Pearl Harbor
Ian’s note on Dec. 7, 2016, the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor
Dear friends of all amazing aviators:
Today is the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. As many of my friends know, Sterling Publishing published my book, Heroes in the Skies: American Aviators in World War II, to commemorate the anniversary of the attack. The attack was one of the most significant events in the entire war.
In the afterword of Heroes in the Skies, I mention that Winston Churchill immediately understood the long-term significance of the attack. His view was straightforward: "So we had won after all."
What a pity so many people had to die before the Japanese government realized what Churchill realized. I feel incredibly fortunate to have been able to interview several American servicemen who were at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, including Jim Landis, who was badly wounded while climbing into a plane at the naval air base on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor. Despite his injury, Mr. Landis kept firing from the ground at the Japanese planes until they flew off. For the same chapter, I also interviewed Harold Snider, a navigator on one of the B-17s that landed in Hawaii during the attack. They are heroes.
Ian
To receive Ian's newsletters in future, email him at author@amazingairmen.com
Today is the 75th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor. As many of my friends know, Sterling Publishing published my book, Heroes in the Skies: American Aviators in World War II, to commemorate the anniversary of the attack. The attack was one of the most significant events in the entire war.
In the afterword of Heroes in the Skies, I mention that Winston Churchill immediately understood the long-term significance of the attack. His view was straightforward: "So we had won after all."
What a pity so many people had to die before the Japanese government realized what Churchill realized. I feel incredibly fortunate to have been able to interview several American servicemen who were at Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, including Jim Landis, who was badly wounded while climbing into a plane at the naval air base on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor. Despite his injury, Mr. Landis kept firing from the ground at the Japanese planes until they flew off. For the same chapter, I also interviewed Harold Snider, a navigator on one of the B-17s that landed in Hawaii during the attack. They are heroes.
Ian
To receive Ian's newsletters in future, email him at author@amazingairmen.com
