Novelist James A. Michener poses with Chiba Yoshikatsu, a 19-year-old Japanese soldier who helped rescue Michener and other survivors of a plane crash a few days earlier off Iwo Jima. Yoshikatsu swam 150 yards through shark-infested waters to bring a tow line to the raft of Michener and 11 Air Force men after their C-47 ditched at sea. (©S&S)
YOKOHAMA, Japan — Novelist James A. Michener had warm praise Tuesday for the six Japanese seamen who rescued him and 11 Air Force men from a life raft last Friday after their C-47 aircraft ditched at sea two miles off Iwo Jima.
He greeted the sailors at U.S. Army Terminal Command, Japan's LST beach, after their drill landed at its home port. Michener had flown on to Tokyo last week immediately after being rescued.
Michener was particularly enthusiastic about the heroic action of Japanese seaman Chiba Yoshikatsu, 19, who swam 150 yards in shark-infested waters from a lifeboat to bring a tow line to the inflated life raft in which the downed passengers were riding.
"EVERYBODY TRIED to flag him down and prevent him from swimming the seemingly impossible distance, but he persisted in coming," the Pulitzer prize-winning author said.
Chiba, who learned to swim as a youth, was abashed by the attention. "I don't think I'd have jumped in if I'd known those sharks were around," he modestly volunteered.
The youth said he didn't even think of sharks while making the dramatic swim but after reaching the raft, "I suddenly remembered seeing a couple while I was in the water."
MICHENER SAID, "We pulled him in with a lot of affection. I know these waters and, boy are there plenty of sharks. He. certainly did risk his life in trying to reach us."
The C-47 aircraft had just taken off after a stop-over at Iwo Jima en route to Japan from Andersen AFB, Guam, where Michener had been doing research for a magazine article on the Strategic Air Command base there.
Michener described the ditching as harrowing but said he had experienced "`a couple tougher aircraft incidents in the Navy during World War II. Everyone knows any landing you can walk away from is supposed to be good," he said, "but swimming away is a really glorious one (landing). The moment you get into the raft and know you'll get through."
IN THE DOWNED aircraft, the author lost the results of two years' "spare time work" in final form. "I have no lament because I cannot honestly regret leaving everything behind," he commented on his hasty exit from the sinking C-47.
Among his lost writings was a completed hook manuscript and numerous other notes and story plans, including a story for Life magazine.
All branches of the U.S. military services participated in the sea incident. An AF C-47 aircraft crashed into the sea, a Navy MSTS contract ship's landing craft performed the-actual rescue and an Army tug towed to shore the landing craft after its motors balked at the heavy overload.
THE YOUNG JAPANESE seaman is employed by the American Ship Operating Co. of Yokohama which is under contract as sole operator of the Navy's MSTS LST-type ship in the Western Pacific Area.
Cash rewards were presented the six Japanese rescuers by Capt. Robert Lowther, operations officer, MSTS WestPac Area.
