James on the left was on Flight #21. He lived in Dallas and was coming home from church when he heard that the Japanese had attacked Pearl Harbor. James joined the Navy in 1944 and served aboard the U.S.S. Osterhaus which was a destroyer escort. He served as a gunner on a 20MM anti-aircraft gun. James remembers two Japanese planes coming towards his ship out of a rain storm bearing down on his ship. Luckily the planes were shot down before slamming into the Osterhaus. Jim on the right also was on flight #21. He joined the Navy at the end of the war in August, 1945.Jim crossed the Pacific 6 times on the U.S.S. President Adams which was a troop carrier. They carried Marines to the Philippines, Okinawa and Japan for occupation duty after the war ended. He was able to see Nagasaki where the second atomic bomb was dropped. Bill Croom, Historian.
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 14:38:16 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015