Santa Fe (CL 60) - Naval Cruise Book

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DESTROYERS HULL MONAGHAN SPENCE ARE UNFORTUNATE VIC- TIMS OF SUDDEN TROPICAL STORM Sea streams up thru hawsepzpes and sends white salt spray flying as SANTA FE headsforfueling rendezvous of Luzon. INGERSOLL pitches over heavy swell and bow is thrown clear of water. SANTA FE rides out storm with onb minor breakage, but 3 Cl7L's, Typhoon made up without warning, caught 3rd Fleet directb' in path. Wz'th wind and sea increasing hourbf, ships yaw considerabbf and promise to part hoses, forcing cancellation of fueling operation. 6 DD's and 2 DE's must return to Ulithi and repair storm damage. After winds reach 80-90 knot mark, ship takes52O roll to starboard. Storm center passes at 1430, I8 Dec., and barometer begins to rise. Next three days are spent searching for survivors tj capsized DD's. 80

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1 1 ' A 1 . H - X- 'V 111 lg? nl 5 'f Y if 11 ,.. . ,vig .r ,v,'1f',,.' in 24, n 5 -fra, .-gf A , 1' . 'B -I l i i l l l 4 l Bofors-made 40MMy5,f0T'wd7'd quad and main deck twin,j?re at plane of port beam. High rate of output makes them ideal AA weapons. towards the Philippines. On 25 November while striking northern Luzon, heavy air opposition was met and the ESSEX took a Kamikaze on her Hight deck. Two minutes later, the SANTA FE shot down another dive bomber as it began its dive. The strikes were maintained until 2 December when the Force retired towards Ulithi. 10 December began the Mindoro operation as the SANTA FF in company with TG 38.3 headed for Luzon to keep the Jap air force occupied until troops of SouVVesPac could establish themselves ashore. On 1-1, 15, and 16 December theairhelds of Luzon were blasted day and night by Third Fleet planes. Only a few bogies approached the SANTA FE's formation and none attacked the ships. Un 17 December, fueling had to be broken off, for a heavy typhoon suddenly formed to the eastward and headed directly for The Force. All ships finally fueled the 19th, and the next day approached Luzon but turned away because of foul weather. Another sweep for survivors from the sunken destroyers was made prior to returning to Ulithi on Christmas Eve . . . Ka 7 , rnikaze is headed for premature Shinto heaven. Batting average q' such last-ditrlz tactics is said to oe mere two pereent. 79

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113' , im Al 1 my Mix .ITE W In Ulzthz anchorage wzth praclzcally entzre 3rd Fleet zn bafkgroand BIRMINGHAM comes alongszde to por! or tranifer of CruDzv 13 5 ag P the United States fails to maintain a Naval Base at Ul1th1 Atoll and neglects to erect a statue of a salty sailor on its historic Mog Mog there will be many Blue1ackets from the SANTA FE and the rest of the Pacific Fleet who will contend that the war in the Pacific was never really won. For few aboard the SANTA FE realized on the afternoon of 2 October 1944, as the ship steamed into Ulithi for the first time, that during the next six months Ulithi would be the ship's major advance operat- ing base and her only source of ashore recreation. Hostile Yap was only 75 miles to the south- west. SOO miles away U. S. Marines were fighting a bitter battle for Palau. Seven times beginning Oc- tober sixth the SANTA EE sortied from inside this island's expansive coral reef for major operations against the Japanese. The eighth and final departure on the evening of 27 March 1945 from the Tropical Paradise with Beerl' Ulfthf filo!! natives are Jmrdy .7VIf'rrane.rian rare. ULITHI IS SRD FLEET LIBERTY PORT REPAIR BASE SUPPLY DEPOT was for the States In between these dates are many never to be forgotten episodes Early on the morning of 20 November apanese midget subs made one way trips into the harbor to torpedo and sink the Heet tanker MISSISSINEVVA A SANTA FE aviator and his radioman became heroes by taking a Hgooney bird to the rescue of survivors. On 24 December this indispensable lady steamed into Ulithi again only to find her supposed-to-be holiday gift mx addressed to another ship. The day after Christmas the crew watched sistership MOBILE pull out and head for the States to take 'four scheduled yard period. The only one more operation pseudo-opti- mism was now out-in-the-open pessimism. But the iron-clad ship and crew continued to hang together and bring aboard at Ulithi the beans and bullets and bolts to shatter all , . x - yn J I .. - fleet without overhauln records. 81