AD3 Al Hansen, U.S. Navy, World War II

Al Hansen joined the U.S. Navy when he was 16 years old, both to serve his country and to help his mother keep a roof over her head. Initially trained as a dive bomber, Hansen was later shifted to a B-24 crew, where he served as a waist gunner in the Pacific theater from 1944 through the end of World War II. It's an assignment change that Hansen firmly believes to be the reason he survived the war and has lived to be a great-great grandfather.

In this edition of "Veterans Chonicles," Hansen describes the horrific discovery on the island of Palau that made him even more motivated to defeat Japan and how that kept him locked in to shoot anything floating in the South China Sea. He also remembers the thrill of learning the war was over while being very confused about the weapon that ended it.

Finally, Hansen tells why he finally opened up about his military experiences after a visit to the USS Midway museum in San Diego and why he loves volunteering there. This interview was conducted aboard the USS Midway.