History alive......
History came alive again yesterday at the Commemorative Air Force........the CAF. A large crowd was on hand to hear four WW II combat veterans of one of the greatest battles in American History, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, popularly known as the "Great Mariana's Turkey Shoot". This moniker describes what a complete rout was achieved over Japanese Air Power, American aviators shooting down close to 350 Japanese planes in just several days time.
What made yesterdays seminar so interesting was that these four men saw the battle from such different perspectives. One was a young officer on the submarine Cavalla which had screened the Japanese fleet and later singlehandedly sunk a large Jap aircraft carrier. After firing 6 torpedos at the Shokaku which later sank her, the Cavalla was depth charged for more than two hours by Japanese destroyers. Hearing this account from someone who was there was as dramatic as history gets! The Cavalla lives on still as a permanent history display docked in Galveston.
Another of the speakers had been an LSO [landing signal officer] on the carrier Lexington. Some amazing stories here too, like the mistaken attempted night landing by a Japanese Zero fighter plane. The Zero realized his mistake at the last moment and flew off into the night. One of the gentleman was a Naval fighter pilot who shot down several Japanese dive bombers, but his most tearful recounting came when he described his return at night, low on fuel, to his carrier. The order was given to the ships in the fleet to turn on their lights to guide the planes home, something not done in wartime operations. The joy the pilots felt seeing these searchlight beacons was so great that this veteran pilot still gets choked up when he talks about this over 60 years later.
The fourth member of the panel had been a gunner on a SBD dive bomber and got to watch the whole battle unfold while circling in a safe position away from the fleet 30 miles away. Not wanting to risk these planes staying on deck, the order had been given for them to launch and stay away from the action. This gentleman had, on a previous mission, been shot down over Truk Lagoon, was given a two week recuperation pass to Honolulu and then returned to his flying duties.
For one interested in aviation history, a more memorable experience could not be had. For those in Midland, you should try and attend these events, especially featuring these WWII veterans. These men were all in their early to mid 80's. Sadly they won't be around much longer.
In May, my good friend Joe Galloway will be the featured guest for a seminar on Vietnam helicopter aviation and the principal speaker for our Memorial Day program. Hope to see you there.
History came alive again yesterday at the Commemorative Air Force........the CAF. A large crowd was on hand to hear four WW II combat veterans of one of the greatest battles in American History, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, popularly known as the "Great Mariana's Turkey Shoot". This moniker describes what a complete rout was achieved over Japanese Air Power, American aviators shooting down close to 350 Japanese planes in just several days time.
What made yesterdays seminar so interesting was that these four men saw the battle from such different perspectives. One was a young officer on the submarine Cavalla which had screened the Japanese fleet and later singlehandedly sunk a large Jap aircraft carrier. After firing 6 torpedos at the Shokaku which later sank her, the Cavalla was depth charged for more than two hours by Japanese destroyers. Hearing this account from someone who was there was as dramatic as history gets! The Cavalla lives on still as a permanent history display docked in Galveston.
Another of the speakers had been an LSO [landing signal officer] on the carrier Lexington. Some amazing stories here too, like the mistaken attempted night landing by a Japanese Zero fighter plane. The Zero realized his mistake at the last moment and flew off into the night. One of the gentleman was a Naval fighter pilot who shot down several Japanese dive bombers, but his most tearful recounting came when he described his return at night, low on fuel, to his carrier. The order was given to the ships in the fleet to turn on their lights to guide the planes home, something not done in wartime operations. The joy the pilots felt seeing these searchlight beacons was so great that this veteran pilot still gets choked up when he talks about this over 60 years later.
The fourth member of the panel had been a gunner on a SBD dive bomber and got to watch the whole battle unfold while circling in a safe position away from the fleet 30 miles away. Not wanting to risk these planes staying on deck, the order had been given for them to launch and stay away from the action. This gentleman had, on a previous mission, been shot down over Truk Lagoon, was given a two week recuperation pass to Honolulu and then returned to his flying duties.
For one interested in aviation history, a more memorable experience could not be had. For those in Midland, you should try and attend these events, especially featuring these WWII veterans. These men were all in their early to mid 80's. Sadly they won't be around much longer.
In May, my good friend Joe Galloway will be the featured guest for a seminar on Vietnam helicopter aviation and the principal speaker for our Memorial Day program. Hope to see you there.
