Tennessee (BB 43) - Naval Cruise Book

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aipan ResTed Tor a monTh and a halT aT Pearl Harbor Tollowing The Kavieng bombardmenT, The TENNESSEE deparTed Tor The rapidly expanding American IDGSG Gi hard-won Kwajalein, May 3l, on The way Tor new sTriI4eS againsT The ToTTering Japanese Empire. This was To be The boIdesT sTrike To daTe--invasion OT The Marianas Islands OT Saipan, Guam and Tinian. Saipan and Tinian had long been under Japanese rule and allied inTeIIigence reporTs revealed The bases had been heavily TorTiTied wiTh pillboxes, gun empIacemenTs and oTher TorTiTicaTions. Guam, Tiny biT OT American soil in The broad PaciTic, had Tallen To The rampaging enemy in The early days OT The war and The Japanese had poured planes, Troops and heavy mounTain guns inTo island deTenses. This was To be a diTTerenT Type OT warTare Than had been seen on The specks OT sand which had already Tallen To The Americans. Here were expanses OT green Tields, mounTains and high rolling Terrain. JusT To The SOuTh OT Saipan, The TIaTTer Tinian plaTeau sprawled in The brilIianT sun. Guam, IargesT island yeT To be invaded in The CenTraI PaciTic, was desTined To be The scene OT biTTer mounTain TighTing. The TENNESSEE and oTher ships in The TasT growing American PaciTic FleeT slipped ouT OT Roi anchorage early in The morning OT June TO. Serving as The Tlagship OT Rear Admiral Howard E. Kingman, The TENNESSEE was accompanied by The baTTleship CALIFORNIA, The cruiser BIRMINGHAM and The desTroyers REMEY, NORMAN SCOTT, MERTZ and WADLEIGH. Ships in anoTher group were under The command OT Rear Admiral Jesse B. OIdendorT in The LOUISVILLE. Several aircraTT carriers, TransporTs and oTher ships ec- companied The groups. Hundreds OT pre-invasion sorTies againsT The Marianas, as well as Chichi Jima, Haha Jima, Yep and Palau had been Tlown Trom The decks OT TasT-sTriking new aircraTT carriers, soTTening The islands Tor The com- ing invasions. The approach To Saipan was unevenTTuI unTiI The group approached wiThin abouT 200 miles OT The obiec- Tive, when enemy acTiviTy became apparenT. Early in The morning OT June I3, a paTroI plane spoTTed a surTaced Japanese submarine abouT 20 miles ahead OT The Torce and dropped bombs wiThouT resuITs. AnoTher plane, paTroIling Tar ouT To sea, shoT down a Japanese BeTTy which had been Trailing The group abouT I0 miles asTern. FasT desTroyers dropped depTh charges as an enemy sub was conTacTed OTT The porT beam. The new baTTIeship Torce as well as carriers bombarded Saipan and Tinian on June I3. Men on The TENNESSEE heard The reporTs Over The ship's loud speaker sysTem, Tuned in on The observer's plane radio. The new TasT baTTIewagOns Tired Trom abouT I3 miles away, prowling a large area aT 27 knoTs. The observer was suddenly cuT OTT The air and many aboard The TENNESSEE ThoughT They heard an agonizing cry iusT beTore The silence. ThaT nighT gun Tlashes were observed on The horizon and The roving desTroyers conTacTed submarines several Times and dashed like Terriers To drop depTh charges. A Japanese sub passed on The surTace in The darkness and was inTercepTed by The desTroyers. Nearing Saipan, men OT The TENNESSEE wenT To General OuarTers aT 0400 in The darkness OT The morning OT June I4, The day beTore The scheduled American IPITCIIITQS- A Japanese TransporT burned Tiercely near The horizon and was sTiII under Tire Trom The Amr-BFTCGU desTroyer MELVIN. The main baTTeries OT The TENNESSEE wenT INTO PCTIOVI GQGIHST The shadows OT Saipan's wesT coaST 0548. Small minesweeps slowly approached The

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noT yeT drawing Tire Trom The island. SpoT'Ting planes Trom The ship dove Through a heavy barrage oT anTi- aircraTT Tire Trom The island. Orange-red Tlames surged upward Trom The viciniTy of The radio Tower on Saipan, The resulT oT early hiTS Trom Naval Tire. Many damaged Japanese craTT cluTTered The harbor. An air sfrike from carrier-based planes drew scaTTered ack-ack Trom The beach aT 0730. Angry liTTle planes dove again and again aT The island, Then TransTerred Their aTTenTion To nearby Tinian, buT in a Tew minuTes reTurned To Saipan. The TENNESSEE's secondary baTTery wenT inTo acTion aT 0820 Tor The TirsT Time, picking up a TargeT 8,300 yards in The disTance. ScaTTered powder on The porT side oT The quarTer-deck bursf inTo Tlame which was quickly ex- Tinguished. An underwaTer demoliTion Team in Tour small boaTs slowly approached The reef To carry ouT Their dangerous assignmenf. Fires from large oil dumps raged on The island and following each salvo Trom The TENNESSEEls big guns, new Tires were sTarTed, The oil having been Thrown over a wide area. The enemy, however, began To unlimber Their shore baTTeries. Japanese shells dropped in The immediaTe viciniTy of The BIRMINGHAM and lNDlANAPOl.lS. Ma- chine guns, seT up in beached Japanese small boaTs, raked The demoliTion Team and Tor a Time iT was impossible To waTch The proceedings on The beach due To smoke. Heavy morTar Tire from The beach endangered The courageous demoliTion Team making reconnaissance under The very guns oT The enemy. The TENNESSEE dropped a smoke screen abouT IOO yards inland To screen The acTiviTies of The Team Trom The enemy. The baTTery which had been harassing The Team near The reeT was locaTed by TENNESSEE observers and a barrage 'from The Big T desTroyed The baTTery, Throwing dirT and machinery high in The air. WiTh hardly a pause, The main baTTery swiTched To nearby Tinian, silencing a baTTery which had been Tiring on The American Task Force wiTh greaT regulariTy. y An air sTrike again raked Saipan and aT H40 beach baTTeries hiT The CAUFORNIA, Tearing away parT oT The supersTrucTure. The baTTery was well COHC96leCl and ob- servers Tailed To locaTe iT. Shells splashed near The TENNESSEE as The big guns again Trained on a con- cenTraTion oT Japanese Troops on The shore. The TENNESSEE conTinued To roam The area, seeking TargeTs and desTroying Them wiTh regulariTy. Saipan was again under a severe air aTTack aT l5l5, This Time The planes concenTraTing on an unpainTed sugar mill. , Dingy Japanese boaTs near The pier drew The aTTen- Tion oT The TENNESSEE and several were hiT, one sink- ing in The shallow waTer. Fire was diverTed To a block- house, aTTer which The guns swung back To The boaTs To Tinish The Task. They burned Tiercely againsT The pier. DirecT hiTs were also scored againsT Japanese barges in The area. The Tiring compleTed Tor The day, The TENNESSEE and The oTher ships leTT The area abouT l830 To reTurn The Tollowing morning, designaTed as D-Day. The ship was again called To General QuarTers aT 0430, 25,000 yards Trom Saipan. H-l-Tour, when The beaches would be Torced, was seT Tor 0800, laTer delayed unTil 0830. The I4-inch guns opened early and soon The TargeTs were obscured by The curling smoke. STraTing planes came in Time aTTer Time wiTh sTrikes againsT boTh Saipan and Tinian. Small Tire splashed OTT The sTarboard beam. l-l-T-Tour was delayed unTil 0840. PrompTly aT 08I5 The TirsT wave oT invasion boaTs began Their precarious Trip To The beach. A Triendly plane, hiT by ack-ack over Tinian, plunged To The earTh. Two parachuTes TluTTering open and slowly descended To The island. The TirsT invasion wave was making progress Toward The beach. Small calibre Tire splashed nearby. Under cover oT heavy smoke, The Troops sTormed The beach, Taking cover behind anyThing available. AT 09l4, The TENNESSEE received her TTrsT baTTle damage since The aTTack on Pearl Harbor when Three six- inch proiecTiles Trom a Japanese shore baTTery on Tinian Thudded inTo The ship simulTaneously, killing eighT men while wounding 26.