WWII soldiers posthumously receive Purple Heart medals 79 years after fatal plane crash

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The families of five Hawaii men who served in a unit of Japanese-language linguists during World War II have received posthumous Purple Heart medals on behalf of their loved ones nearly eight decades after the soldiers died in a plane crash in the final days of the conflict.

Wilfred Ikemoto holds a photo of his older brother, Haruyuki Ikemoto, and the Purple Heart medal posthumously awarded to him, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Friday, May 10, 2024. The families of five Hawaii men who served in a unit of Japanese-language linguists during World War II received posthumous Purple Heart medals on behalf of their loved ones on Friday, nearly eight decades after the soldiers died in a plane crash in the final days of the conflict.

“I remember him as probably the smartest and most talented in our family,” said Wilfred Ikemoto, who was 10 years old when his brother died. Matthews attributed the Army's failure to recognize all 31 soldiers with medals to administrative oversight in the waning hours of the war. The U.S. had been preparing to invade Japan’s main islands, but it formulated alternative plans after receiving indications Japan was getting ready to surrender. Complicating matters further, there were four different units on the plane.“I’m very happy that we’re finally recognizing some people,” he said. “I think it took a long time for it to happen.

Altogether some 6,000 served with the Military Intelligence Service. But much of their work has remained relatively unknown because it was classified until the 1970s.

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