Bunker Hill (CV 17) - Naval Cruise Book

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never held their heads more proudly, and the wagons and cruisers rolled west. Prancing destroyers did improvised Congas on the sparkling whitecaps that are noted in the outlying regions off this Caroline hornet's nest. We were off to a big show, a big dance, and we had ample cash to pay the Hddlers. At noon on February 15, we felt that the striking might of the U. S. Pacific Fleet had been undetected on its trip to Truk. About 1400 we learned that Hghters had found and destroyed a twin-engined Jap patrol plane, Betty by name. This little feat set everybody to wondering. But by nightfall we again felt pretty confident about the whole thing. No bogeys came out to hamper our march. That truckdriver eating a late lunch of beef sandwiches and beer at the Bravo Lunch counter on Cermak Road in Chicago the next day probably didn't have any idea how we-some six thousand miles away-felt about the lunching business. It was all we could do to force down a half an egg and three swallows of coffee before dashing off to Gen- eral Quarters and Watching hordes of Amer- ican fighter planes take to the pre-dawn sky. Our stomach was in pretty much of a knot, for imaginations had been fed plenty of Pacific potion, some labelled Rabaul, some Kavieng and some Tarawa. But they took 0E-dozens of them. Flying in that one-two- one backheld formation, they turned snarling noses toward the haughty pride of the Em- peror's island possessions. Three hours later we were watching them return aboard, and a few minutes later they were telling of blasting Zekes, Hamps, Tonys and Tojos from the springy air over Eten, Paran and Moen airfields. Already the bombers and torpedo planes were visiting destruction to a lagoon full of shipping, and other strikes were rolling from the Task F orce's numerous Bight decks. The element of audacity and surprise was our ace card in handing Truk a shellacking that, in comparison, would have made B1-et Harte's Chinese poker-players look like jay- birds There was a drama at North Pass .,3 u raconteur's convention. Commander Dal Air Group Seventeen's dimunitive chieftai covered the target area for an evaluation r port, radioing to the ship that cruisers, d stroyers, a carrier, several oilers, and nun erous merchantmen were on hand for tl airmen's pop visit. He also reported tha several ships, including cruisers, were tryingi escape through the North Pass. Forthwit the Air Group Commander proceeded to clim directly over the escapists Cand this is world for escapistsj and invite comers on' c that will rank with the best of them in n - f stop them dead. Already battleships and several cruisers an destroyers had been detached from our for to proceed to this pass and cut off the exi of Jap escapists. While the wagons plowei nearer their goal, planes came to cripple th Nips. What the planes left was polished ol subsequently by the big guns. One fore thoughted Jap skipper was wheeling well ou of the danger zone, his cruiser blistering thi sea for home, when Torpedo Skipper Grady Owen moved in with his boys. Circling the doomed gray hull, Skipper Owen spread hi: flight out around the ship. He steadied their for their run, and running through the ina words of attack readiness, he mentioned thai they owed at least one to the Grey Eaglefi Frank Whitaker, who had left them so sud- denly at Eniwetok. Chow down, the attack command. Spen- cer Davis, AP correspondent, was in on the feast that day. He later Wrote of the IaP'S death, saying that the torpedoes sped toward a pinpoint center, their wakes reminding him Of lingers. They hitg the cruiser, there 2 moment before, rolled over and disappeared. Bomber Pilot Lieutenant Cjgj George GlasS, with C. W. Aunspaugh, his radioman, failed to return from the first strike that day. TWO more gallant crewmen went to their deaths: J- A- Applefeld, radioman for Bill Sheaiifmi and W. B. Gerrity, TBF radioman for Pllot G. A. Turnbull, died from injuries reCCiVed On their flights that day e records that day soared shattered 2 . ' cl Th , n J 130 ggi Q . k., annstiualafz. , ., f, ., , -kin .. , A, , Q 1 . . - 33v3-Qyzf'ggf'f'j-e'-f17f:e'r'A :r':+:-tff'rX'f'?'i-es--W .'.. .,,,,,.,,....a... ..., M . ,. ,, ,, .V . ,. ,, V V1 Ak , ,,,.K . -mn..-'gf......4 ,......... . .-.--1 ....:1-ff-f.,-.,.,.-,,.,.s.-.m1- -spin. -- - ..,, . ,ni , .,.,.,--sv -.T-,-Tm...- is -f-as-'W f- si

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Lieutenant Cjgl Ed Stack, and all were plunged as a mass funeral pyre into the blue lagoon. Whitaker's regular crewmen, Sill and Toothaker, followed their skipper to their deaths, as did Stack's crew, Moins and Well- baugh. It was a hard series for the Bunker Hill, for also lost during the operation was Lieutenant Mark Mowry, devout fighter pilot f - - - ' ' , .gurzggg:::4:::::: ':i':,airi.,-..... - 4,5-gf? j , V, 1 ..::ggiE::.':: '- K X Q is ,, L .-...- , N-K W yd, . -rr--rwft --1-g-.,,,,.J-,Y .ma-.-,,.,,,M.. nie,-,., .-.. lfjfff ,-- F, 5, 533 f,-f'g',f',,, ,, qw. X- 'sf A f f 1 -. f 2? . ?1a?1'Wf I, Q.. IJ' st.:- 1Kg1,.:4-5f.'x uf Ativgglglfyllni T a 'Z Ip. - ' fi ' F S .l.,.a-:j5:1 f ' ,, -.'r'XN-,W l - -. -.-, .. -212.1 or D f ' -- ' .J v - , fi W---fo 'q , 4 -5. -V ,,a--.- p L, 5' C ' ' ,,Qi,Ql:' bgfl'-w,'T , f 1,,. .L , i . --9-1 -ie ' 4' as--.ii A b-.. - ,. ' '- 24.6 ',f ,---A , yi. N- - MT I lv,1,iFfj,. ,Elf 1 fx A -fn 'f' -- 4' f-'X-.-1-ay i -'sf' -ij' :Grier T . ix. H X 'Q 'Lg' tlligi' -ff V,,. ' -,I ia- A j 'iii f .- - ., r -,g f A-ff V, ,.. L. vw. nm, 5 ,, .1 A f -we 1 .f --.-rw .fi ff- V 2' . f f llf' ,ff 4. ff . t y-'KT' '33 . Q.. I ff fzygf Emlfplw -M Y ,, lj'-,i ig, gf:-if-f ,, W' P' Q f-Avy f'T fKri? 4W i'Agg,f?'af'ifi 'N' if ' . M' !,'-Qfry M ,, -A .J,,, 1,1 5 f' ,fa-.1 is ..Qfv?E?'S1'L 5Lg4:,?'i5-55, fidgf' i gg! 'HMS ..,a-Eff :sZ.,.,,.:1.,f y .'- , ,f ' .111 ,,-f' , 5 , 1' ' 'fl V? Q -'ff' 1 X115 - i f fe aaa: .iaa f 1 lk-f ' if .M I if ' ' 51 54Z?4i31:z'51'S-l,.f'pf ,f7fP5' .if-fm ' who became victim of AA fire, Lieutenant Cjgl Pearson and his crew of Emilianowicz and Titsworth and photographer K. H. Shaw, and Lieutenant Cjgj Arthur 0'Sullivan, with his crew of Grimsman and Nicholson. Lieuten- ant Cjgl Guy M. Brown was also a victim of AA fire, but with his crew, lived to enjoy one of the greatest experiences of his life aboard a rescuing destroyer, the U.S.S. Burns, which single-handedly destroyed a four-ship con- voy in a night surface action while enroute from rescuing the airmen. Our Task Force, which had been the spear- head of the Marshalls conquest, found an- chorage in the newly-won coral atolls. The force moved in and immediately set about replenishing its fuel and bomb supplies. Water-bound seamen stared goggled-eyed at the palm-lined rim that protected us from the sea, and they bit their fingers to see if they were dreaming when airmail came tumb- ling aboard in less than forty-eight hours after the battle force came to rest. Clf Sally could only see us now . . . D Uncle Sam's airmail service was turning the globe into a cross- roads cafe, and home didn't' seem as if it were more than a stone's throw from any- place. The American youth's bewildered dream of time and space was vanishing on thin air under the influence of Fast Carrier Task Forces and fairy-tale postmen. It was early in February that we learned that Captain J. J. Ballentine, father of the Bunker Hill, had been promoted to Rear Admiral, his orders calling for his transfer to ComAirPac's staff as Chief of Staff. Ordered to replace him was Captain Thomas P. Jeter, USN, class of 1918, whose work as Navigator and later Executive Officer of the U.S.S. En- terprise had won for him much praise among Naval ofiicers. Captain Jeter came to the Bunker Hill from Washington, where he had served on the staff of Admiral Ernest J. King. He took over command of the ship on,Feb- ruary 5, and Admiral Ballentine headed for Pearl Harbor. ' Before our eyes had stopped drinking in the sky-colored lagoon waters and before our imaginations ceased letting us chase Varga- designed nymphs down palm-frond boule- vards, somebody said a bad word: Truk! 53 FIRST TRUK We had no fears of Trukg only illusions largely fed our imaginations by our own ignorance of its contents. Whoever it was who Hrst mentioned this bad word must have been kidding, we figured, checking our life- belts and wishing we could go for a moon- light cruise in some safe place-Kavieng, for instance. The gall of our own forces as seen in anchoring in a territory conquered two days before was enough for one dose. But now they were talking about playing knock-knock at the gates of Japan's mythical bastion. Sure, they were only kidding . . . And several days later we were headed for Truk. Admiral Marc Mitscher's carriers

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.,.1..--- ... --... ,,-,.,,. ,,,,,. AMW-.. . ..,., -, .... .. ,.,.....-- . were soaring again before dusk settled over our force. The torpedo luggers slammed sev- enteen hits home out of thirty-nine drops, a record that still holds in Pacific warfare. The bombers scored nineteen direct hits out of seventy-three drops for an average of twenty- six percent--fifteen percent hitting is good bombing. Said Admiral Sherman from his flagship, the Bunker Hill, that night: First strike took Truk by surprise. Destroyed many planes on field, air opposition light. About three cruisers, six destroyers, and one CVE present and attempted escape via North Pass- Q -,,,...------ --. ,,,.....-..---- -i-....1--1-- - -- ---- --M --- ,.,...1----- -,,,....----1-. ,-.....-1-- ,,,.,.1.-l ........--- Vw- Yuggnvig ,-,, -------A ..,...- W., ..-. ,-.. H.-- W.-. .... ..-. ... .....----:--- , W.- ,,.,,,,,L,,,, L., M, .,,., W.. W- W.. - - .V .---....- ----v -.-. - -Y --- --- - - ----f-'f-f- 'f:'-If --Mi .fQffQQffffQIfQIiL V W ? H V..-i..N W-W A .L,,...-..--, ' . , 3-11, if-.,.'.w3+ r-'ri - Q... ,g i,--kxjgiy, ifife . -is- gm , 793, Y . . -E , 1 Vx.-45 -r.53E:.2f,ig,',,5:::Tgfgllqw - .... r A J. 4.,,i-Q ' 'Q-. .--- - 'j,,-I -- 7 -- ' - if --K1 M 'f if 'J GST' --E., f-in-5 h 't'1f' r 'M rn???FafiL,42:,,IQLgfgl.gf1 .. - --.W I Ii - ' ',221.s.-A-'l1'miTELtTiL4.-,Q aft, -23123: .- . .1..r..v:--PQ '- .L rv--fx' I N5L,J,,::s-.gg .L -' 2 v,..,.,. -' Mm.. 1 gn' ---dr fu---..-A:--GH' ,.f-'-':5t'f'rei..-- mi.- ?Fh:.- at-,J 'td' ' 't' -1, , 1:-rxQ -'H 'fm qc--. ,... I-flwfszff -1 , . , ,,.g-y, .-- ,hx-'QQ sgQ,.3,', . mq N-f ---:ATM - ' 1 N,.3.ij,- ' -.Shi - ' g -- . - -.-..- ia-an Q.. , -mg F -- .. ' .. ,, - ,- -' ' . '5-.i.:-. ,ff-f , , , ' , g . fl' V I V . 41. - ' .....--' -- fp ' . ,uit-ss-'W fra-- ,iv-ni' :Tyr F .prrr Mage?-frkrlf'-4 This group hit one CVE, one CL with bombs and sangk one CL with torpedoes. About thirty AKs in lagoon, many sunk and burn- ing. Attack continuing. Stand by for Betty attack at dusk. Betty failed to call that night-even after we sat up and waited for her.' The second day at Truk was a polishing off' routine. The targets were there one min- ute, gone the next. Lieutenant Qjgb N. B. Birkes, with his crewmen, F. S. McKenzie and S. S. Stump, failed to return from their hopg it was believed that they landed in the water just outside the lagoon. A rescue mission was unsuccessful, and quite probably they became prisoners of war that day. The Task Force turned eastward. Sailors began playfully to sing, Let's Meet on the Road to Majuro, and other parodies, Such as The Sleepy Saloon, the Tropical Moon. There were some great stories to come out of the Truk affair. One pilot was picked up out of the lagoon by a cruiser's OSZU, being protected by a formation of friendly fighters that strafed the pants off Jap escort vessels attempting to capture the American. Other stories were almost as fantastic, each of them corroborating the N avy's policy to make res- cues wherever at all possible. Pilots and the bluejackets talked about Truk for twenty- four hours running, and it would have gone on into another day and night if someone hadn't noticed a series of fleet tankers ease into our formation . . . and commence pour- ing into hungry carrier tanks the precious fiuid that makes Tojo run. At precisely that point, just when people were wondering how the soldiers were doing in Italy, it was an- nounced that something new had been added to our prospective list of imminent targets. After Truk, our first guess was a field day in Tokyo, but, as usual, we weren't exactly right. p FIRST TINIAN est of Truk, and its neighboring Caro- line Islands, and east of the Philip- pines-more precisely, Southern Luzon-there are a group of islands known in geographic circles as the Marianas . . . The Intelli- gence OHicer's voice droned on for ten min- utes before we stopped having visions of how American'forces had been brutally destroyed on Guam. We also thought of Saipan, of Rota, Tinian, mystic Japanese words. These mental fiashes fitted into a pretty logical picture. Our audacity in attacking Truk could not be repeated again soon, the Japs probably figured. But they didn't see eye to eye withfAdmiralRaymond Spruance's Fifth Fleet and Marc Mitscher's carriers. If we could fiatten Saipan, it would mean that Betty's coming-out parties would be fewer and farther between, for this allegedly was her favorite staging promenade. If we could