Pagan Island, NMI (uninhabited 2002) - Japanese WWII long-range bomber (Mitsubishi G3M), Lava flow in background.

That does look like part of a movie play set.

Amazing shot.

An amazingly evocative shot. Much pathos and possibly a lesson about our place on the planet.

Hi! It's really amazing shoot! The history rising here... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yokosuka_P1Y

Roger,

Most interesting. I have just completed a novel based on the life of a Japanese ace who was stranded on an island from 1943-1991. I am looking for photos to illustrate the ghostly wrecks. Would it be possible to use some of your shots?

Regards, Jack Landree

Here are details on that aircraft wreck, it is another type http://pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/g3m/pagan.html

Rodger, please email me if you would allow your photo to be added to the page on it, credited to you and the date of your photo.

Justin at Pacific Wrecks http://pacificwrecks.com

Rodger- I just found some 1944 photos of an airstrike on Pagan by planes from the USS Langley. Many terrain features are clearly visible. I'm waiting to have them "reviewed" for posting. can email photos if you want to see them now. Chris Marks

This is absolutely amazing and possibly the most amazing picture I have ever seen!

The island WAS inhabited in the early 1970's. The village was just north of the airstrip. I volunteered to fly there in 1971 from the Fleet Air Photographic Laboratory at the Naval Air Station, Agana Guam to provide photographic coverage of the recovery of an HU-16 Albatross seaplane that crashed on the island a few days before. I had to take photos of the plane being dismantled and being transported to the beach to be loaded on a barge for transport back to Guam. At that time there were around 50 people who lived on the island with a constable, mayor, governor, witch doctor (joking! He was a real doctor) all in one man! At the time, Pagan Island was known for its black sand beaches. The island was advertised on KUAM television (Guam)as a place for day tripping! I still have slides of that interesting adventure that I took with MY camera. Oh, by the way, I'm still a professional photographer... a civilian one now of course

My son lives in Guam and has indicated that Pagan is scheduled to be one of the islands used for military training (basically, to be blown up by the US military). He has done camping trips to the island, and I've seen some amazing photography. Pagan has more WWII history than many of the other islands in the area. It's unfortunate that it is being considered to be used for this purpose.