Hancock (CV 19) - Naval Cruise Book

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Flight Deck Tragedy

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5 00-Pound Bomb Exploded in Recovery of TBM . broke out in disorderly blasts on powerful steam whistles and men on t-heir bridges took turns, in child-like anticipation, each giving vent to his emotion with the sounding of three short and a long, symbol of Victory. Later in the afternoon the l-lannah-launched CAP of Air Group Six shot down the last enemy plane of World War ll, a torpedo-carrying Kate diving on a neighbor- ing British Task Force. ln this, the l-lannah's last combat -operation, her Air Group had destroyed nine enemy aircraft in the air and 304 on the ground. They had assisted in sinking twolbattleships, two heavy cruisers, two carriers and one destroyer. ln addition to the factories, naval bases and air installations damaged the planes destroyed 37 locomotives and damaged ZO more. On August l9th the l-lancock Marine Detachment was transferred to the attack transport Gerrard for duty with Task Force 3l in landings on Japan. Commencing on August l6th, planes conducted air search missions over Japan in search of POW Camps, dropping supplies and medicines. From information gained from these flights, a force was dispatched on August '27th to make landings with doctors and supplies for all Allied Prisoner of War encampments. The Force, under the command of Commodore R. W. Simpson aboard the cruiser San Juan, anchored in Sagami Wan to commence evacuation.

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M ass Burial Service January 23, 1945 I The Hannah's planes joined other units from the carrier force in mass flights over Japan to give the Japanese people an idea of Allied Air Power. On Sep- tember 2, l945, the formal surrender of the Japanese Imperial Government was signed aboard the .Missouri under the watchful wings of the maximum launch from three task forces steaming off Japan's shores. The Hancock received anew skipper when Catpain Daniel V. Gallery re- lieved Captain Hickey on September 7th as the Hannah readied herself for 'her entry into Tokyo Bay. Captain Gallery came to the Hancock after a bril- liant career in the Navy climaxed by a tour of duty as commanding -officer of the escort carrier Guadalcanal. He graduated from the Naval Academy with the Class of l92l and spent the next six years on battleships and destroyers. ln l927 he was ordered to Pensacola for flight training, the beginning of l8 years of Navy flying service. World War ll found him as Commanding Officer of the Fleet Air Base, Reykjavik, Iceland. Ordered to the new escort carrier, Guadalcanal, he became the first man to take-off and land from her decks and under his command the carrier was credited with eleven German submarines sunk during the Battle of the Atlantic. One submarine was actually captured by a boarding party from his carrier