D + 4

February 23, 1945

No Marine ground unit had reached the O-1 line yet, but the VAC D+4 objective was the O-2 line, well beyond Airfield No. 2. This might have been a ploy to keep the troops pumped up, but iut was a weak ploy. The troops were quite capable of seeing that two vital factors were working against them. If it was possible, the Japanese defenders were on better ground and far denser than they had been to this point. The front-line Marines were beyond tired, and their nerves were jagged. Moreover, the high rate of casualties, especially among senior officers and trusted troop leaders, was nearing an unsustainable level. Many, many good men had given their all for the crappy gains to date - well short of every pessimistic projection.

But at 0730... every Marine who was asked and still could resumed the northward grind.

- Eric Hammel, Iwo Jima

Everything the Marines had encountered up to this point paled in comparison to the defenses they would now face. They were about to hit the outer perimeter of General Kuribayashi's most intricately prepared fortifications - which were manned by the crack troops of the veteran 145th Infantry Regiment. The terrain facing the Marines resembled a shallow U-shape - the flanks were anchored on higher ground, while the flat terrain afforded little cover for advancing Americans. It could be swept at any time by hidden antitank guns, rifles, machine guns, and the ever-present artillery. Finally, mines and booby traps littered the ground, waiting for an unsuspecting Marine to take a wrong step or pick up a tempting souvenir.

They jumped off as they were ordered, and ran straight into a maelstrom of flying lead and explosions. The 21st Marines had arguably the worst time of it, attacking over the open flat ground towards Airfield No. 2. They gained only a few yards, and a few managed to organize an attack across one of the runways, but met with such terrible slaughter that they were forced to perform that uniquely Marine maneuver - an "advance to the rear." Gains in yards were next to nothing; the cost in lives was horrifying.

First Battalion reverted to the control of its parent combat team at 0600. They attempted a local advance - without support on the flanks, they could not go far, and the other assault battalions were taking a pasting - with C Company in the lead. They began to encounter small anti-personnel mines made of terracotta, armed with plastic fuses, which did not set off the metal detectors. As the engineers laboriously cleared paths for the advance, First Battalion weathered significant small-arms fire and some light mortars, but fortunately escaped much of the artillery that focused on the assault battalions. They also managed to capture a pair of 90mm mortars, one of which was still functional. By the end of the day, they had managed about 300 yards on the right flank, but with the hold up along the left - near the airfield - the attack petered out, and the 24th began digging in for the night at 1500.

C Company, having been roughly handled while at the front, was pulled off the lines, and Able Company was sent to replace them, relinquishing their position as the division's right flank to Fox Company of the 25th Marines.

As night fell, Able Company dug in, again preparing for a counterattack that did not materialize. Many of the veterans earnestly wished for a nice big banzai - one evening of pure adrenalized terror would be an acceptable price to pay if it broke the Japanese defenses - but again, the Japanese contented themselves with small raiding parties armed with rifles and hand grenades. These harrassed the lines enough to make sure the Marines stayed awake, anxious fingers on their triggers, and fraying their badly tested nerves still further.

Able's casualties were again comparatively light - if such a concept can be quantified - but the death of one of their men left a lasting impression on those who saw it.

"We moved back another 40 yards and set down, took our jackets off to get a little sun. Setting next to me was John Corcoran from Boston. John had been with us through the other three battles and was a great guy. As John and I are sitting there leaning against a big boulder I saw a friendly shell moving like a loose football come bouncing right at us. It was so fast there was no way we could move. The shell hit John in the stomach and glanced off and kept going. I turned to John and asked him if he was all right. He didn’t answer. There was a little red mark on his stomach. I got some stretcher-bearers to help get him down to the doctors who had an operating tent just below us. We took him into the tent and laid him down. A doctor came over and checked him out and told us to take him outside, he was dead. I couldn’t believe it."

- Al Perry, personal recollection.

Able Company Casualties, February 23, 1945

Killed
Corporal John Martin Corcoran. Age 21. West Roxbury, MA. BAR gunner.

Wounded
Sergeant Fred Eugene Thomas
Corporal William J. Imm. Mortar gunner.
PFC James L. Moore. Rifleman.
Assistant Cook James McAdams
Assistant Cook Willard Roberts
Private Clifford R. Burnette. Rifleman.

Total: 7

Returned From Hospital
Private Allen B. Duncan. Rifleman.