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Casualty Info
Home Town Everett, WA
Last Address Bellingham, WA
Casualty Date Nov 19, 1944
Cause KIA-Body Not Recovered
Reason Air Loss, Crash - Sea
Location Pacific
Conflict World War II
Location of Interment Manila American Cemetery and Memorial - Manila, Philippines
Wall/Plot Coordinates (cenotaph)
Official Badges
Unofficial Badges
Additional Information
Last Known Activity:
ENS Nelson was a member of VF-20 aboard the USS Enterprise. His plane was shot down on November 19, 1944. His body was not recovered and he was later declared dead.
Comments/Citation:
Service number: 305688
Navy Cross
Awarded for actions during World War II
Service: Navy
Battalion: Fighting Squadron 20 (VF-20)
Division: U.S.S. Enterprise (CV-6)
General Orders: Commander 1st Carrier Task Force Pacific: Serial 046 (January 31, 1945)
Citation: The President of the United States of America takes pleasure in presenting the Navy Cross to Ensign Robert Kolden Nelson (NSN: 0-305688), United States Naval Reserve, for extraordinary heroism in operations against the enemy while serving as Pilot of a carrier-based Navy Fighter Plane in Fighting Squadron TWENTY (VF-20), attached to the U.S.S. ENTERPRISE (CV-6), during action against enemy Japanese forces in the Battle for Leyte Gulf, on 25 October 1944. Fearless and determined under a terrific barrage from Japanese guns as he launched a daring attach against an enemy Fleet Task Group, Ensign Nelson plunged through a fierce hail of anti-aircraft fire to press home his relentless thrusts and, fighting his plane gallantly, succeeded in scoring a direct bomb hit on a light cruiser. By his superb airmanship and indomitable courage in the face of formidable odds, Ensign Nelson contributed materially to the accomplishment of his squadron's mission and thereby to the ultimate success of our aerial offensive in this vital theater of war. His unswerving devotion to duty throughout this and numerous other hazardous operations was in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
World War II/Asiatic-Pacific Theater/Luzon Campaign (1944-45)
From Month/Year
December / 1944
To Month/Year
April / 1945
Description On December 15, 1944, landings against minimal resistance were made on the southern beaches of the island of Mindoro, a key location in the planned Lingayen Gulf operations, in support of major landings scheduled on Luzon. On January 9, 1945, on the south shore of Lingayen Gulf on the western coast of Luzon, General Krueger's Sixth Army landed his first units. Almost 175,000 men followed across the twenty-mile (32 km) beachhead within a few days. With heavy air support, Army units pushed inland, taking Clark Field, 40 miles (64 km) northwest of Manila, in the last week of January.
Two more major landings followed, one to cut off the Bataan Peninsula, and another, that included a parachute drop, south of Manila. Pincers closed on the city and, on February 3, 1945, elements of the U.S. 1st Cavalry Division pushed into the northern outskirts of Manila and the 8th Cavalry Regiment (organized as infantry) passed through the northern suburbs and into the city itself.
As the advance on Manila continued from the north and the south, the Bataan Peninsula was rapidly secured. On February 16, paratroopers and amphibious units simultaneously assaulted the islet of Corregidor. It was necessary to take this stronghold because troops there can block the entrance of Manila Bay. The Americans needed to establish a major harbor base at Manila Bay to support the expected invasion of Japan, planned to begin on November 1, 1945. Resistance on Corregidor ended on February 27, and then all resistance by the Japanese Empire ceased on August 15, 1945, obviating the need for an invasion of the Japanese Home Islands.
Despite initial optimism, fighting in Manila was harsh. It took until March 3 to clear the city of all Japanese troops, and the Japanese Marines, who fought on stubbornly and refused to either surrender or to evacuate as the Japanese Army had done. Fort Drum, a fortified island in Manila Bay near Corregidor, held out until 13 April, when a team of Army troops went ashore and pumped 3,000 gallons of diesel fuel into the fort, then set off incendiary charges. No Japanese soldiers in Fort Drum survived the blast and fire.
In all, ten U.S. divisions and five independent regiments battled on Luzon, making it the largest American campaign of the Pacific war, involving more troops than the United States had used in North Africa, Italy, or southern France.
