[Milsurplus] Kiska Evacuation

[Hue Miller]

--------------------------------------------------
From: "KD7JYK DM09" <kd7jyk at earthlink.net>
Sent: Sunday, December 12, 2010 1:29 AM
To: "Hue Miller" <kargo_cult at msn.com>
Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] Kiska Evacuation

> '93 or '43?
>
> Why were they evacuating the area?
>
> Kurt

Summer 93 copy of the magazine.
You are right, 28 July 43 was the evacuation. They apparently decided no 
point to
sacrificing 5000+ troops for some islands not really protective of the best 
of their
Empire.  US forces invasion fleet was approaching.
No Japanese remained on the island, but something like 35 Allied troops died 
from
boobytraps or friendly fire exchanges.
I have been interested in the Aleutians campaign for a long time. I bought
a 4 or 5 volume set of picture books on it, that you may have seen. A bunch 
of
years back I bought a Japanese type 94-5 field radio in the transit case, 
according
to the story, it was found in a cave there. I believe the story meant
 more like"underground fortification" such as were plentiful on Kiska. - I 
read  years
later that the Japanese equipment, movable items, were moved to Cold Bay and
stored there until 1948, then in the wisdom of the Government, buried, with 
no
souvenirs permitted. There is always some "leakage".  The account was by way
of explaining how one fellow acquired a binoculars he owned.  -Hue