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Saipan Stories
Please submit your Saipan Stories. [email protected]
I
was there as a Navy Night-Fighter pilot. First at Marpi Point
and the horrors of suicide cliff. Next, based on A Japanese airstrip
renamed Kagman Field across from the B-29 field and Magacine
Bay. Even then, the devastation of war could not blot out the...
I understand where the Jap fighter strip was (Kagman) where
I usually flew from is now a housing area. I was also on
the Marpi Point air station for a few weeks before we were transferred
to the Marines to await the invasion assembly. With nothing
to do, and bored out of our minds, with a friend I climbed
down the cliff to go into the caves under suicide cliff where
we found numerous bodies and parts of bodies. The horror
of those memories has lasted me over 60 years. Another
of our pilots climbed up on the cliff over the Marpi runway and
let himself down over the face to look in a cave where a Jap
promptly shot him. We had movies overlooking the sea (we
set on bomb fin crates), sometimes the Japs (bored as well as
we) would sneak up without us knowing it and watch them with
us. Once, some of the new Marines saw them and we were caught
in a crossfire. It would be no doubt a lot different today
to see Saipan, but even then it was beautiful.
Thanks for your pictures. I would have a hard time recognizing
the island without the sound of aircraft engines from the departing
B-29s from Isley Field and Palm plus the constant drone of all
types of fighters, torpedo and bombing aircraft turning up and
disturbing my daytime sleep when we were on duty and sleeping
under the wings of our plane in sandbag revetments at Kagman.
Memories came flooding back ...There was a small O club (Japanese
pilots we heard) overlooking Magacine Bay where I would sometimes
watch the 29s barely make it off the end of the 3 runways, sink
dangerously close to the water and struggle onwards. Those
from Guam and Tinian would join into a wide river of
B-29s on the eastern side of the island heading north towards
Japan...while still only about 5,000 feet altitude.
Once, I went to see an acquaintance at Isley and watched them
load the bellies of those things with cluster fire bombs.
Later, a day or so after after the peace was signed and we were
anchored in Tokyo Bay, I had an opportunity to fly as a passenger
in a patrol plane over Hiroshima (about 100' in the air),
the emperors palace, Yokohama and Tokyo. I don't know which
was the most devastated. Of course, the palace only had
one small bomb crater behind the walls, which left it undamaged.
The bombing missions that spared it show how accurate those B-29
crews were. I did not realize at the time just how
lucky I was to be seeing this. General Macarthur himself
never had that opportunity.
James
Commander, Retired
Hello.
I may have discussed this with you before, but am feeling nostalgic
today! When I was almost 5 years old, my mother and I joined
my father on Saipan just after WWII ended, arriving on the USS
Samuel Chase. He was in the Navy and worked at Tanapag
and we lived in a quonset hut. While we were there for
13 months, I attended a school up on one of the mountains for
my 1st grade. There was also a typhoon while we were there
and we went up and stayed in an ammunition magazine near the
suicide cliff I think. I know it was a long way down from
just outside it. I also remember an area called "Circus
Beach" back then. I will be turning 67 in December
and my father just passed away in January. He also served
on the aircraft carrier Boxer and was an aviation metalsmith.
When he got out of the Navy, he went to medical school in Augusta,
GA, and eventually went into service to the Navy again as a doctor
in the Los Angeles area.
Anyway, sorry for all the narrative, but I did enjoy your
Pictures of Saipan website. I remember going down into
the Grotto and the picture of the entrance brought back some
memories too! Thanks.
John
I want to thank you for the comment.
I looked at your Saipan pictures and really enjoyed seeing what
Saipan looks now. I would love to go there but I am 83
years now. But in good health, just hi blood pressure but
my wife can't travel.
You have many pictures of places that were restricted areas and
there were Jap Soldiers still there while I was there.
Fourty five of them surrendered after I had been there 6 months.
I was there in 1945 - 1946.
The war ended while I was on the way down to Saipan so I spent
the rest of my time there. Thankful for that.
I did get to Korea while the war was still there. Some
of the pictures of Korea are on my blog. Did not have much
time to take pictures there. I was there in 1952.
I may have seen the jail but did not take pictures of it.
I did not get many rolls of Color film. We used Black and
White mostly and had a place at the Gas Generating plant to develope
them.
Al
http://saipankorea.blogspot.com/
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