Dashiell (DD 659) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 42 text:

G all X ,-5 1 sweep along the coast of northern Japan. At 2300 the vessels formed in column and commenced the sweep on a northerly course from a point seven miles off Honshu at Latitude 390 N. Fires left by earlier battle- ship bombardments were still plainly visible. No enemy contacts were made during the run, and at 0145 after passing Latitude 400 N. the Task Group proceeded to rejoin Task Force 38. Q Strikes against the Kure-Kobe area were launched on 24, 25, and 28 July. The month was brought to a spectacular close by Destroyer-Squad- ron 25. On the night of 30-31 .luly these ships made the deepest and most daring penetration of the Japanese homeland effected by surface vessels during the war. At 2200 on the 30th the seven destroyers en- tered Suruga Wan with the task of destroying shipping and bomharding the city of Shimizu. There was a full moon that night which intermitt- ently played its beam from behind the scattered clouds like a giant search- light. An eerie green phosphorescence streamed aft from the bows of the trim, swift-maneuvering ships. Surely they would be spotted by the enemy. Where were the shore batteries? The planes? The suicide craft? On the way in, a small picket boat was contacted but was left un- molested. DesRon 25 had more grandiose plans for announcing its presence. Deep into the bay the destroyers went, following the shore past Shimizu, where they were only 6000 yards from land. At three minutes past midnight they began an intense four-minute rapid Ere bombardment of the city's aluminum, plants and railroad yards. Simul- taneously a ship was picked up within a half mile of the reported posi- tion of a 2000-ton cargo vessel. Her guns still blazing, the DASH- IELL fired two torpedoes at the new target. At the time and place it was computed the torpedoes would hit, three men in main battery con- trol reported ilashes followed by a red glow. Meanwhile 150 rounds of 5 ammunition had been expended without casualty and been observ- ed to cause large fires. During the Squadron's flank speed retirement the flagship disposed of the picket boat that had been contacted earlier. At 0100 the destroy- ers stood out of Suruga Wan - safe, intact, and making thirty-two knots. It was a glorious feeling. Owing to heavy weather, further air strikes were postponed until 9 and 10 August, when Hokkaido and Northern Honshu once again felt iv-KN. f

Page 41 text:

i if? in, mfs, i'w.. STV .Q I. 3 y ii, ' ot: f ,I yu 1 , l 5 i : 4 1 t I 4 Q 5-, Q , Q . I , 3 . 6 A 5 c 4 I .W X 'wg ni f. 1 A 'T H A in . tw U. S. S. Pittsburgh marked the spot with her bow, which became detached from the rest of the ship. But at length the skies cleared, the seas calm- ed, the sun shone, men smiled, and the huge task of cleaning up the ship was begun by all hands. Aside from several large holes in the whale- boat, no damage was sustained that could not be repaired by the ships force. Aboard the DASHIELL there were no personnel casualties. On 7 June this vessel and the Ringgold were detached to search for two downed Seaplane pilots from the U. S. S. Tennessee. Results were negative, but the rescue was later affected by ships of another group. ComDesDiv 50 transferred his flagship from the H6593 to the Ringgold the same day. Having weathered Kamikazes and typhoons for almost a year and a half without major overhaul, the DASHIELL on 10 June began to ex- perience severe vibration at certain speeds over fifteen knots. The Task Group was at the time conducting exercises en route to Leyte Gulf. When it was considered inadvisable for the ship to maintain fleet speed, she was directed to proceed independently with another destroyer. As in December 1943, speculation ran riot regarding the possibility of a trip home. The question was soon answered. On arrival the ship went into a floating dock, and while hands turned to on scraping and painting the bottom, the screws and shafts were repaired and readjusted. A trial run showed that the ship was then ready for more action. San Pedro Bay provided a far safer and better haven than it had during the DASHIELUS previous visits, but since large elements of two fleets were in port, the new recreational facilities were cramped. ffm! im Wcbdcwq .f At dawn on 1 July the DASHIELL stood out of the harbor with Task Force 38 on a mission presumably designed merely to soften up the enemy homeland with heavy strikes and to gain more intelligence information on the North Honshu-Hokkaido region. Little did any of the ship's company dream that this was their final wartime sortie. For the first nine days, long hours were spent in battle drills. On the 10th the initial strikes were launched against the Tokyo plains area. Bad weather caused cancellation of strikes which had been scheduled for the northern area on 13 July. The following evening the DASHIELL with her squadron joined a cruiser Task Force for a night anti-shipping 6 F 1 fi ' L I' ,s igns I 'gf - 1 xt wi A , -1 -A . 1 1 E 8 . 1' Q .:5'w E 5 ral , I kti5f , :Y Y 15,5955- . 5? 5, wg. , gf--446 ',:4-Ja. ' 'iff' . ff? 't gui. 'H .. 3:5f5a4i f',f' 'gi' 'fi 4 5 A .3211 21335121 I ,. , .' Z. -CVE: ' if N . .fy 'Viw x f - 1.-' if L1-,V-- 3 I 'Xi ., gf':1,' .'q, , , , . ,.'-',S',,Li' .N f '?'f5.?5,f,f

Page 43 text:

the fury of America's carrier-based air power. Then the unexpected, the incredible, the impossible happened. On the night of the 10th word was received that Japan was prepared to accept the surrender terms of the Potsdam Conference. It's hard to celebrate on a small destroyer steam- ing under a wartime condition of readiness. There are no chorus girls, no ticker tape, no champagne. But even on a destroyer you can feel your heart swell up with joy and thankfulness till you think it's going to burst. And right then, on the night of 10 August, that was all the cele- bration that three hundred men on the U. S. S. DASHIELL wanted to ask for. - On 13 August, while the negotiations were still going on, there was another strike on the Tokyo plains area - just to let the Japanese know we meant business. It was not unopposed, either, for during the day twenty enemy planes were shot down by the Force's combat air patrol. There was a further strike on the 15th, but just as the planes had the enemy coast in sight news was received that the surrender had been consummated, and all were recalled. During the next weeks the 3659 cruised off the homeland with her task group. A landing force and a prize crew were organized but neither was used. On the 27th the DASHIELL and the Murray were detached to accept the surrender of an enemy submarine which was re- ported surfaced and flying a black flag. With the 3659 standing by to cover her, the Murray placed a prize crew on the sub which mustered the Japanese on deck and replaced the black flag with the U. S. colors. The DASHIELL then rejoined her group, and the Murray escorted the underseas craft to port. The climax to the U. S. S. DASHIELUS wartime career came on 6 September when the ship sailed proudly past graceful Fujiyama, past the unmanned shore batteries, past Yokosuka Naval Base, and anchored off Yokohoma in Tokyo Bay itself. H That evening she was again under- way. The war was over. The DASHIELL was going home. Gun watch- es were secured, and at night the running lights were turned onhand the ship's company saw movies on deck. Yes, the war was over. After a stop in Buckner Bay, Okinawa, where she took ab r ninety sailors eligible for discharge, the '6659 , streaming her 245-foot home- ward-bound pennant, reached Pearl Harbor on 20 September. Here her last change of command took place when Commander Cordiner was relieved by Lieutenant-Commander John E. Wicks, Jr., USN. The new 6 A f'