For educational purposes
Commando, Flying Tiger, Avenger, Lightning, Zeke, Mitchell, Betty - these are the names that made World War II the most amazing air war ever.
Exciting action footage puts you in the cockpit of the Military's greatest fighters - from nimble P-51 Mustangs to the Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Discover little known air combat facts.
Meet the American and Japanese pilots who waged war over the Pacific.
Relive all the pivotal campaigns, and arial battles, from Pearl Harbor and Coral Sea to Midway and ultimate victory at Iwo Jima. Running time is Approx 50 minutes.
Commando, Flying Tiger, Avenger, Lightning, Zeke, Mitchell, Betty - these are the names that made World War II the most amazing air war ever.
Exciting action footage puts you in the cockpit of the Military's greatest fighters - from nimble P-51 Mustangs to the Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Discover little known air combat facts.
Meet the American and Japanese pilots who waged war over the Pacific.
Relive all the pivotal campaigns, and arial battles, from Pearl Harbor and Coral Sea to Midway and ultimate victory at Iwo Jima. Running time is Approx 50 minutes.
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LearningTranscript
00:00I
00:30Fighters like these American P-51 Mustangs
00:39were key players in the deadly drama
00:42of the Pacific Campaign in World War II.
00:46A campaign that began with Japan's surprise attack
00:49on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941,
00:53and ended shortly after the bombing of Hiroshima
00:57and later Nagasaki,
00:58where a single bomb destroyed each city
01:01in just a few seconds.
01:07In this special edition of Wings Over the Pacific,
01:11we will meet Japanese and American pilots
01:14who fought over the Pacific.
01:16Through archival footage and reenactments,
01:20we will see their aircraft in action
01:21and relive the major aerial campaigns
01:24of a battlefield that covered nearly
01:26one-third of the Earth's surface.
01:35Far from their home waters,
01:37Japanese pilots await orders.
01:40They are at sea preparing for war,
01:41and each day brings them closer to battle.
01:44As part of their samurai warrior tradition,
01:48they toast Japan and the Emperor.
01:51And in the days to come,
01:53Japanese crews will be preparing for a mission
01:55that will stun the world.
01:57The hopes and dreams of Imperial Japan
02:04rest with these aerial warriors.
02:06In late November of 1941,
02:11a Japanese strike force led by six aircraft carriers
02:15sails east under radio silence.
02:18A few days later,
02:22the commander of Japan's combined fleet,
02:24Admiral Yamamoto,
02:25sends a coded message to begin the attack.
02:29Climb Mount Nitake.
02:32The die is cast.
02:34Japan will strike at the U.S. Pacific fleet
02:37in Pearl Harbor
02:37on December 7, 1941.
02:40Yamamoto seeks a quick, decisive victory
02:46that will force America to the negotiating table
02:49on Japanese terms.
02:52The time has come.
02:54There is no turning back.
02:56The plan becomes reality.
02:59Almost 200 aircraft lift off
03:02to attack Pearl Harbor.
03:04The torpedo and dive bombers
03:05will strike at the American ships
03:07on Battleship Road,
03:09while other fighters and bombers
03:10target the airfields nearby.
03:15The Nakajima B-5N torpedo bomber,
03:19known to American intelligence officers
03:21as the Kate,
03:22leads the attack.
03:24Its deadly, long-lance torpedoes
03:26adjusted for the shallow waters
03:28of Pearl Harbor.
03:32The Aichi D-3A, codenamed Val,
03:35is a slow but highly maneuverable dive bomber.
03:38At Pearl Harbor,
03:39some valves carry modified
03:4116-inch armor-piercing shells
03:43as bombs to unload on the battleships.
03:51On this fateful December morning,
03:53the naval base
03:54and the men at Pearl Harbor
03:56are peaceful.
03:57The aircraft at Hickam Field
03:59are neatly lined up
04:01as if ready for inspection.
04:10Soldiers go about their lives
04:11oblivious to the reign of death
04:14and destruction
04:14heading their way.
04:15Although the breaking of diplomatic codes
04:22by the U.S.
04:23has suggested the possibility
04:25of hostile action,
04:27no extra security precautions
04:28are taken.
04:29At 7.49,
04:38the first wave
04:39of Japanese aircraft attack.
04:42The surprise is total.
04:44Failure to heed radar warnings
04:45prove disastrous
04:46and ships at dock
04:48are easy targets
04:50for Japanese bombers.
04:51A few aircraft
05:03even get in the air
05:04to protect the fleet.
05:06Most of the American planes
05:07are destroyed on the ground
05:08when the Japanese
05:09strike the airfields.
05:11For the U.S. Navy,
05:12there is but one consolation.
05:14Its carriers
05:15are out to sea,
05:17safe from the attack.
05:18As a young ensign,
05:25John LaCouture
05:26saw firsthand
05:27the chaos
05:28of that December morning.
05:30I got down
05:31to the officer's club landing
05:32and it was right across
05:34from Battleship Row
05:35and boy,
05:35I couldn't believe my eyes
05:37when I saw all those ships
05:38sinking and capsized.
05:41The Arizona
05:42had already sunk.
05:44Oklahoma had capsized
05:46and I think
05:48the West Virginia
05:49and the Nevada
05:50were badly damaged.
05:54Everything, of course,
05:55was mass confusion
05:56as we went by
05:57one of the airfields there.
05:59FYI, planes were coming in,
06:01some of them
06:01from the Enterprise
06:02and they were being shot down
06:03by our own people
06:04thinking it was
06:06a Japanese plane.
06:07At 8.40,
06:10the second Japanese
06:11strike force
06:12of 167 aircraft
06:14attacks
06:14but it meets
06:15much stronger resistance.
06:19Fighter pilot
06:19Yozo Fujita
06:20lost most of his squadron
06:22and witnessed
06:23what may have been
06:24the war's first
06:25kamikaze attack.
06:26when I went
06:30to Pearl Harbor
06:31I expected to die.
06:34I didn't expect
06:35to come back.
06:37It's a wonder
06:38that I returned.
06:41When we attacked
06:42they were ready
06:43for us
06:44so 3 out of 9
06:46planes
06:46never returned.
06:49I watched
06:50my group leader
06:51self-destruct.
06:53He used
06:54hand signals
06:55to tell us
06:56that he had
06:57no fuel
06:58and was going
07:00down
07:00to take out
07:01the target.
07:13Dense smoke
07:14from damaged ships
07:15hampers
07:16the second attack.
07:17Heavy resistance
07:18and the unknown
07:19location of
07:20American carriers
07:21cause the Japanese
07:22to break off
07:23the assault.
07:24At the end
07:26of the day
07:2618 American
07:28warships
07:28lie sunk
07:29or severely
07:30damaged
07:30in the shallow
07:31waters
07:31of Pearl Harbor.
07:33Nearly 200
07:34aircraft
07:34are destroyed
07:35most
07:36never having
07:37gotten off
07:38the ground.
07:39More than
07:402,400
07:41soldiers
07:42sailors
07:43and marines
07:44perish
07:45defending the fleet.
07:47The Japanese
07:47lose only
07:4828 aircraft
07:49and less
07:50than 50 men.
07:51for those
07:55who survived it
07:56the attack
07:57on Pearl Harbor
07:58is a swift
07:59intense
08:00preview
08:00of the ferocious
08:02air and sea war
08:03that will soon
08:04envelop
08:04the Pacific.
08:08In the war
08:09in the Pacific
08:10the battlefield
08:11is limitless sky
08:12and endless ocean
08:14a campaign
08:15far different
08:16from the landlocked
08:17battlefields
08:17of Europe.
08:20Aircraft carriers
08:21rule the seas.
08:23They are mobile
08:23airfields
08:24launching aircraft
08:25to strike at targets
08:26hundreds of miles away
08:28and important
08:29targets themselves.
08:32It is truly
08:33an aerial war
08:35and men
08:36their ships
08:37and their aircraft
08:38will determine
08:39the victor
08:39and vanquished
08:40of the Pacific
08:41campaign.
08:42Japan's aerial
08:49offensive
08:49continues
08:50on the Asian mainland
08:52a Nakajima
08:53Ki-43
08:54codename Oscar
08:55takes off
08:56to battle
08:56British forces
08:57in Southeast Asia.
09:04In 1941
09:06this is the
09:07Japanese army's
09:08most common fighter
09:09and though armed
09:10not only with a pair
09:11of 7.7 millimeter
09:12machine guns
09:13its maneuverability
09:15makes it a tough
09:15opponent
09:16for allied aircraft
09:17in the early days
09:18of the war.
09:24In Malaya
09:25the Philippines
09:26and the Dutch
09:27East Indies
09:28the Japanese
09:29neutralize
09:30allied air forces.
09:32All too frequently
09:32allied aircraft
09:34are caught
09:34on the ground
09:35easy targets
09:36for Japan's
09:37skilled pilots.
09:40battle-hardened
09:46Japanese troops
09:47advance with
09:47lightning speed.
09:49They easily
09:49defeat the poorly
09:50trained British
09:51troops
09:51unaccustomed
09:52to fighting
09:53in the jungles
09:54of Southeast Asia.
09:55The British
09:56will make their
09:56last stand
09:57at Singapore
09:58known as
09:59the Gibraltar
10:00of the East.
10:06On the naval front
10:08hundreds of
10:09Japanese aircraft
10:10scour the seas
10:11haunting
10:11like birds of prey
10:13for two British
10:14warships
10:14the Prince of Wales
10:16and the Repulse
10:17prior to Britain's
10:18Pacific fleet.
10:21The Mitsubishi
10:21G3L
10:22codenamed NEL
10:23leads Japan's
10:25search.
10:26It is their first
10:26modern land-based
10:27bomber
10:28and its
10:29exceptional range
10:30makes it an ideal
10:31aircraft for this
10:32mission.
10:33The two great
10:34British warships
10:35are sighted on the
10:36morning of December
10:3710th.
10:38Japanese planes
10:39begin the attack.
10:40The British ships
10:41have no aerial
10:42escorts to protect
10:43them and must
10:44twist and turn
10:45to avoid wave
10:46after wave of
10:47torpedo and
10:48bombing strikes.
10:50They are virtually
10:51defenseless against
10:52the withering
10:52assault from above.
10:54The Prince of Wales
10:55and the Repulse
10:56are doomed.
10:58By early afternoon
10:59both ships and
11:00more than 800
11:00of their men
11:01lie at the bottom
11:02of the sea.
11:03The Japanese
11:04have lost just
11:05three aircraft.
11:06the historic
11:07reign of the
11:08battleship
11:08is over.
11:09Japan rules
11:11the seas
11:11and the skies
11:12of the Pacific.
11:17The loss
11:18of the British
11:19ships leads
11:20to the
11:20unconditional
11:21surrender
11:21of Singapore
11:22to Japan.
11:23The foundation
11:24of Britain's
11:25imperial power
11:26in Asia
11:26is lost.
11:28Like a typhoon
11:30the Japanese
11:31have swept aside
11:32all opposition.
11:33in six months
11:34their land
11:35sea and air
11:37forces
11:37have redrawn
11:38the map
11:39of the world.
11:44By mid-1942
11:46Japan has gained
11:47control of nearly
11:48one-third of the
11:49Pacific.
11:52The aircraft
11:53leading Japan's
11:54air war
11:54is the Mitsubishi
11:55A6M
11:56code-named
11:57Zeke
11:57but more popularly
11:59known as
11:59the Zero.
12:01More than
12:0210,000
12:03are built
12:03during the course
12:04of the war.
12:05It is fast
12:06nimble
12:06and deadly.
12:10In 1942
12:11the Zero
12:12is the best
12:13performing fighter
12:14in the Pacific
12:15but the Zero's
12:16high performance
12:17does not come
12:17without cost.
12:19Its light armor
12:20and lack
12:21of self-sealing
12:21fuel tanks
12:22make it
12:23for many
12:23Japanese pilots
12:24a fiery
12:25sarcophagus.
12:28That Zero
12:28was a heck
12:29of a flying
12:30fast piece
12:31of equipment
12:32and you
12:33had darn well
12:33better respect it.
12:35When it came down
12:35on you
12:36better respect it.
12:37On my very
12:38first combat strike
12:39I was a tail-end
12:41Charlie
12:42of the whole
12:42darn strike
12:43of 48 TBS
12:44and out of the
12:46clouds
12:46came four Zero's
12:47and I hear
12:49my gunner scream
12:50and I got one
12:51I got one
12:51I said shut up
12:52and get another
12:53he did.
12:57If you like
12:58to fly
12:58you would prefer
12:59this airplane.
13:01We often
13:02wondered
13:02why they did
13:03the Japanese
13:04Zero
13:05did so many
13:06useless
13:07nip-ups.
13:08Well I'll tell you
13:08why they did it.
13:09Pilots enjoyed it.
13:11It was a fun airplane.
13:12In the case
13:19of the Zero
13:20in order
13:21to maximize
13:22its ability
13:23they sacrificed
13:25weight.
13:28To sacrifice
13:29weight
13:30means to have
13:31almost no armor.
13:36It's as if
13:37we were fighting
13:38with little knives
13:39from the sash
13:40of our loincloth
13:41while our enemies
13:43came in a suit
13:44of armor.
13:47One little slip
13:49and you were gone.
13:54I've seen many
13:55Zero's come apart
13:56with just
13:5710 or 12
13:57bullets into them.
13:59They were totally
13:59unprotected
14:00as far as
14:01armor plating
14:02and so forth.
14:03I think
14:04as far as
14:05the pilot experience
14:06goes
14:06the Japanese
14:07at that time
14:07were
14:08very experienced
14:10pilots.
14:10They were
14:10excellent gunners
14:11and the only
14:13way we survived
14:14was the fact
14:14that we had
14:15a more rugged
14:15airplane.
14:17The Grumman
14:18F4F Wildcat
14:19is the Navy's
14:20only carrier
14:21fighter
14:21at the start
14:22of the war.
14:23It is a tough
14:24rugged aircraft
14:25with self-sealing
14:26fuel tanks
14:27and an armored
14:28body that will
14:28save many
14:29a pilot's life.
14:31The toughness
14:32of the Wildcat
14:32along with its
14:33650 caliber
14:34machine guns
14:35enables pilots
14:36to hold their own
14:37against the more
14:38maneuverable
14:38zero fighters.
14:41As war rages
14:42in the Pacific
14:43back home
14:44America is
14:45on the lookout.
14:46Air defenses
14:47are readied
14:47as the country
14:48prepares for war.
14:56Remember Pearl Harbor
14:57is the battle cry
14:58of the day.
15:00Thousands of young men
15:01enter the surface.
15:02Women move into
15:03the factories
15:03replacing the men
15:04who go off
15:05to war.
15:06U.S. industry
15:07is quickly switching
15:08to wartime production.
15:10Aircraft come off
15:11the assembly line
15:12and pilots
15:12out of training school.
15:16Some Americans
15:17need no training.
15:19In China
15:20the American
15:20volunteer group
15:21later known
15:22as the Flying Tigers
15:23is ready for combat.
15:29Using the fighter
15:31tactics of its
15:31commander
15:32Colonel Claire Chenault
15:33the Curtis P-40 Tomahawks
15:35proved deadly
15:36to enemy aircraft.
15:42Flying Tiger veteran
15:44Ed Rector
15:45remembers Chenault.
15:47Chenault would lecture
15:48each arriving group
15:49at 7 a.m.
15:50in the morning
15:51a half hour
15:52to 45 minute lecture
15:54and then
15:56at 8 o'clock
15:57we would be out
15:58practicing tactics
15:59and maneuvers.
16:00he knew
16:04the Japanese
16:05Zero
16:06better than
16:07anyone.
16:08He had analyzed it
16:09he said
16:11do not
16:12ever
16:12ever
16:13try to
16:14turn
16:15with a Zero.
16:18If you do
16:19he will turn
16:20inside you
16:21within
16:21two turns
16:22and get you.
16:23if a fighter
16:27gets on
16:27your tail
16:28stick the nose
16:29down
16:30dive out
16:31and with that
16:32increased speed
16:34pull up
16:35and join
16:35the fray.
16:40Remember
16:40that he does
16:41not have
16:42self-sealing
16:42tanks
16:43like you do
16:44and you can
16:46perforate those
16:46tanks
16:47and cause him
16:48not to get
16:48home.
16:49With their
16:55distinctive
16:56shark tooth
16:56paint job
16:57the P-40s
16:58make good
16:59their image
16:59as vicious
17:00predators
17:00their half dozen
17:0212.7 millimeter
17:03machine guns
17:04are deadly
17:05and their sturdy
17:06construction
17:07enables them
17:08to survive
17:08using Chenault's
17:10hit and run
17:11tactics
17:11the Flying Tigers
17:13destroy more
17:14than 296
17:15aircraft
17:16while losing
17:16just 12
17:17of their own.
17:19It's not
17:20just the
17:20planes in
17:20the air
17:21but the
17:21supplies on
17:22the ground
17:23that keep
17:23the war
17:24going.
17:25When the
17:25Japanese
17:25close all
17:26land routes
17:27allied aircraft
17:28parts and
17:29fuel are
17:29bottlenecked
17:30in India.
17:32The only
17:32option is
17:33by air
17:34across a
17:3515,000 foot
17:36mountain range
17:37of turbulent
17:37winds,
17:38rugged peaks
17:39and lurking
17:40Japanese
17:40fighters.
17:41They call
17:42it the
17:42hump.
17:44Using aircraft
17:45like the
17:45Curtis C-46
17:46commando
17:47the air
17:47bridge to
17:48China
17:48becomes a
17:49lifeline
17:49to allied
17:50ground
17:51and air
17:51forces.
17:54We got
17:55by with
17:55less than
17:56one-fourth
17:57of the
17:57material
17:58of fighter
17:59groups
17:59say in
18:00Europe.
18:01Remember
18:02every bullet,
18:02every bomb,
18:04every gallon
18:05of fuel
18:06that we
18:06used
18:07was flown
18:08across the
18:08hump,
18:09airlifted.
18:10That became
18:11very, very
18:11dear
18:12in terms
18:13of cost.
18:15But it
18:15kept us
18:15fighting.
18:17It kept
18:17China in
18:18the war.
18:19Flying the
18:20hump proves
18:21perilous.
18:21More than
18:22450 aircraft
18:23will be lost
18:24transporting
18:25supplies into
18:26China.
18:27Aboard the
18:28USS Hornet,
18:29an even more
18:30perilous
18:30mission is
18:31prepared.
18:33Using B-25
18:34Mitchell medium
18:35bombs,
18:36modified with
18:37extra fuel
18:37tanks,
18:38Lieutenant Colonel
18:39James Dupital
18:40plans to
18:41lead America's
18:42first strike
18:43against the
18:43Japanese mainland.
18:45Doolittle's
18:45bold plan
18:46is to launch
18:47his land-based
18:48B-25s from
18:49the Hornet,
18:50attack Japan,
18:51then land in
18:52China after
18:53the strike.
18:54And by
18:54returning a
18:55captured Japanese
18:56medal, he
18:57will be sending
18:58a personal
18:58message to
18:59Tokyo.
19:01Doolittle's
19:01pilots have
19:02been practicing
19:02mock carrier
19:03take-offs for
19:04weeks.
19:05But are they
19:06ready for the
19:06real thing?
19:07Will the
19:08heavy planes
19:08make it into
19:09the air with
19:10such a
19:10short take-off?
19:12Airman Roy
19:12Stork remembers
19:13taking off.
19:14We'd cross our
19:15fingers and do
19:16a Hail Mary and
19:17say, well, I
19:18hope this Joker
19:19gets off.
19:21I thought the
19:22plane was going
19:23to vibrate
19:23apart.
19:25Everything was
19:26shaken, and
19:26then when we
19:26released the
19:27brakes, it
19:28smoothed out.
19:29We just
19:30jumped into
19:31the air.
19:31We had to
19:31push forward
19:33on the
19:33stick to
19:34keep from
19:35stalling up.
19:36It was
19:37amazing, much
19:38more than we
19:39expected.
19:40It was
19:42thrilling.
19:43It was
19:43thrilling.
19:49They came
19:50in barely
19:51over the
19:51water.
19:52When it
19:53lifted up,
19:53we saw a
19:54star on the
19:55side of the
19:55plane and
19:56realized it
19:57was an
19:57American
19:58plane flying
19:59over us to
20:00bomb a
20:01target.
20:02America was
20:03so brave to
20:04fly land-based
20:05planes off
20:06carriers.
20:07the low-flying
20:10B-25s meet
20:11little opposition
20:12as they
20:13strike Tokyo
20:13and three
20:14other Japanese
20:15cities.
20:16They were
20:22bragging about
20:23the fact that
20:24the Japanese
20:25mainland had
20:26not been
20:26attacked for
20:272,036 years.
20:30Well, after we
20:32hit, they
20:33weren't so proud
20:34of it anymore,
20:35I'll tell you
20:35that.
20:36For
20:37Doolittle's
20:37crews, it
20:38was a one-way
20:38mission.
20:39Fog and
20:40lack of fuel
20:40caused all
20:41the B-25s that
20:43bombed Japan to
20:44crash land in
20:45China.
20:46The Chinese
20:46rescue all but
20:48eight crew
20:48members who
20:49were captured
20:49by the
20:49Japanese.
20:51Three other
20:51airmen are
20:52killed in the
20:52crash landings.
20:55The airmen of
20:56Doolittle's raid
20:57on Japan become
20:58the war's first
20:59heroes.
21:00Today, a half
21:01century later,
21:02the bond between
21:03these brave men
21:04still endures.
21:06Each year, we
21:06toast the men
21:08who have gone
21:09and toast the
21:11ones that are
21:11alive.
21:12and it's up
21:14to the last
21:14two guys
21:15to drink a
21:18toast to
21:19everyone.
21:20When it's down
21:21to one, he'll
21:23drink a toast
21:23to all of us.
21:33The B-25 was
21:35made famous by
21:36the Doolittle
21:36raid on Tokyo.
21:38It was a very
21:39versatile and
21:40popular aircraft.
21:42By the end of
21:43the war, American
21:44workers had
21:45manufactured nearly
21:4610,000 of them.
21:48Many of these
21:49B-25s were sent
21:51to the Pacific
21:51with the mission
21:53of punishing
21:54and destroying
21:55Japanese naval
21:56and army forces.
22:01Winning the air
22:02war over the
22:03Pacific requires
22:04more than just
22:05a stout heart
22:06and steady hand.
22:07The seeds of our
22:08victory are found
22:09in the industrial
22:10heartland of
22:11America in its
22:12capacity and
22:13determination to
22:14outproduce the
22:15enemy.
22:16This is a victory
22:17also made possible
22:19by the men and
22:20women on the
22:20home front who
22:22worked day and
22:23night to produce
22:24hundreds of ships
22:25and thousands of
22:26aircraft.
22:30In 1942, only
22:32three American
22:33aircraft carriers are
22:34afloat.
22:35A year later,
22:36there are more
22:37than 50.
22:38By the end of
22:39the war, more
22:40than 100.
22:41By adapting
22:42civilian mass
22:43production techniques
22:44to military hardware,
22:45the United States
22:46is able to
22:47outproduce Japan.
22:49At the time of
22:50Pearl Harbor, the
22:51U.S. had 17,000
22:53aircraft on hand
22:54throughout the world.
22:55The Japanese,
22:56almost 7,000.
22:58By 1945, when
23:00the Japanese reached
23:01that level of 17,000
23:02planes, they will face
23:04more than 100,000
23:06American aircraft.
23:09To launch and
23:10retrieve aircraft is
23:12risky, backbreaking
23:13work.
23:14It is a dangerous
23:15dance between men
23:16and machines on a
23:17flight deck in
23:18constant motion.
23:19aircraft.
23:20Whether they are
23:40preparing for torpedo
23:41strikes or guiding home
23:43wounded aircraft, the deck
23:45crews are the lifeblood of
23:46the carrier, the air
23:48war's unsung heroes.
23:51The carrier's power is
23:53in its pilots and
23:54aircraft, and the
23:56Pacific, with its vast
23:57expanse of ocean, is the
23:58ideal theater for carrier
24:00warfare.
24:01USS Yorktown veteran, William
24:05Leonard, remembers the
24:06basic rule of combat.
24:08It was not any great
24:10mystery that if you
24:11didn't defend the carrier,
24:13you wouldn't have a place
24:14to hang your toothbrush,
24:15and it wouldn't have a
24:17nice place to come home.
24:19So, number one was
24:20defend the carrier.
24:22But, you can't defend the
24:24carrier by just standing
24:25there and manning the
24:26walls and the ramparts.
24:27You have to go out and
24:29get to the place where
24:31the trouble starts and
24:32try to put that place
24:33out of business.
24:38Leonard defended
24:39American carriers in the
24:40first battle between
24:42carriers in the Coral Sea
24:43in the spring of 1942.
24:51The Battle of the Coral Sea
24:53is two days of chaotic
24:55fighting.
24:55A shootout among obscuring
24:57clouds and mists.
25:00For the flight crews of
25:02the American carriers, it
25:03will be a trial by fire as
25:05they test themselves against
25:06veteran Japanese fighter
25:08and bomber pilots.
25:11Both sides have difficulty
25:13in finding and identifying
25:14their opponents.
25:16At one point, Japanese
25:17aircraft even attempt to
25:19land on American carriers.
25:20At the end of the battle,
25:25despite losing a carrier,
25:27the U.S. Navy has
25:28stopped the enemy's
25:29expansion into New Guinea
25:30and destroyed Japan's
25:32aura of invincibility.
25:35The stage is now set
25:36for the most decisive
25:38naval battle of the
25:39Pacific campaign.
25:40At a place called
25:41Midway.
25:42Chester W. Nimitz,
25:46commander of the
25:46Pacific Fleet,
25:48using information
25:49obtained from broken
25:50Japanese secret codes,
25:52orders three American
25:54carriers to Midway.
25:56Here, the task force
25:57will intercept
25:58Yamamoto's battle group
26:00of six aircraft carriers.
26:02On Midway Island,
26:04it becomes a waiting game.
26:06On June 3rd, 1942,
26:25the waiting ends.
26:26The Japanese strike
26:27at Midway's airstrip.
26:29But unlike Pearl Harbor,
26:30radar warnings have been
26:32heated and most U.S.
26:33planes are aloft.
26:35Damage is minimal.
26:36As the strikes
26:41continue on Midway,
26:43U.S. carriers
26:43secretly launch
26:44their attack.
26:46What killed
26:47the Japanese attack
26:49at Midway?
26:51It was dive bombers.
26:54The dive bombers
26:55were able to dive
26:56on three of the
26:57Japanese carriers
26:58without any
26:59fighter opposition.
27:01And you say,
27:02well, where were
27:03all these vaunted
27:04Japanese Zeros?
27:05Well, I'll tell you
27:06where the Zeros were.
27:08They were down
27:09at sea level,
27:10practically,
27:11shooting at our
27:11torpedo planes.
27:13The Japanese,
27:14for a very good reason,
27:15were terrified
27:16at the thought
27:17of torpedo attack
27:19from torpedo planes.
27:20I was the only one chasing
27:27them.
27:28I didn't want
27:31the carrier attack,
27:32so I fired
27:33toward the enemy.
27:35And as I lifted up,
27:37I saw two of them
27:38falling.
27:39weapons.
27:41We were taught
27:42that Americans
27:43were afraid.
27:45I don't think so.
27:47In that 20-plane formation,
27:50as planes were shut down,
27:52the rest would fill in
27:54and go forth
27:55bravely.
27:57I was very impressed.
28:09Basically,
28:10it was the torpedo planes
28:11that kept the fighters down.
28:14Torpedo 8
28:15was the first
28:16to sight
28:17the Japanese fleet.
28:19My understanding
28:20is that Walden
28:21tried to call
28:21the fighters down
28:22to give him
28:22some protection,
28:24but they didn't
28:24come down.
28:25so they went in.
28:28And one by one,
28:30we're all shot down.
28:34The Douglas SBD
28:36Dauntless dive bombers
28:37proved the loss
28:39of the low-flying
28:39American torpedo bombers
28:41not to be in vain.
28:43They attack,
28:44virtually unchallenged
28:46by the Japanese fighters.
28:48The Japanese carriers
28:49are now alone
28:50and vulnerable.
28:55The dive bombers
28:57came in
28:58and there were
28:59no fighters.
29:00They just had
29:01a clear shot.
29:02The carriers' decks
29:03were completely loaded
29:04with ammunition
29:05and bombs
29:07and the dive bombers
29:09were able
29:10to make runs
29:10without any
29:11fighter interference
29:12at all.
29:13That's how they won
29:13the battle.
29:15Midway ends
29:16Japan's dream
29:17of empire.
29:18They will never
29:19recover from the loss
29:20of four carriers
29:21and 234
29:23of their best pilots.
29:25Two months
29:31after Midway,
29:32the Pacific War
29:32shifts to the Solomon Islands
29:34where Japan
29:35will lose
29:36its more experienced
29:37pilots,
29:38many of them
29:38at Guadalcanal,
29:40which became known
29:40to the Japanese
29:41as the Island of Death.
29:46Located south
29:47of Japan's
29:48major naval
29:48and air base
29:49at Rebald,
29:50Guadalcanal
29:51threatens allied
29:52supply lines.
29:53to stop
29:55the Japanese
29:56construction
29:57of an air base,
29:58American troops
29:59invade Guadalcanal.
30:01It is the first
30:01allied amphibious
30:03action
30:03of the Pacific.
30:11The Guadalcanal campaign
30:13is the beginning move
30:14of a land,
30:15sea,
30:16and air campaign
30:17to recover
30:18the Solomons
30:18and force
30:19Japan
30:20from Rebald.
30:22After the capture
30:23of Guadalcanal,
30:24American engineers
30:25quickly complete
30:26and then expand
30:27the airstrip.
30:29It will be known
30:29as Henderson Field.
30:32When we got
30:33to Guadalcanal,
30:34I didn't believe
30:35that you could be
30:36standing in mud
30:37and have dirt
30:38blowing in your face.
30:39That was the
30:40darndest bit of island
30:41I've ever been on
30:42in my life.
30:42For the next
30:45six months,
30:46U.S. troops
30:47defend Henderson Field
30:48from land,
30:49sea,
30:50and air attacks
30:51as the Japanese
30:52seek to regain
30:53control of the island.
30:55The long-range
30:55capabilities
30:56of their bombers
30:57and fighters
30:57allow Japanese
30:58strikes against
30:59Guadalcanal
31:00from as far away
31:01as Rabaul.
31:04Leading many
31:05of the Japanese
31:06bombing missions
31:06is the Mitsubishi
31:08G4M,
31:09codenamed Betty.
31:10It has great range,
31:12but like so many
31:12Japanese aircraft,
31:14it offers little
31:15armored protection
31:16for its seven-man crew.
31:18From August
31:19to November
31:19of 1942,
31:21nearly 100
31:22Japanese Bettys
31:23are lost
31:24at Guadalcanal.
31:25Avenger pilot
31:26Doug LaPierre
31:27recalls a Betty
31:28nicknamed
31:29Washing Machine Charlie.
31:31Washing Machine Charlie
31:32was the Japanese
31:33bomber that came down
31:34to the islands
31:35every night
31:35just to annoy people
31:37and drop one or two bombs
31:38and keep you awake.
31:39We had one night
31:41run against Rabaul
31:42where we all flew in
31:43over Hospital Ridge
31:44and dropped torpedoes
31:47and the fun part
31:49of that one was
31:50Washing Machine Charlie
31:52was returning
31:52to Rabaul
31:54as we were flying out.
31:56All the searchlights,
31:57Japanese searchlights,
31:58went up on poor
31:59old Washing Machine Charlie
32:00and I could just picture
32:02what he was screaming
32:02down at them
32:03and they shot him
32:04out of the sky
32:05as we ducked
32:06out of there
32:06about 50 feet
32:07above the water
32:08and went home.
32:10LaPierre's plane,
32:12the Grumman TBF Avenger,
32:14originally designed solely
32:15as a torpedo bomber,
32:17proved so adaptable
32:19that it soon becomes
32:20the only bomber
32:21an aircraft carrier needs.
32:23Grumman would build
32:24over 10,000
32:25and by 1943,
32:28the Avenger would be
32:30the most common
32:31of carrier bombs.
32:36When the TBF
32:37went aboard ship,
32:38it was the heaviest
32:39and largest
32:40carrier-based airplane
32:42that had ever been
32:43constructed.
32:44The government
32:46gave Grumman,
32:48who was the designer
32:49and the original manufacturer,
32:51a very simple requirement.
32:54They used what we lovingly
32:56referred to as
32:57the KISS principle.
32:59Keep it simple, stupid.
33:03Rugged and reliable,
33:05the Avenger helped
33:05stop Japan
33:06from retaking Guadalcanal.
33:09As Allied Air Forces
33:10gained control of the air,
33:12Japan is no longer able
33:13to support its troops
33:14isolated on many islands
33:16throughout the Pacific.
33:19In January of 1943,
33:22Japan abandons Guadalcanal.
33:24The prolonged battle
33:25has decimated the ranks
33:26of her veteran pilots.
33:29Those pilots
33:29had received 700 hours
33:31of flight training.
33:33By contrast,
33:34the new Japanese recruits
33:35receive only 150 hours.
33:38They are brave,
33:40but very inexperienced.
33:42We were able
33:43to rescue our pilots,
33:44put them back
33:46with all the experience
33:48they had,
33:49and the Japanese
33:50kept losing pilots
33:51and obviously
33:52had no real replacements
33:54for them.
33:56As the war went on,
33:56we got stronger
33:57and they got weaker.
34:00Throughout the Pacific,
34:02Allied air power
34:03isolates Japanese garrisons.
34:05In New Guinea,
34:06control of the air
34:07enables American paratroopers
34:09to drop unchallenged
34:11behind enemy lines.
34:14Spearheading the drive
34:15to liberate New Guinea
34:16and the Philippines
34:17is the 5th Air Force.
34:19Using unorthodox bombing tactics,
34:22the 5th is relentless
34:23in its attacks
34:24on Japanese ships
34:25and bases.
34:28Their slowly descending
34:29paramombs
34:30allow low-flying aircraft
34:32to escape the shockwave
34:34of the released bomb's explosion.
34:40Another low-altitude
34:41bombing technique
34:42used by B-25s
34:43skips bombs
34:45into the side
34:45of an enemy ship.
34:48Other B-25s,
34:50modified with forward-firing guns,
34:52strafe enemy vessels.
34:54In the Bismarck Sea,
34:56they sink a troop convoy
34:57from Revolve,
34:58ending Japanese aspirations
35:00in New Guinea.
35:06Despite the dominance
35:07of Allied air forces,
35:09the victories are not
35:10without pain
35:11and sacrifice.
35:13The burial at sea
35:14of a dead pilot
35:15in his battered plane
35:16is a sad reminder
35:18of the cost of war.
35:20For both sides,
35:21there will be many more
35:22pilots and planes
35:23committed to the deep
35:25before this war is over.
35:37Unlike the Japanese,
35:39some U.S. pilots
35:40can be rotated back home
35:41to train new recruits.
35:43Some of these veteran airmen
35:45become the subjects
35:46of war bond
35:47and recruiting films.
35:53You see,
35:56it's a matter of teamwork.
35:58It's the plane
35:59and the engines
35:59and the guns.
36:01It's the pilot
36:02and all the rest
36:02of the squadron.
36:04It's the guys in the air
36:05and the crew
36:06on the ground.
36:07You people back here
36:09will build the planes
36:10and push these changes
36:11through for us.
36:12The riveters,
36:13the welders,
36:14the assemblers,
36:16the foremen,
36:16and all the rest.
36:17I don't know
36:19how to say it exactly.
36:21It's just something
36:22you've got to feel.
36:24It's a team
36:24all pulling together.
36:26And when it's
36:27clicking right,
36:28well,
36:29you just can't beat it,
36:30that's all.
36:31Rated by many
36:32as the best fighter
36:33of the war,
36:34the F4U Corsair
36:35is superior to the Zero
36:37in almost every
36:38performance category.
36:40Though early models
36:41have some difficulty
36:42landing on aircraft
36:43carriers at first,
36:44they soon become
36:46the plane of choice
36:47for many carrier pilots.
36:51I hate Corsairs
36:53because they shot down
36:55so many of my men.
36:57Just hearing the name
36:59makes me angry.
37:04Entering combat in 1943,
37:07the Corsair is one
37:08of the most effective
37:09Allied fighter planes
37:10of the war.
37:11Losing less than 200
37:12of their own aircraft,
37:14Corsair pilots
37:15shoot down more than
37:162,000 enemy planes.
37:20A deadly partner
37:22of the Corsair
37:23is the P-38 Lightning.
37:25It is used extensively
37:26in Europe
37:26as well as the Pacific.
37:28It becomes famous
37:29in the Solomons
37:30as the aircraft
37:31that takes part
37:32in the longest
37:33fighter intercept
37:34operation of the war,
37:35the mission
37:36to hunt down
37:37Admiral Yamamoto.
37:40On April 18, 1943,
37:43an enemy Mitsubishi
37:45Betty Bomber
37:45carrying Admiral Yamamoto
37:47departs on an inspection
37:49tour of Japanese bases.
37:53From monitoring
37:54secret Japanese codes,
37:56the Allies know
37:57the exact schedule
37:58of Yamamoto's mission.
38:00the order is given
38:01to intercept his plane.
38:04Loaded with extra fuel tanks
38:06to accommodate
38:07the 435-mile mission,
38:1016 P-38s,
38:12led by pilot
38:12John Mitchell,
38:13prepare for the
38:14aerial intercept.
38:16As part of the kill team,
38:17Rex Barber's orders
38:18were to go after
38:19Yamamoto's plane.
38:21We knew we were
38:22after Yamamoto,
38:23and we had instructions
38:26from headquarters
38:28at all costs
38:31to get him.
38:33Well, we had to find him
38:34first,
38:35and then we had
38:35to get him.
38:36And we really thought
38:37we would fly up there
38:38and come back
38:39and have done nothing.
38:40We'd have been
38:41to find him.
38:42Because if you've
38:43done much flying,
38:45you know how difficult
38:47it would be
38:48to intercept an airplane
38:50on those conditions.
38:51That's what
38:52surprised everybody,
38:54was the bogey's
38:5511 o'clock high call.
38:58There he was.
39:02For Zero pilot
39:04Kinji Yanagiya,
39:05it was a deadly surprise.
39:14It was a ceremonial escort.
39:16I never dreamed
39:18that we would be
39:18attacked by P-38s
39:20and have the
39:23admiral shot down.
39:26They came in
39:27from behind us,
39:28low, below the jungle,
39:29and I was not
39:31able to protect him.
39:34The P-38s
39:35strike quickly.
39:36Yamamoto's aircraft,
39:51one of the two
39:52beddies to go down,
39:53crashes through
39:54the jungle canopy.
39:55For Yamamoto,
39:57the war is over.
39:59The Japanese Empire
40:01loses its leading figure,
40:03a warrior whose strategic vision
40:05will never be replaced.
40:12By the end of the war,
40:14more than 8,000 P-38s
40:16have been built.
40:18Designed as a high-altitude
40:19interceptor,
40:19it uses its high speed
40:22and its superior altitude
40:23to dive at opponents,
40:25its nose-mounted cannon
40:26and .50 caliber machine guns
40:28blazing.
40:31The lightning is deadly.
40:33It shoots down
40:34more Japanese aircraft
40:35than any other U.S. plane.
40:38The mobility and power
40:40of American carrier task forces
40:42enable the U.S. Pacific fleet
40:44to attack anywhere
40:45in the Pacific.
40:46John Condon remembers
40:48the awesome scale
40:49of carrier operations.
40:51People were awestruck
40:53when they'd take off
40:55and go up
40:56and look,
40:58and as far as you could see,
41:00there were carriers
41:01and capital ships,
41:04battleships and cruisers
41:06and just literally
41:09hundreds and hundreds of them.
41:13By 1944,
41:15Allied forces are advancing
41:16on the Philippines
41:17and closing in on Japan.
41:19Japanese and American carriers
41:21would duel again
41:22in the Marianas.
41:27In the Marianas,
41:28the Japanese fleet
41:29supported by land-based bombers
41:31waits for the advancing
41:33American forces.
41:34Though both sides
41:35have the same number
41:36of aircraft,
41:37there is now
41:38a great difference
41:39in the quality
41:39of those pilots and planes.
41:43We went home,
41:44came back,
41:45and came back in Hellcats.
41:47And it was a totally
41:48different war
41:49in Hellcats.
41:51By the time
41:51we got back,
41:52we had,
41:54oh, first,
41:54we'd go on fighter sweeps.
41:56We'd have 250 fighters.
41:58They called us
41:59the big blue blanket.
42:02Though less maneuverable
42:03than a zero,
42:04the Hellcat is superior
42:05in speed, armor,
42:07and high-altitude performance.
42:09Over the course of the war,
42:10the Hellcat will shoot down
42:12more than 6,000 Japanese aircraft,
42:1575% of all Navy kills,
42:18at a cost of 270 U.S. planes.
42:21The Hellcat was perfectly suited.
42:26It had armor,
42:27it had the firepower,
42:29it had the maneuverability,
42:30it had the performance
42:31that we needed,
42:32and it could do everything
42:34except really outturn
42:35a Japanese airplane
42:36on a one-on-one basis.
42:39And, of course,
42:39with the tactics we used,
42:41very seldom did we get
42:42on a one-on-one basis.
42:45You know,
42:45we lived in the thing
42:46we called
42:47a target-rich environment.
42:48But it was never a problem
42:50of finding them,
42:51it was a problem
42:51of surviving.
42:55We survived,
42:56mainly because we just
42:57fired and forgot about them.
42:59And you turned
43:00and somebody else was there
43:01and you fired at them
43:02and you turned back immediately
43:03and you had to keep turning
43:05to make sure your tail was,
43:07there's nobody sitting
43:08on your tail.
43:11We tried to keep,
43:13keep the fight
43:14in the same area
43:15so that all of us
43:17could cover each other
43:18and you can imagine
43:20what that is,
43:21a big melee
43:21with 40 or 50 airplanes
43:23just going all directions.
43:34The Hellcat dominates the sky.
43:37In what will become known
43:38as the Mariana's Turkey Chute,
43:40373 Japanese planes
43:42are lost to better aircraft
43:44and better pilots.
43:48From recently captured air bases
43:54in the Mariana's,
43:55a new bombing campaign begins.
43:58The destination is Japan
43:59and the aircraft,
44:01the Boeing B-29 Superfortress.
44:04With its 141-foot wingspan
44:06and 20,000-pound bomb load,
44:09the B-29 is the largest
44:10and most powerful bomber
44:12of the war.
44:13It is also the most innovative.
44:16Heated and pressurized cabins
44:18allow the 10-man crew
44:20to work at high altitudes
44:21without oxygen masks
44:23and bulky flight gear.
44:26Its computerized gun control system
44:29allows the B-29's
44:3012 .50 caliber machine guns
44:32to provide deadly protection
44:34against hostile aircraft.
44:36As the key weapon
44:43in a strategic bombing campaign
44:45of Japan,
44:46the B-29
44:47rains death and destruction
44:49on Japanese cities
44:50and industries.
44:52Traditional bombing
44:52proves much less effective
44:54than firebombing,
44:55which burns to the ground
44:57huge portions
44:58of Japan's cities
44:59with their wooden structures.
45:00Just 450 miles from Japan,
45:11Iwo Jima's island defenses
45:13are softened
45:13for an amphibious assault.
45:16A key element
45:16in the B-29 bombing campaign,
45:19the capture of Iwo Jima,
45:20will create a life raft
45:22for crippled B-29s
45:23and an air base
45:24for fighter support.
45:26For those who will hit the beach,
45:28Iwo Jima becomes a nightmare
45:30of death and destruction.
45:32It is an island
45:32of volcanic ash
45:33that looks like a hell on earth.
45:37Soldiers on the ground
45:38call for air-to-ground support.
45:41Since there is no aerial opposition,
45:43some corsairs and hellcats
45:44are modified solely
45:45for support missions
45:46of bombing and straining.
45:51Iwo Jima is a deadly killing field.
45:54It is a battle
45:54waged on the ground
45:55to support the battles
45:57waged in the air.
45:58A battle won by marines
46:00advancing inch by inch,
46:02fighting an enemy
46:03determined to resist
46:04to the last man.
46:05The cost is high,
46:07but Iwo Jima falls.
46:11Over the course of the war,
46:12more than 2,000 aircraft,
46:14unable to make it
46:15all the way back
46:16to the Marianas,
46:17find a temporary home
46:18at Iwo Jima.
46:22Based permanently,
46:23there are North American
46:24P-51 Mustangs.
46:26They provide fighter cover
46:28for the Super Fortress.
46:30Near the end
46:31of the Pacific Campaign,
46:33Mustangs,
46:34similar to this one,
46:35spend much of the war
46:37escorting B-29s
46:38over Japan.
46:40Its agility
46:41and maneuverability
46:42make it the favorite
46:43of many pilots
46:44as they sweep the sky
46:46free of Japanese aircraft.
46:48And what?
46:56What?
46:57What?
46:57How does it seem
46:57to have before?
46:58What?
46:58How does it seem
46:59to have been
47:11to be held on the ground?
47:12Free of escort beauties, the Mustang is an effective fighter-bomber for tactical airstrikes
47:24against Japanese industries.
47:34By 1945, Japan has few aircraft that can challenge the American domination of the air.
47:41Increasingly vanquished, growing ever more desperate, Japan now looks to the gods for
47:54a weapon to save the sacred homeland.
47:58That weapon will be the kamikaze.
48:01Their ceremonial headbands are symbolic ties to the warrior tradition and the samurai ethic
48:07of self-sacrifice for the honor of one's ancestors, one's emperor, one's country.
48:14Such willingness to die for a cause makes the kamikaze pilots deadly weapons against whose
48:20lethal suicidal attacks there is little defense.
48:25Since their deaths are deaths of honor, to face a kamikaze attack is to face a force that
48:30goes beyond planes and bombs to a deeply spiritual dedication.
48:36The kamikaze are human bombs.
48:39Their missions, one-way flights to death and eternal glory.
48:43There are two types of kamikaze.
48:48The veterans, like myself, who lost at Rabao, lost at the Philippines and stayed alive.
48:55Later, there were young ones from the mainland.
49:02Those people who had only flown for half a year.
49:06I didn't understand these student soldiers who wished to die as a kamikaze.
49:14Many of the veterans had seen most of their comrades shut down and were losing hope.
49:21So this was the only way out.
49:35In defense of Okinawa, the kamikaze attack on April 6, 1945.
49:40Radar-controlled American 80 aircraft batteries take their toll on any planes that manage to
49:45escape the prowling Hellcats and Corsairs.
49:49The kamikaze sink 26 ships at a cost of more than 1,900 of their own aircraft.
49:55But for all of its power and will, Japan's suicide weapon will not be able to protect
50:01its homeland from the final American attack.
50:11Japanese Zeros, like these, fought doggedly to attack Allied positions and defend the Imperial
50:17Empire.
50:18However, by 1945, Japan's Air Force was nearly wiped out.
50:25America ruled the air.
50:29Its scientists had produced the only weapon that could tame the unconquerable spirit of
50:35the Japanese, who were prepared to resist to the last man.
50:54On September 15, 1945, little more than a month after the atomic bomb attacks on Hiroshima
51:00and Nagasaki, Japan surrenders unconditionally.
51:05Finally, the door is closed on the Second World War, and the dawning of the nuclear age initiates
51:13a new chapter in military aviation and world history.
51:17stated in Army of the military square, which will be yielded as the second.''
51:25It is the power and deteriorated for the Japanese empire, which Lamerta and Conservatory
51:29was met on the extension of ourred to the civilian chemistry planet.
51:30OnlyAy dance and combat personnel in militaryvana.
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