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enemy’s casualties of 21,703. Also, remember
that although Iwo Jima was lost … Kuribayashi’s
goal was NOT to win, but to inflict losses so
heavy that America would not accept that level
of casualties. But paying that price increased
the effectiveness of B-29 bombing raids by
eliminating attacks by Japanese fighters that
were replaced by our P-51’s for bomber escort!
That summarizes highlights from studying
the Battle of Iwo Jima; I hope that it will increase
your appreciation of what happened there.
Remember my key for comprehending highly
significant historical events is to understand
what motivated the major figures who defined
that history. This is particularly so in the case
of the Iwo Jima Battle. I believe the key factor
was Kuribayashi who executed a new, very
successful defensive plan. His downfall was he
lost his code-breaking tactical advantages…
succumbing to Yankee ingenuity. So my verdict
is that General Kuribayashi was the overall key
factor in this battle. But there is a second group
I’ve already mentioned, that was the sine qua
non neutralizing Japanese codebreaking skills
by GREATLY enhancing security of our tactical
communications networks, after all you can’t
beat a zero success rate by your enemy!
That group was the Navajo Code Talkers
who nullified Japan’s codebreaking skills so that
Marine communications security was no longer
jeopardized. Japanese cryptographers had
proved themselves amazingly adept at breaking
top secret military codes almost as rapidly as
newer, more complicated procedures could be
devised. Many of the Japanese code breakers
had been educated in the United States where
they had learned to speak English down to, the
level of colloquial, slang and even profanity
levels. American battle plans became known to
the enemy almost immediately.
The Navajo Code was developed in 1942
under the auspices of the Marines and first
used in Guadalcanal. At that time Navajo was an
unwritten language without an alphabet. So the
code is a verbal code. The first code book, which
is memorized by the operator, used the English
alphabet letters and Navajo words to create the
code.
There is a second code book that assigns a
Navajo word or phrase to encrypt an English
word. For example: in WWII, America was
encrypted with the Navajo words OUR
MOTHER. The Talker must memorize all the
coding/decoding data, i.e., the Talker’s brain
is the actual code book. This code has never
been broken. But almost as important, it is a
very fast process, compared to its alternatives.
Average message preparation and send time in
Iwo Jima was 20 seconds per message. Regular
cryptographic system would have taken 30+
minutes per message.
On Iwo Jima, 5th Marine Division Signal
Officer, Major Conner, confirmed that
command and control relied exclusively on
six Navajo around-the-clock radio nets. In the
first two days, over 800 messages were handled
without error. His assessment was, “Were it not
for the Navajo Code Talkers, the Marines never
would have taken Iwo Jima.” In their Pacific
campaign, the Code Talkers were credited with
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saving thousands of American and Allies’ lives.
In spite of the Code Talker’s decisive role in
defeating the Japanese, their contributions were
not publicized because the code they developed
remained classified Top Secret. They finally
became public knowledge after the codes were
declassified in 1969.
EPILOGUE
The Marine Corps War Memorial was
dedicated near the Arlington National Cemetery
in November 1954, shortly after I entered Plebe
Year at Navy Academy, and I have visited it many
times over the years. I had always considered
it as a monumental reminder of the Marine’s
historic victory. But after visiting the battlefield
and gaining a better appreciation of the bravery
and sacrifice of those who would deliver that
victory, regardless of its cost, I reoriented my
perceptions of the foundations for the true
significance of the Memorial. An important
consideration is that the Flag raising occurred
on the battle’s 4th day… a full 31 days before
victory could be confirmed on March 26. So it
seems to me that the earlier flag raising actually
represented a solemn pledge by the surviving
Marines to refine their combat efforts and
defeat the defender’s revised defensive tactics
in a uniquely designed defensive environment.
THE TOUGH WERE THERE! SEMPER FI!
ANCHORS AWEIGH!
This article is dedicated to First Lieutenant
Francis F. Collins, United States Marine Corps
Reserve who came ashore in the First Wave of the
assault force at Iwo Jima and was awarded the
SILVER STAR for his heroic leadership in battle
that day. He is the father of Dr. Farrell Collins,
my family’s dedicated Primary Care Physician at
Pinehurst Clinic since 1995. ☐
Bio info, Wes May,
with his wife,
Jeanne, retired
to Pinehurst in
1994. His career
callings were as a
Navy pilot and a
sales/marketing
manager for
naval communications systems. His life-long
interest in military and political studies was
honed by a broad academic background: twoyears
of Liberal Arts at Columbia University, BS in
Marine Engineering from US Naval Academy, two
years studying Political Science at the University
of Madrid, Spain as an Olmsted Scholar, MA
in International Relations from American
University and MS in Management Science from
George Washington University. As a naval pilot
and communications sub-specialist, he served
as Commanding Officer of a Navy strategic
communications aircraft squadron and of shore
communications stations in Iceland and Guam.
In addition to “Bucket List” traveling and
playing golf, they are active in Moore TEA Citizens
and feel blessed as members of Trinity Christian
Fellowship Church. ☐
Jeanne & Wes May. Memorial from the
American side, above. The Japanese side, below.
p.28 The Pinehurst Gazette, Inc. No. 135
/www.pinehursttothemax.com