Bunker Hill (CG 52) - Naval Cruise Book

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Phiilo NH4;j7J I ' SSBunkfrHillalM-j Pholourapli aulogrjphcj bj Adm Arleigh A Burke USS BUNKER HILL (CV 17) The Holiday Express CV 17. the first vessel to bear the name BUNKER HILL, was launched 7 December 1942 by Bethlehem Steel Co., Quincy, Mass. She was commissioned 24 May 1943, Captain J. J. Ballentine in command. Reporting to the Pacific in the fall of 1943. Bunker Hill participated in carrier operations during the Rabaul strike, Gilbert Islands operation, Kavieng strikes, Marshall Islands operation, strikes against Chunk, Marinas raid, Palau-Yap-Ulithi-Woleai raids, Chuuk-Satawan-Ponape raids, Hollandia operation, and Marianas operation, including the Battle of the Philippine Sea. During the remaining months of WWII, Bunker Hill participated in the Iwo Jima operation, the 5th Fleet raids against Honshu and the Nansei Shoto, and the 5th and 3rd Fleet raids in support of the Okinawa operation. On 7 April 1945 Bunker Hill ' s aircraft took part in a fast earner task force attack on a Japanese naval force in the East China Sea. During the US attack, the Japanese superbattleship, Yamato, one cruiser, and four destroyers were sunk. On the morning of 1 1 May 1945, while supporting the Okinawa invasion. Bunker Hill was hit and severely damaged by two suicide planes. The ship suffered the loss of 346 men killed, 43 missing, and 264 wounded. Although badly crippled, she managed to return to Bremerton, WA via Pearl Harbor. In September 1945, Bunker Hill reported for duty with the Magic Carpet fleet. She remained on this duty as a unit of TG 16.12, returning veterans from the Pacific until January 1946 when she was ordered to Bremerton for inactivation. She was placed out of commission in reserve on 9 January 1947. While laid up, she was reclassified three times, finally becoming AVT-9 in May 1959; the latter designation indicating that any future commissioned duty would be as an aircraft transport. Stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in November 1966, Bunker Hill was used as a stationary electronics test platform at San Diego during the 1960s and early 1970s. She was sold for scrapping in May 1973. Bunker Hill received the Presidential Unit Citation for the period 1 1 November 1943 to 1 1 May 1945. In addition, she received 1 1 battle stars for her service during WWII.

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Battle of Bunker Hill On the evening of June 16, 1775, the sun set on a small ragtag army of soldiers marching toward Boston, Massachusetts, one of the largest port cities of the Northeastern British Colonies, at that time under English control. Colonel William Prescott was ordered to take 1,200 militia troops against England ' s 7,000 Redcoats. His mission was to seize Bunker ' s Hill on Charleston Peninsula, overlooking Boston Harbor, instead. Col. Prescott chose to lead his troops to Breed ' s Hill, located closer to Boston. The motivated soldiers worked throughout the night fortifying the hill under cover of darkness. Upon daybreak, the British awoke to find Breed ' s Hill fortified with an earthen redoubt measuring 160 by 30 feet. British Major General Sir William Howe landed over 2,200 Redcoats on the beach and twice charged the American soldiers on the hill. As the British prepared for their third offensive against the ragged militia. Col. Prescott recognized his troops ' dwindling munitions. He ordered his men to standby for one last volley of fire before retreating. Though the British Redcoats were eventually able to recapture Breed ' s Hill, the American soldiers held them at bay for over two hours despite being outnumbered and outgunned. Out of 2,200 Redcoats engaged, 1 ,034 were killed, w hile the cost to the Americans was less than 450 souls lost, wounded, and captured. As a result of the American soldiers ' efforts, the British attempted no further actions outside of Boston for nine months. Though the [faille of Bunker Hill is viewed by some to be a tactical British ictory, many regard the battle as a psychological and strategic victoi7 for the colonists. For the first time, the Americans demonstrated that relatively untrained farmers and shopkeepers could go toc-to-toe against the greatest army in the world. This pivotal battle served to gain support, both at home and abroad for the American cause.

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Executive Officer LCDR Robert T. Stengel Biography LCDR Stengel, a native of Rock Island, IL, is a 1990 graduate of the University of Chicago with a Bachelors Degree in Biology. Commissioned through the NROTC Program at the Illinois Institute of Technology, he attended Surface Warfare Officers School in San Diego, CA and then reported to USS DAVID R RAY (DD 971 ) home ported Long Beach, CA. After completing tours as Gunneiy Officer and Combat Information Center Officer, he attended the U.S. Marine Corps Amphibious Warfare School, Quantico, VA. LCDR Stengel then attended Department Head School and reported as Operations Officer in USS OLDENDORF (DD 972) home ported San Diego, CA. He then reported for a second Operations Officer tour, joining USS CHANCELLORSVILLE (CG 62) in Yokosuka, Japan. CHANCELLORSVILLE served as Air Defense Commander for Battle Force Seventh Fleet and earned two Battle E ' s during his tour. LCDR Stengel then joined the staff of Commander Carrier Group ONE where he served as Surface Strike Officer. He then reported to Commander Afloat Training Group Pacific for duty as the head of Cruise Missile Training. LCDR Stengel joined USS BUNKER HILL (CG 52) in March 2004.