Message Twelve (03-30-1945)
Comments by Ari Phoutrides
These are our orders received just 24
hours before the invasion of Okinawa on April 1, 1945.
Actually, the Laffey was not involved with the main invasion force. We were
part of what was
called a "demonstration" landing held on the southern
part of Okinawa.
The intent was to draw the Japanese forces to the south. It didn't work...
but it sure was impressive.
There was everything that constituted an invasion...
ship bombardment, beachhead strafing by the
Navy pilots, disembarking troops from transports, and waves approaching the
beach. The only
difference was that the waves turned around and returned to their transports.