Oral History Interview with Robert D. Molleston, February 27, 2012 Track: 1 of 1

The National Museum of the Pacific War presents an oral interview with Robert D. Molleston. Molleston joined the Navy in 1943 and trained at Farragut, Idaho. From there he went to radio school and aerial gunnery school before he was assigned to Air Group 6 and shipped to Hawaii aboard the USS General E.T. Collins (AP-147). In March, 1945, Molleston and his unit boarded the USS Hancock (CV-19) at Ulithi. Molleston reads from his diary he kept in his flight log book (May through June, 1945). It describes actions and raids against Okinawa and the Japanese home islands as well as kamikaze attacks on the US fleet. In August, the plane Molleston was in was shot down. He was rescued by the USS Harrison (DD-573). Molleston reads a story he wrote about the experience. He was wounded in the leg and spent a lot of time in hospitals right after the war. Molleston also reads from his diary regarding his experience in 2009 going on an Honor Flight to Washington, DC to dsee the National World War II Memorial.

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