Lunga Point (CVE 94) - Naval Cruise Book

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they marveled at the brilHant colors of the reefs and jungles of Manus. close by. Island life proved pleasant, what with the ofiicer ' s t:lub and the lazy days. The afternoons found pilots and men swimming in the lagoon or paddling rubber boats under the warm Equatorial sun. It was a rest and a welcome one. Two weeks sped past swiftly and then the word came to prepare to embark. Planes were checked, equipment exchanged and replaced, and on 14 December the Squadron returned aboard ready to fight. This time a more am- bitious objective was in store as the pilots learned when they were briefed. South the ship sped to New Guinea, where for two days they helped cover a mock in asion, a prelude to the real thing soon to come. Christmas was spent aboard ship as she lay rocking gently in Seeadler Harbor, Manus. The New Year w as rung in to the beat of the screws of the ship, and her crew pushed back from whence she had come. Back to the Phil- ippines, but this time there was to be no convoy herding. Instead, VC 85 was to cover the in- bounces IukIi alter c ay:in arresting gear vi below: .Avenger on fly-away into the sunrise. .- .. .■nl; ■|- cm,-, in t..,, hisli and takes a wavc-ull. ,uu,Jj,um lop: .Avenger takes cut from L.S.O.: third from lop: .Arresting gear wire brings .Avenger to a sudden slop; hollom: With tail hook disengaged from arresting gear wire, .Avenger drops wings and taxles forward. 149

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iwccn lli - I ' liilippiiKs ;uk1 the Adiiiiniltics lay iiii liypothilifiil line. It ;is, to l)c sure, a mt-rr technicality, yet it could not be avoiclcci. It was the Eciuator. Nor were minds assiiai cd by the sitjlit of canvas billies that all Shellbacks were industriously fashioning. Still, the Sciuad- ron reasoned, Vliat price surrender? So they talked it over and evolved a plan of action. The basic theme of this operational routine was this: If one member became overwhelmed he had but to yell ' HRV RUBE and help would be forthcoming. To further confuse the Shellbacks two of the more slippery pilots filched King Neptune ' s beard and crown at the eleventh hour. This put a definite crimp in the scheduled arri al of the Ruler of the Deep, and by way of punishment all Pollywogs were made to run around the (light deck until such time as tlie sacred vestments were returned. It was during this Marathon that a billy fell too heavily and the cry of HEV RUBE was heard. It was a signal for organized chaos as the .Sc|uadron broke free and made overwhelm- ing gains against weak defens -s. While the .Sc|uadron was prone to ( lassify this as a major up.set. the k-ading .Shellbacks tf«jk a dim view and ordered the initiation to prcxeed in a more military manner, ivhicli il did. The hapless oHicers and men were led one by one to the hangar deck and there taught their lesson of never trying to revolt against the I-oyal .Shell- backs. Like jackrabbits, they pelted down between the- double line of waiting .Shellbacks only to be urged to greater eflbrt.s en route. Once on the fantail the Pollywogs were made to pay olx ' isance to the Royal Court. After losing the greater part of their hair and Ix-ing dunked, they, too, became Shellbacks, although it scarcely smacked of being an honor then. With the pounding still smarting, the .Squad- ron was launched the morning of 27 November for landing at the small island of Ponam in the Admiralty group. As they circled the tiny bit of coral and sand awaiting their turn to land, The Sight deck is always a busy pla 143

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Avialion mechs tunt- up TBM on hangar Hrck. vasion of Lingaycii (nilf. 1 hey did it, too, handling the many duties witli skill and tincssc. They bombed and strafed; they carried ar- tillery observers and spotters; they photo- graphed the enemy far behind his lines, and ran long searches and submarine patrols. Tired, often with their planes torn with bullet and shell holes, they returned to their carrier after every hop as if drawn by a magnet and set the planes down on the heaving deck with surprisingly few accidents. .After tw ' lve days the carriers pulled out and returned to Ulithi for rest and replenishment. The lazy p( rt routine was pleasant. .Morn- ings were s[X-nt reading or writing a letter or two. In the afternoons there was always plenty of sun to ba.sk in or a basket-ball or ()lley-ball game on the hangar deck. At night one could see the picture show. Liljcrty came frequently enough to Ix- suflicicnt. One day a group of high ranking .Naval and Marine officers came aboard and all pilots were called to the wardroom. It was the briefing session for Iwo Jima. The vi.siting officers made it clear that Iwo Jima was ex- pected to be a tough nut to crack; no alter- native was left except for a frontal attack. The Marines were banking on the escort car- riers for air support. There was silence in the wardroom except for the crisp tones of the briefing officers as they sketched the plan of attack and outlined the duties of the pilots. They all felt the weight of responsibility that comes when men ' s lives are at stake. It was not long after that that the anchor was weighed and the Division of carriers steamed out of Ulithi for the next show. Iwo Jima turned out to be tough, but not too tough for the Squadron. For the first time they ran into an enemy that shot back in force. The island itself was a hell on earth, covered with smoke and constantly torn by explosions. Our plane iiard returns one of our pilots after emergency landing in the drink. 150