RIP, SIR: World’s oldest Pearl Harbor survivor dies at 106: ‘Lived with integrity every single day.’

Vaughn P. Drake Jr. from Kentucky was 23 years old at the time of the Japanese attack on the US Pacific naval base in Hawaii, according to a press release.

He was working as an Army engineer at Kaneohe Naval Air Station on Oahu on the day of the shocking attack on December 7, 1941, which precipitated America’s entry into World War II.

“We were getting ready to go to breakfast, and we heard all these planes flying over and making a lot of noise,” Drake told the Lexington Herald Leader in 2016.

“We just figured it was the Army Air Corps carrying out maneuvers for practice, like they did a lot. We didn’t pay much attention to it.

“Finally we left to go to the chow line to get our breakfast, and we noticed these planes flying over the naval air station, diving and everything. And we thought, ‘Boy, they’re really putting on a good show.’ Even though we saw the red spots on the wing — which was the Japanese symbol — we still couldn’t believe it,” he went on.

Drake also witnessed the Battle of Saipan in the Mariana Islands, a turning point for the US in the conflict.

“Only 15 survivors of the attack — which killed 2,403 Americans — are still alive today.”