Samuel N Moore (DD 747) - Naval Cruise Book

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A , C, , 5 1 1 ' X ' ' or r'4 :.' , , ,,,,,,,,,,-,,,.,.,-w, , ....r,,-wg f..e,, 7 gn., V- ,1 - : rv-, ... .-. 1e',-scvfpfvf--w.f. .. s- V. -f A A f 1 - . ' -' . . A A.,- lfought-valiently egainst determined Japanese airmen who were HOt 'afraid to die. It was here thot the carrier FRANKLIN was bombed and was only kept afloat through the courageous efforts of her men and those of the supporting cruisers and destroyers, The men of the SAMUEL N. MOORE, who were topside, saw the USS WASP hit by a Japanese bomb, end sew her fighters rise from her flight deck twenty seconds leter, as she kept her position in tne formation. '.'h The WASP, though hit, fought on with full efficiency. For-two days planes fell into the sea in flames, before the ottscks abated in volume. As late es the 21st, the Toss Crouo's Combat Air Patrol shot down seventeen bombers in one ottacning group. ' ' The force retired from KYUSHU, but allowed the enemy no time to gloat, for the carrier planes were over OKINAVA JIRA on the 23rd - on the Zfth the SAMUEL N. MCCRE and the TnUSSlG left the ' ' J . , ,, , ,.,. ,. 1 . u Q- - ,--- . group escorting'the lhDlnNnL0hlS, flagship of the rlFTh Fleet, and the ST.LOU1S, to e rendezvous with TnSK DOLCE 5h off CKINAWA. The destro ers returned to the screen of TMS! QHOUP 58.1. Y , c ' Q , . ,W J ,Q-.f Three days leter the SAMUEL N. MOORE ond TLUSSIG left the screen alone to meet the lNDlnViPOLTS off the west shore of OKINAWA. Passing around the southern tip of the island the two destroyers Passed Within 3,000 yards of MUYE SHIMA. NQYR SHIMA was e little reen-islsnd upon which the American sailors could ooo the errno- gd farms and the,homes of the inhabitants, looking ouitc peaceful and incongruous in the world of war. On tro opyosito side, off I the SAMUEL N. MOOREYS starboard beam, log CJIHMMA JIMA. lt, too, would have seemed peaceful had it not been for the bursting of the salvos from the U.S, battleships softening up the beech for the forthcoming invasion. Japanese oopositior Wes surorisingly absent. The TL? went'alon3side the lNDlnNnP0llS end received official mail from the-Commander of the FIFTH Fleet for the Conoenonr of TASK r FORCE 53.' Then, with the TAUSSIG, she sroemoe alot? L'o west coast of 0KINnWA, oround the southern tip of the island, troy nest MLYE SHIMA, und out into the open see to rejoin the Tosh Creep. 0 During the days that followqd, TASK F0203 56 sont e steady ,'f stream of bombing, rockoting, SHG strafing olenes over 0LINhJl JBL, as lend forces made good their assault of tie bench-heed, and set- tled down to the long tough job of conquest. once more SAKI SFIMA GUFTO and AMAMI GUNTO also were plastered with bombs from tne'cer- ' riers planes. On the Tth of spril, one week after the Buster Sun- dey invasion of CKINAWA, the Tess Force turned its efforts northward as s Javanese surface force was detected stenning southward in the East Cnina Sea. The eneiy force was overtaron by the sir arm of TMSK FURCE 58, ond was completely shattered, The powerful 45,000 ton battleship, YUMATC, pride of tie Jnpangse Elect, was Sent to the bottom, along with her company of cruisers Q10 0033 Of her dest' royers, while the guns of the American Task Force Llsiteg enemy planes attacking from shore besos out of the say.. TASL ECRCE 58, again victorious, emerged without the Less of e single snip, and r . u surprisingly small number of planes lost. y.' The bettering of 0KINnWn JIMA continued. These were the dark days when the famed KAMIKAZE Air Corps was tahini F-S C3603- - -5- aiu .,Vl,' HK' K, M

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3u4Ul'3r N t 16 I H JAPQN d'in doinv no little amount of damage tg thQ,,g Egggr ofThs sodrggwcs phenogenally lop-sided, for svery ship fhsiEk had gsnetratcd the henrt of dnsensny's umpire otbdmbd OHL to fi again. r s , On the-1 21st, was snatfzzt N. Moons and Q sister snip, uns oss BLUE, received orders to proceed to lWO JIMA to pick up QVlQ?1QB personnel from the Tosh force who had been rescued sfter tneir planes had bcen shot down during tne dny's rains. The two dest- royers sighted The little islsnu wnsn twsnty miles sway, end the smoke of battle GOHfi oc scan iri ting into the afternoon sky. As they neared the 2131, 13, fl LL of gqnfirs und the streeks of ron sts shone brightly against tht brown of thc volcanic S011 of SWQB MOUNT SURAB,CHT who ?,itt1ig plane like 0 massive pillbox, nn e flag of the E sin, but :till iiex evsr it. The destroyers sccompl ished their mission in the gitlsring dusk, and st 1900 get underway to rejoin their Thor sre'p. ns they stecnsd nlone ,nd st high spot ,cross the choppy sci gggy ff'T tix island, they coEldJsss tns AA fiyc Jf tha Qld o,1tltsnios Jiien were bombnrding 1 e npsneso pos itions on the touch, ms they rtpciled s dusk air attack. The blooc bottle for IJO h-u, l1Q,eC, begun. The war was close .o Llese two tiny ships QS they sliced into the darkness off thu :making hell thot wus IWO JIMn. They were olono in ddnanrous m:t,z- wnen they he IU reports that on enemy surface force was thought to ot in the vicinity. Their rendezvous was vogue, ss Tn?j LLWJL 53 wept Tertn to invtstignto the report. All that night the tau ,in 53t.I'S' pr-cms ripped into the surface of the ses, as they strcvs to re ,in their group in the search for battlc. It was en, J ,bt E313 1'l' in5 nirning before TASK GROUP S8 l eppedrnd evnr the herison. YJ unc regorts nod been correct, the Jcps HMG learned of the prqs-nee if TUSL FORCE 58, and had fled, for no en mg rhig ,ic ot Q QE Cwwich wus sunkj was discovered in the ores. On th. lat of March, the force ldunched strikes against OKIN JJWLJEEL, e'm lore in the d,v, tno S.IUZL N. MOORE, in company Wit! seven rihor .,stfeyer: or S,U.CRQ' 6lT, and three light cruisers, the '-ILT -EV 1, QV1, .uric left the Task Group. They Weis assigned tu ',i1l'e -nilf Luft ll- ions on OYINO DMITO JIMA, on isldnt it at mid ff bo1', 1 Ilipfsi end the VOLCANO GROUP. -They cpe: 4 fire, tug no tr enemy conoletsly by surprise, just after midnight. Tic il t-.- ine i'l4nd was dotted with fires when the bombsrc mint group at good off, noting sustained no damage to thsmsslvcs. After this forey, nmfgreup retirod to ULITHI, arriving on More nth. L ring the :toy tr UTT'V7 t' .-.. csrrier RANDOLPH was hit by a Japnnsse sdicids ,lane while lying qt anchor in the lagoon. The plan: rss provnnly frmn tvs enemy bose Lt YAP, loss than a hundred miles away. Other piines that attempted to lenve YAP Were quiCklJ destroyed! TnSK GROUB 58.1 , with ths IOORE ir its screen, formed once moro shi stsancd out of CLTTHI on the lhth, settingzicourss to the northwest. In four days it was off tHE enemy heme islend of KYUS sending sweeps in against bitter opposition. The surfoee force ,D, ,, lXThc USS MADDOX had been hit durinf the passage of BsffnTnNG CHANNI and had not yet rejoined the squs ron.D J, g - , . -- V- - f N --- --- Y---0 N-' - o -t' -- '- .I - - rw-my--is --'- ' -'11---4 ---v-.- - 'i .- -....,. 'Q VVYY - X ' '

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est toll. The fleet's casualties mounted until they exceeded of the ground forces. The radar picket stations Knot to be c ed with the valiant destroyers who stood radar picket guard arouni1 the island of OKINAHA itselfl were manned by brave destroyers ahead. of the main task force, functioning as the vanguard. The SAMUEL.N, T MOORE had many such assignments during this period. These stations became so dangerous that entire divisions and frequently two divisv ions of destroyers were assigned to one station. On two occasions, destroyers which relieved us were hit by KAMIKAZE suicide pilots. ' When the tension at OKINnHa lessened, and the Japs were well or the road to defeat, some of the ships of the Carrier Task Force could be spared, and late in the month of April, TnSK GROUP 58.1 A started in to ULITHI for a badly-needed overhaul and repair period. On the way in, the group paused while the destroyers, including the SAMUEL N. MOORE, and the light iso-called Wanti-aircraftwl cruiser, SAN JUAN, bombarded MINnMl DnITO SHIMA on the afternoon of the 21st, The Japanese on the island were unable to retaliate, and the force F blew the enemy installations to bits and retired before darkness 'Q had fallen. O P After nine days in ULITHT, the SAMUEL N. MOORE got underway on the 9th of May with TASK UNIT 58.l.h, made up of carriers and dest- royers, and two days later joined the battleships, cruisers, and other QUSEIOYOIS which made up the remrinder of TLSK GROUP 58.1. On the l3th, the force was again off KYUSHU, and again the enemy air attacks were heavy, as the carrier planes raided the empir once more. KYUSHU wms a hot spot, the tase for many KAMIKAZE fight4 ers and bombers, and the destruction of airfields there was vital i to the success of the nmerican operations on OKINAWA. After two day of strikes against this southerngcst island of JnPAN proper, they ' attacks were turned again to OKINnUn itself, and continued with full vigor during the next two weeks. , On May 28th, off OKINnWn, ndmiral HALSEY, just returned to the Pacific, assumed command. The ships were organized into TASK FORCE ' 38, Fast Carrier Task Force of the THIRD Fleet, while the strikes against the enemy on OKINnWn continued unabated. The SLMUEL N. MOORi steamed on station in the screen of TASK GROUP 38.1, as the doughty Vice-admiral Marc MITSCHER was relieved by the late Vice-Admiral John MC CnIN as Commander of the Task Force. U Shortly after the change of command, on June 5th, the ships of TASK GROUP 38.1 were caught in the full fury of a typhoon. The force of the sea caused danage to every ship in the group. The car- riers, HORNET and BENHINGTON, took solid water over their bows in quantities that smashed and twisted the forward overhang of their flight decks, wrapping them down over their forecastles. The bow of the heavy cruiser, PITTSBURGH, which was steaming on station not far from the SnMUEL N. MOORE, was battered by mountainous seas and the entire forward portion of her forecastle was torn loose Kfortun- ately, without the loss of a manj. The SAMUEL N. MOORE herself sufe fered considerable damage. Most of her lifelines were carried away, making it extremely dangerous to move topside. n large portion of her deckhouse was caved in on the starboard side. The motor whale boat was ripped from its moorings and washed over the side many ready ammunition boxes, and other topside fittings. ' on Q .5 fnwjf' J exam., Q- . , --.f ,j+,g'? -v E lg, V. .H rx, f I . 4 ? 1 i ff, ,,,-.kg . 5, fi P Q 3 as U.-rf .-5, .., ' .41 ,Jil nw -w , jj , gs za, li, '. 1 .g .45 51 .'- , -3:54 jgjafe- as were, Qgfgt warks lffewf