Posted on Aug 27, 2017
World War II "Last Fighter Pilot" Capt. Jerry Yellin on War and Survival
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You don't want to miss this interview! Take a few minutes to hear the whole interview - amazing!
RP Members and Connections check out this great interview of Captain Jerry Yellin (whose story is told in the new book THE LAST FIGHTER PILOT) was a P-51 fighter pilot stationed in Iwo Jima during World War II. He and his 19-year-old wingman Philip Schlamberg flew the very last combat mission of the war, on the day Japan surrendered. Here, he opens up about his war memories and tells an incredible story about his family's encounter with a Japanese Kamikaze pilot.
RP Members and Connections check out this great interview of Captain Jerry Yellin (whose story is told in the new book THE LAST FIGHTER PILOT) was a P-51 fighter pilot stationed in Iwo Jima during World War II. He and his 19-year-old wingman Philip Schlamberg flew the very last combat mission of the war, on the day Japan surrendered. Here, he opens up about his war memories and tells an incredible story about his family's encounter with a Japanese Kamikaze pilot.
WWII World War Two
Fighter Pilot
Combat
Japan
Interview
Edited 7 y ago
Posted 7 y ago
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Thanks COL Mikel J. Burroughs for sharing the video interview with Army Air Corps Captain Captain Jerry Yellin who along with his wingman 2LT Philip Schlamberg flew the in the first land-based fighter mission over Japan and the very last combat mission of the war in the 78th fighter squadron North American Aviation P-51 Mustang fighters that were based on Iwo Jima.
Nineteen-year-old Philip Schlamberg had the tragic distinction of being "the last man killed in a combat mission in WWII"
Images: P-51’s of the 78th Fighter Squadron near Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima; Captain Jerry Yellin; Iwo Jima was a strategic base of operations because of its close proximity to Japan; Second Lt. Phillip Schlamberg
'BPE: Do any missions stand out?
Yellin: Yes, the first and the last one. In between – what I mostly remember, are the sixteen men in my squadron who died on the various missions.
BPE: Would you tell us about that last mission?
Yellin: My last mission was on August 14, 1945. We had dropped the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki and were surprised the Japanese had still not surrendered. There was a thought that they could quit at any moment, and we even had a special code word – Ohio – for a recall if they surrendered once we were in the air. But our commanding officer, Lt. Colonel Jim Tapp, said we had to keep the Japanese honest, just in case, so we had to keep the pressure on them.
My mission that day was to strafe an airfield near Tokyo. But at the previous day’s briefing, my wing man – Lt. Phillip Schlamberg – said to me, “Captain, if we go, I’m not coming back.” I said, “What do you mean?” and he replied, “It’s just a feeling I have.” I told this to Jim Tapp, and he suggested Phil see a doctor, but he refused to go, so the next day we went on the mission. I told Phil, “Stay right on my wing, and you’ll be OK.”
We listened the entire way over, but we never heard the recall code.
We needed enough fuel to make our run, and ninety gallons to get back to our base. After strafing the field, I looked at my gauges to make sure I was OK, then I looked over at Phil and gave him the thumbs up. He returned the thumbs up, and I led our four planes up into a bank of clouds. When we came out of the clouds, Phil was gone. Nobody heard anything; nobody saw anything. When we landed on Iwo Jima, we found out that while we were strafing the airfield, the war had been over for three hours. So Phil Schlamberg was the last man to die on a combat mission during WWII.
By the way, Phil was the great-uncle of movie star Scarlett Johansson."
http://baltimorepostexaminer.com/v-j-day-pilot-recalls-wwii/2015/09/02
"Captain (Retired) Jerry Yellin is an Army Air Corps veteran who served in WWII between 1941 and 1945.
Yellin enlisted two months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on his 18th Birthday. After graduating from Luke Air Field as a fighter pilot in August of 1943, he spent the remainder of the war flying P-40, P- 47 and P-51 combat missions in the Pacific with the 78th Fighter Squadron.
He participated in the first land based fighter mission over Japan on April 7, 1945, and also has the unique distinction of having flown the final combat mission of World War II on August 14, 1945 – the day the war ended. On that mission, his wing-man (Phillip Schlamberg) was the last man killed in a combat mission in WWII."
From captainjerryyellin.com/about-jerry-yellin/
FYI LTC Stephen C. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx Maj Marty Hogan PO1 William "Chip" Nagel SPC Margaret Higgins SSG William Wall MSgt Jason McClish AN Christopher Crayne LTC Bill Koski Sgt Trevor Barrett SPC Tom DeSmet SGT Charles H. Hawes LTC Wayne Brandon SGT (Join to see)
Nineteen-year-old Philip Schlamberg had the tragic distinction of being "the last man killed in a combat mission in WWII"
Images: P-51’s of the 78th Fighter Squadron near Mount Suribachi on Iwo Jima; Captain Jerry Yellin; Iwo Jima was a strategic base of operations because of its close proximity to Japan; Second Lt. Phillip Schlamberg
'BPE: Do any missions stand out?
Yellin: Yes, the first and the last one. In between – what I mostly remember, are the sixteen men in my squadron who died on the various missions.
BPE: Would you tell us about that last mission?
Yellin: My last mission was on August 14, 1945. We had dropped the second atomic bomb on Nagasaki and were surprised the Japanese had still not surrendered. There was a thought that they could quit at any moment, and we even had a special code word – Ohio – for a recall if they surrendered once we were in the air. But our commanding officer, Lt. Colonel Jim Tapp, said we had to keep the Japanese honest, just in case, so we had to keep the pressure on them.
My mission that day was to strafe an airfield near Tokyo. But at the previous day’s briefing, my wing man – Lt. Phillip Schlamberg – said to me, “Captain, if we go, I’m not coming back.” I said, “What do you mean?” and he replied, “It’s just a feeling I have.” I told this to Jim Tapp, and he suggested Phil see a doctor, but he refused to go, so the next day we went on the mission. I told Phil, “Stay right on my wing, and you’ll be OK.”
We listened the entire way over, but we never heard the recall code.
We needed enough fuel to make our run, and ninety gallons to get back to our base. After strafing the field, I looked at my gauges to make sure I was OK, then I looked over at Phil and gave him the thumbs up. He returned the thumbs up, and I led our four planes up into a bank of clouds. When we came out of the clouds, Phil was gone. Nobody heard anything; nobody saw anything. When we landed on Iwo Jima, we found out that while we were strafing the airfield, the war had been over for three hours. So Phil Schlamberg was the last man to die on a combat mission during WWII.
By the way, Phil was the great-uncle of movie star Scarlett Johansson."
http://baltimorepostexaminer.com/v-j-day-pilot-recalls-wwii/2015/09/02
"Captain (Retired) Jerry Yellin is an Army Air Corps veteran who served in WWII between 1941 and 1945.
Yellin enlisted two months after the bombing of Pearl Harbor on his 18th Birthday. After graduating from Luke Air Field as a fighter pilot in August of 1943, he spent the remainder of the war flying P-40, P- 47 and P-51 combat missions in the Pacific with the 78th Fighter Squadron.
He participated in the first land based fighter mission over Japan on April 7, 1945, and also has the unique distinction of having flown the final combat mission of World War II on August 14, 1945 – the day the war ended. On that mission, his wing-man (Phillip Schlamberg) was the last man killed in a combat mission in WWII."
From captainjerryyellin.com/about-jerry-yellin/
FYI LTC Stephen C. Capt Seid Waddell Capt Tom Brown SFC William Farrell SSgt Robert Marx Maj Marty Hogan PO1 William "Chip" Nagel SPC Margaret Higgins SSG William Wall MSgt Jason McClish AN Christopher Crayne LTC Bill Koski Sgt Trevor Barrett SPC Tom DeSmet SGT Charles H. Hawes LTC Wayne Brandon SGT (Join to see)
V-J Day: P-51 pilot Jerry Yellin recalls last mission of WWII
The Baltimore Post-Examiner caught up with P-51 pilot Captain Jerry Yellin on the eve of V-J Day to talk about his wartime and post-war experiences.
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A great story.
My mom was married to a Korea Vet who absolutely would not go back to visit Korea. He carried a lot of pain with him to the grave. He was a great guy torn by memories of war.
My mom was married to a Korea Vet who absolutely would not go back to visit Korea. He carried a lot of pain with him to the grave. He was a great guy torn by memories of war.
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PFC Lisa McDonald
Im fairness to him I want to say those memories helped make him the great guy he was.
He did not go back I believe as a way to preserve those memories. He did not want anything to diminish them no matter how painful keeping them was.
He did not go back I believe as a way to preserve those memories. He did not want anything to diminish them no matter how painful keeping them was.
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PFC Lisa McDonald
Each vet has their own way of dealing with it. The best way is the one that keeps you alive and contributing.
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