Based on the letters of Earl Philip Reinhalter (1922-1953). Edited by his son, Earl Philip Reinhalter (1950-).
Photo Highlights: LEYTE, PHILIPPINES (1944-45)
On the boat to Leyte, Philippines in 1944. According to his 3/22/1945 letter: "Shows the boys passing by the serving
line, mess kit in hand, at lunchtime. The guy with his back to the camera works the spigot on the tea can."
A temporary camp, third day in the Philippines - Leyte, October 1944.
First camp area in the Philippines - Leyte, October 1944. According to his February 20, 1945 letter,
the girl on the right is Ulaine, cousin of Susanna and Effie, who can be seen in photos below.
Earl at Leyte, Philippines, 1944.
Workshop and equipment tents on an air strip in Leyte, Philippines.
Earl sits on a tank at his first base in the Philippines in October 1944.
Earl crossing a foot bridge in Leyte, Philippines, October 1944.
Earl and a P-51 on the runway on Leyte, Philippines, 1945.
An officer of 3rd Airdrome Squadron, standing at the unit's welcome sign in Leyte, Philippines.
"Fantasia" stage where U.S. troops enjoyed movies and shows in Leyte, Philippines. The curtains were made from parachute silk or rayon.
The latrine at Leyte, Philippines, in Fall 1944. The mess hall is in the background.
Another look at the latrine in Leyte, Philippines.
Flooded camp area in Leyte, Philippines after it had rained for four days.
Flood scene in Leyte, Philippines, after four days of rain. Notice the guys rowing on top of two empty airplane gas tanks.
Another view of the flood scene in Leyte, Philippines, after four days of rain, and the guys rowing on top of two empty airplane gas tanks. The building on the right is the mess hall.
Flooded campsite at Leyte, Philippines, 1945. The guys in the center of the photo appear to be using poles and sticks to move a makeshift raft.
A group of native kids boys in Leyte, Philippines. "A couple have overseas caps on their heads," his March 22, 1945 letter points out.
Susanna Radaza in the Philippines. Her sister Effie is below. Their cousin Ulaine is in the second
photo from the top of the page. In his letter of February 20, 1945, he says of Susanna:
"She was my Filipina girlfriend when I was at my first camp here in the Philippines."
Effie Radaza, Susanna's sister, in the Philippines. Their cousin
Ulaine is in the second photo from the top of the page.
Carmen Espirra and child in Leyte, Philippines.
Earl standing on a dirt road in Leyte, Philippines in 1944.
The provincial capitol building of Leyte, Philippines.
A building on Leyte, Philippines, 1945.
A restaurant on Leyte, Philippines, 1945.
A building on Leyte, Philippines, 1945.
A main street in the Philippines on a Sunday morning, when most people were in church.
A dead Jap paratrooper at San Pablo, Leyte, Philippines, early December 1944. This battle was the squadron's most serious combat situation of the war. For an
account, see December 6-8, 1944: Jap Paratrooper Attack. It was probably during this time that Earl earned his Purple Heart. A bullet grazed his temple.
A Jap "visitor," likely from the December 1944 paratroop attack mentioned above.
More Photo Highlights:
STATESIDE (late 1942 - May 1943)
AUSTRALIA (June 4, 1943 until December 1943)
NEW GUINEA (December 1943 to Oct/Nov 1944)
NEW GUINEA - notable planes
LUZON, PHILIPPINES (1945)
THE WAR ENDS
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NOW AVAILABLE AS A KINDLE BOOK! The Kindle book includes Earl Reinhalter’s World War II letters; all 23 issues of the unit’s wartime newsletter “The Squadron Pulse,” which was originally edited by Leonard Stringfield; all 12 issues of the “Pennant Parade” newsletter that Stringfield published while sailing home after the war; complete text of the U.S. government booklet “Pocket Guide to Australia,” which soldiers heading Down Under were given to read; more than 200 photos; pre-war and postwar family history; and over 700 explanatory endnotes. |
This page established: April 14, 2019 Last updated: February 22, 2023
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