WW2TV - Battlefield Livestreams and Interviews - 5 ª Season

10 Facts about the Battle of Midway everyone should know. In the week of the 80th anniversary of the battle we look at various factors concerning this turning point of the war. Henry J. James is the author of The Man Who Won World War II which cane out in April 2022. He is a political scientist and author.

The Men of Pointe du Hoc (Behind the Weapons) In today's show, JoAnna McDonald will talk about the men of Pointe du Hoc: James Earl Rudder, Frank South, James Eikner, George Kerchner, Herman Stein, Lou Lisko, Jack Kuhn and Len Lomell etc. JoAnna M. McDonald, Ph.D., is a historian, writer, and public speaker. She grew up a stone's throw from the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, USA. She was a military historian for the History Channel's acclaimed documentaries, Vietnam in HD and World War II in HD; civilian Marine Education Director with the U.S. Marine Corps; civilian Army Archivist at the Military History Institute, Army Heritage and Education Center, Carlisle, PA; and, Research Historian for the State of Pennsylvania. She is the author of eleven books on the Civil War and WWII, as well as numerous journal and newsletter articles.

Smashing Hitler's Guns - Part 2. New Perspectives - The Rangers at Pointe du Hoc Steven Zaloga joins us again for the second of a two part discussion about Pointe du Hoc. He will talk about the planning and execution of the Ranger assault on June 6th 1944.

Operation Goodtime and the Battle of the Treasury Islands, 1943 Part of New Zealand at War Week on WW2TV Today's guest is Dr Reg Newell from Upper Hutt, a small city to the north of Wellington. He did his doctoral degree through Massey University on 3 NZ Division in the South Pacific in WW2 and has written several books about the Pacific Theatre and especially the role of New Zealand's forces. On October 27, 1943, a force of New Zealanders and Americans invaded the Treasury Islands in the South Pacific, retaking them from their Japanese occupiers. Codenamed Operation Goodtime, the action marked the first time New Zealand forces took part in an opposed landing since Gallipoli in 1915. In an unusual allocation of troops in the American-dominated theater, New Zealand provided the fighting men and America the air, naval, and logistical support. Confronting extreme risks against a determined Japanese foe, the Allies nevertheless succeeded with relatively few casualties. Due to the needs for operational security, Operation Goodtime received little publicity and has been relegated to a footnote in the history of the war in the Pacific.

From Pilsen to Buchenwald - Phil Lamason RNZAF Part of New Zealand at War Week on WW2TV Our guest today is Mike Harold, Chairman of the Phil Lamason Heritage Centre Trust At the outbreak of World War II Phil Lamason volunteered for service with the Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF. During his training he was identified as 'having leadership potential,' which saw him directed into the RAF Bomber Command on his arrival in England, in July, 1941. Over the next three years Phil became a skilled pilot of heavy bomber aircraft, completing 44 successful operations over enemy held territory. During that time he was awarded the DFC and Bar for his leadership, bravery and courage under fire, and he also served for over a year as an RAF bomber crew instructor. Military life for Phil changed dramatically on June 8, 1944, when his Lancaster bomber was shot down by a German night-fighter while bombing a target near Paris, France. Surviving the crash Phil successfully evaded capture by the Nazis with help from members of the French Resistance organisation. Regrettably Phil and others were betrayed by an infiltrator into the hands of the Gestapo, and after a time in Fresnes Prison, Paris, he was transported to the infamous Buchenwald Concentration Camp in Germany. There, aged just 25 years and as a Squadron Leader and senior officer responsible for 168 Allied Airmen in the Camp, Phil displayed "very strong traits of single-minded determination, selflessness, cold courage and forcefulness in the face of the very real threat to him of execution by the camp authorities."