Good Sunday Morning March 28.
I hope that your weekend has been going well.
Regards,
Skip.
This Day In Naval History – March 28, 2019
1814
British frigates HMS Phoebe and HMS Cherub capture the frigate USS Essex, commanded by Capt. David Porter, off Valparaiso, Chile after blockading the ship for six weeks.
1848
USS Supply, commanded by Lt. William F. Lynch, reaches the Bay of Acre, Israel, during an expedition to explore the Dead Sea and tracing the River Jordan to its source.
1944
Submarines USS Barb (SS 220) and USS Silversides (SS 236) sink Japanese cargo freighter Fukusei Maru off Rasa Island and Japanese cargo ship Kairyu Maru off Manokwari, New Guinea, respectively.
1944
USS Sitkoh Bay (CVE 86) is commissioned. She later supports the Iwo Jima and Okinawa campaigns during World War II and serves during the Korean War.
1953
USS Philippine Sea (CV 47), USS Princeton (CV 37), and USS Oriskany (CV 34) launch 216 sorties against a North Korean supply depot during the Korean War.
1991
The first U.S. Navy carrier battle groups return to CONUS following action during Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. The USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67) battle group returns to Norfolk, Va., and the USS Saratoga (CV 60) battle group returns to Mayport, Fla.
Thanks to CHINFO
No note from CHINFO on the weekend
But read the attachment from Barrel on the aviation life of John Lear
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This Day in Word History March 28
1774 Britain passes the Coercive Act against rebellious Massachusetts.
1854 Britain and France declare war on Russia.
1864 A group of Copperheads attack Federal soldiers in Charleston, Illinois. Five are killed and twenty wounded.
1885 The Salvation Army is officially organized in the United States.
1908 Automobile owners lobby Congress in support of a bill that calls for vehicle licensing and federal registration.
1910 The first seaplane takes off from water at Martiniques, France.
1917 The Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) is founded, Great Britain's first official service women.
1921 President Warren Harding names William Howard Taft as chief justice of the United States.
1930 Constantinople and Angora change their names to Istanbul and Ankara respectively.
1933 Nazis order a ban on all Jews in businesses, professions and schools.
1939 The Spanish Civil War ends as Madrid falls to Francisco Franco.
1941 English novelist Virginia Woolf throws herself into the River Ouse near her home in Sussex. Her body will not be found until April 18.
1941 The Italian fleet is routed by the British at the Battle of Battle of Cape Matapan
1942 A British ship, the HMS Campbeltown, a Lend-Lease American destroyer, which was specifically rammed into a German occupied dry-dock in France, explodes, knocking the area out of action for the German battleship Tirpitz.
1945 Germany launches the last of its V-2 rockets against England.
1946 Juan Peron is elected President of Argentina. He will hold the office for six years.
1962 The U.S. Air Force announces research into the use of lasers to intercept missiles and satellites.
1969 Dwight D. Eisenhower dies at Walter Reed General Hospital in Washington, D.C.
1979 A major accident occurs at Pennsylvania's Three Mile Island nuclear power plant
1986 The U.S. Senate passes $100 million aid package for the Nicaraguan contras.
1990 Jesse Owens receives the Congressional Gold Medal from President George Bush.
1999 An American Stealth F117 Nighthawk is shot down over northern Yugoslavia during NATO air strikes.
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Awesome! …brings back many fond memories of chasing clouds
French Navy Rafale Formation Flight ....
thanks to Doctor Rich
Thanks to Jim via George M. ….
Hi George -
If you haven't seen it already, here's a wonderful 10-minute video of French fighter pilots in formation; music is good too. Watch it on "full screen".
Some of the most beautiful sights I've seen have been while flying. Hard to believe we did some of the same maneuvers as student pilots in Air Force T-38s back in the day.
Enjoy! Stay safe and healthy.
Cheers! Jim
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEp-ejKyXVw
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Thanks to Outlaw and Cowboy
A 102 year old pilot who's an inspiration to all us oldtimers. After watching this, I feel like strapping in again!
Outlaw out...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oB9EYOtCOYs
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Thanks to Art
Below is some fodder, if appropriate and worthy for your readers. Especially, if they like me were personally and professionally impacted by the OPM security breach that occurred a few years back. Although I was aware of the continuous cyber hacks against US agencies during those years, I was not aware that the OPM had participated in seminars in China. Talk about an open invitation.
s/f
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Thanks to Dr. Rich
Dog stops traffic to save owner having a seizure - CNN Video
https://www.cnn.com/videos/health/2021/03/26/dog-saves-owner-having-seizure-vpx.ctv
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear
Sunday, 28 March 2021... Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
LOOKING BACK 55-YEARS to the Vietnam Air War... 28 March 1966...
From the archives of Pete Fey's rollingthunderremembered.com...
"An Unarmed Run Around the Red River Valley—Guts Plus"
http://www.rollingthunderremembered.com/28-march-1966-rolling-thunder-remembered/
REMINDER: Monday, 29 March 2021 is National Vietnam War Veterans Day...
More info: https:militarybenefits.info/national-Vietnam-war-veterans-day
Vietnam Air Losses
Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
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This Day in U S Military History March 28
1814 – HMS Phoebe and Cherub capture USS Essex off Valparaiso, Chile. Before capture, Essex had captured 24 British prizes during the War of 1812. Two-thirds of Essex's crew is killed but 13-year old Midshipman David Farragut survives.
1942 – A British ship, the HMS Capbeltown, a Lend-Lease American destroyer, which was specifically rammed into a German occupied dry-dock in France, exploded, knocking the area out of action for the German battleship Tirpitz.
1945 – US naval forces, including TF58 and TF52, continue air strikes on Okinawa while TF54 continues bombarding the island. Japanese Kamikaze and submarine attacks continue.
1953 – U.S. Air Force Colonel James K. Johnson, 4th Fighter-Interceptor Wing, became the 29th ace of the Korean War.
1969 – Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th president of the United States and one of the most highly regarded American generals of World War II, dies in Washington, D.C., at the age of 78. Born in Denison, Texas, in 1890, Eisenhower graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1915, and after World War I he steadily rose in the peacetime ranks of the U.S. Army. After the U.S. entrance into World War II, he was appointed commanding general of the European theater of operations and oversaw U.S. troops massing in Great Britain. In 1942, Eisenhower, who had never commanded troops in the field, was put in charge of Operation Torch, the Anglo-American landings in Morocco and Algeria. As supreme commander of a mixed force of Allied nationalities, services, and equipment, Eisenhower designed a system of unified command and rapidly won the respect of his British and Canadian subordinates. From North Africa, he successfully directed the invasions of Tunisia, Sicily, and Italy, and in January 1944 was appointed supreme Allied commander of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of northwestern Europe. Although Eisenhower left much of the specific planning for the actual Allied landing in the hands of his capable staff, such as British Field Marshall Montgomery, he served as a brilliant organizer and administrator both before and after the successful invasion. After the war, he briefly served as president of Columbia University before returning to military service in 1951 as supreme commander of the combined land and air forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Pressure on Eisenhower to run for U.S. president was great, however, and in the spring of 1952 he relinquished his NATO command to run for president on the Republican ticket. In November 1952, "Ike" won a resounding victory in the presidential elections and in 1956 was reelected in a landslide. A popular president, he oversaw a period of great economic growth in the United States and deftly navigated the country through increasing Cold War tension on the world stage. In 1961, he retired with his wife, Mamie Doud Eisenhower, to his farm in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. He died in 1969 and was buried on a family plot in Abilene, Kansas.
1993 – The last A-6E Intruder departed from Marine Corps service. Marine All Weather Attack Squadron 332 transferred the last Marine A-6E to St. Augustine, Florida, and prepared for the squadron's transition to the F/A-18D and eventual movement from Cherry Point to Beaufort, South Carolina.
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
WILSON, WILLIAM
Rank and organization: Sergeant, Company I, 4th U.S. Cavalry. Place and date: At Colorado Valley, Tex., 28 March 1872. Entered service at: Philadelphia, Pa. Birth: Philadelphia, Pa. Date of issue: 27 April 1872. Second award. Citation: In pursuit of a band of cattle thieves from New Mexico.
*HEDRICK, CLINTON M.
Rank and organization: Technical Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company I, 194th Glider Infantry, 17th Airborne Division. Place and date: Near Lembeck, Germany, 27-28 March 1945. Entered service at: Riverton, W. Va. Birth: Cherrygrove, W. Va. G.O. No.: 89, 19 October 1945. Citation: He displayed extraordinary heroism and gallantry in action on 2728 March 1945, in Germany. Following an airborne landing near Wesel, his unit was assigned as the assault platoon for the assault on Lembeck. Three times the landing elements were pinned down by intense automatic weapons fire from strongly defended positions. Each time, T/Sgt. Hedrick fearlessly charged through heavy fire, shooting his automatic rifle from his hip. His courageous action so inspired his men that they reduced the enemy positions in rapid succession. When 6 of the enemy attempted a surprise, flanking movement, he quickly turned and killed the entire party with a burst of fire. Later, the enemy withdrew across a moat into Lembeck Castle. T/Sgt. Hedrick, with utter disregard for his own safety, plunged across the drawbridge alone in pursuit. When a German soldier, with hands upraised, declared the garrison wished to surrender, he entered the castle yard with 4 of his men to accept the capitulation. The group moved through a sally port, and was met by fire from a German self-propelled gun. Although mortally wounded, T/Sgt. Hedrick fired at the enemy gun and covered the withdrawal of his comrades. He died while being evacuated after the castle was taken. His great personal courage and heroic leadership contributed in large measure to the speedy capture of Lembeck and provided an inspiring example to his comrades.
*MATTHEWS, DANIEL P.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Marine Corps, Company F, 2d Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division (Rein.). Place and date: Vegas Hill, Korea, 28 March 1953. Entered service at. Van Nuys, Calif. Born: 31 December 1931, Van Nuys, Calif. Award presented: 29 March 19S4. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as a squad leader of Company F, in action against enemy aggressor forces. Participating in a counterattack against a firmly entrenched and well-concealed hostile force which had repelled 6 previous assaults on a vital enemy-held outpost far forward of the main line of resistance Sgt. Matthews fearlessly advanced in the attack until his squad was pinned down by a murderous sweep of fire from an enemy machine gun located on the peak of the outpost. Observing that the deadly fire prevented a corpsman from removing a wounded man lying in an open area fully exposed to the brunt of the devastating gunfire, he worked his way to the base of the hostile machine gun emplacement, leaped onto the rock fortification surrounding the gun and, taking the enemy by complete surprise, single-handedly charged the hostile emplacement with his rifle. Although severely wounded when the enemy brought a withering hail of fire to bear upon him, he gallantly continued his valiant l-man assault and, firing his rifle with deadly effectiveness, succeeded in killing 2 of the enemy, routing a third, and completely silencing the enemy weapon, thereby enabling his comrades to evacuate the stricken marine to a safe position. Succumbing to his wounds before aid could reach him, Sgt. Matthews, by his indomitable fighting spirit, courageous initiative, and resolute determination in the face of almost certain death, served to inspire all who observed him and was directly instrumental in saving the life of his wounded comrade. His great personal valor reflects the highest credit upon himself and enhances the finest traditions of the U.S. Naval Service. He gallantly gave his life for his country.
INGRAM, ROBERT R.
For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as Corpsman with Company C, First Battalion, Seventh Marines against elements of a North Vietnam Aggressor (NVA) battalion in Quang Ngai Province Republic of Vietnam on 28 March 1966. Petty Officer Ingram accompanied the point platoon as it aggressively dispatched an outpost of an NVA battalion. The momentum of the attack rolled off a ridge line down a tree covered slope to a small paddy and a village beyond. Suddenly, the village tree line exploded with an intense hail of automatic rifle fire from approximately 100 North Vietnamese regulars. In mere moments, the platoon ranks were decimated. Oblivious to the danger, Petty Officer Ingram crawled across the bullet spattered terrain to reach a downed Marine. As he administered aid, a bullet went through the palm of his hand. Calls for "CORPSMAN" echoed across the ridge. Bleeding, he edged across the fire swept landscape, collecting ammunition from the dead and administering aid to the wounded. Receiving two more wounds before realizing the third wound was life-threatening, he looked for a way off the face of the ridge, but again he heard the call for corpsman and again, he resolutely answered. Though severely wounded three times, he rendered aid to those incapable until he finally reached the right flank of the platoon. While dressing the head wound of another corpsman, he sustained his fourth bullet wound. From sixteen hundred hours until just prior to sunset, Petty Officer Ingram pushed, pulled, cajoled, and doctored his Marines. Enduring the pain from his many wounds and disregarding the probability of his demise, Petty Officer Ingram's intrepid actions saved many lives that day. By his indomitable fighting spirit, daring initiative, and unfaltering dedications to duty, Petty Officer Ingram reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS for March 28, 2021 FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS. THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
28 March
1913: Lts Thomas DeWitt Milling and William C. Sherman flew a Burgess H to a two-man duration and distance record of 4 hours 22 minutes for 220 miles from Texas City to San Antonio. (5)
1935: Dr. Robert Goddard launched the first rocket with gyroscopic controls to a height of 4,800 feet and a distance of 13,000 feet. It reached 550 MPH. (5) 1941: The Army asked for black volunteers to man a pursuit squadron. The 99th Pursuit Squadron, the first black fighter unit, activated earlier on 22 March at Tuskegee, Ala. (4)
1944: Operation STRANGLE. Fifteenth Air Force flew its first 1,000-ton air raid against communications targets in Italy to cut supply support to German troops in central Italy. Through 11 May, the Mediterranean Allied Air Force had supplied 50,000 sorties to drop 26,000 tons of bombs on enemy lines of communication in Italy. (24)
1946: Northrop Aircraft received development contracts for the Snark surface-to-surface, subsonic, intercontinental nuclear cruise missile and the Boojum medium- to long-range (1,500-to 5,000- mile) surface-to-surface supersonic cruise missile. (6) (12)
1948: Operation DRIP. Boeing and Air Materiel Command studied the British hose method for refueling B-29s. In a test, two modified B-29s transferred 400 gallons of water from one bomber to another. The test helped the USAF to decide to modify 80 B-29s for inflight refueling, 40 as tankers, and 40 as receivers. (18)
1950: TAC completed its evaluation of the B-61A (later TM-61A) Matador missile. This allowed the system to begin full-scale development through November 1952, when it started flight tests. (5)
1952: First F-86F Sabre delivered to TAC for the 21st and 50th Fighter-Bomber Wings. (5)
1961: President John F. Kennedy asked Congress to: (1) put 50 percent of SAC's bombers on ground alert, (2) speed up the B-47 phaseout, (3) produce the Skybolt to replace the Hound Dog missile, (4) defer three Mobile Minuteman squadrons for three squadrons in silos, (5) phase out the Snark program, (6) reduce the Titan force by two squadrons, and (7) reduce the B-70A Valkyrie program to a R&D effort. Congress approved these measures. (6)
1962: The US Army formed its first helicopter-borne cavalry troop at Fort Knox, Ky., to perform scouting and reconnaissance. (24)
1963: North American Aviation ended production of the Hound Dog missile. (6)
1964: Operation HELPING HAND. Responding to a massive earthquake near Anchorage, Alaska, the USAF used C-124s, C-123s, C-130s, and C-97s to deliver 1,850 tons of relief supplies and equipment. Two B-58s from the 43 BMW at Carswell AFB conducted low-level photography over Alaska's earthquake area. The B-58 round-trip flight covered 5,571 miles. (1) (21)
1966: The USAF Special Weapons Center achieved the first completely successful mid-air recovery of an Air-launched, Air-Recoverable Rocket. In the test, an USAF F-4C launched an ALARR at 44,000 feet and recovered it with a JC-130B at 5,000 feet over White Sands Missile Range. (16) (26)
1973: The last PACAF aircraft left South Vietnam. The first PACAF aircraft deployed to South Vietnam on 20 October 1961. (16) (26)
1979: The first two F-4G Wild Weasel aircraft in USAFE arrived at Spangdahlem AB. (16)
1986: The USAF terminated the T-46A program. (12) 1999: The National Guard Bureau asked Nebraska's 155th Air Refueling Wing to help in Operation Allied Force. Less than 60 hours later, the wing had personnel and three KC-135 tankers at Rhine Main AB, Germany. (32)
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Two years ago when H-Gram 27 came out I became somewhat emotional as I read the personal note by Admiral Cox as I read his comments highlighted below.
Thanks to NHHC…This is long but Admiral Cox has done an outstanding job in providing insights into what happened in those days in 1942 when the US was fighting back against tremendous odds and American sailors and Marines were displaying such courage and determination. His personal thoughts are highlighted below as he sums up what happened the late summer and Fall of 1942
H-Gram: 027: Wasp, Hornet Discoveries
In his latest H-Gram, NHHC Director Sam Cox pauses from tracking the anniversaries of notable World War I, World War II, and Vietnam War naval history events. Instead, he discusses the exciting discoveries of lost WWII-era aircraft carriers USS Wasp and USS Hornet, and other ships sunk in "Iron Bottom Sound" during the Guadalcanal campaign. Over the course of the last several years, NHHC and R/V Petrel have established a "trusted collaborative relationship." For the first time, NHHC was invited to participate in the expedition of Wasp. Director Cox was on board Petrel for the discovery and admits that "seeing an aircraft carrier on the bottom of the ocean is quite a sobering experience." Nearly 5,000 Sailors died in the battles where Wasp and Hornet were discovered, including Rear Adm. Daniel Callaghan, Rear Adm. Norman Scott, and all five Sullivan brothers. To learn more, read H-Gram 027 at NHHC's Director's Corner.
H-Gram 027: There Are No Headstones at Sea—The Search for Wasp and Hornet
High on a windswept bluff above the Pacific at San Francisco's Land's End stands an American flag and a memorial to the heavy cruiser USS San Francisco (CA-38). It is overlooked by most visitors because on the other side of the parking lot is a spectacular view of the Golden Gate Bridge, under which that battered cruiser returned, under her own power, despite having been hit 45 times during the brutal night battle off Guadalcanal on Friday the 13th, November 1942. I, however, never miss an opportunity to pay my respects at the memorial, for although San Francisco returned from the battle with a Presidential Unit Citation, 110 of her crewmen (including 7 Marines) did not.
The memorial consists of the bridge wings of San Francisco, removed after the battle, and almost sold for $350 in scrap value at the end of the war. The port bridge wing is perforated with holes large and small, inflicted by the Japanese battleship Hiei and other ships. It is profoundly emotionally sobering to know that the shells and shrapnel that blasted through that metal killed Rear Admiral Daniel Callaghan, Captain Cassin Young, and every other officer on the bridge except Lieutenant Commander Bruce McCandless, who chose to keep San Francisco in the battle rather than disengage, despite his serious wounds. Other shells killed the previously wounded executive officer, the acting executive officer, and every officer senior to McCandless but one, Lieutenant Commander Herbert Schonland, who, as the damage control officer, stayed below to keep the damaged cruiser from capsizing.
Rear Admiral Callaghan would be awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor, along with three of San Francisco's crew: McCandless, Schonland, and Boatswain's Mate First Class Reinhardt Keppler. Captain Young, who had been awarded a Medal of Honor for heroism during the attack on Pearl Harbor, would receive a Navy Cross along with 31 others of his crew (21 posthumously including Young); 21 Silver Stars were also awarded. Despite this record of extraordinary valor and ultimate sacrifice, an ever-decreasing number of people today have any clue of the price the U.S. Navy paid in the early days of World War II to buy the time for a nation that was unprepared for war, so that the U.S. could achieve ultimate victory in that terrible war, so that we could all have the freedom we take for granted today.
The San Francisco memorial is oriented so that it points along a great circle course to the island of Guadalcanal. The largest town on Guadalcanal, Honiara, is now the capital of the independent Solomon Islands, in a relatively isolated area of the South Pacific northeast of Australia. As I arrived at Honiara International Airport (formerly Henderson Field, the name still on the tower) on 1 January 2019, it was clear that Guadalcanal was not quite as far off the beaten path as it was in 1942 when Imperial Japan and the United States waged a brutal months-long campaign for control of Henderson Field. From the airfield I could see "Bloody Ridge," one of several immortalized places on the island where U.S. Marines and, later, U.S. Army troops, fought valiantly and at great cost to prevent repeated Japanese counter-attacks from regaining control of the airfield that the Japanese had originally begun to build. I could also see Mount Austen, site of a modern Japanese memorial to the over 20,000 Japanese soldiers and sailors who died in vain trying to re-take the airfield.
As I stood on the bridge of the research vessel Petrel with its sweeping view and my first sight of the waters north of Guadalcanal, I admit to being overcome with emotion, literally choking up and barely able to speak for several minutes. Although the sea was calm, the sky overcast but not threatening, a typical late tropical afternoon, I knew that unseen under those placid waters were about 30 U.S. Navy ships, and another 10 or so in waters adjacent to Guadalcanal. Almost 5,000 U.S. Navy Sailors had died in five major night surface battles, two carrier versus carrier duels, and dozens of smaller but deadly naval battles for control of the sea, and countless dogfights for control of the skies over the sea. From where I was standing, in about a 60-degree arc, I could clearly see the sites of all five surface battles: Savo Island, the worst defeat for the U.S. Navy at sea in history (9 August 1942); Cape Esperance, a narrow U.S. victory (11–12 October); the suicidal bloodbath for both sides of 13 November and the costly but decisive U.S. naval victory on 14–15 November; and Tassafaronga (30 November), yet another terrible U.S. defeat, but which did not change the outcome of the campaign. So many U.S. and Japanese ships were lost in these waters that they became known as Iron Bottom Sound.
I had been invited aboard the Petrel to participate in their search for two U.S. aircraft carriers lost in the campaign for Guadalcanal: the USS Wasp (CV-7) and the USS Hornet(CV-8), and, time permitting, other sunken U.S. and Japanese ships. To be frank, it would have been enough just for the opportunity to see Iron Bottom Sound, and pay my respects to those thousands of Sailors who left such a legacy of honor, courage, and commitment that our Navy strives to live up to today. But, the chance to be the first to see aircraft carriers unseen for 77 years was an opportunity I couldn't let pass.
Petrel is a privately funded, highly sophisticated ocean research ship, equipped with state-of-the art autonomous and remote underwater research equipment capable of search of the ocean floor down to 19,000 feet and of covering a larger search area faster than previous research ships. It also had better internet connectivity via satellite than I have from my desktop at work, which I suppose would be expected given the ship was funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who sadly passed away last year. Mr. Allen did live to see his dream of finding the lost heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis (CA-35), sunk with heavy loss of life in the last weeks of World War II. Petrel continues to fulfill his wish of honoring his father's World War II naval service by locating other U.S. ships lost in action.
The U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command's Underwater Archaeology Branch pays close attention to any effort to find sunken U.S. Navy vessels. Under customary international maritime law, sunken naval vessels remain sovereign property, and the "right of salvage" or the "right of finds" for sunken merchant ships or commercial vessels do not apply. The U.S. Navy retains title to all sunken ships and aircraft wrecks (including terrestrial) in perpetuity unless specifically legally divested (the Civil War ironclad USS Monitor sunk off Cape Hattaras in 1863 is a rare example of this). In addition, the U.S. Navy has traditionally viewed a sunken naval vessel as a "fit and final resting place," for U.S. Navy Sailors lost at sea due to the enemy or the elements, and this has recently been codified by a U.S. Navy regulation (at NHHC's instigation). Many of these wrecks are "war graves," or otherwise represent the last resting place of Sailors who gave their lives in the service of our country, and, as such, deserve to be treated with the utmost respect and decorum—they are literally hallowed sites as much as the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or Arlington National Cemetery. In addition, many of these sunken craft are hazardous due to unexploded ordnance or risk environmental contamination due to trapped fuel oil, as well as other potential dangers.
In 2004, the "customary" maritime law was legally codified by the U.S. Congress under the "Sunken Military Craft Act (SMCA)," for U.S. warships, naval auxiliaries, or other shipping operating under U.S. government control in non-commercial service (e.g., merchant ships carrying U.S. war material in convoy) as well as military aircraft. The act applies to U.S. ships that meet the definition of "military craft" anywhere in the world, but applies only to U.S. citizens. That is, U.S. sunken military craft outside U.S. territorial waters are not protected by the SMCA from salvage activity by foreign entities, although "customary" maritime law still applies to the extent that the foreign entity chooses to respect it.
Nation-states generally do respect customary maritime law (which was also codified under the United Nations Law of the Sea Convention, which the United States signed but has not yet ratified). However, some salvagers conduct operations either unbeknownst to nations or outside any national jurisdiction. For example, within the last several years, British and Dutch warship wrecks lost during the Battle of the Java Sea in February 1942 such as the British heavy cruiser HMS Exeter, have been blown apart by explosives and the pieces brought up by claw crane to barges (most likely from China), with human remains buried in unmarked mass graves ashore and the remains of the ship used as scrap (metal from shipwrecks that occurred before the advent of atmospheric nuclear explosions appears to have a market value worth the effort). In the case of Java Sea, such salvage operations are believed to have been conducted without the knowledge of official Indonesian government authorities.
The U.S. has lost two ships to this illicit activity in the Java Sea, the destroyer USS Pope (DD-225) and the submarine USS Perch (SS-176), with the saving grace being that neither vessel went down with their crews (their hell began in Japanese prisoner of war camps). NHHC continues to work closely with the U.S. Country Team in Jakarta to have Indonesia declare the wreck of the heavy cruiser USS Houston (CA-30) a protected maritime conservation zone so that she does not meet the same fate. Houston was lost on 1 March 1942 along with the Australian light cruiser HMAS Perth in a heroic night action against an overwhelming Japanese force in the Sunda Strait; approximately 600 of Houston's crew went down with the ship and are likely entombed within. Many others died in the water or in Japanese captivity.
Throughout all previous incarnations of the command, NHHC has kept a database of known or estimated positions of sunken U.S. naval vessels or aircraft as a matter of course and for the sake of history. It includes about 3,000 shipwrecks of all sizes dating to the Continental Navy plus 14,000 (and counting) aircraft wrecks. This database activity now has additional impetus as NHHC is the U.S. Navy's executive agent for administering SMCA, and there are severe civil penalties (up to $100,000 per day) that can be levied on any U.S. citizen who deliberately disturbs a wreck covered by the act. In order to prove any such case in court, however, it is important to know the exact location and condition of wrecks in order to prove disturbance. Although Indonesia came under criticism for failing to protect the Java Sea wrecks, the reality is that even the U.S. Navy lacks the resources to monitor the condition of most of sunken naval vessels. Working with legitimate private researchers such as the Petrel, or receiving reports from responsible recreational divers, is generally the only way NHHC can learn of the location and condition or ongoing disturbance of U.S. Navy wrecks.
Under SMCA, it is perfectly legal for anyone to dive on a U.S. Navy wreck anywhere in the world (consistent with local laws) so long as there is no intent to disturb the wreck. If there is a valid scientific, educational, archaeological, environmental, or other U.S. Government purpose, NHHC has authority to issue a permit to a requestor for controlled disturbance of a wreck, which so far has been extremely rare. (Special policies are in place in the case of supporting activity by the Defense POW/MIA Accountability Agency—DPAA.)
Initially, Mr. Allen's group (operating under his corporation, Vulcan, Inc.) began hunting shipwrecks in 2015 using his private yacht, Octopus (which was equipped with very sophisticated underwater search gear), and relying entirely on their own independent research. Octopus's survey of U.S. and Japanese ships in Iron Bottom Sound and the location of the Japanese super-battleship Musashi in the Philippines attracted NHHC attention. It quickly became apparent that Vulcan's Subsea Team was a very responsible organization, with exceptional capability, that treated the wrecks with the utmost respect, with no intent other than to find the wrecks and then publicize the courage and sacrifice of those U.S. Sailors who served aboard. (The team also had the wherewithal to get these stories of U.S. Navy valor into widely disseminated media such as the New York Times and CBS and not just into an H-gram.) In addition, Vulcan's Subsea Team voluntarily shared positional and condition information (including extensive video and photos) with NHHC, and made clear they had no intent to publicize the precise coordinates of the wrecks. This began a collaborative relationship between Vulcan and NHHC, at no cost to the U.S. Navy other than staff time I chose to commit to the effort (which is a sunk cost). I would also note that NHHC collaborates with a few other research entities, such as Bob Ballard—so long as the research is legitimate, there is no intent to disturb the wreck, and the exact location is not publicized.
With the purchase of Petrel in 2016, and the desire by Mr. Allen to find the wreck of the USS Indianapolis (after multiple previous efforts by others had failed), the vessel's underwater search group approached NHHC for additional data to supplement the considerable amount of data they had already amassed. As director of NHHC, I had previously directed NHHC historians and underwater archaeologists to do a "deep dive" (in the records) regarding the loss of Indianapolis. As a result of that, along with modern wind/current drift computer modeling courtesy of the U.S. Naval Academy Oceanography Department, NHHC determined that the actual position of Indianapolis' loss was about 40 nautical miles west-southwest of the "official" U.S. Navy position used in the court of inquiry and court martial of Captain Charles McVay in 1945. I directed this information be shared with Petrel. Given her exceptional capability, she would have eventually found Indianapolis without NHHC's help, and, in fact, the actual position of Indianapolis was about the same distance west but a bit further to the north than NHHC's estimated position (but a lot closer than the "official" Navy position). Nevertheless, the successful search of the Indianapolis, Vulcan's care in managing the release of information (enabling NHHC to initiate contact with the Indianapolis Survivor's Association so that the remaining few survivors learned of the discovery before it hit the media), and the no-cost sharing of data from Petrel established a solid foundation for a trusted relationship that continues to this day.
The Vulcan Group prefers to keep future operations by Petrel as proprietary information and does not divulge positional data of the ship while underway. However, since the Indianapolis search, Petrel has shared future plans with NHHC. During 2018, Petrel located the aircraft carrier USS Lexington (CV-2), lost during the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942, the light anti-aircraft cruiser USS Juneau (CL-52), sunk by Japanese submarine I-26after being severely damaged in the 13 November 1942 battle off Guadalcanal, and the light cruiser USS Helena (CL-50), sunk during the Battle of Kula Gulf in July 1943. The 2018 expedition searched for, but was unable to locate, the destroyer USS Strong (DD-467), sunk in the southern Kula Gulf by what is believed to be the longest successful torpedo shot in history (11 nautical miles) by a Japanese Type-93 "Long Lance" torpedo. Petrel would subsequently locate Strong on 26 February 2019.
In late 2018, Petrel's team issued an invitation to NHHC to participate aboard the vessel in a search for the lost aircraft carriers USS Wasp (CV-7) and USS Hornet (CV-8), and other ships in the Guadalcanal area, time permitting. Under the RHIP ("rank has its privileges") principle, I took the first underway period out of Honiara from 2–16 January, and NHHC's long-time director of underwater archaeology, Bob Neyland, took the second two-week underway period. Upon arrival on board Petrel, I reacquainted with Mr. Robert Kraft, the head of Petrel's "A.T.U." Unit ("All Things Underwater"); Mr. Paul Mayer, senior researcher and jack of many trades; and Ms. Janet Greenlee, their superb public outreach leader. On board with me were also Mr. Ed Caesar, an award-winning (Foreign Press Association 2014 Journalist of the Year) international correspondent doing a story for the New York Times Magazine, and international award–winning professional photographer David Maurice Smith.
The initial plan was to go after Hornet first due to her more extensive battle record (launching the Doolittle Raid on Japan; participating in the pivotal Battle of Midway, in which her entire torpedo squadron was shot down in one of the most valiant attacks against overwhelming odds in U.S. naval history; and her ultimate loss in the Battle of Santa Cruz in October 1942, during which her planes severely damaged the Japanese carrier Shokaku and her guns shot down many Japanese aircraft). Meteora, the goddess of weather, had other ideas. Petrel had very sophisticated tools for tracking weather and sea states. The autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) could be launched and operate in almost any weather, but the manned Zodiac boat necessary to retrieve it when it surfaced could not be operated safely in the predicted conditions. The weather in the area of Wasp's sinking was only marginally better, but expected to improve sooner, so Robert Kraft made the decision to go for Wasp first (no plan survives contact with the enemy).
Wasp was a one-of-a-kind aircraft carrier, with her tonnage limited by treaty restrictions. She carried about the same number of aircraft (70–80) as the previous Yorktown-class (Yorktown (CV-5), Enterprise (CV-6), and Hornet (CV-8), but was smaller, with less redundancy and less compartmentation to save weight. She was the first carrier to have a deck-edge elevator. Upon the outbreak of World War II, the less capable Wasp was intended to operate in the Atlantic, while Yorktown and Hornet were transferred to the Pacific. During this period, Wasp conducted two aircraft ferry missions, flying off British Spitfire fighters to bolster the defense of beleaguered Malta in the Mediterranean (and recovering one Spitfire—not a carrier aircraft—aboard that had engine trouble after launch, with a few feet to spare). However, with the loss of Lexington (CV-2) at Coral Sea and Yorktown at Midway, Wasp was rushed around to the Pacific.
At the time of the U.S. landings on Guadalcanal on 7 August 1942, Wasp provided air support, along with Enterprise and Saratoga (CV-3), while Hornet defended Pearl Harbor from potential Japanese attack. During the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942, Wasp was out of position, having been ordered to go south to refuel, and missed the battle. Enterprise was badly damaged in the battle and had to return to Pearl Harbor for repairs and was replaced by Hornet. On 28 August, Saratoga was hit by a Japanese submarine torpedo (for the second time in the war) from I-26 and put out of action for several months, leaving Wasp and Hornet as the only two operational U.S. aircraft carriers in the Pacific. (I-26 would later sink the light cruiser Juneau on 13 November 1942.)
For the first weeks of September 1942, Wasp and Hornet operated south of Guadalcanal, close enough to provide support to the Marines ashore on short notice if necessary, but outside the range of land-based Japanese bombers. The Japanese countered by flooding that operating area with at least nine submarines. On 15 September, Task Force 18 (TF 18), centered on Wasp, and TF-17, centered on Hornet, were providing air cover to a convoy transporting the 7th Marine Regiment (about 4,000 Marines) to reinforce the Marines already on Guadalcanal.
At about 1445, just after Wasp completed a launch and recovery cycle of aircraft and a particularly vulnerable time, the Japanese submarine I-19 penetrated Wasp's escort screen undetected and fired all six of her bow torpedoes at the carrier from the relatively short range of just under 1,000 yards. At least two and possibly three of the torpedoes struck Wasp on her starboard side forward, immediately igniting an intense conflagration and causing a 15-degree starboard list. Among other things, the explosions knocked out the fire mains, so the crew had no effective means to fight the fires that immediately spread.
The U.S. Navy had learned numerous hard lessons in damage control from the loss of Lexington at Coral Sea (such as filling aviation fuel lines with inert gas) and these lessons had been incorporated and had initially saved Yorktown at Midway, despite multiple bomb and torpedo hits, until she was later sunk by a Japanese submarine I-168, and they had saved Enterprise during the Battle of Eastern Solomons. Unfortunately, many of these preventive measures required warning of an inbound air strike in order to implement. In the case of I-19's torpedoes, there were only a few seconds of warning.
Wasp was quickly rocked by secondary explosions from stored bombs and fuel (the third torpedo hit may or may not have actually been a secondary explosion). These were followed by a massive explosion at 1500 and within about 20 minutes it was apparent that saving the ship was impossible. Captain Forrest Sherman gave the order to abandon ship. It took about 40 minutes for the crew to go over the side and Sherman was the last living person to go into the water. (Sherman would be awarded a Navy Cross and a Purple Heart for his efforts to save his ship.)
Following the massive explosion on Wasp, Rear Admiral Norman Scott, embarked on San Francisco, assumed command of TF-18, believing that Rear Admiral Leigh Noyes on Waspwould likely have been killed, so violent was the explosion. Noyes was only burned, but with all radio communication destroyed on Wasp, Scott's decision was correct. (One of the most famous photos of Wasp on fire was taken from San Francisco.) Noyes would be relieved of command and criticized, somewhat unfairly, for operating the carriers for too long in the same vicinity, increasing the risk of submarine attack.
Fortunately, the burning Wasp remained afloat for hours, which enabled a relatively orderly abandon ship, and the great majority of Wasp's 2,247-man crew were rescued by the carrier's escorts, including the Laffey (DD-459), Landsdowne (DD-486), and other destroyers. Those who were killed included 25 officers, 150 men (including 4 Marines and 42 aircraft squadron personnel), and one war correspondent, Jack Singer (last seen sitting at his typewriter) for a total of 176 dead plus about 175 wounded. Captain Sherman's original report, filed in December 1942, gave a total of 193 killed (plus the journalist) and that number has been used in almost every account since, although one account (Richard Frank's very well-researched Guadalcanal) gives 173 (plus the journalist). However, very recent research by NHHC historian Bob Cressman confirms 176 (including the journalist)—Frank's account missed two Marines. This just goes to show there is always something new to learn in history.
Survivors included Rear Admiral Noyes and Captain Sherman, who went on to be the youngest Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) at that time (1949–51), and, unfortunately, the youngest to ever die in office (of a heart attack). Benedict Semmes, Jr., went on to serve as a vice admiral and president of the Naval War College in the 1970s. Lieutenant David McCampbell, a landing signal officer (LSO) on Wasp, jumped into the water from the LSO platform and went on to be the U.S. Navy's all-time leading "ace," with 34 Japanese downed aircraft to his credit (a record 9 of them in one mission.)
Meanwhile, one of the torpedoes that missed Wasp passed directly under Landsdowne(DD-486) without exploding, and Landsdowne radioed a warning as the torpedo headed for the Hornet Task Force. At least three of the torpedoes that missed Wasp travelled about five miles into Hornet's screen, one passing too close to the carrier for comfort. Another passed directly under the destroyer Mustin (DD-413) without exploding before hitting the new fast battleship North Carolina (BB-55,) killing five Sailors and blowing a 32 by 18 foot–hole in the ship, which necessitated the forward ammunition magazine be flooded as a precaution. Although still capable of making 25 knots, North Carolina required extensive repair and was out of action for two months. One of Hornet's escorting destroyers, O'Brien (DD-415), successfully dodged one of the torpedoes only to be hit in the bow by another. Although no crewmen were killed, the damage was severe enough that O'Brien broke apart and sank a month later after transiting over 2,800 miles attempting to reach Pearl Harbor for repair; her entire crew was rescued.
Hitting three ships with at least four of six torpedoes fired in a single spread makes Lieutenant Commander Takakazu Kinashi's attack arguably the most effective by a submarine of all time. Wasp's escort destroyers dropped 30 depth charges on I-19, but she escaped, only to later be sunk with all hands by destroyer USS Radford (DD-446) in November 1943.
For many years, the torpedo hits on North Carolina and O'Brien were attributed to a second submarine, I-15; however, Japanese records confirm I-19 fired all six. I-15 did, however, witness the destroyer Landsdowne as she was ordered to scuttle Wasp with a spread of torpedoes at 2100 on 15 September. (Of interest, both I-15 and I-19 were of a class of submarines that was equipped with a hangar and a float plane, and a plane from sister submarine I-25 bombed Oregon twice with incendiary bombs in September 1942, the only air attacks on U.S. soil by foreign aircraft.)
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Thanks to Dr. Rich
Thanks to James ….
C_Virus Warning
New Unstoppable Virus...
............. AGEING ............
I thought you would want to know about this e-mail virus.
Even the most advanced programs from Norton or McAfee cannot take care of this one.
It appears to affect those who were born prior to 1955.
SYMPTOMS:
1. Causes you to send the same e-mail twice.
Done that!
2. Causes you to send a blank e-mail!
That too!
3. Causes you to send e-mail to the wrong person.
Yep!
4. Causes you to send it back to the person who sent it to you.
Aha!
5. Causes you to forget to attach the attachment.
Well well!
6. Causes you to hit "SEND" before you've finished.
Oh, no not again!
7. Causes you to hit "DELETE" instead of "SEND."
And I just hate that!
8. Causes you to hit "SEND" when you should "DELETE."
Oh Crap!
IT'S CALLED THE
" C-NILE VIRUS. "
Have I already sent this to you?
Or did you send it to me?
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