9 Dec. 1941-- 4 miles southwest of Diamond Head, Oahu. At 1:30 AM reports the arrival of the USS Enterprise at Pearl Harbor. This is the last signal received from the I-70.
10 Dec 1941-- The I-6 reported a Lexington-Class aircraft carrier and cruiser heading northeast. SunRon1 and other boats ordered to pursue and sink the carrier. So, the ship is still operating at this time.
One hundred and twenty-one miles NE of Cape Halawa, Molokai, Hawaiian Islands. After 0600, Ensign Perry L. Teaff's Douglas SBD-2 Dauntless dive bomber of VS-6 from the USS Enterprise sighted a surfaced submarine, the I-70, and attacks. Has a near-miss with a 1,000 pound bomb that damages it and prevents it from submerging.
In the afternoon, another SBD-2 of VS-6 from the Enterprise, flown by Lt. (jg) Clarence E. Dickinson, back aboard his ship after being shot down at Pearl Harbor during the Dec. 7th attack, sighted a surfaced submarine in the same area. (He is the reason I am writing about the I-70 now. See March blog)
He climbs to 5,000 feet for a diving attack. The I-70 spots him and commences a slow-turn to the starboard, opening fire from its 13 mm machine gun. The bomb lands right beside the I-70, amidships. The explosion throws several gunners overboard. The submarine stops and starts to settle on an even keel, disappearing about 45 seconds later.
More to Come. --GreGen
The USS North Carolina (BB-55) My all-time favorite warship. As an elementary school student in North Carolina, I donated nickels and dimes to save this ship back in the early sixties.
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