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This book has been edited to fit the internet.
The Battle Off Samar - Taffy III at
Leyte Gulf
SECOND EDITION
< Condensed Internet Version >
Copyright © 2001 Robert Jon Cox
All rights reserved
Ivy Alba Press, LLC
Time-Line, Events, & Comments
What makes this book unique is the use of a time-line for all events, all
listed in chronological, time-line order. The events in Chapters two through
nine are listed in the order in which the author believes they occurred.
Entries listed simply as "EVENT" are also placed in a chronological,
time-line order and are closely related in time to the last numbered
"time" event. Comments by the author associated with events are
often listed also. Entries are displayed as follows:
| 0708 |
A time-specific event, in the order in
which the author believes they actually occurred. |
| EVENT |
A specific event, closely related in time
to the last numbered "time" event. |
| A/C |
Author's Comment. A personal explanation
of events by the author. |
Chapter 10
0842 to 0911
COMBUSTIBLE, VULNERABLE, AND EXPENDABLE
Wednesday, October 25, 1944
0842 Appearing
from behind a rain squall a well balanced and organized flight of taffy
aircraft begin a concentrated effort against the four remaining Japanese
heavy cruisers. They focus their weapons upon CA’s CHIKUMA and CHOKAI.
0843 TBS - Taffy
3 v DERBY, "THERE ARE 8 SHIPS CLOSING ON MY STARBOARD
QUARTER." .... v Taffy 3, "ROGER OUT."
A/C This was
the IJN Destroyer Squadron 2 led by CL NOSHIRO.
EVENT The
Japanese heavy cruisers continue to concentrate their accurate fire on CVE GAMBIER
BAY. She is now far behind the other escort carriers and is easy prey
for the Japanese warships as she is just barely making way on one engine.
The next shell strikes the pilot house, killing all men in it and, as a
result, the ship loses all steerage way. The same salvo enters the port
engine room and pierces No. 3 boiler and the steam generating tubes, leaving
the escort carrier with no propulsion capability.
| 0845
Engaged in an uneven duel with the heavy cruisers, DD HEERMANN is
hit by 8-inch gunfire. Four men on the bridge are killed including the
helmsman.
0845 TBS -
Mercury 3 v Taffy 3, ‘SIGNAL EXECUTE UPON RECEIPT
SHACKLE YOKE WILLIAM EASY UNSHACKLE TURN, OUT."
A/C Ships
of the task unit are ordered to course 180° T.
EVENT
Destroyer Escort ROBERTS passes DD HOEL, which is dead in
the water. Severely damaged, burning, and listing to port with her
fantail awash, her crew can be seen abandoning ship. |
CDR Amos T. Hathaway,
USN
Commanding Officer
USS HEERMANN (DD 532)
"We were under fire from four of the enemy ships
at this time. I realized that it was four ships by the fact that there
were several colors of splashes. There were red, yellow, green, and no
color splashes around us. It looked like a rainbow. There was more red
than anything else, in fact it looked kind of rosy, looking through it,
although I guess it was probably rosier for the Japs than it was for us
at this particular moment.
All they hit us was - they had one 8-inch hit in the uptakes and one
down on the keel, one about the waterline forward of gun mount No. 1 and
one hit our sound dome." |
A/C Lieutenant
Commander Copeland of ROBERTS knew it was against Navy Regulations to
provide assistance to a disabled warship during battle without permission
from the CTU and therefore did not come to the aid of HOEL's men.
Because of the dire predicament the escort carriers were in, and the number
of lives involved should a CVE be sunk, he decided not to aid HOEL
but continue on and further engage the Japanese warships.
0846 TBS - Taffy
2 v FAMOUS, "I HAVE LANDED 8 VT AND WILL LOAD AND LET YOU
KNOW WHEN THEY ARE READY TO TAKE OFF."
| EVENT
Destroyer JOHNSTON engages BB KONGO at 7,000 yards and
scores about 15 hits with her remaining 5-inch guns. Battleship KONGO
returns fire and misses.
A/C
Throughout the battle the Japanese heavy warships are forced to fire on
the small American destroyers and destroyer escorts through smoke and
rain, often unable to tell friend from foe. In this case, JOHNSTON
is three and one-half miles from KONGO, is under limited
propulsion, and still manages to engage KONGO without being hit
in return.
EVENT
Aircraft from Taffy II arrive and focus on CA SUZUYA. She is
fatally crippled after several hits.
A/C SUZUYA
was the second heavy cruiser to be hit during the Battle Off Samar. She
never recovered from this damage and became a choice target of the
American aircraft throughout the engagement. |
Radioman
Louis Vilmer Jr.
USS GAMBIER BAY (CVE 73)
Composite Squadron VC-10
"Ensign Shroyer, John Britt, and myself were among the first to
be launched when the order was given to clear the flight deck. When
Ensign Shroyer made his first pass at a Japanese ship, he fired rockets
and 50 caliber machine guns. Gunner Britt also fired his 50 caliber gun,
from the ball turret. When we broke through the clouds we were extremely
low and did not have enough power to pull up and away...we were finally
able to pull away and gain altitude. Ensign Shroyer told me over the
intercom that he had been unable to open the bomb bay doors with the
control in the cockpit and instructed me to try the one in the
radioman's compartment. It worked. Shroyer chose the TONE Class
cruiser and began his run firing his 50 calibers. I opened the bomb bay
doors when instructed. When the bombs cleared the bay, Shroyer was able
to close the doors with his control. Britt began firing his turret gun
as we pulled up and away. I immediately turned to the notch window under
the plane’s tail to observe the hits. The bombs DID NOT hit the
cruiser. They hit the water just a few feet behind it and went off as
depth charges. Planes following us reported that the ship stopped dead
in the water." |
EVENT
Heavy cruiser CHIKUMA falls prey and is hit by aircraft from CVE GAMBIER
BAY's Composite Squadron VC-10.
EVENT
Destroyers HAYASHIMO and HAMANAMI of Destroyer Squadron Two
are damaged by aircraft.
A/C The
aircraft of Taffy II were now in the area enmasse, effectively attacking the
ships of Centre Force. This was the first coordinated and effective
large-scale air strike of the day; ultimately responsible for finishing off
two heavy cruisers and damaging several other warships.
0847 TBS - Taffy
2 v CIRCUS, "I HAVE LAUNCHED 7 VF AND 4 VT LOADED WITH FISH.
HAVE TWO MORE TO LAUNCH IN FIFTEEN MINUTES."
0847 TBS - Mercury
3 v Taffy 3, "SIGNAL EXECUTE UPON RECEIPT TURN SHACKLE
GEORGE NAN BAKER UNSHACKLE. DERBY ACKNOWLEDGE." .... v DERBY,
"WILCO, OUT."
A/C Ships of
the task unit are ordered to course 220° T.
0847 Enemy
salvos fall close aboard DE DENNIS on her starboard quarter. Eight
enemy warships are reported closing on the starboard quarter.
A/C These were
the seven destroyers of Destroyer Squadron TWO led by Light Cruiser NOSHIRO.
0848 Admiral
Halsey, urged on by VADM Kinkaid’s pleas for help, cancels his previous
order to Task Group 38.1. He orders VADM McCain to steam southwest at
maximum speed and to launch an air strike against Centre Force. Task Group
38.1 is presently refueling, about 400 miles distant to the southeast.
0848 TBS - CATNIP
v Taffy 3, "ARE YOU STAYING WITH US?"
| 0850
Escort Carrier GAMBIER BAY, dead in the water, is hit by 8-inch
shells nearly every minute. With fires and flooding increasing by the
minute, Captain Vieweg realizes his ship is lost. Reluctantly, he orders
all hands to abandon ship. Although CVE GAMBIER BAY is being
systematically destroyed by the Japanese warships with no hope of
survival, the captain refuses to strike her colors.
A/C GAMBIER
BAY's crew would spend over two days in the water before being
rescued.
0850 TBS -
Mercury 3 v Taffy 3, "SIGNAL EXECUTE UPON RECEIPT
TURN SHACKLE NAN CHARLIE KING UNSHACKLE, OUT."
A/C Ships
of the task unit are ordered to course 240° T. |
CAPT W. V. R. Vieweg,
USN
Commanding Officer
USS GAMBIER BAY (CVE 73)
"During the period from this first hit, which
was around 0810 in the morning, until we sank, which was about 0910 in
the morning, we were being hit probably every other minute. The hits
that went through the upper structure did very little damage since the
shells did not explode inside the ship. However, those shells which hit
either just short or below the water line did explode and the result was
that in very short order I had a flooded after engine room I had to
secure which left the ship helpless in the water and without any power
to provide water pressure.
At about 0850 with the ship helpless in the water and with this
division of cruisers passing close by and other ships of the main
formation passing close by on the other side (destroyers), and being
fired at from all sides, I ordered the ship abandoned. As we were
abandoning ship the enemy ships in various directions were still
firing." |
0850 VHF - Taffy
3 v Planes, "PRIMARY TARGET IS CRUISER ON PORT QUARTER.
ATTACK! ATTACK!."
0850 Furthest
west in the Japanese formation Destroyer Squadron Ten begins its approach
towards the escort carriers for a planned torpedo attack.
0850 Destroyer
Escort DENNIS is hit by an 8-inch armor-piercing shell. It punches a
clean hole through her, port to starboard, just above the water line. The
damage control party in the CPO Quarters is killed and the forward
ammunition magazine is flooded.
A/C DENNIS’
Deck Log read, "0850 Enemy salvoes continue to approach. Received
direct hit on port side three feet above the first platform deck at frame
35, passing through deck and out starboard side at frame 31, three feet
above the water line. Ordnance storeroom and dry stores storeroom,
compartment A-306A flooded. Shell fragments entered hull at frames 137 just
below main deck, doing considerable damage."
EVENT Escort
Carrier FANSHAW BAY is hit by a 6-inch shell from TONE.
| EVENT
Destroyer Escort ROBERTS sights 14-inch battleship shell splashes
closing her from astern. Contemplating the fall of the next shell, DE ROBERTS
rings up "ALL BACK FULL" to take off speed. The ship quickly
slows and the next 14-inch shell lands an equal distance ahead of her.
A/C The
battleship’s fire control solution on ROBERTS was clearly
correct. This BB is believed to be the merciless KONGO which
performed extremely well during the entire engagement.
EVENT Vice
Admiral Kinkaid instructs RADM Oldendorf, Commander of the Bombardment
and Support Group, to move several of his ships to the southern and
eastern approaches to Leyte Gulf in lieu of supporting the Taffies. |
LCDR
Robert W. Copeland, USN
Commanding Officer
USS SAMUEL B. ROBERTS (DE 413)
"...one of my lookouts yelled up at me, "Captain, there's
14-inch splashes coming up on our stern." I turned and looked just
in time to see 14-inch splashes...great big ones...off our fantail...for
the moment, those shells seemed to be a greater hazard than the 8-inch
shells from the cruiser. So I yelled, "All engines back full."
...this was an emergency...I didn't even give them a stop bell. That was
one time the old ship really shuddered and shivered and quaked. She just
kind of lay down and pretty nearly backed her stern under water. About
the time we were starting to back down, directly over us and right ahead
about 100 yards, "Whoosh", were three or four 14-inch shell
splashes. The instant those things hit I yelled, "All engines ahead
flank." We had just barely started moving when we were no longer
dodging and chasing salvos...we had walked right into an 8-inch
salvo...." |
EVENT Rear
Admiral Oldendorf orders his Battle Line commander to take the battleships TENNESSEE,
CALIFORNIA and PENNSYLVANIA, heavy cruisers LOUISVILLE,
PORTLAND, MINNEAPOLIS, NASHVILLE, HMAS SHROPSHIRE,
and two destroyer squadrons 25 miles eastward where they would be in a
position to sortie in support of the taffies.
A/C The choice
of battleships is interesting. TENNESSEE and CALIFORNIA fought
well during the battle of Surigao Strait with their new MK-8 gunnery fire
control radars. WEST VIRGINIA, which fired the most AP rounds, was
not ordered to sortie to support the Taffies, probably because her supply of
AP ammunition was nearly exhausted. PENNSYLVANIA on the other hand,
did not fire her main batteries during the Battle of Surigao Strait due to
the poor performance of her old MK-3 gunnery fire control radar. PENNSYLVANIA
was therefore probably the most well off, ammunition-wise.
| EVENT
The crew of CVE GAMBIER BAY abandon their ship by all means
possible as she continues to be the focal point of the 8-inch gun fire.
Most of the crew leaves from the starboard side of the ship, the
opposite side from which the TONE class heavy cruiser
methodically fires at the sinking escort carrier.
0851
Destroyer Escort ROBERTS rings up "ALL AHEAD FLANK."
Before she can gain adequate speed she is hit by three 8-inch
armor-piercing shells from the heavy cruisers.
A/C Closed
in on three sides by Japanese ships, ROBERTS was a sitting-duck
once she lost steerage way. |
Norman
Loats
S Division
USS GAMBIER BAY (CVE 73)
"Just before we left the ship we released a life
raft. The GAMBIER BAY had already begun listing to starboard when
we jumped, so the jump from the catwalk to the water seemed mighty long,
and as we hit the water, I though I would never surface for I went down
- down - down. But eventually I did come up; thank God I had loosened
our straps on our helmets or we would have surely snapped our necks.
As I surfaced, I swam to the life raft we had released as did the
Chief Engineer. The two of us only sightly wounded began attempting to
tow the raft away from CVE-73 before the undertow would get us. However
our progress was nil, for after what seemed minutes of attempting to get
away from the sinking ship, we noticed the raft was still secured to the
sinking ship. It didn't take long to cut the line and be on our
way." |
0851 TBS - Mercury
33 v Taffy 3, "HAVE YOU ANY FISH LEFT?"
0851 TBS - v GEORGIA,
"CRUISER BROADSIDE ON MY STARBOARD QUARTER FIRING ON US. I BELIEVE THE
SHIPS ON MY QUARTER ARE DD’s. IF YOU HAVE ANY FIGHTERS THEY COULD HELP US
WITH STRAFING."
0851 Another
spotting aircraft is launched from BB YAMATO.
EVENT Aboard
DE ROBERTS, one 8-inch shell strikes below the waterline and causes
flooding, one hits the IC room knocking out communications and electrical
power, and the last ruptures the main steam line in the forward engine room.
Badly mauled, DE ROBERTS takes on water, unable to obtain her maximum
speed, which had been reduced to seventeen knots. She now becomes the focal
point of all Japanese gunfire.
0853 Thirty US
carrier planes attack heavy cruisers CHIKUMA, TONE, HAGURO,
and CHOKAI.
A/C American
aircraft continued to arrive in greater numbers from Taffies I and II. This
airpower contributed significantly to the outcome of the battle, slowing the
Japanese pursuit of the escort carriers and aiding in their escape.
| 0853
VHF - Plane v Taffy 3, "I BELIEVE THE SHIPS ON
STARBOARD QUARTER ARE DESTROYERS. FIDO COULD HELP WITH DESTROYERS."
0854 VHF -
Taffy 3 v Planes, "THERE ARE DESTROYERS. ALSO BELIEVE
ONE CRUISER."
A/C
Composite squadron aircraft report the sighting of Destroyer Squadron
Ten.
0854
Battleship HARUNA is ordered to pursue the warships sighted to
the southeast, range approximately eighteen miles.
A/C These
were the warships of Task Unit 77.4.2 (Taffy II). |
USS
ST LO (CVE 63)
Action Report
At 0848 two Jap ships could be seen off the port beam. They were
reported 134 degrees, 10,400 yards. During the time the group on the
starboard quarter closed to 6900 yards, considerable fire from that
direction was noted, presumably 4.7". From the splashes it appeared
that the KALININ BAY was their primary target, with the ST LO
receiving considerable attention. The ST LO was repeatedly
straddled particularly around 0900 by estimated 4.7" coming from a
ship, or ships, which had closed, under cover of smoke, on her port
quarter. The group on the starboard quarter after closing under 7,000
yards, reversed course, but after opening range reversed course again to
about 7,000 yards firing steadily, then made a final reversal and pulled
away. It is believed that full salvoes of torpedoes were fired on the
last run, about 0910. |
0855 USS
HOEL (DD 533) rolls over on her port side and sinks stern first. She is
the first ship of Taffy III to be sunk by Centre Force.
A/C HOEL
lost 253 destroyer men when she sunk, fifteen more perished on the rafts and
flotation nets the next day.
EVENT Escort
Carrier FANSHAW BAY is hit by a 6-inch shell on the forward end of
her flight deck.
0858 Escort
Carrier FANSHAW BAY is hit again by another 6-inch shell.
0858 TBS - Taffy
3 v MONGREL, "WE HAVE BEEN HIT BELOW THE WATER LINE."
.... v Taffy 3, "ROGER OUT."
0900 Destroyer
Escort DENNIS is hit by three more 8-inch shells from CA TONE.
One shell destroys her 40mm director and kills four men. The second creates
a small hole in her port side aft and cuts electrical cables. The last shell
glances off the forward 5-inch mount shaking up all men inside of it.
0900 The heavy
cruisers resume pouring their fire at CVE KITKUN BAY and drop a salvo
200 yards astern of the ship. The cruisers are now about 12,000 yards away,
approaching from the port beam. Having expended most of her 5-inch shells
during the morning’s ordeal, the captain orders the 5-inch mount to cease
fire.
A/C The
captain gave the order to cease fire because he wanted to reserve the
remaining 5-inch shells to help repel an expected Japanese destroyer attack.
0900 TBS - Mercury
3 v Taffy 3, "SIGNAL EXECUTE UPON RECEIPT SHACKLE GEORGE NAN
KING UNSHACKLE TURN, OUT."
A/C Ships of
the task unit are ordered to course 220° T.
0900 Both
5-inch gun mounts aboard DE DENNIS are reported as inoperative.
A/C The
forward 5-inch gun, Mount 1, was reported inoperative due to personnel
casualties sustained by the direct hit on the turret. Mount 2, aft, suffered
a broken breach operating spring.
| EVENT
Destroyer Escort ROBERTS, under increasingly intense gunfire, is
hit by three 14-inch shells from BB KONGO, ripping a 30-40 foot
hole in her port side near the waterline. The impact of the shells is so
great that all hands are knocked down to the deck. Fires start and her
engine room is knocked out. Still under fire and flooding
uncontrollably, she slows to a dead stop.
EVENT At
that moment, a torpedo track is sighted running straight toward DE ROBERTS.
Word is passed to standby for torpedo impact. The torpedo passes
harmlessly under her keel.
EVENT The
five remaining escort carriers continue southward firing their single
5-inch guns as they run. Escort carrier FANSHAW BAY scores five
hits with her 5-inch gun on CA CHIKUMA. One brings smoke from her
superstructure. Meanwhile, CVE WHITE PLAINS puts six shells into
CA CHOKAI, causing damage. |
LCDR
Robert W. Copeland, USN
Commanding Officer
USS SAMUEL B. ROBERTS (DE 413)
"...about the time of the torpedo attack, the destroyer JOHNSTON
came by us and I saw her for the last time. That picture is engraved in
my memory...She had taken a terrific beating. Her bridge was battered
and had been abandoned. Her foremast, a steel tubular mast...had been
split from shellfire and then bent down over itself...the mast was
doubled over on itself and dangling down with its radar swinging just
like a pendulum.... It gave me a hurt feeling to look at it. Her
searchlights had been knocked off. One torpedo mount was gone and her
No. 3 gun had completely disappeared. As she went by...she was limping
along at a pretty slow speed...I saw her Captain. He was a very big man
with coal black hair...he was standing on the fantail conning his ship
by calling down through an open scuttle hatch into the steering engine
room. I can see him now. He was stripped to the waist and was covered
with blood. His left hand was wrapped in a handkerchief...he wasn't over
one hundred feet from us as he passed us on our starboard side...he
turned a little and waved his hand at me. That's the last time I saw him
because JOHNSTON was sunk, too, a few minutes after we
were." |
EVENT Admiral
Halsey with Third Fleet, presently far to the north, east of Luzon, receives
a plain-English message from VADM Kinkaid:
"ENEMY FORCE ATTACKED OUR CVEs
COMPOSED OF 4 BBs 8 CRUISERS AND OTHER SHIPS. REQUEST (VADM) LEE PROCEED
TOP SPEED COVER LEYTE. REQUEST IMMEDIATE STRIKE BY FAST CARRIERS."
A/C This was
one of many urgent messages VADM Kinkaid sent to ADM Halsey requesting
immediate assistance. Admiral Halsey became annoyed by the constant stream
of messages requesting assistance and wondered why VADM Kinkaid left his
northern flank exposed. He felt Third Fleet was not responsible for
protecting Seventh Fleet; his mission was to strike with his fleet against
all contingencies.
0901 The heavy
cruisers straddle CVE KITKUN BAY with 8-inch shells on both sides of
the ship. Seconds later another lands 20 yards astern. Expecting the next
salvo to cause serious damage, the captain swings the ship between 200 T and
270 T in an effort to forestall the apparently inevitable. By the grace of
God, the Japanese cease their fire on CVE KITKUN BAY.
A/C For a
brief moment, it appeared KITKUN BAY would meet the same fate as GAMBIER
BAY.
0901 TBS - Taffy
3 v DREADNAUGHT, "PLEASE REPEAT YOUR LAST
TRANSMISSION."
0902 More planes of
Taffy II's second wave of aircraft arrive on the scene.
0902 TBS - Taffy
3 v MONGREL, "BOTH MY MAIN BATTERIES INOPERATIVE."
A/C DENNIS
reports to CTU 77.4.3 that both of her 5-inch guns are out of commission.
0902 TBS - Mercury
3 v Taffy 3, "NEW COURSE SHACKLE GEORGE NAN KING UNSHACKLE,
OUT."
A/C Ships of
the task unit are once again ordered to course 220° T.
0902
Battleship KONGO reports knocking out a "destroyer" with a
salvo from her main battery.
A/C This was ROBERTS.
0902 Speeding
to the southeast, BB HARUNA opens fire with her main battery against
the warships of Task Unit 77.4.2 (Taffy II).
A/C HARUNA
fired at Taffy II from 0902 and 0907 without scoring any hits.
0903 The aft
5-inch gun crew aboard DE DENNIS is ordered to the forward gun mount
to replace the injured gun crew. Repair crews commence work to repair the
broken breach operating spring on the aft mount. Simultaneously, the crew
commences to bring 5-inch ammunition forward from after magazines as access
passageway to the forward magazines is impossible due to flooding.
EVENT Heavy
cruiser CHIKUMA is struck by two torpedoes from aircraft of Taffy II.
She turns hard to port with a large fire on her fantail.
A/C This
particular heavy cruiser took an extraordinary amount of punishment before
sinking.
EVENT
Destroyer Escort DENNIS turns into DE BUTLER's smoke screen to
make repairs, both of her 5-inch guns out of action.
0904 The
spotting aircraft launched from BB YAMATO at 0851 reports it is being
attacked by American aircraft. The Japanese plane is soon hit and lost in
short order.
| 0905
Destroyer HEERMANN positions to the rear of Taffy III and lays
more smoke behind the fleeing carriers.
0905 Heavy
cruiser CHOKAI is put out of action by aircraft from CVE KITKUN
BAY. The pilots take her by surprise and land two very-near misses,
one direct hit astern, three direct hits on the bow and five more
amidships. She drifts to a halt severely damaged and ablaze.
|
CDR Amos T. Hathaway,
USN
Commanding Officer
USS HEERMANN (DD 532)
"At 0905 I turned the HEERMANN and started across the
rear of the carrier formation to lay another smoke-screen. We couldn’t
see any targets that were within our gun range at the time and it looked
to me as if the screen was getting a little thin back there and I
decided to lay another...About 0907 a MAYA Class cruiser closed
us from astern. We squared off with her and started to shoot it out. She
engaged us for three minutes and then retired and opened the range
further than we could shoot." |
0906 Taffy II
Grumman TBM-1C Avenger torpedo bombers attack the two Japanese battleship of
BATDIV 1 and BB KONGO. Battleship YAMATO, BB NAGATO,
and BB KONGO spend the next fifteen minutes evading aerial torpedoes.
EVENT Heavy cruisers
TONE and HAGURO close to 10,000 yards and continue to fire on
the escort carriers, scoring some hits.
EVENT In
single column, Destroyer Squadron Ten, led by CL YAHAGI and
destroyers URAKAZE, ISOKAZE, YUKIKAZE, and NOWAKI
position to attack the escort carriers with torpedoes at very long range.
Light cruiser YAHAGI fires her torpedoes at 15,000 yards.
EVENT
Destroyer Squadron Ten approaches the escort carriers from the starboard
flank. Destroyer JOHNSTON, acting on her own, closes range and
engages the entire destroyer squadron with gunfire and scores twelve 5-inch
gun hits on the flagship, light cruiser YAHAGI. Her torpedoes away,
CL YAHAGI turns away to starboard and the destroyers of Squadron 10
soon appear to follow.
A/C YAHAGI
was following Japanese naval tactics doctrine. It was standard procedure to
turn away from a target after launching torpedoes; allowing the next ship in
line to fire its torpedoes, and so on. However, JOHNSTON’s stubborn
boldness paid off, forcing the Japanese ships to fire their torpedoes at the
escort carriers too soon.
EVENT The
destroyers URAKAZE, ISOKAZE, YUKIKAZE, and NOWAKI
hit DD JOHNSTON with gunfire and then retire northward.
EVENT Light
cruiser YAHAGI, still opening the distance, fires more torpedoes at
the fleeing escort carriers. All miss.
EVENT Heavy
cruisers TONE and HAGURO, the most fit of the remaining
Japanese cruisers, concentrate their gunfire on DD JOHNSTON.
0907 With a
Japanese cruiser still shooting at her about one mile off her beam, GAMBIER
BAY capsizes to port.
A/C Captain
Vieweg, Commanding Officer of GAMBIER BAY, in the water near his ship
as she was sinking noted a Japanese heavy cruiser about 2,000 yards distant
was still shooting at GAMBIER BAY, and still missing.
0907 Aboard DE
DENNIS, a weighted sack of registered publications is thrown
overboard as a precautionary measure.
0908 TBS - Mercury
3 v Taffy 3, "SIGNAL EXECUTE UPON RECEIPT TURN SHACKLE
GEORGE PETER EASY UNSHACKLE. FIDO AND DERBY ACKNOWLEDGE." .... v FIDO,
DERBY, "WILCO OUT."
A/C Ships of
the task unit are ordered to course 240° T.
| EVENT
Heavy cruisers TONE and HAGURO are the nearest threat to
the remaining escort carriers. With most of the screening ships sinking,
sunk, or damaged, CA TONE and CA HAGURO are able to use
their superior speed to close the range on the escort carriers
unopposed. Their 8-inch salvos increase in accuracy.
EVENT
Escort Carrier KITKUN BAY is frequently damaged by shrapnel from
near-misses.
EVENT
Escort Carrier WHITE PLAINS is hit by 6-inch shells from CL NOSHIRO,
flagship of Destroyer Squadron Two. Near-misses shake the ship.
EVENT
Escort Carrier FANSHAW BAY is hit by four 8-inch shells,
including two very near misses. One hit holes her below the waterline
and one severely damages her flight deck. Three of her crew are killed
and 20 are wounded. |
U.S.
Navy Regulations -
The Commanding Officer;
0852. Loss of a Ship.
1. In case of the loss of a ship, the commanding officer shall remain
by her with officers and crew so long as necessary and shall save as
much Government property as possible. Every reasonable effort shall be
made to save the deck log, personal diary and pay records of officers
and crew, and other valuable papers.
2. If it becomes necessary to abandon ship, the commanding officer
should be the last person to leave.
3. The commanding officer shall:
a. take all possible precautions to protect the survivors and such
Government property as has been saved.
b. report to the nearest United States naval or military command and
request instructions and such assistance as is required; and
c. report the circumstances to the Secretary of the Navy and the
Chief of Naval Operations as soon as possible. |
EVENT Escort
Carrier KALININ BAY is hit by eleven 8-inch cruiser shells and one
14-inch battleship shell. Her main steering control is knocked out and she
has to be steered by hand.
EVENT One
shell hits KALININ BAY’s forward elevator and destroys the
platform. Several armor-piercing shells pass through her hull without
exploding.
A/C With the
three most aggressive American ships out of the picture (JOHNSTON, HOEL,
& ROBERTS), and the range decreasing by the minute, the Japanese
are able to pour on very effective gunfire. The escort carriers are now once
again on the verge of being wiped out.
EVENT
Destroyer HEERMANN fires on a "MAYA" Class cruiser,
possibly CA TONE, and rejoins the escort carriers to lay more smoke.
0910 Under
pressure from the destroyers and heavy cruisers, RADM Sprague orders the
destroyer escorts to, once again, attack.
0910 Destroyer
Escort DENNIS changes course to 240° T. Range commences to open on
the Japanese heavy cruiser attacking from astern, range about 7,500 yards.
With the range opening, further disposal of registered publications is
cancelled.
EVENT Listing eleven
degrees and settling by the stern, the men of DE ROBERTS are ordered
to abandon ship.
A/C Captain
Copeland has surveyed ROBERTS and found that both 5-inch guns were
inoperable, communications were lost, and the engines had been knocked out.
From the stack aft, the area reaching to the stern of the ship was
hopelessly battered. Dead and wounded men littered her deck.
0911 Escort
carrier USS GAMBIER BAY (CVE 73) slips beneath the waves into the
Philippine Trench, the only US carrier sunk by naval gunfire in World War
II.
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Honor the Missing in Action and Killed in Action of Taffy III
We do remember. We won't forget.
Robert Jon Cox webmaster@bosamar.com
last revised
July 12, 2008
Copyright Robert Jon Cox 1996-2008 all rights reserved
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