A flamethrower is the last living Medal of Honor recipient from the Pacific

[rangerrebew]

 A flamethrower is the last living Medal of Honor recipient from the Pacific
Blake Stilwell
August 20, 2020 10:31:36 EST

The average life expectancy of a Marine with a flamethrower on any given battlefield is about five minutes, according to Medal of Honor recipient and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Herschel "Woody" Williams. Those tanks made tempting targets – and they weren't bulletproof.

Woody Williams was one such flamethrower. He not only earned his Medal of Honor, he's the last surviving Medal of Honor recipient from the Pacific War.

Williams was on the battlefields of Iwo Jima, an all-out slugfest that took place near the end of the war. But just because the end was nigh, that didn't mean the Japanese were going to make it easy on the Americans. By the time Woody Williams began torching Japanese pillboxes on the island, the Marines had been fighting for days. Williams had the idea to form a five-man team with him bearing the flamethrower and four Marines providing cover for him as he moved.

https://www.wearethemighty.com/history/medal-of-honor-from-pacific?rebelltitem=1#rebelltitem1

[Smokin Joe]

 

[skeeter]

As if that weren't bad enough, if he wasn't killed outright and was instead captured by the Japanese, he would be executed as a criminal immediately.

If you were a chaplain and were captured by the Japanese on Iwo Jima you'd be executed immediately as a criminal. In a very unpleasant manner.