Pressestimmen
"Leatherneck Magazine," April 2007
""Iwo Jima Recon" tells the chilling account of our daring reconnaissance Marines and U.S. Navy frogmen, and the supporting gunboat flotilla, that cleared the way for Marines to land on that tiny sulfuric island just two days prior to D-day. Colonel Dick Camp, USMC (Ret), author of the recent works "Leatherneck Legends" and "Battleship Arizona's Marines at War," has produced another well-documented, -researched and -compiled must-read edition.
Replicating the winning formula used in these two volumes, he carefully pieced together Navy after-action reports and eyewitness accounts, all suitably supported by numerous never-before-published photos. The resulting combination brings the reader up close to the opening shots of the fiery fray that was the battle for Iwo Jima. Superbly written and studded with newly uncovered photos, "Iwo Jima Recon" beckons us to join the UDT Iwo Jima reconnaissance force. It truly can be said that the horrendous battle for Iwo commenced, with vigor, on Feb. 17, two days before the first Marine landed. During WW II, Underwater Demolition Teams, forerunners of today's SEAL teams, proved to be a great assist to invasion planners and to the Marines who safely splashed ashore."
Kurzbeschreibung
The Japanese held Iwo Jima in a grip of iron, and the island became a focal point for Allied forces in the Pacific. Could an invasion be mounted safely? Were there any underwater traps or obstacles? Would the beach selected take the weight of armored vehicles and jeeps? To answer these questions, a scouting force of four Navy Underwater Demolition teams were sent in, supported by battleships, Tennessee and Nevada, a cruiser, plus 12 landing craft and several destroyers. The story of the first battle for Iwo Jima is now fully told for the first time, in heart-stopping detail, a heroic account of ill-equipped forces under fire from a superior, unexpected, overwhelming enemy. Drawing on first-hand accounts, deck logs, after action reports, the battle is bought vividly to life: the Landing Craft infantry valiantly fighting the Japanese to protect swimmers; Nevada ignoring orders to withdraw and knocking out enemy guns; as well as the devastating casualties that very possibly saved the actual landing. This book is bound to appeal to students of warfare, as well as history buffs.
