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October 25, 2020 · 02:25

The Slaughter at Surigao Strait: The Last Battle Between Battleships in History

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

I worked most of the day with Judy to straighten out her art room after the contractors stuffed a Buch of stuff in it in order to paint. This caused us to downsize a huge amount of linens. I also built a printer table for her printer and cleaned got all office, art, and photo paper stored in it.

I am posting the third article of a series on the Battle of Leyte Gulf. This article discusses the Battle of Surigao Strait which ended in the near annihilation of most of the of the Japanese Southern Force. The battle was the last ever where battleships engaged each other in a surface action. This is the edited version of that article.

Peace,

Padre Steve+

Vice Admiral Jesse Oldendorf

Vice Admiral Kiyohide Shima

The two task groups of the Japanese Southern Force passed the daylight hours of 24 October relatively unscathed despite an air attack that caused minor damage. The group commanded by Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura comprised of the elderly Battleships Yamashiro and Fuso the Heavy Cruiser Mogami and four destroyers led the charge. They were followed by a second force commanded by Vice Admiral Kiyohide Shima with the Heavy Cruisers Nachi and Ashigara, Light Cruiser Abukuma and four destroyers. Because of strict radio silence neither Nishimura or Shima could coordinate their attack which resulted in Shima arriving late and taking losses before he could retire.

All three commanders had served with distinction, but the two Japanese Admirals were on a desperate mission with little chance of success. Their mission was to fight their way through the Surigao Strait to assist the Central Force in destroying the US invasion force in Leyte Gulf. The mission was for all practical purposes a suicide mission, a naval “Charge of the Light Brigade” as they sailed into the Valley of Death against the Battle Line of the US 7^th Fleet.

USS West Virginia at Surigao

The Japanese Battleships had spent the majority of the war in home waters and had seen little action. They had not been part of any of the great Japanese victories in 1941 and 1942 and they had not been blooded in the Solomons. Instead the two elderly battlewagons passed the war conducting training in the inland sea. They were no longer first line ships but the Japanese were desperate. During the afternoon Admiral Nishimura received an accurate report from one of Mogami’s scout planes telling him exactly what he was up against yet he pushed on in the manner of a Samurai.

Yamashiro and Fuso

The Fully Modernized USS West Virginia in 1944 (above)

USS Tennessee 1944

USS California

USS Mississippi

USS Maryland

USS Pennsylvania

Facing him was a force built around the 6 old Battleships of Vice Admiral Jesse Oldendorf’s 7^th Fleet Battle Line. The Americans heavily outnumbered the Japanese, the Battleships West Virginia, California and Tennessee were the heart of the force. Fully modernized after Pearl Harbor they no longer resembled the ships that they were before the war. Equipped with the latest Mark 8 Fire Control radar they had the ability to put their 16” and 14” shells on target at ranges farther than anything that the Japanese could counter. Joined by the less fully modernized Maryland, Mississippi and Pennsylvania, 4 Heavy Cruisers, 4 Light Cruisers, 28 Destroyers and 39 PT Boats.

Oldendorf described his plan in Naval Institute Proceedings a decade later:

“… Admiral Kinkaid’s order to prepare for night action came as no surprise. … It was obvious that the objective of the Japanese Forces was the destruction of our transports and that my mission was to protect them at all costs. In order to accomplish my mission, the force under my command must be interposed to between the enemy and the transports. I realized that I must not lose sight of my mission no matter how much I might be tempted to engage in a gunnery duel with him.

I selected the position of the battle line off Hingatungan Point because it gave me the maximum sea room available and restricted the enemy’s movements. This position also permitted me to cover the eastern entrance to the Gulf should the Central Force under Admiral Kurita arrive ahead of the Southern Force. I selected the battle plan from the General Tactical Instructions and modified it to meet the conditions existing, i.e., lack of sea room to maneuver and possible enemy action. … I thought that quite possibly he planned to slip some of his light forces into the Gulf by passing them to the eastward of Hibuson Island after the battle line was engaged. For that reason I stationed the preponderance of my light forces on the left flank. One duty which was never delegated to my staff was the drafting of battle plans.”

Oldendorf’s Task Force outnumbered the combined Japanese forces with sixteen 16” and forty eight 14” guns to twenty 14” guns on the antiquated Yamashiro and Fuso. The disparity in lesser guns was just as stark, thirty five against twenty six 8” guns, and fifty one 6” guns against six 5.5 inch guns. This massive imbalance didn’t count the nearly one hundred fifty 5” guns on the US destroyers and as well as nearly 200 torpedo tubes.

Nishimura’s force entered the southern entrance to Surigao Strait and was discovered by the American PT Boats at about 2236. Though the PTs scored no hits they provided critical updates on the Japanese to Oldendorff. At 0300 the American destroyers began a devastating series of attacks on the Japanese flanks. They sank two destroyers and damaged another which had to turn back, but the real damage occurred when both Fuso and Yamashiro were hit. Fuso took two torpedoes fired by the destroyer USS Melvin. She slowed and then blew up and broke in two sinking with all hands. This account has been contested in recent years but many find the new version less believable than the first. Key in the evidence was the rescue and capture of Yamashiro’s Executive Officer in the north end of the strait and the surviving logs of the other Japanese ships which reported the sinking.

Yamashiro continued north with Mogami and the last destroyer Shigure. At 0353 West Virginia opened fire and scored hits on her first salvo. She was joined by California and Tennessee at 0355, the other battleships with their Mark 3 fire direction radars were slow to open up. Maryland got off six full salvos by ranging in on the splashes of West Virginia, California and Tennessee. Mississippi logged the final salvo of the battle and Pennsylvania got no shots off. West Virginia fired 16 salvos, 96 round of 16”armor piercing shells, Tennessee got off 69 rounds and California 63 each of 14” armor piercing shells, while Maryland added another forty eight 16” rounds.

As Shima came up the strait his force entered the battered remnants of Nishimura’s force, the burning halves of Fuso and the retreating Mogami and Shigure. Assuming the halves of Fuso to be the wreckage of both battleships Shima beat a hasty retreat but in the process his flagship Nachi collided with Mogami flooding Mogami’s steering engine room and leaving her crippled.

Mogami, a ship that almost miraculously escaped being sunk at the Battle of Midway was attacked again by American cruisers and aircraft. She was abandoned at 1047 and scuttled a torpedo from the destroyer Akebono, finally sinking at 1307 on 25 October.

A PT Boat Rescuing Japanese Survivors

The battle was one of the most lopsided surface engagements of the war. When it was over only one of Nishimura’s ships had survived the “lucky” Shigure, ran out of luck when she was sunk by the submarine USS Blackfin on 24 January 1945.

Shima’s force survived the night but most of his ships were sunk in the following by war’s end. Nachi was sunk in Manila Bay on 5 November by aircraft from the USS Lexington with a loss of over 800 sailors while Shima was in a conference ashore. Ashigara was sunk by the British submarine HMS Trenchant on 8 June 1945.

With the exception of the destroyer USS Albert W Grant and a PT Boat the American force was unscathed. The old Battlewagons dredged from the mud of Peal Harbor under command of Admiral Oldendorf led the fleet to a decisive victory in the last duel between Dreadnaughts ever fought. All of the battleships present were either in commission or designed during the First World War. The Japanese died as Samurai warriors trying to complete a hopeless mission against a far superior force. The Americans executed a perfectly designed plan to perfection. It wasn’t a battle but the slaughter of an inferior force attempting to do the impossible. But when all was said and done the West Virginia, Tennessee, California, and Pennsylvania executed the judgement that only victims of the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.

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Tagged as battle of leyte gulf, battle of surigao strait, ijn abukuma, ijn akebono, ijn ashigara, ijn fuso, ijn mogami, ijn nachi, ijn shigure, ijn yamashiro, pt-137, uss albert w grant, uss california, uss maryland, uss mississippi, uss pennsylvania, uss tennessee, uss west virginia, vice admiral jesse oldendorff, vice admiral Kiyohide Shima, Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura

May 15, 2020 · 02:59

Short, Squat, Powerful and Well Protected: The South Dakota Class Battleships

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

I am still on my holiday from writing about the novel Coronavirus 19 and President Trump and his Administration’s incompetent response to it. It is a response that has already claimed 87,000 American lives, and every day more damning evidence shows the results for the President’s use of it for political purposes, almost all of which are backfiring as much as his malfeasance and willingness to see Americans die by the tens of thousands to maintain his cloud-cuckoo-land fantasy that this will go back to normal as if by magic. But, I won’t go any farther tonight on that tonight.

I was so inflamed about what was happening earlier today I decided that it was best to continue my series on the battleships designed and built by the British, French, Germans, Italians, and Americans from after the Battleship Holiday mandated by the Washington Naval Treaty, and the restrictions of the London Naval Treaty. The Germans were not signatories to these treaties as they were already under the much more severe provisions of the Treaty of Versailles, until the Hitler regime began to clandestinely violate it in 1934, and publicly in 1935. The British signed at bilateral naval accord with Germany in June of 1935, which the Germans renounced in 1938 in order to build a fleet of battleships that Hitler believed would allow him to achieve naval parity or superiority over the British, which he renounced in 1938 during the Czechoslovakia crisis.

This is the fifth and last in a series of articles about the battleships built under the provision of the Washington and London Naval Treaty limitations in the 1930s. I am not including the ships which were already in service or completed in the immediate aftermath of the Washington Treaty. That treaty required the British to scrap 23, the Americans 30, and Japanese 17 Battleships or Battlecruisers to comply with the treaty. Some were allowed to be converted to Aircraft Carriers, and some demilitarized to serve as training or target ships.

This series looks at the modern battleships built by the future World War II combatants between 1932 and 1939. This article covers the American South Dakota Class. Previous articles dealt with the British Royal Navy’s King George V Class, The German Kriegsmarine Scharnhorst Class, the Italian Reginia Marina’s Vittorio Veneto Class, the United States Navy’s North Carolina Class, and the French Dunkerque and Richelieu Classes.The German Bismarck, Japanese Yamato, British Vanguard and American Iowa classes will be covered in a subsequent series.

I think that I will also go back and deal with various classes of ships that were allowed to be kept after the Washington Naval Treaty. These included two of the three partially built American Colorado Class, the two ship British Nelson Class, and the second of the Japanese Nagato Class, the Mutsu; and the battleships and battlecruisers that were completed as Aircraft Carriers by the United States, Britain, Japan, and France. From there I could move on and write about and the new battleships and battlecruisers planned or under construction at the time the treaty came into effect, the ships that had they been built would have launched a major naval arms race in the 1920s, something that few nations could have afforded, especially Great Britain. I think I will even go back to the Dreadnoughts and Battlecruisers of the First World War. Of course there are a lot of them, so I will probably focus on the ships that continued serving through the Second World War. I might even delve into the German H type battleships which were more fanciful than realistic, only satisfying the need of Hitler for nothing but the biggest, the American Montana Class, the British HMS Vanguard, the French Alsace Class, and the Japanese A-150 or Super Yamato’s.

Since there is much disagreement about which of the ships that I have written about in this series, I may try to do a comparison to determine which was the best of these classes in the categories, of armament, speed and range, armor protection, reliably, and performance in combat. One has to remember that these were the first battleships built by their respective navies since the First World War, each was built under the constraints imposed by the naval treaties, and their influenced by the developments of potential opponents and the changing world situation. In some cases sacrifices were made on each design due to expediency and the need to get them to the fleet.

As the world edged closer to war in the late 1930s the U.S. Navy followed up its decision to build the two ship North Carolina class battleships with additional fast battleships. Initially the General Board wanted two additional North Carolina’s the Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral William H. Standley wanted a different design, which may have created the toughest and best of the battleships in this series. Compared to the other battleships built in this era, the South Dakota Class was short, fat, a bit slower, but was superbly protected with a well designed armored citadel, excellent main, secondary, and anti-aircraft batteries, and superior radars, fire direction systems and combat operation centers. They demonstrated a knack for survival as well as an ability to inflict damage, as was shown by the South Dakota and Massachusetts.

USS South Dakota BB-57 in 1943

Design work started in 1937 and several designs were proposed in order to correct known deficiencies in the preceding North Carolina class to include protection and the latest type of steam turbines. As in the North Carolina’s the Navy struggled to find the optimal balance between armament, protection and speed. In the end the Navy decided on a shorter hull form with greater beam which necessitated greater power to maintain a high speed. The armor protection was maximized by using an interior sloped belt of 12.2 inch armor with 7/8” STS plates behind the main belt which made the protection the equivalent to 17.3 inches of vertical armor. The Belt continued to the bottom of the ship though it was tapered with the belt narrowing to 1 inch to provide addition protection against plunging fire which struck deeper than the main belt. As an added feature to protect against torpedo hits a multi-layered four anti-torpedo bulkhead system was included, designed to absorb the impact of a hit from a 700 pounds of TNT.

In order to accommodate the machinery necessary to provide the desired speed of 27 knots on the shorter hull the machinery spaces were rearranged. The new design placed the boilers directly alongside the turbines with the ship’s auxiliaries and evaporators also placed in the machinery rooms. Additional design changes made to save space included making the crew berthing areas smaller. This included that of officers as well as the senior officers and shrinking the size of the galley’s and the wardroom from those on the North Carolina’s. The resultant changes allowed the ships to achieve the 27 knot speed, improved protection and carry the same armament of the North Carolina’s within the 35,000 treaty limit.

Two ships of the design were approved and with the escalator clause invoked by the Navy two more ships were ordered all with the nine 16” gun armament of the North Carolina’s. The leading ship of the class the South Dakota was designed as a fleet flagship and in order to accommodate this role two of the 5” 38 twin mounts were not installed leaving the ship with 16 of these guns as opposed to the 20 carried by the rest of the ships of the class. The final design was a class of ships capable of 27.5 knots with a range of 17,000 miles at 15 knots mounting nine 16” guns with excellent protection on the 35,000 tons and full load displacement of 44,519 tons.

The lead ship of the class the USS South Dakota BB-57 was laid down 5 July 1939 at New York Shipbuilding in Camden New Jersey, launched on 7 June 1941 and commissioned on 20 March 1942. Following her commissioning and her shakedown cruise South Dakota was dispatched to the South Pacific. Soon after her arrival she struck a coral reef at Tonga which necessitated a return to Pearl Harbor for repairs.

When repairs were complete she was attached to TF 16 escorting the USS Enterprise CV-6 during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands on 26 October 1942. During the battle she was credited with shooting down 26 Japanese aircraft but was struck by a 500 lb bomb on her number one turret which caused no damage.

The Dent in South Dakota’s Number Three Turret from a hit from a 14” Shell from Kirishima

She joined TF-64 paired with the battleship USS Washington during the Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on14-15 November 1942. During the action South Dakota suffered a power outage and was hit by over by a minimum of 26 enemy shells, and possibly up to 40. At least one of a 14” shell from Kirishima, 18 8” shells from the Heavy Cruisers, 6 6” shells from from Japanese light cruisers, and at least one 5” shell from a destroyer. The damage was superficial, once her power was restored much of the damage was repaired ship’s crew. The shellfire knocked out three of her fire control radars, her radio and main radar set which were also repaired.

Three of the escorting destroyers, USS Preston, USS Walke, and USS Benham were sunk or mortally wounded, and USS Gwin was damaged.destroyers were also lost but the Washington mortally wounded the fast battleship Kirishima and destroyer Ayanami which were scuttled the next day and damaged the heavy cruisers Atago and Takao.

South Dakota returned to New York for repairs which completed in February 1943. She joined the carrier USS Ranger CV-4 for operations in the Atlantic until April when she was attached to the British Home Fleet. She sailed for the Pacific in August 1943 and rejoined the Pacific Fleet in September. The battleship joined Battleship Divisions 8 and 9 and supported the invasion of Tarawa providing naval gunfire support to the Marines.

South Dakota spent the rest of the war was spent escorting carriers as well as conducting bombardment against Japanese shore installations. She participated in almost every action of the U.S. drive across the Central Pacific. She was struck by a 500 pound bomb during the Battle of the Philippine Sea that destroyed several anti-aircraft mounts and killed 26 of her crew.

A Photo taken from South Dakota while anchored in Tokyo Bay with Mount Fuji in the Background

South Dakota was present at the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay and returned to the United States in 1945. She was decommissioned and placed in reserve on 31 January 1947. She was stricken from the Naval Register on 1 June 1962 and sold for scrap in October of that year. Various artifacts of this gallant ship to include a propeller, a 16” gun and the mainmast are part of the USS South Dakota Memorial Park in Sioux Falls South Dakota. 6,000 tons of armored plate were returned to the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission for use in civilian nuclear programs and a second screw is displaced outside the U.S. Naval Museum in Washington D.C. She received 13 battle stars for World War II service.

South Dakota also had the dubious distinction of having the youngest sailor of the war 12 year old Calvin Graham who confessed lying about his age to the Gunnery Officer, LT Sergeant Schriver. Graham was court-martialed and given a dishonorable discharge spending 3 months in the ship’s brig before he was able to be returned to the United States where just after his 13^th birthday he entered 7^th grade. Shriver was wounded at Guadalcanal and was awarded the Purple Heart. He left the Navy in in 1945 as a Lieutenant Commander. He later became the Brother in law of John F. Kennedy, and the first Director of the Peace Corps, and became the the running mate of Senator George McGovern in the 1972 Presidential Election, to Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew.

USS Indiana BB-58 Bombarding Japan in 1945

The second ship of the class the USS Indiana BB-58 was laid down at Newport News Naval Shipyard on 20 November 1939 launched on 21 November 1941 and commissioned on 30 April 1942. She served throughout the Pacific War by serving with the fast battleships of Vice Admiral Willis Lee’s TF-34, escorting carriers during major battles such that the Battle of the Philippine Sea or as it is better known the Marianas Turkey Shoot. She returned to the United States for overhaul and missed the Battle of Leyte Gulf but served at Iwo Jima, Okinawa and operations against the Japanese home islands. During the beginning of the Marshall Islands campaign Indiana received her heaviest damage. During night operations with a carrier task group she turned in front of USS Washington. A collision ensued which caused heavy damage to Indiana, including the loss of nearly 200 feet of her armored belt. The collision took off about 20 feet of Washington’s bow which remained imbedded in the Indiana until she was repaired. Washington also required a return to the United States for repairs.

Following the war she was decommissioned in 1947 and sold for scrap in September 1963. A number of her relics are preserved at various locations in Indiana and her prow and mainmast are centerpieces of a display at the University of Indiana’s football stadium. Much of her armor was provided to the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission for use in civilian programs.

USS Massachusetts BB-59 in January 1946 in the Puget Sound

The third ship of the class the USS Massachusetts BB-59 was laid down on 20 July 1939 at Bethlehem Steel Corporation Fore River Yard in Salem Massachusetts and launched on 23 September 1941 and commissioned on 12 May 1942. After her shakedown cruise she was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet where she took part in Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of French North Africa. During the operation she engaged French shore batteries, damaged the battleship Jean Bart and sank 2 cargo ships and along with the heavy cruiser Tuscaloosa sank the destroyers Fougueux and Boulonnais and the light cruiser Primauguet.

Following her assignment in the Atlantic she sailed for the Pacific where she began operations in January 1944. She took part in almost every major operation conducted by the Pacific Fleet escorting the Fast Carrier Task Forces and operating as a unit of TF-34 the Fast Battleship Task force including the Battle of Leyte Gulf. She ended the war conducting operations against the Japanese home islands. She was decommissioned in 1947 and stricken from the Naval Register on 1 June 1962.

USS Massachusetts BB-59 at Battleship Cove, Fall River Massachusetts

She was saved from the fate of Indiana and South Dakota as the people of Massachusetts with the assistance of schoolchildren who donated $50,000 for her renovation and preservation as a memorial. She became that in 1965 at Battleship Cove in Fall River Massachusetts and she remains there designated as a National Historic Landmark. During the naval build up of the 1980s much equipment common to all modern battleships was removed for use in the recommissioned battleships of the Iowa class.

The final ship of the class the USS Alabama BB-60 was laid down on 1 February 1940 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard. She was launched on 21 February 1942 and commissioned 16 August 1942. Following her shakedown cruise and initial training off the Atlantic coast she joined the repaired South Dakota and operated as part of TF 22 attached to the British Home Fleet.

She conducted convoy escort operations, participated in the reinforcement of Spitsbergen and in an operation which attempted to coax the German battleship Tirpitz out of her haven in Norway. Tirpitz did not take the bait and Alabama and South Dakota returned to the United States in August 1943.

Following a brief refit she and South Dakota transited to the Pacific were the trained with the fast carriers. She took part in the invasion of the Gilberts taking part in Operation Galvanic against Tarawa and the Army landings on Makin Island.

As 1944 began Alabama continued her operations with the fast carriers of TF-38 and the fast battleships of TF-34. She took part in operations against the Marshalls and took part in the invasion of the Marianas Islands and the Battle of the Philippine Sea, the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot. From there she supported the invasion of Palau and other islands in the Caroline Islands followed by operations against New Guinea and the invasion of the Philippine and the Battle of Leyte Gulf before returning to the United States for overhaul.

Chief Petty Officer Bob Feller
Alabama returned to action during the invasion of Okinawa and in shore bombardment operations against the Japanese Mainland. When the war ended the Alabama had suffered no combat deaths and only 5 wounded following the misfire of one of her own 5” guns earning her the nickname of “Lucky A.” Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Feller served as a Chief Petty Officer and gun mount captain on Alabama during the war.

She was decommissioned on 9 January 1947 and stricken from the Naval Register on 1 June 1962. The people of the State of Alabama formed the “Alabama Battleship Commission” and raised $1,000,000 including over $100,000 collected by schoolchildren to bring her to Alabama as a memorial. She was turned over to the state in 1964 and opened as a museum on 9 January 1965. She was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1986. She has been used as a set in several movies and continues to serve as a museum preserving the legacy of the men that served aboard her and all of the battleship sailors of World War II.

another thing about the South Donata Class was that their design was evident in the rebuilding of the USS California, USS Tennessee, and USS West Virginia when they were completely modernized after Pear Harbor.

USS West Virginia after her complete modernization after being sunk at Pearl Harbor

In the 1950s a number of proposals were considered to modernize the ships of the class to increase their speed to 31 knots using improved steam turbines or gas turbines. The Navy determined that to do this would require changes to the hull form of the ships making the cost too prohibitive. The ships were certainly the best of the treaty type battleships produced by any nation in the Second World War. The damage sustained by South Dakota at the Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal would have not only put most battleships of her era out of action but might have caused enough damage to sink them. Their armament was equal or superior to all that except the Japanese Yamato Class and their protection was superior to most ships of their era, and it was was exceptional, as was evident by the damage sustained by South Dakota.

Alabama as a Museum Ship

It is good that both the Massachusetts and the Alabama have been preserved as memorials to the ships of the class, their sailors and the United States Navy in the Second World War. Because of the efforts of the people of Massachusetts and Alabama millions of people have been able to see these magnificent ships and remember their fine crews. Both have hosted reunions of their ships companies since becoming museum ships and with the World War Two generation passing away in greater numbers every day soon these ships as well as the USS Texas, USS North Carolina, USS Missouri, USS New Jersey, USS Wisconsin aUSS Iowa which stricken from the Naval Register awaits an uncertain fate as a resident of the “Ghost Fleet” in Suisun Bay California. No other nation preserved any other dreadnought or treaty battleship thus only these ships remain from the era of the Dreadnought. I so much wish that the British had preserved one of the King George V ships, or maybe the mostend celebrated Royal Navy Battleships of both World Wars, the HMS Warspite had been preserved. I also regret that none of the survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor were preserved, nor any of the standard battleships of the Nevada, Pennsylvania, New Mexico, California, or Colorado Classes.

I am fortunate. I have been able to go aboard the North Carolina, Alabama, Texas, and Wisconsin, as well as a number of the surviving aircraft carriers, destroyers, and submarines preserved in the United States. However, too few, especially the ships which bore the brunt of the war like the carrier USS Enterprise were never saved, despite the pleas of men like Admiral William “Bull” Halsey.

I habe also been able to visit ships like the USS Constitution, USS Constellation, Clipper ship Star of India, the Japanese Battleship Mikasa, the USS Nautilus, the German Tall Ship Gorch Fock II, and so many more, but I still have a bucket list of ships I want to visit in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Sweden, Russia, France, Australia, Italy, Turkey, Japan, and Finland.

With those pipe dreams in mind, I wish you all the best. Until tomorrow when I decide to weigh in again on novel Coronavirus 19 and the crisis being fostered by the Trump Administration in this country; please be safe. Don’t do dumb things like going into crowded places with few people wearing masks and the vast majorly of people not adhering to social distancing. Even if other people decide to be stupid and put others and well as their own lives at risk, don’t be like them. I speak this from the heart and I don’t care if someone disagrees with my politics, faith, or social commentary, I would prefer that they not die or through their stupidity and arrogance get other people sick or die. Darwin is not Kind when it comes to the stupidity and arrogance of people regardless of the race, ethnicity, faith, ideology, political leanings, social standing, economic position, or nationality.

I don’t care if people agree with me or not, but don’t do dumb things. This may sound harsh but I tend to speak from my heart when lives and civilization itself are at stake. But please remember the words of Robert Henlein:

“Stupidity cannot be cured. Stupidity is the only universal capital crime; the sentence is death. There is no appeal, and execution is carried out automatically and without pity.”

Peace,

Padre Steve+

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Filed under Foreign Policy, historic preservation, History, imperial japan, Military, Navy Ships, nazi germany, Political Commentary, US Navy, World War II at Sea, world war one, world war two in europe, world war two in the pacific

Tagged as battle of the philippine sea, battle of the Santa Cruz islands, battleship cove fall river massachusetts, bismarck class, bismark, bob feller, colorado Class, dunkerque class, george mcgovern, hms nelson, HMS Rodney, hms vanguard, HMS Warspite, ijn kirishima, ijn mutsu, ijn nagato, iowa class, king george v class, london Naval treaties, nagato class, nelson class battleship, north carolina class, richelieu class, robert henlien, scharnhorst class, seargent shriver, second naval battle of guadalcanal, south dakota class, treaty of versailles, uss california, uss enterprise cv-6, uss indiana bb-57, uss iowa, uss massachusetts, Uss South Dakota bb 57, uss tennessee, USS Texas, uss washington bb-56, uss west virginia, Vittorio Veneto class, washington naval treaty, yamato class

April 17, 2020 · 02:03

The Hubris of Empire: The Japanese Battleships Yamato and Musashi

Emperor Hirohito on Musashi in 1943

Friends of Padre Steve’s World

This is an old post of my series on Battleships. Previous post on different battleship classes were about the Battleships constructed under conditions of the London Naval Conference. These have dealt with the British King George V Class, French Dunkerque and Richelieu Classes, ItalianVittorio Vento Class and the American North Carolina and South Dakota Classes. I then wrote an introduction to the Post Treaty Super-Battleships. This article is the first in that series which will include articles on the German Bismarck and Tirpitz, British Vanguard and American Iowa Class. I do hope to take my mind off present events by writing about other battleship types and classes as well as other types of ships. That being said I expect to be doing a new installment of by COVID 19 articles, which I have pretty much avoided for sanity’s sake the past week.

Until tomorrow,

Peace,

Padre Steve+

They were the largest and most heavily armed battleships ever built. Shrouded in secrecy by the Imperial Japanese Navy and Government the ships were designed to offset projected American numerical superiority. Their names were symbolic of Japan’s history. Yamato was named after Yamato Province, the ancestral home of the Yamato People, the dominant native ethnic group in Japan. Musashi was named after Musashi Province in which lays Tokyo Prefecture. A third ship of the class, Shinano, was named after Shinano Province in central Japan which was the home of the prestigious Taketa Shingen family during the Senguku period.

The Conning Tower and Bridge of Musashi

The secrecy surrounding their design and construction was unprecedented. Those charged with their deign and construction were thoroughly checked out by Japan’s secret police and sworn to an oath of secrecy. The oath sworn by builders of Musashi at the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Nagasaki Shipyard were sworn to the oath shown below:

I am aware that all work work involving the construction of the No. 2 Battleship is vital to national security. I will make utmost effort to maintain the secrecy of the project, and swear that I will leak no information relating to the said battleship, even to relatives and close friends. In the event I violate this oath, I will submit to the punishment determined by the company and the Navy.

Yamato during Consrtuction

Security measures around the shipyards where Yamato and Musashi were constructed were immense. At Nagasaki where there was a large foreign business and missionary population where the shipyard was visible from most of the city at hemp screen of 75,000 square meters was constructed to shield the ship from prying eyes and spies.

Musashi under Construction

When actual preparations for construction were taken in 1937 secret police swept the areas of foreign, especially Chinese workers. Security was increased inside and outside the shipyard, all blueprints accounted for and placed under strict guard while all shipyard workers were photographed with any having knowledge of the plans or supervising the construction sworn to the secrecy oath.

When a top secret blueprint went missing in 1938 at Nagasaki an intense investigation that included the torture of numerous suspects and the jailing of a blueprinter who accidentally swept the document into the trash was sentenced to 3 years in prison.

Armor and Protection of Yamato Class

Few pictures exist of the ships and Japanese Naval Officers destroyed many of the records of the ships design and construction just prior to the end of the Second World War. Throughout their existence they were a mystery to the American Navy. During the war the U.S. Navy estimated them to carry nine 16” guns and displace between 40,000-57,000 tons. Even the highly regarded Jane’s Fighting ships listed them at just 45,000 tons.

Yamato and Musashi together in 1943

Preliminary design work began in 1934 and progressed rapidly following Japan’s withdraw from the League of Nations and renunciation of the Washington and London Naval Treaties and withdraw from the 1936 naval talks in London. The early designs varied in the caliber of guns, size and armor, propulsion systems and endurance. Gun calibers ranged from 16” to 18.1” and a combined diesel-turbine system was considered but rejected in favor of traditional steam turbines.

The final design was for a class of five ships. Each would displace 64,000 tons standard displacement and 72,000 tons at full load. They were 862 feet long with a beam of 127 feet. They were so large that the docks they were built needed to be expanded and special extra large launch platforms had to be built. At Nagasaki the dock at to be expanded by cutting into the hill adjacent to it.

They were armed with nine 18.1 inch guns in triple turrets which could fire a projectile weighing over a ton. The secondary armament consisted of 12 6.1 inch guns mounted in triple turrets formerly mounted on the Mogami Class cruisers when those ships were equipped with 8” guns. Anti-aircraft defense included twelve 5” guns and twenty-four 25mm anti-aircraft guns. During the war two of the 6.1 inch turrets were removed and replaced with twelve more 5” guns and the 25mm battery was raised to 162 guns. Fire control systems were designed in such a way that the ships could engage multiple surface targets at the same time.

The ships were protected by a massive armored belt ranging from 16 inches to 8 inches with 26 inch armor on the face plates of the main gun turrets. The armor was advanced with excellent sloping but had a flaw where the upper and lower belts connected just below the waterline which exposed them to damage from torpedoes.

Yamato and Musashi viewed beside Battleship Nagato (foreground) just before the Battle of Leyte Gulf

They were powered by 12 Kampon boilers which powered 4 steam turbines and four three bladed propellers. These developed 150,000 shp and could drive the ship at a top speed of 27 knots.

Yamato

Construction of Yamato began on November 4th 1937 at Kure Naval Shipyard. Musashi on March 28th 1938. Traditionally such events were large public ceremonies but these were limited to just a few Naval Staff and Shipyard executives. Yamato was Launched on August 8th 1940 and commissioned on December 16th 1941, just 9 days after Pearl Harbor. Musashi was launched on November 8th 1940 and commissioned on August 5th 1942 just two days before the U.S. Marines invaded Guadalcanal and two months after the disaster at the Battle of Midway.

Yamato served as Admiral Yamamoto’s flagship at Midway where she saw no action. The next two years she was and Musashi alternated as fleet flagship and conducted operations with Battleship Division One in operations between Mainland Japan and the major Japanese base at Truk. On December 25th 1943 while escorting a convoy she was torpedoed by the submarine USS Skate and suffered heavy damage which flooded a magazine. On March 29th while underway Musashi was struck near the bow by a torpedo from the USS Tunny.

Musashi Under Attack at the Battle of Sibuyan Sea

Both ships participated in the Battle of the Philippine Sea and were part of Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita’s Central Force in the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Musashi was sunk by U.S. Navy Carrier aircraft from the Third Fleet on October 24th 1944 during the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea. Hit by 17 bombs and 19 torpedoes she sank with the loss of nearly 1100 of her crew of almost 2400 men. The survivors were rescued by destroyers and disembarked at Corregidor. Some were sent by troop transport to Japan but one of the ships was torpedoed and sunk leaving her survivors adrift for 19 hours before rescue. Those who reached Japan were isolated from the population while about half of the survivors remained in the Philippines where 117 of 146 of those assigned to the defense of Manila were killed in action.

Yamato or Musashi under air Attack

Yamato saw action in the surface engagement on October 25th against the Escort Carriers and Destroyers of Taffy-3 during the Battle off Samar. Her guns helped sink the Escort Carrier USS Gambier Bay but was forced away from the action by torpedo attacks from the valiant destroyers of Taffy-3.

Yamato under Attack April 7th 1945

By April 1945 Japan’s Navy was decimated and holed up in Japanese controlled ports without fuel to conduct all but minor operations. U.S. Naval Forces were raiding Mainland Japan, inflicting heavy casualties among remaining naval, merchant marine, and air units, as well as bases and industrial facilities.

When the United States landed on Okinawa the Japanese Navy and air force launched wave after wave of Kamikaze attacks on the ships in the waters around the island. Yamato, along with Light Cruiser Yahagi and eight destroyers were designated the Surface Special Attack Force and loaded with a full load of ammunition but only enough fuel for a one way trip. They got underway on April 6th. The mission was for Yamato to reach Okinawa, beach herself and serve as an “unsinkable” gun battery until she was destroyed. The force was spotted by U.S. Navy flying boats hours after their departure and on April 7th over 400 aircraft launched from Task Groups 58.1 and 58.3 found the Yamato strike group. Devoid of fighter cover the force was doomed. The first wave of attacking aircraft began its attack at 1230. More followed, and by 1400 Yamato was mortally wounded. She had been hit by at least 8 torpedoes and 11 bombs in an hour and a half. Now she was dead in the water and began to capsize at 1405. At 1420 she turned turtle, and at 1423 she exploded when her forward blew up sending up a mushroom cloud nearly 20,000 feet. Under 300 of her crew of nearly 2400 were rescued.

The End: Yamato Explodes

The Yamato and Musashi were the largest battleships ever built. But they were designed when naval experts who planned for a war where the battleship would rule and aircraft carriers played a supporting role. But the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor made the Aircraft Carrier the new Queen of the seas. Neither ship ever faced enemy battleships in combat and both were destroyed by the weapon that the battleship admirals had discounted, carrier based aircraft.

Thus, is somewhat fitting that each ship was commissioned shortly after the triumphs of Japanese and American Naval air power at Pearl Harbor and Midway. However, they have attained an almost mythic status in naval lore. Likewise they are both are symbols to many Japanese of the sacrifice and futility of the war. Their legend lives on in Japanese science fiction. However, both of the cities where the ships were constructed were destroyed by Atomic bombs. They are tragic reminders of the cost of war in human lives, suffering, economic cost and destruction.

In a sense their poetic names and the myths ascribed to them are a tragic requiem to the Japanese Empire and the cost of war. They and their brave sailors were sacrificed when the war was already for all intents and purposes lost. They, especially the Yamato were sacrificed for no military purpose save a convoluted sense of honor, and a nation that waged unjust and criminal wars in China before before it ever dreamed of attacking Pearl Harbor. Many Japanese Navy units, including surface ships, submarines, and Special Naval Units (Marines) engaged in war crimes at sea and ashore.

Of course the vast majority of the crew members of these ships never took part in these crimes because they seldom engaged in combat action until each was destroyed. Both spent most of the war flagships as part of a fleet in readiness. Unlike the German High Seas Fleet of the First World War, or the German Battleship Bismarck, the battleships of the Italian Regina Marina, or the battleships of Vichy France, none ever faced an enemy battleship in combat.

The only Japanese battleships to engage American battleships were the elderly fast battleship Kirishima which was destroyed by the gunfire of USS Washington during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, and the even more elderly and obsolete Fuso and Yamishiro which were destroyed by the combined firepower of the survivors of Pearl Harbor, the USS West Virginia, USS California, USS Tennessee, USS Maryland, USS Pennsylvania, and the USS Mississippi which was not at Pearl Harbor, as well as many cruisers, destroyers, and PT Boats at the Battle of Surigao Strait during the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Kirishima was lost on the verge of victory to USS Washington and Rear Admiral Willis Lee who used their advantage in radar to singlehandedly destroy Kirishima and her supporting ships even as her destroyer screen was decimated, and the battleship USS South Dakota lost electric power and was heavily damaged.

Yamato and Musashi were a waste of industrial capacity, manpower, and resources for Japan. Their sister, Shinano, which had been converted to an aircraft carrier, was lost on her maiden voyage to a spread of torpedoes fired from the submarine USS Archerfish, with a huge life of life simply because she was rushed into commission without vital watertight compartments being ready. They were expensive failures in every sense of the word, showing that bigger isn’t always better, and that investment in such expensive ships must take into account the technology that could defeat them. For the moment most nations including the United States, China, Great Britain, France, Russia, and India seem to be placing their bets on the aircraft carrier retaining its dominance, but that could easily be the same mistake of the powers of the Second World War who built battleships, even when it was clear that their dominance was at an end.

Let us pray that it never happens again. I can only imagine the shock if an American Nuclear Carrier was sunk by a submarine, a saturation cruise missile attack, or one of the maneuverable Chinese nuclear ballistic missiles. Such a loss would shock the nation and send the Navy into a panic as it scrambled to find a way to recover from such a sinking without losing more carriers. Such an event would be as transformational to naval warfare as were the introduction of the Dreadnaught, and the perfection of the submarine as a tactical and strategic weapon.

Until tomorrow,

Peace

Padre Steve+

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December 8, 2019 · 08:20

The Remarkable Salvage Divers of Pearl Harbor

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

For today a final article about Pearl Harbor before moving on to different subjects. In light of our declining shipyard and salvage capabilities I doubt if such miraculous work could occur today should the Navy every experience a calamity such as Pearl Harbor again.

One of the more interesting aspects of the Pearl Harbor attack were the efforts of the US Navy to salvage and return to duty the ships sunk or so heavily damaged that they were thought to be irreparable after the attack. 19 ships were sunk or damaged during the attack, or roughly 20% of the fleet present on December 7th 1941. Unlike other great feats of maritime salvage like that of the German Fleet at Scapa Flow after the First World War, this massive effort led to the majority of the ships being returned to an operational status for further service in the war.

I first learned about the dangers of the salvage operations when I visited Pearl Harbor on an NJROTC cadet training cruise in the spring of 1978. During the week we spent in Pearl between the outbound leg on the USS Frederick LST-1184 and our return to California aboard the USS Gray FF-1054, we had a visit with the Navy dive team stationed at Pearl Harbor. They explained how they did their jobs as well as the dangers still encountered diving on the wreck of the USS Arizona.

Captain Homer Wallin directing Salvage Operations

Many people know something about the attack, but one of the most remarkable aspects of it was the effort to salvage the fleet in the months following the attack. Under the leadership of Captain Homer N. Wallin teams of Navy and civilian divers from the Pacific Bridge Company worked day and night to salvage the sunken ships. The divers spent over 20,000 man hours under water in the highly hazardous waters; which were filled with unexploded ordinance, and contaminated by fuel and sadly decomposing human bodies. Wallin wrote:

“The scene to the newcomer was foreboding indeed. There was a general feeling of depression throughout the Pearl Harbor area when it was seen and firmly believed that none of the ships sunk would ever fight again.”

The divers wore were rubberized coveralls with gloves. The divers were equipped with a lead-weighted belt which weighed 84 pounds and lead-weighted shoes, each of which weighed 36 pounds. Each diver wore a copper helmet attached to a breastplate. Air was supplied through a hose which was attached to the helmet and ran up to a compressor monitored by men on the surface.

The work was extremely hazardous, the wrecked ships contained numerous hazards, any of which could cut his air hose and cause his death, and they also contained highly toxic gasses. They often worked in total darkness and had to communicate with the men on the surface via a telephone cable. The divers had to be exceptionally talented to and needed a great amount of coordination senses and balance to work with welding torches, suction hoses, and heavy equipment in the confines of the shattered ships. During the salvage operations a number of divers lost their lives.

Before the ships could be raised ammunition, including the massive 14 and 16 inch shells weighing anywhere from 1300 to 2000 pounds each, Japanese bombs and torpedoes, fuel oil, gasoline, electrical equipment and batteries, weapons, and whenever possible the bodies of the entombed crews had to be removed, and then every hole had to be patched to make them buoyant. After the ships were raised cleanup crews had to go aboard and clear the ships of other hazardous waste as repair crews began their work to repair the basic systems needed to get the ships to West Coast shipyards for the major overhauls, The herculean effort was one of the greatest engineering feats in maritime history.

Of these were battleships, the USS Arizona sunk by a cataclysmic explosion, her broken hulk with her collapsed foremast the iconic symbol of the attack. USS Oklahoma was capsized on Battleship Row. USS Nevada was grounded and sunk off Hospital Point after an abortive attempt to sortie during the attack. USS Californiaand USS West Virginia lay upright on the bottom of Pearl Harbor, their superstructure, distinctive cage masts and gun turrets visible above the oily water.

The former battleship USS Utah lay capsized on the far side of Ford Island while the light cruiser USS Raleigh was fighting for her life barely afloat near Utah. The ancient Minelayer USS Oglala was laying on her side next to the light cruiser USS Helena at the 1010 Dock. She was not hit by a bomb or torpedo but was said to have “died of fright” when Helena was hit by a torpedo, the blast which opened the seams of her hull. The destroyers USS Cassin and USS Downes were wrecks in the main dry dock. USS Shaw was minus her bow in the floating dry dock after exploding in what was one of the more iconic images of the attack. Other ships received varying amounts of damage.

As the engineers, damage control and salvage experts looked at the damage they realized that every ship would be needed for the long term fight. The building program of the US Navy was just beginning to pick up steam and it would be some time before new construction could not only make up for the losses but also be ready to fight a Two Ocean War. The decision was made to salvage and return to duty any ship deemed salvageable.

Even the seemingly less important ships needed to be rapidly salvaged. Some which initially appeared to be unsalvageable needed at the minimum to be cleared from dry docks and docks needed by operational or less damaged ships. Likewise equipment, machinery and armaments from these ships needed to be salvaged for use in other ships.

Even by modern standards the efforts of the Navy divers and salvage experts and the civilians who worked alongside them were amazing. In the end only three of the 19 ships never returned to service. The work began quickly and on December 14th Commander James Steele began to direct the salvage operations on the sunken hulks. Captain Wallin relieved Steele on January 9th 1942. Wallin formed a salvage organization of Navy officers and civilian contractors. The civilian contractors were instrumental in the operation. Many of the civilians had experience in salvage operations, or underwater construction efforts, such as working on the Golden Gate Bridge which often exceeded the experience of the Navy divers.

The divers recovered bodies whenever possible, salvaged equipment, removed weapons and ammunition, made temporary repairs and help rig the ships for righting or re-floating. In each case the salvage experts, divers and engineers faced different challenges.

Arizona was never raised. Her superstructure was cut down, main battery and some anti-aircraft guns removed. The main batter guns were delivered to the Army Coastal Artillery for use as shore batteries but none reached an operational status before the end of the war. The dives aboard were so dangerous that eventually the attempts to recover bodies ceased as several divers lost their lives in the wreck. Over the years the National Parks Service has continued to dive on the wreck to assess it as a war grave and memorial.

Utah too was not raised. She was righted in 1942 but efforts to do more were halted because the elderly wreck had no remaining military value. Her wreck along with that of Arizona are war graves, many of their crew members, including over 1000 of Arizona’s men forever remain entombed in their ships. When I visited Pearl Harbor in 1978 as a Navy Junior ROTC Cadet and visited both memorials I was humbled at what I saw. They are haunting reminders of the cost paid by sailors during wartime.

Nevada was the first major ship salvaged. She was re-floated in February 1942 and after temporary repairs sailed to the West Coast on her own power. After repairs and a significant modernization of her anti-aircraft systems was complete she returned to action in 1943 in the invasion of Attu Alaska. She participated in many amphibious operations including Normandy, Southern France, Iwo Jim and Okinawa. She survived the Atomic Bomb tests in 1946 but wrecked and radioactive she was sunk as a target off Hawaii in 1948.

The salvage of the Oklahoma was one of the more challenging endeavors faced by Wallin’s men. Hit by at least five torpedoes during the attack the great ship capsized, her tripod masts digging deep into the mud of the harbor as she settled. Over 400 over her crew lay dead inside the ship. Since it was apparent that the ship was a total loss the salvage operations did not commence until the middle of 1942. The primary goal of the operation was to clear needed space for berthing large ships along Battleship Row. The operation involved making the ship as watertight as possible, solidifying the bottom of the harbor around her to enable her to roll and emplacing a massive system of righting frames, anchor chains and shore mounted winches and cables. The process involved cutting away wrecked superstructure, removing ammunition, weapons and the bodies of those entombed in their former home. She was completely righted in July 1943, and floated again in November. Moved to a dry dock in December she was made watertight and moored in another part of the harbor. Following the war she was being towed to a scrap yard but sank in a storm in May 1947.

California was raised in March and after temporary repairs sailed under her own power to the West Coast. Her repairs and modernization were a major undertaking. Fully reconditioned and modernized to standards of most modern battleships she returned to service in January 1944. She served in retaking Saipan, Guam, Tinian, as well as Leyte Gulf were she had a significant part in the Battle of Surigao Strait. Hit by a Kamikaze she was repaired and returned to action at Okinawa and support the occupation operations of the Japanese Home Islands. She was decommissioned in 1947 and sold for scrapping in 1959.

West Virginia suffered the most severe damage of the battleships returned to duty. She was raised in July 1942 and after repairs sailed to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. Like California she was completely rebuilt and returned to action in October 1944 in time to take the lead role in destroying the Japanese Battleship Yamashiro. She served throughout the remainder of the war in the Pacific at Iwo Jima, Okinawa and the occupation of Japan.

Cassin following Rebuilding

The Mahan Class destroyers Cassin and Downes were so badly damaged sitting in the Dry Dock Number One with Pennsylvania so that initially they were believed beyond salvage. However after closer inspection it was determined that the hull fittings, main weapons systems and propulsion machinery on both ships were worth salvaging. These items were removed, shipped to Mare Island Naval Shipyard and installed on new hulls being constructed. The hulks of the old ships were scrapped at Pearl Harbor. Those ships were commissioned as the Cassin and Downes and served throughout the war.

Both were decommissioned in 1945 and scrapped in 1947. Their sister ship Shaw which had blown up in the floating dry dock was wrecked from her bridge forward. However the rest of the ship including her engineering spaces were intact. A temporary bow was fashioned and the ship sailed to Mare Island under her own power. Completely overhauled she was back in service by July 1942. She was decommissioned in 1945 and scrapped in 1946.

The ancient minelayer Oglala was raised in July and sent back to the West Coast where she was repaired and recommissioned as an internal combustion engine repair ship. She survived the war was decommissioned and transferred to Maritime Commission custody. She was a depot ship at the Suisun Bay Reserve Fleet until 1965 when she was sold for scrap.

If you are interested, Captain Wallin’s complete report can be read here:

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/nhhc/research/library/online-reading-room/war-and-conflict/wwii/pearl-harbor/pearlharborwallin/d767_92_w3.pdf

Wallin later served in the Pacific as Force Maintenance Officer South Pacific, and commanded a variety of Naval Yards, including Philadelphia and Norfolk Naval Shipyard where I currently serve. He retired in 1953 as a Vice Admiral and lived to the age of 89 years, when he died in 1984.

The salvage feat to return these ships to duty was one of the most remarkable operations of its type ever conducted. Not only were most of the ships salvaged but most returned to duty. While none survive today many played key roles during the war. Artifacts of some of the ships are on display at various Naval Bases, Museums and State Capitals. They, their brave crews, and the Navy Divers and civilian diving and salvage experts who conducted this task exhibited the finest traditions of the US Navy. The successors of the Navy divers at Mobile Diving Salvage Units One and Two still carry on that tradition today, and sadly, most Americans don’t know anything about Homer Wallin and his remarkable Navy and civilian divers.

Peace

Padre Steve+

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Filed under History, Military, national security, Navy Ships, US Navy, World War II at Sea, world war two in the pacific

Tagged as captain homer wallin, norfolk naval shipyard, Pearl Harbor salvage operations, uss arizona, uss california, uss cassin, uss Curtiss, uss downes, uss helena, uss helm, uss maryland, USS Nevada, uss oglala, uss oklahoma, uss pennsylvania, USS Raleigh, uss shaw, uss tennessee, uss utah, uss vestal, uss west virginia

December 5, 2019 · 23:39

Pearl Harbor and the Advent of the Aircraft Carrier, But Can the Carrier Remain Supreme?

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

On the morning of December 7th 1941 8 of the 9 Battleships assigned to the US Pacific Fleet were in Pearl Harbor. Seven, the USS California, USS Maryland, USS Oklahoma, USS Tennessee, USS West Virginia, USS Arizona and USS Nevada were moored on Battleship Row. The USS Pennsylvania was in the massive dry dock which she shared with the destroyers USS Cassin and USS Downes. The USS Colorado, a sister ship of Maryland and West Virginia was at the Puget Sound Naval Yard being overhauled.

USS West Virginia sinking at left and USS Tennessee burning at Pearl Harbor

At the time both the United States Navy and the Japanese Imperial Navy still viewed the Battleships as the heart of the fleet and the essence of naval power. Aircraft Carriers were still viewed as an adjunct and support to the traditional battle line.

Japanese Aircraft preparing to launch at Pearl Harbor

Thus as the Japanese Carrier Strike Group, the Kido Butai under the command of Vice Admiral Chūichi Nagumo approached Pearl Harbor and intelligence reports came in indicating that the carriers were not present the Japanese were not overly concerned. The lack of concern was in a sense ironic because the force they assigned to destroy the Battleships of the Pacific Fleet was the carrier strike group, not their battle line. The Kido Butai was the largest carrier strike group assembled until late 1943 when the U.S. Pacific Fleet fielded a larger carrier strike group, something no other country has done since.

The Kido Butai enroute to Pearl Harbor

Comprised of six carriers, the Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu, Soryu, Shokaku and Zuikaku the force embarked over 300 first line aircraft. The aviators of the air groups aboard the carriers had been training for months to attack Pearl Harbor. Their aircraft had been specially outfitted with Type 91 Model 2 aerial torpedoes designed to run in the shallow waters of Pearl Harbor and Type 99 Model 5 armor piecing bombs modified from battleship shells. These weapons would be employed with a devastating effect on the morning of December 7th 1941.

The three carriers assigned to the Pacific Fleet, the USS Saratoga, USS Lexington and USS Enterprise had been dispatched on missions that took them away from Pearl Harbor that fateful Sunday.

USS Lexington

The Lexington and Task Force 12 had departed Pearl Harbor on December 5th to ferry 18 SB2U Vindicator Dive Bombers of VSMB-231 to Midway Island. These aircraft would ultimately take part in the Battle of Midway and the sinking of the Japanese Cruiser Mikuma. Saratoga was entering San Diego to embark her air group, and Enterprise which had left Pearl Harbor on November 28th to deliver VMF-211 to Wake Island was due to return to Pearl Harbor on the 7th of December. As such none of these ships were in Pearl Harbor at the time of the attack. Their absence helped save the United States and Allied cause in the Pacific.

USS Saratoga

The United States had other carriers but all were assigned to the Atlantic Fleet due to the belief that Nazi Germany was a greater threat than Japan. The USS Yorktown was at Norfolk in between deployments in support of the Neutrality Patrol. USS Ranger was returning to Norfolk from a Neutrality patrol, USS Wasp was at Grassy Bay Bermuda and the newly commissioned USS Hornet was training out of Norfolk. The USS Long Island, the first Escort carrier was undergoing operational tests and training out of Norfolk.

USS Enterprise at Midway

Had any of the three carriers assigned to the Pacific Fleet been in Pearl Harbor on the morning of the Japanese attack the results would have been even more disastrous for the United States. Instead these carriers began operations against the Japanese almost immediately. Carriers based on the East Coast including Hornet, Yorktown and Wasp were transferred to the Pacific. In the perilous months following the Pearl Harbor attack the US carriers took the fight to the Japanese conducting raids against Japanese held islands. In April 1942 the Enterprise and Hornet, the latter with 16 B-25 Mitchell bombers under the command of Colonel Jimmy Doolittle struck Tokyo.

USS Hornet launching the Doolittle Raiders

The result of that attack resulted in a severe embarrassment and loss of face to the Imperial Navy. the strategic and psychological implications were such that Admiral Isoruku Yamamoto decided to attack Midway Island to force the US fleet and its carriers into a decisive battle. Although the Japanese had lost a good number of aircrew from Shokaku and Zuikaku at the Battle of Coral Sea, while sinking Lexington Yamamoto remained committed to the decisive battle.

That battle was decisive, but not in the way Yamamoto had planned. Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu and Soryu were sunk by aircraft operating from Enterprise, Yorktown and Hornet. Yorktown was lost in the battle bat it was a decisive defeat for the Japanese. From that point, though they still were superior to the U.S. Navy in numbers of Carriers and surface warships, and still maintained a massive number of islands which they had fortified and built airbases on in defiance of treaties they agreed to at the end of the First World War,

Sinking the Akagi at Midway

In the succeeding months in the vicious battles around the Solomon Islands the remaining US carriers proved decisive. Although Wasp and Hornet were sunk in those battles and both Saratoga and Enterprise were often heavily damaged, they held the line. The carriers that the Japanese missed proved decisive in turning the tide and winning the war.

Raised from the mud of Pearl Harbor the USS West Virginia in Tokyo Bay

Though Yamamoto did not realize it, the attack on Pearl Harbor signaled the end of the supremacy of the Battleship and the ascendency of the Aircraft Carrier. By 1943 Battleships were regulated to escorting the fast carrier task forces or conducting shore bombardments. The ultimate irony was that the last battleship engagement in history was won by the survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Raised from the mud the West Virginia, Tennessee, California, Maryland and Pennsylvania joined by the USS Mississippi rained destruction on two Japanese task forces attempting to penetrate Leyte Gulf and destroy the US invasion force transports at the Battle of Surigao Strait.

It was a fascinating turn of events. The Japanese dispatched the cream of their carrier air forces to destroy the U.S. Pacific Fleet at Pearl. Harbor, and though they crippled the battleships they failed to destroy the American aircraft carriers, at Pearl Harbor, Coral Sea, Midway, or the Guadalcanal campaign. In the following years the Enterprise and Saratoga, bolstered by the carriers of the Essex Class, and the Light Fleet Carriers of the Independence Class, and helped by the addition of dozens of Escort Carriers, which relieved them of the mundane tasks of convoy escort and amphibious landing support, wreaked havoc on the Imperial Japanese Navy from late 1943 on. The Battles of the Philippine Sea, Leyte Gulf, the raid on Formosa, and the strikes on the Japanese homeland proved the superiority of the carrier force the Japanese missed at Pearl Harbor and failed to destroy in subsequent engagements.

Today, nearly eight decades later there is a question of the relevance of aircraft carriers, even though the United States, Great Britain, China, Russia, India, and other nations continue their development. I have to admit, that with the development of other weapons platforms and technologies, that I do not know the ultimate fate of the aircraft carrier. However, like the Ships of the Line that dominated late 17th, 18th, and early 19th centuries., the Ironclads that dominated the late 19th Century, and the Dreadnaughts that dominated until Pearl Harbor.

Pearl Harbor was 78 years ago. Since then carrier and submarine eclipsed the power of the the battleship. We cannot assume that the era of the aircraft carrier will continue without end. The Japanese discounted the power of the aircraft carrier and submarine, assuming that battleships supported by carriers and submarines would maintain control of the Oceans. They were wrong. Regardless of what weapons system we presume will dominate the future, we also must admit the very real possibility that we could be wrong. Technologies that we have not ever began to imagine, except possibly in the realm of science fiction may change everything we believed possible.

i am neither the prophet nor the son of the prophet, thus my opinion is only that: I believe that the carrier will remain the centerpiece of Naval power and strategy for the next decade, and possibly another, but as a military and Naval historian I cannot predict that they remain so longer than that. Thus the United States Navy, and for that matter all navies begin looking toward and planning for technologies that are either in their infancy or not yet imagined. To ignore that fact would be to ignore history. We do that to our detriment.

Until tomorrow,

Peace,

Padre Steve+

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Tagged as admiral chuichi nagumo, aircraft carriers, battle of coral sea, battle of leyte gulf, battle of midway, battle of surigao strait, battleships, ijn akagi, ijn hiryu, ijn kaga, ijn shokaku, ijn soryu, ijn zuikaku, Isoruku Yamamoto, pearl harbor attack, type 91 model 2 torpedo, type 99 model 5 bomb, uss arizona, uss california, uss colorado, uss enterprise cv-6, uss hornet cv-8, uss lexington, uss maryland, uss mississippi, USS Nevada, uss oklahoma, uss pennsylvania, uss ranger cv-4, uss saratoga, uss tennessee, uss wasp, uss west virginia, uss yorktown cv-5, vmf-211, vsmb-231, wake island

December 4, 2019 · 20:55

Will We Remember the Day of Infamy? Remembering the Ships Present at Pearl Harbor, a Brief History of Each Ship

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

The attack on Pearl Harbor is one of the seminal moments in the history of the United States where at one time the nation rose up as one to the challenge of an attack against it and against its armed forces. Sadly, for most Americans today no matter what their political ideology the concept of coming together in a crisis is a foreign and possibly even a hateful idea. Likewise, I would dare say that most Americans today find the attack on Pearl Harbor of little importance today, nor think that there is nothing to learn from it.

However, in December 1941 the Pacific Fleet of the United States Navy was attacked at Pearl Harbor of the nation came together as it never had before. On the morning of December 7th 1941 there were over ninety ships of the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. While over twenty percent of these ships were sunk or damaged in the attack, almost all returned to service in the war. Likewise, many of the surviving shipswere lost in action during the war. Only two ships or craft remain of the ships present on December 7th 1941, the tug USS Hoga and the Coast Guard Cutter USCG Taney which is now a museum ship in Baltimore Maryland. The rest, lost in action, sunk as targets or scrapped. Of the gallant men who served as their crews during the war and at Pearl Harbor very few remain. They are part of what we now refer as the “Greatest Generation.”

In 1978 I had the opportunity to visit Pearl Harbor and visit the USS Arizona and USS Utah Memorials during what was a nearly three week long cruise and visit to Pearl Harbor while a Navy Junior ROTC Cadet. I cannot forget forget that experience, as the visits to both memorials, sited above the wrecks of the two sunken ships in which more than 1000 Americans remain entombed to this day left a mark on me.

Today I remember all of the ships present, from the greatest to the most humble, as well as their gallant crews, many of whom were volunteers who had gone into service not long before the attack, because they believed that the nation was in danger who were present at Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941. I also remember a government which though torn by by ideological differences decided to unite to meet the threat of advancing enemies even before they targeted the United States.

The fact is that only two of the ships present at the Pearl Harbor attack are still afloat, and the vast majority of their crews have passed away. Very few survivors of that day of infamy remain and it is our sad task to keep reminding the nation and the world of the price of arrogant toxic nationalism, and historic ignorance.

This is the story of the ships that were at Pearl Harbor that fateful morning of December 7th 1941. Please read it and share it, because the youngest survivors are in their nineties, and few will be alive to bear witness in the next few years, and then there will be none left. These the task of remembering is left to us, like it or not.

Peace

Padre Steve+

A few years ago I wrote a piece called The Battleships of Pearl Harbor. I have added to it, and recently republished it. I followed that with an article entitled “Forgotten on the Far Side of Ford Island: The USS Utah, USS Raleigh, USS Detroit and USS Tangier.

Of course most anyone that has see either Tora! Tora! Tora! or Pearl Harbor is acquainted with the attack on “Battleship Row” and the airfields on Oahu. What are often overlooked in many accounts are the stories of some of the lesser known ships that played key roles or were damaged in the attack. Since none of the articles that I have seen have discussed all of the U.S. Navy ships at Pearl Harbor on that fateful morning I have taken the time to list all the ships with the exception of yard and patrol craft present at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941.I have also excluded Coast Guard cutters in Honolulu. A brief account of each ship’s war service and final disposition is included. I believe that this is the only site that has this information in a single article.

During the attack 18 ships were sunk or damaged but only three, Arizona, Oklahoma and Utah never returned to service. During the war a further 18 ships were sunk or written off as losses during the war. All ships lost in the war are marked with an asterisk. One ship, the USS Castor remained in active service until 1968 serving in the Korean and Vietnam Wars. One ship, the Light Cruiser Phoenix was sunk in the Falklands War while serving as the Argentine ship General Belgrano. No U.S. Navy ships apart from the Yard Tug Hoga (not included in this article) remain today. It is unfortunate that the Navy or any organization had the foresight to save one of these ships. It would have been fitting for one of the battleships that survived the war to be preserved as a memorial ship near the Arizona Memorial. While the USS Missouri serves this purpose symbolic of the end of the war it is a pity that no ship at Pearl Harbor was preserved so that people could see for themselves what these gallant ships was like.

Battleships

Nevada (BB-36) Nevada was the only Battleship to get underway during the attack. As she attempted to escape the harbor she was heavily damaged and to prevent her sinking in the main channel she was beached off Hospital Point. She would be raised and returned to service by the May 1943 assault on Attu. She would then return to the Atlantic where she would take part in the Normandy landings off Utah Beach and the invasion of southern France in July 1944. She then returned to the Pacific and took part in the operations against Iwo Jima and Okinawa where she again provided naval gunfire support. Following the war she would be assigned as a target at the Bikini atoll atomic bomb tests, surviving these she would be sunk as a target on 31 July 1948. She received 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

USS Oklahoma

*Oklahoma (BB-37) During the Pearl Harbor attack Oklahomawas struck by 5 aerial torpedoes capsized and sank at her mooring with the loss of 415 officers and crew. Her hulk would be raised but she would never again see service and sank on the way to the breakers in 1946. She was awarded one battle star for her service during the attack.

USS Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania (BB-38) Pennsylvania was the Pacific Fleet Flagship on December 7^th 1941 and was in dry dock undergoing maintenance at the time of the attack. Struck by two bombs she received minor damage and would be in action in early 1942. She underwent minor refits and took part in many amphibious landings in the Pacific and was present at the Battle of Surigo Strait. Heavily damaged by an aerial torpedo at Okinawa Pennsylvania would be repaired and following the war used as a target for the atomic bomb tests. She was sunk as a gunnery target in 1948. She received 8 battle stars for her WWII service.

The USS Arizona before the attack

*Arizona (BB-39) Arizona was destroyed during the attack. Hit by 8 armor piercing bombs one of which penetrated her forward black powder magazine she was consumed in a cataclysmic explosion which killed 1103 of her 1400 member crew. She was decommissioned as a war loss but her colors are raised and lowered every day over the Memorial which sits astride her broken hull. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Tennessee (BB-43) Tennessee was damaged by two bombs and was shield from torpedo hits by West Virginia. After repairs she conducted operations in the Pacific until she reported to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in August 1942 for a complete rebuild and modernized with the latest in radar, fire control equipment and anti-aircraft armaments. She returned to active service in May 1943. She provided Naval Gunfire support in numerous amphibious operations and was a key ship during the Battle of Surigo Strait firing in six-gun salvos to make careful use of her limited supply of armor-piercing projectiles, Tennessee got off 69 of her big 14-inch bullets before checking fire. Her gunfire helped sink the Japanese Battleships Fuso and Yamishiro and other ships of Admiral Nishimura’s Southern Force. She was damaged by a Kamikaze off Okinawa on 18 April 1945 which killed 22 and wounded 107 of her crew but did not put her out of action. Her final assignment of the war was to cover the landing of occupation troops at Wakayama, Japan. She was decommissioned in 1947 and remained in reserve until 1959 when she was sold for scrap. Tennessee earned a Navy Unit Commendation and 10 battles stars for World War II service.

USS California transiting the Panama Canal

California (BB-44) California was hit by two torpedoes but had the bad luck to have all of her major watertight hatches unhinged in preparation for an inspection. Hit by two torpedoes and two bombs she sank at her moorings suffering the loss of 98 killed and 61 wounded. She was refloated and received temporary repairs at Pearl Harbor before sailing to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard to be completely rebuilt and modernized with the latest in radar, fire control equipment and anti-aircraft armaments. She returned to service in January 1944. She saw her first action in the Marianas and was in continuous action to the end of the war. She played an important part in the Battle of Surigo Strait and in the amphibious landings at Guam and Tinian, Leyte, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. She was decommissioned in 1947 and placed in reserve finally being sold for scrap in 1959. She received 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Maryland (BB-45) At Pearl Harbor Maryland was moored inboard of Oklahoma and was hit by 2 bombs. She would be quickly repaired and returned to action and receive minimal modernization during the war. She would participate in operations throughout the entirety of the Pacific Campaign providing naval gunfire support to the landings at Tarawa, Kwajalein, Saipan, where she was damaged by an aerial torpedo, Palau, Leyte where she was damaged by a Kamikaze, Okinawa and the battleship action at Surigo Strait. Decommissioned in 1947 she was placed in reserve and sold for scrap in 1959. On 2 June 1961 the Honorable J. Millard Tawes, Governor of Maryland, dedicated a lasting monument to the memory of the venerable battleship and her fighting men. Built of granite and bronze and incorporating the bell of “Fighting Mary,” this monument honors a ship and her 258 men who gave their lives while serving aboard her in WWII. This monument is located on the grounds of the State House, Annapolis, Md. Maryland received seven battle stars for World War II service.

The USS West Virginia before the war and after her salvage and reconstruction

West Virginia (BB-48) West Virginia suffered some of the worst damage in the attack. Hit by at least 5 torpedoes and two bombs she was saved from Oklahoma’s fate by the quick action of her damage control officer to counter flood so she would sink on an even keel. She would be raised, refloated and taken back to the West Coast for an extensive modernization on the order of the Tennessee and California. The last Pearl Harbor battleship to re-enter service she made up for lost time as she lead the battle line at Surigo Strait firing 16 full salvos at the Japanese squadron helping sink the Japanese Battleship Yamashiro in the last battleship versus battleship action in history. West Virginia was decommissioned in 1947, placed in reserve and sold for scrap in 1959.

Heavy Cruisers

New Orleans (CA-32) Minor shrapnel damage from near miss. Fought throughout the war in the Pacific; bow blown off by Japanese torpedo at Battle of Trassafaronga in November 1942, repaired. 17 battle stars for WWII service, decommissioned 1947 and sold for scrap in 1957.

USS San Francisco CA-38

San Francisco (CA-38 Undamaged at Pearl Harbor, fought through Pacific war, most noted for actions at the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal fighting Japanese Battleship Hiei. Decommissioned 1946 and sold for scrap in 1959. San Francisco earned 17 battle stars during World War II. For her participation in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, she was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation. For the same action, three members of her crew were awarded the Medal of Honor: Lieutenant Commander Herbert E. Schonland, Lieutenant Commander Bruce McCandless , and Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Reinhardt J. Keppler (posthumous). Admiral Daniel Callaghan was also awarded the Medal of Honor (posthumous). During the November 1942 repair at Mare Island, it was necessary to extensively rebuild the bridge. The bridge wings were removed as part of that repair, and are now mounted on a promontory in Lands End, San Francisco at Golden Gate National Recreation Area overlooking the Pacific Ocean. They are set on the great circle course from San Francisco to Guadalcanal. The old ship’s bell is housed at the Marines Memorial Club in San Francisco.

Light Cruisers

Raleigh (CL-7) Heavily damaged by torpedo, repaired served throughout war mainly in North Pacific . Decommissioned 1945 and scrapped 1946

Detroit (CL-8) Undamaged and got underway during attack. Mainly served in North Pacific and on convoy duty earning 6 battle stars for WWII service, decommissioned and sold for scrap 1946

USS Phoenix

The Argentine Navy Cruiser General Belgrano, the former USS Phoenix sinking during the Battle of the Falklands 1982

Phoenix (CL-46) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor and served throughout war and at the Battle of Surigo Strait she helped sink the Japanese Battleship Fuso. She earned 9 battle stars for WWII service. Decommissioned 1946 and transferred to Argentina 1951. Served as General Belgrano and sunk by submarine HMS Conqueror on 2 May 1982 during the Falklands War.

Honolulu (CL-48) Suffered minor hull damage from near miss. Served in Pacific and fought several engagements against Japanese surface forces in the Solomons. At the Battle of Kolombangara on the night of 12-13 July 1943 she was damaged by a torpedo but sank the Japanese Light Cruiser Jintsu. Earned 9 battle stars for WWII service, decommissioned 1947 and sold for scrap 1949

USS St. Louis

St. Louis (CL-49) St. Louis got underway at 0930 nearly torpedoed by Japanese midget sub. She served throughout war in numerous operations and was damaged at the Battle of Kolombangara. She earned 11 battle stars for WWII service. She decommissioned 1946 and transferred to Brazil where she was renamed Tamandare stricken in 1976 sold for scrap in 1980 but sank while under tow to Taiwan.

*Helena (CL-50) Damaged and repaired. Engaged in many battles around Solomon Islands where at the Battle of Cape Esperance at Guadalcanal she sank the Japanese Heavy Cruiser Furutaka and destroyer Fubiki. She was engaged during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal and was sunk at Battle of Kula Gulf 6 July 1943. She was the first ship to be awarded the Naval Unit Commendation and was awarded 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Destroyers

Allen (DD-66) Undamaged during attack spent war in local operations in Oahu area. Decommissioned 1945 and scrapped 1946

Schley (DD-103) Being overhauled on December 7th was undamaged in attack. Converted into High Speed Transport (APD) in 1942, earned 11 battle stars for WWII service and decommissioned in 1945 and scrapped in 1946

Chew (DD-106) Undamaged during attack and conducted local operations in Oahu operations for remainder or war, decommissioned 1945 and scrapped 1946.

USS Ward

*Ward (DD-139) Ward was underway patrolling Channel entrance to Pearl Harbor on December 7^th, sank Japanese midget submarine. Converted to APD in 1943 and served in numerous operations prior to being heavily damaged by Japanese bombers at Ormoc Bay off Leyte in December 1944 starting fires that could not be controlled. She was sunk by USS O’Brien (DD-725) after survivors were rescued. By a strange twist of fate the C.O. of O’Brien LCDR Outerbridge who had commanded Ward when she sank the Japanese submarine at Pearl Harbor. Ward earned 10 battle stars for WWII service.

Dewey (DD-349) Being overhauled on December 7^th Dewey served throughout the war earning 13 battle stars escorting carriers, convoys and supporting amphibious operations. Decommissioned October 1945 and sold for scrap 1946

Farragut (DD-348) Got underway during attack suffered minor damage from strafing. During the war she operated from the Aleutians to the South Pacific and Central Pacific escorting carriers and supporting amphibious operations. She earned 14 battle stars for WWII service. Decommissioned 1945 and sold for scrap 1947

*Hull (DD-350) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor she operated from the Aleutians to the South Pacific and Central Pacific escorting carriers and supporting amphibious operations. She earned 10 battle stars before sinking in “Halsey’s Typhoon” on 18 December 1944.

MacDonough (DD-351) MacDonough got underway during attack and was undamaged, during war served in North and Central Pacific escorting carriers and supporting amphibious operations. She earned 13 battle stars for her WWII service. Decommissioned October 1945 and sold for scrap 1946

*Worden (DD-352) Worden got underway during attack and went to sea with ships searching for Japanese strike force. Served at Midway and the South Pacific before being transferred to the Aleutians where she grounded on a pinnacle due to winds and currents at Constantine Harbor Amchitka Island on 12 January 193, she broke up in the surf and was written off as a total loss. Wordenwas awarded 4 battle stars for her WWII service.

Dale (DD-353) Dale got underway immediately under the command of her Command Duty Officer, an Ensign and joined ships searching for Japanese strike force. During war served in North and Central Pacific and took part in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands on 26 March 1943. Earned 12 battle stars for WWII service, decommissioned October 1945 sold for scrap December 1946.

*Monaghan (DD-354) Monaghan was the Ready destroyer on December 7th and ordered underway when Ward sank the midget submarine. On way out of harbor rammed, depth charged and sank a Japanese midget submarine that had gotten into Pearl Harbor. She participated in Coral Sea, Midway, Aleutians, the Battle of the Komandorski Islands and Central Pacific operations before sinking with the loss of all but 6 crewmen during the great Typhoon of November 1944 sinking on 17 November. She received 12 battle stars for her WWII service.

USS Aylwin

Aylwin (DD-355) Got underway within an hour of the beginning of the attack with 50% of her crew and four officers, all Ensigns manning her leaving her Commanding Officer and others behind in a launch as she was under direction not to stop for anything. This incident was captured in the movie In Harm’s Way. During the war Aylwin saw action at Coral Sea, Midway, Guadalcanal, the Aleutians, and the Central Pacific up to the Okinawa and due to the action of her crew survived the great typhoon of November 1944. She earned 13 battle stars for her WWII service and was decommissioned in October 1945. She was sold for scrap in December 1946.

USS Selfridge

Selfridge (DD-357) Manned by a crew from 7 different ships Selfridge got underway at 1300 and was undamaged in the attack. Throughout war she served primarily as an escort to carriers and transports. Torpedoed by Japanese destroyer and lost her bow at Battle of Vella Lavella on 6 October 1942. Repaired and finished war. Earned 4 battle stars for WWII service and was decommissioned in October 1945 and sold for scrap in December 1946.

Phelps (DD-360) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Phelps was credited with shooting down one enemy aircraft. She was in action at Coral Sea, Midway, Guadalcanal, the Aleutians and the Central Pacific picking up 12 battle stars for her WWII service. Decommissioned in October 1945 and scrapped 1947.

Cummings (DD-365) Sustained minor damage from bomb fragments but got underway quickly. During war served on convoy escort, with fast carrier task forces and provided Naval Gunfire Support from the Aleutians to the Indian Ocean where she operated with the Royal Navy. On 12 August 1944, President Roosevelt broadcast a nationwide address from the forecastle of Cummings after a trip the Alaska. Cummings was decommissioned in December 1945 and sold for scrap in 1947.

*Reid (DD-369) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Reid escorted convoys and amphibious operations throughout the Pacific until she was sunk by Kamikazes at Ormoc Bay in the Philippines on 11 December 1944. On 31 August 1942 she sank by gunfire the Japanese submarine RO-1 off Adak Alaska. She received 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Case (DD-370) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Case escorted the fast carrier task forces throughout much of the war as well as conducted Anti-Submarine Warfare operations and Naval Gunfire Support. She sank a Midget submarine outside the fleet anchorage at Ulithi on 20 November 1944 and a Japanese transport off of Iwo Jima on 24 December 1944. She earned 7 battle stars for her WWII service and was decommissioned in December 1945 and sold for scrap in December 1947.

Conyngham (DD-371) Undamaged during attack she was underway that afternoon. Spent most of war on convoy escort, escorting carrier task forces and conducting Naval Gunfire Support missions she was damaged twice by strafing Japanese aircraft she earned 14 battle stars for her WWII service. Used in 1946 Atomic Bomb tests and destroyed by sinking in 1948.

Cassin (DD-372) Destroyed in drydock but salvaged returned to service 1944 escorting convoys and TG 38.1 the Battle Force of the fleet at Leyte Gulf as well as supporting amphibious operations. She earned 6 battle stars for her WWII service. Decommissioned December 1945 and sold for scrap 1947

USS Shaw

Shaw (DD-373) Sustained massive damage due to magazine explosion, salvaged and repaired served throughout war and awarded 11 battle stars. Damaged by Japanese dive bombers off Cape Gloucester on 25 December 1943 with loss of 3 killed and 33 wounded. Decommissioned October 1945 and scrapped 1947

*Tucker (DD-374) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Tucker conducted convoy escort operations and was sunk when she struck a mine escorting a transport to Espiritu Santo on 1 August 1942 sinking on 4 August. She received one battle star for her WWII service.

Downes (DD-375) Destroyed in drydock and salvaged. Decommissioned June 1942, rebuilt and recommissioned 1943. After she was recommissioned and used to escort convoys and conduct Naval Gunfire Support to amphibious operations. She earned 4 battle stars for her WWII service. Decommissioned 1947 and sold for scrap.

USS Bagley

Bagley (DD-386) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Bagley conducted convoy escort operations and supported amphibious landings throughout the Pacific earning 1 battle stars ended the war on occupation duty at the Sasebo-Nagasaki area until returning to the United States. She earned 12 battle stars for her WWII service and was decommissioned in June 1946 and sold for scrap in October 1947.

*Blue (DD-387) Blue was undamaged and got underway during the attack under the direction of 4 Ensigns. Served on convoy escort duties, present at Battle of Savo Island on 9 August 192 and was torpedoed off Guadalcanal by Japanese destroyer Kawakaze on 21 August and was scuttled 22 August. She earned five battle stars for her WWII service.

Helm (DD-388) Helm was underway, nearing West Loch at the time of the attack. Helm served in the Solomons and the South Pacific until February 19. She joined the fast carrier task forces of 5^thFleet in May 1944. On 28 October at Leyte Gulf 28 October 1944 Helm and companion destroyer Gridley made sank the Japanese submarine I-46. She was used for a target during Operation Crossroads and scrapped in 1946. She received 11 battle stars for her WWII service.

Mugford (DD-389) Mugford was on standby status and had steam up which allowed her to get to sea during the attack in which she shot down Japanese aircraft. She spent much of 1942 on convoy duty between the U.S. and Australia. She took part in the Guadalcanal invasion and was struck by a bomb which killed 8 men, wounded 17 and left 10 missing in action. She would go on to serve in the Central and South Pacific being damaged by a near miss from a bomb on 25 December off Cape Gloucester and was stuck by a Kamikaze on 5 December 1944 in Surigo Strait. She escorted the fast carriers of TF 8 and 58 and later served on anti-submarine and radar picket duty. She decommissioned 1946 and was used in the Atomic Bomb tests and after use as a test ship for radioactive decontamination was sunk on 22 March 1948 at Kwajalein. She received 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Ralph Talbot (DD-390) Ralph Talbot got underway by 0900 on the morning of the attack and joined other ships at sea attempting to find the Japanese strike force. She spent much of 1942 engaged in escort duties and took part in the Battle of Savo Island where she engaged the Japanese as part of the Northern Group and was damaged by Japanese shellfire. She spent the war in the South and Central Pacific escorting convoys and supporting amphibious operations and was damaged by a Kamikaze off Okinawa. She remained in service until 1946 when she was assigned to JTF-1 and the Operations Crossroads Atomic Bomb test. She survived the blast and was sunk in 198. She earned 12 battle stars for her WWII service.

*Henley (DD-391) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Henley was already at General Quarters when the attack began because a new sailor sounded the General Quarters alarm instead of Quarters for Muster. As a result her weapons were manned. She got underway during the attack under the command of a junior Lieutenant and joined other ships patrolling outside of Pearl Harbor. Henley carried out convoy and anti-submarine patrols mainly around Australian continuing those duties through the Guadalcanal campaign. She was torpedoed and sunk by Japanese bombers on 3 October 1943 while conducting a sweep in support of troops ashore near Finshafen New Guinea. Henley earned 4 battle stars for her WWII service.

Patterson (DD-392) Patterson was undamaged during the attack and proceeded to sea conducting anti-submarine warfare patrols. She would spend the bulk of the war as an escort for fast carrier task forces. She was with the Southern Group during the Battle of Savo Island and suffered a hit on her #4 gun mount that killed 10 sailors. She was awarded 13 battle stars for her WWII service. Decommissioned in November 1945 she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in 1947 and sold for scrap.

*Jarvis (DD-393) Jarvis survived Pearl Harbor undamaged and got underway to join other ships in patrols around Oahu. She served as an escort for carriers and convoys and the invasion of Guadalcanal. She was heavily damaged by an aircraft launched torpedo during the landings but her crew made temporary repairs and restored power. She was ordered to Efate New Hebrides but evidently unaware of the order her Commanding Officer set sail for Sidney Australian and repairs from the Destroyer Tender USS Dobbin. She passed south of Savo Island as the Japanese cruiser force approached and refused assistance for the USS Blue. She was last seen on the morning of 9 August 1942 by a scout plane from Saratoga. Already heavily damaged and having little speed, no radio communications and few operable guns was attacked by a force of 31 Japanese bombers sinking with all hands at 1300 on 9 August. Jarvis was awarded 3 battle stars for her WWII service.

USS Narwhal

Narwhal (SS-167) Narwhal was one of a class of three large cruiser submarines that was built in the mid 1920s. Narwhal was 14 years old at the time of the attack. She was undamaged at Pearl Harbor and was used primarily to support special missions and special operations forces in raids against Japanese shore installations. Narwhal earned 15 battle stars for her service in the Pacific and was decommissioned in February 1945 and sold for scrap in May. Her 6” guns are enshrined at the Naval Submarine Base Groton.

Dolphin (SS-169) Undamaged in the Pearl Harbor attack Dolphin made 3 war patrols in late 1941 and early 1942 before being withdrawn from combat service and used for training due to her age. She was decommissioned in October 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She received 2 battle stars for her service in WWII.

Cachalot (SS-170) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Cachalot conducted three war patrols damaging an enemy tanker before being withdrawn from combat service in the fall of 1942 being judged too old for arduous combat service. She served as a training ship until June 1945 and was decommissioned in October 1945 and sold for scrap in January 1947. She was awarded 3 battle stars for her WWII service.

USS Tautog

Tautog (SS-199) Tautog was undamaged at Pearl Harbor and made the Japanese pay for not sinking her. She helped avenge the Pearl Harbor attack sinking 26 enemy ships of 71,900 tons including the submarines RO-30 and I-28 and destroyers Isoname and Shirakumo in 13 war patrols. She was withdrawn from combat service in April 1945 and served and operated in conjunction with the University of California’s Department of War Research in experimenting with new equipment which it had developed to improve submarine safety. She was decommissioned in December 1945. Spared from the Atomic Bomb tests she served as an immobile reserve training ship in the Great Lakes until 1957 and was scrapped in 1960. Tautog was awarded 14 battle stars and a Naval Unit Commendation for her service in WWII.

Minelayer

USS Oglala

Oglala (CM-4) Sank due to concussion from torpedo hit on Helena. Raised and repaired, converted to internal combustion repair ship. Decommissioned 1946 transferred to Maritime Commission custody and scrapped 1965

Minesweepers

Turkey (AM-13) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor she was redesignated as a Fleet Tug in 1942. She was decommissioned in November 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Bobolink (AM-20) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor and redesignated as an Ocean Going Tug in 1942. She decommissioned in 1946 and sold through the Maritime Administration. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Rail (AM-26) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Rail was redesignated as a Ocean Going Tug in June 1942. She supported operations throughout the Pacific earning 6 battle stars for her WWII service. She was decommissioned in 1946 and transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal in 1947.

Tern (AM-31) Undamaged in the attack Tern was redesignated as an Ocean Going Tug in June 1942 and supported the fleet for the remainder of the war. She was decommissioned and struck from the Navy List in December 1945. She earned one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

*Grebe (AM-43) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Grebe was redesignated as an Ocean Going Tug in June 1942. On 6 December 1942 Grebe grounded while attempting to float SS Thomas A. Edison at Vuanta Vatoa, Fiji Islands. Salvage operations were broken up by a hurricane that destroyed both ships 1-2 January 1943.

Vireo (AM-52) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Vireo was designated an Ocean Going Tug in May 1942. At the Battle of Midway she was assisting USS Yorktown CV-5 when that ship was torpedoed by a Japanese submarine and sunk. She was damaged in a Japanese air strike off Guadalcanal on October 15th 1942 abandoned but recovered by U.S. Forces and repaired supporting damaged fleet units. She was decommissioned in 1946 and disposed of by the Maritime Administration in 1947. Her final disposition is unknown. She was awarded 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Coastal Minesweepers

Cockatoo (AMC-8) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Cockatoooperated in the 14th Naval District from Pearl Harbor throughout the war. She was transferred to the Maritime Commission 23 September 1946.

Crossbill (AMC-9) Undamaged in the attack she operated in an in-service status attached to the 14th Naval District from 1941 to 1947.

USS Condor

Condor (AMC-14) Undamaged in the attack she operated in the Hawaiian Islands throughout World War II. Placed out of service 17 January 1946, she was transferred to the Maritime Commission for disposal 24 July 1946.

Reedbird (AMC-30) Undamaged during the attack she operated in Hawaiian waters throughout World War II. Then ordered inactivated, Reedbird returned to San Diego where she was stripped and placed out of service 14 January 1946. Her name was struck from the Navy list 7 February 1946 and on 8 November 1946 she was delivered to the Maritime Commission for disposal.

Light Minelayers (Note: All of these ships were WWI era “four piper” destroyers converted to Mine Warfare ships in the 1920s and 1930s)

USS Gamble

*Gamble (DM-15) Gamble was undamaged at Pearl Harbor and served throughout the Pacific. On 29 August 1942 she sank Japanese submarine I-123 near Guadalcanal. On 6 May 1943 she mined the Blackett Strait with her sisters USS Preble and USS Breese. On the night of 7-8 May a Japanese destroyer force entered the minefield one of which Kurashio, went down and two others Oyashio and Kagero were sunk by Allied aircraft the next day. The sinking of Kagero provided a measure of revenge as that ship was part of the Japanese Carrier Strike Group that attacked Pearl Harbor. On 18 February 1945 Gamble was damaged by two bombs while operating off of Iwo Jima. Badly damaged she was towed to Saipan but salvage was impossible and she was decommissioned sunk off of Apra Harbor Guam on 16 July 1945. She was awarded 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Ramsay (DM-16) Ramsey got underway during the attack and dropped depth charges in the vicinity of what was believed to be a midget submarine. She served in the Solomons and Aleutians and was redesignated as a Miscellaneous Auxiliary (AG-98) in 1944 operating around Pearl Harbor. She was decommissioned in October 1945 and scrapped in 1946. She received 3 battle stars for her WWII service.

*Montgomery (DM-17) Undamaged in the attack Montgomeryconducted ASW operations in the wake of the attack. She operated throughout the Pacific until she was damaged by a mine while anchored off Ngulu on 17 October 1944. She was decommissioned on 23 April 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She was awarded 4 battle stars for her WWII service.

Breese (DM-18) Breese got underway during the attack and assisted in sinking a midget submarine. She was engaged throughout the war in the Pacific and operated with Gamble and Preble to mine the Blackett Strait in May 1943, an operation that resulted in the sinking of 3 Japanese destroyers. She was decommissioned and sold for scrap in 1946. She was awarded 10 battle stars for her WWII service

Tracy (DM-19) Tracy was being overhauled during the attack and all machinery and armament was dismounted. After the overhaul she operated around the Pacific and in February 1943 she Tracy, as task group leader, led Montgomery (DM-17) and Preble (DM-20) in laying a field of 300 mines between Doma Reef and Cape Esperance. That night, Japanese destroyer Makigumo struck one of these mines and was damaged so badly that she was scuttled. Tracy was decommissioned and scrapped in 1946. She received 7 battle stars for her WWII service

Preble (DM-20) Preble was being overhauled on December 7^thand took no part in the action. During the war she operated throughout the Pacific and in company with Gamble and Breeselaid a minefield on 6 May 1943 which resulted in sinking 3 Japanese destroyers. She was redesignated as a Miscellaneous Auxiliary (AG-99) and she was regulated to convoy escort duties until the end of the war. She was decommissioned in December 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She was awarded 8 battle stars for WWII service.

Sicard (DM-21) Sicard was under overhaul at the Naval Shipyard during the attack. During the war she primarily served on convoy escort duty with and in some mine laying operations. She was reclassified a miscellaneous auxiliary, AG-100, effective 5 June 1945, decommissioned in December 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She was awarded 2 battle stars for her WWII service.

Pruitt (DM-22) Pruitt was being overhauled during the attack and served throughout the Pacific during the war. She was reclassified a miscellaneous auxiliary, AG-101, effective 5 June 1945, decommissioned November and stricken from the Navy List in December 1945 being scrapped at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. She was awarded 3 battle stars for her WWII service.

High Speed Minesweepers (Note: All of these ships were WWI era “four piper” destroyers converted to Mine Warfare ships in the 1920s and 1930s)

Zane (DMS-14) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Zane saw much service in the South and Central Pacific in WWII. She conducted minesweeping, convoy escort and ASW operations from Pearl Harbor to the Marianas campaign. She was damaged in a firefight with Japanese destroyers at Guadalcanal in 1942. After the invasion of Guam she was reassigned to target towing duties. Reclassified from high-speed minesweeper to a miscellaneous auxiliary, AG-109, on 5 June 1945 she decommissioned in December 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She was awarded 6 battle stars and a Naval Unit Commendation for her service in WWII.

*Wasmuth (DMS-15) Wasmuth was undamaged during the attack and spent 1942 conducting patrol and convoy escort duties in the Aleutians and the West Coast. On 27 December 1942 while escorting a convoy in heavy seas two of her depth charges were ripped off their racks and exploded under her fantail blowing off her stern. Despite repair attempts her crew was evacuated and she sank on 29 December 1942. She was awarded one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Trever (DMS-16) Trever got underway during the attack without her Commanding Officer. During the war she saw extensive service. In 1945 she was regulated to training and local operations around Pearl Harbor. On 4 June 1945, she was reclassified as a miscellaneous auxiliary and designated as AG-110 and decommissioned in December 1945 and sold for scrapping in 1946. She received 5 battle stars for her WWII service.

*Perry (DMS-17) Perry got underway during the attack and was undamaged. During the war she engaged in numerous minesweeping and escort duties. She struck a mine during the Peleliu invasion off Florida Island and sank on 6 September 1944. She was awarded 6 battle stars for her WWII service.

Gunboat

USS Sacramento

Sacramento (PG-19) The elderly Sacramento was undamaged during the attack and participated in rescue and salvage operations after the attack. During the war she served as a tender for PT Boats and an air sea rescue vessel. Sacramento was decommissioned on 6 February 1946 at Suisun Bay, Calif., and simultaneously transferred to the War Shipping Administration for disposal. She was sold on 23 August 1947 for mercantile service, initially operating under Italian registry as Fermina. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Destroyer Tenders

USS Dobbin with USS Lawrence and three other destroyers

Dobbin (AD-3) Dobbin received minor damage from a bomb burst alongside which killed 2 crewmembers. During the war she would serve in the South Pacific supporting Pacific Fleet Destroyer Squadrons. She was decommissioned and transferred to the Maritime Administration in 1946. She was awarded one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Whitney (AD-4) Whitney was moored with a nest of destroyers during the attack and helped them prepare for sea during the attack issuing supplies and ammunition to help them get underway. Her sailors helped in repair and salvage operations on several ships during and after the attack. She would provide vital support to destroyer squadrons during the war and serve until 1946 when she was decommissioned and transferred to the Maritime Administration and scrapped in 1948. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Seaplane Tenders

Curtiss (AV-4) Damaged by bomb and repaired. She served throughout the war and was damaged by a Kamikaze in 1945 while operating off Okinawa. Repaired she finished the war and served on active duty until 1956 when she was decommissioned and placed in reserve. She was scrapped 1972. Curtiss received 7 battle stars for her WWII service.

Tangier (AV-8) Moored just past the USS Utah Tangier was undamaged in the attack and contributed her guns to the air defense as well as shooting at a Japanese midget submarine that had penetrated the harbor. She maintained a very active operational carrier in the Pacific. Decommissioned in 1946 Tangier was sold for scrap in 1961. She earned 3 battle stars for her WWII service.

Seaplane Tenders (Small)

Avocet (AVP-4) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Avocet Avocetserved in the Alaskan and Aleutian theatres of operations as a unit of Patrol Wing 4. During the years, she tended patrol squadrons, transported personnel and cargo, and participated in patrol, survey, and salvage duties. She was decommissioned in December 1945 and sold in 1946. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Swan (AVP-7) Swan was on the Marine Railway drydock during the attack and was undamaged. During the war she was primarily used on target towing duties. She was decommissioned in December 1945 and disposed of by the Maritime Commission in 1946. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Seaplane Tenders (Destroyer) (Note: All of these ships were WWI era “four piper” destroyers converted to Seaplane Tenders in the 1920s and 1930s)

Hulbert (AVD-6) Hulbert was undamaged during the attack and spent 1942-1943 conducting support missions for flying boats. Reclassified DD-342 she was used as an escort and plane guard for new Escort Carriers at San Diego until the end of the war. She was decommissioned in November 1945 and sold for scrap in 1946. She received 2 battle stars for her WWII service.

USS Thornton

*Thornton (AVD-11) Thornton contributed her guns to the defense of Pearl Harbor and served in varying locales in the Pacific supporting the operations of flying boats. She was lost during the Okinawa invasion when collided with Ashtabula (AO-51) and Escalante (AO-70). Her starboard side was severely damaged. She was towed to Kerama Retto. On 29 May 1945 a board of inspection and survey recommended that Thornton be decommissioned, beached stripped of all useful materiel as needed, and then abandoned. She was beached and decommissioned on 2 May 1945. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 13 August 1945. In July 1957, Thornton’s abandoned hulk was donated to the government of the Ryukyu Islands. She received 3 battle stars for her WWII service.

Ammunition Ship

Pyro (AE-1) Pyro was undamaged in the attack and served the war transporting ammunition to naval bases around the Pacific. She was decommissioned in 1946 and scrapped in 1950. She was awarded one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Oilers

Ramapo (AO-12) Ramapo was not damaged at Pearl Harbor and due to her slow speed was regulated to fuel transport operations between the Aleutians and the Puget Sound. She was decommissioned in 1946 and transferred to the Maritime Administration.

*Neosho (AO-23) Undamaged during the attack her Captain alertly moved her from her berth near Battleship Row to a less exposed part of the harbor. She operated with the carrier task forces and was heavily damaged at the Battle of Coral Sea by Japanese aircraft. Her crew kept her afloat for 4 days until she was discovered and her crew rescued before she was sunk by gunfire from USS Henley on 11 May 1942. Neosho was awarded 2 battle stars for her WWII service.

Repair Ships

Medusa (AR-1) Medusa was undamaged at Pearl Harbor and spent the war throughout the South Pacific repairing numerous vessels damaged in combat. After the war she served to prepare ships for inactivation before being decommissioned in 1947 and turned over to the Maritime Administration. She was scrapped in 1950. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

USS Vestal after the attack

Vestal (AR-4) Vestal was damaged while moored adjacent to USS Arizona. Repaired following the attack Vestal served throughout war in the Pacific and was vital during the critical days of 1942 when she and her crew performed valiant service on major fleet units damaged during the Guadalcanal campaign and actions around the Solomon Islands. Carriers Enterprise and Saratoga, battleships South Dakota and North Carolina, cruisers San Francisco, New Orleans, Pensacola and St. Louis were among the 5,603 jobs on 279 ships and 24 shore activities that she completed in a 12 month tour at Espiratu Santo. She would continue to perform this level of service the remainder of the war. During a stint at Ulithi she completed 2,195 jobs for 149 ships including 14 battleships, 9 carriers, 5 cruisers and 5 destroyers. She continued her vital work even after the war into 1946 when she was finally decommissioned. She was sold for scrap in 1950. She received 1 battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Rigel (AR-11) Rigel was at Pearl Harbor completing her transformation from Destroyer Tender to Repari Ship. She incurred minor damage and she served throughout the war conducting vital repairs to numerous ships. She was decommissioned and transferred to the Maritime Administration in 1946. Her ultimate fate is unknown. She was awarded 4 battle stars for her WWII service.

Submarine Tender

USS Pelias with 5 Submarines

Pelias (AS-14) Undamaged during the attack Pelias supported submarine squadrons based in the Pacific throughout the war. She was placed in commission in reserve 6 September 1946, and in service in reserve 1 February 1947. On 21 March 1950 she was placed out of service in reserve but later performed berthing ship duty at Mare Island until she decommissioned 14 June 1970. She was scrapped in 1973.

Submarine Rescue Ships

Widgeon (ASR-1) Widgeon conducted salvage, rescue and fire fighting operations on the sunk and damaged battleships on battleship row. During the war she served as the duty submarine rescue ship at Pearl Harbor and San Diego. After the war she supported the Operation Crossroads. She was decommissioned and sold for scrap in 1947. She received on battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Hospital Ship

Solace (AH-5) Solace was undamaged in the attack and provided medical care to many of the wounded after the attack. She served throughout the war caring for the wounded and dying in the Gilberts, the Marshalls, Guam, Saipan, Palau, Peleliu, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. Solace was decommissioned at Norfolk on 27 March, struck from the Navy list on 21 May, and returned to the War Shipping Administration on 18 July 1946. She was sold to the Turkish Maritime Lines on 16 April 1948 and renamed SS Ankara, rebuilt as a passenger liner. SS Ankara was laid up in 1977 and scrapped at Aliaga, Turkey, in 1981. Solace received seven battle stars for World War II service.

Cargo Ship

Vega (AK-17) Vega was at Honolulu offloading ammunition when the attack occurred. She served in the Aleutians and in the Central Pacific during the war. Decommissioned and scrapped in 1946. She received 4 battle stars for her WWII service.

General-Stores-Issue Ships

Castor (AKS-1) Castor was strafed by Japanese aircraft during the attack but suffered little damage. She would go on to an illustrious career in WWII, Korea and Vietnam before being decommissioned 1968 and scrapped in Japan in 1969. She was awarded three battle stars for World War II service, two for Korean War service and six campaign stars for Vietnam War service.

USS Antares

Antares (AKS-3) Antares was at the Pearl Harbor entrance and spotted a midget submarine. She reported the contact to the USS Ward which sank the sub. During the war Antares made many supply runs in the Pacific and was at Okinawa. Sailing from Saipan to Pearl Harbor she was attacked by the Japanese submarines I-36, whose torpedoes missed their target and the kaiten-carrying I-165. She opened fire on one of the subs forcing it to dive. She was decommissioned in 1946 and sold for scrap in 1947. She was awarded 2 battle stars for her WWII service.

Ocean-going Tugs

Ontario (AT-13) Undamaged at Pearl Harbor Ontario would support operations in the Pacific throughout the war. She was decommissioned in 1946 and sold in 1947. She received one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

Sunnadin (AT-28) Undamaged in the attack she operated at Pearl Harbor for the duration of the war. She was decommissioned in 1946 and transferred to the Maritime Administration. Her final disposition is unknown. She was awarded one battle star for her service during the Pearl Harbor attack.

Keosanqua (AT-38) Keosanqua was at the Pearl Harbor entrance preparing to transfer a tow from the USS Antares. She took the tow to Honolulu during the attack. She operated at Pearl Harbor and in the Central Pacific conducting towing operations. She was decommissioned in 1946 ransferred to the Maritime Commission 11 July for disposal, she was sold the same day to Puget Sound Tug & Barge Co., Seattle, Wash. Resold to a Canadian shipping firm in 1948, she was renamed Edward J. Coyle. In 1960 she was renamed Commodore Straits.

*Navajo (AT-64) Navaho was 12 miles outside Pearl Harbor entrance when the attack occurred. She operated in the South Pacific until 12 December 1942 when she was torpedoed and sunk by the Japanese submarine I-39 while towing gasoline barge YOG-42 150 miles east of Espiritu Santo, 12 December 1943 with the loss of all but 17 of her crew of 80. She earned 2 battle stars for her WWII service.

Miscellaneous Auxiliaries

USS Utah AG-16

*Utah (AG-16 ex-BB-31) Sunk at her moorings and righted 1944 but not raised, wreck is now a memorial at Ford Island.

USS Argonne as a Submarine Tender

Argonne (AG-31) A former Submarine Tender, Argonne was undamaged during the attack and served in a variety of capacities during the war supporting operations in the Pacific. For a time she was Admiral Halsey’s flagship as Commander Southwest Pacific in 1942 during the Guadalcanal Campaign. On 10 November 1944, Argonne lay moored to a buoy in berth 14, Seeadler Harbor, when the ammunition ship Mount Hood (AE-11) blew up, 1,100 yards away causing damage to her and other ships which she assisted after the explosion. She was decommissioned in 1946 and transferred to the Maritime Administration. She was scrapped in 1950. Argonne was awarded one battle star for her service at Pearl Harbor.

USS Sumner (ex-Bushnell)

Sumner (AG-32) Sumner was undamaged during the attack and was redesignated as a Survey Ship AGS-5. She was damaged by a Japanese shell off Iwo Jima on 8 March 1945. She was decommissioned in 1946 and transferred to the Maritime Administration. She was awarded 3 battle stars for her WWII servicE.

The Revenge of the Pearl Harbor Battleships: The Battle of Surigao Strait

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

Today was another busy but weird day as I am in the middle of trying to do my checkout from my current base even as I await the official short fused orders that are moving me to Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth sometime next week. So today, after successfully completing my Physical Readiness Test, I did some of my checkout that I could complete without my orders; I am posting the third article of a series on the Battle of Leyte Gulf. This article discusses the Battle of Surigao Strait which ended in the near annihilation of most of the of the Japanese Southern Force. The battle was the last ever where battleships engaged each other in a surface action.

The two task groups of the Japanese Southern Force passed the daylight hours of 24 October relatively unscathed despite an air attack that caused minor damage. The group commanded by Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura comprised of the elderly Battleships Yamashiro and Fuso the Heavy Cruiser Mogami and four destroyers was leading the charge and was followed by that commanded by Vice Admiral Kiyohide Shima with the Heavy Cruisers Nachi and Ashigara, Light Cruiser Abukuma and four destroyers.

The mission of these two groups which were unable to coordinate their actions due to orders to maintain strict radio silence was to fight their way through the Surigao Strait to assist the Central Force in destroying the US invasion force in Leyte Gulf. The mission was for all practical purposes a suicide mission, a naval “Charge of the Light Brigade” as they sailed into the Valley of Death against the Battle Line of the US 7^th Fleet.

USS West Virginia firing a Broadside at Surigao

Yamashiro and Fuso

Facing him was a force built around the 6 old Battleships of Vice Admiral Jesse Oldendorf’s 7^th Fleet Battle Line. The Americans heavily outnumbered the Japanese, the Battleships West Virginia, California and Tennessee were the heart of the force. Fully modernized after Pearl Harbor they no longer resembled the ships that they were before the war. Equipped with the latest Mark 8 Fire Control radar they had the ability to put their 16” and 14” shells on target at ranges farther than anything that the Japanese could counter. Joined by the less fully modernized Maryland, Mississippi and Pennsylvania, 4 Heavy Cruisers, 4 Light Cruisers, 28 Destroyers and 39 PT Boats they outnumbered the combined Japanese forces with sixteen 16” and forty eight 14” guns to twenty 14” guns on the antiquated Yamashiro and Fuso. The disparity in lesser guns was just as stark, thirty five against twenty six 8” guns, and fifty one 6” guns against six 5.5 inch guns. This massive imbalance didn’t count the nearly one hundred fifty 5” guns on the US destroyers and as well as nearly 200 torpedo tubes.

Yamashiro and Shigure ride into the Valley of death

No one can ever criticize the Japanese Navy for its courage in battle, even in hopeless ones. Nishimura’s force entered the southern entrance to Surigao Strait and was discovered by the American PT Boats at about 2230. Though the PTs scored no hits they provided critical updates on the Japanese to Oldendorff. At 0300 the American destroyers began a devastating series of attacks on the Japanese flanks. They sank two destroyers and damaged another which had to turn back, but the real damage occurred when both Fuso and Yamashiro were hit. Fuso took two torpedoes fired by the destroyer USS Melvin. She slowed and then blew up and broke in two sinking with all hands. This account has been contested in recent years but many find the new version less believable than the first. Key in the evidence was the rescue and capture of Yamashiro’s Executive Officer in the north end of the strait and the surviving logs of the other Japanese ships which reported the sinking. Yamashiro though hit continued north with Mogami and the last destroyer Shigure. At 0353 West Virginia opened fire and score hits on her first salvo. She was joined by California and Tennesseeat 0355, the other battleships with their Mark 3 fire direction radars were slow to open up. Maryland got off six full salvos by ranging in on the splashes of West Virginia, California and Tennessee. Mississippi logged the final salvo of the battle and Pennsylvania got no shots off. West Virginia fired 16 salvos, 96 rounds of 16”armor piercing shells, Tennessee got off 69 rounds and California 63 each of 14” armor piercing shells, while Maryland added another forty eight 16” rounds.

The Yamashiro and Mogami sailed into the maelstrom absorbing hit after hit and gamely fought back. Yamashiro hit the destroyer Albert W Grant which was also hit by friendly fire badly damaging her. Finally both ships ablaze they turned back down the strait with Yamashiro sinking with few survivors at 0420. Shima’s force then entered the fray and the Light Cruiser Abukuma was damaged by a torpedo fired by PT-137 and fell out of the formation. She was sunk on 26 October by Army Air Force B-24s. As Shima came up the strait his force entered the battered remnants of Nishimura’s force, the burning halves of Fuso and the retreating Mogami and Shigure. Assuming the halves of Fuso to be the wreckage of both battleships Shima beat a hasty retreat but in the process his flagship Nachi collided with Mogami flooding Mogami’s steering engine room and leaving her crippled. She was attacked again by American cruisers and aircraft and as abandoned at 1047 and scuttled a torpedo from the destroyer Akebono sinking at 1307 on 25 October.

Nachi Under Air Attack

The battle was one of the most lopsided surface engagements of the war. When it was over only one of Nishimura’s ships had survived the “lucky” Shigure. Shima’s force survived the night but most of his ships were sunk in the following by war’s end. Nachi was sunk in Manila Bay on 5 November by aircraft from the USS Lexington with a loss of over 800 sailors while Shima was in a conference ashore.

With the exception of Albert W Grant and a PT Boat the American force was unscathed the old Battlewagons dredged from the mud of Peal Harbor had led the fleet to a decisive victory in the last duel between Dreadnaughts ever fought. The Japanese died as Samurai trying to complete a hopeless mission against a far superior force.

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Filed under History, leadership, Military, Navy Ships, US Navy, World War II at Sea, world war two in the pacific

Tagged as 7th fleet, admiral nishimura, admiral shima, battle of leyte gulf, battle of surigao strait, battleships of pearl harbor, charge of the light brigade, ijn abukuma, ijn akebono, ijn ashigara, ijn fuso, IJN melvin, ijn mogami, ijn nachi, ijn shigure, ijn yamasharo, Japanese Southern force, manila bay, pt boats, pt-137, uss albert w grant, uss california, uss lexington, uss maryland, uss mississippi, uss pennsylvania, uss tennessee, uss west virginia, vice admiral jesse oldendorff

June 21, 2019 · 22:32

Götterdämmerung in the Pacific: The Okinawa Campaign

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

Saturday, June 22nd is 74th anniversary of the end of the Okinawa Campaign, one of the longest and bloodiest campaigns waged by United States Forces in the Pacific during the Second World War. I have resurrected this article from the archives because even today Okinawa is a key strategic location, and the base of thousands of U.S. military personnel, mostly Marines and Air Force personnel, along with Navy and Army personnel. In the event of a military conflict with with North Korea or China, Okinawa would be at the center of the conflagration.

Today, many Okinawans do not consider themselves Japanese, though the United States returned control of Okinawa to Japan in 1972. They are culturally more Chinese than Japanese and during the battle over a third of the civilian population died. Many are opposed to the continued presence of over 26,000 American troops, and also desire independence from Japan. So as you can see the conflict over Okinawa is not yet finished.

The Okinawa Campaign

The United States decided to invade Okinawa in the fall of 1944 following the seizure of Peleliu and the Philippine landings. The planned invasion of Formosa was cancelled after General Simon Bolivar Buckner objected.[i] Buckner argued that the Japanese army on it was “much too strong to be attacked by the forces by American Forces then available in the Pacific.”[ii] The strategic rationale behind the decision to invade Okinawa included Okinawa’s proximity to Japan as a staging base for a future invasion of the Japanese mainland. Likewise taking the island would severe Japan’s lines of communication and commerce with Southeast Asia and to serve as base for strategic bombers.[iii] Planning began in October 1944 and the detailed plan for OPERATION ICEBERG was issued 9 February 1945.[iv] The campaign was not planned in isolation but “was bound up strategically with the operations against Luzon and Iwo Jima; they were all calculated to maintain unremitting pressure against Japan and to effect the attrition of its military forces.”[v]

LIEUTENANT_GENERAL_SIMON_B._BUCKNER_in_Okinawa Lt General Simon Bolivar Buckner Commander of US 10th Army

The War Department insisted that Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner command the newly formed 10^th US Army.[vi] . Buckner was chosen to command based on his taking of the Aleutians, displacing the veteran Marine Holland M. Smith. One critical history noted that “compared to his subordinates, Buckner was hardly fit to command a corps, let alone a field army.”[vii]

The 10^th Army consisted of the 3^rd Amphibious Corps (1^st, 2^nd and 6^th Marine Divisions) under Major General Roy Geiger and the XXIV Army Corps (7^th, 27^th, 77^th and 96^th Divisions) under Major General John Hodge.[viii] 2^nd Marine Division was designated as a diversionary force, and the 77^th Division was assigned to take the nearby island of Kerama Retto prior to the landings to provide the Navy a safe anchorage and as an artillery platform to shell Okinawa. The 27^th Division was in corps reserve. All were veteran units and had it was believed they would be “more than enough to overwhelm the estimated 70,000 Japanese on Okinawa.”[ix] However, much of XXIV Corps had only been engaged in hard combat on Leyte and was not relieved of their duties on Leyte on 1 March 1945. This provided these units with no time to rest and refit.[x] More importantly badly needed troop replacements had been diverted to Europe due to the crisis in infantry strength there during the battle of the Bulge.[xi] The operation was very large and “mounted on a scale that matched the previous year’s Allied landing in Normandy.”[xii]

The Japanese Preparations

Japanese Commander Lt General Ushijima

American intelligence underestimated the number of Japanese on the island, with an estimate of 55,000 with the expectation of 66,000 by 1 April.[xiii] However by the time of the invasion the Japanese defenders numbered over 100,000.[xiv] The defense of Okinawa was entrusted to the 32^nd Army was activated in 1 April 1944 commanded by Lieutenant General Ushijima. In addition to Okinawa the 32^nd Army was responsible for the entire Ryukyu chain.[xv] General Ushijima had commanded an infantry group in Burma and was commander of the military academy when appointed to command 32^nd Army and ordered to Okinawa. His Chief of Staff, General Cho was a firebrand. Cho had served in China and had participated in a number of attempted military coups in the 1930s as a member of the “Cherry Group.”[xvi] Another key officer though relatively junior was Colonel Yahara the Operations Officer. He had served as an exchange officer in the United States and was intellectual and a modern soldier. He viewed war as a science, won by “superior tactics adjusted to terrain, weapons and troops…not Banzai charges.”[xvii] He was “widely recognized as an expert in his field,”[xviii] and devised the Japanese defensive plan for Okinawa.

Yahara_Hiromichi Colonel Yahara Architect of the Japanese Defensive Plan

Until 32^nd Army was activated Okinawa was garrisoned by a mere 600 troops,[xix] and until major units arrived these soldiers concentrated on airfield construction.[xx] Eventually the 9^th, 24^thand 62^nd Infantry Divisions, the 44^th Mixed Brigade along with a light tank regiment and significant artillery came to Okinawa. Additional forces were alloted to outlying islands. The 24^th Division was a triangular division of 3 infantry regiments of 3 battalions each and supporting arms. The 62^nd Division was a “brigaded” division activated in 1943 was formed from the veteran 63^rd and 64^thbrigades each with 4 infantry battalions and supporting arms. It had no organic artillery. Both of the brigades of this division received an additional infantry battalion in January 1945 giving the division ten maneuver battalions.[xxi] Okinawa’s defenses were significantly weakened when 9^th Division was transferred to Formosa by the 10^thArea Army in late 1944. To compensate General Ushijima converted Naval and service troops on the island into front line troops. Additionally he called the Okinawan Boeitai volunteers and conscripts into service.[xxii] The Boeitai numbered 20,000 and burned “with ardor to serve their emperor.”[xxiii] Seven sea raiding units were converted into infantry battalions.[xxiv] The major units, with the exception of 24^th Division which had been transferred from Manchuria had combat experience.[xxv]

BB-43-LVT-okinawa USS Tennessee Provides Naval Gunfire Support while LVTs Advance toward the Beaches

Ushijima’s plans to concentrate his forces in the south were delayed by Tokyo.[xxvi] Likewise the number and disposition of troops in the Ryukyu’s were decided by Imperial Headquarters.[xxvii] Colonel Yahara wrote that had Imperial Headquarters “been able to give us an overall plan with specific unit names and arrival dates, we would have been able to follow a consistent policy, disposing units in an efficient manner rather than moving them left and right.”[xxviii] He noted how the 44^th Mixed Brigade had to change location and thus its defensive preparations “seven times during the ten months before the actual battle….”[xxix]

XXIV_Corps_turns_south XXIV Corps Advancing South

The loss of the 9^th Division and its 25,000 soldiers forced Ushijima to change his initial plan to defend the beaches and then launch a major counterattack to drive the Americans into the sea.[xxx]Ushijima decided to defend the south end of the island. This was the most defensible area, with a network of fortifications and underground caves centered on the ancient citadel of Shuri Castle. “Troop disposition would conform to local terrain; troop strength would be concentrated; and an extensive system of subterranean fortifications constructed.”[xxxi] The defenses were “anchored in natural and artificial caves which dotted the mountainous regions around Shuri.”[xxxii] “Terrain features were incorporated into the defense and weapons were well sited with excellent fields of fire.”[xxxiii] General Ushijima left Colonel Udo’s 2^nd Infantry Unit to fight a delaying action in the north,[xxxiv] having decided that the area was of “little military value.”[xxxv] Likewise Ushijima decided not to contest the landings or to defend the airfields at Kadena and Yontan.[xxxvi] He planned to use Boeitai units to demolish the airfields when the Americans approached.[xxxvii]

Okinawa_flamethrower Flamethrowers were Widely Employed their Operators were Targeted by the Japanese

Ushijima’s defensive scheme laid out by Yahara involved concentric defensive lines, tunnels and bunker systems and even the Chinese tombs which dotted the island were converted to pillboxes over the objections of Okinawan elders.[xxxviii] Yahara and Ushijima planned a battle of attrition with all artillery in the army concentrated on the southern end of Okinawa. Yahara believed the battle would be a “bitter yard-by-yard” defense of the island,[xxxix]with a focus on defense in depth with preparations for anti-tank warfare. There were to be no Banzai charges.[xl] Ushijima turned Bushido “inside out” and urged his soldiers to “Devise combat method [sic] based on mathematical precision, then think about displaying your spiritual power.”[xli] The defenders would be assisted by suicide boat squadrons based on Okinawa and Kerama Retto and over 4000 aircraft, conventional and Kamikaze and a naval force built around the super battleship Yamato.[xlii]

The Landings

Wrecked Tanks on Skyline Ridge

The assault on Okinawa began with landings by 77^th Division on Kerama Retto on 26 March. The landings were met with little opposition as most of the combat troops on the islands had been moved to Okinawa leaving only base and service troops and members of a Sea Raiding Unit and Korean laborers to defend the small island.[xliii] By the 29^th of March the islands were taken, along with numerous prisoners. Over 350 of the fast “Suicide Boats” that were to attack US transports and landing craft were destroyed at Kerama Retto and long range artillery was emplaced were it could support the Okinawa landings.[xliv] More importantly Kerama Retto provided the Navy a safe anchorage, and Service Squadron 10 arrived on 27 March to support naval forces around the island.[xlv]The naval bombardment was led by Admiral Deyo’s battleships and Admiral Blandy’s escort carriers[xlvi] and culminated on 1 April when 10^th Army went ashore. By the time of the landing 10 battleships and 11 cruisers would join the attack.[xlvii] Over 13,000 large caliber shells were fired and a total of 5,162 tons of ammunition were expended on ground targets and 3,095 air sorties were flown by L Day.[xlviii] Fortunately for the Japanese Ushijima had listened to Colonel Yahara and elected not to defend the beach, and thus most of the shells fell on empty positions and terrain.[xlix]

The Americans landed on the Hagushi beaches adjacent to Kadena and Yontan air bases. No organized resistance was encountered and in the first hour 16,000 troops landed.[l] There was little disorganization and all units landed on time on the planned beaches.[li] The beaches were bisected by the Bishi River which served as the Corps boundary. The 1^st and 6^th Marine Divisions landed north of it and the 7^th and 96^th to the south. The Marines chopped up the “Bimbo Butai” in their area many of whom melted back into the civilian population.[lii] The Americans moved rapidly inland and by nightfall over 60,000 Marines and Soldiers were ashore.[liii] As the landings were made the 2^nd Marine Division conducted a demonstration off Minatoga on the east side of the Okinawa actually launching several waves of landing craft.[liv] On 2 April the operation was repeated which helped divert some Japanese attention off of the actual landings. Ushijima reported that the attempt “was complete foiled, with heavy losses to the enemy.”[lv] Some Marine veterans of Peleliu were jubilant at not having to land and some wondered what the Japanese were up to.[lvi]

US_Flag_raised_over_Shuri_castle_on_Okinawa Marine Battalion Commander Raising Flag over Shuri Castle

In the following days the two Marine divisions would race north and east while Army troops advanced cautiously to the south first encountering light opposition.[lvii] The 1^st Marine Division cut the island in two on April 3^rd and was allowed to clear the Katchin Peninsula which it took without opposition.[lviii] The 6^th Marine Division moved north and by the 7^th it had had taken Nago. Colonel Udo’s troops of the 2^nd infantry Unit defended the Motubu with great skill[lix] but the Marines took the center of resistance on April 18th.[lx] They then cleared the remainder of the peninsula and the rest of the northern end of the island by the 20^th.[lxi] The Marines had advanced 84 miles and killed 2,500 Japanese at the cost of 261 killed and 1,061 wounded. The Japanese survivors according to the plan of Colonel Udo afterward retreated into the hills and engaged in guerilla warfare.[lxii]

The Ordeal Begins

Demolition Team Advancing

As the Soldiers of the 7^th and 96^th Infantry Divisions felt their way south, they began to encounter resistance from Japanese outposts. On 4 April 96^th Division’s advanced elements including the 96^thRecon Troop and 763^rd Tank Battalion encountered the first Japanese anti-tank defenses, losing 3 tanks to well concealed 47mm anti-tank guns.[lxiii] The following day both the 7^th and 96^thdivisions encountered more resistance and were held to minimal gains as they drove the Japanese out of their outpost positions. On the 6^th and 7^th they captured “the Pinnacle” and “Cactus ridge” from elements of 3 independent infantry battalions which put up stiff resistance.[lxiv] By the end of 8 April against strong opposition XXIV Corps had suffered 1,510 battle casualties and was virtually halted.[lxv] Savage hand to hand fighting took place as the defenders worked to separate the American tanks from their infantry. They held the Americans outside the Shuri zone for 8 days.[lxvi]

USMC-C-Okinawa burial The Human Cost of War: Marine Colonel Fenton prays for his Fallen Son

The 96^th Division attacked the heavily defended Kakazu Ridge and Tombstone Ridge and was repulsed. The 7^th Division was halted at Hill 178. The Japanese fought at close quarters and desperate hand to hand fighting “would characterize the Okinawa land battle.” While the Japanese infantry contested every yard “carefully concealed anti-tank guns seemed anchored into the terrain.”[lxvii]The deployment and concealment of the anti-tank guns helped nullify the American advantages in armor. The Japanese also employed 320mm spigot mortars[lxviii] and well sited machine guns and artillery sited on reverse slopes took a heavy toll of the attacking Americans. Of one company of 89 men which attacked Kakazu on 9 April “only three returned unwounded.”[lxix] Assisted by monsoon rains, “the Japanese turned every hill, every ridge into a bloody deathtrap.[lxx] On the 10^th two regiments of 96^th Division attempted a power drive with battalions advancing on line and were thrown back.[lxxi] The two divisions suffered 2.890 casualties in their abortive attacks while the Japanese lost close to 4,000, mainly to artillery fire.[lxxii] Ushijima’s defense planned by Yahara was “chillingly professional and efficient. Within a week the Japanese had stopped two very good Army divisions in their tracks.”[lxxiii]General Buckner paused sent for the 1^st and 6^th Marine Divisions and brought the 27^th and 77^th Divisions ashore to strengthen XXIV Corps.[lxxiv]

Counterattack

The War at Sea: Kamikaze Attack on USS Bunker Hill

It was at this point when “Yahara’s war of attrition was working well” that a division arose in the 32^nd Army Staff, when General Cho; Ushijima’s Chief of Staff had “his first outburst of samurai offensive fever.”[lxxv] Cho noted the failure of the American attacks and believed reports that the American Navy had been heavily damaged by Japanese air power and by the reported success of Operation Ten-Go, the sortie of the Yamato and her escorts on their suicide mission. He based his optimism on a telegraph from Imperial Navy headquarters “claiming that Ten-go had been “very successful”[lxxvi] when in fact the Yamato and her escorts had been dispatched in hours by carrier aircraft with few American losses. Cho also assumed a reduction in the number of ships in the Hagushi anchorage and in the number of air sorties as signs of American weakness.[lxxvii] Cho persuaded Ushijima to launch a counterattack over the protestations of Yahara who argued that “it would waste men.”[lxxviii] The attack by four battalions of the 62^nd and 24^thDivisions began the night of 12-13 April. Based on infiltration tactics and supported by artillery the attack was badly planned and coordinated. One attack almost overran American positions on the draw on Kakazu Ridge, but the Japanese return to “bamboo spear tactics” exposing them to the “overwhelmingly superior America artillery fire….”[lxxix] The attack was a “total failure.”[lxxx]The Japanese lost nearly 1,600 men, half their force in an “operation ill conceived, understrength, misdirected, haphazard and uncoordinated.”[lxxxi]

Cracking the Outer Line

Reinforced by the 27^th Division XXIV Corps prepared for another attack against the outlying Shuri defenses. In the interval between the Japanese attack and the new offensive the 77^th Division landed on Ie Shima on 16 April and secured it on the 24^th amid very heavy fighting killing over 4,700 Japanese, many armed civilians against the loss of 172 killed and 902 wounded Americans.[lxxxii] Among the American dead was legendary reporter Ernie Pyle.

The Americans aimed to penetrate the defenses and “seize the low valley linking Yonabaru on the east coast with the capital of Naha on the west.”[lxxxiii] The attack was supported by 27 battalions of artillery[lxxxiv] including 9 Marine artillery battalions.[lxxxv]Additional Naval gunfire support in the form of 6 battleships, 6 cruisers and 9 destroyers added to the rain of steel unleashed on the Japanese.[lxxxvi] Morison notes that Army historians stated that “Naval gunfire…was employed in greater quantities in the battle for Okinawa than in any other in history.”[lxxxvii] The 7^th Division was to take Hill 178 and drive south to the Naha Yonabaru road. 96^thDivision minus the 383^rd Infantry was to “drive straight through the heart of the Shuri defenses seizing the town of Shuri and the highway beyond.” 27^th Division attacking 50 minutes later to take advantage of artillery was to take Kakazu ridge and the coast plain north of Naha.[lxxxviii]

The attack began on April 19^th and was preceded by a 19,000 shell bombardment.[lxxxix] Ushijima wisely ordered his men to remain in their caves. The Corps Artillery commander “doubted as many as 190 Japanese…had been killed in the bombardment.”[xc] The attack was immediately halted all along the line, gains, where there were any were measured in yards. Over 750 casualties were inflicted by the Japanese on the corps and 27^th Division’s tank battalion lost 22 of 30 tanks to well positioned 47mm anti-tank guns.[xci] Buckner rejected the requests of the Corps commander Hodge and the Marine divisional commanders,[xcii] to launch a flanking amphibious operation at Minatoga with the 2^nd Marine Division, and continued the frontal attacks. John Toland writing of the rejection of the amphibious operation noted that Ushijima “feared such a maneuver (“It would bring a prompt end to the fighting”) and had already been forced to move his “rear guard division north to beef up the Shuri line.”[xciii] Thus the three divisions continued to press their attacks, suffering heavy casualties. Eventually the Americans forced the Japanese off Skyline ridge[xciv] though the Japanese still held Kakazu.[xcv] When the 27^th Division attacked again it found Kakazu abandoned by the Japanese.[xcvi] By the 24^thUshijima’s line was “pierced in so many places that it was in danger of collapsing….So General Ushijima withdrew to his next chain of defenses.”[xcvii] On April 30^th the 1^st Marine Division relieved the battered 27^th Division which had suffered 2,661 casualties in less than two weeks.”[xcviii] The 1^st Marine Regiment launched an attack on 1 May and was driven back with heavy causalities.[xcix]

General Cho’s Final Offensive

General Cho supported by 62^nd Division’s commander, General Fujioka persuaded Ushijima over the strenuous objections of Yahara to launch a counter-offensive with the intention of isolating and annihilating the 1^st Marine Division and “rolling up” XXIV Corps.[c]The attack was to occur along the entire line and include an amphibious landing behind American lines.[ci] The 62^nd Division would take the lead as it had been less heavily engaged than 24^thDivision.[cii] Yahara argued his case strongly and warned the Ushijima that to attack “is reckless and will lead to an early defeat.”[ciii] The attack began on the night of 3 May and the forces making the amphibious landing were annihilated by the Marines.[civ] The Japanese made little headway during the main attack; one battalion achieved a small penetration of American lines at Tanabaru but was eliminated the next day.[cv] The Japanese 27^thTank Regiment lost most of its tanks and those remaining were used as “stationary artillery and pillboxes.”[cvi] The Japanese lost about 5,000 troops in the offensive.[cvii] Ushijima halted it and told Yahara “as you predicted this offensive has been a total failure. Your judgment was correct….” He ordered Yahara “to do whatever you feel is necessary.”[cviii] Cho saw “no hope at all”[cix] and asked Yahara jokingly “when will it be okay for me to commit hari-kari?” [cx]

Göttdammerung

The American offensive resumed on 11 May and amid stubborn Japanese defense and heavy rains which hindered movement. The 1^st and 6^th Marine Divisions[cxi] and the 77^th and the 96^thinfantry divisions attacked along the line but the primary objective was Shuri.[cxii] The Americans continued to apply pressure and make small gains against strong Japanese resistance put up by the 44^thMixed Brigade. The defense was particularly strong on Sugar Loaf Hill[cxiii] which cost 6^th Marine Division nearly 4,000 total casualties before it was cleared out on 21 May.[cxiv] The 96^thDivision turned the Japanese east flank at Conical Hill on the 13^{th [cxv]}while the First Marine Division cracked through the Japanese lines at Dakeshi Ridge. It fought through Wana Ridge[cxvi] and engaged the Japanese in a costly battle in the Wana Draw. The 2^ndBattalion 5^th Marines supported by 30 tanks blasted their way through the draw, again against brutal Japanese resistance.[cxvii]On the 22^nd Yahara persuaded Ushijima to withdraw from Shuri to the Kiyan Peninsula.[cxviii] The 1^st Battalion 5^th Marines crossed the divisional boundary of 77^th Division to capture Shuri Castle on 24May.[cxix] The Company commander, from South Carolina who took it did not have an American flag so he “substituted the flag of the Confederacy, a banner that he…carried in his helmet.” [cxx] Two days later the American flag was raised along with the standard of the 1^st Marine Division in full view of the Japanese.[cxxi]

Following the Japanese withdraw from Shuri the battle continued with heavy rains hampering both sides, especially the more vehicle dependant Americans.[cxxii] The 6^th Marine Division cleared the Oruku Peninsula south of Naha the first two weeks of June[cxxiii]killing 5,000 of the Japanese Navy defenders at a cost of 1,608 Marines. The Japanese resistance crumbled when Admiral Ota committed suicide and many defenders fled while others surrendered.[cxxiv] 7^th Division pushed onto the Chinen Peninsula and 1^st Marine and both 77^th and 96^th Infantry Divisions pushed steadily south against Japanese rear-guards.[cxxv] The 8^th Marines from 2^nd Marine Division were brought to the island to reinforce the depleted 3^rd Amphibious Corps[cxxvi] A hard fight was fought along the Kunishi-Yuza-Yaeju escarpment where the Japanese conducted their last organized defense.[cxxvii] By the 17^th the “32^nd Army was dazed and shattered. Discipline had evaporated.”[cxxviii] The 32^ndArmy’s discipline and morale collapsed, and it “degenerated into a mob.”[cxxix] Yahara noted that “naturally, morale is low at the end of a battle, but we had never experienced anything like this.”[cxxx]

Last_picture_of_LtGen._Buckner_at_Okinawa Lt General Buckner (Right) Observing 8th Marines Assault minutes before Being Killed

General Buckner was killed while observing 8^th Marines attack Kunishi on the 18^th and was succeeded by General Geiger of the Marine amphibious corps.[cxxxi] A final message from Tokyo congratulated 32^nd Army on its achievements on the 20^th.[cxxxii]General Ushijima and General Cho committed Hari-Kari early on the 23^rd after ordering Yahara not to do so. Cho told Yahara “to bear witness as to how I died.”[cxxxiii]

American battle casualties totaled 49,151 including 12,520 dead.[cxxxiv] The Japanese lost over 110,000 killed and 7,400 taken prisoner by the Americans.[cxxxv] About 75,000 Okinawan civilians were killed.[cxxxvi] Small numbers of Japanese renegades and Okinawan rebels conducted low-level guerilla operations until 1947.[cxxxvii]

Analysis

The key Japanese mistake occurred at the strategic level when 9^thDivision was transferred off the island[cxxxviii] and no further reinforcements were sent. With these forces Ushijima might have been able to hold out until the end of hostilities. Yahara criticized Imperial Headquarters which panicked when the landings occurred and ordered a counterattack which “left our army in utter confusion.”[cxxxix] General Ushijima’s major mistakes during the battle were the two costly offensives urged by General Cho against the protest of Colonel Yahara. These attacks sacrificed of some of his best troops for no effect and significantly weakened the 32^nd Army’s defensive posture. Yahara objected to both of these offensives. According to the American intelligence debriefing Yahara considered the May 4^th offensive “as the decisive action of the campaign.”[cxl] Gordon Rottman simply called that attack a “blunder.”[cxli]

On the American side Buckner fought an unimaginative and uninspired battle, much like Mark Clark’s Italian campaign or Courtney Hodges at the Huertgen Forrest. Murray and Millett, note that Buckner’s “flawed generalship contributed to the slaughter.”[cxlii] Buckner’s decision not to land the 2^nd Marine Division or the 77^th Division at Minatoga surrendered his one opportunity to maneuver against the Japanese to force them out of their prepared positions.[cxliii] Ronald Spector notes that “in retrospect Buckner ought to have given more consideration to an amphibious attack[cxliv] while Murray and Millett state that Buckner “did not have the experience to make such a critical decision.”[cxlv] Nimitz wondered if “the Army was using slow, methodical tactics to save the lives of soldiers at the expense of the Navy”[cxlvi] which was exposed to Kamikaze attacks as they had to continue to provide the close in support to 10^th Army. Buckner’s rejection of this opportunity left him with the straight ahead attack. Another option which was available to Buckner was to seal off the Japanese and let them wither on the vine. Such an action in effect would have bypasses the Japanese defenders and force them to make Banzai attacks against dug in Americans.[cxlvii] The Americans had the airfields on day one and most of the key facilities needed for future operations and there was little to gain by continuing offensive operations in the south. Sealing off the Japanese would have certainly caused the Americans fewer casualties than the strategy which Buckner employed.[cxlviii]

Buckner’s leadership was poor his strategy and tactics both unimaginative and foolish bordering on incompetent. In a time when American infantry replacements were tapped out and no new Infantry divisions were available for action he decimated good formations by throwing them into frontal attacks against well prepared fortified positions manned by experienced troops. Had Ushijima not followed General Cho’s advice squandering is own troops the battle would have cost even more American lives with the invasion of Japan looming. The War Department in its attempt to wrest control of an operation that should have remained under the control of the Navy and Marine Corps put the wrong man in the job when other more competent corps commanders such as General “Lighting Joe” Collins who had finished off the Japanese at Guadalcanal were available with European hostilities winding down. Why Buckner was chosen despite his incredibly limited command experience serving in the relatively inactive Aleutians and not even commanding a company in World War One had to be due to Army politics and in the end it cost nearly 50,000 American casualties on the land alone, not counting Navy casualties which totaled almost 10,000 including over 4,900 dead. The capture of Okinawa provided the Americans with valuable anchorages and airfields close to Japan had there been an invasion of the home islands, but they were obtained at great cost.

Notes

[i] Appleman, Roy, E., Burns, James M., Gugeler, Russell A., and Stevens, John. The United States Army in World War II, The War In the Pacific. Okinawa: The Last Battle, Center of Military History, United States Army. Washington DC. 1948. p.4

[ii] Leckie, Robert. Okinawa: the Last Battle in the Pacific Penguin Books, New York NY 1996. p.2. Although not mentioned by Leckie this shortage of forces was due to the American decision to limit the Army to 90 Divisions with dire consequences in Europe and Asia especially in the number of infantry available. For a good account of the impact of this see Russell Weigley’s Eisenhower’s Lieutenants.

[iii] Willmont, H.P. The Second World War in the Far East. John Keegan General Editor. Cassell Books, London, 1999. p.186.

[iv] Morison, Samuel Eliot. The Two Ocean War: A Short History of the United States Navy in the Second World War. An Atlantic Monthly Press Book, Boston MA 1963. p.525

[v] Ibid. Appleman. p.4

[vi] Costello, John. The Pacific War: 1941-1945 Quill Publishers, New York, NY 1981. p.554.

[vii] Murray, Williamson and Millett, Allan R. A War to Be Won: Fighting the Second World War. The Belknap Press of Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. 2000. p.515

[viii] Ibid. Leckie. pp. 53-54. Note Costello misidentifies both of these corps calling them 3^rd Marine Corps and XIV Army Corps. He also does not count the 77^th Division in his figures.

[ix] Ibid. Costello. pp. 554-555. Costello’s figures are slightly above the official estimates listed below.

[x] Ibid. Leckie. p.56

[xi] Ibid. Leckie. p.57 An important point to note is that the Army had reached a critical point in its ability to conduct the war. The steady drain on infantry strength that began in Normandy was heightened in the Huertgen Forrest and the Bulge.

[xii] Ibid. Costello. p.556

[xiii] Ibid. Appleman. p.15

[xiv] Ibid. Costello. p.555

[xv] Yahara, Hiromichi. The Battle for Okinawa. Introduction and Forward by Frank Gibney. Translated by Frank Pineau and Masatoshi Uehara. John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY. 1995. p.3

[xvi] Rottman, Gordon R. Okinawa 1945: The Last Battle. Osprey Publishing, Oxford, United Kingdom, 2002. p.35

[xvii] Ibid. Leckie. pp.31-32

[xviii] Ibid. Rottman. p.37

[xix] Toland, John. The Rising Sun: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1936-1945. Random House, New York, NY 1970. p.683.

[xx] Ibid. Yahara. p.7

[xxi] Ibid. Rottman. Pp.47-48

[xxii] Ibid. Toland. pp.683-684. Yahara also notes the arrival of the 15^th Mixed Brigade and the fact that the Japanese considered the 44^th Mixed Brigade “one of our Army’s prized units.” (p.12)

[xxiii] Ibid. Toland. p.683. Leckie comments on the low opinion of many Japanese soldiers about the Boeitai calling them Bimbo Butai(Poor Detachment), as the most of the Japanese had come to loathe Okinawa and all things Okinawan. A comment from my own service in Okinawa in 2000-2001 is that this loathing of Okinawa by Japanese is still common, Japanese tend to look down on Okinawans and the Okinawans now tend to resent the Japanese.

[xxiv] Ibid. Appleman. p.87

[xxv] Ibid. Yahara. p.31 All sources note that the 24^th was a “well trained” division.

[xxvi] Ibid. Costello. p.555

[xxvii] Ibid. Yahara. p.15

[xxviii] Ibid. Yahara. pp. 14-15

[xxix] Ibid. Yahara. p.15

[xxx] Ibid. Yahara. pp. 20-22 and 32. Yahara details the initial plan and the changes necessitated by the departure of 9^th Division. Rottman gives 9^th Division a strength of 17,000. (Rottman p.46)

[xxxi] Ibid. Yahara. p.20

[xxxii] Spector, Ronald H. Eagle Against the Sun: The American War With Japan. The Free Press and Division of MacMillan, Inc. New York, NY 1985. p.533

[xxxiii] Ibid. Rottman. p.25

[xxxiv] Ibid. Leckie p.32 and Costello. p.555. The unit was between 3000 and 3500 strong. Leckie simply identifies the force as the 2^ndInfantry Unit while Costello identifies them as a Special Naval Landing Force. Appleman identifies Colonel Udo and the approximate number of troops but does not identify the unit. There appears to be confusion about the Japanese units, Appleman says that the 2^nd Infantry Unit was constituted from survivors of 44^thMixed Brigade (which had lost most of its troops when their ship was sunk by an American submarine) and 15^th Independent Mixed Regiment which was brought in to bolster it, but Yahara consistently places the reconstituted 44^th in the south as part of the main defense. (see Appleman p.87) I will relay on Yahara as he was the 32^nd Army Operations Officer and in a position to have first hand knowledge.

[xxxv] Ibid. Yahara. pp.22-23

[xxxvi] Ibid. Leckie. p.32

[xxxvii] Ibid. Leckie. pp.32-33

[xxxviii] Ibid. Toland. p.684

[xxxix] Ibid. Yahara. p.32

[xl] Ibid. Yahara. p.25

[xli] Ibid. Leckie. p.35

[xlii] Ibid. Leckie. p.19

[xliii] Ibid. Appleman. pp.52-58

[xliv] Ibid. Appleman. p.60

[xlv] Potter, E.B. Nimitz. Naval Institute Press. Annapolis, MD. 1976. p.369

[xlvi] Ibid. Costello. p. 556 and Morison p.530.

[xlvii] Ibid. Appleman. p.64. Leckie (pp. 67-68) names only 9 battleships: Arkansas, New York, Texas, Nevada, Idaho, New Mexico, Colorado, Tennessee and West Virginia. Of these ships all were built before the war and four were in commission before the US entered the First World War. Three had been at Pearl Harbor and with the exception of their engines the Tennessee and West Virginia had been completely rebuilt and modernized to the standards of the fast new battleships of the South Dakota class.

[xlviii] Ibid. Appleman. p.64

[xlix] Ibid. Leckie. p.69.

[l] Ibid. Leckie. p.72

[li] Ibid. Appleman. p.74

[lii] Ibid. Leckie. p.73

[liii] Ibid. Appleman. p.75

[liv] Ibid. Appleman. p.74

[lv] Ibid. Leckie. p.72 A point to note is that the “Demonstration” is still one of the Amphibious Operations in the USMC Amphibious doctrine.

[lvi] Sledge, E.B. With the Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa. Presidio Press. Novato, CA. 1981. Oxford University Press Paperback, New York, NY 1990. pp. 187-188 William Manchester in Goodbye Darkness talks about the first few days as his 6^th Marine Division moved up North. He talks of the minimal resistance and the beauty of the island. Manchester, William, Goodbye Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War Little Brown and Company, New York NY, 1979.pp.356-357

[lvii] Ibid. Potter. pp.370-371

[lviii] Ibid. Leckie. p.78

[lix] Ibid. Manchester. p.357. Manchester notes that the fight in the north was like “French and Indian Warfare.”

[lx] Ibid. Appleman. p.148

[lxi] Ibid. Leckie. p.83

[lxii] Ibid. Appleman. p.148

[lxiii] Ibid. Appleman. p.104

[lxiv] Ibid. Appleman. pp.107-110

[lxv] Ibid. Appleman. pp.112-113.

[lxvi] Ibid. Appleman. p.112.

[lxvii] Ibid Yahara. p.35

[lxviii] Ibid. Leckie. p.104

[lxix] Ibid. Spector. p.534

[lxx] Ibid. Murray and Millet. p.514

[lxxi] Ibid. Appleman. pp. 126-127

[lxxii] Ibid. Leckie. pp.104-105

[lxxiii] Ibid. Murray and Millett. p.514

[lxxiv] Ibid. Murray and Millett. p.514

[lxxv] Ibid. Yahara. p.36

[lxxvi] Ibid. Leckie. p.108

[lxxvii] Ibid. Leckie. p.108

[lxxviii] Ibid. Yahara. p.36 The battle for a counter-offensive began on 6 April but was rejected. (Appleman. p.130) Yahara actually went to the commanders of the 24^th and 62^nd divisions and persuaded them not to use 3 battalions each but only two. (Leckie. pp.107-108)

[lxxix] Ibid. Leckie. p.113

[lxxx] Ibid. Appleman. p.137

[lxxxi] Ibid. Leckie. p.113.

[lxxxii] Ibid. Appleman. p.182. Leckie gives the total of 258 killed and 879 wounded. (Leckie. p.125) and estimates that most might have been uniformed civilians. Appleman citing Army figures estimates about 1,500 civilians. Even adding the American MIA totals the differences between Appleman and Leckie’s count of US casualties is puzzling.

[lxxxiii] Ibid. Leckie. p.126

[lxxxiv] Ibid. Leckie. p.127

[lxxxv] Ibid. Appleman. p.185

[lxxxvi] Ibid. Leckie. p.127

[lxxxvii] Ibid. Morison. p.553

[lxxxviii] Ibid. Appleman. pp.184-185

[lxxxix] Ibid. Leckie. p.128

[xc] Ibid. Leckie. p.128

[xci] Ibid. Leckie. p.131 It is interesting to note the vulnerability of the Sherman tanks to the obsolescent 47mm anti-tank guns used by the Japanese. By this stage of the war comparable German and Russian tanks would not be stopped by such weapons, baring a luck shot.

[xcii] Ibid. Murray and Millett. p.515

[xciii] Ibid. Toland. p.706

[xciv] Ibid. Toland. pp.708-709

[xcv] Ibid. Leckie. p.138

[xcvi] Ibid. Appleman. pp. 243 and 247

[xcvii] Ibid. Leckie. p.139

[xcviii] Ibid. Toland. p.709

[xcix] McMillan, George. The Old Breed: A History of the First Marine Division in World War Two. The Infantry Journal Inc., Washington DC. 1949. p.375

[c] Ibid. Leckie. pp.148-149

[ci] Ibid. McMillan. p.377

[cii] Ibid. Yahara. p.37

[ciii] Ibid. Toland. p.710

[civ] Ibid. Toland. p.710

[cv] Ibid. Appleman. p.299

[cvi] Ibid. Appleman. p.302

[cvii] Ibid. Appleman. p.302. Rottman states 7,000 and Leckie 6,000.

[cviii] Ibid. Yahara. p.41

[cix] Ibid. Toland. p.712

[cx] Ibid. Yahara. p.42

[cxi] Ibid. Manchester. pp. 358-359. Manchester notes the distain that the Marines felt toward 27^th Division which both they and 1^stMarine Division had relieved in the south. Manchester comments that they felt that “the dogfaces lacked our spirit.”

[cxii] Ibid. Rottman. p.80

[cxiii] See Manchester pp.363-378 for a chilling description of the battle for Sugar Loaf.

[cxiv] Ibid. Leckie. pp.172-173

[cxv] Ibid. Appleman. pp.355-356

[cxvi] Ibid. McMillan. pp.385-395. 7^th Marine Regiment suffered 1,249 casualties in this fight.

[cxvii] Ibid. Sledge. p.243

[cxviii] Ibid. Yahara. pp.67-73. Yahara has an interesting account both listing the military options available and the interaction between him and the other officers leading tom the withdraw. Among those he had to persuade were the divisional commanders of 24^th and 62^nd Divisions.

[cxix] Ibid. McMillan. p.401

[cxx] Ibid. McMillan. p.401

[cxxi] Ibid. Leckie. p.186

[cxxii] Ibid. Rottman. p.81

[cxxiii] Ibid. Rottman. p. 82 This included an amphibious landing by two regiments to flank the position which was the last opposed amphibious landing in the war.

[cxxiv] Ibid. Leckie. pp.199-200

[cxxv] Ibid. Rottman. p.83

[cxxvi] Ibid. Leckie. p.197 Leckie notes that the 2^nd Marine Division had been transported back to Saipan rather than remain at sea as a target for Kamikazes. As a result the Marines had no reserve on the island.

[cxxvii] Ibid. Sledge. p.301

[cxxviii] Ibid. Toland p.721

[cxxix] Ibid. Appleman. p.456

[cxxx] Ibid. Yahara. p.133

[cxxxi] Ibid. Rottman. p.83

[cxxxii] Ibid. Yahara. p.144

[cxxxiii] Ibid. Yahara. pp.154-156. Yahara would hide among refugees hoping that he might escape to Japan but was discovered by an interrogation panel and identified on 26 July. (Yahara pp.189-191)

[cxxxiv] Ibid. Appleman. p. 473 This includes Navy losses of 4,907 killed and 4,824 wounded, mostly to Kamikaze strikes on ships supporting the operation. 10^th Army lost 7,613 killed and 31,800 wounded. (Morison. p.556)

[cxxxv] Ibid. Appleman. pp473-474. Other sources report Japanese losses at 65,000 to 70,000. This may be from listing military civilians like those in the Naval Force and Okinawan militia as civilian casualties and only counting actually Japanese Army and Navy troops in this tally. Costello gives a count of 10,755 prisoners; this could again be a tally including these civilians and auxiliaries. (Costello. p.578) Rottman spends some time analyzing the discrepancies in the Japanese casualty numbers and comes to the same conclusion. (Rottman pp.84-85)

[cxxxvi] Ibid. Toland. p.726

[cxxxvii] Ibid. Rottman. p.85

[cxxxviii] Ibid. Yahara. p.31

[cxxxix] Ibid. Yahara. p.196.

[cxl] Ibid. Yahara. p.214

[cxli] Ibid. Rottman. p.73

[cxlii] Ibid. Murray and Millett. p.514

[cxliii] Ibid. Leckie. p.162

[cxliv] Ibid. Spector. p.535

[cxlv] Ibid. Murray and Millett. p.515

[cxlvi] Ibid. Potter. p.373

[cxlvii] Ibid. Leckie. p.162 Leckie does not know if this was considered by Buckner though the tactic was used throughout the “island hopping” campaign where Japanese strong points were bypassed and isolated to whither on the vine.

[cxlviii] Ibid. Leckie. p.162

Bibliography

Appleman, Roy, E., Burns, James M., Gugeler, Russell A., and Stevens, John. The United States Army in World War II, The War In the Pacific. Okinawa: The Last Battle, Center of Military History, United States Army. Washington DC. 1948

Costello, John. The Pacific War: 1941-1945 Quill Publishers, New York, NY 1981

Leckie, Robert. Okinawa: the Last Battle in the Pacific Penguin Books, New York NY 1996.

McMillan, George. The Old Breed: A History of the First Marine Division in World War Two. The Infantry Journal Inc., Washington DC. 1949.

Manchester, William, Goodbye Darkness: A Memoir of the Pacific War Little Brown and Company, New York NY, 1979

Morison, Samuel Eliot. The Two Ocean War: A Short History of the United States Navy in the Second World War. An Atlantic Monthly Press Book, Boston MA 1963

Murray, Williamson and Millett, Allan R. A War to Be Won: Fighting the Second World War. The Belknap Press of Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. 2000.

Potter, E.B. Nimitz. Naval Institute Press. Annapolis, MD. 1976.

Rottman, Gordon R. Okinawa 1945: The Last Battle. Osprey Publishing, Oxford, United Kingdom, 2002.

Sledge, E.B. With the Old Breed at Peleliu and Okinawa. Presidio Press. Novato, CA. 1981. Oxford University Press Paperback, New York, NY 1990.

Spector, Ronald H. Eagle Against the Sun: The American War With Japan. The Free Press and Division of MacMillan, Inc. New York, NY 1985.

Toland, John. The Rising Sun: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1936-1945. Random House, New York, NY 1970.

Willmont, H.P. The Second World War in the Far East. John Keegan General Editor. Cassell Books, London, 1999.

Yahara, Hiromichi. The Battle for Okinawa. Introduction and Forward by Frank Gibney. Translated by Frank Pineau and Masatoshi Uehara. John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY. 1995

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December 8, 2018 · 23:59

The Heroic Navy Salvage Drivers of Pearl Harbor

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

Captain Homer Wallin directing Salvage Operations

“The scene to the newcomer was foreboding indeed. There was a general feeling of depression throughout the Pearl Harbor area when it was seen and firmly believed that none of the ships sunk would ever fight again.”

Of these were battleships, the USS Arizona sunk by a cataclysmic explosion, her broken hulk with her collapsed foremast the iconic symbol of the attack. USS Oklahoma was capsized on Battleship Row. USS Nevada was grounded and sunk off Hospital Point after an abortive attempt to sortie during the attack. USS California and USS West Virginia lay upright on the bottom of Pearl Harbor, their superstructure, distinctive cage masts and gun turrets visible above the oily water.

If you are interested, Captain Wallin’s complete report can be read here:

https://www.history.navy.mil/content/dam/nhhc/research/library/online-reading-room/war-and-conflict/wwii/pearl-harbor/pearlharborwallin/d767_92_w3.pdf

Peace

Padre Steve+

The Ships at Pearl Harbor, December 7th 1941: A Brief History of Each Ship

Friends of Padre Steve’s World,

However, in December 1941 the Pacific Fleet of the United States Navy was attacked at Pearl Harbor of the nation came together as it never had before. On the morning of December 7th 1941 there were over ninety ships of the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. While over twenty percent of these ships were sunk or damaged in the attack, almost all returned to service in the war. Likewise, many of the surviving shipswere lost in action during the war. Only two ships or craft remain of the ships present on December 7th 1941, the tug USS Hoga and the Coast Guard Cutter USCG Taney which is now a museum ship in Baltimore Maryland. The rest, lost in action, sunk as targets or scrapped. Of the gallant men who served as their crews during the war and at Pearl Harbor very few remain. They are part of what we now refer as the “Greatest Generation.”

The fact ids that only two of the ships present at the Pearl Harbor attack are still afloat, and the vast majority of their crews have passed away. Very few survivors of that day of infamy remain and it is our sad task to keep reminding the nation and the world of the price of arrogance.

This is the story of the ships that were at Pearl Harbor that fateful morning of December 7th 1941.

Peace

Padre Steve+

Battleships

USS Oklahoma

USS Pennsylvania

The USS Arizona before the attack

USS California transiting the Panama Canal

The USS West Virginia before the war and after her salvage and reconstruction

Heavy Cruisers

USS San Francisco CA-38

Light Cruisers

Raleigh (CL-7) Heavily damaged by torpedo, repaired served throughout war mainly in North Pacific . Decommissioned 1945 and scrapped 1946

Detroit (CL-8) Undamaged and got underway during attack. Mainly served in North Pacific and on convoy duty earning 6 battle stars for WWII service, decommissioned and sold for scrap 1946

USS Phoenix

The Argentine Navy Cruiser General Belgrano, the former USS Phoenix sinking during the Battle of the Falklands 1982

USS St. Louis

Destroyers

Allen (DD-66) Undamaged during attack spent war in local operations in Oahu area. Decommissioned 1945 and scrapped 1946

Chew (DD-106) Undamaged during attack and conducted local operations in Oahu operations for remainder or war, decommissioned 1945 and scrapped 1946.

USS Ward