USS Gridley (DD-380)-- Part 5: Action in the Marianas, Battle of the Philippine Sea, Iwo Jima and Peleliu

1944

On 7 June 1944, the Gridley sailed with the  the USS Hornet  Task Force 7 to take part in the invasion of the Marianas, where the attacks were made on  Saipan, Rota and Guam.  In all these engagements the Gridley and other destroyers protected the U.S. carriers from Japanese air and submarine attack.

The Gridley was also at the pivotal  Battle of the Philippine Sea 19-20 June 1944, when four waves of Japanese  torpedo bombers and escort fighters were decimated by  fleet air and surface units.  Gridley's anti-aircraft fire and protected the carriers.  As a result of this battle, Japanese air strength virtually ceased to exist.

The ship departed Eniwetok Atoll 30 June 1940 bound with the carriers for strikes on Iwo Jima, Guam, Yap, Ulithi,  and the Volcano Islands.  She directly supported the American landings on Peleliu 15 September 1944, shooting down at least one Japanese plane.

--GreGen

Aircraft Carriers Serving As Air Transports

Continued from previous blog entry.

During World War II, smaller aircraft carriers often performed the role of aircraft delivery.

More recently, in the late 2000s, the USS Bon Homme Richard transported "red air" aggressor jets to Hawaii for exercises.

In 1992, two B-25 Mitchell bombers took off from the aircraft carrier USS Ranger to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Doolittle Raid on Japan in 1942.  That operation involved sixteen b_25s taking off from the carrier USS Hornet.

The aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson brought another group of warbirds to Hawaii for the 50th anniversary of the end of the war.

--GreGen

World War II: The Doolittle Raid

On April 18th, we commemorated the 77th anniversary of what today is known as the Doolittle Raid.  This was a major boost to American morale, as things were going very bad for us in the first  several months after Pearl Harbor.  It was a huge blow to the Japanese, who were sure they were safe from American bombs.

There was a huge risk associated with the Raid.  One of the biggest obstacles was to take off from an aircraft carrier in bombers which were thought to be too big.  There were 80 Doolittle Raiders who flew five-man crews in 16 B-25B Mitchell medium bombers who took off from the aircraft carrier Hornet.

The planes dropped their bombs on Japanese targets but did not do serious damage.  But, for the U.S., it was payback for Pearl Harbor.    Of the eighty men, 77 survived the mission, three were executed and one died of disease while a prisoner.

This past April 9, the last Doolittle survivor, Richard Cole, died at age 103.

Requiem For Torpedo Eight-- Part 1: Getting Ready for the Battle of Midway

From the Paralyzed Veterans of America 2018 Calendar.  Artwork by Gil Cohen.

Shows planes on the deck of the aircraft carrier USS Hornet getting ready to take off.

It is 0700 hours on the fourth day of June, 1942.  The place is the deck of the carrier Hornet (CV-8), made famous less than two months prior when B-25s led by Jimmy Doolittle were launched from her deck in the first surprise bombing raid on japan.

The atmosphere is tense, as the Douglas TBD Devastator torpedo bombers of Torpedo Squadron Eight are poised for takeoff.

--GreGen

Denver Veteran Saw Doolittle Take Off-- Part 2

"About noon, the captain came on the speaker and said, 'In case you are wondering what we are going to do will all these here planes, we're going to bomb Tokyo.'  It was just silent for a few minutes, then everybody started yelling and hollering."

In June, Russell Plybon was on the USS Hornet at the Battle of Midway and in October at the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands where the Hornet was attacked by dive bombers and torpedo planes and he was nearly killed.  A plane crashed and then a 2,500 pound bomb went off.  Shrapnel from a second bomb killed 33 gunners and gravely wounded others, including Plybon.

He was taken to the fantail where the chaplain was performing sea burials.  Plybon remembered thinking, "Gosh, I got to not die or they'll have me on that board.  Fortunately, before the Hornet sank, he had been evacuated to a destroyer. via a rope between the two ships.  One man was evacuated at a time in a bucket.  Afterwards, he spent eight months in a hospital and still has some shrapnel in his body from that day.

--GreGen

Denver Veteran Saw Doolittle Takeoff from USS Hornet-- Part 1

From the April 18, 2012, Denver Post "Denver veteran aboard USS Hornet watched Doolittle Raiders take off for 1942 raid."

Russell Plybon will never forget April 18, 1942: "I stood right at the center of the flight deck and watched them take off.  One of the pilots forgot to put his flaps down, and when he went off the end of the ship, he sunk down, but pretty soon, here he come back up."

Plybon was a 24-year-old farm boy from Missouri who enlisted in the Navy immediately after Pearl Harbor and trained as an aircraft mechanic.  The men of the Hornet were not told the nature of the mission until at sea.

They had wondered why the sixteen B-25s were loaded on board at San Francisco, but just assumed they would be ferrying them to Hawaii. since these bombers were designed for land bases.

But....  --GreGen

Old News, But Kind of Sad: Doolittle's Raiders

From the Feb. 2, 2012, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette.

The five remaining Doolittle's Raiders were planning to attend their group reunion at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force near Dayton April 17-20th, for the 70th anniversary of their daring feat.

On April 18, 1942, just months after the devastating attack on Pearl Harbor, 80 flyers under Lt. Col. James "Jimmy" Doolittle gave the Japanese a taste of their own medicine.

This year's event features a banquet, memorial service, autograph sessions and they were also hoping for a massive fly-over by 25 B-25 bombers.

This year, they will also have the Chinese survivors who risked their lives in Japanese-occupied China, to save the flyers. Surviving crewmembers of the USS Hornet will also be on hand.

Then, the real sad part of the story: all five survivors of the Doolittle raiders are able to travel and will attend. Now, we are down to four with one unable to travel for health reasons who will be attending the very final get-together in Dayton, Ohio, November 9th.

Like I Said, the Greatest Generation. --GreGen

USS Northampton (CA-26)-- Part 2

After attacking Witje Island (Atoll). the Northampton next bombarded Wake Island and escorted the aircraft carrier Hornet in the famous Doolittle Raid in April.  Then, it fought at the Battle of Coral Sea and screened the carrier USS Enterprise at the Battle of Midway.  This was one really busy ship.

In mid-August, it joined the Guadalcanal Campaign then patrolled southeast of San Cristobal.  On September 15th, the Northampton was attacked by submarines, but received no damage.  The battleship USS North Carolina and carried USS Wasp were hit by torpedoes, though and the USS O'Brien was hit just 800 yards off the Northampton's port beam.

Next, it screened carriers at Bougainville Island and at the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands on 25 October came to the aid of the sinking USS Hornet.

The Battle of Tassafaronga was fought to prevent the Japanese from reinforcing their troops on Guadalcanal.  Here, the Northampton's luck ran out and it was hit by two Japanese torpedoes and sank three hours later.  American losses at the battle were heavier than the Japanese, but it was a strategic victory as the reinforcements were prevented.

Two other ships had the name Northampton and all three will have a reunion September 10-13 in Branson, Missourit.  The 2014 reunion will be in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The Story of a Ship.  --GreGen