Composition of Centre Force
at time of their attack on Taffy III

U.S. Navy Photograph

from the personal collection of Mike McKenna

SEA VICTORY:  SECOND BATTLE OF PHILIPPINES

Part of the Japanese fleet which participated in the Second Battle of the Philippines is photographed from a U.S. Navy plane as it sweeps to the attack off Samar.  The Third Fleet, under Admiral William F. Halsey, USN, and the Seventh Fleet, under Vice Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid, USN, anticipated the Jap attack and dealt the three-pronged Jap armada a crushing blow.

Contemporaneous U.S. Navy caption

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Vice Admiral Kurita's IJN Centre Force

This 'one of a kind' photograph shows the main body of VADM Kurita's Centre Force, as seen by Taffy III aircraft from ST LO's Composite Squadron VC-65.   The world's largest battleship YAMATO is at center, flanked by battleships NAGATO and KONGO.  Several other unidentified vessels screen the capital ships.

The contemporaneous U.S. Navy caption above would leave the reader to believe that Admirals Halsey and Kinkaid were acting in unison and had complete control over the situation off Samar.  The fact is both were caught off guard and the Leyte invasion was saved by the quick acting RADM Clifton Sprague and the warships and composite squadrons of Taffy III and Taffy II.  What occurred off the island of Samar was nothing less than a tragedy and a miracle.

Taffy III saved the day at Leyte Gulf

The Imperial Japanese Navy Centre Force early morning, 25 October 1944
Battleship Division One	Battleship Division Three
HIJMS YAMATO	HIJMS KONGO
HIJMS NAGATO	HIJMS HARUNA
Cruiser Division Five	Cruiser Division Seven
HIJMS HAGURO	HIJMS KUMANO
HIJMS CHOKAI	HIJMS SUZUYA
	HIJMS TONE
	HIJMS CHIKUMA
Destroyer Squadron Two	Destroyer Squadron Ten
HIJMS NOSHIRO (light cruiser)	HIJMS YAHAGI (light cruiser)
HIJMS FUJINAMI	HIJMS URAKAZE
HIJMS KISHINAMI	HIJMS ISOKAZE
HIJMS OKINAMI	HIJMS YUKIKAZE
HIJMS HAMANAMI	HIJMS NOWAKI
HIJMS HAYASHIMO
HIJMS AKISHIMO
HIJMS SHIMAKAZE

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Honor the Missing in Action and Killed in Action of Taffy III

We do remember.  We won't forget.