Bataan (LHD 5) - Naval Cruise Book

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t Her Majesty ' s Australian Ship HMAS BATAAN During World War II, the Australian heavy cruiser, HMAS CANBERRA was sunk along with American warships by the Japanese Task Force. With the loss of the Australian heavy cruiser, the United States government named their newest cruiser USS CANBERRA in honor of the heroic efforts of the Australians. The cruiser was christened by the wife of the Australian Minister to the United States. In return, the Australian government named their newest Tribal Class Destroyer BATAAN in honor of the gallant stand made by the Americans on Bataan Peninsula. The Austra- lian BATAAN was christened by Mrs. Jean MacArthur, wife of General Douglas MacArthur. Supreme Commander of the Southwest Pacific. Upon commissioning, HMAS BATAAN joined the American Seventh Fleet in the Philippines and Okinawa. HMAS BATAAN was present when the Japanese surrendered in Tokyo Bay, and stayed in the area where it picked up Americans and Filipinos who had been held in the POW camps by the Japanese since the early stages of the war. During the Korean Conflict, HMAS BATAAN was once again attached to the American Seventh Fleet. It was during this conflict that the American light aircraft carrier U.S.S. BATAAN (CVL 29) and the Australian heavy cruiser HMAS BATAAN built a unique kinship. The Australian ship provided protection for the American carrier, its sister ship, through many exchanges of enemy gunfire. The bond that developed between the crews aboard these two ships went well beyond their namesake ties and became evident to the other ships in the Task Force. : Comma ran Confj Designed by the crew, the seahorse represents BATAAN s natural association with the sea. The central path commemorates the Bataan Death March. The spears from a wedge underscoring amphibious assault and deployment of troops and cargo ashore, as well as combat readiness, while highlighting USS BATAANs battle stars. Bamboo alludes to the tropics and the Pacific theater where the first U.S.S. BATAAN (CVL 29) served. The wings represent the aviation heritage of the ship. The stars are for the seven battle stars earned during the Korean Conflict while the five points of the central star represent the World War II Battle stars. The mount suggests the mountainous terrain of Bataan. The sun is adapted from the seal of the Republic of the Philippines. The crossed swords represent the Navy-Marine Corps Team. 219

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. . . No ship bears a more illustrious name. The V.S.S. BATAAN commemorates a campaign that ha become a symbol of the fortitude and endurance of free men in the face of overwhelming odds. It has rendezvous with destiny that shall not be denied. . . Frank Knox, Secretary of the Navy U.S.S. BATAAN (CVL 29) Although the keel that was laid August 31, 1942 by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation in Camden, N.J., was originally intended to be the light cruiser U.S.S. BUFFALO, the Navy changed its plans when the war in the Pacific esca- lated. The ship ' s blueprints were altered to meet the require- ments for an additional aircraft carrier that was needed in the areana. Work on the light carrier U.S.S. BATAAN (CVL-29) was completed in record time, and the ship was launched in Camden, on August 1, 1943. The Maid of Honor was Miss Maria Osmena, daugh- ter of Honorable Sergio Osmena, then Vice President of the Philippine Commonwealth; and ship ' s Sponsor was Mrs. George Murray, wife of Rear Admiral George D. Murray com- missioned the ship in Philadelphia on November 17, 1943. BATAAN reported to Pearl Harbor on March 22, 1944, but weighed anchor on April 4 for the Pacific where it joined Task Force 58 and later Task Force 38. Commanding this great warship was Captain Valen- tine H. Schaeffer, with Commander W. A. Deam assigned as its Executive Officer. Throughout its deployment to the Pa- cific, BATAAN held two change of command ceremonies. Captain J. P. Heath relieved Captain Schaeffer and Captain W. C. Gilbert relieved Captain Heath. After Japan ' s surren- der on September 2, 1945, BATAAN returned briefly to the United States where it served as a transport for U S. troops that were homeward bound from European theaters. ■I On February 1 1, 1947 the ship was decommissioned only to be re-commissioned three years later and assigned duty during the Korean Conflict. Under the Command oi. Captain Edgar T Heale, BATAAN arrived in the Korean operations area on December 15, 1950 where it supported the conflict until May 10, 1953. Upon its final return from the Korean Conflict BATAAN remained in San Diego until being deactivated or August 26, 1953. On April 26, 1954, following a brief visit to Japan via Pearl Harbor, the ship was decommissioned ir San Francisco, and later reclassified as AVT-3, in June 1959 U.S.S. BATAAN (CVL 29) earned a total of V battle stars during World War II, participating in the BattL of the Philippine Sea in June 1944, and during the Koreai Conflict where it participated in the North Korean Offen sive and the First United Nations Counter Offensive. USS BATAAN] CVL 29 | |us Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. ' [fever an American fighting ship was charged with the twin responsibilities of a great tradition and ; great purpose it is this - USS BATAAN! John McCrae, poet-laureate of World War I, whose with steadfast eyes as it ploughs the waters o ' the worli inspired words are quoted, could not have written more leaving in its wake inexorable retribution, justice and lib poignant lines to sum up the spirit and high resolve of the eration as a tribute to the brave heroes. American and Fili officers and men of this ship, nor of the craftsmen who pino, who etched with their blood in the archives of his built it. nor of the government and people who gave it their tory a new symbol for glorious self-sacrifice - BATAAN blessing. This nation and all nations will watch it hereafter 218

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USS B ATA AN Honors Battling Bgi During World War II, U. S. forces under General Douglas Mac Arthur retreated to Bataan Peninsula, on Luzon Island in the Philippines, after Manila fell to Japanese forces. In April 1942, some 12,000 American and 64,000 Philippine soldiers surrendered to Japanese forces in Mariveles, a town on the Bataan Peninsula. It was the largest surrender of U. S. forces in his- tory. Some Americans retreated further to Corregidor, an island off the southern end of the peninsula, hut they, too, surrendered in May 1942 after fierce resistance. The Japanese forced their U. S. and Philippine prisoners to march to north- ern Luzon under extremely desperate conditions; some 10,000 died and the march earned notoriety as the Bataan Death March. In February 1945, U. S. forces re-conquered Bataan. Today, the area of the Peninsula overlooking Manila Bay to the East is a Philippine national shrine. (Front: The Facts on File Encyclopedia of the 20th Century.) Sgt. J. S. Gray, US. Army Air Corps Bataan Death March Survivor If you have read the history of the Bataan Death March, you may already know of some of what the Battling Bastards of Bataan went through. You will know because historians have recorded it - but no one except for those who lived it can ever imagine the continuous chain of horror that they lived through. Still with us today are those who wal ked the seemingly endless march to disease-laden camps, only to be packed like human sardines in railroad cars then crammed inside dark cargo holds to be shipped to yet another prison camp. Most will tell you their story; others will tell you only what they think you should hear.. .or can handle. When they finish, I can promise you that you will never forget it. This year marks the 60th anniversary of their walk into living hell. This ship, their ship, and crew pays tribute to the them with the following true-life story of one of these survivors. Although just one man, his story is not unique. 1 lis story played out the same for thousands of those who walked the miles with him. It is not possible to list them all here, but il is lining that his story be told because it accurately reflects the story of Camp Donru ' ll c.- n.is ON FOOT I : — i - Hermosa OianiC ON FOOT .. BATAAN PENINSULA Marivetos San Fornando . us com . j they « :Philipp ineverb E Ml) OManil.i Cabcaben . kp so many others. This is the story of J. S. Gray, a survivor. Thi: year he will celebrate his 83 rd birthday with his wife, Alyne, at hi; home in Baton Rouge. Seven years ago, he told a newspape reporter Jeannie Smith about his ordeal. The following art ' excerpts of that story. Back in 1939 I would think that a 20-year-old who stoo 6 ' 2 and weighing in at 202 pounds would be considerec formidable, but that was not the case with J.S. He considerec himself a farm boy who was bored and wanted to get out fron behind the plow. He wanted to go somewhere other than up ant down the same rows of the same field. His decision to get of the farm and get out of Jonesville, La., brought him to the door of the nearest recruiting station. Gray and a friend hitched a rid to Barksdale Air Field and enlisted in what was then the Army Air Corps. By the end of the two-year mark, Gray was a corporal 1 thought this was a pretty good place to be, he admitted I got a $5-a-month raise. It was $21 a month when 1 starte out. I made an allotment to Mama for S5 each month, and tha went to her all through the war, Gray said, proudly. Gray ' s next assignment was as an Ordnanceman i Savannah, Ga., at Hunter Field. The accommodations were little less desirable. Gray and the men in his company lived i tents. In those days, we handled amis, ammunition, bomb and all of that for all of the airplanes, Gray explained. We di the synchronizing for all of the guns and planes. The company underwent extensive training, whic lasted until the Fall of 1941 shortly before the bombing c 220