Belleau Wood (LHA 3) - Naval Cruise Book

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U.S.S. BELLEAU WOOD (CVL - 24) Like the Marines at the Bois de Belleau, USS BELLEAU WOOD (CVL-24) was a fighter. From 1943 to 1945, she and her aircraft damaged countless land installations and destroyed 502 enemy planes. Of the enemy ships encountered, she sank 48 and damaged 83. BELLEAU WOOD was entitled to wear twelve battle stars on her Asiatic-Pacific Area Ser- vice Ribbon. After the war, she received the Presi- dential Unit Citation. BELLEAU WOOD ' S keel was laid on 11 August 1941, at the new York Shipbuilding Corporation, Camden, riew Jersey. Originally designed as a light cruiser, her hull was converted to a light aircraft car- rier because of a need for carriers. Mrs. Thomas Mol- comb, wife of the Marine Corps Commandant, chris- tened her on 6 December 1942 giving her the name of the World War I battle. • • After commissioning on 31 March 1943, BELLEAU WOOD ' S first comman ding officer, CAPT Alfred M. Pride, USn, took his ship through the Panama Canal and on to Pearl Har- bor. From 1943 to 1945, BELLEAU WOOD took part in nearly every major raid and battle in the Pacific. Tarawa, Wake, Pa- lau, Philippine Sea, Iwo Jima, Leyte Qulf, Okinawa and the main Empire Strike are representative of the action. BELLEAU WOOD was decommissioned in January 1947. Renamed Bois de Belleau, she was transferred to France. She returned to the United States in 1960, and was stricken from the list of navy ships. Japanese Kamikaze plane attacking USS BELLEAU WOOD (CVL-24) off Okinawa, 6 April 1945. USS BELLEAU WOOD (CVL-24) on fire after being hit by a kamikaze, off the Philippines, 30 October 1944. Flight deck crews move undamaged bombers away from flames.

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THE BATTLE OF BELLE AU WOOD The stage was set in World War I for the Battle of Bel- leau Wood by General Ludendorff when he launched his Chemin des Dames offensive against the Allied riorthem Front on 27 May 1918. The Fourth Brigade, American Ex- peditionary Forces, with other Allied Units, was ordered to move up from training areas. At four o ' clock on the morning of 50 May, Marines climbed into trucks and head- ed north. The caravan took a road that skirted Paris. The Americans were placed astride the strategic Par- is-Metz highway. Fragments of the Allied armies began re- treating along the highway, and a senior French officer ad- vised the Marines to join them. A Marine officer replied: Retreat hell. We just got here. To the left of the Marines was Bois de Belleau, three square miles of rocks, wood, and 1,200 elite sol- diers from the 461st Imperial German Infantry. On 4 and 5 June, Marines held their positions along the highway. On 6 June, the Fifth Marines counterattacked against the woods and Hill 142. By day ' s end, the edge of Belleau Wood and Hill 142 were taken at the expense of over 1,000 casualties. For four days. Marines hammered their way through the woods. On the 13th, the Germans counterattacked. The entrenched Marines started to drop the enemy at 400 yards with concentrated rifle fire. After the attack waned, the lines did not change until the 24th, when the Marines began mopping up the area. On 26 June, they proudly an- nounced that the ' Woods are now United States Marine Corps entirely. ' At the end of the battle, the Marine brigade had suf- fered 55% casualties: 1,062 killed and 5,615 wounded. What was gained was not just a small battered woodland. The action stopped the last major offensive of the war by the Germans. In doing so, it drew the Corps the respect and admiration of our allies and our coun- try. The 4th Brigade was awarded the French Citation, A L ' Orde de L ' Armee, and the wood was officially re- named Bois de la Brigade Marine. German soldiers later referred to the U.S. Marines, respectfully as Teufelhunde, Devil Dogs, because of their fierceness in battle. J SiF ' CfTATIOrf

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COMMANDING OFFICER CAPTAIN HUBERT F. TAHANEY, JR. Captain Tahaney received his commission througin the Officer Candidate Program in December 1962. His sea assignments include USS CHARLES BERRY (DE-1035) USS SPROSTON (DD-577); shipboard advisor to the Vietnamese Fiavy; Aide Flag Secretary, COMSERVQRU THREE CTF 73; Executive Officer, USS SAMPLE (ff- 1048); Commanding Officer, USS SAN BERNARDINO (LST-1189); Chief Staff Officer, COMPHIBRON SEVEN. From April 1986 to May 1987, he commanded USS LA SALLE (AGr-3), permanently deployed to the Arabian Gulf as flagship. Commander Niddle East Force. Shore assignments included courses at the Naval De- stroyer School and the Naval War College; duty in the Bu- reau of Naval Personnel, Enlisted Distribution Branch; on the staff of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet; and staff of Commander Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. Captain Tahaney holds a B.S. in History from St. Pet- er ' s College in New Jersey, andamastersdegreein Inter- national Affairs from George Washington University. His significant personal decorations and service awards in- clude the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal with Combat V, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Commendation Medal with gold star in lieu of second award. Combat Ac- tion Ribbon and Navy Expeditionary Medal. Captain Tahaney is married to the former Mary Lynn Bliss of Port Huron, Mich. The Tahaneys and their two chil- dren, Kate and Pat, reside in San Diego.