P-MAN XII Progress Report #19 - A junkyard can also be a reference library
09 March 2010

After finding the identifying piece of Corsair yesterday, we decided another trip to Peleliu was in order. There are several aircraft boneyards on Peleliu that include pieces of Corsairs, so we decided to try to find a matching piece of airplane to the one we found in the jungle. We were confident with what we found in the jungle yesterday, but if we could find a matching piece it would make us feel even better.

Following breakfast we grabbed a boat from Neco and took the hour-long boat ride down to Peleliu. It was a beautiful day and along the way we stopped at an Avenger crash site next to one of the Rock Islands. A recovery mission was done on this plane in the 1970s, but Pat wanted to share the story with us. The plane crashed inverted into the side of the island and the majority of it slid into the water and is under 20-30 ft of water. Today it is used for tourists that are beginner divers. No tourists in sight today though.

Pat explains the Avenger crash site

Once we made it to Peleliu we headed to a large boneyard where a number of Corsairs are located. After searching the boneyard for an hour or so and not locating the piece we wanted, we decided to break for lunch.

Marines Landing on Peleliu

In the boneyard.

As we headed to the local sandwich shop, Pat and Joe discussed another site where an entire Hellcat wing is located. Pat thought there might be some other aircraft pieces in that area. The problem was finding the area again. Then Joe remembered that it was close to an overturned Sherman tank. Our local driver knew where the tank was, so after we ate some triple-decker spam and cheese sandwiches, we headed that way.

Found the tank.

We found the tank, then found the Hellcat wing, then we found the Corsair piece we were looking for. Actually we found about four of them. We took a bunch of pictures and then realized we had some time to hike around some of the famous areas where the Marines fought on this island.

We hiked up the Horseshoe. Amazing that it is 65 years later and you can still see the scorch marks on the coral from flamethrowers. From there we went to Orange Beach and finally White Beach. Pat, Warren, and I walked the length of White Beach from South to the North where a Japanese promontory sits. This position was not taken out by the bombardments prior to the landing, and fire from the pillbox here ravaged the landing Marines as they attempted to push ashore. After taking a moment to absorb the weight of these sites we headed back to the pier.

Looking south along White Beach from the Japanese pillbox.

We had to get the boat back to Neco and clean up before we headed to Dave and Margie’s for dinner. Dave, Margie and Debra have all been friends of BentProp for the last few years. They made a great dinner for us, and some amazing margaritas. We had a great time and toasted to our friends and another successful year.

Margaritas. Dave and Margie KNOW how to make Margaritas.

One thing that we cannot leave out! After we got back to Neco we got a call from Jolie. She wanted to stop by and say goodbye. She wasn’t going to be able to see us again before we left and this was her last chance. Jolie has been working an archeological dig on the big island for a while and today she struck gold. Not real gold, but gold to her: she and her team discovered some ancient pottery with designs and large bases. Jolie was very excited and we're all very excited for her.

Tomorrow is a water day!

- Derek

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