base.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with James G Rabalais. Rabalais joined the Army in 1943 and volunteered for parachute school. He joined the 188th Parachute Regiment in the Philippines, training on bazookas and flamethrowers while there. He was assigned to patrol jungle areas and never encountered any enemies. In preparation for the invasion of Japan, he made test jumps out of modified B-24 bomb bays; normally, he would jump from C-46 Commandos and C-54 Skymasters. After the surrender, he was instructed to scale a mountain in Japan with the goal of contacting people on the other side, but the snow was too deep. Rabalais returned home and was discharged in 1946.

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Roy Burley. Burley was born in Halletsville, Texas 29 October 1923. Following his graduation from high school in San Antonio, he attended Prairie View A & M College. While in college, he served for three years in the Enlisted Reserve Corps. In May 1943 he was called to active duty and went to Camp Maxey at Paris, Texas. Selected to continue his college education, he was sent to Howard University in Washington DC. After completing one semester he was ordered to report to the 1318th Engineer General Service Regiment as a surveyor. After working on the construction of an air strip in North Carolina, he volunteered to attend Officers Candidates School. After ninety days of training at Fort Benning, Georgia, he was commissioned a second lieutenant. He then went to Fort Huachuca, Arizona, where he joined the 372nd Infantry Regiment as a rifle platoon leader in Company C. After the unit had set sail for Hawaii a message was received that the 372nd was deactivated. Upon arrival in Hawaii, he was assigned to the Transportation Corps and sent to the Philippines where he reported to a trucking battalion. …

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an interview with John Frasher. Frasher joined the Marine Corps in September of 1943. He provides details of his training. He served as a pilot in a Corsair in Marine Aircraft Group 51 (MAG-51). He served on the carrier USS Gilbert Islands (CVE-107). He provides some details of his experiences catapulting off, and landing on, the carrier. Beginning in April of 1945 he participated in the Battle of Okinawa, covering landings and completing daily bomb runs in the Sakishima Islands. He also covered Australian landings that occurred in Balikpapan, Borneo. He strafed air strips on Formosa and made over 50 carrier landings. He shares some of his experiences of life aboard the carrier. He was discharged in December of 1945.