Cape St George (CG 71) - Naval Cruise Book

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THE BATTLE OF CAPE ST GEORGE USS CAPE ST. GEORGE (CG 7 1 ) is the first ship to bear this name. She commemorates the World War II naval engagement, dubbed the perfect battle, fought in the South Pacific off the island of New Ireland, in the Solomon Island chain, on No- vember 25. 1943. Naval Intelligence suspected that the Japanese would attempt to resupply or evacuate their forces on Bougainville and Buka islands to their base at Rabaul. Anticipating their move. Admiral William Bull Halsey gave Captain ( later Admiral ) Arleigh Burke, Commander of Destroyer Squadron Twenty Three (DESRON 23). the following orders: Thirty One Knot Burke. get athwart the Buka-Rabaul evacuation line... if enemy con- tacted you know what to do. At 0141 . SPENCE reported radar contacts off the starboard bow of the formation at 22.000 yards and the Battle of Cape St. George began. As the unsuspecting five- ship enemy task group headed westward. CAPT Burke turned his formation to the East and prepared to launch torpedoes. When the targets were in range. AUSBURNE. CLAXTON. and DYSON fired torpedoes. CDR Luther K. Reynolds. CO of AUSBURNE. wrote in his Action Report saj ing it was a destroyer officer ' s dream. Consequently, two enemy destroyers, ON AM I and MAKANAMI. were hit and the remaining three. YUGIRI. AMIGIRI. and UZUKI. fled northward. Of the two ships torpedoed, ONAMI sank immediately and MAKANAMI was set ablaze. In accordance with CAPT Burke ' s doctrine, the rear destroyers, CONVERSE and SPENCE, finished off the damaged destroyer with gunfire and sank her while the other Little Beavers sped after the remaining Japanese ships. CAPT Burke ' s ships caught up to YUGIRI. AMIGIRI. and UZUKI and managed to hit and sank the YUGIRI with gunfire. The other two Japanese ships fled westward at high speed. Copt. Arleigh A. Burke, Commander of Destroyer Squadron 23, with officers of the squadron. Sitting, left to right, are: Cmdr. L. K. Reynolds, Commanding Officer of USS Ausburne (DD-570); Cmdr. R. W. Cavenaugh; Capt. Arleigh A. Burke and Cmdr. R. A. Gano, Commanding Officer of USS Dyson (DD-572). Standing, left to right, are: Cmdr. Henry J. Armstrong. Commanding Officer of USS Spence (DD-512): Lt. J. W. Bobh: Cmdr. J. B. Morland and Cmdr. J. B. Calwell.

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SHIELD: The shield contains the azure and gold colors traditionally associated with the Navy, while the cross refers to St. George. The trident symbolizes Naval power and CAPE ST. GEORGE ' S capability to fight above, on, and below the sea. It is surmounted by three Indian arrows which recall the nickname Little Beavers by which DESRON 23 became known. These arrows symbolize the three Japanese ships sunk during the battle. Emblazoned with a torpedo, the weapon employed so effectively by the Little Beavers during the battle, and a Tomohawk cruise missile, the shield reflects the weapons of the past and present. CREST: The gold star, the modern symbol of command at sea, reflects the inspirational leadership and professionalism of the officers who commanded the Little Beavers at Cape St. George. A stylized black demi-array, which recalls the nighttime engagement and represents the capabilities of the AEGIS Weapons System, sewes as the background for a dragon, symbolizes Japan and also recalling St. George. The crossed enlisted cutlass and officers sword signify the strength, readiness, and teamwork necessary to achieve victory, and the professionalism of today ' s Surface Warriors. They are intertwined in a ribbon in the colors of the Presidential Unit Citation awarded to Arleigh Burke ' s Little Beavers. Silver and gold symbolize integrity and excellence. MOTTO: The motto reflects the combat record of DESRON 23 ' s Little Beavers while under the command of Arleigh Burke. With their victory at Cape St. George, the Little Beavers closed this chapter in their history ALWAYS VICTORIOUS and this legacy is being carried forward by the officers and men of the USS CAPE ST. GEORGE.