James A. Nist lived an extraordinary life in his 24 years. Raised on a New Jersey farm, he graduated high school at 16 and earned both a bachelor's degree from Rutgers University and a private pilot's license. In 1942, he joined the Navy as an aviation cadet, earning his wings and an officer's commission in the Naval Reserve. He became proficient in three of the Navy's high-performance combat aircraft: the SBD Dauntless dive-bomber, the F6F Hellcat fighter and the F4U Corsair fighter. In 1945, he deployed to the Pacific aboard the carrier USS Bunker Hill and flew combat missions over Japan, Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
Drawing on Nist's letters and personal papers and official Navy documents, historian Bryan J. Dickerson tells the story of his great uncle's life and service during World War II.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
Table of Contents
U.S. Navy Officer Ranks in World War II
Prologue: Off the Coast of Imperial Japan
Introduction
1. James A. Nist-His Life Before the U.S. Navy
2. Naval Aviation Cadet
3. Ensign James A. Nist, Naval Aviator
4. Navy Fighting Squadron 84
5. Deploying on USS Bunker Hill
6. Tokyo and Iwo Jima
7. With the Fast Carrier Task Force in March 1945
8. The Invasion of Okinawa
9. The War Goes On
10. Missing in Action
11. Honors and Tributes
12. Shorty Nist's Final Mission
Epilogue
Appendix: Nist Chronology
Chapter Notes
Bibliography
Index
