Raleigh, NC, November 03, 2006 –(PR.com)– TMC Pacific Modelworks has announced they will showcase their handcrafted models at the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association Expo on Nov. 9-11 at the Palm Springs Convention Center in Palm Springs, California. The expo will house 500 exhibitors displaying the newest avionics, flight gear and pilot services, and will feature 80 aircraft including the latest models and light sport aircraft. This is the first year that TMC will be exhibiting, where they will showcase custom models of various sizes and genres at Booth 1200, as well as raffle a P-51 Mustang model signed by General Chuck Yeager.

“I am looking forward to participating in this expo,” said Graeme Warring, CEO of TMC Pacific Modelworks. “General Yeager is one of the great aviation legends of his time, and the fact that we will be raffling a signed model will be a large draw.”

About TMC Pacific Modelworks:
Since its inception in 1988, TMC Pacific Modelworks, located in Scottsdale, Arizona, has been producing the world’s finest handcrafted, museum-quality military, civilian and airline display models. The current product line consists of airplanes, helicopters, ships, boats, sailboats, space shuttles and the newly launched maritime line. With more than 1,000 different models from which to choose, the collection includes a selection of private aircraft and airlines, as well as models from the World War I, World War II, Korean, Vietnam, and Persian Gulf eras. High-level workmanship, combined with the inherent appeal of the airplanes, make these aero-sculptures true works of art — all aircraft and paint schemes were selected for historical significance and authenticity. For more information, please call 800-950-9944 or visit the Web site at http://www.warplanes.com.

Via source.

(PRLEAP.COM) TMC Pacific Modelworks Participates In National Business Aviation Association Convention Major Dutch Van Kirk Navigator Of Enola Gay To Make Appearance

PHOENIX – TMC Pacific Modelworks has announced they will showcase their handcrafted models at the 59th Annual National Business Aviation Association Meeting and Convention on Oct. 17-19 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. With more than one million square feet of floor space, the convention will house 1,000 exhibitors and feature over 100 aircraft including fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters. This is the second year that TMC will be exhibiting, where they will showcase some 40 models of various sizes and genres at booth 3712. Major Dutch Van Kirk, navigator for the Enola Gay, the plane that dropped the first atomic bomb, will appear at the TMC exhibit to sign autographs and be available for photos and interviews. A raffle for a model of the Enola Gay signed by Major Dutch Van Kirk and General Paul Tibbetts, as well as a drawing for a ride for two on the Liberty Belle B-17 Bomber, will be held for attendees. Major Von Dutch will be joining TMC on Wednesday, Oct. 18 from 2-4 p.m.

“I am looking forward to participating in this convention,” said Graeme Warring, CEO of TMC Pacific Modelworks. “There will be a large number of attendees from around the country, and we are excited to display our unique and beautiful models, as well as introduce them to a true aviation legend.”

About TMC Pacific Modelworks:
Since its inception in 1988, TMC Pacific Modelworks, located in Scottsdale, Arizona, has been producing the world’s finest handcrafted, museum-quality military, civilian and airline display models. The current product line consists of airplanes, helicopters, ships, boats, sailboats, space shuttles and the newly launched maritime line. With more than 1,000 different models from which to choose, the collection includes a selection of private aircraft and airlines, as well as models from the World War I, World War II, Korean, Vietnam, and Persian Gulf eras. High-level workmanship, combined with the inherent appeal of the airplanes, make these aero-sculptures true works of art — all aircraft and paint schemes were selected for historical significance and authenticity. For more information, please call 800-950-9944 or visit the Web site at http://www.warplanes.com.

Via source.

One of the most gripping tales of World War II in the Pacific was the battle of Wake Island, commencing on the same day as the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Wake Island, actually three small islands arranged in a horseshoe shape known as an atoll, was the location of the first permanent military station built by the Navy in January 1941. When Pearl Harbor was attacked, the garrison on Wake Island consisted of 449 Marine officers and men, and 68 naval personnel. There were also more than 1,200 civilian contractors. All personnel were subordinate to naval Commander Winfield S. Cunningham.

Armament at the ready consisted of a dozen 76.2 mm anti-aircraft guns, six 5” cannons which had been salvaged from an old scuttled cruiser, and around fifty machines guns of various size and working order.

Wake Island is on the other side of the International Date Line. Thus it was on 8 December 1941 that the news broke about Pearl Harbor, and simultaneously the small garrison was attacked by a number of Japanese medium bombers, destroying all but four of the twelve F4F Wildcatfighters of the VMF-211 Fighter Squadron

Three days later, Japan tried to land on Wake Island, but were tricked into getting too close to the island before the Marines opened up with their 5” cannons. They managed to sink the Japanese destroyer Hayate and seriously damage most of the others in the fleet. The four remaining Wildcats successfully sunk another Japanese destroyer, the Kisagari.

Several “firsts” occurred during this landing attempt. Hayate was the first Japanese naval vessel sunk in WWII, as well as the first Japanese defeat of the war. It was also the only instance in the entire war that saw an amphibious assault defeated solely by land-based guns.

The Japanese were determined to take the island, so – because of the resistance encountered during the first landing attempt – they sent two aircraft carriers, the Soryu and the Hiryu, to help in the second landing assault. The Americans were assaulted relentlessly in Japan’s attempt to “soften up” the island for their next assault. Meanwhile, Admiral Wilson Brown was ordered to set sail from Pearl Harbor to re-supply and reinforce the island’s personnel. The reinforcements consisted of the VMF-221 Fighter Squadron, who flew the F2A Brewster Buffalo fighters, and a large supply of ammunition and additional small arms, and the 4^th Marine Coastal Defense Battalion. But on 22 December, they were ordered by Vice Admiral William Pye (Acting CinCPAC) to abort the mission and return to Pearl Harbor, for fear of losses.

At 0230 hours on 23 December the Japanese launched their second invasion attempt, and heavy resistance caused some serious losses on the part of the Japanese. But by mid-afternoon the following day, the Americans surrendered. Losses were comparatively light for the Americans with 121 Navy, Marine, and civilian personnel killed after fifteen days of intense battle. The Japanese lost as many as 900 killed and 1,000 or more wounded.

Japan occupies the island from that point until their surrender in 1945. Using the captive Americans as forced labor, they installed more formidable fortifications, but were bombed thoroughly and often by American bombers. Former president George H.W. Bush flew his first sortie over the island.

On 5 October 1943, fighters from the USS Yorktown carried out a successful raid, which led to one of the darker episodes of the war in the Pacific. Fearing an invasion, Rear Admiral Shigematsu Sakaibara issued orders to execute the remaining 98 civilian contract workers on the island who had been doing forced labor. They were taken out, blindfolded, machine-gunned, and buried in a mass grave. One unknown man somehow escaped the malignant and carved an inscription, “98 US PW 5-10-43” on a large coral rock near the site of the mass grave. The inscription is still visible to this day and is a Wake Island landmark.

The man was captured again within a few weeks and personally beheaded by the malignant Sakaibara. On 4 September 1945, the Japanese garrison surrendered to the US Marines, and all Japanese officers were taken into custody. While there, several of them wrote notes telling of the massacre and committed hara-kiri. Sakaibara and his immediate subordinate were convicted of war crimes, and while the subordinate’s death sentence was eventually commuted to life in prison, Sakaibara was executed.

Since World War I, the Marianas Islands, along with the Caroline Islands and the Palau Islands had constituted Japan’s main line of defense and were heavily fortified. In 1943 and for some time in 1944, the Allies conducted successful campaigns to capture many of the Island chains in the Pacific: The Solomon Islands, the Gilbert Islands, and the Marshall Islands. This line had to be broken in order to begin operations directly against Japan and the Philippines.

The Boeing B-29 Superfortress, recently introduced into service, had a range of 1,500 miles, and as such needed a fairly close base of operations for targets in Japan, and the Marianas Islands filled the need perfectly. Thus Admiral Nimitz’ Central Pacific Command were ordered to take the Marianas. The bombardment began on Saipan on 13 June 1944, with around 160,000 shells fired from fifteen battleships.

By 0700 on 15 June 1944, 8,000 Marines landed on Saipan’s west coast. The Japanese had placed flags in the bay to help them estimate range and with this advantage they were able to destroy around twenty amphibious tanks, but by the end of the day the Marines had established a beachhead. The next day the Army’s 27th Infantry Division landed and began the struggle for the Aslito airfield. The Japanese counter-attacked at night but were repulsed with heavy losses, and on 18 June the commander of the Imperial Japanese Army, Yoshitsugu Saito, abandoned the airfield.

Saito expected the Americans to attack the Caroline Islands first, and had prepared an operational plan – A-Go – to provide naval and air superiority and reinforce their garrisons there. When they recovered from their surprise, they attempted to use the A-Go force to counter-attack the US Naval forces around Saipan. However, the disastrous battle of the Philippine Sea caused the loss of three aircraft carriers and several hundred planes, and as such, the Japanese garrisons in the Marianas were isolated and beyond help. There would be no hope of either supplies or reinforcements.

As hopeless as it was, the Japanese nevertheless organized a fairly effective defense and were determined to fight to the death. Saito organized his troops around Mount Topochau in the central region of Saipan’s mountainous area, from which they defended the island. The fighting was very intense, and the Japanese utilized the same techniques later seen on Iwo Jima, hiding in the many caves during the day. At night they emerged to carry out raids against the Americans, and they eventually developed tactics to utilize flame-throwers to clear the caves.

Saito ordered his remaining soldiers forward on a suicide charge, then committed hiri-kiri, killing himself. Several hundred Japanese civilians jumped from cliffs to kill themselves rather than be captured, and efforts to stop them were unsuccessful.

Saipan was the setting for the movie “Hell to Eternity,” starring the late Jeffery Hunter as PFC Guy Gabaldon, an Hispanic from Los Angeles, California who was raised in a Japanese-American household and as such was fluent in Japanese. PFC Gabaldon was credited with taking more than 1,000 Japanese prisoners during the campaign, and was awarded the Navy Cross.

Once Saipan was taken, it was made into a base for further excursions into the Marianas as well as the invasion of the Philippines that October.