Lt(jg) George H.W. Bush was the youngest US Naval Aviator in WWII. On September 2, 1944, Ens. Bush's plane was shot down over the island of Chichi Jima, which served as a radio relay station for Iwo Jima. Bush and one of his crewmen bailed out, but the other man's parachute never opened. The third crewman went down with the plane. Alone in the ocean off the coast of Chichi Jima, Bush was eventually rescued by USS Finback (SS-230), on patrol for downed pilots. Had he made it to shore, his fate would have been sealed. Other captured fliers were tortured, beheaded and then eaten by their captors.

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