Ira “Ike” Schab, one of the last living witnesses of the 1941 Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor, died at 105.
A Life Spanning a Century
Schab was born on Independence Day in 1920 in Chicago and was the eldest of three brothers. He joined the Navy at 18, following in his father’s footsteps. He served aboard the USS Dobbin during the attack on December 7, 1941.
The Day of the Attack
On that fateful Sunday, Schab was playing the tuba in the ship’s band, expecting a visit from his brother who was stationed at a nearby naval radio station. He had just showered and was wearing a clean uniform when he heard a call for fire rescue. He went topside and saw the USS Utah capsizing as Japanese planes roared overhead.
“We were pretty startled. Startled and scared to death,” Schab recalled in 2023. “We didn’t know what to expect, and we knew that if anything happened to us, that would be it.”
He rushed back below deck, grabbed boxes of ammunition, and joined a daisy chain of sailors feeding shells to an anti-aircraft gun. The ship lost three sailors: one was killed in action, and two died later of fragment wounds from a bomb that struck the stern. All three were manning an anti-aircraft gun.
Service in the Pacific
Schab spent most of the war in the Pacific, traveling to the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), the Mariana Islands, and Okinawa. After the war, he studied aerospace engineering and worked as an electrical engineer for General Dynamics on the Apollo spaceflight program, helping send astronauts to the moon.
His son also joined the Navy and became a retired commander.
A Committed Witness
For decades Schab rarely spoke about his wartime experience. But as the number of survivors dwindled, he made a point of traveling from his home in Beaverton, Oregon, to the annual observance at the Hawaii military base.
“To pay honor to the guys that didn’t make it,” he said in 2023.
He spent weeks building up the strength to stand and salute for last year’s commemoration. This year he did not feel well enough to attend, and less than three weeks later he passed away.
Remembering the Fallen
Speaking at a 2022 ceremony, Schab urged people to honor those who served at Pearl Harbor. He said, “Remember what they’re here for. Remember and honor those that are left. They did a hell of a job.” He added, “Those who are still here, dead or alive.”
Key Takeaways
- Schab’s death leaves only about a dozen survivors of the surprise attack.
- He served aboard the USS Dobbin and later worked on the Apollo program.
- Schab consistently honored his comrades through annual visits to the Pearl Harbor observance.
Schab’s passing marks the end of an era for those who witnessed the events that propelled the United States into World War II.
