WWII.....?

[THE PILGRIM]

Had an Uncle who was an Army Coastal Artillery Mechanic stationed in Washington State.
He got caught up in the Assemble an Aleutian Assault Force using your assigned Troops.
So he invaded Attu.
Wound up with Frozen Feet, was evacuated by Submarine.

 

[Phenix]

We just came in from our beach walk.
Hotter than blazes here on the coast.
While walking along the shore this popped into my overheated head.

Fantasy/Speculation question:

Your 18 to say 21 years of age... WWII has begun.
You decide to do your part for the country and join the military.

Which Theater would you have preferred to serve as a ground troop ?
European or Pacific ?

European, definitely.
Better treatment (most of the time) by captors if it comes to that. No constant sweating with your clothes rotting on your body. Almost no bugs or snakes. No exposure to the smorgasbord of tropical diseases and fungi.

 

[Doriangray6]

When I joined the Marine Corps in 68 there were still a few WWII Marines around and though they usually didn't talk much about their WWII experiences sometimes, like at the Marine Corps birthday party, the old timers would sit around a table having a few brews and sharing stories of particularly grim or darkly humorous times while we young Marines sat in the background and listened.
Those of us that had experienced combat in Vietnam would sometime chip in with a comment or observation but otherwise we'd just listen and absorb.

 

[IAM Rand]

I would go where I was told BUT, probably Europe. Snakes, bugs, being wet and hot all the time, Malaria, fanatical enemy........ Yup, Europe. I would rather be in a Mustang than humping the ground all the time.

 

[old bear]

Europe by far. Remember the Bushido code.

 

[rufgr]

My favorite Uncle joined the Marines in April of 1942 and left for the Pacific in September of that year with the 3rd Marine Division. During the next 14 months he was in Pago Pago, New Zealand and Guadalcanal. By the time he participated in the initial landing at Bougainville he was sick with malaria and various parasitic diseases. I am sure veterans of the European theater had experiences that were just as bad but in a different way. Either theater would have been a very difficult place to be.

 

[Truckman]

The US entered WWII officially a month and a day after my Dad and Mom were married...Dad was roughnecking in the oil fields when they should have been honeymooning to produce me...So putting off that project, Dad immediately enlisted in the Army, and after completing his training, followed by a hospital stay incurred during training and a further extended hospital stay caused by the surgeons who were apparently learning their trade during his surgery, he was assigned to the defense of Attu...

It is the westernmost point in what was then the United States territories, and also just a few hundred miles north of our enemy Japan's territories...Dad and Mom were loyal to each other for the near 50 years of their marriage until his death, but he said Attu was one of those typical Pacific islands with a woman behind every tree - unfortunately there were no trees on that windswept, frozen piece of rock...They did manage to make up for lost time though as Dad arrived back home in Houston in the spring of 1946 (he was responsible for closing out the military presence on postwar Attu after Japan's surrender) and I was born nine months and ten minutes after he got home......Ben

 

[MTC(SS)Ret]

Any combat as an infantryman is bad enough...add to that in the PTO the relentless heat and humidity, tropical downpours, tropical diseases, and the constant island hopping on a troop transport which probably had a 50/50 chance of getting sunk which IF you survived meant you had to survive the sharks or dying in a life raft. And if you were captured by the Japanese the chance of survival was slim to none. At least the Germans treated their POW's better.

 

[mtgianni]

Dad was a Marine in Samoa when WW II started. He never fired a shot in anger during the war. Cousin enlisted after his graduation in 43. He helped liberate Dachau, though he refused to talk about his battles across Africa, Italy, Poland and Germany.
Dad got a tropical disease and was transferred to the See-Bees.
Given a choice I would pick the Aleutians but go where I was sent.

 

[Kinman]

TV and movies are just that. One needs to read Real accounts of combat in each theater for the truth. Have read around 100 WWII books since the 60s written about or by combat Veterans and have talked to many WWII combat Veterans. Once they knew you are a Veteran from combat they would open up and tell you stories. Most would not talk about buddies getting killed and you could see the hurt in their eyes when the subject came up. Guess most stories were funny and unfortunately many can not be posted here, LOL. My greatest regret is not having a tape recorder. Met Capt. Charles MacDonalds runner in the Battle of the Bulge and corresponded with him for several years. Mr Bock gave me some interesting items as guess his kids and grandkid were not interested. Sadly like most WWII Veterans he is gone but sure not forgotten. Instilled in my kids and grandkids to always remember.

My uncle was a Marine "runner" during Korea at the Chosin Reservoir. He only opened up once with my dad and I and ended up in tears talking about loading some of his frozen buddies into the back of a duece an half, said he'd never forget the sound of a frozen guy clunking into another frozen guy.

 

[jeffrefrig]

I would've preferred the Navy, but wherever they sent me I'd have no choice. Wherever they needed me. Would've been glad to be a rifleman wherever I got sent, but i'd want a rifle.

 

[jbtrucker]

My dad lied and joined Army 17 years old , after watching the series The Pacific guess would have been lucky to have been sent to Europe

 

[quikdraw67]

pick your poison, I suppose.

The 8th Air Force lost more aircrew over Europe that the US Marines lost in island hopping.

Think about that.

 

[THE PILGRIM]

Repeat - knew a Guy who was a 8th AF B-17 Gunner.
He was hospitalized with pneumonia.
You do know that your body was not designed to function at 30,000 feet?
while he was in the hospital, we flew the Schweinfurt ball bearing raid.
We lost a bunch of airplanes!l
When he returned to the Gunners Barracks, it was filled with replacements.
Every gunner in that barracks except him was lost on that raid.
The replacements looked at him like he was a ghost!

 

[MelvinWalker]

How about a C47 pilot flying the hump in CBI?...Not me.

I couldn't believe the number, but there are still over 500 US aircraft missing there from WW2...Flying there was arguably as bad as the 8th AF B17 guys during daylight bombing raids.

This guys finds them in CBI:

MIA Recoveries

 

[Charbroil1859]

Based on what I know, definitely the European theatre. I have a great grandfather who served in Europe, and landed on Normandy during D-Day. I also have a great uncle who was in the Pacific and landed in Okinawa. Both passed away before I was old enough to talk to them about their experiences, but my grandma said that my great uncle said there was so much blood that some trenches would have blood standing a few inches deep due to the number of casualties.

 

[Buford57]

Based on the experiences of one uncle in the Pacific and two uncles and a father-in-law in Europe, I think I'd have preferred to be with my Seabee uncle in the Aleutians. Not that anyone would have asked my opinion.