The List 6135 TGB
Good Sunday Morning June 19
Happy Father's day to all..
Regards,
skip
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On This Day in Naval and Marine Corps History
June 19
1864 During the Civil War, USS Kearsarge, commanded by Capt. J.A. Winslow, sinks CSS Alabama, commanded by Capt. R. Semmes, off Cherbourg, France, ending the career of the Souths most famous commerce raider, which included burning 55 vessels valued at $4.5 million.
1942 USS Ballard (AVD 10) is directed by a PBY (VP 11) to rescue 35 survivors (one dies shortly after rescue) from Japanese carrier, Hiryu, which is scuttled by destroyers Kazegumo and Yugumo on June 5 during the Battle of Midway. The men are members of the engineering department and were presumed dead by the Japanese.
1943 USS Gunnel (SS 253) damages Japanese gunboat Hong Kong Maru (ex-Philippine Argus) and sinks freighter Tokiwa Maru off Shirase, Japan, and costal minesweeper Tsubame. Also on this date, USS Sculpin (SS 191) sinks Japanese guardboat No.1 Miyasho Maru and army cargo ship Sagami Maru off Inubo Saki, Japan.
1944 Mulberry A off the coast of Normandy, Omaha Beach, is destroyed in severe storm that lasts until the following day. Deemed irreparable, the use of the mulberry ceases. The British and Canadian Mulberry B, off Gold Beach, survives the storm.
1944 The largest aircraft carrier action in World War II, the Battle of the Philippine Sea begins as Task Force 58 shoots down hundreds of enemy aircraft in what becomes known as the "Marianas Turkey Shoot.
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Today in History June 19
240 BC Eratosthenes estimates the circumference of Earth using two sticks.
1778 General George Washington's troops finally leave Valley Forge after a winter of training.
1821 The Ottomans defeat the Greeks at the Battle of Dragasani.
1846 The New York Knickerbocker Club plays the New York Club in the first baseball game at Elysian Field, Hoboken, New Jersey.
1861 Virginians, in what will soon be West Virginia, elect Francis Pierpont as their provisional governor.
1862 President Abraham Lincoln outlines his Emancipation Proclamation. News of the document reaches the South.
1864 The USS Kearsarge sinks the CSS Alabama off of Cherbourg, France.
1867 Mexican Emperor Maximilian is executed.
1885 The Statue of Liberty arrives in New York City from France.
1903 The young school teacher, Benito Mussolini, is placed under investigation by police in Bern, Switzerland.
1919 Mustafa Kemal founds the Turkish National Congress at Ankara and denounces the Treaty of Versailles.
1933 France grants Leon Trotsky political asylum.
1934 The National Archives and Records Administration is established.
1937 The town of Bilbao, Spain, falls to the Nationalist forces.
1942 Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrives in Washington D.C. to discuss the invasion of North Africa with President Franklin Roosevelt.
1944 U.S. Navy carrier-based planes shatter the remaining Japanese carrier forces in the Battle of the Marianas.
1951 President Harry S. Truman signs the Universal Military Training and Service Act, which extends Selective Service until July 1, 1955 and lowers the draft age to 18.
1958 Nine entertainers refuse to answer a congressional committee's questions on communism.
1961 Kuwait regains complete independence from Britain.
1963 Soviet cosmonaut, Valentina Tereshkova, becomes the first woman in space.
1965 Air Marshall Nguyen Cao Ky becomes South Vietnam's youngest premier at age 34.
1968 Over 50,000 people march on Washington, D.C. to support the Poor People's Campaign.
1973 The Case-Church Amendment prevents further U.S. involvement in Southeast Asia.
1987 The U.S. Supreme Court voids the Louisiana law requiring schools to teach creationism.
1995 The Richmond Virginia Planning Commission approves plans to place a memorial statue of tennis professional Arthur Ashe.
1953
Julius and Ethel Rosenberg executed for espionage
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Many Fathers did not return
Thanks to Dutch
from 6 years ago - thanks to THE Bear -
Happy Fathers Day – 19 June 2016 – Part I
June 19, 2016Mighty Thunder
THEY WERE OUR FATHERS – 19 JUNE 2016
Mighty Thunder is proud to post this documentary trailer from the studios of WRSE, sponsored by Pensacola State College and the following article from the Pensacola Gulf Breeze on the occasion of Father's Day 2016. RTR and Mighty Thunder are beholden to contributor Bruce Herman for providing this moving tribute to the Fathers who left their families to fight and perish during the Vietnam War, and the amazing children they left behind.
RTR and Mighty Thunder congratulate WRSE, Pensacola State College, and especially Jill Hubbs for providing a world class film on a subject near and dear to our hearts and purpose for taking up space on the Internet — to remember those who, we the living, left behind in Southeast Asia in a war fought 50 years ago….
Some 20,000 American boys and girls lost their fathers during the Vietnam War. In a new documentary film produced by WSRE, several of these Gold Star children, now adult men and women, share their stories which serve as powerful testimonies about the true cost of war. WSRE will premiere "They Were Our Fathers" with a special Father's Day broadcast at 7 p.m. on June 19.
The Gold Star designation is given to family members who have lost loved ones in United States military service during wartime. Every five years on Father's Day, members of Sons and Daughters in Touch, a group formed in 1990 to locate, unite and support Gold Star children who lost their fathers serving in the Vietnam War, gather at the nation's capital to honor their parents, reflect on their common grief and support one another, like no one else can.
Under the direction of Executive Producer Jill Hubbs, a WSRE production crew traveled to Washington, D.C. last June to document the gathering and record personal accounts.
The film is narrated in first person by Hubbs, whose father became missing in action during his second tour of duty in Vietnam on March 17, 1968. U.S. Navy Cdr. Donald Richard Hubbs was commanding officer of the VS-23 Black Cats and was stationed aboard the USS Yorktown in the Gulf of Tonkin when his S-2E Tracker reconnaissance aircraft disappeared off the North Vietnam coast.
U.S Navy Cdr. Donald Richard Hubbs with his wife Bereth and daughter Jill. Jill Hobbs is the executive producer of "They Were Our Fathers."
"Each of these sons and daughters has a unique story to tell. We are bonded together by tragedy, but also joined together in patriotism, honor and respect for the fathers we loved and lost," said Hubbs.
During Memorial Day weekend, Hubbs attended the retirement celebration for Jan Scruggs, founder of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Vice President Joe Biden was a guest at that event.
Hubbs also accepted an invitation from the President of the United States to join him with a group of Gold Star children for breakfast at the White House on Memorial Day, where she presented President Barack Obama a copy of the documentary.
"They Were Our Fathers" was edited by James Roy. Ted King was director of photography. To learn more about the film, visit WSRE
WSRE Documentaries | They Were Our Fathers
Over 20,000 American boys and girls lost their fathers during the Vietnam War.
video.wsre.org
WSRE Documentaries | They Were Our Fathers | WSRE PBS
WSRE Documentaries | They Were Our Fathers
Over 20,000 American boys and girls lost their fathers during the Vietnam War.
video.wsre.org
Happy Fathers Day – 19 June – Part II
June 19, 2016Mighty Thunder
HAPPY FATHERS DAY – 19 JUNE – PART II
Local Documentarian Explores the Legacy and Cost of the Vietnam War By C. S. Satterwhite
Walking up to Wall South at Admiral Mason Park, the smallest statue is of a little child with a sad look upon her face.
This "Homecoming" monument recognizes military families, especially the children, and is "Presented by the Children of America's Twentieth Century Heroes."
For many military children, however, there was no homecoming. For thousands from the Vietnam War in particular, there was no return of their fathers.
Jill Hubbs was one of the children whose father never returned.
Nearly fifty years after the military listed her father as Missing in Action, Hubbs is now on her own mission—to share the stories of the grown children who lost their fathers during the Vietnam War and to document an organization founded by those children.
Hubbs produced and directed the documentary "They Were Our Fathers" for WSRE public television as a means to tell her story and ones like it. Hubbs' film aims to show "the true cost of war" on families, with a special focus on the Vietnam War's Gold Star Children—the gold star is the designation for a military family member who was killed in action.
While this is not Hubbs' first documentary, it is by far her most personal.
"My dad was a navy pilot who trained here in Pensacola," she said of her father, Commander Donald Hubbs.
Cmdr. Hubbs was a career military man on his second tour of duty in Vietnam and was the commanding officer of VS-23, the famed "Black Cat" squadron based on the USS Yorktown in the Gulf of Tonkin.
Hubbs' last memory of her father was with her family, seeing him off for what would be his second deployment to Vietnam. After proudly showing the family his quarters aboard the Yorktown, they were leaving when she remembered a cake they brought for him was still in the car. Hubbs ran to back and brought the cake to her father and gave him one last hug goodbye.
"Be good, and take care of your mother," he said as they parted.
Those would be his last words spoken to his daughter.
Missing in Action
On March 17, 1968, Cmdr. Hubbs and his crew "went on a mission and their plane disappeared off the radar" near the coast of Vietnam.
"To this day, we're not really sure what happened to him or his men," said his daughter.
Hubbs was 10 years old at the time and was attending a Lutheran parochial school when the pastor came to get her and took her home. At first, she didn't know the reason and thought something happened to her mother.
"I got [to the house] and there were a zillion cars in my driveway," said Hubbs. She described her home as being filled with Navy officers and defense officials relaying what they knew, which was little.
"The plane is missing, but they're looking for him," said her mother.
When Hubbs went back to school, her classmates understood little of what occurred and said less.
"They knew something happened, but the kids didn't really talk about it," said Hubbs.
Before her father's disappearance, the war was more of an abstract concept, which merged with constant demands of a naval officer and his family.
"I didn't really understand the war at the time. I wasn't aware of Vietnam." Her father deployed from time to time, but this was different. The Yorktown returned, but her father did not.
Without any more knowledge of the events surrounding her father's disappearance, or even a body to bury, "we felt lost," said Hubbs.
The Navy opened a case file after Cmdr. Hubbs and his crew disappeared, but news was sparse.
"Days turned into weeks. Weeks turned into years," said Hubbs.
Adding to the uncertainty of her situation was the unpopularity of the war, which left the Hubbs family feeling isolated.
"It was hard to accept the situation," said Hubbs. "And it was hard to explain."
The Hubbs family remained in the Yorktown's homeport of San Diego, California, for some time, but eventually moved back to her mother's hometown of Pensacola.
"We were pulling up roots, and I felt that he wouldn't be able to find us," said Hubbs. "It was hard for me to process."
Although her father didn't came walking through her door, his daughter never stopped looking. Eventually, her search for answers brought her to Vietnam.
Searching in Vietnam
After possible sightings of her father were reported in the late 1980s, including a photograph, Hubbs made arrangements with U.S. and Vietnamese officials to look for her father in Vietnam.
"It wasn't just like finding a needle in a haystack," said Hubbs. "It's more like an archeological dig. I didn't understand the conditions [of the terrain] until I went over there."
The closest Hubbs came to finding her father was a previously unknown Vietnamese graves registration listing for her father as having died in the Quang Binh Province of Vietnam.
Though she was unsuccessful in finding concrete information regarding her father, her trip to Vietnam proved eye opening in other ways.
In Vietnam, Hubbs had an official guide and translator to help with her search.
"He took us out to his house to have a meal and introduce me to his family," said Hubbs.
The United States still hadn't normalized relations with its former enemy, and Hubbs was concerned about being an American citizen in Vietnam. "I didn't know how they'd receive me."
Her guide's father was in the house, but he didn't speak English. He was a veteran of the war and fought on the opposite side of Hubbs' father.
While she was in his house, she noticed an oil painting of an anti-aircraft gun hanging on the wall.
Being in this Vietnamese man's house, knowing her guide's father might have played a role in shooting aviators down during the war, her first thought was about her father. "What would my dad say?"
The old man noticed her looking at the picture and said to her in Vietnamese that her father was sent by his government to fight in the war just as he was sent by his government to fight in the war.
"Men don't start wars," said the Vietnamese veteran, "governments do."
Later, Hubbs met a Vietnamese woman who suffered the loss of two of her adult children in the "American War," as it's called in Vietnam.
"She lost one son, and she had another son who was missing. Before I went over [to Vietnam], it had never occurred to me that they had such loss, too."
After learning this about the Vietnamese mother's children, Hubbs showed her a picture of her father in his military uniform.
"I had this picture of my dad," said Hubbs. The Vietnamese mother had a Buddhist shrine for her two lost children. She then took the picture of Hubbs' father and placed it between her two sons.
"Then she started saying something," said Hubbs. "I didn't know what she was saying, but I knew she was praying."
"I found the people [of Vietnam] very forgiving. I found no hostility from the people, and all I found [of my father] was a graves registration with my dad's name."
With resignation in her voice, Hubbs said, "I will probably never know exactly what happened to my dad."
Sons and Daughters in Touch
In her grief and loss, Hubbs was not alone.
Roughly 20,000 American children lost their fathers during the Vietnam War, but until the 1990 founding of an organization named Sons and Daughters in Touch (SDIT), few of these people knew each other.
"The very first time I knew of others was when I read this Parade magazine article," said Hubbs.
The 1990 Parade article featured SDIT and their work to bring together the sons and daughters of those killed in the war.
One of the people featured in "They Were Our Fathers," is Tony Cordero.
Cordero's father was an Air Force navigator on a B-57 when it was lost over Vietnam on Father's Day in 1965. Four years later, Cordero buried his father at Arlington National Cemetery. Cordero was only eight years old and would grow up with a similar sense of loss as Hubbs.
When Cordero turned 30—the same age as his father when he died in Vietnam— he wondered how he could get in touch with other Gold Star Children from the Vietnam War. Looking for answers, Cordero contacted an organization called Friends of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and spoke with a volunteer named Wanda Ruffin.
Ruffin was the wife of Naval Aviator Lt. Cmdr. James Ruffin whose F-4 Phantom was shot down over Vietnam in 1966. He was killed in action and left behind a wife and a newborn baby girl.
So when Cordero asked if Ruffin knew of any sons or daughters who shared his experience, she knew of one in particular—her daughter Wendy.
"[Wendy] never knew anyone, outside of relatives, who knew her dad or shared her experience at all," said Ruffin in the documentary. "It was very difficult. She grew up very beautifully and did well in school and did just fine, but I knew there was a big hole there."
After Cordero and Ruffin met, Cordero soon established SDIT to meet the needs of other grown children of veterans whose names were etched on the Vietnam Wall.
As the organization grew, it began meeting at the Vietnam Wall in Washington for what became a Father's Day tradition. The adult children of those killed during the war found many similarities.
Almost immediately, this group bonded as family, despite differences in gender, ethnicity, service, and rank. "The stories about growing up were so similar," said Hubbs. "No matter who told the story, there were so many things I identified with."
Longtime SDIT member Denise Reed lost her father, Harold Reed, in Vietnam when she was a young girl. "I remember the day he left [for Vietnam], and I remember the chaplain coming to tell my mother that he was killed on the Fourth of July," said Reed.
"You can't help but wonder how different my life would've been if my father had come back home," said Reed.
Most grew up in a unique isolation with a deep sense of loss, and many of their parents never remarried. Bearing the cost of the Vietnam War long after many Americans relegated the conflict to history books or a bad dream, the nightmare these families lived through was ultimately their bond.
"It's a family that no one really wants to belong to," said Hubbs. Or as an article on the SDIT website reads, "the 'Gold Star' designation is un-chosen and unending," thus making this Gold Star network that much more important to the community it serves.
"This is a group of people that you can always express yourself to," said Reed.
"Express your anger, your disappointment, and express what your family went through… and what you're still going through because of it."
Why the Movie Matters
"They Were Our Fathers" sheds light upon SDIT and the unique effects of war on the children of those killed. While their war was Vietnam, the group offers its experience to a new generation of Gold Star families.
"Unfortunately, there's a new generation of children who've lost their fathers, and now mothers," said Hubbs. She described one scene in particular as heartbreaking, seeing a large group of these young Gold Star children converge upon the Vietnam Wall to join with their older counterparts and leave roses in shared sympathy.
"It's tragic for it to happen again. It was hard to bear," said Hubbs.
"I looked at them, and that was us."
Hubbs said that she wanted to make this film for a number of reasons, but first because no one has yet documented the SDIT experience.
She also wanted to make this film as a tribute to her father and "to honor our dads."
"It's a legacy to our dads. It's awareness that there's a cost to war," Hubbs said.
Since the film's completion, interest in Hubbs' documentary has grown exponentially. Over one hundred PBS affiliates have expressed a desire to show Hubbs' film, most in connection with an upcoming Ken Burns documentary series on the Vietnam War.
Besides PBS broadcasts, Hubbs recently presented President Obama with a personal copy of the film. The Reagan and Nixon presidential libraries also contacted Hubbs for potential screenings.
Although Hubbs is happy with the interest her film garnered, her greatest hope is to connect other sons and daughters who may not know of the organization. She also wants to reach out to the latest generation of Gold Star families so they know they're not alone.
"The one thing that bonds us is that it was our dads [who died in Vietnam], and this is a piece of our heart that can't be replaced," said Hubbs.
"It's a story that needs to be told."
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ROLLING THUNDER REMEMBERED Thanks to the Bear … Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post
… For The List for Sunday, 19 June 2022… Bear🇺🇸⚓️🐻
OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER (1965-1968)…
From the archives of rollingthunderremembered.com post for 19 June 1967… Elaine Shepard's "Doom Pussy"… a lasting tribute to the B-57 night bombers… (And all the rest of those who spent dozens of nights in the dark and dangerous skies of North Vietnam)…
This following work accounts for every fixed wing loss of the Vietnam War and you can use it to read more about the losses in The Bear's Daily account. Even better it allows you to add your updated information to the work to update for history…skip
Vietnam Air Losses
Access Chris Hobson and Dave Lovelady's work at: https://www.VietnamAirLosses.com.
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From the Little Big Horn to the '03 Springfield by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
This Week in American Military History:
June 20, 1941: The U.S. Army Air Corps is reorganized as the U.S. Army Air Forces (the predecessor to the U.S. Air Force).
June 22, 1944: Pres. Franklin D. Roosevelt signs the Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944 – commonly known as the "G.I. Bill of Rights" – into law.
The law will literally change the socio-economic landscape of the country:
putting teeth in the U.S. Veterans Administration, and providing education and work-training opportunities, home loans, farm and business startup capital, and other benefits for millions of soon-to-be-returning World War II veterans who otherwise would never receive such.
According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, "Before the war, college and homeownership were, for the most part, unreachable dreams for the average American."
The G.I. Bill changed that.
"Millions who would have flooded the job market instead opted for education. In the peak year of 1947, veterans accounted for 49 percent of college admissions. By the time the original G.I. Bill ended on July 25, 1956, 7.8 million of 16 million World War II veterans had participated in an education or training program."
June 23, 1903: The U.S. Army adopts the now-famous Springfield rifle
(M1903) as the standard infantry weapon.
The bolt-action M1903 Springfield will be the primary American rifle carried by soldiers and Marines during America's year (1918) in World War I. And in 1942, U.S. Marines fighting Japanese diehards on Guadalcanal are still armed with the '03 Springfield as their primary weapon (though the semi-automatic M1 Garand had begun to replace the Springfield a few years earlier).
Coincidentally among the American combat units on "the Canal" is the fighting 5th Marine Regiment, which – 25 years earlier during the bloody battle of Belleau Wood – won for the entire Corps a reputation as some of the world's best marksmen. And they did so of course with the '03 Springfield.
U.S. Army Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing, commanding general of the American Expeditionary Forces in World War I, will say, "The deadliest weapon in the world is a Marine and his rifle [meaning his '03 Springfield]."
In his book, Guadalcanal Marine, author Kerry L. Lane will write: "The enemy on Guadalcanal would soon learn that a Marine marksman armed with a Springfield '03 rifle is a dangerous man at a great distance."
June 25, 1876: The battle of the Little Big Horn opens between a few hundred U.S. Army cavalry troopers under the command of Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer and thousands of allied Lakota and Cheyenne Indian warriors under the command of Crazy Horse and Chief Gall.
Also known as "Custer's last stand," the battle will result in the encirclement and total annihilation of Custer and his vastly outnumbered command.
Though a dark day for the American Army, the battle of the Little Big Horn represents multiple inescapable elements of American military tradition:
The dashing, adventurous cavalry trooper riding off into the unknown, mistakes made, mistakes corrected, courage, sacrifice, our American Indian heritage, and the growing pains of America's westward expansion.
June 26, 1948: The Berlin Airlift – a series of some 300,000 air-transport flights into West Berlin delivering an average of 5,000 tons of life necessities every day for nearly a year – begins.
Led by the U.S. Air Force, the airlift – codenamed "Operation Vittles" and unofficially known as "LeMay's Feed and Coal Company" – is launched in response to a Soviet blockade of West Berlin; cutting off all highway and rail routes into the Western zones.
(Gen. Curtis LeMay – affectionately known as "Old Iron Ass" – was the Air Force's brash, cigar-chewing master of strategic bombing.) U.S. Army Gen. Lucius Clay, the military governor of the American zone of occupied Germany, writes: "When the order of the Soviet Military Administration to close all rail traffic from the western zones went into effect …, the three western sectors of Berlin, with a civilian population of about 2,500,000 people, became dependent on reserve stocks and airlift replacements. It was one of the most ruthless efforts in modern times to use mass starvation for political coercion... ."
The blockade and subsequent airlift was the first serious confrontational crisis between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union following World War II. But the airlift, which gained wide public support around the world, was an enormous success. In May 1949, the Soviets conceded and reopened the land routes, though strict – in fact, harsh – control continued for the remainder of the Cold War.
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If you want a great book on the Marianas Turkey Shoot read Barrett Tillman's "Clash of the Carriers". Skip
Thanks to Barrett
Turkey Day
And not gobble-gobble!
19 June '44 was The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot, largest carrier battle there will ever be: 15 US and 9 IJN. (Leyte Gulf doesn't count because the strikes were all one-way.)
TF-58 repelled four attacks that morning, a wake-up for the Japanese Navy because previously it did not fully appreciate the sophistication of USN fleet defense: 60-80 mile skin paints on inbound hostiles, or more. With 15 VF squadrons to rotate on ForceCAP, the Hellcats began working over the visitors, who operated beyond range of US strikers. Attrition among Japanese formations was horrific, totaling over 200 among 328 claimed. (Additional IJN planes were splashed on search missions).
Six Hellcat pilots became aces in a day. LtJG Alex Vraciu of VF-16/CV-16 splashed 6 to become the leading Navy ace--added one more next day in "the mission beyond darkness."
A Hornet pilot, Ens. Wilbur Webb, was orbiting a downed flier off Guam when he saw what he saw. He opened up: "This Spider Webb. I have about 40 of 'em cornered over Orote Point and I could use a little help." Joined the traffic pattern and hosed six. His F6F was junked when he trapped aboard CV-12.
(Alex died January, Spider in 2002.)
During the day no US CV aviators saw enemy flight decks but submarines sank Shokaku (a Pearl Harbor attacker) and the flagship Taiho.
The Turkey Shoot name was applied by a VF-16 pilot, Ens. Ziggy Neff, who splashed 4 in his only combat of the war. During debrief he said, "It was just like an old-time turkey shoot back home in Missouri." (I suspect he said Missourah...)
USS Belleau Wood torpedo planes sank a third IJN CV the next evening, IJNS Hiyo.
The next time Japanese carriers deployed, the 4 available at Leyte in October were mainly used as bait. Many/most of their aviators had not CQ'd.
Barrett sends
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Jun 19, 1944:
United States scores major victory against Japanese in Battle of the Philippine Sea
June 19
On this day in 1944, in what would become known as the "Marianas Turkey Shoot," U.S. carrier-based fighters decimate the Japanese Fleet with only a minimum of losses in the Battle of the Philippine Sea.
The security of the Marianas Islands, in the western Pacific, were vital to Japan, which had air bases on Saipan, Tinian, and Guam. U.S. troops were already battling the Japanese on Saipan, having landed there on the 15th. Any further intrusion would leave the Philippine Islands, and Japan itself, vulnerable to U.S. attack. The U.S. Fifth Fleet, commanded by Admiral Raymond Spruance, was on its way west from the Marshall Islands as backup for the invasion of Saipan and the rest of the Marianas. But Japanese Admiral Ozawa Jisaburo decided to challenge the American fleet, ordering 430 of his planes, launched from aircraft carriers, to attack. In what became the greatest carrier battle of the war, the United States, having already picked up the Japanese craft on radar, proceeded to shoot down more than 300 aircraft and sink two Japanese aircraft carriers, losing only 29 of their own planes in the process. It was described in the aftermath as a "turkey shoot."
Admiral Ozawa, believing his missing planes had landed at their Guam air base, maintained his position in the Philippine Sea, allowing for a second attack of U.S. carrier-based fighter planes, this time commanded by Admiral Mitscher, to shoot down an additional 65 Japanese planes and sink another carrier. In total, the Japanese lost 480 aircraft, three-quarters of its total, not to mention most of its crews. American domination of the Marianas was now a foregone conclusion.
Not long after this battle at sea, U.S. Marine divisions penetrated farther into the island of Saipan. Two Japanese commanders on the island, Admiral Nagumo and General Saito, both committed suicide in an attempt to rally the remaining Japanese forces. It succeeded: Those forces also committed a virtual suicide as they attacked the Americans' lines, losing 26,000 men compared with 3,500 lost by the United States. Within another month, the islands of Tinian and Guam were also captured by the United States.
The Japanese government of Premier Hideki Tojo resigned in disgrace at this stunning defeat, in what many have described as the turning point of the war in the Pacific.
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Thanks to NHHC
WWII@75: Battle of the Philippine Sea
On June 19, 1944, 75 years ago, the largest aircraft carrier action of World War II began as Allied forces continued their push across the Pacific. Following the buildup of the U.S. Navy's fast carrier forces in the central Pacific, the American drive into the strategic Marshall Islands chain, and the foreseeable U.S. victory on Saipan, Japanese naval leadership believed that the time had come for decisive large-scale fleet action. Previous attempts either had failed or had come up short of a victory that would change the war in favor of Japan. Task Force 58 clashed with the Imperial Japanese Navy's Carrier Division 3 in a series of engagements fought out in the air, several hundred miles west of Saipan. By the evening of June 20, Task Force 58's aircraft broke the back of Japanese naval aviation and the Japanese combined fleet's carrier forces by sending hundreds of enemy aircraft into the water. To learn more, visit the new Battle of the Philippine Sea page on NHHC's WWII 1944 page. Also, read "The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot" by NHHC historian Guy J. Nasuti.
This week's Webpage of the Week is new to NHHC's World War II 1944 page. Operation Forager: The Battle of Saipan—an in-depth essay written by COD's Adam Bisno—provides a depiction of the battle that began on June 15, 1944, and ended on July 9 with the United States securing the island that was only 1,200 nautical miles south of Tokyo. The essay explains all phases of the operation, including the background, planning, initial landings, concurrent action in the Philippine Sea, the aftermath, and the heavy price of the battle. Check out this page today and learn more about this significant battle in the Pacific.
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This Day in U S Military History…….June 19
1864 – USS Kearsarge sinks CSS Alabama off the coast of Cherbourg, France. "The day being Sunday and the weather fine, a large concourse of people-many having come all the way from Paris collected on the heights above the town [Cherbourg], in the upper stories of such of the houses as commanded a view of the sea, and on the walls and fortifications of the harbor. Several French luggers employed as pilot-boats went out, and also an English steam-yacht, called the Deerhound. Everything being in readiness between nine and ten o'clock, we got underway, and proceeded to sea, through the western entrance of the harbor; the Couronne [French ironclad] following us. As we emerged from behind the mole, we discovered the Kearsarge at a distance of between six and seven miles from the land. She had been apprised or our intention of coming out that morning, and was awaiting us." Thus Captain Raphael Semmes drew the scene as the historic Kearsarge-Alabama battle unfolded. Alabama mounted 8 guns to Kearsarge's 7. Yet, Captain Winslow of Kearsarge enjoyed a superiority in eight of broadside including two heavy XI-inch Dahlgren guns while Semmes had but one heavy gun, an VIlI-inch. Perhaps his greatest advantage was superior ammuni-tion, since Alabama's had deteriorated during her long cruise. Furthermore, Winslow had pro-tected the sides of his ship and the vulnerable machinery by hanging heavy chains over the sides from topside to below the waterline. Kearsarge's complement numbered 163; Alabama's, 149. The antagonists closed to about one and a half miles, when Semmes opened the action with a starboard broadside. Within minutes the firing became fierce from both ships as they fought starboard to starboard on a circular course. Lieutenant Sinclair, CSN, wrote: "Semmes would have chosen to bring about yard-arm quarters, fouling, and boarding, relying upon the superior physique of his crew to overbalance the superiority of numbers; but this was frustrated." Shot and shell from the heavier guns of Kearsarge crashed into Alabama's hull, while the Union sloop of war, her sides protected by the chain armor, suffered only minor damage. One shell from Alabama lodged in the Kearsarge's sternpost but failed to explode. "If it had exploded," wrote John M. McKenzie, who was only 16 years old at the time of the battle, "the Kearsarge would have gone to the bottom instead of the Alabama. But our ammunition was old and had lost its strength." Southern casualties were heavy as both sides fought valiantly. "After the lapse of about one hour and ten minutes," Semmes reported, "our ship was ascertained to be in a sinking condition, the enemy's shells having exploded in our side, and between decks, opening large apertures through which the water rushed with great rapidity. For some few minutes I had hopes of being able to reach the French coast, for which purpose I gave the ship all steam, and set such of the fore and aft sails as were available. The ship filled so rapidly, however, that before we had made much progress, the fires were extinguished in the furnaces, and we were evi-dently on the point of sinking. I now hauled down my colors to prevent the further destruction of life, and dispatched a boat to inform the enemy of our condition." Alabama settled stern first and her bow raised high in the air as the waters of the English Channel closed over her. Boats from Kearsarge and French boats rescued the survivors. The English yacht Deerhound, owned by Mr. John Lancaster, picked up Captain Semmes with 13 of his officers and 27 crew members and carried them to Southampton. The spectacular career of the Confederacy's most famous raider was closed. Before her last battle Semmes reminded his men: "You have destroyed, and driven for protection under neutral flags, one-half of the enemy's commerce, which, at the beginning of the war, covered every sea. Alabama had captured and burned at sea 55 Union merchantmen valued at over four and one-half million dollars, and had bonded 10 others to the value of 562 thousand dollars. Another prize, Conrad, was commissioned C.S.S. Tuscaloosa, and herself struck at Northern shipping. Flag Officer Barron lamented: "It is true that we have lost our ship; the ubiquitous gallant Alabama is no more, but we have lost no honor." For Winslow and Kearsarge the victory was well deserved and rewarding. Throughout the North news of Alabama's end was greeted with jubilation and relief. Secretary Welles wrote the Captain: "I congratulate you for your good fortune in meeting the Alabama, which had so long avoided the fastest ships of the service . . . for the ability displayed in the contest you have the thanks of the Department. . . . The battle was so brief, the victory so decisive, and the comparative results so striking that the country will be reminded of the brilliant actions of our infant Navy, which have been repeated and illustrated in this engagement . . . Our countrymen have reason to be satisfied that in this, as in every naval action of this unhappy war, neither the ships, the guns, nor the crews have deteriorated, but that they maintain the ability and continue the renown which have ever adorned our naval annals." Winslow received a vote of thanks from Congress, and was promoted to Commodore with his commission dated 19 June 1864, his victory day.
1944 – In the early morning hours Japanese reconnaissance finds US Task Force 58 while remaining undetected. The Japanese immediately launch 372 aircraft, in four waves, to strike the American fleet. Overall, the Japanese have about 550 planes (including those on Guam) while the Americans have roughly 950. Furthermore, US radar provides significant advance warning of the attack. There is enough time to launch an air raid on Guam before the Japanese can arrive over their target. American fighters begin intercepting the incoming Japanese planes while 50 miles away. Many of the attackers are shot down before reaching the American fleet; US anti-aircraft defenses accounts for many more. The only hit achieved by the Japanese is on the USS South Dakota which is damaged by one bomb. The Japanese lose 240 aircraft and the Americans lose 29. The attackers fly on to Guam where American aircraft strike and destroy another 50 Japanese planes. Meanwhile, the Japanese aircraft carriers Taiho and Shokaku are sunk by the US submarines Cavalla and Albacore. American participants refer to the day as "The Great Marianas Turkey Shoot" because of the ease with which the Japanese forces have been suppressed.
1944 – "Ace of Aces" David McCampbell (1910-1996) and the Fabled 15 challenged 80 Japanese carrier based aircraft bearing down on an American fleet. He shot down 7 Zeroes and the group routed the enemy fliers at the Battle of the Marianas.
1944 – On Biak, the reinforced US 41st Division launches attacks against Japanese strongpoints in the west of the island.
1945 – Spain is barred from membership in the United Nations organization as long as the Franco regime continue to hold power.
1945 – On Luzon, in the Cagayan Valley, Ilagan is captured by advancing troops of the US 1st Corps.
1945 – On Okinawa, the insistent use of propaganda by means of leaflets and loudspeakers, by the American forces, induces some 343 Japanese troops to surrender. Japanese forces fall back in some disorder along the frontage of the US 3rd Amphibious Corps but continue to resist along the line held by the US 24th Corps.
1947 – The first plane (F-80) to exceed 600 mph (1004 kph) was flown by Albert Boyd in Muroc, California
Medal of Honor Citations for Actions Taken This Day
READ, GEORGE E.
Rank and organization: Seaman, U.S. Navy. Born: 1838, Rhode Island. Accredited to: Rhode Island. G.O. No.: 45, 31 December 1864 Citation: Served as seaman on board the U.S.S. Kearsarge when she destroyed the Alabama off Cherbourg, France, 19 June 1864. Acting as the first loader of the No. 2 gun during this bitter engagement, Read exhibited marked coolness and good conduct and was highly recommended for his gallantry under fire by his divisional officer.
SAUNDERS, JAMES
Rank and organization: Quartermaster, U.S. Navy. Born: 1809, Massachusetts. Accredited to: Massachusetts. G.O. No.: 59, 22 June 1865. Citation: Served as quartermaster on board the U.S.S. Kearsarge when she destroyed the Alabama off Cherbourg, France, 19 June 1864. Carrying out his duties courageously throughout the bitter engagement, Saunders was prompt in reporting damages done to both ships, and it is testified to by Commodore Winslow that he is deserving of all commendation, both for gallantry and for encouragement of others in his division.
SMITH, WILLIAM
Rank and organization: Quartermaster, U.S. Navy. Born: 1838, Ireland. Accredited to: New Hampshire. G.O. No.: 45, 31 December 1864. Citation: Served as second quartermaster on board the U.S.S. Kearsarge when she destroyed the Alabama off Cherbourg, France, 19 June 1864. Acting as captain of the 11-inch pivot gun of the second division, Smith carried out his duties courageously and deserved special notice for the deliberate and cool manner in which he acted throughout the bitter engagement. It is stated by rebel officers that this gun was more destructive and did more damage than any other gun of Kearsarge.
STRAHAN, ROBERT
Rank and organization: Captain of the Top, U.S. Navy. Birth: New Jersey. G.O. No.: 45, 31 December 1864. Accredited to: New Jersey. Citation: Served as captain of the top on board the U.S.S. Kearsarge when she destroyed the Alabama off Cherbourg, France, 19 June 1864. Acting as captain of the No. 1 gun, Strahan carried out his duties in the face of heavy enemy fire and exhibited marked coolness and good conduct throughout the engagement. Strahan was highly recommended by his division officer for his gallantry and meritorious achievements.
*BAKER, THOMAS A.
Rank and organization: Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company A, 105th Infantry, 27th Infantry Division. Place and date: Saipan, Mariana Islands, 19 June to 7 July 1944. Entered service at: Troy, N.Y. Birth: Troy, N.Y. G.O. No.: 35, 9 May 1945. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty at Saipan, Mariana Islands, 19 June to 7 July 1944. When his entire company was held up by fire from automatic weapons and small-arms fire from strongly fortified enemy positions that commanded the view of the company, Sgt. (then Pvt.) Baker voluntarily took a bazooka and dashed alone to within 100 yards of the enemy. Through heavy rifle and machinegun fire that was directed at him by the enemy, he knocked out the strong point, enabling his company to assault the ridge. Some days later while his company advanced across the open field flanked with obstructions and places of concealment for the enemy, Sgt. Baker again voluntarily took up a position in the rear to protect the company against surprise attack and came upon 2 heavily fortified enemy pockets manned by 2 officers and 10 enlisted men which had been bypassed. Without regard for such superior numbers, he unhesitatingly attacked and killed all of them. Five hundred yards farther, he discovered 6 men of the enemy who had concealed themselves behind our lines and destroyed all of them. On 7 July 1944, the perimeter of which Sgt. Baker was a part was attacked from 3 sides by from 3,000 to 5,000 Japanese. During the early stages of this attack, Sgt. Baker was seriously wounded but he insisted on remaining in the line and fired at the enemy at ranges sometimes as close as 5 yards until his ammunition ran out. Without ammunition and with his own weapon battered to uselessness from hand-to-hand combat, he was carried about 50 yards to the rear by a comrade, who was then himself wounded. At this point Sgt. Baker refused to be moved any farther stating that he preferred to be left to die rather than risk the lives of any more of his friends. A short time later, at his request, he was placed in a sitting position against a small tree . Another comrade, withdrawing, offered assistance. Sgt. Baker refused, insisting that he be left alone and be given a soldier's pistol with its remaining 8 rounds of ammunition. When last seen alive, Sgt. Baker was propped against a tree, pistol in hand, calmly facing the foe. Later Sgt. Baker's body was found in the same position, gun empty, with 8 Japanese lying dead before him. His deeds were in keeping with the highest traditions of the U.S. Army.
McCAMPBELL, DAVID
Rank and organization: Commander, U.S. Navy, Air Group 15. Place and date: First and second battles of the Philippine Sea, 19 June 1944. Entered service at: Florida. Born: 16 January 1 910, Bessemer, Ala. Other Navy awards: Navy Cross, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross with 2 Gold Stars, Air Medal. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as commander, Air Group 15, during combat against enemy Japanese aerial forces in the first and second battles of the Philippine Sea. An inspiring leader, fighting boldly in the face of terrific odds, Comdr. McCampbell led his fighter planes against a force of 80 Japanese carrier-based aircraft bearing down on our fleet on 19 June 1944. Striking fiercely in valiant defense of our surface force, he personally destroyed 7 hostile planes during this single engagement in which the outnumbering attack force was utterly routed and virtually annihilated. During a major fleet engagement with the enemy on 24 October, Comdr. McCampbell, assisted by but l plane, intercepted and daringly attacked a formation of 60 hostile land-based craft approaching our forces. Fighting desperately but with superb skill against such overwhelming airpower, he shot down 9 Japanese planes and, completely disorganizing the enemy group, forced the remainder to abandon the attack before a single aircraft could reach the fleet. His great personal valor and indomitable spirit of aggression under extremely perilous combat conditions reflect the highest credit upon Comdr. McCampbell and the U.S. Naval Service.
MEAGHER, JOHN
Rank and organization: Technical Sergeant, U.S. Army, Company E, 305th Infantry, 77th Infantry Division. Place and date: Near Ozato, Okinawa, 19 June 1945. Entered service at: Jersey City, N.J. Birth: Jersey City, N.J. G.O. No.: 60, 26 June 1946. Citation: He displayed conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty. In the heat of the fight, he mounted an assault tank, and, with bullets splattering about him, designated targets to the gunner. Seeing an enemy soldier carrying an explosive charge dash for the tank treads, he shouted fire orders to the gunner, leaped from the tank, and bayoneted the charging soldier. Knocked unconscious and his rifle destroyed, he regained consciousness, secured a machinegun from the tank, and began a furious 1-man assault on the enemy. Firing from his hip, moving through vicious crossfire that ripped through his clothing, he charged the nearest pillbox, killing 6. Going on amid the hail of bullets and grenades, he dashed for a second enemy gun, running out of ammunition just as he reached the position. He grasped his empty gun by the barrel and in a violent onslaught killed the crew. By his fearless assaults T/Sgt. Meagher single-handedly broke the enemy resistance, enabling his platoon to take its objective and continue the advance.
LASSEN, CLYDE EVERETT
Rank and organization: Lieutenant, U.S. Navy, Helicopter Support Squadron 7, Detachment 104, embarked in U.S.S. Preble (DLG-15). place and date: Republic of Vietnam, 19 June 1968. Entered service at: Jacksonville, Fla. Born: 14 March 1942, Fort Myers, Fla. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as pilot and aircraft commander of a search and rescue helicopter, attached to Helicopter Support Squadron 7, during operations against enemy forces in North Vietnam. Launched shortly after midnight to attempt the rescue of 2 downed aviators, Lt. (then Lt. (J.G.)) Lassen skillfully piloted his aircraft over unknown and hostile terrain to a steep, tree-covered hill on which the survivors had been located. Although enemy fire was being directed at the helicopter, he initially landed in a clear area near the base of the hill, but, due to the dense undergrowth, the survivors could not reach the helicopter. With the aid of flare illumination, Lt. Lassen successfully accomplished a hover between 2 trees at the survivors' position Illumination was abruptly lost as the last of the flares were expended, and the helicopter collided with a tree, commencing a sharp descent. Expertly righting his aircraft and maneuvering clear, Lt. Lassen remained in the area, determined to make another rescue attempt, and encouraged the downed aviators while awaiting resumption of flare illumination. After another unsuccessful, illuminated rescue attempt, and with his fuel dangerously low and his aircraft significantly damaged, he launched again and commenced another approach in the face of the continuing enemy opposition. When flare illumination was again lost, Lt. Lassen, fully aware of the dangers in clearly revealing his position to the enemy, turned on his landing lights and completed the landing. On this attempt, the survivors were able to make their way to the helicopter. En route to the coast he encountered and successfully evaded additional hostile antiaircraft fire and, with fuel for only 5 minutes of flight remaining, landed safely aboard U.S.S. Jouett (DLG-29) .
RAY, RONALD ERIC
Rank and organization: Captain (then 1st Lt.), U.S. Army, Company A, 2d Battalion, 35th Infantry, 25th Infantry Division. Place and date: la Drang Valley, Republic of Vietnam, 19 June 1966. Entered service at: Atlanta, Ga. Born: 7 December 1941, Cordelle, Ga. Citation: For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty. Capt. Ray distinguished himself while serving as a platoon leader with Company A. When 1 of his ambush patrols was attacked by an estimated reinforced Viet Cong company, Capt. Ray organized a reaction force and quickly moved through 2 kilometers of mountainous jungle terrain to the contact area. After breaking through the hostile lines to reach the beleaguered patrol, Capt. Ray began directing the reinforcement of the site. When an enemy position pinned down 3 of his men with a heavy volume of automatic weapons fire, he silenced the emplacement with a grenade and killed 4 Viet Cong with his rifle fire. As medics were moving a casualty toward a sheltered position, they began receiving intense hostile fire. While directing suppressive fire on the enemy position, Capt. Ray moved close enough to silence the enemy with a grenade. A few moments later Capt. Ray saw an enemy grenade land, unnoticed, near 2 of his men. Without hesitation or regard for his safety he dove between the grenade and the men, thus shielding them from the explosion while receiving wounds in his exposed feet and legs. He immediately sustained additional wounds in his legs from an enemy machinegun, but nevertheless he silenced the emplacement with another grenade. Although suffering great pain from his wounds, Capt. Ray continued to direct his men, providing the outstanding courage and leadership they vitally needed, and prevented their annihilation by successfully leading them from their surrounded position. Only after assuring that his platoon was no longer in immediate danger did he allow himself to be evacuated for medical treatment. By his gallantry at the risk of his life in the highest traditions of the military service, Capt. Ray has reflected great credit on himself, his unit, and the U.S. Army .
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AMERICAN AEROSPACE EVENTS
FIRSTS, LASTS, AND SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS FOR June 19
THANKS TO HAROLD "PHIL" MYERS CHIEF HISTORIAN AIR FORCE INTELLIGENCE, SURVEILLANCE, AND RECONNAISSANCE AGENCY
19 June 1944: BATTLE OF THE PHILIPPINE SEA. Through 20 June, American pilots shot down 476 Japanese aircraft in a battle known as "The Marianas Turkey Shoot." The US lost 130 planes. Navy submarines and aircraft also sank three Japanese carriers. Afterwards, Japanese naval airpower was not a serious threat to US forces in the Pacific. (20) (21)
1947: Col Albert Boyd set a world speed record of 623.8 MPH, flying an XP-80R jet airplane over a 3-kilometer course at Muroc. (24)
1952: KOREAN WAR. Through 20 June, B-29s flew 35 sorties against N. Korean targets, nearly three times the nightly average for the month. Another 27 medium bombers hit the Huichon rail bridge. (28)
1961: The first Atlas F arrived at Vandenberg AFB. (6)
1962: A superpressure balloon launched at Kindley AFB, Bermuda, on 31 May 1962, landed near Iwo Jima after 19-days at a constant altitude of 68,000 feet. (16) (24) FIRST GENERAL WHITE SPACE TROPHY. SECAF Eugene M. Zuckert presented the first Gen Thomas D. White Space Trophy to Astronaut Capt Virgil I. Grissom. (16) (24)
1970: The first flight of Minuteman III missiles became operational with the 741 SMS at Minot AFB (See 19 August 1970). (6) (12)
1977: MACKAY TROPHY. Capt David M. Sprinkel flew his C-5, with a 40-ton superconducting magnet aboard, nonstop from Chicago's O'Hare Airport to Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow. The 5,124 nautical-mile flight needed two aerial refuelings. This was the first time a MAC C-5 landed in the Soviet Union. This feat earned the Mackay Trophy for 1977. (16) (18)
1986: All USAF Rapier surface-to-air missiles in Europe became operational. The British provided this missile defense system by agreement to USAF bases in Europe. (16) (26)
1998: The first of four C-32As left Boeing's plant in Seattle and flew to the 89 AW at Andrews AFB. The military version of Boeing's 757-200 replaced the VC-137 aircraft in the presidential airlift fleet. (22)
1999: A Global Hawk flew to northern New Mexico and returned to Edwards AFB, logging some 13 hours of autonomous flight, to support the DoD's annual Roving Sands air defense exercise.
2002: Due to bad weather in Florida, the Space Shuttle Endeavour landed at Edwards AFB after 14- day mission (STS-111) to the International Space Station. The astronauts assembled and repaired space station robotics during the mission. The shuttle also brought back a Russian cosmonaut and two U.S. astronauts after 196 days in orbit. (3)
2006: The first Lockheed-Martin C-5M test aircraft made its first flight at Edwards AFB. The former C-5B received a complete avionics modernization, reliability enhancement, and re-engining in its conversion to an M-model. In the avionics modernization, Lockheed-Martin added a new cockpit with a digital all-weather flight control system and autopilot, a new communications suite, flat panel displays, and enhanced navigation and safety equipment. (USAF Aimpoints, "Second C-5M Takes Flight," 21 Nov 2006)
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