The President who avoided being eaten by cannibals in WWII

George HW Bush the president who avoided being eaten by cannibals in World War two George Herbert Walker Bush was the last US president that served in combat there were a number of his predecessors who also paid their debt to the country but George Bush's experience was completely unique he managed to evade the gruesome death of being eaten by Japanese soldiers when the Japanese forces attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941 George Bush was only a seventeen-year-old teenager he was attending the last year of the Phillips Academy University Preparatory School in Andover Massachusetts in the days after the attack the people of the United States experienced a rush of patriotism it was the same case with young Bush who wanted to enlist as soon as possible so he could serve his country since he was still underage his first idea was to enlist in Canada he changed his mind due to a strong wish to serve as an aviator in the US Navy as soon as he graduated and turned 18 On June 13 1942 George Bush signed up for the US Naval Reserves one year after he joined the Navy he was commissioned as an ensign many believed at the time that he was the youngest pilot in the US Navy as he was only 19 years old it didn't take long when in the spring of 1944 he was sent as a pilot to the USS San Jacinto light aircraft carrier he arrived just in time to participate in the campaign of island hopping against japanese-held islands in the Pacific still a youngster George Bush became an experienced pilot after fighting over Marcos and Wake Island he also participated in one of the largest air combats in the war battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944 in the final day of the battle after returning from the mission Bush had to make a forced landing on the water it was his first crash in the war luckily he and his crew were rescued by the destroyer USS Clarence K Bronson the second one however was far more dramatic as American forces were rolling northwards on the Pacific they commenced a campaign on the Bonin islands in August 1944 it was the same month when George HW Bush was promoted to lieutenant junior on September 2nd Bush received an order to fly in a group with three other bombers towards the island of chichi Jima their mission was to destroy a very important radio tower that was located on the island as soon as they appeared in the skies over the island they were attacked by the strong anti-aircraft defense Bush's plane was hit at the moment when he started to dive towards the target neglecting the fact that his plane was on fire and the entire cockpit was full of smoke Bush continued to dive until he realized the bombs had hit and damaged the radio tower it was only then that he turned his blazing plane towards the USS San Jacinto once they were far enough from the island bush and two other crew members bailed out of the plane as he was descending Bush observed his plane hitting the water and disappear into the waves moments after as he hit the water his struggle began with a heavy soaked flight suit wounded head and eyes still burning from the smoke in the cockpit Bush had to fight to stay on top of the water his fortune was that he landed in the vicinity of a life raft when he got a hold of it he inflated it and climbed aboard the misfortune was that the winds were pushing him closer towards the japanese-held Island so Bush had to paddle with his arms to stay as far away as possible at one point he was spotted by the Japanese who sent boats to capture earth but these were repelled by American fighter planes for four hours George was floating in his raft as fighter aircraft were flying above his head to protect him finally he was rescued by the lifeguard submarine USS finback several other Airmen were shot down and also escaped by bailing out but they would not be so lucky those eight aviators who were captured suffered severe torture from the Japanese squad on the island they were either beaten or stabbed with sharp bamboo sticks after which they were killed the most horrifying part was that the bodies of four of them were used to prepare a meal for the Japanese officers by the wish of major Swale Matoba japanese surgeon dr. t rocky removed the liver from one of the dead US pilots and handed it over to the cook he then prepared it with soy sauce and vegetables and served it in small pieces pierced with bamboo sticks major Matoba in the company of other office and commander of the island general Yoshio Tachibana feasted on this gruesome meal with sake they believed it was good medicine for the stomach the same feast was repeated with the body parts of three of the other aviators at the time bush knew nothing about this crime that was kept secret even though the executors were eventually trialed in 1946 it was not until 2003 a study published in the book Flyboys a true story of courage that George HW Bush and the entire public learned of the terrible destiny of the captured Airmen in November 1944 Bush returned to the USS San Jacinto and continued to fight over the Philippines after a few months his entire unit returned to the States due to heavy casualties and in September 1945 George HW Bush was honorably discharged from duty even though he flew 58 combat missions had 126 carrier landings and 1228 flight hours the mission over the island of chichi Jima was one that earned him the Distinguished Flying Cross as he later claimed these were the moments that he remembered for the rest of his life you subscribe for more World War 2 videos

Channel: Simple History

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Keywords: simple history, animated history, educational, education, The President, cannibals in WWII, 2018, George H. W. Bush, ensign, the pacific, usa, japanese, U.S. President, Pearl Harbor, aviator, U.S. Navy, USS San Jacinto, VT-51, Philippine Sea, Great Marianas, Turkey Shoot, Avenger, Chi Chi Jima, bush, USS Finback, General Yoshio Tachibana, Dr Teraki, Chichijima incident, Major Sueo Matoba, Major Matoba, flyboys, Flying Cross, brave story, valor, bush 41, president 41

Id: CCEER6v8tPM

Length: 5min 48sec (348 seconds)

Published: Sun Dec 30 2018