Neutralizing a Cave, Iwo Jima

Chemical Section, Pacific Base Command, with help from the Navy, the Marine Corps, other Army elements, and civilians. Briefly, the flame unit, designated the POA CWS Hi, consisted of a Ronson flame thrower installed in a salvaged yy-mm. gun tube and mounted in a medium tank. It had a maximum effective range of about lOO yards (with thickened fuel), a capacity of nearly 300 gallons, and a firing time of 150 seconds.  

Meanwhile, the Japanese defenders of Iwo Jima had been busy strengthening their defenses. Engineers well versed in fortifications came from Japan to supervise the work. They added a series of trenches and pillboxes to the natural caves which formed the backbone of the island s defenses. Whenever possible these features were integrated 

The Japanese did their work well. Not only did it take a month to capture this tiny island, but during the course of the operation marines actually saw very few of the enemy. The Japanese commander expressly forbade banzai charges and other mass heroics, ordering his troops to stick to their positions to the last. Moreover, once a position had been silenced, it was by no means safe to assume that it would give no further trouble. The Japanese infiltrated at night, both above and below ground, and re-occupied defenses which previously had been neutralized.  

At the end of the campaign some units commented on the superiority of the M2-2 model over its MiAi predecessor, particularly in regard to its ignition system. The familiar cry for greater range continued to be heard. As far as maintenance was concerned, experience varied— one battalion reported no difficulty or malfunctions, while others lamented the complete absence of spare parts.  

Because enemy emplacements were difficult to approach, flame thrower operator casualties shot upward. The casualty rate on Iwo Jima was probably higher than in any other campaign in the Pacific. 

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