![]() ![]() On the first day of the invasion, after fighting for only a few hours, Willhite, was pulled out of the lines for a burial detail. General “Howlin’ Mad” Smith, noted, “Our tanks suffered heavily. Willhite was lucky since several other tank crews were unable to ascertain when an attacker was close until he nailed their tank, blowing one section of the steel beast into bent metal and exploding fire and shrapnel into the bodies of the inhabitants and nearby Marines who were using the tank for cover and support. Later, Willhite and his buddies scrapped off flesh, bone and the skull of their attacker from the tank’s outer skin. As his enemy neared his tank carrying a mine, his tank opened up its 30 caliber machinegun and hit the Kamikaze sprinter 25 feet away, exploding the mine and blowing him into a rainbow of debris that covered the tank. Leighton Willhite, a Sherman driver, almost got taken out by a Japanese suicide runner. In a field full of dead Marines, USMC Cpl. ![]() The Japanese used smoke grenades to blind the tanks and the surrounding Marines, and then attacked them with prepared charges, killing themselves as they ran into the tanks holding the charges like footballs. Much of this damage was done when the tanks hit the beach at Iwo and tried to enter the battle. Many of his brother tankers were not as lucky to survive Iwo Jima since the Japanese garrison had practiced how to neutralize tanks and destroyed almost a hundred of them during combat. He fought most of the battle as a M4-Sherman tank crewmember. When he discussed the experiences he had in combat, he talks about them as if they were self-evident when nothing he was doing was that. He is very methodical when he answers questions and a proud Marine. Leighton Willhite is a soft spoken, kind, elderly gentleman. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |