United States Merchant Marine Academy - Midships Yearbook (Kings Point, NY)

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CADET-MIDSHIPMAN FRANCIS A. DALES Official citation as follows: “The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Merchant Marine Dis- tinguished Service Medal to: Francis A. Dales Cadet-Midshipman (Deck) Citation: For heroism above and beyond the call of duty. His ship was a freighter carrying drums of high- octane gasoline, one of two American ships, in a small British convoy to Malta. Orders were to get through at all costs. Heavily escorted, the convoy moved into the Mediterranean, and before noon of that day the enemy’s attack began. From then on the entire convoy was under constant attack from axis planes and submarines. Assigned the command of an anti-aircraft gun mounted on the bridge. Dales contributed to the successful defense of his ship for three days. At 4:00 A.M. on the morning of the fourth day, torpedo boats succeeded in breaking through and two attacked from opposite sides. Sneaking in close under cover of the dark- ness one opened point-blank fire on Dale’s position with four .50 caliber machine guns, sweeping the bridge and killing three of his gun crew in the first bursts. The other sent its deadly torpedo into the opposite side of the freighter. Neither the heavy fire from the first torpedo boat nor the torpedo from the second drove Dales and his crew from their gun. With only flashes to fire at in the dark- ness, he found the target and the first boat burst into flames and sank. But the torpedo launched by the other had done its deadly work. The high- test gasoline cargo ignited and the American ship was engulfed in flames. Reluctantly orders were given to abandon her. Two hours later, the survi- vors were picked up by a British destroyer, which then proceeded to take in tow a tanker that had been bombed and could not maneuver. After five hours of constant dive-bombing, the tanker was hit again—her crew abandoned her—and the destroyer was forced to cut her loose. But the cargo she carried was most important to the defense of Malta, and it had to get through. The rescue destroyer and another destroyer steamed in—lashed them- selves on either side aboard the tanker and dragged her along in a determined attempt to get her to port. Dales and four others volunteered to go aboard the tanker and man her guns in order to bring more fire power to their defense. The shackled ships, inching along and making a perfect target, were assailed by concentrated enemy air- power. All that day wave after wave of German and Italian bombers dived at them and were beaten off by a heavy barrage. Bombs straddled them, scoring near misses, but no direct hits were made until noon the next day, when the tanker finally received a bomb down her stack which blew out the bottom of her engine room. Though she con- tinued to settle until her decks were awash, they fought her through until dusk that day, which brought them under the protection of the hard fighting air force of Malta. The magnificent courage of this young cadet constitutes a degree of heroism which will be an enduring inspiration to seamen of the United States Merchant Marine everywhere.” For the President Emory Scott Land Chairman, United States Maritime Commission dministration

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In the hands of the Administration lies the future of the Academy. It is to this body of men that we must look for the guiding light of leadership, for it is they, more than any others, who control the life of each and every Cadet-Midshipman. The Administration must so run the Academy as to be able to attract the high type of young American who is so essential to the United States Merchant Marine today. I

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Dwight D. Eisenhower PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES