American Valor Quarterly Issue 10 - Summer 2013 | Page 26

Navy Douglas SBD-3 “Dauntless” dive bombers from the USS Hornet prepare to attack the already-burning Japanese heavy cruiser Mikuma.
The ship would be fatally damaged following this third set of attacks, and would join the carriers Akagi, Kaga, Hiryu, and Soryu at the bottom
of the sea.

National Archives

carriers and eleven battleships with a
number of cruisers and destroyers. We
had three carriers, eight cruisers and
15 destroyers. It was a mismatch, to
be sure, but we were ready. We left
Pearl Harbor on May 24, 1942, for our
first war patrol – to help defend
Midway.

was either in the control room, the
counting tower or the bridge, and
because my watches were all in the
middle of the submarine where all the
action takes place, I was privy to a
lot of the conversation between the
Executive Officer or the Diving
Officer and the Captain. You might
say I was right in the middle of things.
When we were on the surface I would
often try to get outside to get some
fresh air. You have never smelled such
bad air in your life as you will on a
submarine. If you can take that diesel
smell, the caustic odors coming from
the batteries that disintegrates your
clothes, and can stand the pressure,
maybe you could become a
submariner.

On the submarine, Mike Crowe said
I was to be a gunner’s mate. We had
two big guns on the sub, but when
you’re a crew member on a submarine
there is a lot of equipment that has
to be manned, a lot of watches.
Everyone is assigned to duty watch.
Four hours on, eight hours off. Four
on, eight off. \