The Drydock - Episode 176
Added 2021-12-10 14:01:03 +0000 UTC
Comments
0I'd like to recommend my late grandfathers ship, USS Stanly DD-478. She started out with a seaplane catapult but that was removed very early on in he service life. Not sure what the USN was thinking with that one. The whole point of DD's is to be fast and deliver a bunch of cannon fire and torpedoes. Anyways, she participated in various other actions including Empress Augusta Bay and provided escort for various task forces during the Mariana's campaign. While on radar picket duty off Okinawa, she was attacks by Ohka rocket suicide craft. One struck her hull but the warhead passed clear through the ship and exploded in the water close by. Grimly, remains of the Ohka rocket and its pilots were recovered within the ship as it was just the warhead that passed clean through, not the whole rocket. A second Ohka also came in but the gunners got lucky and either struck the pilot or hit a control surface as it veered off at the last second and missed but was close enough that the wing of the Ohka snatched the ships ensign (the flag, not one of its officers) from the mast. She earned 9 battle stars and a Presidential Unit Citation for her participation with DesRon 23 (The Little Beavers) during the Solomon's Campaign. Decommissioned a year or so after the war. Scrapped in the 70's
Daniel Kunkle
2021-12-11 16:54:24 +0000 UTCMy last place of employment was with SEPTA in Philadelphia in the IT Department. I also had a one hour train ride into work. If you make it to Philly during your US trip I am sure that you will see more than one SEPTA bus or Trolley. I too like history, particularly naval history and the 940.54 section of the library.
Michael A Klaene
2021-12-11 13:42:28 +0000 UTCFuel oil may be a problem with multiple ships surface raiding. Regards
John Hargreaves
2021-12-10 20:40:57 +0000 UTC
