Harlan G. Johnson was born August 3, 1927, in Monmouth, Illinois, to Harlan and Clytie Johnson. Harlan was on board the USS Mullany (DD-528) at Okinawa when it was struck by a Japanese kamikaze plane on April 6, 1945. Major Chris Heatherly recently interviewed him about his experiences. To read about his early experiences in the U.S. Navy, click here.
It was just a graveyard of ships. The guys that were killed were on the fantail in body bags.
Chris Heatherly – What was your reception like when you first joined the Mullany’s crew? Harlan Johnson – I was completely ignorant of ships. The ship was in drydock at Bethlehem Steel Shipyards and being prepared to go out. I was assigned to chip paint, repaint and clean barnacles. We took a shakedown cruise to San Diego, which was the first time I got sea sick. I also served briefly as a mess cook in the Chief Petty Officers’ Mess. As a mess cook I had keys to the food lockers. Some of the crew had their wives follow them to San Diego and we used to give them butter and other items. I got seasick too much and was made a deckhand. After testing our weapons we were ready for deployment.
CH – Did the Mullany head directly to combat? HJ – No. We went to Hawaii next. It took seven days to sail due to the zigzag course. My friend Poling and I were seasick a lot. Destroyers are famous for rolling – it’s a rough ship. My bunk was so far forward that I hit my shoulder on the bulkhead when it rolled. We were there long enough to resupply and then headed to Iwo Jima.
CH – What was your impression of the battle there? HJ – I wasn’t smart enough to be scared. We were there seven days waiting on the Japanese fleet before we fired a round. I was on lookout duty during the shelling and saw the Marines make their landing. We were aft of the USS Tennessee, and when it fired the sea would smooth out. Our ship fired at Mt. Suribachi, but we called it by its target name of "Hot Rock." One time, our target was a Japanese gun on rails that would come out of a cave and fire ,then return into the mountain. We fired WP (white phosphorus) and it went right into the caves. The crew cheered. It was like a movie to me. I didn’t learn how many troops were lost there until years later.
CH – Were you warned about kamikazes at Iwo Jima? HJ – No, we never heard anything about them at Iwo although you always looked for enemy planes.
CH – Where was the Mullany sent after Iwo Jima? HJ – We escorted a hospital ship from Saipan to Iwo. Our orders were to intervene and intercept any torpedoes. After that we went to Okinawa, arriving on the 1st of April for picket duty. Our ship had a public address system. It called the name of ships as they were hit by kamikazes and if they were relieved or sinking.
CH – The Mullany was nearly sunk by a kamikaze at Okinawa. Where were you when it happened? HJ – The 6th of April was when we got hit. I was a machine-gun talker for the twin 40mm stationed between the starboard and port lookout. We spotted a plane and saw bursts. Over the headset I heard someone call the CIC (Combat Information Center) to request permission to open fire. There was no response. Only two men could give permission, the ship’s captain and our gunnery officer. The gunnery officer, Oliver Hazard Perry, was in the mess eating. Our captain, CDR Albert Momm, was on the bridge waiting to make a decision. Perry entered the CIC yelling to open fire. The plane hit us between the number three and number four gun mounts.
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