Posted on 03/23/2009 5:00:10 PM PDT by GATOR NAVY
The date - 19 March 1945. Area of operations - fifty miles off the coast of Japan. Flight ops have been underway since before dawn, beginning with a strike against Honshu and another against shipping in Kobe harbor. On the flight deck, aircraft of CVG-5 are being turned around, serviced and armed for another launch and strike; in the ready rooms, the crews are briefing…
(Excerpt) Read more at blog.usni.org ...
I think the Yorktown was damaged as much or more. She went down to our own torpedoes as the USN did not want to leave her in such a dangerous spot and risk the crew.
I remember reading the book, “I Was Chaplain on the Franklin” by Joseph O’Callahan. Talk about inspiring, scary, and totally frank in his discussion. Also very humble.
YORKTOWN sank the morning of 7 June after being torpedoed by a Japanese sub the previous afternoon. Until these hits she was being actively salvaged and probably would have survived. She was not scuttled by US forces.
You may be thinking of HORNET at the Battle of Santa Cruz. She was severely damaged and had to be abandoned. US destroyers attempted to scuttle her with torpedoes and gunfire. However they failed and had to flee to escape to the approaching Japanese surface forces who succeeded in sinking her with destroyer torpedoes.
I think any of the older CVs would have succumbed to the damage FRANKLIN survived. And none of the carriers sunk earlier in the war had personnel casualties anywhere near those of FRANKLIN with the exception of the CVE LISCOME BAY sunk at Tarawa with almost 700 killed.
I was fortunate to have served on the frigate bearing Father O'Callahan's name, USS O'Callahan (FF-1051) in the late 1980's.
Inspiring figure!
I laser etched a beer mug for a man. He gave it to his father who had served on the Franklin. I laser etched the outline from a website and included the ship number, name, and motto.
The guy told his son that getting blown off into the sea wasn’t so bad, until some other SOB jumped on top of him. He said that that really hurt.
My dad served on the Franklin. He says he was trapped below deck in water for a day or two.
Wow. That must have been a hell of an experience.
He had nightmares for years. But now I never see him without his "CV Franklin" baseball hat on.
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