[Alberta special issue on the 70th anniversary of the anti-fascist victory] Zhang Zhaohong: The capture of Iwo Jima

[Alberta special issue on the 70th anniversary of the anti-fascist victory] Zhang Zhaohong: The capture of Iwo Jima Phoenix City Zhang Zhaohong Alberta Chinese Navy Dong M. Hom…

Phoenix Zhang Zhaohong Dong M. Hom of the Chinese-American Navy of the Province of Alberta is a ship navigation and communications officer. The ship is responsible for replenishing fuel to the fleet in the battles of Midway and Iwo Jima. Another Chinese sailor, Tom Bon Yee, was sent to serve on the battleship Missouri. The USS Missouri is the last battleship built in the United States, with a full load displacement of 58,000 tons. With a length of 270.4 meters and a hull width of 33 meters, it can just pass through the Panama Canal. The battleship has three powerful 16-inch-caliber main guns. It is the largest artillery gun ever installed on a battleship in the United States, and its range can reach 37 kilometers. The battleship USS Missouri was launched in 1944 and participated in the Battle of Iwo Jima and the Battle of Okinawa. It arrived at the Western Pacific frontline on January 13, 1945, and became the flagship of the fast aircraft carrier Teji formation. The special fleet has a total of 17 aircraft carriers, 8 battleships, 16 cruisers, and 77 destroyers. It is known as the most powerful fleet in history. On the 16th, the special formation dispatched a large number of carrier-based aircraft to bomb airports and aircraft manufacturing plants in the Tokyo area. On January 19, the battleship group participated in the battle against Iwo Jima, during which the battleship Missouri was hit by a kamikaze suicide plane. The Battle of Iwo Jima was a tragic battle between the U.S. and Japanese troops in World War II. Why did they attack Iwo Jima? This starts with the geographical location of Iwo Jima. After the Battle of Midway, the U.S. military prepared to capture the Japanese-occupied Iwo Jima in the Pacific and use it as an air base to bomb the Japanese mainland. Due to the important strategic position of Iwo Jima, the Japanese army had already built strong fortifications to mount a desperate and tenacious resistance. In July 1944, the Japanese army concentrated 23,000 troops on Iwo Jima. In terms of light and heavy weapons, there are 361 artillery pieces, as well as a large number of light mortars, naval guns, anti-aircraft guns, anti-tank guns, rocket launchers, rockets and light and heavy machine guns. Tanks are placed at strategic points and half-buried in the soil to prevent air attacks. The Japanese army also built very strong underground fortifications, extending in all directions, and the large bunker could even accommodate 300 to 400 people. Underground passages were built to connect all underground fortifications, and the food reserves were enough to last for two and a half months. Japanese Lieutenant General Tadamichi Kuribayashi adopted non-resistance tactics for the US troops to seize the beach. It was not until the leading US military troops entered 500 meters into the land that they launched a counterattack, using hidden fortifications to kill and injure the US military's effective forces at close range. In October 1944, the U.S. military had deployed 70,000 troops. Starting from December 8, B-24 bombers were dispatched to bomb Iwo Jima for 74 consecutive days, but no serious damage was caused to its underground fortifications. U.S. bombers concentrated on bombing the airport, and the Japanese army mobilized 600 people to repair the airport and 2,000 people to fill the bomb craters. It took only 12 hours to repair the airport. On February 15, 1945, six U.S. battleships and five cruisers, including the Missouri, bombarded the positions on Iwo Jima. At the same time, 12 landing craft were sent to feint, but the Japanese shelling caused 9 to lose their ability to move and 3 to be seriously injured. This exposed the location of the Japanese heavy guns, which were destroyed by the battleship's heavy shells. On February 19, the U.S. military began its offensive, with 100 bombers carrying out the bombing first. Gunboat fire kept up. The Japanese defense was tenacious and they fought for every inch of ground. The US military used flamethrowers and grenades to attack the bunker. On the 20th, the US military occupied Chidori Airport. Suribachi garrison captain Atsuji Kanehiko died in battle. On the 21st, 32 Japanese aircraft launched a deadly attack on the US military. Damage the US aircraft carrier Saratoga and sink an escort aircraft carrier. The U.S. military suffered 5,300 casualties and missing persons that day. On the 26th, the 2nd Battalion of the 28th Regiment of the 5th Marine Division of the US Army finally climbed Mount Suribachi to plant the Stars and Stripes. At 12:15, a larger flag was changed, and military reporter Joe Rosenthal took the famous photo of "U.S. Soldiers Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima." During the Battle of Iwo Jima, the U.S. military poured seawater or gasoline into the bunker's entrance to set it on fire, or attacked with grenades and flamethrowers. Unable to obtain any support, after the Japanese army put up a desperate resistance on Iwo Jima, many Japanese soldiers committed suicide with each other using grenades in the bunker. In the entire battle, 21,800 Japanese troops were killed, less than 1% of the 200 were captured, and the rest were all killed. The US military suffered 26,000 casualties, including 6,821 killed in action. The battle lasted until March 26, when Iwo Jima was completely controlled by the U.S. military. The US military built the island as an airport for fighter jets to take off. Under the protection of escort fighter jets, B-29 super bombers can bomb the Japanese mainland at medium and low altitudes and carry out strategic bombing of Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka, Japan. By the end of World War II, a total of 2,251 injured B29 bombers landed on Iwo Jima. The U.S. military saved the lives of about 25,000 B29 crew members at the cost of 6,800 sacrifices and 22,000 injuries. In addition, the U.S. military's huge casualties in the Battle of Iwo Jima also indirectly contributed to the U.S.'s final decision to drop atomic bombs on Japan.