Charles enlisted in the U.S.Navy in September, 1943 at the
age of 18. After basic training Charles was sent to gunnery school where he was
trained as an anti-aircraft gunner.
Charles was transferred
to the South Pacific on the newly commissioned Essex-class aircraft carrier
U.S.S. Shangri-La. This carrier was a radical departure in the naming
department! When news reporters asked president Roosevelt in 1942 where did the
B-25 Mitchell bombers take off from during the famous “30 Seconds over Tokyo”
raid, the president simply grinned and said ”Shangri-La!”
The carrier was the flagship of Admiral John McCain, the
father of current Senator John McCain. The ship participated in many actions towards
the end of the war in the Pacific. These include but aren’t limited to support
10th Army troops and Marines with air strikes on the island of Okinawa.
Later the Shangri-La launched aircraft which bombed the Japanese mainland during
July, 1945. Charles remembers firing at Japanese suicide planes including one
which just skimmed the deck of his ship before crashing into the sea on the
opposite side of the carrier.
The Shangri-La was
present in Tokyo Bay when the Japanese surrendered in September, 1945.
Charles was discharged in 1946.
No comments:
Post a Comment