Saufley (DD 465) - Naval Cruise Book

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Namatanai Air Field, during the night of February 29 and morning of March lst. .Several shore batteries were silenced off Manarou Island, after this ship received some near misses. During the period from March llth to March 16th, this ship participated in bombardment of Japanese posi- tions and joint activities with PT boats in Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville. The SAUFLEY served as a hospital evacuation ship after the landing at Emirau Island by taking 8 injured personnel back to Purvis Bay. She then returned to Emirau as part of a covering force which patrolled in the area most of April. A The SAUFLEY established a sound contact on April 7th and dropped depth charges. After the second nine- charge pattern was dropped, two underwater explos- ions were heard and felt. Four hours later about 4 miles upwind from the last contact, a diesel oil slick appeared on the surface of the water. By sunset this slick was measured and found to be 14 miles long and 3X4 of a mile wide. The assessment was that there was uinsufficient evidence . However, upon the cessation of hostilities, this command was notified that the assess- ment had been changed to a uClass B Assessment , there- by enabling the personnel attached to the ship at that time to wear a bronze star on the Asiatic-Pacific Cam- paign Ribbon. On June l, l944, the SAUFLEY left Pearl Harbor with the Northern Attack Force for the Saipan Opera- tion. Enroute, outside of Kwajalein, on J une llth, this ship conducted an anti-submarine attack until relieved by the USS FRANKS. Result was an oil slick of 3,000 12

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On October 27, returning from the initial landing on Treasury Islands, the formation was bombed by a single plane without results. The next three months the SAUFLEY was an es- cort and screening ship in the Bougainville campaign. On 11 November 1943, this ship proceeded independ- ently southwest of Bougainville to pick up a downed pilot. Upon returning to Empress Augusta Bay, after having rescued the pilot, this ship avoided the attack of live enemy bombers which had closed to 4,000 yards by ducking into a rain squall. The night of the 17th when the USS MCKEAN was sunk during a torpedo at- tack, the SAUFLEY screened the US.S SIGOUBNEY and USS TALBOT, which were engaged in picking up survivors. On December 6, 1943, Lieutenant Commander Dale E. Cochran, U. S. Navy, relieved Commander Bert F. Brown, U. S. Navy, as Commanding Oflicer. Between December 12th and 19th, the SAUFLEY temporarily interrupted its convoying activities with a seven-day availability in Sydney, Australia. This ship then resumed escorting echelons to Bou- gainville and continued until February 2, 1944, when she started a seven-day availability alongside the USS WHITNEY in Purvis Bay. The SAUFLEY participated in the first two echelons to Green Island. On the night of February 14-15, until after dawn, the formation was attacked by several groups of enemy planes with negative results. In a destroyer sweep off New lreland, the SAUFLEY bombarded Cape St. George radar station., Borpop, and 11

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yards long by 1600 yards wide. Arriving at Saipan on June 16th, the SAUFLEY covered the landing of rein- forcements. During the period from June 17th to August 8th, this ship engaged in 23 shore bombardments and 10 starshell missions on Saipan and Tinian. The total am- munition expenditure was 4,000 rounds of five inch 38 caliber shell, 400 starshells, and many rounds of 40 millimeter and 20 millimeter as well. The number of assignments alone shows how effective the firing was. Neutralization of enemy troop concentrations, destruc- tion of a co-rvette and several small craft in Tinian Town, one plane, the runway and several buildings of an air- field, an ammunition dump, gun emplacements, caves, blockhouses, and other installations, harrassment of Tinian Town and several groups of enemy troops, and starshell missions to prevent iniiltrations of our lines were all effectively accomplished. As an example of the extreme strain and hardship imposed by this campaign, Lieutenant James W. Beebe, USNR, of 1060 Roanoke Road, San Marino, California, the plotting room oflicer, lost twenty pounds during this period. His well trained and efficiently o-rganized crew showed the results of his careful, intelligent, untiring supervision. ' The SAUFLEY also engaged enemy aircraft sev- eral times during this operation. On the afternoon of the 17th, the machine guns opened fire on two Tonys retiring over this ship from a strafing attack on the beachhead. No hits were observed and no damage was sustained. The next evening, the main battery and ma- chine guns took 3 Tonys of a group of more than 12 under fire, chasing them into several Hellcats, who shot 13