The most poignant memory Pearl Harbor veteran Ed Bloch has of Hawaii is as a 19-year-old locking eyes with a crew member of a Japanese bomber.

“I had just gotten off KP (kitchen patrol) and was walking to my barracks when I heard an explosion. I looked up and saw a Japanese plane. The gunner looked at me and I panicked,” said Bloch, who later learned that his friend had been killed when a hangar was bombed during two raids on Dec. 7, 1941. “After helping an injured man, I finally went to the control tower. Nobody gave any orders. It was just chaos for three days.”

Those memories came rushing back Saturday upon Bloch’s first return to Hawaii in 75 years. He was one of about 120 Pearl Harbor survivors, World War II veterans and their companions on a historic 75th Pearl Harbor Commemoration flight. The flight sponsored by American Airlines also carried actor and humanitarian Gary Sinise, who played Lt. Dan in the hit movie “Forrest Gump,” and Bob Hope’s daughter Linda.

“I’m just one of the lucky ones who gets to travel with these great Americans. They are the freedom fighters. We can’t take that for granted,” said Sinise, who runs the Gary Sinise Foundation, which honors military heroes. Sinise and his Lt. Dan Band will be performing at 5:30 p.m. Monday during Army movie night, which will be held at Waikiki Beach at the Diamond Head end of Kalakaua Avenue.

Later in the day, an Alaska Airlines flight brought the oldest Pearl Harbor survivor, 104-year-old Ray Chavez, and one of the youngest, 93-year-old Peter Limon.

“The beginning of the war was the biggest surprise that you had ever had,” said Chavez, who was aboard the submarine minesweeper USS Condor on Dec. 7, 1941, when he spotted the periscope of a Japanese midget submarine, which was later sunk.

Chavez said he’s here to remember those days when he “was right in the middle of it.” He wants young people to get “enough education about their country” and to be “obedient and don’t get into trouble.”

Limon, who was just 17 when he joined the Navy, said he became an adult that fateful day.

“We had no choice,” Limon said. “I think we helped. We want (young people) to know this world that they live in is better. We don’t want them to go through what we did.”

World War II veteran Arthur Ken Allred, an 89-year-old passenger on the American Airlines flight, said the sacrifices of Pearl Harbor survivors inspired his nearly 23-year military career.

“I was 14 and living in a little coal mining town in Utah when I came home from church to see my mom crying. It was a very sobering, sad day,” said Allred, who served in Hawaii on the USS Bushnell, a submarine tender. “As soon as I was old enough, I went. I was a 17-year-old high school senior when I volunteered for the U.S. Navy.”

Allred said he doesn’t think of himself as a hero. He reserves that honor for Pearl Harbor survivors.

But Honolulu didn’t make that distinction Saturday. Every deplaning veteran got a megawatt welcome, starting with a water salute from Honolulu Airport Fire Rescue engines that formed a welcome arch over the American and Alaska planes.

A crowd of hundreds, including service members and their families, clapped and held up welcome signs. An Elvis tribute artist and hula dancers entertained as Gov. David Ige and Army Lt. Gen. Tony Crutchfield, deputy commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, formed a receiving line to welcome the precious cargo.

With every year that passes, fewer will be able to travel to Hawaii for commemorative ceremonies. Lt. Col. Trace Steyaert, who is assigned to Pacific Air Forces headquarters, brought his 10-year-old son, Beckett, to witness this bit of history in the making.

“It’s extremely important that he be exposed to living history,” Steyaert said. “I take great pride in being able to show him the importance of paying our respects for the people who have gone before us to fight for our freedoms. I hope I’m planting that seed in him to always have pride and respect for those that serve in the military.”

Beckett said he watches military movies with his dad, who tells him about the sacrifices.

“I’m here because my dad is in the military and I thought it would be cool to watch them come here. I just want to say, ‘Thank you for your service,’” Beckett said.

MEET A HERO

Altogether, 250 to 300 Pearl Harbor survivors and World War II veterans are expected for the commemoration events over the coming week. There are several opportunities for the public to meet Pearl Harbor’s “Greatest Generation Survivors.”

The National Park Service has set up a greeting on Monday at the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center, fronting the mural, from 2 to 3 p.m. NPS also is providing an opportunity to meet USS Arizona survivors Tuesday from 10 a.m. to noon outside of the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center bookstore.

WWII heroes also will be at the Waikiki Starlight Luau at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki on Monday. Doors open at 5 p.m. Tickets are $99 per adult and $49.50 per child aged 4-11. Children under 4 are free.

More information is online at pearlharbor75thanniversary.com, and updates will be posted on Twitter at @pearlharbor75.