Yep, and some TBF pilots with more guts than I’ll ever know.
I read the Japanese were amazed at their bravery.
Greatest act of courage I ever heard of in WWII was during the Battle of Leyte Gulf when the USS Johnston [commanded by Ernest Evans] and the USS Hoel, both destroyer excorts, relentlessly attacked Japanese battleships that were bearing down on the Leyte beachhead ...
I think you mean TBD’s ...the TBD replacement the TBF had just come in to service at the time of the battle and I believe only 3 were rushed to midway flying off the island itself. .none off the carriers