• Image of four aviators at leisure, playing cribbage

    Aleutian World War II

    National Historic Area Alaska

Joseph Hutchison

Joseph Hutchison enlisted as an aerial gunner in the Army Air Corps at age 19 and had his physical at the American Lady Corset Factory in Detroit.
 
He talks about being in the shuffled around and gaining crew members before his crew was sent to Alaska. While in the Aleutians they participated in a bombing raid in the Kurile Islands, a mission to Paramushiro, and the beginning of the Kiska Campaign.

 
Images of Joseph Hutchison and servicemates
Left: Joseph Don Hutchison: S/SGT Joseph Donald Hutchison- 21st Bomb Squadron

Right: Wadlington crew 1943: Capt. Irving L. Wadlington's Second Crew- April to Oct. 1943
21st Bomb Squadron shown on Amchitka Island led the third element at Paramushiru Aug 11, 1943
photos courtesy joseph hutchison
 
  • Complete transcript

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Transcript summary

1. Joining the military, service before Alaska audio / transcript

2. From Fort Custer to Jefferson Barracks, Missouri by train audio / transcript

3. [From Arlington Texas to Salt Lake City audio / transcript

4. Life in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake to Alamogordo audio / transcript

5. Alamogordo to Clovis New Mexico, with a few mishaps along the way, trouble at Alamogordo audio / transcript

6. Clovis to Topeka, Kansas audio / transcript

7. to Alaska, appeared on the cover of Life audio / transcript

8. Topeka to St. John's Canada, trouble at St. John's audio / transcript

9. Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada to Anchorage, Alaska audio / transcript

10. Anchorage to Umnak, pilot gets into trouble audio / transcript

11. Bombing raid in the Kurile Islands audio / transcript

12. The Aleutians to radio school in Scott Field, Illinois audio / transcript

13. Scott Field to Wichita Falls, Texas audio / transcript

14. Wichita Falls back to Scott Field audio / transcript

15. Went to Reno, Nevada until discharge, life after being discharged audio / transcript

16. Life in the Aleutians audio / transcript

17. Knowledge of what was happening in both theaters of the war while in the Aleutians audio / transcript

18. Loss of a friend, didn't lose any crew members audio / transcript

19. Keeping in contact after the war audio / transcript

Did You Know?

A PBY plane surrounded by crew

A PBY plane piloted by Lt. Jean Cusick was sent from Dutch Harbor, on June 3, 1942, to locate Japanese forces in the Pacific. He was shot down by enemy fighters en route. Five men out of the seven-man crew survived the crash and got into life rafts. Cusick and his enlisted pilot died on the rafts from their wounds. The other three were captured by the Japanese, and became the first prisoners of war in the Aleutian Campaign.