Ed Miklavcic Survived Pearl Harbor, Then Landed on Iwo Jima

Ed Miklavcic was 20 years old when he drove his brother to the recruiter's office and ended up signing up himself on the spot. Within hours he was gone for four years. In this interview with American Veterans Center, he walks through surviving the attack on Wheeler Field during Pearl Harbor and then landing on Iwo Jima to help build the airfield that Marines died securing.

Key points

• Pearl Harbor, up close: Miklavcic describes running from barracks to barracks at Wheeler Field as Japanese planes strafed the street low enough to nearly touch, losing nearly all 150 P-40s on the line.
• Building the airfield under fire: His unit laid wooden floors over sinking sand to set up pilot ready rooms and gun stations, while mortars landed around a bulldozer just yards away.
• Combat at arm's length: He recalls Japanese troops infiltrating the airfield at night with sabers, attacking pilots camped just next to his squadron.
• The cost of the island: Miklavcic describes a shallow mass grave on Iwo Jima holding roughly 5,000 dead stacked in layers, with about 20,000 Marines wounded.

Quick take

This is a firsthand, unpolished account from someone who lived through two of the Pacific War's defining moments. There's no narration smoothing it over, just a veteran recalling exact details of planes, bodies and terrain decades later.

Watch the full video: American Veterans Center