Lexington (CV 16) - Naval Cruise Book

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IR EP The Air Department forms the unsung and un- glamorous team whose sheer hard work made the achievements of the ship's famous air groups pos- sible. Here is the story of a typical strike day that will disclose the chief functions of the Air Depart- ment's divisions. The human interest behind this bare narrative can never be related. But, let it be known, the sweat and sacrifice implied in such scenes was Americas truest secret weapon. Here is an average day with the Air Department aboard the i'Blue Ghost. ALL IN THE DAY'S WORK The Air Department, the main artery of carrier life, had six branches, known as V-l, V-2, V-3, V-4, V-5 and V-6, comprising altogether a team of over l000 men ..., It was the beginning of morning as the Carrier Lex steamed along the waters just off the coast of an island in the Philippines. The bitter wind that broke across the bow and gained fOrCe GS if whipped along the flight deck chilled to the very core the men who manned her. The ship was making a high-speed run toward its target to cover the invasion of a small island that would soon serve as a vital base for U. S. troops. Suddenly light glared from the horizon and with- in a matter of minutes the entire task force was visible: morning-and with it the threat of attack. This was the time for greatest vigilance, and for if ---gs... H 3'- l. RT last-minute preparations against enemy submarines and planes. The winged rising sun usually ap- peared with nature's sun, but even more suddenly. l'All hands put on flash gear-Bogiesf' General Quarters soundedl The fast and throb- bing notes of the bugle stimulated the movement of the crew to its tempo. Three thousand men an- swered the alert and took positions at their battle stations with a minimum of delay. The loud speaker blasted final instructions to the pilots, as the air- plane engines swelled to a roar. Bogies 50 miles off the starboard bow, prepare to scramble planes. This was the wartime Air Department, when a skilful team of fighters, bombers and torpedo planes sped to a distant point to deliver knockout punches against a powerful enemy fortressg Tarawa, Saipan, Formosa, Manila, Tokyo. The massive flight deck didn't glitter from constant field days as it does today. The planks were saturated with oil and the surface was scarred with the 23,000 aircraft land- ings since the commissioning of the Lex. Bogies 30 miles out. Launch planes. Hellcats, Corsairs, Avengers and Helldivers had all been spotted in a condition of readiness since 2 A.M. that morning. Early reveille for the Air Department was held at 0115 .... Since that time the airdales had been preparing the deck for an immediate launch to repel just such an emergency . W,-f---- 'f wW'4

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I DEPART attack. The fighters will be catapulted on the turn into 'the wind. Everything that was a tentative plan the night before now is reality. The first fighter leaves the deck as the sling shot sends him soaring into the air. The second follows directly and the third and fourth, until the floating airfield is left empty. The noise of the propellers has taken to the sky and the robust excitement of the men on the air strip van- ishes with the deckload. As our planes joined with other units of the fast Carrier Task Force they returned to circle above the fleet formation. For a brief while, hundreds of planes blanketed the sky above and gave each man a thrill of power. Then the Combat Air Patrol is sent out against the bogies, and the first strike leaves for the target. Soon we hear that the incom- ing raid has been broken up. Permission to remove flash gear. The radar screen is free of strangers. Meanwhile the deck is again being spotted to launch the second strike. Time passes rapidly and in a few hours the same scene is again enacted. The second strike is launched shortly before the first one returns to home base. By this means, the target is saturated with continuous strikes. Our own Combat Information Center informs us that Lexington planes are nearing base and are ready to orbit over ship. l'Prepare to land aircraft. Again groups of men wait patiently at their posts to bring the returning strike safely aboard. The landing signals officer rogers g his team of men is ready. Land planes. The first plane drops from the waiting flight and circles in for a landing. The Landing Signals Offi- cer creates a picturesque statue as he stands on his platform on the port side of the stern. The two flags held firmly in his hands guide the planes onto the strip. Metal cables across the width of the deck are elevated to a high enough level to catch the tail hooks of the landing planes. There are many haazrds that exist during a landing. Frequently the enemy leaves his mark and the planes return badly shot up. At times the wheels have been shot off, or the tail hook, or the flaps, or the pilot has been injured. C.l.C. reports that plane No. 18 has lost his wheels and the pilot requests permission to come aboard. The Air Boss consents but tells the radio operator to inform the pilot he will land last. The men on the flight deck speculate as the last plane orbits above andithen rounds the circle to approach. ffl? 1