Louisville (CA 28) - Naval Cruise Book

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1-1- ground of the loudspeakers, our skipper told us the moment was at hand to de- cisively defeat the enemy. Clammy sweat moistened the palms of our hands as nervous tension heightened. Many a man standing at his battle station said a silent prayer as the Captain told of the certainty of battle. He concluded by expressing his conhdence in his officers and crew. His confidence in us was exceeded only by our confidence in him. Plucky PT boats, stationed as advance pickets at the mouth of the entrance, re- ported radar contacts closing in column from the southeast between Camiguin and Bohol Islands at 0100 on the morning of 0ctober 25. 0ur forces were disposed in classic naval form. A battle-line of battleships with right and left flank forces of cruisers to each side and forward some three or four thousand yards. The Louisville took her station in the left Hank. Alert and apprehensive, we steamed back and forth across Surigao Straits waiting our prey. In two columns, one four miles ahead of the other, the enemy cautiously felt his way forward. As he entered the Straits, the command to attack was given to the PT boats. Valiantly, the mosquito fleet struck. Star shells shattered the black of night. Greenish yellow flares slowly de- scended, their illumination probing every shadow, exposing the mighty midgets as they attempted to press home their tor- pedo attack. Tracers laced the dark as the laps laid a solid curtain of fire before them, and it proved impenetrable. Our boys were beaten back. Twenty miles away we continued our wait. Tension electrified the air. What man aboard did not shudder when the re- port, fcNo hits claimedf, came back from the commander of the PT,s? No sooner - ig. --.f ---,, , Q Q ? A L did the word reach us via inter-ship com- munication than it was relayed to every battle station over our sound-powered tele- phone circuits. We had ring-side seats at the greatest show on earth. Soon we were to be in the ring-no longer the spectator. The stakes were high, too high to think about very much. 4 Over two hours had passed since the first enemy contact. Having fought their way safely through the picket line of our PT boats, the Jap columns closed steadily at eighteen knots. Twenty-four of our destroyers were lurking in the radar shadows of Dinagat Island. When the leading Nip heavyweight crossed the ten- mile range band, the order was relayed to the tin cans to close the enemy and launch their torpedoes. The destroyers, Zig-zagging crazily in the night to foil enemy gunners, suddenly knifed into a graceful curve and fired their underwater missiles. 0ne hundred and twenty-seven deadly fish churned away toward the Jap ships, their wakes forming a series of expanding fans. A large part of the Emperor's proud battle fleet stood in the path. Hits were scored. Retiring from a torpedo run is often a more hazardous venture than the attack itself. In this case, the assault had been a surprise to the enemy, but he retaliated with a murderous barrage directed at the destroyers as they raced back to protec- 149

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7 JAPANESE 148 Oldendorf aboard, she Was the flagship that spear-headed the greatest surface engagement of this war. Under cover of darkness, We weighed anchor. Silently, grimly, We steamed in I , CARRIERS- i . EQUISERS' . Q E r 3 ESEURT AUZCRAFT i KARRQER GROUPS, column down the Gulf with the Lou, in the Van. UNOW hear thisf' the calm, deliberate voice of the 'cold mann broke the stillness of the night. Through the rasping back- FASTBATTLESHIPY. V r DSTRUYERS-'-'--L-'L '-' X

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tion under our big guns. One, unfortu- nately, dropped behind the main destroyer formation and being mistaken for an enemy ship was fired upon by our own forces. ln night engagements, gunners do not take a chance on questionable targets. However, the Grant finally identified her- self by radio and limped through our formation, and returned to Leyte Gulf. Meanwhile, our own radar has picked up the approaching ships. The ranges and bearings were being continually dis- seminated. Over the telephone circuits came the ominous report, using code nomenclature, Skunks-bearing 192- range 28,5007 Anticipation made our breathing shorter, quicker. Again the range, . . . 25,0007 Not long to go now. At 241,000 we expected all hell to break loose, for that was the maximum effective range of our main battery. Unconsciously we sucked in our breath, taut for the expected blast. The moon had set, leaving a sky blank- eted with low, dense clouds, blacker than ink. Only the churning of the propellors, and the throaty rumble of the screws, which ordinarily are imperceptible back- ground noise, broke the deadly silence. c'Range-21,000.93 For Chrissakes, what tha' hell are dey waitin' for,', muttered one of the anti-air- craft gunners, anxiety and fright giving a hoarse trembling timber to his voice. For once it was his turn to wait and pray and watch, with his fate in the hands of the men of the main battery. Range-18,000.39 e The silence was heavy, unbearable. Why didn't they open up? They should have fifteen minutes ago. Was something wrong? Weren't we crossing the damned laps' T,'? Wasn't that what every Admiral in the world dreamed of doing 150 ,S