Pearl Harbor

Two 2-hour hops today — practiced landings, and torpedo attacks on cruisers and destroyers.

Also took a ride around the island. It’s very beautiful, with the white surf pounding the creamy sand beaches at the bottom of some of the steepest cliffs I’ve ever seen. The terrain, well well covered with verdure, shows clearly the deep gashes erosion has cut into her mountains.

The Army and the Navy are “mad” at each other again! A bunch of petty children. Seems that the Army broke its neck getting into print on the Midway battle. Made a lot of claims, then believed true, but since definitely proved false, on the prowess of the Army fliers, and how they (no mention the Marines or Navy) beat the Japs at Midway. If the three services were to be named, for what they sacrificed and accomplished at Midway, and the order of importance it would be Marine Corps, Navy, and last the Army.

I have absolute first-hand knowledge to the effect that the Army, on the first attack on the Japanese (Wed. June 3), accomplished absolutely nothing with their bombing, despite their claim to crippling a battleship and sinking a tanker. The stupid dummies took photos of what they didn’t accomplish!

It seems as though the same sloppy bombing characterized their work the following day — the day of the big battle. Despite this, however, they claimed to have sunk almost everything that was sunk, which is griped the Navy and Marine Corps to no end. O, for a separate Air Force!