Comments

1. The existence of any military (as in state-sponsored mass murder) is a condemnation of our nature as a species.

   War — what is it good for — absolutely nothing.

   Instead of just complaining I’ll offer a path forward. We, Americans, need to completely disabuse ourselves of the notion that the military has prestige in any way shape or form. There are people in flyover and Southern states who grow up aiming to be in the military. This is a dangerous and preposterous life path. We need to tell people the military is for complete and utter losers. The current President may be a loser in many ways but he was right in saying the military was for suckers and losers. We need fewer suckers and losers in this world — ideally zero — and then we can end all war.

   War — what is it good for — absolutely nothing.

2. If you guys want a step-by-step on UA154, I did it and write a huge thing. Don’t know if Gary will let me post the link but it’s a really fun read about things that could have gone south, and the military guy beside me being stuck in his middle seat working on cool space stuff. LOL.

   mikertw.com/island-hopping-ua-154/

3. This is a top-tier av-geek post. Thank you for compiling and sharing, Gary.

   Personally, I hope to visit more of the ‘beachy parts’ of the Pacific. Have had incredible experiences in Hawaii, French Polynesia, Fiji, Easter Island, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand. It’s not included here, but I’ve always wanted to make it to Palau (specifically to see Ngerukewid) and American Samoa (for Ofu Beach)–has anyone been to either of those?

4. @Unintimidated – What is it good for? – It protects you from those who would throw you in a hole for writing such crap if you happened to live in certain countries. They are even willing to protect you, not that you deserve it. Because the mentally ill and those with the thought process of a 13 year-old deserve protection.

   It’s also really good at killing Nazis.

5. Been there on business, done that. Stayed about 3 days at the Kwaj Lodge. Fun times.

6. I ignored @Unintimidated to begin with because that commentary was just silly. Never forget how our service members put their lives on the line to ensure global security, peace and prosperity. Without them, their deterrence, and leverage, it would be a more dangerous world.

   I may not agree with folks like @C_M on everything, but he is correct here: The Allies, especially the US military, were indeed good at killing Nazis. May there never be a need for them to have to do that again, please. But, rest assured, they’re duty-bound and ready to go, if needed.

   Besides, think of all the cool technology, specifically in aviation, that has come out of the military. Lots of jobs, too. And many of our best pilots are veterans, too. C’mon folks. Be better.

7. C_M is right. As long as there’s bullies in the world, they will be trying to kill, steal from or enslave the unprepred or weak.
   Mr. Unintimidated is one of those unprepared and weak.

8. @Mike. Just read your trip report. Very cool. Thanks for sharing!!!

9. @Lighting1 — I don’t know what @Unintimidated’s deal is, but if we were to take the most generous interpretation of what he’s hoping for, I can’t imagine it’s anarchy–it’s hopefully something like reasonable restraint on the civilian-led military, like swearing oaths to the Constitution, not the specific leaders, not merely ‘just following orders’ but like honorable service, etc. You know, basically, not abusing power. Yet, we should find out real soon in the USA at least whether those ideals hold, or whether there’s a manufactured crisis, invoking of the Insurrection Act (1807), and a further consolidating of power in the ‘unitary’ executive. Time will tell on all that. But, disbanding the military? That’s nuts. If we devolve into a quasi-dictatorship, the Generals are the ones who will determine whether we have a king or not. (See the Philippines, South Korea, recently.) Or not, whatever.

10. The Island Hopper is definitely on the to-do list…

    I’ve done some very fun and random Pacific routes like IPC-PPT and RAR-PPT but… the island hopper has evaded me

11. Very interesting, and in the Pacific War the island was not only the site of a major battle but became an important US anchorage and later the headquarters for the atomic bomb tests. And all this on a bit of land 4000 x 800 meters. But it is no surprise that there are conspiracy theories about the place. Even when the research is completely open like HAARP is people find ways of saying “they” are doing “something”. I understand our lovely government has now written a web page blaming by innuendo the Chinese for a lab leak causing Covid, even though there is no evidence given. Cheaper than keeping all those pesky public health workers around, I guess.

12. Gary, this article of yours is very, very, very, very, very incorrect. Over the years at FlyerTalk I kept correcting many posters again, again, again, again and again. Any tourists acceptable to the Republic of the Marshall Islands can freely book a ticket to KWA and then get on/off the plane there. It’s just that you’re not allowed to remain on Kwajalein Island the U.S. Army base. You must take the ferry to/from the civilian (slummish) Ebeye, where there’s like one lone hotel that can’t accommodate the whole 737 plane load if the I.H. were to be stranded there. KWA is also a civilian airport used by Air Marshall Islands for often-less-than-daily flights to/from neighboring islands and atolls. Same US military restrictions apply. Ebeye is one of two islands that has a civilian ZIP code in the Marshall Islands (Ebeye, MH 96970), the other being the capital Majuro, MH 96960.

13. In the 1980s the route also included Johnston Island and I remember the strict admonitions to keep our window blinds down … very stern folks around the plane.

14. Window shades are closed to keep the cabin cool not to keep any secrets. Anyone can book a ticket to KWA and will be sent on a ferry to Ebeye if they don’t have clearance for the base

15. @C_M
    @1990
    The Nazis are the us military and the breakaway ukraine.

16. @C_M
    @1990
    The Nazis are the us military and the breakaway ukraine.

17. The big difference between KWA and the other island hopper intermediate stops is that passengers are not allowed to get off the plane at KWA unless ticketed to KWA. As has already been pointed out, any tourist admissible to RMI can buy a ticket to KWA, they will then have no choice but to be on the ferry to Ebeye. Basically, no one can remain on Kwaj unless the Army wants them there, and there isn’t more for passenger accommodations than a holding room with restrooms and vending machines at the airport. At intermediate stops other than KWA, passengers can get off the plane and visit the airport, then re-board with originating passengers (though if you leave the plane you must take all carry-on belongings with you).

18. Man, I can’t believe that trip was 11(!) years ago. Tempus fugit. Thanks for the trip down memory lane, Gary.

    It was like our own mini-MegaDO. There were almost 20 of us, most from Teh Box (may that FT then MilePoint iteration R.I.P.). A bunch of us had to position to EWR, as that was where the fare originated. Most of us (except the Wandering Aramean – Seth – who was determined to fly an all-737 route) flew EWR-SFO-HNL-(overnight)-MAJ-KWA, and then the next day was supposed to be KSA-PNI-TKK-GUM). Some of us were able to apply a single SWU and get upgraded for all segments (raises hand), and then at least 10 of us were going to meet up with friends who took the easy route to HKG for a Saturday night of partying in Lan Kwai Fong in Central, before flying back to the US on Sunday.

    It was a party atmosphere on board. The flight attendants were amazed at what we were doing, the pilots were supportive, and best of all, we got to meet the on-board mechanic, Sherm “The Shermanator.” Before we landed in MAJ, the flight attendants in FC told us about a place they like to get fish sandwiches near the airport. We wanted to grab some, but were worried that we wouldn’t have enough time. So we asked the FAs if they would ask the pilot to send an ACARS message to the ground team, asking to pre-order a bunch of fish sandwiches. And the pilot did! And the sandwiches were delivered to us in the airside portion of the terminal in MAJ!

    We re-boarded for our next stop, not knowing that KWA would be our home for 12+ hours. We had minimal internet signal strength in the “terminal,” but then when they bussed us onto the base to a larger mess hall so that we could be fed, there was no internet access whatsoever.

    When we were eventually bussed back to the terminal, that’s when some of us saw that there was a KWA Customs Passport stamper, so we asked the guy if he would stamp our passports. Thankfully, he was good-natured and was happy to do so for all of us #avgeeks who asked.

    UA flew a plane in from GUM, and when we boarded, we were told it would no longer stop in KSA or TKK, only PNI and then GUM. And it was so late and dark when we departed KSA, we could no longer see any of the atolls.

    Once in GUM, that was a whole different cluster, as we were talking with a UA agent about filing a Trip In Vain, and re-routing us back home. Seth, Stephan, and Rolly at one point even went behind the counter to show the agent how to find the correct GG Code in SHARES to help initiate the Trip In Vain process. Once that was done, the group splintered to their different destinations. I was re-routed instead of GUM-HKG, to GUM-NRT-SFO.

    I did actually get a successful Trip In Vain designation, meaning I received a flight credit for what I paid, and yet I still received the RDMs and EQMs for the segments flown. It was a win-win.

    At the time, I remember being really bummed that I didn’t make all the stops on the Island Hopper (and in fact, I have yet to still make all the stops). But in hindsight, with over a decade in the rearview mirror, I’ve come to appreciate that special time and place with a fun group of people, sharing a very unique experience, getting an extremely rare passport stamp, and seeing a military base that most people never get to see. Not that I ever want to repeat my unexpected stay on KWA, but it sure makes for great memories, and great stories.

19. I meant to say, “Most of us (except the Wandering Aramean – Seth – who was determined to fly an all-737 route) flew EWR-SFO-HNL-(overnight)-and then the next day was supposed to be MAJ-KWA-KSA-PNI-TKK-GUM).

20. @Walter Barry — Oof. No. Bad take.

    From my favorite HBO Miniseries: “He’s delusional! Send him to the infirmary!”

21. johnston island and palmyra atoll were the ultimate targets of the Kidō Butai in the midway operation; both islands are in range of the big island with a refueling stop on carriers defended by subs, said location being out of range for all spring of ’42 us air assets excepting b17s based on the big island or oahu; the nips’ battle plan was to take midway and the landing force of 3400 troops would be almost entirely re-used to take johnston and palmyra, build 4000′ runways, and when complete, assuming the us carriers were sunk or hurting, base 500 aircraft on each islet to enable 7×24 air superiority over the beach on the north side of the big island; yamamoto wanted to take the big island by november of ’42, and sue for peace

    anyone who has a johnston island passport stamp has a truly historic artifact

    johnston is basically an islet converted in to a 9000′ runway, a USAF facility, and a hazmat dump

    area in 1941: 19 ha
    area ini 1964: 241 ha

    the island was ‘closed’ in 2004 following completion of the agent orange and nuketest decontamination missioni

    the runway remains ‘open’ for etops considerations

    the facility has a caretaker staff of <10

22. Lots of jobs available out there, some tax free.

23. The place sounds humid. Probably lots of bugs, too.

24. What’s the point of this article? Anti-USA or Anti-Military?

25. Lived there (Kwaj) as a child, nothing mysterious going on. And no top secret atmosphere – full of civilian families, photos sent home, etc. Of course, that was a long time ago. No airline flights back then either, flew in on … C141s I think?

26. @Claire – umm, that it’s an interesting flight..?

27. Invoking you know whom, will Claire say thank you for the “anti-USA or anti-military” blog article which is interesting because it covers an interesting flight? I’ll say thank you for myself. 😀

28. Back in the day about 30 years ago the first stop on this route was Johnson Island, where the military destroys its chemical weapons. The plane landed., taxied back to the end of the railway and with the engines, idling passengers were rapidly deplaned and new passengers boarded. The plane then took off again – whole thing took less than 10 minutes.

29. Thank you C_M, I didn’t’ have the energy to respond that ‘unintimidated’ loser as level headed as you did.. Hope they get stuck someday on a shitty regime like my homecountry Venezuela to see why ppl were willing to risk their lives thru the Darien gap just to get to a country where the Military is honorable and actually protects your freedom

30. @1990 – I’ve done Palau 4 times and Yap once. Never bothered with those islands though. You can only snorkel there and as a diver, I didn’t see the point. I am looking at doing the Circle Mike run this year. Didn’t know about the window shades restriction so now I don’t feel so bad about bypassing KWA…

31. @ unintimidated.
    Military officers, myself included, have taken the Oath of Office “to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic . . . ” I’m compelled to ask, what vow have you taken to defend and preserve freedom?

32. @mike: great travel report! @real_jetsetr: love the fish sandwiches story and memories of Sherman!

33. @Unintimidated…

    I mean, dayam… Way to make fun of people from the South. You know, the ones who signed up en masse during World War Two to protect soy boys like you from, Oh I don’t know, the NAZIS???

    Guess who handles flood control along the country’s major rivers? The Army Corps of Engineers. Guess who handles much of the hurricane warning and surveillance apparatus to protect people from natural disasters? The US Coast Guard and the US Navy. I could go on. Suckers? Nope. Oh, and virtually everyone who was on that trip with President Trump affirms that he never said those words. Only one general says that he did, and he’s a known and very public Trump-disliker. But, never let the truth get in the way of a good rant, right? I’m guessing you watch MSNBS rabidly and blindly believe everything that guy called Rachel Maddow says religiously.

    My father was killed in action. Was he a sucker? Oh Hell no. He believed in protecting his country, his family, his home. Those were his motivations, not to mention learning leadership skills that often translate into the civilian world. What the Hell have you done to protect this country other than drink a ton of lattes laced with soy, wring your little pseudo-intellectual beard, and compose platitudes about how morally superior you are? Go back to the corner and play with your Legos while acting all proud about your ethnic or feminist studies degree while waiting for your Starbuck’s shift to start. It’s just about all you’re suited for.

    In the words of the great Captain James Tiberious Kirk, “I’m laughing at the superior intellect.”

34. @hagbard celine

    Um, no. Johnston and Palmyra WERE NOT targets during Operation MI, resulting in the Battle of Midway. While Yamamoto wouldn’t have turned down occupying these islands, Midway Atoll with its large runways on Eastern Island was the real prize (the major runways are on Sand Island, today). Johnston and Palmyra barely registered compared to other more pressing matters.

    The real point of Operation MI was to lure the few precious US Pacific Fleet aircraft carriers into battle and destroy them; the Kido Butai missed them at Pearl Harbor and the Doolittle Raid as well as the early 1942 mid-Pacific American carrier raids demonstrated . Occupying Midway Atoll was in many ways a secondary objective; Japanese Army troops were earmarked for the landings there, in particular what became the ill-fated Ichiki Detachment. However, no troops were specifically earmarked for Johnston and Palmyra. The Japanese landing force bound for Midway was a relatively lightweight affair, compared to other operations. That isn’t to say that they wouldn’t have been occupied at some point in the distant future if all went well, but they weren’t the end goal. The main problem was one of manpower – the Japanese military simply didn’t possess the requisite manpower, let alone the fleet train needed for such far flung operations. Their invasion fleet could stand off Midway for about three days until their fuel ran out, forcing a retreat. If they couldn’t take Midway by then (let alone Johnston and Palmyra, in your scenario), they’d have to withdraw. Yamamoto wasn’t a neophyte – he understood these issues and problems instinctively. The lack of resources, in particular, made them very clear to him, and arguably shaded his actions during the early portions of the Solomons Islands campaign up until his death. Midway was no different. And, the Japanese certainly DID NOT possess the troops needed to attack and seize ANY of the main Hawaiian Islands. Islands like Hawaii, Maui, and Oahu were large enough to base significant contingents of US troops, plus they featured room for those troops to maneuver. No, Yamamoto knew that he couldn’t take the main Hawaiian Islands, not a one. Remember, they couldn’t move enough troops to seize and hold Guadalcanal against a weakened and ill-supplied First Marine Division operating far from home and at the limits of its endurance, so how could the Japanese possibly mount a sustained invasion of the Big Island in the face of American counterattacks?

    The other issue was that both islands were well within bombing range of B-17s and B-24s from Hawaii. Even had the Japanese somehow managed to sustain themselves so far afield, Johnston and Palmyra would have been bombed repeatedly, not to mention being subject to regular US Navy shelling from surface units making the quick trip from Pearl Harbor and subject to blockading US Navy submarines. The same would have been true for Midway. In short, even if the Japanese did seize these islands, they would never have been secure. In essence, they would have become what Wake Island eventually became – isolated, constantly harassed and harried, and essentially worthless in the great scheme of things.

    Apologies, but no, Johnston and Palmyra were really not the Kido Butai’s goals during Operation MI. Destroying the US Pacific Fleet was. I’d recommend reading “Shattered Sword” for an excellent analysis of Midway from the Japanese perspective. It will provide an excellent basis for assessing the battle, and especially Japanese goals and intentions (https://www.amazon.com/Shattered-Sword-Untold-Battle-Midway/dp/1574889249/ref=asc_df_1574889249?mcid=74c302c6d2003b33adb7e521295e2b5a&hvocijid=6461643219860611744-1574889249-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=721245378154&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6461643219860611744&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9031556&hvtargid=pla-2281435177098&psc=1) John Parshall, one of the authors, also regularly appears on a superb Youtube channel titled, “The Unauthorized History of the Pacifc War,” and issues such as Midway often come up.

    Take care.