Some of the most ferocious fighting in recorded human history took place on a tiny Pacific Ocean island between February 19th and March 26th 1945. The United States Navy and Marine Corps invaded Iwo Jima, which was being held by The Imperial Japanese Army, protecting the island’s two separate air fields. Raymond Salvie was one of the incredibly brave Marines who fought and survived these weeks in hell.

This historic interview is one of many conducted by Joe Messineo over the past decade, as part of the Veteran's History Project. We sincerely thank Joe for granting us access and allowing this exciting collaboration with HBH. 

The Japanese force of 21,000 was surrounded, outmanned and outgunned by 110,000 American troops. While the invading force was overwhelming, under this 8-square-mile island was more than 11 miles of tunnels, which allowed the Japanese to launch brutal waves of counter-attacks. 

Raymond is true American hero who passed away peacefully earlier this year at the age of 97.

We hope you enjoy this special episode and as always, thanks for listening to Heroes Behind Headlines.