Ichi Ban Outfit [Hardcover]

E. Gerald Pires (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 2003

The Army Air Force began August 1, 1907 as the Aeronautical Division of the United States Army Signal Corps. Six months prior to Pearl Harbor it had been renamed to the Army Air Force. It wasn't until July 26, 1947 that the Air Force was established as a separate Service under the Armed Services Unification Act. At that time the USAF was not prepared, equipped, or trained to take over all of the duties of an independent Service. Certain Army units such as the Engineers that constructed and maintained air bases, Ordinance, Medical, and Signal were assigned to the USAF to aid its transition. These units became known as SCARWAF (Special Category Army with Air Force) and existed only during the few years 1949 to 1956 when the program ended. The 474th Signal Aviation Construction Company was one of these units assigned to the Far East Command. From the home base in Japan, highly skilled crews were sent to every part of the South Pacific, Japan and Korea on various construction projects frequently under extreme conditions. Much of the work involved building communications and surveillance antenna fields up to 110 feet above ground. The work was hard and often dangerous and the isolation away from the Company or among Air Force personnel led to a tremendous esprit de corps and appreciation for the skill and ability of other team members. The SCARWAF units in general, and the 474th Signal Aviation Construction Company in particular, will never again appear in military history. This is a story of the men who served in this unit during its most active period near the end of the Korean War. President Truman announced the end of the war between the United States and Japan on April 28,1952. Consequently, it is also a snapshot of Japan as it emerged from occupation.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 216 pages
• Publisher: Elderberry Press (OR) (January 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1930859392
• ISBN-13: 978-1930859395
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #7,912,969 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating, highly recommended, informatively insightful, February 10, 2003

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Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ichi Ban Outfit (Hardcover)

Ichi Ban Outfit is the story of SCARWAF (Special Category Army with Air Force), a unit which existed in the United States military from 1949 to 1956. Focusing in particular on the 474th Signal Aviation Construction Company, a SCARWAF unit assigned to the Far East Command with its home base in Japan, Ichi Ban Outfit follows construction crews who worked, often under extreme and dangerous conditions, with a tremendous pride and determination. The men who served in this unit, and their views of Japan as it emerged from the post-World War II American military occupation, as well as the course of the Korean War, are all presented in this fascinating, highly recommended, informatively insightful contribution to twentieth century American military history.