The History of the USS Cabot

A History of the USS CABOT (CVL-28):
A Fast Carrier in World War II
by J. Ed Hudson

.
CHAPTER THREE

OPERATION "FORAGER" and
the "MARIANAS TURKEY SHOOT"

The Marianas Islands and the
Battle of the Philippine Sea

The Marianas, named for Queen Maria Ana
of Spain, consist of Tinian, Saipan, Rota and
Guam plus several smaller islands. Japan had
occupied these former German possessions
since 1914, and had been given mandate over
them by the League of Nations. In 1917, Guam
had been placed under the protection of the
U.S. Dept. of Navy, but the island was captured
by the Japanese in 1941.

Allied invasion of the Marianas was set for
June 1944, with more than 600 vessels par-
ticipating battleships, heavy and light carriers,
cruisers, high-speed transports and tankers.
Also to take part in the amphibious landings
were more than 2,000 aircraft and some 300,000
men from the Navy, Army and Marines.

D-Day, 15 June, was the beginning of opera-
tion "Forager". The famous battle of the
Philippine Sea took place on 19 June and was
nicknamed the "Marianas Turkey Shoot" by
Cmdr. Paul D. BUIE of the USS Lexington
(CV 16).

The strength of the United States at the time
can be realized when it is remembered that the
invasion of Europe was also taking place then.
Our occupation of the Marianas would cut the
Japanese-protected lines of communication
from Japan. Tinian would become the base for
the B29, which could reach Tokyo and other
areas of Japan, once the island was captured.

On 8 June, Task Force 58 steamed out of Majuro
to neutralize all Japanese air bases in the
Marianas. The largest group of fast carriers,
with a total 884 planes, were in TF 58 as
follows:

Task Group 58.1
USS Hornet (CV 12), 91 *
USS Yorktown (CV 10), 86
USS Belleau Wood (CVL 24), 35
USS Bataan (CVL 29), 33

~ 17 ~

Task Group 58.2
USS Bunker Hill (CV 17), 92
USS Wasp (CV 18), 97
USS Monterey (CVL 26), 29
USS Cabot (CVL 28), 34

Task Group 58.3
USS Enterprise (CV 6), 71
USS Lexington (CV 16), 92
USS San Jacinto (CVL 30), 32
USS Princeton (CVL 23), 33

Task Group 58.4
USS Essex (CV 9), 93
USS Langley (CVL 27), 32
USS Cowpens (CVL 25), 35

*Denotes total planes aboard including F6Fs,
TBMs, SB2cs and/or SBDs.

On 8 June, TBM #2 was slow taking off, fail-
ed to gain enough air speed and spun into the
water. The plane sank immediately, and there
were no survivors. The pilot, Ens. C.
MANTELL, and crewmen M. W. HELM,
ARM2c and G. L. TURNER, AOM2c, were
killed.
Fredrick DUDLEY, AOMlc remembers the
loss of the Avenger and its crew: "In our group
(V2 Division) we had a fine young man named
General Lee TURNER. He was a good friend
and had been checked out as a turret gunner
while in ordinance school. We had lost some of
our pilots and gunners in combat creating some
vacancies, so TURNER applied and was ac-
cepted; it was something he wanted to do.
On his first mission (ASP) the pilot, (also a
replacement) gunned the plane down the flight
deck, took off and banked to the right as usual,
but he never brought the plane back up. It sliced
into the water on our starboard side and disap-
peared. I remember standing on the flight deck
for a long time looking astern and hoping to see
someone. Finally two large bubbles appeared in
the distance, telling us the depth charges had
gone off, and there was no more hope."
11 June, the TF 58 was southeast of Saipan,
launching fighter sweeps and strikes on Tinian
and Saipan to neutralize air opposition before
the amphibious landings. At 1300 hours, the
Cabot sent 12 F6F fighters to make a sweep
over Tinian, and the following enemy planes
were destroyed:
Lt. S. G. KONA-one shot down, two damaged on ground
Lt. (jg) E. FREE-one damaged, one destroyed on ground
Lt. (jg) R. O. ZIMMERMAN-one shot down, one damaged on ground
Ens. W. G. ANDREWS-one shot down, three destroyed on ground
Lt. D. W. MULCAHY-one shot down, three damaged on ground
Lts (jg) J. M. BOWIE-one shot down, three damaged on ground
Lt. (jg) D. B. GALT, Jr-two shot down
Lt. (jg) D. B. DRISCOLL-two shot down
Lt. C. H. TURNER-two shot down, two probables
Lt. (jg) V. A. RIEGER-two shot down, three damaged on ground
Lt. (jg) R. D. CONANT-one damaged in air, three on ground

The Cabot presumably suffered another
casualty 11 June as Ens. R. G. WHITWORTH
was last seen in a dogfight over Tinian. Later,
VF #32, piloted by D. W. DIETRICH, broke its
tail hook in landing and pitched forward onto
its nose in the barriers.
The Task Force attacked Saipan, Tinian and
Guam 12 June with Lt. J. S. STEWART
shooting down a Judy. As Tinian was bombed
and strafed, a torpedo wake was seen crossing
Cabot's port bow. The general alarm was
sounded and material condition "able" was set
as the ship made an emergency turn to port-in
the direction of the torpedo wake-and it passed
harmlessly by.
Also that day, an estimated 100 survivors of a
Japanese ship were picked up by the USS Lexington.
One survivor jumped overboard, but was retrieved
by a destroyer.
On 14 June, strikes were made on Rota, with
buildings demolished as well as a 7,000 ton AK
set fire.

~ 18 ~

D-Day, 15 June, saw another strike on
Saipan, where Cabot destroyed ammunition
dumps and hit gun emplacements. Ens. A. J.
LAUBER dropped a depth charge on a
Japanese sub, and an oil slick appeared on the
water's surface. Ens. R. G. WHITWORTH,
who had been last seen in the 11 June dogfight
over Tinian, was picked up by the USS Caperton
(DD 650) after three days in a rubber raft.
Admiral Ozawa sent out a series of carrier
raids on the fleet in an attempt to stop the
Saipan invasion. On 18 June, Ens. R. A.
SHIELDS dropped four 350 pound depth
charges on a sampan, and prior to the Ozawa
raids, Cabot's Fighters shot down six "Zekes"
over Guam, with Lt. C. H. TURNER downing
three, Ens. W. G. ANDREWS dropping one,
and Lt. (jg) R. D. CONANT and Lt. (jg) J. M.
BOWIE getting one each.
The following is quoted from the book Angel
On The Yardarm: The Beginnings of Fleet
Radar Defense and the Kamikaze Threat by
John Monsarrat who served on the USS
Langley (CVL 27):
"The Japanese mobile fleet, counterpart
to our fast carrier Task Force, and its
supporting supply ships, was assembled at
Tawi Tawi, just off the northeastern tip of
Borneo. Under the command of Vice Ad-
miral Jisaburo Ozawa, its main combatant
ships were nine aircraft carriers, five
battleships, seven cruisers, and 28
destroyers. These ships, which were
organized into three Task Groups,
represented the largest Japanese striking
force of the entire war, but most of its
pilots and aircrews were inexperienced
and severely hampered by lack of
training."
"On 13, June, Ozawa sortied from Tawi
Tawi with orders to proceed to the
Marianas and destroy the American invasion
force. Almost from the moment of his
departure, he was sighted and shadowed
by U.S. submarines, which provided the
best intelligence Admiral Spruance was to
receive for many days to come."

"After refueling at Guimaras in the
Philippines, Ozawa passed eastward
through San Bernardino Strait on the
15th, again sighted and reported by the
submarine Flying Fish. It was now apparent
that a major sea battle was imminent
in the Philippine Sea, west of the Marianas.
"Just as Spruance and Mitscher were
poring over every report that reached the
5th Fleet, Nimitz and Towers were doing
the same thing at CinCPac. On the 16th,
while we were on our mission at Iwo Jima,
Towers warned Spruance and Mitscher
that the Japanese might try to shuttle
bomb our carriers by launching strikes
from beyond our round trip range, then lan-
ding on their airfields in the Marianas to
refuel and rearm for another attack on the
long flight back to their own ships. This
proved to be a remarkable prescient warning,
for that was precisely the Japanese battle plan.
"The decisions that Admiral Spruance
made in the next two days reopened and
re-emphasized the old controversy between
the 'air admirals' and the 'battleship
admirals'. Basically at issue was the contention
of carrier commanders such as Towers, Halsey,
and Mitscher that the fast carriers should
not be tied to supporting operations on the
shore; they would be free to capitalize on
their great mobility and striking power by
ranging far afield to seek out and destroy
the enemy's main forces."
"After the Battle of Midway, two years
earlier, Spruance was criticized by some of
the air admirals for not having pursued the
remnants of the Japanese Fleet more aggressively
and persistently after the initial
actions had been successfully completed.
Instead, he had elected to turn back and
disengage, staying relatively close to the
scene at Midway. The air admirals con-
tended that this election had lost us a
great opportunity to destroy the Japanese

~ 19 ~

naval force once and for all, thereby
shortening the war by perhaps years."
"Now, in the Philippine Sea almost exactly
two years later, Spruance's tactics
were to be subjected to the same criticism.
Spruance's main concern was to protect
the integrity of the large force already
ashore on Saipan and of those still to be
landed on Guam and Tinian. He was
haunted by the thought that, if he took TF
58 away from the Marianas to find and at-
tack the Japanese far to the west, a se-
cond enemy force might make an 'end run'
around him and create havoc at Saipan in
his absence."
"Accordingly, he moved the American
transports and supply ships clustered off
Saipan to a position well east of the island
to keep them out of harm's way, and
tethered TF 58 to a defensive position just
west of the islands. Rightly expecting to
be attacked in this position early on the
19th, he ordered Mitscher to clear all carrier
decks for maximum use of fighter aircraft
by sending their bombers and torpedo
planes to orbit out of the way over Saipan.
He then disposed the four carrier
task groups 12 miles apart from one
another and pulled out the battleships
from each group to form a fifth group 15
miles to the west, in case the enemy
should bring its ships within engagement
range of surface ships. With the stage so
set, the Task Force waited for the attack."
"Proceeding east from the Philippines,
Ozawa launched his strikes at maximum
range, a few minutes before 10 o'clock on
the morning of 19 June. Large groups of
bogeys began to appear on the radar at
ranges of more than 100 miles to the west.
The combat air patrol was augmented by
massive numbers of fighters, and those
from the Essex in task group were the first
to engage the enemy 55 miles away."
"The enemy planes behaved peculiarly.
After approaching to within about 60 miles
of our ships, they went into a circle and
orbited for several minutes, apparently while
their strike leader gave them final orders.
This maneuver gave our fighters time to
intercept them far from the task force and to
get into optimum attack position. The pattern
was repeated all day long, and many
of the Japanese pilots indulged in aimless
aerobatics before being engaged."
"The inexperience and lack of training
of the enemy's pilots were apparent early
in the day, and the four massive raids they
mounted during the long day were almost
totally destroyed. Few attackers were able
to penetrate to our ships, and the
Langley's antiaircraft guns were not even
fired, despite the 473 aircraft Ozawa launched
against the Task Force. More than
300 were shot down over the task force,
and stragglers who attempted to land on
Saipan, Rota or Guam were destroyed by
fighters over the airfields."
"In all, it was a triumphant day for
American fighters and fighter direction. In
the Navy, 19 June became known as the
day of the Marianas Turkey Shoot. It was
as first thought that the fast carrier Task
Force, in defending itself against the four
main raids from the Japanese carriers and
those of land-based aircraft from the
islands, had shot down more than 400
planes. The elimination of duplicate
claims later reduced this number to
something over 300. By any count, it was
the greatest single shoot-down of the war
in any theater, including the Battle of Britain;
and it was achieved with a loss of only 29
American planes, including six lost operationally."
In U.S. Navy At War 1941-45, the official
reports of Fleet Admiral King differ somewhat
from Lt. Monsarrat's Record, and the final
results of the Marianas Turkey Shoot were:
39S Japanese planes lost in combat
20 U. S. planes lost in combat
6 F6F Hellcats
10 SB2C Helldivers
4 TBM Avengers

~ 20 ~

80 U.S. planes lost operationally
(deck crashes and ditching)
17 F6F Hellcats
35 SB2C Helldivers
28 TBM Avengers

In all, only 49 pilots and crewmen were lost,
thanks to the effective fleet rescue operations.

The Cabot's log reports her part in the
Turkey Shoot as follows:
"At 1047 hours, bogies were spotted about 55
miles away, and the Cabot used her AA guns to
shoot down a Japanese fighter astern. The
results of V. Cap #2 with six F6Fs were:
Lt. J. B. STEWART-3 downed
Lt. (jg) A. R. HAWKINS-3 downed
Lt. (jg) J. L. WIRTH-4 downed
Lt. (jg) F. R. HAYDE-3 downed
Lt. (jg) D. B. GALT Jr.-1 downed
Lt. (jg) D. B. DRISCOLL-1 downed
Total: 15

Eight F6F Hellcats made up a fighter scramble
which downed seven planes as follows:
Lt. (jg) H. H. SCALES-2
Lt. F. W. MULCAHY-2
Lt. G. KONA-1
Ens. S. W. GODSEY-1
Ens. C. W. DIETRICH-1

VF 31 shot down 28 Japanese planes without
a loss, living up to its nickname, "The Meat
Axe Squadron". The ship's AA guns shot down
three Tonys dive bombing the USS Wasp.
At 1540 hours, 20 June, the Ozawa Fleet was
contacted, and Admiral MITSCHER decided to
go after them. He realized the first strike would
have to make a night landing, and would probably
run out of fuel since the distance to the
Japanese - 215 miles - had been miscalculated
by 60 miles. Thus, the second flight was canceled.
As part of the strike, the Cabot launched four
TBMs at 1605 hours. As the planes were returning
in the dark and low on fuel, Mitscher, at
2025 hours ordered all ships to turn on the red
truck lights, endearing the admiral to the pilots.
The Cabot and the rest of the carriers were
ordered to take on any planes from the fleet.
Our ship recovered nine, with just two our own.
Recovered were an SB2C from the Bunker Hill,
two F6Fs from the Wasp, and others. At 2247
hours, the lights were turned off, many planes
had landed in the water and pilots and crew
were picked up the next morning.
One of Cabot's TBMs tried to land on the
Bunker Hill, but made a barrier crash and burned.
The pilot suffered first- and second-degree
burns, but was in good condition otherwise.
Lt. E. E. "Ted" WOOD and wingman
Lt. (jg) "Beast" RUSSELL went after the
Chiyoda, a Japanese CVL, and thought they
had hit it. On returning, "Beast" RUSSELL
was allowed to land on any carrier he could, so
he chose a larger Essex-type instead of a small
CVL. Selecting one in the dark, he landed and
asked what carrier he was on, and much to his
surprise, found it was his own small carrier, the
Cabot. It is said he fell to his knees and kissed
the deck.
During the same strike, Lt. (jg) D. W. SMITH
and Ens. Jimmy JONES Jr. hit a Kongo-class battleship
with three bombs. Of the four Avengers, two
returned safely by pilots RUSSELL and WOOD.
Lt. WOOD had just five gallons of gas left when
he landed on the Cabot. JONES returned onto the
Bunker Hill, while SMITH made a water landing with
a crew of Vincent McGRATH, ARMlc and G. J. Van
BLAIRCUM, AMM2c.
Results of the strike by the 5th Fleet were five
hits on a Shokakuaku-class carrier, one CVE hit
and on fire, two battleships on fire, one oiler
sunk and one on fire.
On 21 June, Fighter Director Lt. "Wary"
WERRENRATH vectored out Lt. (jg)
WILSON, who shot down a Betty to make him
an ace. The next day, the USS Hunt delivered
SMITH, McGRATH and VAN BLARICUM
back to the Cabot.
On 24 June, the Cabot was steaming with
Task Group 58.2 to knock out air fields on
Pagan Island. Two days later, the ship was
enroute to Eniwetok, anchored on 27 June and
left 30 June to attack the Bonin Islands (Iwo
Jima). A strike was launched there on 4 July,

~ 21 ~

resulting in three F6F pilots missing: Ens. F.
HANCOCK Jr., Lt. (jg) H. G. ELEZIAN and
Lt. (jg) M. L. LOOMIS.
On 29 June, Lt. Cmdr. Robert A.
WINSTON, commanding officer of Air Group
31, was detached with a record of 64-0. His
fighter squadron had downed 64 Japanese
planes, and he had not lost a pilot. This was
truly a remarkable record for the Commanding
Officer who was much older than his men.
WINSTON recommended Lt. Adolph MENCIN
as new commanding officer of AG 31, but
Lt. Cmdr. D. J. WALLACE reported on board
in that post. Others reporting for duty on the
Cabot were: Ens. Martin C. MOORE,
Ens. Joseph M. MARDESICH Jr.,
Ens . Albert SCHELLENBERG,
Ens. Thomaeus J. KOSOWICZ and
Ens. Maurice L. NAYLON Jr.

The strikes on Iwo Jima resulted in:
Lt. (jg) C. N. NOOY-3 Zekes shot down
Lt. A. MENCIN-3 Zekes shot down
Ens. W. E. DUGGINS-1 Jill shot down
Lt. (jg) D. C. McLAUGHLIN-1 Tony shot down
Ens. H. H. OSBORNE-1 Zeke shot down
Cabot's planes also destroyed large buildings
and a fuel dump, and it hit a DD minesweeper.
Independence Day 1944 was a reminder to the
Japanese that the U.S. Navy was in full command
of this war, and defeat would not be far away.

7 July saw the Cabot enroute back to strike
Guam, and the following day, our planes shot
down nine Japanese aircraft:
Lt. D. W. MULCAHY-1
Lt. (jg) D. B. GALT Jr.-2
Lt. (jg) A. R. HAWKINS-1
Lt. (jg) D. B. DRISCOLL-2
Lt. (jg) J. L. WIRTH-1
Lt. (jg) F. R. HAYDE-1
Lt. (jg) SWEATT-1
Strikes over Rota on 9 July brought direct
hits on runways and buildings, with the bombardment
lasting seven days. F6F pilot Ens. T. J. KOSOWICZ
failed to return from Guam, and the "Forager"
campaign lasted until 24 July.
The following were awarded medals as a
result:
Lt. E. E. WOOD, Distinguished Flying Cross
Lt. D. W. MULCAHY, Air Medal
Lt. (jg) E. J. LARKIN, Air Medal
Lt. (jg) H. H. SCALES, Air Medal
Ens. H. A. BO, Air Medal
Ens. C. N. NOOY, Air Medal
Ens. R. A. SHIELDS, Air Medal
Ens. R. C. WILSON, Air Medal
R. SPRINGER GM2c, Presidential Unit Citation
R. E. HYLTON, EM2c, Purple Heart

~ 22 ~

(end chapter 3)
===============
.
CHAPTER FOUR

RAIDS ON THE
BONINS, PALAU
and the PHILIPPINES
July-Sept. 1944

Cabot Action under Famous Admiral "Jocko"
Clark in the "Jocko Jimas"

On 13 July 1944, the Cabot was transferred
to Task Group 58.1 under Admiral J. J. Clark.
"Jocko" Clark, as he was called, was part
Cherokee Indian and a fighting admiral - his
Task Force hit the Jimas so many times, they
were nicknamed the "Jocko Jimas".
Admiral Clark was skipper of the USS
Suwannee (CVE 27) early in the war, and
commissioned out the USS Yorktown (CV 10) as its
first captain.
The Cabot's log at the time reads: "15 July,
Lt. (jg) F. R. HAYDE, pilot of an F6F failed to
return to the Cabot. 16 July, on a return strike,
H. W. FOWLER, ARM2c, VT 31 had gunshot
wounds in right shoulder from AA fire. Lt.
Cmdr. Dan J. WALLACE missed arresting
wires and crashed into barrier, but no personal
injuries.
" 18 July, the Task Group hit Rota and
Guam. 20 July, Joseph D. ROBERTS, S2c fell
from lookout watch on port side of open bridge
to the platform; internal injuries and condition
fair.
"24 July, the Group approaching Woleai
Island. Lt. (jg)? R. O. ZIMMERMAN made a
barrier crash landing with no personal injuries.
25 July, the Force bombed and strafed Ulithi
Atoll and on the 26th, TBM #1 missing from
strike on Yap, but picked up by USS Brown
(DD 546) and returned Lt. (jg) J. B. RUSSELL
and crewmen W. M. BENNETT, AMM2c and
H. M. WEBSTER, PhoMlc.
"On 28 July, Lt. D. MULCAHY made forced
landing after strike on Yap. Also, Lt. (jg)
Edwin FREE made water landing 15 miles from
Yap but returned later by the USS Bell (DD 587).
After anchoring in Saipan on 1-2 Aug., TG
58.1 headed for the Jimas, when it was reported
that a Japanese convoy was steaming north
from Chichi Jima. Admiral Clark launched his
torpedo planes to attack, and sank nine of the
11 enemy ships, including a destroyer and two
escorts.

~ 23 ~

VT 31 of the Cabot took part in this victory
as the log records on 4 Aug., "Lt. E. E. WOOD
A-V (N) sank a Fubuki-class DD at Futani KO."
Information from Japanese sources after the
SSAR indicated no Fubuki-class DD was sunk on
or around this date. The Fubuki was a
l,750-ton destroyer, and the Amagiri of this
clasS was the destroyer that split President John
F. Kennedy's PT boat in half. Records do
show, however, that the Matsu, a DE was sunk
on 4 Aug. 1944, and this was probably the ship
Lt. WOOD sunk.*
In a letter from WOOD to the author, he
writes, "I remember the event quite vividly,
since it was my first experience of having my
plane hit by anti-aircraft fire (not particularly
serious, but scary!)
"I confirmed this with Jim HUNT, who was
on the flight with Don HORNBERGER and
me. As to what type DD or DE was sunk, I have
no idea, other than one was indeed sunk. Jim
HUNT also confirmed that Don HORNBERGER
and his crew were lost on that attack. "
It should be noted that during the Jimas
attacks, Lt. (jg) J. S. STEWART sank two
60-foot barges loaded with men and supplies
about four miles from Ani Jima. An additional
Score was made by STEWART when he made a
direct hit and a near miss on the stern of a large
DD or CL.
Missing from the torpedo run at Chichi Jima
harbor were Lt. (jg) D. L. HORNBERGER and
crew Ken POHL, ARM2c and R. A. ANDERSON, AMM2c.
Lt. A. J. PARKENHAM and Lt. R. G. MELLIN hit
two AKs and set them on fire. PARKENHAM did
not see his torpedo hit, but the target had vanished.
Also in the 3rd Fleet, our sister ship the USS
San Jacinto (CVL 30) struck the Bonins and
Yap in a diversionary action prior to the capture
and occupation of the southern Palau Islands.
Ens. George Bush, the youngest-ever commissioned
aviator, piloted an Avenger torpedo
plane and was shot down over the Bonins and
Chichi Jima on 2 Sept. 1944. He was picked by
the rescue submarine Finback (SS 230) and
spent 30 terrifying days with them before rejoining
the San Jacinto. Like the Cabot, the San
Jacinto and VT 51, which Bush was in, later
received the Presidential Unit Citation. George
Bush is now vice president of the United States,
and very possibly could be our next president.
On 6 Aug., the USS Brown (DD S46)
delivered mail to the Cabot. Mail call, which
occurred about every seven days while refueling,
was one of the most welcome morale boosters
to the crew in the middle of the Pacific.
Cabot anchored at Eniwetok on 9 Aug., and
while there, new men reported for duty with VF
31, including: J. D. McCORMICK, Slc, E. L.
DOUGLAS, MM3c, W. D. FROMLET, S2c,
G. EVANS, RdM3c, Ens. Howard A.
McMILLIAN, Ens. George G. BARDIN Jr.,
R. R. METZ, S2c (later killed in the "K"
attack) and Ens. Edward W. TOASPERN.
On 17 Aug., Lt. Robert A. NEWCOMB,
USN reported aboard as assistant gunnery
officer and acting first division officer. In
February 1945, he relieved Lt. Cmdr. ZIMANSKI
as gunnery officer.
The Cabot was underway again on 2S Aug.
for exercises, but was back at anchor from
26-31 Aug. During this period, the ship steamed
along with TG 58.2 for training northeast of
Eniwetok. On 28 Aug., a crewman jumped
overboard, but was picked up after resisting the
rescuers.
September was a busy month for the Cabot as
American forces planned to land on Peleliu in
the Palau Islands by the 15th. Early on in the
month, the Cabot was part of TG 38.2, which
meant the 5th Fleet had been renamed the 3rd
Fleet under Admiral William F. "Bull"
Halsey's command. The renaming was done to
confuse the Japanese and make them think the
U.S. had two fleets. Actually, they were the
same, but commanders had changed, as Ad-
miral Halsey said later, "The drivers change but

---------------------------------------------------
*(NOTE: The Matsu had 5 inch guns, but is classified as a
DE by Conway's Fighting Ships. Even so, others list it
as a DD. An unofficial source reports the Matsu as a
"destroyer sunk on 4 Aug. 1944, 50 miles NW of Chichi
Jima Retto.*)
* Who Sank Who in World War II, David R. Logsdon, 1983.
---------------------------------------------------
~ 24 ~

the horses stay the same."
To neutralize bases which could interfere
with the Peleliu invasion, the fast carriers struck
Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines.
Lack of opposition there led the carriers to hit
the central Philippines as well, and later in
September, they conducted the first carrier
attack on Manila and Luzon.
Aboard the Cabot, awards were presented on
5 Sept. to:
Lt. (jg) R. C. WILSON-Distinguished Flying Cross
Lt. (jg) C. N. NOOY-Distinguished Flying Cross and Purple Heart
Lt. S. E. HEDRICK-Air Medal
Lt. (jg) R. D. CONANT-Purple Heart
Lt. (jg) J. B. RUSSELL-Purple Heart
Lt. (jg) H. H. OSBORNE-Air Medal and Purple Heart
Lt. (jg) R. P. McCHESNEY-Air Medal
Ens. R. G. WHITWORTH-Purple Heart
K. M. BALMER, CSM-Presidential unit Citation
W. N. BENNETT, AMM2c-Purple Heart
H. W. FOWLER, ARM2c-Purple Heart
H. M. WEBSTER, PhoMlc-Purple Heart

On 6 Sept., aircraft was launched to strike the
Palau Islands, and two barges were set fire.
There was no air opposition and only slight AA fire.
Another strike bombed and strafed AA positions
on Koror Harbor. A torpedo plane scored
hits on an ammo dump on Arakabesan Island,
sending a 1,500 foot column of smoke
resembling a phosphorus shell explosion.
9 Sept. was the day the USS Independence
(CVL 22) launched four VF(N) fighters at
night. These night fighters were assigned to the
Independence as well as the Enterprise (CV 6)
and the Saratoga (CV 3). On other carriers
aircraft operated only in daylight.
On 10 Sept., the Cabot was steaming in
company east of Mindanao, and one fighter sweep
dropped incendiaries and special bombs over
the central part of Davao. The town was left
covered by smoke and flames. On return, a
fighter strafed and set fire a PT boat on the east
side of Davao Gulf.
Ens. John J. ARNOLD and Ens. Jerome L.
WOLF joined VF 31 on 11 Sept, and the following
day, the ship was enroute to strike the central
Philippines. That day, eight F6Fs were
catapulted along with four TBFs for hits over
Leyte and Bohol Islands. There they bombed
and strafed the Leyte and Tacloban airfields,
destroying a twin-engine bomber, and damaged
two VFs on the ground. There was no air op-
position. Another strike damaged a building
south of Tacloban airfield, ruining the runways.
Meanwhile, a strike northeast of Cebu Island
sank one medium and two 4,000-ton AKs. A
200-ton inter-island ammunition ship was
blown up as well.
At 1935 hours, a night fighter from the In-
dependence shot down a Dinah.
There were four launchings from the Cabot
on 13 Sept.: (1) eight VFs and four VTs, (2) six
VFs and four VTs, (3) eight VFs and four VTs
and (4) 11 VFs and four VTs. The first group
shot down two Tojos, two Zekes, and one Jill
taking off from Legaspi airfield, and destroyed
two Bettys and two Judys on the ground on Luzon.
Afterwards, three fighter pilots were missing:
Lt. R. O. ZIMMERMAN, Lt. E. FREE and
Ens. G. G. BARDIN. ZIMMERMAN was
reported down 10 miles north of the Samar
Island tip, and at 1046 hours, two F6Fs were
sent to escorts for an OS2U rescue plane to
recover the pilot. BARDIN had made a water
landing and was not recovered.
Results of the second strike of 13 Sept. netted
a damaged Betty at Silay field on Negros Island,
and bombing and strafing of runways at Cebu
airfield. Another strike at Makabia airfield
damaged buildings and hangars on Tanza field.
At 1815 hours, a destroyer rescued Cabot
pilot Lt. R. O. ZIMMERMAN after he made a
water landing. The plane had been hit over
Legaspi airfield on Luzon.
14 Sept., a fighter piloted by Lt. (jg) Daniel
DRISCOLL reportedly hit the water, and two
Cabot fighters circled overhead for protection.

~ 25 ~

Another barrier crash took place 16 Sept.,
with a TBM piloted by Lt. (jg) J. T. HUNT Jr.
After fueling, the ship then proceeded to
launching position for strikes over the Palaus,
north of Peleliu Island. During the attack, one
VF piloted by Lt. J. L. WIRTH made an
emergency landing on the USS Bunker Hill (CV 17).
On 18 Sept., the USS Cushing (DD 717) came
alongside the starboard quarter to transfer Lt.
(jg) E. HOEY and Ens. R. F. HAAS to the USS
Intrepid (CV 11) for a conference on special bombs.

On 15 Sept. the following men were presented
awards:

The Legion of Merit
Captain S.J. MICHAEL

The Navy Cross
Lt. E.E. WOOD Lt. J.B. RUSSELL
Lt. D.W. SMITH Lt.(jg) C.N. NOOY
Lt. J.L. WIRTH

Silver Star
V.A. McGRATH, ARM1c
G.J. Van BLARICUM, AMM2c
Lt. A. MENCIN
T.R. LEGETT, Jr. ARMlc
C.F. KEILLY, ARM1c
L.E. WALTERS, ARM2c
R.J. DRAKE, AMM2c
I.F. BEWLEY, AMM2c
W.M. BENNETT, AMM2c

Distinguished Flying Cross
Lt. J.S. STEWART Lt. D.W. MULCAHY
Lt. C.H. TURNER Lt.(jg) D.B. GALT, Jr.
Lt.(jg) D.B. DRISCOLL Lt.(jg) V.A. RIEGER
Lt.(jg) BOWIE Lt. H.H. SCALES
Lt.(jg) W.G. ANDREWS
Gold Star in lieu of second DFC
Lt. C.H. TURNER Lt.(jg) A.R. HAWKINS
Lt.(jg) D.B. GALT, Jr.

Air Medal
Lt. D.W. MULCAHY Lt. J.T. ANDERSON
Lt.(jg) D.C. McLAUGHLIN
Lt.0g) A.R. HAWKINS
Lt. R.O. ZIMMERMAN
Lt.(jg) J.M. BOWIE Lt.(jg) E. FREE
Lt.(jg) D.B. DRISCOLL Lt .(jg) R.D. CONANT
Lt.(jg) D.B. GALT, Jr. Lt.(jg) W.E. DUGGINS
Lt.(jg) S.W. GODSEY Lt.(jg) C.W. DIETRICH

Gold Star in lieu of 2nd Air Medal
Lt. D.W. MULCAHY LT. S.G. KONA
Lt. J.S. STEWART Lt. J.L. WIRTH
Lt.(jg) D.B. DRISCOLL Lt.(jg) R.C. WILSON
Lt.(jg) H.H. OSBORN Lt.(jg) W.G. ANDREWS
Gold Star in lieu of 3rd Air Medal
Lt. S.G. KONA

Bronze Star
Lt. W.M. HALL Lt.(jg) R. WERRENRATH, Jr.

The next day, the Cabot, along with TG 38.2
was on its way to Manila. A hit on Luzon was
made 21 Sept., with VF pilot Ens. Maurice L.
NAYLON missing, reported to have parachuted
over Clark Field, where 16 enemy planes
were shot down.
The VT strike made two torpedo hits on a
large AO at the mouth of Subic Bay, and the
ship was sinking.
On 22 Sept., the fighters encountered six
"Vals" between Clark field and Lingayen field,
and were shot down. Twelve 500# bombs were
dropped on a building, but the results were not
seen.
Refueling was made 23 Sept., with the Cabot
taking on 25,400 gallons of aviation gasoline
and 224,091 gallons of fuel oil.
Strikes were made over Coron Bay 24 Sept.
with VF pilot Ens. A SCHELLENBERG land-
ing on the USS Essex (CV 9) with a damaged wing.
Other hits that day destroyed a VF on the
ground at Lanog field while 15 others were
strafed on the ground. Three SCs were fired on
near the east coast of Burias and one DE was
beached between Culion and Busuanga Islands.
The Cabot was headed to base on Saipan
Island on 25 Sept., anchoring in 12 fathoms of
water there on 28 Sept. Lt. William F. DOHME
was granted emergency leave for 30 days upon
arrival in the U.S., and on 30 Sept., the Cabot
had left Saipan.

~ 26 ~

[picture of certificate]

The Cabot operated in Task Group 58.1 under Admiral "Jocko" Clark
in July 1944 and hit the Jimas.
Information unavailable if AG-31 got this memento of these Strikes.

~ 27 ~

(end chapter 4)
==================
.

CHAPTER FIVE

AIR GROUP 31
January-October 1944

Air Group 31

The Cabot returned to Ulithi on 4 Oct. 1944,
and pursuant to the commanding officer's
orders, Air Group 31 was detached and transferred
to the USS Barnes (CVE 20), and Air
Group 29 reported aboard.
Air Group 31 had compiled an outstanding
record since the Marshall Islands action, but it
was time for a new air group as it was Navy
policy to relieve groups after six to nine months
of duty.
The record of Air Group 31 was so outstanding
that it helped win the Cabot the highest
award presented a ship-the Presidential Unit
Citation. Here is a recap of the first air group's
performance:

Awards Not Recorded in the Ship's Log

Distinguished Flying Cross
Lt. (jg) Frank R. HAYDE
Lt. Cmdr. Robert A. WINSTON
Lt. Stewart E. HEDRICK
Lt. Edward E. WOOD
Lt. G. A. J. PAKENHAM
Lt. John B. RUSSELL
Ens. Richard G. MELLIN
Thomas R. LEGETT Jr., ACRM
Leslie E. WALTERS, ARM2c
Ira F. BEWLEY, AMM2c
Warren N. BENNETT, AMM2c
Cornelius F. KEILLY, ARM2c
Robert J. DRAKE, AMM2c

Air Medal
Lt. tg) Haig G. ELEZIAN Jr.
Ens. Frank HANCOCK
Lt. (jg) Frank R. HAYDE
Lt. (jg) Malcolm L. LOOMIS
Lt. (jg) Harold E. SWEATT
Lt. Cmdr. Robert A. WINSTON
Lt. Adolph MENCIN
Ens. Maurice L. NAYLON Jr.
Lt. (jg) Vincent A. RIEGOR
Ens. Albert SCHELLENBERG
Lt. (jg) Richard G. WHITWORTH
Lt. (jg) Donald L. HORNBERGER

~ 29 ~

Purple Heart
Lt. (jg) Cornelius N. NOOY
Ens. Robert A SHIELDS
Milton W. HELM, ARM2c

Navy Cross
Ens. Jarnes JONES Jr.

Navy and Marine Medal*
Howard M. WEBSTER Jr., PhoMlc

* for acts of heroism outside combat.
This is the same medal President John F. Kennedy earned for
saving the lives of some of his PT crew in the South Pacific.

Fighting Squadron 31
[winged meat cleaver insignia]

1 Oct. 1944

Pilots of Fighting Squadron 31 shot down 147 enemy planes between
29 Jan. and 25 Sept. 1944 as folllows:

Name Score Type of Plane Remarks
--------------------------- ----- -------------- ------------------
Lt. J. T. ANDERSON .............2 ...1 Zeke, 1 Val
Ens. J. J. ARNOLD ..............0
Lt. (jg) W. G. ANDREWS .........4 ...2 Zekes, 2 Vals
Ens. G. G. BARDIN Jr.......................................Killed 9/13/44
Lt. (jg) J. M. BOWIE ...........3 ...2 Zekes, 1 Val
Lt. (jg) R. D. CONANT ..........2 ...1 Zeke, 1 Tony
Lt. (jg) C. W. DIETRICH ........2....2 Zekes
Lt. (jg) D. B. DRISCOLL ........5 ...5 Zekes
Lt. (jg) W. E. DUGGINS .........1 ...1 Zeke
Lt. (jg) Edwin FREE ............1....1 Tony
Lt. (jg) D. B. GALT Jr..........5 ...5 Zekes
Lt. (jg) S. W. GODSEY ..........2 ...2 Zekes
Ens. Frank HANCOCK .............2 ...1 Zeke, 1 Judy .......Killed 7/4/44
Lt. (jg) A. R. HAWKINS .........14...5 Oscars, 4 Zekes, 3 Topseys, 1 Kate,
1 Val
Lt. (jg) F. R. HAYDE ...........6 ...4 Zekes, 1 Betty, 1 Judy.Killed 7/15/44
Lt. S. E. HEDRICK ..............0
Lt. S. G. KONA .................3 ...1 Tony, 1 Zeke, 1 Val
Lt. (jg) M. L. LOOMIS ..........1 ...1 Zeke
Lt. (jg) D. C. McLAUGHLIN ......1 ...1 Zeke
Ens. H. A. McMILLAN.............0 ........................Reported 8/14/44
Lt. Adolph MENCIN ..............6.....3 Zekes, 2 Oscars, 1 Tony
Lt. D. W. MULCAHY ..............8 ....5 Zekes, 3 Topseys
Ens. M. L. NAYLON Jr............O ........................Killed 9/21/44
Lt. (jg) C. N. NOOY ...........15...7 Zekes, 3 Oscars, 2 Judys, 2 Tojos,
1 Tony
Lt. (jg) H. H. OSBORNE..........1 ...1 Zeke
Lt. (jg) V. A. RIEGER ......... 5 ...3 Zekes, 1 Val, 1 Tony
Lt. H. H. SCALEs .............. 6 ...3 Tojos, 2 Zekes, 1 Judy
Ens. A. SCHELLENBERG .......... 1 ...1 Topsey ............Reported 7/6/44
Lt. J. S. STEWART ............. 9 ...4 Oscars, 3 Zekes, 1 Judy, 1 Tojo
Lt. (jg) H- E. SWEATT ..........1 ...1 Zeke ..............Detached 8/21/44
Ens. E. W. TOASPERN ........... 4 ...2 Tonys, 2 Oscars ...Reported 8/22/44
Lt. C. H. TURNER ...............6....5 Zekes, 1 Nate

~ 30 ~

Lt. (jg) R. G. WHITWORTH .......1 ...1 Tony
Lt. Cmdr. D. J. WALLACE Jr......1 ...1 Tony ..............Reported 6/29/44
Lt. (jg) R. C. WILSON ..........6 ...3 Judys, 1 Zeke, 1 Betty, 1 Tony
Cmdr. R. A. WINSTON ............5 ...3 Judys, 1 Zeke, 1 Betty.Detached 6/29/44
Lt. J. L. WIRTH ...............14....8 Zekes, 3 Oscars, 2 Tojos, 1 Nell
Ens. J. L. WOLF Jr..............1 ...1 Tojo ..............Reported 9/11/44
Lt. R. O. ZIMMERMAN ............2 ...1 Zeke, 1 Val

Combined Attack ................1
Total Shot Down ..............147

Non-Flying Officers of VF 31
Lt. Cmdr, J. S. JEMISON, Jr. administration
and operations officer
Lt. R. E. CARR air combat information officer
Lt.(jg) N. M. CHARITY, ordinance officer

Non-Flying Officers of Air Group 31
Lt. Cimdr. W. H. REQUARTH, flight surgeon
Lt. S. S. TALBERT, communication officer
Lt. W. F. DOHME, recognition officer

Enlisted Personnel of VF 31
AUSTIN, Russell G., AMM2c 633 4l 75
BLYTH, Charles D., AOMlc(T) 266 25 54
BLYTHE, Robert L., AOMlc(T) 659 l9 0l
BOYERj Robert E., PRlc 29l 78 37
CAVALLARO, Anthony (n), AMM2c 65l 63 44
FERTIG, Stanford N., ACRT(AA)(T) 552 82 28
HENNINGER, George A., Ylc 6ll 50 03
HUGHES, Vengie O., AMMlc 632 32 05
INGRAM, Francis M., ACMM(AA) 360 46 97
TRZASKA, Raymond A., ACRM(AA)(T) 410 99 28
WARMAN, George T., AMM2c 393 50 49
WILKINSON, Thomas E., AMM1c, 654 00 41

VT 31 List of Pilots
Lt. E. E. WOOD, commanding officer
Lt. G. A. J. PAKENHAM, executive officer
Lt. D. W. SMITH
Lt.(jg) J. B. RUSSELL
Lt.(jg) R. P. McCHESNEY
Lt.(jg) W. F. FISCHER
Lt.(jg) J. T. HUNT Jr.
Lt.(jg) E. J. LARKIN
Lt.(jg) A. J. LAUBER
Ens. R. A. SHIELDS
Ens. H. A. BO
Ens. R. C. MELLIN
Ens. L. O. BACON
Ens. C. A. GEARHART

VT-31 Non-Flying Officers
Lt. J. S. LORD, III, ACI officer
Lt. C. W. McNAIR, Radar-radio officer -

Rooster of Enlisted Men
ALLAN, John Martin ...............AOM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......245-15-S1
ARWOOD, Clifton Laffette .........AMM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......663-06-55
BENNETT, Warren Niles ............AMM2c(CA), V-2 .....USNR ......622-89-00
BERGHORN, Gerard Francis .........AMM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......647-35-71
BEWLEY, IraFreeman ...............AMM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......616-62-79
BRANDT, Ralph LeDuc ..............Ylc, V-6 ...........USNR ......386-42-09
BROTHERTON, Dale Doyle ...........AMM2c(CA), V-2 .....USNR ......562-56-67
BROWNLEE, Ervin Raymond ..........PR2c ...............USN(SV) ...859-07-96
DRAKE, Robert Jackson ............AMM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......670-86-13
ELLZEY, John Rudolph .............AOMlc(CA), .........USN .......268-70-91
EVANS, George Thomas .............RT2c(CA) ...........USN .......243-92-85
FOWLER, HermanWilliam ............ARM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......669-60-26
HONEY, Keith Max .................ARM2C(CA), V-6......USNR ......622-84-59
JOHNSON, Stig Arnie ..............AMM2c(CA), V-2 .....USNR ......603-41-37
KEILLY, Cornelius Francis ........ARM2c(CA), V-6 .....USNR ......647-55-88
LA FORCE, Robert John ............ARM2c(CA) ..........USN .......300-73-06

~ 31 ~
LARSON, Harold (none) ............ARM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......638-45-31
LEANNARDAs Charles Albion ........AMM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......603-39-48
LEGETT, Thomas Riley, Jr..........ACRM(CA)(AA) ......USN .......360-34-68
MccARTHys Clifford Joseph ........ACMM(PA) ..........USN .......282-89-68
McGRATHs Vincent "A" .............ARMlc(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......646-01-99
MULLINS, Richard Evans ...........AOM3c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......575-10-74
PARKERs William Scott ............ARTlc, V-6.........USNR ......624-60-69
PELLETIER, Armand Leo ............AOM2c(CA), V-2 ....USNR ......607-49-58
PENDER, Daniel Bernard, Jr........ARM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......666-69-81
SHERIDAN~ Charles John ...........ARM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......647-38-88
SHUMWAYs Murray (none) ...........AEMlc, V-6 ........USNR ......608-00-47
SLOCUM, George Edgar .............ARM2c(CA), V-3 ....USNR ......611-27-67
VAN BLARICUM, Garrett Joseph .....AMM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......626-58-31
WALTERS, Leslie Earl .............ARM2c(CA) .........USN .......202-33-60
WEBSTER, HowardMedford, Jr........PhoMlc(CA),V-6 ....USNR ......611-37-04
WOOLSEY, Jack Keith ..............AMM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......660-53-23
YACKOVICH, Frank (none) ..........ARM2c(CA), V-6 ....USNR ......600-71-34

Combat Operations of Air Group 31

Marshall Islands Campaign
29 Jan. - 3 Feb.

Results:
5 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat
4 enemy planes damaged in aerial combat
Radio building destroyed (Ennubirr Island)
Block house destroyed (Roi Island)
Radio and administration buildings damaged (Namur Island)
Machine gun emplacement strafed (Roi Island)

Truk Operation #l
16 Feb.
Results:
1 8,000-ton AEC sunk
13 Bettys destroyed on ground
21,000-lb. bomb hit Param Island Airfield

Palau Operation
30-31 March
Results:
11 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat
1 enemy plane probably destroyed in aerial combat
2 enemy planes damaged in aerial combat
1 7,000-ton seaplane tender sunk
1 enemy light cruiser strafed and beached
l l0,000-ton AK strafed
l 3,000-ton AK strafed
Buildings on Anguar Island strafed

Woleai Strike
l April
Results:
l enemy plane destroyed in aerial combat

Hollandia Campaign
20-24 April
Results:
l2 enemy planes destroyed on ground
7 enemy planes damaged on ground
l 700 to l,000-ton AK destroyed
2 service buildings destroyed, service area strafed, Cyclops Airfield
Dispersal area at Cyclops Airfield attacked, fires started
Service dispersal and storage areas bombed and
strafed with 2 fires started, Wadke Island
Gun emplacements hit and installations bomb-
ed and strafed, Sawar Island

Truk Operation #2
29-30 April
Results:
2 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat
12 enemy planes destroyed on ground

~ 32 ~

1 2,000-ton tanker sunk
1 5,000-ton AK damaged
1 3,000-ton AK damaged
1 60-foot sampan sunk
4 barges strafed
Eten Island hangars bombed strafed and damaged
Radio buildings, Eten Island, damaged
Barracks, Dublon Island destroyed and/or damaged
Dispersal areas, Eten Island, bombed and strafed
Fire started in building area, southwest side of Dublon Island

Mariana Islands Campaign
1 1-23 June
Results:
45 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat
3 enemy planes probably destroyed in aerial combat
2 enemy planes damaged in aerial combat, with
2 destroyed on ground
4 direct hits causing fires and explosions on
Chitose-class enemy CVL
2 direct hits causing fires on Kongo-class BB
Probable damage to submarine

Saipan
Four buildings set fire
Seaplane buildings set fire on Aslito Airfield
Defense installations destroyed, Mutcho Point,
and ammunition dump exploded

Tinian
AA position destroyed
7 buildings destroyed at Ushi Point Field, with
2 more buildings damaged, AA positions
silenced and oil dump destroyed

Guam
3 gun positions destroyed
1 coastal defense position destroyed
Fires started in buildings on Orote Point

Rota
Sugar mill damaged
Fire started in buildings, north east coast
l Fire and explosion in supply area, northwest coast
300-ft. AK strafed and set fire

Pagan Island Strike
24 June
Results:
1 1,000-ton AK damaged
Barracks area damaged

Strikes on Iwo Jima, Bonin Islands
4 July
Results:
15 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat,
with 2 probables and 4 planes damaged
1 2,000-ton AK left burning
Fuel dumps set fire
Hangars and radio station damaged
NOTE: On 3 July, antisnooper patrol (1 TBM
and 1F6F) sighted an "Emily", and with help
of 2 more F6Fs, destroyed it.

Mariana Islands Campaign #2
7-22 July
Results:
9 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat at Rota Islands.
Cratered airfield, keeping runway inoperable
Destroyed building and damaged two more at Rota Town
Destroyed 1 building and damaged four others
in serving area, Rota Airfield

Guam
Cratered runway
Set fires in barracks and supply areas
Destroyed building and set fuel dump ablaze at Green beach area
Destroyed four buildings, and damaged four more, Agana Town
Destroyed 1 warehouse north of Agana Town
Gun positions destroyed and/or seriously damaged

Ulithi and Yap Islands Operations
25-28 July
Results:
Damaged radio station and weather station and

~ 33 ~

set fires at supply area, Ulithi
Damaged radio building, destroyed 4 warehouses and set
administration building on fire, Yap
Set fire and destroyed fuel dump, Yap
Rvledium AK set afire
l Zekes and 2 Vals destroyed on ground
NOTE: Above is best damage estimate since
results were not completely tabulated.
l 200-ton AK destroyed
1 3,000-ton AK damaged
10 buildings damaged
l oil dump destroyed

Strikes on Haha Jima, Bonin Islands
4-5 Aug.
Results:
Japanese light cruiser seriously damaged, probably sunk
2 small barges sunk
1 2,500 to 3,000-ton AK sunk
l 2,500 to 3,000-ton AK seriously damaged
3 LCIs (50 to 60 ft.) burned and destroyed
1 Fubuki-class DD sunk

Strikes on Palau
6-7 Sept.
Results:
3 50-ft. power launches destroyed
9 AA positions destroyed
1 ammunition dump destroyed
Other installations (i.e. loose stores, buildings,
service areas) strafed and bombed, damage not observed

Strikes on Mindanao
9-10 Sept.
Results:
2 inter-island steamers (500-800 tons) sunk
1 power launch (40-50 ft.) destroyed
Undetermined number of buildings destroyed
or damaged in burning of Davao

Strikes on Visayans and Southern Luzon
12-14 Sept.
Results:
25 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat
with 2 more probably destroyed and 4 damaged
8 enemy planes destroyed on ground, with 7 others damaged
1 3,000 to 4,000-ton AK destroyed
1 4,000-ton transport destroyed

Support Mission - Palau
17 Sept.
Results:
1 small fuel dump destroyed
1 large barge sunk
1 power boat (50-60 ft.) sunk
Slit trench concentration destroyed

Strikes on Luzon
21-22 Sept.
Results:
35 enemy planes destroyed in aerial combat,
with 4 probables and 7 more damaged
5 enemy planes destroyed on ground and 3 more damaged
1 4,000-ton AK sunk
3 buildings damaged
2 AA positions destroyed

Strikes on Visayans
(including 340-mile strike against shipping at Coron Bay)
24 Sept.
Results:
1 enemy plane destroyed on ground
1 7,000 to 10,000-ton AO sunk
2 5,000-ton AKs seriously damaged
1 1,000-ton gunboat damaged
5 SCs (150-ton) sunk
1 750-10,000-ton AK damaged
1 10,000-ton AK damaged
1 500-ton sea truck sunk

Total Combat Sorties
Combat Air Patrol (in combat zone)
Engaged in combat 971
In zone, not engaged S08
Total 1,479
Antisubmarine patrol (in combat zone) 404
Total patrol sorties 1,883
VF strike sorties 861
VT strike sorties 277
Total strike sorties 1,138
Total combat sorties (all types) 3,021

~ 34 ~

Recapitulation

Planes destroyed in aerial combat 147
Planes probably destroyed in aerial combat 15
Planes damaged in aerial combat 23
Planes destroyed on ground 56
Planes damaged on ground 18
Airfields bombed and damaged 30
Shipping sunk ships 26
(48,050 tons)

Shipping damaged ships 22
(103,650 tons)

Buildings destroyed 24
(plus undetermined number at Davao)

Buildings damaged 48
Gun positions destroyed 21
Gun positions damaged 3
Fuel and ammunition dumps destroyed 9

NOTES:
1. Several target photographic missions were
flown, but not indicated.
2. In addition to above damage, considerable
miscellaneous damage was inflicted.

The Pacific Theater of World War II was
won by fast carrier pilots such as the men from
Squadron 31. Most of them in their early twen-
ties, these pilots were the best trained in the
world and had a degree of courage only found
in youth. Our flyers weren't afraid of a dogfight
with the enemy, and many battled one-on-one.
The American pilot never expected to lose as
he fought to live, but the Japanese pilot fought
to die. Of course there was tremendous
courage on both sides, but the Japanese pilots
of 1944 lacked our superior training, and their
planes were decidedly inferior. Thus, we downed
more than 10 enemy planes for every American loss.
Following are some press releases that were
prepared for these heros' hometown newspapers.

The "Meat Axe Squadron"
More than 10 Japanese planes per
man-that's the destruction record in aerial
combat for the Hellcat pilots of the U.S. Navy's
"Meat Axe Squadron", Fighting 31.
Lt. James S. STEWART of Beverly Hills,
Calif., has nine planes to his credit and led a
four-plane unit during nine months of Pacific
operations. Lt. John L. WIRTH, Gary, Ind.,
and Lt. (jg) Arthur R. HAWKINS, Lufkin,
Texas, have downed 14 each.
Lt. STEWART's division, the 6th, has suf-
fered one loss,-Lt. (jg) Frank R. HAYDE of
Kansas, City, Mo. HAYDE shot down six
planes, one of the top squadron scores at the
time. Ens. Jerome L. WOLF, Sedalia, Mo.,
who was with the division in its last action, shot
down one plane.
The fighter pilot division amassed the bulk of
their score in the first carrier attacks on the
Philippines. In a single flight on 13 Sept., the
division destroyed 12 Japanese fighters in the
air, damaged several others and burned a twin-
engine bomber on the ground.
On a bombing mission several days later, the
men managed to knock 10 Japanese aircraft
down-including four twin engine planes-
while bombing and strafing targets.
Lt. Cmdr. D. J. WALLACE Jr. of Hoboken,
N.J., the second commanding officer of Air
Group 31, said, "When Japs are in the air,
Stewart's men are always the first to jump
them. It's uncanny-they often have every Jap
in the air burning before other fighters reach the
scene of action.
"On one attack, STEWART and HAWKINS
ran into a flight of Jap fighters taking off to in-
tercept our bombers," WALLACE continued.
"HAWKINS shot down five and damaged
three, and STEWART destroyed four in the air.
"They met the Japs under any conditions -
down low where the highly maneuverable
Zero had the advantage-or they followed
through on head-on runs until they
could literally see the whites in the Jap pilot's
eyes. Once, STEWART engaged and destroyed
an enemy fighter after his engine had been
seriously damaged by a bomb blast, "
WALLACE said.
The Battle of the Eastern Philippines gave the
"6th" its first opportunity to meet the highly-
touted Japanese carrier pilots. Intercepting the
huge attacking force, the four Hellcats brought
down 13 Jap planes, with Lt. WIRTH alone

~ 35 ~
bagging four.
"Their total score looks pretty impressive,
but there's more to it than the number of planes
shot down." continued WALLACE. "For instance,
while we were under torpedo attack off
Truk, HAWKINS deliberately flew through all
the ack-ack our Task Force could throw up to
bring down a Jap bomber."
Ens. WOLF, the new division member, had
shot down two planes before joining 31.
The 43 planes shot down by four members of
STEWART's division help make up the 147
total destroyed in the air by the "Meat Axe
Squadron", and that's a top record for any
carrier unit its size.
WALLACE's & WINSTON's Air Group 31
also accounted for 26 ships sunk and 22 pro-
bably sunk or damaged during the nine months
of active duty.

Lt. (jg) D. B. DRISCOLL
After destroying five airborne Japanese
planes, Lt. (jg) Daniel B. DRISCOLL, 23, of
Westport, Conn., completed a nine-month tour
of duty in the Pacific by joining in the recent
carrier-based attacks on the Philippines.
DRISCOLL is a Hellcat pilot of the U.S.
Navy's "Meat Axe Squadron", Fighting 31,
which participated in more than 15 fleet
operations and supported landings on six
Japanese-held islands.
DRISCOLL's first flight took place when he
and 11 other Hellcats were assigned to the long
pre-invasion fighter sweep over Tinian last June.
"Arriving over the target, we ran out into
about 20 Zeros, and soon after the fight started,
a couple of them got on my tail. I fought them
from 10,000 down to 3,000 feet, and I was hit
several times on the way down." DRISCOLL said.
"Finally, I tricked the Zeros into over-
shooting and shot down one of them as he passed
over. Climbing again, I met another Zero
coming head-on, but my shots stopped him,
and he went down burning. Our 12 planes got
14 in all on the flight."
In the Battle of the Eastern Philippines,
DRISCOLL shot down one of the 27 attacking
Japanese carrier planes which were destroyed
by his squadron during the day.
"We met about 30 Zeros at a very high
altitude. I opened up on one, and in a few
seconds, his plane was burning and the pilot
parachuted. When I looked for more enemy
planes they were all in flames," DRISCOLL said.
DRISCOLL destroyed two other Zeros on 8
July in a fight of several seconds when planes of
Fighting 31 intercepted a flight of nine Japanese
fighters attempting to escape from Guam. The
enemy pilots were caught by surprise, and
before they could break formation,
DRISCOLL had two burning and other
squadron members shot down the rest.
During the operations against the Philippines
on 14 Sept., DRISCOLL made strafing runs
against Japanese boats and parked planes. He
was then hit by anti-aircraft and seriously
damaged, forcing him to crash land 200 miles
from his task force.
After several hours in a life raft, DRISCOLL
was rescued and returned without injury to his ship.
DRISCOLL holds the Distinguished Flying
Cross, the Air Medal and Gold Star in lieu of a
second Air Medal. He has participated in more
than 25 bombing and strafing runs against
enemy airfields, shipping and gun positions.
DRISCOLL's squadron culminated their
operations in the Pacific by participating in car-
rier attacks against Luzon and other parts of the
Philippines during the latter part of September.
In these attacks, Fighting 31 shot down 29
enemy aircraft in one day and 26 another day.
In addition, they took part in bombing attacks
against Davao and Clark Field near Manila, as
well as on many other Japanese airfields and
anchorages in the Philippines.

Lt. (jg) D. B. "Salty" GALT, Jr.
Twice awarded the Distinguished Flying
Cross for shooting down five Japanese Zeros in
the Marianas, Lt. (jg) Dwight B. GALT Jr., 24,
of Hyattsville, Md. is a Hellcat pilot of the
Navy's "Meat Axe Squadron", Fighting 31.

~ 36 ~

GALT received his first taste of aerial combat
when 12 Hellcats from his squadron took part
in the long pre-invasion strike over Tinian
Island last June.
While the planes were enroute to the target,
the flight leader developed radio trouble and
asked that GALT assume control of the flight.
Holding the lead for the rest of the attack,
GALT conducted his 12 planes netting 14
Japanese Zeros.
"Over Tinian, we were attacked by about 20
Zeros hiding in the clouds above, and a long
and violent dogfight followed. I got two of the
Japs, one of the planes disintegrated in midair,
and the other crashed. Several of our planes
were hit during the fight, but none of our pilots
was lost," GALT commented.
In the Battle of the Eastern Philippines on 19
June, GALT destroyed one of the 27 attacking
carrier planes downed by Fighting 31 that day.
Later, in operations off Guam, he shot down
two planes when his squadron sighted a flight of
nine Zeros.
"I was the closest Hellcat to the Japs and
attacked first," GALT said.
Besides receiving the Distinguished Flying
Cross, a Gold Star, and in lieu of a second,
GALT also holds the Air Medal. He par-
ticipated in more than 20 bombing and strafing
missions against enemy shipping, airfields and
ground installations in all parts of the Pacific.
Last April, while on a strafing mission
against the well-protected Truk, GALT's plane
was so badly damaged by anti-aircraft fire that
he was forced to make a water landing. His
plane was hit after he had made four low-level
strafing runs, but he managed to fly back to the
Task Force where he landed in the water and
was rescued shortly afterwards.

Lt. (jg) A. R. HAWKINS
A record of total aircraft tonnage shot down
in one flight can probably be claimed by Lt. (jg)
Arthur R. HAWKINS of Lufkin, Texas. The
Hellcat pilot of Fighting 31 destroyed a
Japanese bomber and three twin-engine
transport planes in an air battle over the
Philippines on 21 Sept.

In the action over Clark Field near Manila,
HAWKINS went down to strafe the airfield
with other planes from the squadron, and in
pulling up, HAWKINS joined in an attack on a
bomber trying to escape. He headed into the
bomber, fired and pulled away, missing it by a
few feet. Looking back, HAWKINS saw the
pilot parachute out. After turning away to
return to his ship, HAWKINS sighted a
formation of five transports.
"It was a fighter pilot's dream," he said."
dove on them and cut my speed to stay behind.
From a closer position, I started firing, and the
nearest plane went down.
"1 turned to the next, and he also began to
burn and crashed. Other Hellcats had joined in
the attack and finished off the remaining
planes.
"We again headed back toward our base
when a Jap fighter came down on us from
above. I turned into him, and he broke away
with me chasing.
"In the middle of the chase, I saw another
formation of transports larger than the first.
left the fighter and continued my dive for the
transports. My terrific speed kept me from settling
behind the formation, but as I went past, I
got good shots into one plane and brought him
down in flames.
"Climbing again for a second attack, I ran
across another Jap Zero. I fired on the Zero,
and he went into a cloud, smoking. I was too
late for another shot at the transports-other
Navy fighters had them all smoking and burning
when I got back."
The day's bag of four brought HAWKINS'
total score of planes destroyed in aerial combat
to 14, one of the leading records for a Navy
pilot.
HAWKINS' highest mark for one day came
on 13 Sept., when he was escorting bombers on
a mission against an airfield in the Central
Philippines. When his formation was intercepted
over the target, HAWKINS shot down five Zeros
and damaged three more in the dogfight that ensued.
"I dove with the first Zero close to the deck,

~ 37 ~

and must have hit the pilot, as the plane went
down without burning and bounced across the
field," HAWKINS said.
"While banking around to see what happen-
ed, I was attacked from behind by two Zeros. I
quickly turned into them and shot down one as
I went past.
"As I climbed, I spotted Jap planes taking
off from the field. I dove on one and he went
back to the ground, burning. I regained my
altitude and saw a Zero above, preparing to attack.
I turned toward him and went up under
his belly, firing until we almost collided. After
we turned together for a short while, he fell out
and crashed to the ground.
"I got the fifth Zero when he turned away
from three Hellcats jockeying for a position
behind him. I got a perfect shot, and the plane
was riddled from stem to stern," HAWKINS
continued. "During the melee, I saw my shots
hit three other Zeros, but could not tell what
became of them because of my violent speed
and other enemy planes demanding my attention."
In the Battle of the Eastern Philippines,
HAWKINS shot down three of the 27 Japanese
carrier planes that were destroyed by Fighting
31 in the day's fighting.
"We had heard all kinds of stories about the
skill of Jap carrier pilots and this was our first
chance to find out the truth," HAWKINS commented.
"I was in a six-plane Hellcat division
led by Lt. J. S. STEWART of Beverly Hills,
Calif. When about 50 miles from our task
force, we intercepted more than 30 Zeros. They
were above average Jap pilots, but in about five
minutes, our six Hellcats had shot down l5 and
other Hellcats had taken care of the rest. The
sky was full of parachutes, burning planes and
Hellcats were looking for something to shoot at."
Despite his high scores in other actions,
HAWKINS said shooting down a single plane
during the raid against Truk was his toughest
job. Launched during a torpedo attack,
HAWKINS flew through a heavy barrage of
anti-aircraft fire thrown up by his own task
force, and shot down a Japanese torpedo

bomber penetrating the protective screen of the
carrier force.
HAWKINS, who holds the Distinguished
Flying Cross, the Air Medal and a Gold Star in
lieu of a second Distinguished Flying Cross,
shot down one of nine Zeros trying to escape
from Guam.. Meanwhile, other Fighting 31
pilots were destroying the rest.
In a long-range attack on enemy shipping in
the Philippines, HAWKINS sank a Japanese
coastal craft by strafing it.
In his nine months of combat duty in the
Pacific, HAWKINS flew on more than 25 bombing
and strafing missions against enemy airfields,
gun positions and ground installations.

Lt. Adolph MENCIN
Shooting down three Japanese planes in one
flight and then repeating the accomplishment
won a Silver Star award for Lt. Adolph MENCIN,
28, of Oglesby, III. He holds the position
of executive officer of the U.S. Navy's record-
holding "Meat Axe Squadron".
During the Pacific operations, MENCIN's
ship ranged from Hollandia in New Guinea to
the Bonin Islands, 650 miles from Tokyo. He
participated in the Battle of the Eastern Philippines,
where his squadron shot down 27 enemy
planes. Later in the first carrier attacks against
the Philippines, the "Meat Axe Squadron"
bagged 29 Japanese planes in one day and 26 on
another day.
MENCIN took part in more than 15 naval
engagements and flew on missions to support
landings on six different islands, bombing and
strafing enemy shipping, airfields, gun positions
and buildings.
On a predawn attack over the Bonins, MENCIN's
squadron ran into the cream of the Japanese air
force stationed there to protect the home islands.
"This was our toughest fight; we were out
numbered, and the Jap pilots and planes were
the best we ever encountered," MENCIN said.
"The Japs flew like something out of a circus,
but the Hellcats were too much for them. While
they were doing acrobatics, we were shooting.
set three afire and saw them crash, and pro-

~ 38 ~

bably got another while I saw it spinning down
with his tail assembly broken up."
While leading a flight in the softening up of
the Philippines, MENCIN repeated this feat by
knocking down three Japanese fighter planes.
MENCIN's flight of eight Hellcats destroyed 20
planes in a few minutes of aerial combat.
"During the fight, my wingman, Lt. (jg) H.
H. OSBORNE of Wolf City, Texas, and I were
left alone at high altitude to guard a formation
of our bombers. We had to take on about 10
Japanese fighters, as they dove through toward
the bombers. We would chase them off, or if
they came close enough, we opened fire.
"OSBORNE did the spotting and protected
my tail while I initiated the attacks," MENCIN
said.
"On this flight, Lt. (jg) A. R. HAWKINS of
Lufkin, Texas shot down five Japs, and Lt.
STEWART of Beverly Hills, Calif. got four in
the air," MENCIN continued. "A couple other
pilots of Fighting 31 and I destroyed three
each. "
Over the Philippines in another attack, MENCIN
tangled with one of the new in-line-engine
Jap fighters. MENCIN fired into the plane,
which started smoking and went down, probably
destroyed.
"Some of the boys had better luck on that
flight," MENCIN said. "Lt. (jg) C. N. NOOY,
Long Island, N.Y., shot down five Jap planes
while carrying a bomb, and later dropped it,
hitting and demolishing a building."

Lt. D. W. MULCAHY
Japanese transport problems worsened
considerably when Lt. Douglas W. MULCAHY,
26, of Yonkers, N.Y. ran across a formation of
five twin-engine planes over the Philippines.
MULCAHY, a Hellcat pilot of the Navy's
"Meat Axe Squadron," Fighting 31, and
another Hellcat pilot, attacked the large
transports. In less than five minutes, the planes
were of no further use to the Emperor.
"I picked out the closest plane and opened
fire at close range," MULCAHY said. "A few
bursts from my guns into the engines and wings
set them aflame. Turning to the next transport,
I repeated the process.
"The third plane I attacked was attempting
to crash land in the swamp when I opened fire.
He went down smoking, and after a few runs,
we had the remnants burning. In the meantime,
the other Hellcat had the other transport
burning he said.
Among pilots who scrambled to intercept the
attacking enemy carrier planes in the Battle of
the Eastern Philippines, MULCAHY shot
down two Zeros while his squadron accounted
for 27 planes shot down during the battle.
In his first action against enemy aircraft over
Roi Island, MULCAHY had his plane riddled
by gunfire and was separated from other friendly
aircraft when he saw a flight of five Zeros
below. He dove into the fighters, shot the wing
off one and scattered the others.
MULCAHY led his division of four Hellcats
on the first pre-invasion fighter sweep over the
Marianas. They were launched in the afternoon
to fly almost 200 miles for a surprise attack.
Entering a dogfight with many Japanese planes,
they shot down six. MULCAHY destroyed one
while Lt. (jg) D. B. DRISCOLL of Westport,
Conn. and Lt. (jg) D. B. GALT Jr. of Hyattsville,
Md. shot down two each. Twelve Fighting 31
pilots returned from action with a
total of 14 destroyed and no losses.
MULCAHY's division repeated the score
while on patrol near the Marianas. Intercepting
nine enemy planes passing near his Task Force,
MULCAHY fired into the wings and cockpit of
one plane, setting it ablaze. GALT and
DRISCOLL again shot down two each. Other
planes of the Meat Axe Squadron cleaned up
the rest of the flight within three minutes.
"It was easy shooting this time, "
MULCAHY said. "We had beat them to a frazzle
in the Marianas, and they knew it. They had
only one thing in mind-getting away. Our biggest
danger was colliding with other Hellcats
zooming around looking for more Japs."
In addition to aerial combat, MULCAHY,
using his plane as a bomber, led the division on
more than 25 missions against enemy ground
installations and shipping, and they flew in
support of landing operations on six Pacific islands.

~ 39 ~

"We found from strafing a Jap cruiser in the
Bonins and bombing through the heavy anti-
aircraft while knocking out Truk that this kind
of work can be hotter than fighting Zeros,"
MULCAHY said.
MULCAHY has been awarded the
Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal and
Gold Stars in lieu of second and third Air Medals.

Lt. (jg) C. N. NOOY
Shooting down five enemy planes and conducting
successful bombing missions would be a
good day's work for a squadron, but Lt. (jg)
Cornelius N. NOOY of Smithtown, Long
Island managed it alone.
A Hellcat pilot of Fighting 31, NOOY
destroyed five fighters in aerial combat while on
a bombing raid against Clark Field near Manila
on Sept. 21. The day's work brought his score
of planes destroyed in the air to 15, one of the
highest records for a carrier-based pilot.
The pilot for the Navy's "Meat Axe
Squadron" said, "When we arrived over Clark
Field, the Zeros were waiting and the inevitable
dogfight began. I saw a lone Hellcat from my
squadron having some trouble with two Zeros
and went to help. I opened fire on a Zero which
was attacking the Hellcat from behind, and he
crashed to the ground. Turning to the other
Zero, I saw my bullets striking home, and he
followed the first, burning and crashing.
"The next was one of the Jap's fast inline
engine fighters, which I shot down after a chase
of 10 miles. Returning to join other planes of
my squadron, I engaged another Zero, which
was destroyed when I came in firing, close
enough to see the pilot's face. The last Zero
accounted for after he escaped from several other
Hellcats by heading into a cloud. I followed him
in and opened fire close on his tail; soon, he was
imbedded in a rice field below," NOOY said.
After the Japanese planes were cleared from
the air, NOOY was still carrying his bomb and
aimed it at the service area. He scored a direct
hit and left a large hangar burning.
Nooy destroyed three more enemy planes
over the Philippines on 13 Sept. After shooting
down the first two, he attacked a third Zero
from astern and was getting good hits when his
guns went out. The Zero was badly damaged,
but still flying.
NOOY then pulled up over the Japanese
plane and maintained altitude at 50 feet, trying
to force the plane to crash. As they passed over
an elevation, NOOY pulled up, barely missing
the treetops. The Zero was left piled into the
hillside.
On the 4 July strikes against the Bonin
Islands, Fighting 31 ran into what they consider
their toughest aerial opposition. NOOY
destroyed four of 15 Japanese aircraft to be
shot down by the squadron in a predawn fighter
sweep, and probably accounted for another.
After the fight, NOOY led an injured pilot and
two lost planes back to the Task Force without
the aid of a compass or radio.
NOOY, who holds the Navy Cross,
Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal,
received the Purple Heart when wounded in a
strike against the Marianas. He saw his first action
against the enemy in January in the Marshalls
campaign, he was credited with saving his
commanding officer from being shot down by
driving away several enemy fighters, downing
one and probably destroying another.
During the raid against Palau, NOOY shot
down two of the nine attacking enemy bombers
wiped out by Fighting 31. He also damaged two
others, which were destroyed by other Hellcats
after his shots started them downward with
smoke trailing.
Besides holding one of the top places among
carrier pilots for the number of planes downed
in aerial combat, NOOY participated in more
than 30 bombing, strafing and photo missions
in all Pacific Fleet operations from the Marshall
Islands campaign through the Philippine strikes
in September.

Lt. (jg) V. A. RIEGER
A 22-year-old Hellcat fighter pilot, Lt. (jg)
Vincent A. RIEGER of Denver, Col. became an
Ace with five planes destroyed in aerial combat.
In addition, he scored a direct bomb hits on a
large enemy transport and anti-aircraft posi-

~ 40 ~

tions during the September carrier-based
attacks against the Philippines.
On a raid 12 Sept., RIEGER followed his
division leader Lt. C. H. TURNER of Jacksonville,
Fla., in a low-level bomb attack, when
both made direct hits and left a Japanese ship in
flames and sinking.
Then on another mission 22 Sept. over Clark
Field near Manila, RIEGER again struck his
target-a gun position he hit from low level
after diving through much enemy fire.
Returning to ship, Hellcats of RIEGER's
squadron sighted a formation of Japanese
bombers. They attacked the bombers, and in a
few seconds, all of the enemy planes were in
flames. RIEGER shot down one bomber to bring
his total to five.
The day before, over Clark Field, RIEGER
had destroyed one of the 29 planes downed by
his squadron that day. In a chase with a new
inline-engine Japanese fighter, RIEGER dove
several thousand feet after the plane until it
finally burst into flames.
Among the pilots launched in the long preinvasion
fighter sweep over the Marianas on 11 June,
RIEGER met his first enemy aircraft,
shooting down three Zeros. The 12 Hellcats of
Fighting 31 ran into about 30 enemy planes,
shot down 14 and damaged others. RIEGER
was probably responsible for saving one Hellcat
by knocking a Zero off his tail.
For his part in various battles, RIEGER has
earned the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air
Medal and a Gold Star in lieu of a second Air Medal.

Lt. H. H. SCALES
A former test pilot, Lt. Harrell H. "Push"
SCALES of Ft. Smith, Ark. has put the Navy
Hellcat fighter to practical purpose in recent
action with Fighting 31 by shooting six enemy
aircraft in aerial combat.
In one of the last missions leading a fighter
sweep against an airfield in the Philippines 13
Sept., SCALES shot down two Zeros in a low-
level dogfight and destroyed a Japanese bomber
on the ground.
"There were about 15 Zeros and 11 Hellcats
in the air," said SCALES. "The fighting took
place at very low altitude, sometimes at 50 feet.
After shooting down two Zeros, I made a
treetop strafing run on the field, and
there - staring from the window of the operations
tower - was a big fat Jap taking in the show.
I laughed all the way back at the expression on
his face," SCALES said, describing the action.
In that day's fighting alone, SCALES'
squadron downed 26 Japanese aircraft in the
air. Later, on 21 Sept., while his squadron was
topping that score with 29 downed in a day,
SCALES got his sixth plane. He sighted it as it
was making a dangerous attack on a friendly
fighter. SCALES turned in to intercept the
attack and after a hard chase, he brought the
Japanese down, spinning and smoking.
SCALES was among the Fighting 31 pilots
launched to help break up the enemy carrier-
based attack in the Battle of the Eastern Philippines.
"We sighted the bombers about 40 miles
away from our Task Force, already formed into
a column for the attack, " SCALES said.
"Their formation contained about 15 bombers
and 20 fighters.
"We dove through escorting fighters and
gave the bombers priority on our shots. I
opened up on a two-man dive bomber and as the
plane exploded, the pilot and gunner bailed out.
"Climbing again for more altitude, I found
myself in a perfect position for an attack on one
of the Zeros. After I opened fire, he began to
burn, and the pilot parachuted. That finished
my fighting for the day; there was nothing in
the air but Hellcats.
"Debris, oil slicks and smoke were all that
was left of the powerful carrier air force that
had trained two years for a chance to destroy
the American fleet," SCALES said.
Like most Navy fighter pilots, SCALES is
sure the Hellcat is the ultimate in fighter planes,
carrier-based or otherwise.
"The fine showing made by this squadron
was due in my mind to very severe training, a
fine spirit among pilots and the world's finest
plane," he said. "Our squadron has always

~ 41 ~

worked with one idea-attack and keep on
attacking, and never give a sucker an even
break."
In operations against enemy shipping on 14
Sept., SCALES led his four-plane division in
what was probably the most distant carrier
attack ever. Arriving over the target 350 miles
away, his division strafed and set fire to four
Japanese coastal vessels.
SCALES, holder of the Distinguished Flying
Cross and the Air Medal, got his first taste of
aerial combat in the Marshalls when he shot
down a Zero. In the Bonin Islands, he helped
destroy a four-engine Japanese patrol plane
snooping on our forces; and off Hollandia, he
led his division in a strafing attack that
destroyed an enemy tanker.

Lt. C. H. TURNER
After becoming an Ace by destroying six
Japanese planes in aerial combat, Lt. Charles
H. TURNER of Jacksonville, Fla. rounded out
his nine months of Pacific duty by scoring a
direct bomb hit on a large enemy transport ship
in the Philippines.
TURNER is a Hellcat fighter pilot in the
Navy's "Meat Axe Squadron", and with his
four-plane division, TURNER led his wingman,
Lt. (jg) Vincent A. RIEGER of Denver, Col. in
an attack on the anchored ship. TURNER's
bomb struck the starboard side of the ship while
RIEGER's bomb landed amidship. The ship
was last seen with the stern awash, sinking. On
the same flight, Lt. (jg) H. H. OSBORNE of
Wolf City, Texas, and a member of TURNER's
division, bombed and helped sink a Japanese
cargo ship.
TURNER, twice awarded the Distinguished
Flying Cross, has destroyed three Japanese
fighters in one dogfight, and in another, he shot
down two and two "probables."
Leading his division in the first fighter sweep
to clear the Marianas for invasion, TURNER
entered a melee of Hellcats and Zeros.
"When we arrived over the target, Jap planes
were hiding in the clouds above, waiting. They
came down making passes on the planes ahead
of us," TURNER related. "As they lost their
speed on the recovery, I was able to get on the
tails of four, and I knocked them out of the
fight. A couple went down burning. The other
two began smoking after I saw my shots hitting.
"In the meantime, my wingman, Lt. (jg)
RIEGER had shot down three Japs,"
TURNER said. "The 12 Fighting 31 planes in
the action destroyed a total of 14 Jap planes."
"But the Japs got in a few good hits also.
Two members of my division were hit, Lt. (jg)
Richard G. WHITWORTH of Athens, Ga.,
was shot down and was at sea for more than
three days before being picked up. Lt. (jg)
Richard D. CONANT of Brookline, Mass. was
wounded during the fight."
In the Battle of the Eastern Philippines,
TURNER shot down three of the 27 enemy aircraft
destroyed by the "Meat Axe Squadron" that day.
TURNER, in leading his division over Clark
Field near Manila, shot down a Japanese
fighter, and other members of his division got
one each.

Lt. (jg) R. C. WILSON
Versatility of the Navy's Hellcat fighter plane
was demonstrated when Lt. (jg) Robert C.
WILSON of Los Angeles, left two Japanese
ships wrecked on a 700-mile round trip attack
over the Philippines on 24 Sept.
WILSON, a member of the Navy's "Meat
Axe Squadron", Fighting 31 with a bomb on
his plane, began attacking the anchorage, diving
in for a low-level strafing of a gunboat. Her
guns silenced by the attack, the gunboat started
to burn and was beached on a reef.
WILSON then made a masthead bombing of
a large cargo ship, scored a direct hit and
started large fires. He made a second strafing
run on both ships and left them useless.
Then on 21 Sept., WILSON brought his score
of planes destroyed in aerial combat to six by
shooting down a Zero after a successful bombing
run on planes parked at Clark Field near Manila.
WILSON, who holds the Distinguished Flying
Cross, the Air Medal and a Gold Star in lieu
of a second Air Medal, became eligible for the

~ 42 ~

"Caterpillar Club" when he had to parachute
to safety after his plane was hit on a 4 July
attack against the Bonin Islands.
"In that predawn attack, we ran into some of
the best pilots the Japs ever put up against us,"
WILSON said. "Until our Hellcats thinned
them out, the Zeros outnumbered us and had
the altitude advantage. During the fight, I
engaged seven Zeros, damaged two and helped
destroy another. But one of them finally got on
my tail down close to the deck and got in plenty
of good shots. My plane was badly damaged,
and I was too low to bail out.
"All I could do was sit and wait for the Jap to
finish me off, but in the nick of time, two
planes from my squadron came down and
knocked off the Zero.
"By some very strenuous operation, I managed
to get the flying junk heap back to the Task
Force where I bailed out and was immediately
picked up by one of our destroyers. I learned
later that my squadron commander, Lt. Cmdr.
D. J. WALLACE Jr. and Lt. James T. ANDERSON,
were the pilots that drove the
Zero away. Lt. ANDERSON shot him down
shortly afterwards," WILSON said.
During his nine months of combat duty in the
Pacific, WILSON participated in more than 30
bombing, strafing and photo missions over
enemy bases and shipping. These included all
major fleet actions from the Marshall Island
campaign through the Philippines raids in
September.
WILSON was one of a four-plane Hellcat
division sent out to intercept a flight of nine
Japanese dive bombers which were attacking his
Task Force last March during the first Palau
operations. In a fight of a few seconds, he shot
down three planes as the other Hellcats downed
the rest.
As photographic officer of his squadron,
WILSON made low-level photo runs over many
enemy-held islands and obtained pictures that
were valuable in future strikes and landing
operations.
Said Wilson, "The toughest one was over,
Truk last April. I had to go down in extremely
bad weather conditions in the most intense anti-
aircraft fire we ever encountered."
Two days in succession, during the June
operations against the Marianas, WILSON
initiated attacks against twin-engine bombers
scouting his Task Force. WILSON engaged one
of them alone, and after several attacks, the
large bomber flamed and crashed into the
ocean. He led other Hellcats in an attack on
other bomber, damaging it and helping destroy
it. In his first combat mission over the
Marshalls last January, WILSON shot down a Zero
in a dogfight.
Wilson said of the enemy aviators, "I have a
great deal of respect for their skill; however,
they seem to lack the aggressive and cooperative
spirit of our pilots. For that reason, more than
anything else, I believe we will continue to
knock them down at a ratio of five to one or
better."

Lt. J. L. WIRTH
Recent dogfights over the Philippines have
built up a score of 14 enemy planes destroyed by
Lt. John L. WIRTH of Gary, Ind. He's a
Hellcat fighter pilot of the Navy carrier-based
squadron, Fighting 31.
Besides his high score of planes downed in the
air, WIRTH, carrying bombs on his Hellcat
fighter, made direct hits on a Japanese cruiser
and a cargo ship during his nine-month tour of
duty in the Pacific. His last engagement with
enemy planes came 21 Sept. when he was
assigned to take part in a strike on Clark Field
near Manila. Planes of his squadron began diving
to bomb the field and Japanese fighters
came down to try to break up the attack.
"Several Hellcats climbed into the first formation
of Zeros; I opened on the leader and
before he could do any damage, my shots had
him flaming," said WIRTH. "I jumped
another Zero, which went into a steep dive to
escape. We went through a series of violent
aerobatics until I ended up on his tail, and a
few burst from my guns finished him off.
"Going back to the fighting area, I spotted a
two-engine bomber lumbering below, and after
I made two passes, he crashed into the
swamps. I got another Zero after returning to

~ 43 ~

the dogfight. "
In one flight over the Philippines, WIRTH
strayed at high altitude to protect bombers going
in to destroy an airfield. After chasing away
several attacking Zeros, WIRTH engaged two
and shot them down. He then dove on the field
after the bombers, strafing and burning a
multi-engine bomber on the ground, and climbed
back to destroy another Zero continuing to attack.
In the Bonins and later in the Philippines,
WIRTH proved it's possible to be a good
bomber and a top-notch fighter. He described
the bombing of a cruiser in the Bonins as one of
his most dangerous missions.
"My division leader, Lt. J. S. STEWART
and I spotted the cruiser hiding in a cove near a
mountain. It was necessary for us to attack
blind from behind the mountain.
"As STEWART went down, the heaviest
barrage of anti-aircraft fire I ever saw came up
over the mountain. Skip-bombing at masthead
height, he got a near miss on the cruiser,"
WIRTH continued.
"He called me on the radio, saying his plane
had been seriously damaged, but he got
through. I followed in a similar attack, and my
bomb hit the stern. Debris flew up about 200
feet. As we pulled away, the ship was down by
the stern and smoking."
Encountering the Japanese carrier
pilots-reputed to be Japan's best-WIRTH
shot down four planes in a single dogfight.
"In this fight, we were waiting with the
altitude advantage when about 30 Zeros were
spotted in formation below. In the first pass, I
set two of the planes on fire. Pulling up to
regain altitude, I came up under the belly of
another, which also went down in flames. I got
a fourth after we went through several turns
together," WIRTH said.
"There were at least 15 Jap planes going
down in flames at one time, and one of our
pilots counted seven parachutes. After a few
minutes, there was nothing left in the air but
Hellcats milling around."
WIRTH also shot down one of nine bombers
destroyed by his squadron in an attack against
Saipan. In the first strike on Palau, he shot
down two Zeros and probably destroyed
another.
WIRTH has been awarded the Navy Cross,
the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal
and a Gold Star in lieu of a second Air Medal.

Lt. Edward E. WOOD, USNR
Accounting for a third of the 30,000 tons of
shipping sunk by his torpedo squadron, Lt. E.
E. WOOD, 24, of Pittsburgh, was one of the
youngest squadron commanders in the Pacific.
WOOD took command of Torpedo Squadron
31 in December 1943 and flew his Grumman
Avenger in every major Pacific campaign from
occupation of the Marshalls in January 1944 to
raids on the Philippines in late September.
WOOD struck his hardest single-handed
blow at Chichi Jima in the Bonin Islands on 4
Aug. His plane was carrying a torpedo, and to
get positioned for attack, WOOD had to fly into
the mouth of the enemy harbor protected by
murderous anti-aircraft crossfire and fire from
ahead.
Nevertheless, WOOD kept going until he
could be almost sure of a hit. He got it, and the
Japanese were minus one more destroyer.
Speaking of the attack, WOOD commented,
"That anti-aircraft was the worst I've ever
seen-even worse than the color show at the Jap
Fleet attack. It came from all sides and from
ahead. I still don't know how I got out of it
without being hit. There were some ships outside
the harbor, but some other planes had them
under attack, so the ones inside were the only
ones left for me. I saw how vicious the antiaircraft
was, but I had to go in anyway. I guess it made the
thud of that torpedo all the sweeter to me. "
This strike followed his brush with Nip naval
power during the famous Battle of the Philippine
Sea on 20 June. WOOD was one of the
flyers who left their carriers late in the day to
seek out the elusive Japanese fleet located at the
extreme radius of the torpedo bomber's operation.
It was a good day for WOOD and his
squadron - he plumped two bombs squarely on
a flat - top's flight deck, while wingman Lt. (jg)

~ 44 ~

J. B. "Beast" RUSSELL of Huntington, W
Va., put two more on the same carrier.
Lt. D. W. SMITH of Denver, another
squadron mate, scored two more direct hits on a
battleship. WOOD returned to land safely
aboard his own carrier long after dark, with only
five gallons of gasoline left.
"I was never so glad to see anything as I was
when I saw all those lights from our own fleet,"
WOOD said "It was like a big Fourth of July
display, and a much nicer one than the display
the Japs gave us.
"The Nips tried, though. They sent up all
kinds of anti-aircraft-purple, red, green,
white. It looked like they were trying to knock
us down with a rainbow."
The first Japanese ship to feel the impact of
WOOD's bombs was an 8,000-ton cargo ship.
During the first naval raid on the then-
formidable Truk Islands, WOOD spotted his
quarry trying to escape the harbor.
Despite fierce anti-aircraft fire, WOOD went
into his dive, corkscrewing his plane to keep
sights on the maneuvering vessel. When he
finally released his bombs, he scored two direct
hits on the stern. The ship went under following
two violent explosions.
During their nine months of combat,
WOOD's squadron sank more than 30,000 tons
S of Japanese shipping and damaged more than
54,000 tons.

NOTE: ln these press releases of October
1944 the Battle of the Eastern Philippines was
the Battle of the Philippines Sea nicknamed the
"Marianas Turkey Shoot". The Zero referred
to was code named "Zeke" and was the same
Japanese fighter plane.
For Casualty list of AG31 and for "Aces" of
VF31, see appendix.

[picture]

VF-31 Pilots

Back row, left to right: Ens. Wolf, Lt. (jg) Andrews, Lt. (Jg) Duggins,
Lt. (jg) Nooy, Ens. Toaspern, Lt. (jg) Free, Ens. Arnold, Lt. (jg) Godsey,
Ens. MacMillan, Lt. (jg) Driscoll, Lt. (jg) McLaughlin, (Lt. (jg) Whitworth.

Center row, left to right: Lt. (jg) Conant, Lt. (jg) Bowie,
Lt. (jg) Dietrich, Lt. (jg) Rieger, Lt. (jg) Osborne, Lt. Wirth,
Lt. Zimmerman, Lt. (jg) Galt, Lt. (jg) Hawkins, Lt. (jg) Wilson.

Front row (sitting), left to right: Lt. Anderson, Lt. Turner,
Lt. Stewart, Lt. Mulcahy, LCDR. Wallace, Lt. Mencin, Lt. Scales,
Lt. Kona, Lt. Hedrick.

~ 45 ~

[picture]

VF-31 in Ready Room 26 Jan 44

Pilots:
3rd row: Turner, Mencin, Mulcahy, Froelich, Winston, Patterson, Carr,
Jemison.
4th row: Wirth, Hedrick, Stewart, Scales, Anderson, Zimmerman, Charity.
5th row: Kona, Requarth, Duggins, Loomis, Driscoll, Elezian, Hawkins,
Conant, Hayde, Hancock.
6th row: Bowie, Wilson, Galt, Nooy.
7th row: Godsey, Dietrich, Osborne, Rieger, Sweatt, Whitworth, Andrews.
(Information on rows #1 and #2 unavailable)

---
[picture]

Officers and Crew of Torpedo Squadron 31

Rear row (standing) left to right: Lt(jg) John B. Russell,
Ens. Howard A. BO, Ens. Robt. A. Shields, Ens. James Jones,Jr.,
Lt(jg) Avery J. Lauber, Jr., Lt(jg) Donald L. Hornberger*,
Lt(jg) J. T. Hunt,Jr., Lt(jg) Jarrell S. Jenkins*, Lt. Edward E. Wood,
Lt(jg) Roderic P. Chesney, Lt(jg) Wm. F. Fischer, Johnson,
Ens. Richard G. Mellin, Lt. G.A.J. Packenham, Lt(jg) E. J. Larkin,
Lt. Joseph S. Lord, III, Lt. W. F. Dohme.

Center row (kneeling): Hollis; Daniel B. Pender, Jr. ARM2c;
Frank Yackovich, ARM2c; Dale D. Brotherton, AMM2c;
Clifton L. Arwood, AMM2c; George E. Slocum, ARM2c;
Robert A. Anderson* AMM2c; Gerald F. Berghorn, AMM2c;
Thomas B. Conlen, AMM1c*; Ira F. Bewley, AMM2c;
Thomas J. Wolf*, AMM2c; Herman W. Fowler,ARM2c;
Stig A. Johnson, AMM2c; Wardle; John R. Ellzey, AOM1c;
Leslie E. Waters, ARM2c; D.G. Boos 12c.

Front row (seated): Warren N. Bennett, AMM2c; Jack K. Woolsey, AMM2c;
Howard M. Webster, Jr., PhoMlc; Murray Shumway, AEM2c;
John M. Allan, AOM2c; Kenneth J. Pohl*, ARM2c; Charles J. Sberidan, ARM2c;
Louis J. Sumers*, ARM2c; Tommy R. Leggett, ACRM; Keith M. Honey, ARM2c;
Armand L. Pelletier, AOM2c; Harold Larson, ARM2c; Milton W. Helm*, ARM2c;
Charles A. Leannarda, AMM2c; Ervin Ray Brownlee, PR2.

* Killed In Action

All officers on back row were pilots except Lt. Lord, who was air combat
information officer (ACI) and Lt. Dohme who was recognition officer.

~ 46 ~

[picture]

Enlisted personnel of VT-31

Rear row (standing): Warren Bennett, AMM2c; Herman Fowler, ARM2c;
Clif Arwood, AMM2c; Tom Conlen, AMM1c*; George Slocum, ARM2c;
John Allan, AOM2c; Jack Woolsey, AMM2c; Dan Pender, ARM2c;
Max Honey, ARM2c; T. J. Wolf, AMM2c*; Lewis Sumers, ARM2c*;
Leslie Walters, ARM2c; Harold Larson, ARM2c; Ray Brownlee, PR2c; Boos.

Center row (kneeling): Robert Anderson, AMM2c*; Ken Pohl, ARM2c*;
Dale Brotherton, AMM2c; Hollis; Clif McCarthy, ACMM; John Ellzey, AOMlc;
Charles Sheridan, ARM2c; Ira Bewley, AMM2c; Leo Pelletier, AOM2c.

Front row (sitting): Howard Webster, Pholc; Hubert Wardle;
Tom Legett, ACRM; Charles Leannarda, AMM2c;
Gerald Berghorn, AMM2c; Murray Shumway, AEM1c; Milton Helm, ARM2c*;
Arnie Johnson, AMM2c; Frank Yackovitch, ARM2c.

* Killed in action

[picture]

Lt. Cmdr. D. J. Wallace
Commanding Officer
Air Group 31
Fighting Squadron 31
(June - October 1944)

[picture]

Lt. Cmdr. Robert Winston
Commanding Officer
Air Group 31
Fighting Squadron 31
(Commissioning to June 1944)

~ 47 ~

[picture]

Lt. Edward E. Wood, USNR
Commanding officer
Torpedo Squadron 31

At age 24, Lt. Wood was one of the youngest
CO's of a VR group in the Pacific.

[picture - fuzzy]

This is the only known photograph of the Japanese CVL (Chiyoda class)
as it was hit by VT-31. The shot was taken on 20 June 1944 by
Lt. Wood's radioman Tom Legett through the plexiglass window in
the rear of belly compartment of the aircraft as it pulled out
of its bombing run.

~ 48 ~

(end chapter 5)

Click here for Chapters 6 - 9.

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A History of the USS CABOT (CVL-28): A Fast Carrier in World War II by J. Ed Hudson

A History of the USS CABOT (CVL-28):
A Fast Carrier in World War II
by J. Ed Hudson