Aloha,
Approximately 250 people attended the third annual Fort Barrette and MCAS Ewa Field Commemoration events, featuring veteran speakers, military vehicle convoy, US Air Force and US Marine ceremonial teams, and US Coast Guard HH-65A Dolphin helicopter fly-by.
It was a beautiful sunny morning as veterans and local residents gathered first at Fort Barrette, Kapolei ( known today as the Kapolei Archery Range ) where four US Army coast Artillery soldiers stationed, were killed by attacking Japanese Zero fighters and Val dive bombers. Hawaii Veteran Services Director and Master or Ceremonies Mark Moses read the names of the KIA, after which the seven member Hickam US Air Force ceremonial rifle team fired M-14 rifles in salute, followed by taps from the PACAF band bugler.
The entire attending group then convoyed from Fort Barrette lead by WW-II military vehicles, including an M20 Armored Car. Following them were cars and vans loaded with veterans, military cadets and Pearl Harbor vets and their families. The MCAS Ewa commemoration site is located where the actual battle took place and the parking area is where the original hanger once stood. The marine air base area was also a featured location for the 1970 movie "Tora, Tora, Tora."
Beginning around 10:30 AM, the MCAS Ewa Field Commemoration event began with the playing of President Roosevelt's famous "Day of Infamy"
speech and then the presentation of colors by US Marines from the 3rd Radio Battalion, Marine Corps Base Hawaii.
Master of Ceremonies and Ewa Beach resident Tito Montes introduced the attending veterans and guests which included the Fleet Reserve Association, Veterans of Foreign Wars and the National Park Service.
The large pavilion tent and chairs were provided by the Ewa Beach Lions Club and the Hawaii Youth Challenge Academy provided parking direction.
Speakers included Ray Emory, well known Pearl Harbor survivor of the USS Honolulu, who has dedicated his life to identifying those killed which still are listed as unknowns. Also speaking was Ewa Field veteran John Hughes, who told the assembled audience what it was like out there at the Marine Air Group 21 fighter base on December 7, 1941. LCDR David Stroud, US Navy Chaplain Corps provided the morning benediction.
Other speakers included John Willoughby, a retired Navy P-3 Orion pilot and American Legion member, LCDR Edward Ahlstrand US Coast Guard Barbers Point historian who recounted the USCG December 7th actions, and Joedy Adams of the Sons and Daughters of Pearl Harbor Survivors who stated their intention to keep alive the "Lest We Forget" mission and also made a plea for the historic preservation of the MCAS Ewa attack site.
The names of four US Marines and two Ewa Village civilians killed on December 7, 1941 were read, as well as the names of eight US Navy air crewmen from the USS Enterprise who were shot down by Japanese Zeros near Ewa Field.
These Navy planes and subsequent shot down Japanese planes, all crashed in in nearby areas or offshore in and around the local Ewa Beach community.
There are no memorials or commemorations for any of these December 7 Navy deaths in Ewa West Oahu, which remain part of the largely untold Ewa air combat "Pearl Harbor' story where the most significant air combat action took place that Sunday morning.
A rifle salute team of US Marines from the 3rd Radio Battalion, Marine Corps Base Hawaii and bugler from the MARFORPAC Band provided the rifle salute and playing of taps for the 14 US Marines, Naval airmen and Ewa civilians killed on the morning of December 7, 1941. This was followed by a low flyover of a US Coast Guard HH-65A Dolphin helicopter which is based very close by at USCG Air Station Barbers Point.
Following the event the Hawaii Military Vehicle Preservation Association, Hawaii Military Vehicle Museum and the Hawaii Historic Arms Association displayed their vehicles and re-enactment weapons for the attendees. Others gathered around historian Ray Emory and Ewa Marine John Hughes to ask questions about what they saw that Sunday December 7th morning. Other Ewa Village residents were also available to recount their own eye-witness attack stories.
Fort Barrette - MCAS Ewa Event Coordinator - John Bond, 808-685-3045
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ALSO SEE Honolulu Star Advertiser Story...
An airfield gets its due during a ceremony recalling Dec. 7, 1941 By Dan Nakaso
http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/2010 ... e_too.html******************************************************************
REAL December 7, 1941 Ewa Village Story STILL NOT TOLD
Aloha Ewa History Friends,
I was able to ask retired Marine Ewa Field John Hughes some questions, and still hope to ask some more. He is a very nice guy and has no hatred in his heart about the Japanese attack. His account is pretty straight forward.
One of the things he mentions seeing is the low flying Torpedo planes heading towards Pearl Harbor- they flew right past Ewa Field and over Ewa Village. This account directly matches what Shoso Yasui has told me that he saw that morning. Having two different corroborations from eye-witnesses from two different vantage points is very exciting for me to hear.
John Hughes also told me that the later waves of pilots spent considerable effort shooting up the parked Marine owned private cars- around 30 or more at least- largely because they still had lots of ammunition any nothing else to shoot at.
The Ewa Village "Pearl Harbor" story is very unique and I think there remains a lot of "political correctness" that prevents the real story from being told- that Japanese Planes DID shoot up buildings at Ewa Village and the plantation area. This also happened along the original Ewa Beach Puuloa community where houses and cars were shot at. In addition, Zeros shot down five unarmed civilian planes, two of which were over Ewa.
I think it is important historically to try and document everything that happened.
There has been a big tendency to "whitewash" the Pearl Harbor story to fit a more "popular" story line. I don't feel that the Japanese pilots that shot at civilian targets were "war criminals"- I think it just PROVES that the Japanese were really human beings and not a robotic attack force. They were hyped up on natural adrenaline and some were excited to be shooting at ANYTHING.
This IS what happens during combat. PEOPLE get carried away in the excitement, and obviously for many of these Japanese pilots and crew- this was the most exciting action they had ever been involved in- attacking the US Fleet at Pearl Harbor... just think about it!
As we know too from the eye-witnesses, some pilots simply waved to people and smiled. After the war, some Zero pilots stated that they were angry that other pilots shot down unarmed civilian planes. It was well documented that when "Ma" Woods found herself in the middle of a flight of Torpedo planes (likely the same one's that flew over Ewa Village) the Japanese just waved to her and didn't attempt to shoot at her.
The later second wave Type 99 Vals probably did most of the random civilian house and car target shooting because they had finished their bombing runs over Pearl Harbor and still had lots of ammunition and some time on their hands to use it. John Hughes laughing recounted how some of the Marines and himself later took one of the shot up Ewa Field cars into Waikiki to see a movie.
I am most struck personally by how much ammunition really was fired by everyone that morning- how many near misses their were, and why there wasn't a lot MORE deaths. It is astonishing when you think about it- how many people who were lucky to come out of this attack largely unscratched considering all the bullets and lead flying around. All those 7.7mm shells laying around Ewa Village after the attack certainly indicated a LOT of bullets were fired that morning by Japanese planes at SOMETHING... but fortunately so few deaths resulted.
In the end I am still intend to try and document the Ewa Village story because it seems like no one else wants to. It's the last great chapter of the "Pearl Harbor"
story that remains largely untold. Yoshinobu Oshiro directed me to a great book called "Pearl Harbor"- not based on any Hollywood views, but actually very factual on how the Japanese carried out the technical operation- in great detail. One of the co authors is a friend of Yoshinobu's son, who went to school in the US and now works as an historian at the Japanese Self Defense Force Academy in Japan. You can also get this book from the local Hawaii State Library. I found it at the Ewa Beach library in mint condition.
The book has some flaws- but the Japanese operational side is well documented.
http://www.amazon.com/Pearl-Harbor-H-P- ... 0304358843John Bond
Ewa History Project