John J. Fitzpatrick

John J. “Jack” Fitzpatrick was born and raised in East Orange, New Jersey.  His father had served in World War I, as a member of the 12^th Field Artillery in the 2^nd Division. At Chateau Thierry, his father was awarded the Silver Star and Purple Heart medals, for carrying a wounded soldier to the rear while wounded himself. He was also gassed during the war. Fitzpatrick said his father did not talk much about his wartime experiences but did show him the scars from his wounds.

When Pearl Harbor occurred, Fitzpatrick recalled that there was not much worry about the outcome of the war in East Orange. He recalled that people were saying: “We’ll kill ‘em in no time.” At the time, Fitzpatrick was working at the Kearny Shipyard.  He was aware that there was a British base in Asbury Park, New Jersey, but, other than that was not well informed on the progress of the war.

Fitzpatrick was drafted in 1943. His brother was drafted later and assigned to Military Police duty in Texas. Jack was assigned, after testing at Fort Dix, to the Army Air Corps and sent to Miami, Florida for basic training.  He summed up the purpose of the training as: “they were trying to get you to pay attention and do as ordered without question.’ There was a lot of marching around, and they went to a firing range once where they fired three shots.

Fitzpatrick and his fellow trainees were quartered in a hotel. He caught measles and was quarantined at another hotel for four days. On completion of basic training, Fitzpatrick took several more aptitude tests and was send to Bentonville, North Carolina, for eight to ten weeks of training as a mechanic. He then returned to Florida for training at Fort Myer as an aerial gunner. This involved marksmanship training beginning with a BB gun, a .22 caliber rifle and then to the skeet range with a shotgun, where trainees learned to lead a moving target. Lastly, they fired machine guns.

Upon completion of gunnery school. Fitzpatrick and his fellow airmen were shipped to Fort Dix, where they were attached to crews trained on B-17 bombers. Originally assigned to Alaska, his crew’s orders were changed to the central Pacific. They boarded a troop train at Fort Dix and traveled to Riverside California, a port of exit to the Pacific. From there they boarded a ship to Hawaii, arriving there in January of 1944. Initially assigned to B-17 bombers, they were reassigned to B-24s.

Fitzpatrick’s and another B-24 crew were deployed to calibrate radar by flying at different heights and distances from radar stations across the Pacific. Their initial stop was Kwajalein. There they saw their first Japanese soldiers, prisoners of war. Fitzpatrick noted that the airfield there was a cemetery for Japanese soldiers killed in the battle for the island, who had their graves covered with ground coral. As their bodies decayed, holes developed, which were filled in with more coral.

While on Kwajalein, Fitzpatrick and another enlisted man took a walk to look for souvenirs, where they came upon a Japanese soldier crouched in the brush. They thought he might have a grenade and ran back to their camp for weapons. When they returned, the enemy soldier was still sitting there. They pointed .45 automatic pistols at him and ordered him out, and he finally crawled out and raised his hands. Fitzpatrick then said, “what do we do now?” Fortunately, a Marine came along escorting a half dozen prisoners, and they handed him over. The Marine said, “why didn’t you just shoot him? I got enough to do,” but he added the prisoner to his group.

After two weeks on the island, they departed for Eniwetok. There, Fitzpatrick recalled that each man was awarded two canteens of water a day, for drinking and washing use. They were issued soluble soap to use in bathing in the ocean. He recalled that the soap residue clung to his skin and had to be scraped off. Food was not appealing either. It was all dehydrated – eggs, milk, vegetables, etc. Fortunately, a refrigerator ship broke down and had to unload fresh eggs, which were transported to the mess hall. All soldiers had to do was walk in and say how many they wanted and how they wanted them cooked. Unfortunately, the egg festival only lasted two days.

After a stint on Eniwetok, the crews flew to Saipan, and Fitzpatrick was on the first B-24 to land on that island. In between calibration missions on Saipan, his crew rested and collected souvenirs.  They found three Japanese rifles and used to target shoot with them. Ammunition was plentiful, stored by the enemy in local caves. On one occasion, a Marine asked them if they found any gold teeth in the Japanese dead around the caves. He went along with them, but when he noted an eyeless corpse staring up at him decided not to pursue his tooth quest.

On Saipan, the locals would make souvenir decorations out of seashells and sell them. There was no PX, but occasionally PX supplies would arrive, including candy bars, soda etc. They would set up a table where troops could select one thing after dinner, for free. Beyond an occasional movie, entertainment was scarce, but Fitzpatrick was fortunate enough to catch a Bob Hope show during his time in the Pacific. Hope had several stars in his entourage, including Jerry Colonna. Fitzpatrick went to the rear of the stage with a lot of other soldiers, where he got an autograph from Hope on a one-dollar bill he had. When the interviewer asked him if he still had the dollar, he said “Nah, I spent it.” 

Fitzpatrick’s unit, composed of two B-24s and ten men dressed in “shoes and shorts,” used to go up in the air and travel towards Taiwan or Okinawa, while a ground crew would test radar on their course. Some P-47s arrived on Saipan and were used to bomb another island. One plane had its engine shot out and crash-landed on two other P-47s. The pilot was unharmed and given another aircraft, which also got shot up, crash-landed and destroyed another P-47. The pilot was then reassigned as a co-pilot to Fitzpatrick’s unit. He “was a nice guy,” according to Fitzpatrick.

Fitzpatrick’s crew had emergency supplies on their aircraft, but fortunately never had to use them. There were parachutes which they seldom wore but were placed next to them. There were shotgun shells for their .45 caliber pistols which could be used on birds for food. On Saipan, Fitzpatrick, along with several other men, caught Dengue fever. The island was infested with mosquitoes, and several P-47s had aerial sprayers mounted on them that swept the island, killing most of the insects.

The calibration crews were ordered to Guam, where they received air medals, and then moved on for a brief period to Iwo Jima. Fitzpatrick recalled that Iwo Jima was covered with hot black sand that emitted a sulfur smell. After a week, the crew went on to Okinawa, and, following a brief time there, returned to Hawaii to be issued new aircraft, as well as enjoy some rest and recreation.  Good food was available in Hawaii. Following the rest period, the crew returned to Guam, where they heard of the atomic bombs dropped on Japan yet had no idea of what they were. On to Okinawa, they resumed the search for souvenirs in caves where Japanese had lived. In one, they found sets of china, including tea sets, but could not figure out a way to get them home. They were friendly with the children on Okinawa and gave them candy when they had some.  The Marines had taught them one English phrase: “Tojo eats shit.” And that was the greeting the children gave to American soldiers!

The war was over, and from Okinawa. Fitzpatrick and his comrades were sent to the Philippines, where they waited one month for a troopship to take them to Hawaii. Fitzpatrick was impressed by the hustle of the Filipinos, as they washed GI clothing and would buy clothing that they would convert into clothing for fellow Filipinos.

The troopship finally arrived and took them to Hawaii, from where they flew to San Francisco and took a train to Fort Dix for discharge. Fitzpatrick said that no one was telling war stories, because they wanted to restart their lives, and because everyone had been in the war. It was not until years afterward before people asked him what he had done in the war. He got a job in the Post Office and worked there for thirteen years but had to work a second job because the pay was low. Fitzpatrick then became a bartender and worked at several places until he retired.

Fitzpatrick had joined Company E, 15^th New Jersey Volunteers, a Civil War reenactment unit, in the 1970s. He was involved in historical preservation and was a founding member of the New Jersey Civil War Heritage Association. Present at this interview was a friend of Fitzpatrick’s, local historian, and trustee Jim Madden, who agreed to track down some of the B-24 crew. Three were still living, and two were able to speak to Fitzpatrick by phone.

At the age of 91, John J. Fitzpatrick passed away on January 31, 2014.

Additional Resources:

• Image gallery on Dropbox
• Profile on findagrave.com