On carrier Franklin (in TG 58.2), her crew was called to battle stations 12 times over a six-hour period. During the night, there were numerous alerts as Japanese planes snooped the force. One of the Judys hit Yorktown’s signal bridge with a bomb that passed through one deck and blew two large holes in the ship’s side, killing five and wounding 26 men. Just after 1300, three D4Y Judy dive-bombers attacked carrier Yorktown (CV-10). A G4M Betty twin-engine bomber was hit by anti-aircraft fire while attempting a kamikaze strike on carrier Intrepid (CV-11), narrowly missing, although burning fragments started a fire on the hangar deck that killed two and wounded 43 men. At 0725, a Japanese plane hit carrier Enterprise (CV-6) with a dud bomb. Task Group 58.4, under the command of Rear Admiral Arthur Radford (future Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff) bore the brunt of the attacks while operating 75 nautical miles south of the Home Island of Shikoku. Over 50 Japanese aircraft were lost while trying to find and attack the U.S. The morning searches did locate several major Japanese warships, including super-battleship Yamato, in the vicinity of Kobe and Kure on the Inland Sea. Most of them were airborne already looking for the U.S. The morning strikes had to content themselves with bombing hangars and barracks because there were few Japanese planes on the ground. The extensive attempts at deception that had preceded the 16–17 February strikes in the Tokyo area (see H-Gram 042) and again on 25 February were apparently less effective. TF 58 departed Ulithi on 14 March 1945, and commenced a high-speed run toward Japan on 16 March, arriving at a launch position 90 nautical miles southwest of Kyushu at sunrise on 18 March. This time, the Japanese weren’t caught by surprise. Task Force 58 (TF 58), under the command of Vice Admiral Marc “Pete” Mitscher, made its third attack on the Japanese home islands on 18 March 1945.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |