About an hour into the flight, he heard, "Don't shoot. This is an American plane." A few seconds later his pilot say, "Get the rubber boot, we're going in." Nine of the original scout planes were lost, some shot down by friendly fire.
The canopy of the plane was open when they approached Oahu and could smell smoke and see it billowing up even before they could see the harbor. They had to dodge friendly anti-aircraft fire as they approached Ford Island and then they landed safely at Ewa Marine Corps Air Station.
Three months later, his dive bomber was hit by Japanese anti-aircraft fire and they were forced to ditch near Marcus Island and captured. he was beaten and held at different prison camps before being liberated at Osaka, Japan, on September 6, 1945.
--GreGen
The USS North Carolina (BB-55) My all-time favorite warship. As an elementary school student in North Carolina, I donated nickels and dimes to save this ship back in the early sixties.
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