December 3, 2025 • 35 mins
Ed Miklavic was one of 12 children and he ended up joining the U.S. Army Air Corps in 1940 because he tagged along with his brother and a friend to the Army recruiter. But Ed was better qualified than both of them. This was before the U.S. entered World War II, and the Army didn't even have a current uniform to give Miklavcic. Nonetheless, he headed out west for training and was stationed at Pearl Harbor's Wheeler Field leading up to the Japanese attacks on December 7, 1941.
In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Miklavcic tells us what his duties were before the attacks, how the attacks unfolded for him on December 7, and what he saw at Wheeler Field once the attacks were over.
Miklavcic also describes his service on Iwo Jima. He explains why he came ashore days later than expected, what he saw when he landed, and his assignment at the airfields. He shares what it was like trying to dig and build in the black ash sand of Iwo Jima and to deal with Japanese mortar attacks and nighttime raids. He also remembers the iconic flag raising atop Mount Suribachi.
Finally, Miklavcic stresses the importance of remembering the service and sacrifice of all who have fought, bled, and died for our nation.
In this edition of Veterans Chronicles, Miklavcic tells us what his duties were before the attacks, how the attacks unfolded for him on December 7, and what he saw at Wheeler Field once the attacks were over.
Miklavcic also describes his service on Iwo Jima. He explains why he came ashore days later than expected, what he saw when he landed, and his assignment at the airfields. He shares what it was like trying to dig and build in the black ash sand of Iwo Jima and to deal with Japanese mortar attacks and nighttime raids. He also remembers the iconic flag raising atop Mount Suribachi.
Finally, Miklavcic stresses the importance of remembering the service and sacrifice of all who have fought, bled, and died for our nation.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
Welcome to Veterans Chronicles. I'm Greig Corumbus. Our guest in
this edition is Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air
Corps veteran and also a survivor of the Japanese attack
on Pearl Harbor on December seventh, nineteen forty one, and
he's a veteran of the Battle of iwo Jima. Ed
mcclavick was born in Illinois in April of nineteen twenty,
(00:33):
but mostly grew up in Wisconsin. His father had served
in the Austrian Army before immigrating to the United States.
Ed was part of a big family, and everyone did
their part, whether at home or in service to their country.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
I was born the seventh child in the family of twelve,
and we grew up we all had job to do.
When I turned sixteen, I automatically became the family driver.
The girls couldn't drive, and so I became the family driver.
(01:11):
Four years later, my brother asked me to take him
to the post office to enlist in the Air Force.
He and his friend had draft numbers that I did
not have a draft dumber, I was too young. We
got into the recruiter's office and they went up to
the recruiter's table, and the first question the recruiter asked
(01:35):
them as were they high school graduates? And both of
them were high school dropouts. So I went by the door,
never moved yet, and I was ready to leave, and
the recruiter said, how about you. I said, I qualify.
He said, come back here and sign up. So I
(01:55):
signed up. He told me it was ten o'clock morning.
He told me go home and say goodbye to my
parents and come back and we'd go to Puria for
to be torn in. And I did that. I came
back and I went and I was gone for four years.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
You heard that right. Mclavic left home the same day.
He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in nineteen forty,
but in a story that illustrates the state of the
military before entering World War Two, he says they didn't
even have a uniform for him. He got it later
peace by peace.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
The quartermaster wasn't ready for Eddie new recruits, and onlything
available was World War One uniform if Eddie, So for
first couple of three weeks he blew the whistle every night,
issued us something shoe lace. A pair of shoes had leggings,
(02:57):
tildered or shirt. So it took us quite a long
time to get it, and we were all dressed in
World War One uniforms. And that's how we left Jefferson Barrick, Missouri.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
Before long, mclavick and the other recruits from the area
were headed west.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
When we came up to fifteen hundred Blue recruits, we
bordered a trade and went to California. From California went
to Hawaii. We arrived in Hawaii on December eleventh, and
that's where we began our basic training. When we got
(03:35):
to Hawaii, the fifteen hundred of us were split up
into two groups. A group Princeton went to Wheelerfield and
a B group went to Hickemfield alphabetically by in that order,
I ended up in Wheelerfield. And that's what I did
by basic training from December till February. We're still in
(04:01):
our World War uniforms. Who got into seventy eight Fighter
Squadron once for the old World War One fighter squadron
that disbanded after the war. World War One re up
to get it Wheelerfield and that's the squadron we went into.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Mcclavick began his service at Pearl Harbor, roughly one year
before the Japanese attacks. He describes his assignments over those months.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
I was assigned to the armor section in the workforce
in the squadron, and I worked in the hangar in
the field until November of nineteen forty one, when I
was reassigned to Hickhemfield to go to school for the
(04:52):
month of November nineteen forty one. I got back to
the squadron on the December one, nineteen forty one, and
the squatting was spread all over the field, sleeping out
on the ground under the planes, and a one alert
(05:13):
already for actions. For the first week of December. I
was out there to field with them. In December sixth,
we were told to return to the Bercks, line up
our planes on a hangar line, dismantled the guns of aminition,
(05:37):
and just use the time to guard the planes from
the civilian population.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
That's right. He was ordered to remove the weapons and ammunition.
Mclevic says he had never received that order before and
never would again.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Yeah, the order was to remove the guns de amminition
from the planes. There were a lot of resentance from
the commander of the base and everybody else. But that
was the order from Fort Shafter, and that's what we did.
We put the gun to the ammunition in the hangar
(06:12):
and the plane where out in the field.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
Sundays were pretty quiet at Wheeler Field, just like they
were throughout Pearl Harbor. Obviously, Sunday, December seventh, nineteen forty
one would be very different.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
We worked normally a sixth day week, so on Sunday
it was kind of an off day. Bank put breakfast
that didn't start till eight o'clock in the morning. Third
the week, we would get up maybe six to seven
o'clock and get down to the hangar line and work.
(06:46):
On Sunday, we get breakfast, a big banquet it every Sunday,
and that occurred at eight o'clock and I was on
my way to breakfast when the first bar was dropped
and the barracks next to be next to us.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Mclavey continued describing the attack from the bombing of the
barracks to continue Japanese fire to hunkering down in nearby homes.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
There were only two barracks at Wheeler Field, and we
were back to back when a greenway between the barracks
one of our guys was washing his car in the
greenway and the bomb took him out and we came
down the steps. It was a screaming announced that the
(07:36):
Japanese were attacking. So we came down to leave the barracks.
And there's like a big verandah in front of the
barracks and we kind of stood out in the vanny
we could look at the street. One of our guides
was shot when they were strafing down the street. The
(07:59):
plane so low you could just about reach them if
you reached up, if you're tall enough, and they were
straight straight thing up and down the street, and we
were told not to go out because even though the
plane flew over, the rear gunner was also in action,
so he could also pick you off. So when the
(08:23):
plane got far enough away, we would come out and
lead the barck try to right across the street was
the Nco Corners homes, and that's why we were trying
to get to cross about three or four blocks of
homes there, so as they straight had got past the berks,
(08:46):
we would run across the street and abandoned the barracks.
I think I went about four blocks before I entered
a home and sat in the kitchen floor till the
raid was over.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
After the attack, mclavic and the other side service members
returned to Wheeler Field. What they found was devastating. Most important,
of course, was the loss of life, including numerous men
that mclavic had trained with and knew very well.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Many see when I did my basic training. When we
arrived at Wheelerfield, we formed three squatterns forty six to
forty seven fighter squatdterns. We did our basic training living
in eight men tents so I would vecured against and
(09:38):
they were all wide open third the strafing rate. At
least we had the perick to protect us. But the
original squadrons I was with, and there was two hundred
and fifty tour squattern, there was quite a few people
in there.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
The other priority was assessing the damage to the aircraft,
and that too was a demoralizing experience.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
All we could do was when we went back to
the lighters, tried to salvage whatever plage we could from
the very heap that they were in. And multiple planes
that we chalaged were World War P twenty six, p.
Thirty six. All of our planes were P forties and
(10:25):
they were all built up.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
More than eight decades later, mcleavick is still stewing over
the order from December sixth to remove weapons and AMMO
from the planes. He says that drastically limited America's ability
to respond to the Japanese attack in that moment.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Planes that got in the air and did some damage.
In fact, it three or four of the polots became
aged that morning, but they were on a satellite airfield.
They were not on Wheeler Field. They belonged to Wheelerfield,
but they were out on gunnery on the satellite airfield.
(11:02):
So the planes were at the satellite airfield. The pilots
were had a party on Saturday night before Sunday, and
they were still kind of groggy Sunday morning when the
bombing started or the trap, and they drove back to
the airfield and got in their planes and attacked the
(11:24):
Japanese and the couple became ancients that morning. If we
only had a lot more of the ones that were
parked on the airstrip up in the air, would have
been a different story. It was just a big blunder.
The whole thing was a blunder.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
That's Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War Two, a Pearl Harbor survivor, and a
veteran of the Battle of Ewogima. Up next, the Aftermath
of Pearl Harbor and landing on Ewogima. I'm Greg Corumbus
and this is Veterans Chronicles sixty Seconds of Service.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
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Speaker 4 (12:15):
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(12:35):
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Speaker 1 (13:00):
This is Veterans Chronicles. I'm Greg Corumbus. Our guest in
this edition is Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air
Corps veteran of World War Two. He survived the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor in December nineteen forty one and
also served in the Battle of Iwo Jima. Japan's attack
at Pearl Harbor left more than thirty five hundred service
members dead or wounded. It did severe damage to our
(13:23):
naval fleet and our air fields. For the next couple
of months, the focus was on picking up the pieces
and shifting to a wartime mentality, But within a couple
of months mclavick and his squadrons were back in action.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
No, we had nothing to prepare with. We didn't get
our plane until February, so we were just a waiting
game to get new airplanes, and we never did ever
go back to the Berks. We stayed in the field
(13:56):
from then on and I probably spent fifty pretend of
my time sleeping underground for five years.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
And soon they had their first mission, which wasn't very
far away.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
We stayed a wheeler field until we got airplane replacements
and we got a P thirty nine fireplane and we
were then assigned to protect the Connie Oi Naval air
Station on the north west corner of Wahoo. The Navy
(14:30):
used that air base to practice landing when the carriers
came in. They flew over Connie Oi and they had
a ship drawn up on the on the landing strip
and they would make the pass like the landing on
(14:50):
an aircraft carrier.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
But there would be more missions in the months ahead.
Before too long, mcclavic was midway across the Pacific.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
We started off with Conee Air Base and the captain
in charge of the base was transferred to Midway in
Loan and behold he calls for us to come. So
from Connie Oi we went to Midway. In Midway is
(15:23):
two islanders, Rock Island and San Island, and so our
squadron was written half by then. I was in charge
of the urbane section, so it was quite a test
to try to keep operation going into to airfield at
the same time.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
As the months the next couple of years unfolded, the
US and our allies turned the tide in the Pacific
and began methodically island hopping closer to the Japanese mainland.
American airpower also came closer, but not close enough. The
US needed to take the strategic island Ewo Jima to
be an ideal position to bomb Japan into submission. Back
(16:05):
in the States, at mcclavic had a heck of a
time just getting back to the Pacific after a paperwork
snafoo while he was on furlough.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
After four years of service in the Pacific, I was
offered to furlough. I came home to Illinois, and they
mosted my friends. At this time we were out of
Wisconsin and Milwaukee and mcconawak and are all around the
state of Wisconsin. Well, we came back from furlole. The
(16:33):
people who were sending us back at Fort Sheridan in
Chicago couldn't believe it, so they claimed that they lost
our papers. From day on, for about two weeks, we
got off every day, so Milwaukee, being closer to Chicago,
I went to Milwaukee every day on the trolley, so
(16:58):
finally they had admit the day had our pay per
day centers back.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
Once the paperwork got sorted out, mclevick got ready to
deploy to the Far East, but the original plan was
not Ewojima.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
We were signed to go to the Philippines. We loaded
our equipment, were lined up next to the boat to
go and mccarthur came up from Australia, so we were
canceled out. So then we were went back to another
airfield and waited and then they called us up to
(17:33):
go to Eugema. That trip we took.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Finally, in February nineteen forty five, mclevick was waiting to
go ashore at Ewojima and the Vishes fighting on the
beach and around the coveted airfields meant that he would
have to wait longer than expected.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
So the waiter operation was set up. Our planes in
our engineers stayed in Guam and we went to Iwajima.
Said set up the airfield so the planes would come in.
We're designated to the land D plus four. The Marine
didn't have the airfield secured four days, so every day
(18:15):
we went out to sea and every day we came
back was attacked by the comic colas. Finally they secured
the airfield and we landed in All the nine days
the bodies of the Marines were piled up.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Once he was on shore, mclavic quickly got to work.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
We got on the airfield and looked over and said you,
I was assigned to set up the operation for the
planes to come in, set up each operate the pilot
quarter or the pilot reading room, and all the way
down to communication and everything else. So we got that
(18:57):
set up.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
That's at mcclavick, you said, US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War Two and a veteran of the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Ewojima still
to come. Mclavick sees the cost of freedom up close.
I'm Greg Corumbus and this is Veterans Chronicles. This is
Veterans Chronicles. I'm Greg Corumbus. Our guest in this edition
(19:21):
is Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War II. He survived the bombing of his
barracks at Wheeler Field during the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor on December seventh, nineteen forty one. More than three
years later, he was sent to Ewo Jima as the
Allies sought that critical location to launch bombings against Japan.
(19:43):
After landing at ewo Jima several days after the initial
invasion and seeing the devastating price paid by US marines
on the beaches there, mclavick made his way to the airfields.
They're known as Airfield Number one and Airfield number two
rein secured the area. Mclevic's job was to get the
airfields ready for American forces and add the infrastructure to
(20:07):
support them.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Well, we had to dig out revetments to get to
get anything solid, or we got it in our In
our case, we needed a lot of work room. You
couldn't even stand in there, you sank down. So we
got up on the landing landing crafts when they had
(20:30):
the wood and we had a three quarter ton pickups,
so we loaded up and we'd come and lay a
wooden floor on top of the sand so we could
stand on top of the wood that. We had to
build big workbenches. We had to dismantle all the guns
(20:50):
on the plane, whether they fired or out. Every day
they runted it up in one day, and that was
constant all the way through the Hawaiian in midway. They
could they be left Alona one day and be rusty
the next day. So we laid the wooden floors and
(21:14):
we had our perace to go on. Planes were coming
in the morning, we're straightened in the afternoon same day,
and the target were so close that the empty cartridge
from the gun shouldn't been shot in the plane were
(21:34):
landing an airfield. In other words, the Japanese were just
on the other side of the airfield. I think they
were closed to the second airfield which intersected with the
first airfield, so if I were to get the guns
were syncnized for one thousand feet, so that's about three
(21:55):
blocks or the Japanese were target was only about three
blocks away from where we were. And in talking about
the forty fifth, forty six, forty seven, we we were
on the air beach on air bag number one and
they came on air bag number two in one morning.
(22:18):
When we got we all got up in the dark
and started to work. One morning we got up in
the guns for fire and rifle fire, and the Japanese
were attacking the pilots of the forty fifth, forty forty seven,
spawning right next to us. They got in their attend
(22:41):
and were painted and sabers and whatnot. That's how close
they were.
Speaker 1 (22:50):
One of the most iconic moments of the battle was
the flag raising on top of Mount Suribachi, and that
also came only after intense, uphill fighting by the Marines.
Mclavick says they not only won the battle, but that
greatly helped the other Americans on the island too.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Marine fought their way of Servachian. After he put off
the flag in secured the island, the te beach came in.
They put a right up to the top. That's where
we went up the road.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
You've likely seen the famous Joseph Rosenthal photo of the
flag raising, and you may also know that was not
the original flag raising. The original one had a smaller flag.
Mclavick had a friend who got a photo of the
original flag raising. He sees it and reflects upon it
every day.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
I have it on my dresser all the time.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Back at the airfield's work was not easy. The same
black ash that frustrated Marines on the beaches was also
a problem, as mclavick and others tried to dig and build.
Another problem was Japanese mortar attacks.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Sand a team was like water floor. You could not
dig take a hold in the sand. So we had
to go get a bulldozer to dig out and build
a redward for each section of our group to work.
(24:22):
The ordnance officer and I went across the sea beach
and got a with a bulldozer. We were covering out
of the airfield and we were all of a suddenly
sitting up there by ourselves. The sea bee was underneath
the bulldoders, and mortar was landing all around the bulldozers. Well,
(24:46):
fortunately I didn't hit, none of us got hit, but
we got the airfield.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
Set up beyond the mortars. Japanese forces were positioned way
too close for comfort near the airfield, and mclavic says,
a deadly night time attacked by the Japanese very close
to his tent left him shaken.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
Planes were coming in the morning, We're straightened in the
afternoon same day, and the target were so close that
the empty cartridge from the gun shouldn't being shot in
the plane were landing an airfield. In other words, the
Japanese were just on the other side of the airfield.
(25:29):
I think they were closed to the second airfield, which
intersected with the first airfield, So if I were to
the guns were synchronized for one thousand feet, so that's
about three blocks or the Japanese were target was only
about three blocks away from where we were. And then
(25:49):
in talking about the forty seven, we we were on
the air beat on air page number one, and they
came on the air base number two in one morning
when we got we all got up in the dark
and started to work. One morning we got up in
(26:14):
the guns for fire, rifles, fire, and the Japanese were
attacking the pilots of the forty seven, spawning right next
to us. They got in their tent and were painted
and sabers and whatnot. That's how close they were.
Speaker 1 (26:37):
Mcclavick also witnessed the grim work of collecting the bodies
of the fallen and seeing them temporarily interred. Honey Regima,
I saw.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
Him very to dead. Being a not a very real
large island, it wasn't not a place to have verage seven.
So the the marine cemetery was uh was dug out
(27:06):
in the sand and the uh uh deep so that
uh they lay down one group of bodied body bags,
covered them with sand, lay down another group and figured
(27:29):
they buried five no more, uh, maybe five thousand. There
was a lot of tight body bags covered five deep.
It wasn't very good and t twenty wounded. Twenty thousand
normally a division that it five thousand and uh. Normally
(27:52):
they were figuring out its about four thousand and Uh.
There were twenty thousand wound, five thousand dead. When I
were talking about covernor shorter. Bodies were still not identified yet.
They were get piled up and piled and piled. They
(28:13):
had a fingerprinum and identified the body.
Speaker 1 (28:17):
The Battle of iwo Jima ended in late March nineteen
forty five. The airfields were in American hands, and because
of the critical work of the airfields in the war,
mclevic stayed longer than most. In fact, he says he
left Ewojima just as the final blows of the war
were taking place.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
I left Yajima today they were going to drop the
toomak Bah. I was scheduled to fly out of Ujima
and then from Guam to Honolulu. And I flew from
Ewa Jima to Guam in that night to captain and
(28:58):
the ship, calling the board and took off. The bomb
was going to be dropped the next day, so instead
of going from even Jimmy to go on to Honolulu,
we went by ship around midway in the day. The
war was over. The the warward over. We were one
(29:22):
day out of San Francisco. Being that we did go
to Honolulu, they turned it around and said it back
to Honolulu. So we went towards Honolulu for one day,
and then it turned it around again and sentenced to Seattle.
(29:44):
We were the first ship to land in Seattle, and
that night we had dinner served by the German predators
of war Neck Day were left.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
Now more than eighty years later, mclevic said he still
thinks of the heroes who gave their lives every single
day for years.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
I fought to one what I have to say. I
think about them all all the time. It's hard to forget.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
And mclevic says it's the duty of everyone now to
always remember the sacrifice of our service members to win
the war and protect our freedoms. And as time fades,
he says that job gets harder and gets more important.
Speaker 2 (30:39):
To reach the ceremony for the people have bringed and
men and women who died on the Arizona in the
park in Arizona, and I lead the first read that ceremony.
That the ceremony is about the same way. They all
(31:02):
start to forget. We got our time to have people
come to the ceremony in the first place.
Speaker 1 (31:10):
For decades, mclavick also took part in local parades to
keep the memory alive for all generations, and he says
that experience could be sobering at times too.
Speaker 2 (31:20):
It's hard to make him remember sometimes they didn't even
know we're pro arborage. It shows up in our parade,
you know. We would have pride seven eight people deep.
And as time went on it became five four three,
Less people came, less interests. I went to two different parades.
(31:45):
It was the same story. I guess normal to forget.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
So what is mclavick most proud of from his service, Well,
he immediately thought of the men he served alongside.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
I had six d armors working for me, and I'm
proud to say that I had them working together, no
matter where they came from, no matter what rank in life,
I had them working together. When we went to service
(32:17):
were the required. We we have a high school education.
And after the war started, the Lord the requirement and
brought in uh let's educated people to do the donkey
(32:39):
work or whatever, and we could work on the line.
So we got people literate, and we got older people.
Some had a tough time in life, and I could blend.
I blended them in in Connie way. I blended them
(33:00):
with facted. One of them, I had my shop, got
a shop guy keeping my shop, working equipment there for
the other guy to yield. And he was from Puerto Rico,
and I promoted him all the way up to sergeant.
(33:26):
It's a matter of understanding people's needs in working with
them and make everybody welcome. I did that in observers
and I did it in my work.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
And he says, the bottom line is that they were
called upon to accomplish a huge task and they did it.
Speaker 2 (33:45):
I have to say I am proud to be a
veteran of the war. Took it a long time, but
we got it done.
Speaker 1 (33:55):
Mclevic says he is also determined to make sure his
own descendants know and understand his story of service.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
I will be very proud to have my future grandchildren
great grandchildren see what I did.
Speaker 1 (34:13):
That's ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War Two. He's a veteran of the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Iwo Jima.
I'm Greg Corumbus and this is Veterans Chronicles. Hi, this
(34:38):
is Greg Corumbus, and thanks for listening to Veterans Chronicles,
a presentation of the American Veteran Center. For more information,
please visit American Veteranscenter dot org. You can also follow
the American Veterans Center on Facebook and on Twitter. We're
at AVC update. Subscribe to the American Veterans Center YouTube
(34:59):
channel for full oral histories and special features, and of course,
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your podcasts. Thanks again for listening, and please join us
next time for Veterans Chronicles.
Welcome to Veterans Chronicles. I'm Greig Corumbus. Our guest in
this edition is Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air
Corps veteran and also a survivor of the Japanese attack
on Pearl Harbor on December seventh, nineteen forty one, and
he's a veteran of the Battle of iwo Jima. Ed
mcclavick was born in Illinois in April of nineteen twenty,
(00:33):
but mostly grew up in Wisconsin. His father had served
in the Austrian Army before immigrating to the United States.
Ed was part of a big family, and everyone did
their part, whether at home or in service to their country.
Speaker 2 (00:47):
I was born the seventh child in the family of twelve,
and we grew up we all had job to do.
When I turned sixteen, I automatically became the family driver.
The girls couldn't drive, and so I became the family driver.
(01:11):
Four years later, my brother asked me to take him
to the post office to enlist in the Air Force.
He and his friend had draft numbers that I did
not have a draft dumber, I was too young. We
got into the recruiter's office and they went up to
the recruiter's table, and the first question the recruiter asked
(01:35):
them as were they high school graduates? And both of
them were high school dropouts. So I went by the door,
never moved yet, and I was ready to leave, and
the recruiter said, how about you. I said, I qualify.
He said, come back here and sign up. So I
(01:55):
signed up. He told me it was ten o'clock morning.
He told me go home and say goodbye to my
parents and come back and we'd go to Puria for
to be torn in. And I did that. I came
back and I went and I was gone for four years.
Speaker 1 (02:16):
You heard that right. Mclavic left home the same day.
He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in nineteen forty,
but in a story that illustrates the state of the
military before entering World War Two, he says they didn't
even have a uniform for him. He got it later
peace by peace.
Speaker 2 (02:32):
The quartermaster wasn't ready for Eddie new recruits, and onlything
available was World War One uniform if Eddie, So for
first couple of three weeks he blew the whistle every night,
issued us something shoe lace. A pair of shoes had leggings,
(02:57):
tildered or shirt. So it took us quite a long
time to get it, and we were all dressed in
World War One uniforms. And that's how we left Jefferson Barrick, Missouri.
Speaker 1 (03:08):
Before long, mclavick and the other recruits from the area
were headed west.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
When we came up to fifteen hundred Blue recruits, we
bordered a trade and went to California. From California went
to Hawaii. We arrived in Hawaii on December eleventh, and
that's where we began our basic training. When we got
(03:35):
to Hawaii, the fifteen hundred of us were split up
into two groups. A group Princeton went to Wheelerfield and
a B group went to Hickemfield alphabetically by in that order,
I ended up in Wheelerfield. And that's what I did
by basic training from December till February. We're still in
(04:01):
our World War uniforms. Who got into seventy eight Fighter
Squadron once for the old World War One fighter squadron
that disbanded after the war. World War One re up
to get it Wheelerfield and that's the squadron we went into.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Mcclavick began his service at Pearl Harbor, roughly one year
before the Japanese attacks. He describes his assignments over those months.
Speaker 2 (04:28):
I was assigned to the armor section in the workforce
in the squadron, and I worked in the hangar in
the field until November of nineteen forty one, when I
was reassigned to Hickhemfield to go to school for the
(04:52):
month of November nineteen forty one. I got back to
the squadron on the December one, nineteen forty one, and
the squatting was spread all over the field, sleeping out
on the ground under the planes, and a one alert
(05:13):
already for actions. For the first week of December. I
was out there to field with them. In December sixth,
we were told to return to the Bercks, line up
our planes on a hangar line, dismantled the guns of aminition,
(05:37):
and just use the time to guard the planes from
the civilian population.
Speaker 1 (05:43):
That's right. He was ordered to remove the weapons and ammunition.
Mclevic says he had never received that order before and
never would again.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Yeah, the order was to remove the guns de amminition
from the planes. There were a lot of resentance from
the commander of the base and everybody else. But that
was the order from Fort Shafter, and that's what we did.
We put the gun to the ammunition in the hangar
(06:12):
and the plane where out in the field.
Speaker 1 (06:14):
Sundays were pretty quiet at Wheeler Field, just like they
were throughout Pearl Harbor. Obviously, Sunday, December seventh, nineteen forty
one would be very different.
Speaker 2 (06:23):
We worked normally a sixth day week, so on Sunday
it was kind of an off day. Bank put breakfast
that didn't start till eight o'clock in the morning. Third
the week, we would get up maybe six to seven
o'clock and get down to the hangar line and work.
(06:46):
On Sunday, we get breakfast, a big banquet it every Sunday,
and that occurred at eight o'clock and I was on
my way to breakfast when the first bar was dropped
and the barracks next to be next to us.
Speaker 1 (07:02):
Mclavey continued describing the attack from the bombing of the
barracks to continue Japanese fire to hunkering down in nearby homes.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
There were only two barracks at Wheeler Field, and we
were back to back when a greenway between the barracks
one of our guys was washing his car in the
greenway and the bomb took him out and we came
down the steps. It was a screaming announced that the
(07:36):
Japanese were attacking. So we came down to leave the barracks.
And there's like a big verandah in front of the
barracks and we kind of stood out in the vanny
we could look at the street. One of our guides
was shot when they were strafing down the street. The
(07:59):
plane so low you could just about reach them if
you reached up, if you're tall enough, and they were
straight straight thing up and down the street, and we
were told not to go out because even though the
plane flew over, the rear gunner was also in action,
so he could also pick you off. So when the
(08:23):
plane got far enough away, we would come out and
lead the barck try to right across the street was
the Nco Corners homes, and that's why we were trying
to get to cross about three or four blocks of
homes there, so as they straight had got past the berks,
(08:46):
we would run across the street and abandoned the barracks.
I think I went about four blocks before I entered
a home and sat in the kitchen floor till the
raid was over.
Speaker 1 (08:58):
After the attack, mclavic and the other side service members
returned to Wheeler Field. What they found was devastating. Most important,
of course, was the loss of life, including numerous men
that mclavic had trained with and knew very well.
Speaker 2 (09:11):
Many see when I did my basic training. When we
arrived at Wheelerfield, we formed three squatterns forty six to
forty seven fighter squatdterns. We did our basic training living
in eight men tents so I would vecured against and
(09:38):
they were all wide open third the strafing rate. At
least we had the perick to protect us. But the
original squadrons I was with, and there was two hundred
and fifty tour squattern, there was quite a few people
in there.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
The other priority was assessing the damage to the aircraft,
and that too was a demoralizing experience.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
All we could do was when we went back to
the lighters, tried to salvage whatever plage we could from
the very heap that they were in. And multiple planes
that we chalaged were World War P twenty six, p.
Thirty six. All of our planes were P forties and
(10:25):
they were all built up.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
More than eight decades later, mcleavick is still stewing over
the order from December sixth to remove weapons and AMMO
from the planes. He says that drastically limited America's ability
to respond to the Japanese attack in that moment.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Planes that got in the air and did some damage.
In fact, it three or four of the polots became
aged that morning, but they were on a satellite airfield.
They were not on Wheeler Field. They belonged to Wheelerfield,
but they were out on gunnery on the satellite airfield.
(11:02):
So the planes were at the satellite airfield. The pilots
were had a party on Saturday night before Sunday, and
they were still kind of groggy Sunday morning when the
bombing started or the trap, and they drove back to
the airfield and got in their planes and attacked the
(11:24):
Japanese and the couple became ancients that morning. If we
only had a lot more of the ones that were
parked on the airstrip up in the air, would have
been a different story. It was just a big blunder.
The whole thing was a blunder.
Speaker 1 (11:43):
That's Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War Two, a Pearl Harbor survivor, and a
veteran of the Battle of Ewogima. Up next, the Aftermath
of Pearl Harbor and landing on Ewogima. I'm Greg Corumbus
and this is Veterans Chronicles sixty Seconds of Service.
Speaker 3 (12:00):
The sixty Seconds of Service is presented by T Mobile,
recognizing these steadfast education and sacrifices made by service members
and their families. T mobile is committed to supporting active
duty veterans and military spouses. Visit T mobile dot com
slash military to learn more.
Speaker 4 (12:15):
From helicopters to high school classrooms. Air Force pilot John
Davis never imagined he'd become a high school science teacher.
After retiring, he wanted to give back and joined Troops
to Teachers, a program helping veterans in her education. John
now teaches physics in rural Montana, where his hands on
experiments and discipline inspires students. He also runs an Answer
(12:35):
School STEM club, giving local kids opportunities they may not
otherwise have. John gets an a plus and giving back
and contributing to his community. Today's sixty Seconds of Service
is brought to you by Prevagen. Prevagen is the number
one pharmacist recommended memory support brand. You can find Prevagen
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Speaker 1 (13:00):
This is Veterans Chronicles. I'm Greg Corumbus. Our guest in
this edition is Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air
Corps veteran of World War Two. He survived the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor in December nineteen forty one and
also served in the Battle of Iwo Jima. Japan's attack
at Pearl Harbor left more than thirty five hundred service
members dead or wounded. It did severe damage to our
(13:23):
naval fleet and our air fields. For the next couple
of months, the focus was on picking up the pieces
and shifting to a wartime mentality, But within a couple
of months mclavick and his squadrons were back in action.
Speaker 2 (13:36):
No, we had nothing to prepare with. We didn't get
our plane until February, so we were just a waiting
game to get new airplanes, and we never did ever
go back to the Berks. We stayed in the field
(13:56):
from then on and I probably spent fifty pretend of
my time sleeping underground for five years.
Speaker 1 (14:03):
And soon they had their first mission, which wasn't very
far away.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
We stayed a wheeler field until we got airplane replacements
and we got a P thirty nine fireplane and we
were then assigned to protect the Connie Oi Naval air
Station on the north west corner of Wahoo. The Navy
(14:30):
used that air base to practice landing when the carriers
came in. They flew over Connie Oi and they had
a ship drawn up on the on the landing strip
and they would make the pass like the landing on
(14:50):
an aircraft carrier.
Speaker 1 (14:53):
But there would be more missions in the months ahead.
Before too long, mcclavic was midway across the Pacific.
Speaker 2 (15:00):
We started off with Conee Air Base and the captain
in charge of the base was transferred to Midway in
Loan and behold he calls for us to come. So
from Connie Oi we went to Midway. In Midway is
(15:23):
two islanders, Rock Island and San Island, and so our
squadron was written half by then. I was in charge
of the urbane section, so it was quite a test
to try to keep operation going into to airfield at
the same time.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
As the months the next couple of years unfolded, the
US and our allies turned the tide in the Pacific
and began methodically island hopping closer to the Japanese mainland.
American airpower also came closer, but not close enough. The
US needed to take the strategic island Ewo Jima to
be an ideal position to bomb Japan into submission. Back
(16:05):
in the States, at mcclavic had a heck of a
time just getting back to the Pacific after a paperwork
snafoo while he was on furlough.
Speaker 2 (16:13):
After four years of service in the Pacific, I was
offered to furlough. I came home to Illinois, and they
mosted my friends. At this time we were out of
Wisconsin and Milwaukee and mcconawak and are all around the
state of Wisconsin. Well, we came back from furlole. The
(16:33):
people who were sending us back at Fort Sheridan in
Chicago couldn't believe it, so they claimed that they lost
our papers. From day on, for about two weeks, we
got off every day, so Milwaukee, being closer to Chicago,
I went to Milwaukee every day on the trolley, so
(16:58):
finally they had admit the day had our pay per
day centers back.
Speaker 1 (17:02):
Once the paperwork got sorted out, mclevick got ready to
deploy to the Far East, but the original plan was
not Ewojima.
Speaker 2 (17:10):
We were signed to go to the Philippines. We loaded
our equipment, were lined up next to the boat to
go and mccarthur came up from Australia, so we were
canceled out. So then we were went back to another
airfield and waited and then they called us up to
(17:33):
go to Eugema. That trip we took.
Speaker 1 (17:37):
Finally, in February nineteen forty five, mclevick was waiting to
go ashore at Ewojima and the Vishes fighting on the
beach and around the coveted airfields meant that he would
have to wait longer than expected.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
So the waiter operation was set up. Our planes in
our engineers stayed in Guam and we went to Iwajima.
Said set up the airfield so the planes would come in.
We're designated to the land D plus four. The Marine
didn't have the airfield secured four days, so every day
(18:15):
we went out to sea and every day we came
back was attacked by the comic colas. Finally they secured
the airfield and we landed in All the nine days
the bodies of the Marines were piled up.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
Once he was on shore, mclavic quickly got to work.
Speaker 2 (18:35):
We got on the airfield and looked over and said you,
I was assigned to set up the operation for the
planes to come in, set up each operate the pilot
quarter or the pilot reading room, and all the way
down to communication and everything else. So we got that
(18:57):
set up.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
That's at mcclavick, you said, US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War Two and a veteran of the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Ewojima still
to come. Mclavick sees the cost of freedom up close.
I'm Greg Corumbus and this is Veterans Chronicles. This is
Veterans Chronicles. I'm Greg Corumbus. Our guest in this edition
(19:21):
is Ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War II. He survived the bombing of his
barracks at Wheeler Field during the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor on December seventh, nineteen forty one. More than three
years later, he was sent to Ewo Jima as the
Allies sought that critical location to launch bombings against Japan.
(19:43):
After landing at ewo Jima several days after the initial
invasion and seeing the devastating price paid by US marines
on the beaches there, mclavick made his way to the airfields.
They're known as Airfield Number one and Airfield number two
rein secured the area. Mclevic's job was to get the
airfields ready for American forces and add the infrastructure to
(20:07):
support them.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
Well, we had to dig out revetments to get to
get anything solid, or we got it in our In
our case, we needed a lot of work room. You
couldn't even stand in there, you sank down. So we
got up on the landing landing crafts when they had
(20:30):
the wood and we had a three quarter ton pickups,
so we loaded up and we'd come and lay a
wooden floor on top of the sand so we could
stand on top of the wood that. We had to
build big workbenches. We had to dismantle all the guns
(20:50):
on the plane, whether they fired or out. Every day
they runted it up in one day, and that was
constant all the way through the Hawaiian in midway. They
could they be left Alona one day and be rusty
the next day. So we laid the wooden floors and
(21:14):
we had our perace to go on. Planes were coming
in the morning, we're straightened in the afternoon same day,
and the target were so close that the empty cartridge
from the gun shouldn't been shot in the plane were
(21:34):
landing an airfield. In other words, the Japanese were just
on the other side of the airfield. I think they
were closed to the second airfield which intersected with the
first airfield, so if I were to get the guns
were syncnized for one thousand feet, so that's about three
(21:55):
blocks or the Japanese were target was only about three
blocks away from where we were. And in talking about
the forty fifth, forty six, forty seven, we we were
on the air beach on air bag number one and
they came on air bag number two in one morning.
(22:18):
When we got we all got up in the dark
and started to work. One morning we got up in
the guns for fire and rifle fire, and the Japanese
were attacking the pilots of the forty fifth, forty forty seven,
spawning right next to us. They got in their attend
(22:41):
and were painted and sabers and whatnot. That's how close
they were.
Speaker 1 (22:50):
One of the most iconic moments of the battle was
the flag raising on top of Mount Suribachi, and that
also came only after intense, uphill fighting by the Marines.
Mclavick says they not only won the battle, but that
greatly helped the other Americans on the island too.
Speaker 2 (23:07):
Marine fought their way of Servachian. After he put off
the flag in secured the island, the te beach came in.
They put a right up to the top. That's where
we went up the road.
Speaker 1 (23:23):
You've likely seen the famous Joseph Rosenthal photo of the
flag raising, and you may also know that was not
the original flag raising. The original one had a smaller flag.
Mclavick had a friend who got a photo of the
original flag raising. He sees it and reflects upon it
every day.
Speaker 2 (23:42):
I have it on my dresser all the time.
Speaker 1 (23:45):
Back at the airfield's work was not easy. The same
black ash that frustrated Marines on the beaches was also
a problem, as mclavick and others tried to dig and build.
Another problem was Japanese mortar attacks.
Speaker 2 (24:00):
Sand a team was like water floor. You could not
dig take a hold in the sand. So we had
to go get a bulldozer to dig out and build
a redward for each section of our group to work.
(24:22):
The ordnance officer and I went across the sea beach
and got a with a bulldozer. We were covering out
of the airfield and we were all of a suddenly
sitting up there by ourselves. The sea bee was underneath
the bulldoders, and mortar was landing all around the bulldozers. Well,
(24:46):
fortunately I didn't hit, none of us got hit, but
we got the airfield.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
Set up beyond the mortars. Japanese forces were positioned way
too close for comfort near the airfield, and mclavic says,
a deadly night time attacked by the Japanese very close
to his tent left him shaken.
Speaker 2 (25:05):
Planes were coming in the morning, We're straightened in the
afternoon same day, and the target were so close that
the empty cartridge from the gun shouldn't being shot in
the plane were landing an airfield. In other words, the
Japanese were just on the other side of the airfield.
(25:29):
I think they were closed to the second airfield, which
intersected with the first airfield, So if I were to
the guns were synchronized for one thousand feet, so that's
about three blocks or the Japanese were target was only
about three blocks away from where we were. And then
(25:49):
in talking about the forty seven, we we were on
the air beat on air page number one, and they
came on the air base number two in one morning
when we got we all got up in the dark
and started to work. One morning we got up in
(26:14):
the guns for fire, rifles, fire, and the Japanese were
attacking the pilots of the forty seven, spawning right next
to us. They got in their tent and were painted
and sabers and whatnot. That's how close they were.
Speaker 1 (26:37):
Mcclavick also witnessed the grim work of collecting the bodies
of the fallen and seeing them temporarily interred. Honey Regima,
I saw.
Speaker 2 (26:46):
Him very to dead. Being a not a very real
large island, it wasn't not a place to have verage seven.
So the the marine cemetery was uh was dug out
(27:06):
in the sand and the uh uh deep so that
uh they lay down one group of bodied body bags,
covered them with sand, lay down another group and figured
(27:29):
they buried five no more, uh, maybe five thousand. There
was a lot of tight body bags covered five deep.
It wasn't very good and t twenty wounded. Twenty thousand
normally a division that it five thousand and uh. Normally
(27:52):
they were figuring out its about four thousand and Uh.
There were twenty thousand wound, five thousand dead. When I
were talking about covernor shorter. Bodies were still not identified yet.
They were get piled up and piled and piled. They
(28:13):
had a fingerprinum and identified the body.
Speaker 1 (28:17):
The Battle of iwo Jima ended in late March nineteen
forty five. The airfields were in American hands, and because
of the critical work of the airfields in the war,
mclevic stayed longer than most. In fact, he says he
left Ewojima just as the final blows of the war
were taking place.
Speaker 2 (28:35):
I left Yajima today they were going to drop the
toomak Bah. I was scheduled to fly out of Ujima
and then from Guam to Honolulu. And I flew from
Ewa Jima to Guam in that night to captain and
(28:58):
the ship, calling the board and took off. The bomb
was going to be dropped the next day, so instead
of going from even Jimmy to go on to Honolulu,
we went by ship around midway in the day. The
war was over. The the warward over. We were one
(29:22):
day out of San Francisco. Being that we did go
to Honolulu, they turned it around and said it back
to Honolulu. So we went towards Honolulu for one day,
and then it turned it around again and sentenced to Seattle.
(29:44):
We were the first ship to land in Seattle, and
that night we had dinner served by the German predators
of war Neck Day were left.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
Now more than eighty years later, mclevic said he still
thinks of the heroes who gave their lives every single
day for years.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
I fought to one what I have to say. I
think about them all all the time. It's hard to forget.
Speaker 1 (30:25):
And mclevic says it's the duty of everyone now to
always remember the sacrifice of our service members to win
the war and protect our freedoms. And as time fades,
he says that job gets harder and gets more important.
Speaker 2 (30:39):
To reach the ceremony for the people have bringed and
men and women who died on the Arizona in the
park in Arizona, and I lead the first read that ceremony.
That the ceremony is about the same way. They all
(31:02):
start to forget. We got our time to have people
come to the ceremony in the first place.
Speaker 1 (31:10):
For decades, mclavick also took part in local parades to
keep the memory alive for all generations, and he says
that experience could be sobering at times too.
Speaker 2 (31:20):
It's hard to make him remember sometimes they didn't even
know we're pro arborage. It shows up in our parade,
you know. We would have pride seven eight people deep.
And as time went on it became five four three,
Less people came, less interests. I went to two different parades.
(31:45):
It was the same story. I guess normal to forget.
Speaker 1 (31:50):
So what is mclavick most proud of from his service, Well,
he immediately thought of the men he served alongside.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
I had six d armors working for me, and I'm
proud to say that I had them working together, no
matter where they came from, no matter what rank in life,
I had them working together. When we went to service
(32:17):
were the required. We we have a high school education.
And after the war started, the Lord the requirement and
brought in uh let's educated people to do the donkey
(32:39):
work or whatever, and we could work on the line.
So we got people literate, and we got older people.
Some had a tough time in life, and I could blend.
I blended them in in Connie way. I blended them
(33:00):
with facted. One of them, I had my shop, got
a shop guy keeping my shop, working equipment there for
the other guy to yield. And he was from Puerto Rico,
and I promoted him all the way up to sergeant.
(33:26):
It's a matter of understanding people's needs in working with
them and make everybody welcome. I did that in observers
and I did it in my work.
Speaker 1 (33:38):
And he says, the bottom line is that they were
called upon to accomplish a huge task and they did it.
Speaker 2 (33:45):
I have to say I am proud to be a
veteran of the war. Took it a long time, but
we got it done.
Speaker 1 (33:55):
Mclevic says he is also determined to make sure his
own descendants know and understand his story of service.
Speaker 2 (34:02):
I will be very proud to have my future grandchildren
great grandchildren see what I did.
Speaker 1 (34:13):
That's ed mcclavick. He's a US Army Air Corps veteran
of World War Two. He's a veteran of the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor and the Battle of Iwo Jima.
I'm Greg Corumbus and this is Veterans Chronicles. Hi, this
(34:38):
is Greg Corumbus, and thanks for listening to Veterans Chronicles,
a presentation of the American Veteran Center. For more information,
please visit American Veteranscenter dot org. You can also follow
the American Veterans Center on Facebook and on Twitter. We're
at AVC update. Subscribe to the American Veterans Center YouTube
(34:59):
channel for full oral histories and special features, and of course,
please subscribe to the Veterans Chronicles podcast wherever you get
your podcasts. Thanks again for listening, and please join us
next time for Veterans Chronicles.
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Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
The Brothers Ortiz
The Brothers Ortiz is the story of two brothers–both successful, but in very different ways. Gabe Ortiz becomes a third-highest ranking officer in all of Texas while his younger brother Larry climbs the ranks in Puro Tango Blast, a notorious Texas Prison gang. Gabe doesn’t know all the details of his brother’s nefarious dealings, and he’s made a point not to ask, to protect their relationship. But when Larry is murdered during a home invasion in a rented beach house, Gabe has no choice but to look into what happened that night. To solve Larry’s murder, Gabe, and the whole Ortiz family, must ask each other tough questions.