Navajo code talkers were instrumental in taking the island. While Blacks were still not allowed on frontline duty because of segregation, they piloted amphibious trucks full of White and Latino Marines to the beaches at Iwo Jima, moved ammunition and supplies to the front, buried the dead and fought off surprise attacks from Japanese defenders. Marines carrying a Japanese prisoner from stockade on Iwo Jima, 1945. More Gallantry Was on Display at Iwo Jima Than Any Other Battle Before or Since Only 216 Japanese troops were taken prisoner. This means 850 Americans died for every square mile of the island fortress. When the battle was over, 6,800 Americans were dead and a further 26,000 wounded or missing. It was defended by 20,000 Japanese soldiers who spent a year digging in, creating miles of tunnels beneath the volcanic rock and were ready to fight to the last man. Iwo Jima is a small island, covering roughly eight square miles. It Was One of the Bloodiest Battles in Marine Corps History It also meant American bombers could fly over Japan with fighter escorts. Now, the Army Air Forces could make bombing runs without a Japanese garrison at Iwo Jima warning the mainland about the danger to come. could launch bombing runs from Iwo Jima's strategic airfields, as the tiny island was directly under the flight path of B-29 Superfortresses from Guam, Saipan and the Mariana Islands. Taking the island meant more than a symbolic capture of the Japanese homeland. Iwo Jima Was Strategically Necessary for the United States' War Effort Bob CampbellNational Archives)Īfter three years of taking control of islands previously captured by the Japanese, the Marines were finally taking part of the Japanese capital. Marines risk sniper fire atop Mount Suribachi as they gather to the great attraction of the day: 5th Division Marines raise the American flag.
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