DEPOSITED BY THE

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
JAN 30:45

BUREAU OF NAVAL PERSONNEL

INFORMATION BULLETIN

JANUARY 1945 NAVPERS-0

NUMBER 334

bat air patrol for Leyte and, at 0545 its local combat air patrol, antisubmarine patrol and its first strike on Jap beach positions on Leyte. Exactly an hour later one of the pilots of the local anti-sub patrol reported sighting an approaching enemy force of battleships, cruisers and destroyers.

These were the Japs, or most of them, which had been attacked in the Sibuyan Sea the day before by aircraft of the 3d Fleet-now battering another enemy force, including battleships and carriers, well to the north off Luzon. Despite damage, the Jap force had come through San Bernardino Strait during the night and now was swinging around Samar toward our transports, landing craft and supply ships in Leyte Gulf and the still narrow beachheads there.

Expecting to meet no such enemy fleet, the commander of the northern CVE group, Rear Admiral C. A. F. Sprague, ordered that the contact report be checked and verified.

He tells the story from there:

"The report came back: four battleships, seven heavy and light cruisers and about nine destroyers-with pagoda masts. Simultaneous with the pilot's verifying report, we sighted antiaircraft fire. The whole Japanese force had opened up on him. I knew we were in a tough spot. I didn't think anything could save me, since the Japs were reportedly making 30 knots my way.

"The only thing to do was to think of something to do. I ordered my screen to drop back astern of the carriers and make smoke. We made smoke, too, and immediately launched all our planes. Fortunately, the wind was right. My course was 90 degrees and the wind was from 70 degrees, so I could run and launch at the same time.

"To the north of us there was a rain squall which extended out of sight. It wasn't thick, but the squall, combined with our course change, gave us a few minutes' breather.

"I didn't like our 90-degrees course, for the Japs could have stayed on it forever. I asked for all possible aid and assistance from our forces to the south and also ordered the Leyte

The following message was sent by Rear Admiral Thomas L. Sprague, USN, commander of escort carriers, to all ships and units that participated in the CVE action off Leyte Gulf on 24 October.

To the officers and men of the escort carriers and to the kin of those who were lost: These carriers have participated in one of the decisive

battles of this wat. The aircraft of these carriers not only have met and defeated enemy attacks in the air but they have turned back a large enemy fleet composed of his most modern ships.

Rear Admiral The intrepid Thomas L. Sprague courage, skill and fighting spirit of the pilots and aircrewmen were superb. Never have fighting men had a greater task and never have fighting men performed their duty with greater determina

tion and distinction. The seamanlike handling of the vessels, the brilliant offensive and defensive work of the screen, the cool accuracy of the gunnery, the sustained and imperturbable handling of planes on deck, the calm singleness of purpose of the rearming and gasoline details, the prompt and efficient action of the damage-control parties and the engineers-all contributed to turning the tide of battle to victory.

Against such teamwork the enemy could not prevail. I am proud to have been privileged to be present and observe your achievements. May God bless every one of you and may the citizens of your country forever remember and be thankful for your courage.

To the mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers, wives and sons and daughters of those who were lost I say: Do not be sad. Be comforted and inspired in the thought that the victory for which these men freely and courageously gave their lives has contributed immeasurably to the final defeat of the enemy.

SO

Official U. S. Navy photographs cessful torpedo attack under suicidal conditions, followed by gun duels at 4,000 to 5,000 yards with vastly superior enemy ships until-dead in the water and sinking fast-she was abandoned. Cameramen on Jap warships only a few hundred yards away took moving pictures of her survivors as they struggled to their liferafts. They, with those of the two destroyers and the Gambier Bay, drifted two days and two nights before being picked ap.]

"The Japs (Admiral Sprague's narnative continues) then sent a number of their cruisers up on our port hand, and the destroyers on our starboard hand. The battleships stayed at the rear, and all the guns that could reach us were firing.

"During the two and a half hours of the attack, I estimate that 300 salvos were fired, of which only one scored a vital hit on any of the carriers a shell caught the Gambier Bay below the water-line, flooded an engine room and knocked the engine out. Her reduced speed made her fall behind, and the Jap forces passed her by, scored more hits and sank her. At the same time three of the escorts (two destroyers and a destroyer escort) took hits which sank them.

"I emerged from the surface engagement with five of my six escort carriers intact, although some of them had been hit. The Kalinin Bay had taken several hits, including one from a major-caliber shell. My flagship, the Fanshaw Bay, had also taken hits. A near miss had raised the White Plains' stern out of the water and damaged her, but she was still operating her flight schedule.

"During the surface engagement, we made frequent course changes to throw the Japs off in their gunnery problem. Each individual ship captain chased the splashes from the Jap salvos. It was miraculous that we emerged as we did.

"When the range between the two forces got down to where the Japs came within reach of our escort carrier five-inch guns (there was one on the stern of each escort carrier), we

opened up and got hits, observable from both our ships and the air. While our five-inch gun was firing from the flagship, one of the battery officers said: 'Just hold on a little longer, boys, we're gettin' 'em into 40-millimeter range.'

"Meanwhile, all our own planes, and planes from Admiral Thomas Sprague's force (70 miles to the south) and Admiral Felix Stump's force (30 miles to the southeast), were working the Jap ships over and doing considerable damage.

"Some of the Wildcat and Avenger pilots from Admiral Ofstie's carriershe [Rear Admiral Ralph A. Ofstie, USN] was my second in commandwere making dummy runs on the Japs after their ammunition and torpedoes had been expended.

"When the Japs finally turned away, a signalman on my bridge said: 'Dammit, they're getting away.' At the time, I didn't know why the Japs had turned tail. But upon analysis, I concluded that it was because they had suffered too much damage to continue the attack.

"One cruiser had been sunk, a destroyer had gone down and a badly damaged cruiser was sunk later by planes from Admirals Thomas Sprague's and Felix Stump's carriers. Our planes scored many bomb and torpedo hits and I learned that every single one of the Jap ships had either been hit or sunk."

[Another destroyer from this Jap force was caught and sunk that night by returning units of the 3d Fleet before she could get back through San Bernardino Strait, and a heavy cruiser and a light cruiser were probably sunk in the Sibuyan Sea next day by U.S. carrier aircraft harrying the retreating enemy.]

"Then, too, the Japs may have heard that Admiral Oldendorf's force [battleships, cruisers and destroyers under Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf, USN, which blocked Jap entry into Leyte Gulf through Surigao Strait] had wiped out the southernmost Japanese force and that their northern carriers had been polished off. They knew, too, that a heavier surface action awaited them if they tried to force an entrance to Leyte Gulf.

SMOKE towers over stricken CVE Saint Lo, hit by Jap divebomber after coming unscathed through shelling by BBs and cruisers.

I am of the opinion that the Japs just couldn't continue on, they had to retire.

"They turned around at 0925. Thirty minutes later, we began landing our planes. Twenty minutes after that, eight Jap divebombers appeared at 5,000 feet, without previous warning. Each of them picked out a carrier but only one of them made a decent attack. His bomb went through the flight deck of the Saint Lo, exploded while bombs and torpedoes were being loaded onto our returned

planes. Fire broke out, then two explosions, the second of such tremendous force that I knew the Saint Lo was gone.

"I immediately ordered our four remaining escort vessels to stand by and pick up survivors. We had been through so much by then that it didn't seem to make any difference whether we had escorts with us or not. I'm glad I made that decision. The losses on the Saint Lo were low-we picked up about 750 men. Losses on the Gambier Bay were low too, considering that she dropped back into the middle of the Jap fleet. Approximately 730 of her crew were saved."

[Of the Saint Lo's 750 survivors. some 400 were wounded and 75 were stretcher cases. In orderly fashion, all were removed over the side and into the water in 24 minutes despite continuing explosions which prevented the escorts from approaching until the ship had gone down. Her skipper, Capt. F. J. McKenna, USN, partic ularly praised the work of the es corts, themselves damaged, in returning to pick up his survivors despite the danger from Jap land-based divebombers.

[Survivors of the Gambier Bay had to abandon their ship right under the guns of the enemy heavy warships, making immediate rescue impossible. They were in the water 40 to 48 hours before being picked up.]

"The Kalinin Bay and Kitkun Bay were hit during the divebombing attack, but neither was seriously damaged. Three of the eight divebombers were shot down before they could make an attack and two other attacks were avoided by the maneuvering of the carriers.

"We continued on south after the air attack, because I wanted to join forces with Admiral Thomas Sprague's outfit and get an escort. During this period, we were landing and rearming our planes and sending them off to attack the fleeing Jap fleet, which was heading toward the San Bernardino Strait. We kept this up until nightfall.

"When darkness came, we were 20 miles north of Admiral Thomas Sprague's force, and being trailed by (Continued on page 55)