Lunga Point (CVE 94) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 154 text:

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

Page 153 text:

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

Page 155 text:

To this the Squadron added its bit by daily un- loading tons of bombs and scores of rockets on the enemy strongholds. Where the Marines called for bombs, VC 85 put them. The fighters fanned out to Chichi Jima to the north and spread destruction there. Photographic planes from the Scjuadron handled all the photographic duties rcc|uired at the objective. Under extreme weather conditions rocket and bombing attacks were executed with gratifying results. When the island was secured and land-based aircraft undertook the protection of the ground forces, the ships turned toward Ulithi again, with the satisfaction of knowing they had left behind a job well done. Wars are necessarily run on schedule and schedules cannot always take ships and pilots into consideration. So it was that, instead of a lengthy recuperative period following the Iwo Jima operation, the ship loaded day and night for nine days, readying itself for the next mo e. The .Squadron made the most of those nine days, short as they were, and felt ready to go when the order came. There had been no leaks of information prior to this sailing and scuttlebutt ran high as to the next objective. The air crewmen ' s ready room, spawning bed of scuttlebutt, proved especially fecund and produced at least one good story per day. But the truth was not long hidden. The night of departure from Ulithi all pilots were called to the ready room and there on the bulkheads they saw the map of a long, twisting island — Okinawa. It was generally agreed later that Okinawa was the hardest operation engaged in by the Scjuadron. Certainly the Hak was heaviest. At Iwo Jima the planes drew small caliber fire which was not readily seen. But here the strike groups ran afoul of the ugly black puffs that blossomed so menacingly out of thin air. They returned day after day, anti-aircraft fire or not, and carried out attacks in the face of it. The list of destruction at Okinawa makes a formidable box score on paper. It looked even better from the air as the huge columns of smoke arose from blasted ruins. Ten enemy aircraft were bagged by the Squadron planes during the operation, proving that all they had to do was see ' em. In these encounters, not one X; 85 plane was damaged by a Jap aerial gun. Routine anti-submarine patrols and combat air patrols were launched whenever called, and photographic and propaganda planes performed all missions creditably. Word had been passed that relief was due around 20 April, but that date came and went and the operation continued. At the end of April the ship was ordered to a fueling area to provide air cover for the tankers. This served as a welcome respite for the weary pilots; they flew shortened patrols, not too frequently. At last the long awaited dispatch came ordering the ship to Guam to pick up a new group. It meant that the cruise was over, finished. It meant a great adventure had reached its con- clusion. There is little that need be said about a group of men who, thrown together by chance, have organized themselves and perfected their skills into a smoothly working team. Their record stands and speaks for itself. If you were to ask one of the pilots vshat factor pushed VC 85 above the average, he would probably say, We were lucky — we drew a good ship. Yes, she is a good ship. The Squadron hadn ' t been long aboard when that became evident to all its members. And the Squadron Officers and men are proud to call the officers and men of the Lunga Point Shipmates. Fast friendships were formed that will continue long after the shooting stops and many of the reserves go back to civilian life. To the officers and men of the ship, the Squadron says, So long, good hunting, and God bless vou !