Chapter 34 Chapter 30 Such a fiasco

What about the other Japanese aircraft carriers?If the U.S. report on the Battle of Midway at that time was true and credible, then the dive bombers would not have damaged the Soryu.No one sank it, no one even tried to sink it.As Walter Lord said, the problem appears to be a misunderstanding of the Soryu's actual size. [Note: "Amazing Victory", page 290. ] But it did sink, so it must have been attacked by a group of aircraft.A large number of facts show that this is what the Yorktown did. Fletcher did not receive any supplementary reports of the enemy situation from the time the Sixteenth Task Force dispatched its dive bombers to the time when the Yorktown dispatched its planes after an hour's delay.But the staff of Task Force Seventeen made good use of the time, studying the Japanese fleet's earlier sailing calibrations, courses, and speeds.The results of the research showed that if Nagumo sailed in this way, he would only be ninety nautical miles away from Midway.This was much shorter than the planned engagement distance, so the squadron leaders were told not to fly off course and turn right because the Japanese might reverse course. [Note: Bard's interview with Arnold. 】

The plan of Lieutenant Colonel Merle E. Arnold, the flight director of the Yorktown, was a joint attack of seventeen SBDs from Massey's VT|3 and Lieutenant Commander Maxwell F. Leslie's VB|3. enemy.Therefore, he instructed Leslie to circle the Yorktown first, allowing the slower torpedo planes to fly out for fifteen minutes. [Note: On June 7, 1942, the letter from the commander of VB|3 Squadron to the captain of the aviation group on the Yorktown.Contents: Regarding the June 4th attack on the Japanese aircraft carrier force found 156 nautical miles northwest of Midway.Hereinafter referred to as the Leslie VB|3 combat report. 】

At 9:00, Leslie took off and began the climb to fifteen thousand feet.Conditions were extremely favorable: excellent visibility with scattered clouds at three thousand feet.The sea is calm with little or no wind. [Note: Letter from the captain of VB|3 Squadron to the captain of USS Yorktown, June 10, 1942.Contents: Combat report for June 4th | 6th.Hereinafter referred to as Shumway VB|3 combat report.Leslie and Shumway separated during the battle, and Shumway submitted this report as acting squadron leader. 】 Ensign Paul A. Holmberg feared that before VB|3's planes could arrive, the battle might be over.He almost missed it himself.On takeoff, his 3|B|2 entered the slipstream of the Leslie's plane, and its left wing scraped against the groove of the raised platform in the forward part of the ship.He was very worried that he would not be able to participate in this battle due to the accident. He had trained for such a long time to participate in this first battle in his life.He went up and took the position of Leslie's wingman. [Note: Bard's interview with Lieutenant Commander Paul A. Holmberg, June 3, 1966.Hereinafter referred to as Bard's interview with Holmberg. 】

Leslie had his own troubles when the electric bomb delivery device on his plane failed.Shortly after reaching the cruising altitude of 20,000 feet, he signaled the planes to get ready to drop bombs, and at the same time he pressed the newly installed electric switch on his plane.When he pressed the button, the bomb not only failed to enter the bombing position, but fell into the sea instead.Three other planes also encountered the same problem.At this point Leslie had to break the radio silence and let the others switch to manual switches.Holmberg saw Leslie beating herself up for it. [Note: Leslie and Shumway's VB|3 Operations Report; Bard's interview with Holmberg. 】

The accident was not Leslie's fault, but for a conscientious officer like him, it is hard to imagine anything more depressing.When leading all the planes to attack the enemy, not only did he become unarmed, but the number of planes was reduced from seventeen to thirteen before the enemy was discovered.Of course, he could still direct the fight, and maybe give it a few quick machine-gun sweeps. At about 9:45, Leslie flew directly above the six fighters of VT|3 and VF|3.He continues to fly behind VT|3 in an S shape.Fifteen minutes later, he asked Messi in coded language if he had spotted the enemy.According to Lieutenant D. W. Shumway, who commanded the third unit, Macy replied yes, but Leslie did not receive it. [Note: Leslie and Shumway's VB|3 combat report. 】

At 10:05 Leslie's machine gunner, Private First Class E. Gallalore, spotted the Mobile Force almost directly ahead, about thirty-five miles away.Minutes later, Leslie heard a lot of talk on the radio about VT|3 being attacked by enemy fighters. [Note: Leslie's VB|3 combat report. 】 Leslie picked the target easily: This is a large aircraft carrier. The entire deck is painted dark red. There is an elevator in the front section.Except for the row of vertical chimneys, it looks like the Kaga.I recently saw a mock-up of the Kaga, with the funnels encased in a shell, protruding horizontally from the right side, behind the superstructure. [Note: Same as above. 】

Comparing the plan line drawings of the Kaga and Soryu shows what Leslie is referring to.Neither carrier has a single row of vertical funnels, but Soryu's diagram shows two separate funnels that are close, perhaps abutting, to the superstructure.The two chimneys protrude horizontally and then curve downwards.The chimney of the Kaga is indeed covered by a shell, protruding out of the ship.And farther behind the superstructure. [Note: "Imperial Japanese Navy", pages 175 and 179. 】 Leslie saw an aircraft carrier superstructure to the west to the left.He later deduced that it was the Akagi. [Note: Letter from Leslie to Admiral W. W. Smith, December 15, 1964. 】There is indeed an aircraft carrier slightly to the west, and the bridge is on the left. [Note: "Imperial Japanese Navy", page 181. 】This is Hiryu, still busy avoiding VT|3's torpedo attack.Leslie thought Lieutenant Wallace C. Short's VS|5 was nearby and radioed him to attack the carrier to the west.It took him a long time to learn that VS|5 was blocked from participating in the battle.

At this time, Leslie's radio operator told him that the aircraft on the target ship was taking off.Leslie contacted VT|3 and VF|3 again, but couldn't get through.He realized that their carefully orchestrated coordinated operation had fallen apart and that he was now in charge. [Note: Leslie's VB|3 combat report; Bard's interview with retired U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Maxwell F. Leslie on June 25, 1965.Hereafter referred to as Bard's interview with Leslie. 】He didn't know that his unit would become the third force in the three-way attack, and even after several weeks of drills, the three forces might not be able to cooperate seamlessly.

At about 12:25 (10:25 Midway time), Lesley swooped down and strafed the bridge with his machine gun.Then there was another disappointing machine gun jam, and he scuttled southeast, out of combat for four and a half minutes. 】 So the honor of leading the bombing mission actually fell on Holmberg's shoulders.As he flew roughly stern to bow, he saw the big red circle on the deck in the telescopic sight.He dived longer than usual, pulling up at about two hundred feet.The anti-aircraft guns on both sides of the ship fired together, spitting out tongues of flame.He felt as if a piece of shrapnel had hit the plane, but the dive was unaffected.His dives are flawless.As he flew away from the ship, he saw that it had been shot and exploded, burst into flames, and looked red, orange, yellow, and green.A plane on board that was taking off at the time was thrown into the sea by the explosion.This is what Ensign R. M. Elder, who was following behind in the 3|B|14, said. [Note: Bard interview with Holmberg, June 3, 1966. 】

[J Note: Similarly, the aircraft taking off on the Canglong is the Zero aircraft covering the aircraft carrier.Soryu released a fleet of Type Zeros at 10:15, and of course the second wave of attack planes would not be ready to take off on the deck at this time. 】 Shumway said: "Five more bombs hit in the immediate aftermath, three were near misses. [Note: Shumway's VB|3 combat report. 】This is somewhat exaggerated, but except for a few people who love to criticize the most, everyone is very satisfied with the results of this battle.Among the three aircraft carriers attacked, Soryu suffered the most damage, and it was caused in a very short period of time.

Starting at 10:25, within three minutes, three bombs hit the ship and exploded along the port side.Flames suddenly rose on the deck, and the bomb bay, torpedo bay, ammunition depot, and oil tank were all detonated. [Note: Narration in Japan, pages 10 and 53. 】 As for the hit, there is usually no agreement.But Holmberg believes his bomb landed between the two elevators amidships. [Note: Bard interview with Holmberg, June 3, 1966. 】The deputy captain of the Soryu, Lieutenant Commander Ohara Shanghai, said the same thing. The second bomb penetrated the deck near the front of the front elevator and exploded on the hangar deck.The third one either exploded in front of the No. 3 elevator, or it exploded in the group of aircraft that were fully fueled and loaded and waiting to take off. [Note: On USSBS No. 165, interrogation of Admiral Ohara Nakamura. 】 Nan Yun said that in short, the fire immediately enveloped the entire aircraft carrier. [Note: Narration in Japan, page ten. 】The fire was raging and crackling.At this moment, Lieutenant General Yanagimoto Yanasaku stood on the signal platform on the right side of the bridge, giving orders loudly, and at the same time imploring the people on board to love themselves. [Note: The Battle of Tragedy. 】Obviously, staying on the Canglong will not last long.It was hot as hell below deck, the hangar deck door was melted and curled, and the living escaped to the deck.The windlass deck became a makeshift hospital, where doctors and medics worked like robots.Braving the choking smoke, they administered painkillers to the severely wounded and tried to bandage them to stop the bleeding.They put aside those who are no longer alive, and rescue those who still have a glimmer of hope.A large number of sailors gathered on the front deck, as well as several officers, including Xiao Yuan.Suddenly, a violent induced explosion threw many people, including Xiao Yuan, into the sea. [Note: Research on command issues, page 270 | page 271; Narratives of Japan, page 10. 】 It took half an hour from when the Soryu was first shot at 10:25 to when Captain Yanagimoto gave the order to abandon the ship.The main engine stopped the car, the steering wheel system could not be operated, and all the firefighting pipelines were blown up.The beautiful and majestic aircraft carrier Soryu became a burnt-out crematorium in just thirty minutes.The Hamakaze and the Isokaze were salvaging survivors nearby. Some of them had better luck. They were rescued from the water and transferred to these two ships in an orderly manner. During the process of abandoning the ship, someone found that Yanagimoto was not there. People looked up and found that the captain was still on the signal platform, loudly encouraging the living, shouting long live! [Note: Japanese Narrative, page 10; "Battle of Midway", page 188. 】When the crew members saw that he wanted to live and die with the ship, they were all shocked.Yanagimoto was one of the most popular and respected captains in the Japanese Navy.Everyone decided that no matter what his intentions were, they must save him.So they elected Sergeant Abe, who had won the navy sumo champion, to rescue the captain, relying on his physical strength when necessary.Abe tried his best, climbed onto the signal platform, saluted the captain, and said: Captain, I am entrusted by all your subordinates to transfer you to a safe place.They are all waiting for you.Sir, please follow me aboard the destroyer. Liu Ben stared forward with both eyes, as if he didn't hear anything.Abe walked towards him, trying to hug him with his sumo wrestler strength.At this moment, Captain Yanagimoto turned around slowly, without saying a word, staring at Abe, making him unable to move a step.Abe saluted the captain and turned to leave. At this time, he shed tears in grief.He heard Yanagimoto softly singing the Japanese national anthem "The Generation of Kings". [Note: "The Battle of Midway Island", one hundred and eighty-eighth｜page one hundred and eighty-nine] Elder and Lieutenant Bunyan R. Kuna, seeing how successful their comrades had been in the attack on the Soryu, tried their luck aboard a light cruiser serving as a quick rescue.They claimed that one bomb missed at close range and one hit the quarterdeck. 【Note: Shumwei's VB|3 report. 】It is neither unprecedented nor unprecedented for Americans to mistake a destroyer for a light cruiser.They didn't hit.Only one near miss landed in the sea off the stern of Soryu's escort ship, Isokaze. [Note: "Amazing Victory", page 173. ] Lieutenant O.B. Wiseman and Ensign J.C. Butler attacked a larger battleship and said they had a bomb hit the stern and a near miss. 【Note: Shumwei's VB|3 report. ] Later, an unnamed officer said that the ship might be a super-heavy cruiser. [Note: Official interview with Lei. Exactly which ship this was referring to remains a question, and Nagumo's records do not mention which of his battleships or heavy cruisers were hit at the time. In three minutes, the dive bombers had done what the previous strike planes had failed to do for three hours.The pilot of the dive bomber was no different in training, determination, or courage than the ineffective torpedo plane.This astonishing victory of the United States is mainly due to three factors: McCluskey broke the conventional search method of expanding the square and continued to search; the planes of Enterprise and Yorktown appeared in the sky over the target within a few seconds, In addition, the Type Zero machine only dealt with torpedo planes, but did not take into account the others. Nor did the dive bombers fly away without taking damage.The fleet of the Yorktown was the luckiest, not losing a single plane in the battle.Holmberg led the plane back.On the way back he found himself covered in oil, the dashboard, and the entire front of the cockpit, and asked the machine gunner what happened to Private G.A. Laplante.Laplante, the mechanic, said: Look at the dial, if everything looks right, the hydraulics are gone.It turned out that he was right. Holmberg slowed down according to instructions given to him on the radio.Lieutenant Harold S. Bottomley, Jr., Chief of Staff of Operations, slowed down as well, and Leslie did the same.In the end, the whole squadron flew back to the sky over Yorktown in a neat formation.However, Holmberg did not receive a grand welcome, and the aircraft carrier refused to let them land.At this time the aircraft carrier is under attack (this book will introduce this).Leslie and Holmberg later ditched into the sea near the Astoria and were quickly rescued. [Note: Bard's interview with Holmberg, June 3, 1966: Leslie's VB|3 Operations Report. 】 Enterprise account is much less lucky.He lost fourteen dive bombers, some of which were forced to land at sea after running out of fuel. [Note: Analysis of the Battle of Midway Island, page 133. ] McCluskey was driven out of the combat airspace by two Zeros, and when his machine gunner shot down one, the other stopped pursuing.When McCluskey arrived at the designated point O, he found that the sea was still empty, and there was not even a shadow of the fleet that should have been here.He broke the radio silence to ask Lieutenant Leonard Dow if there had been any change in Point O.Dow replied that it did, and that the new meeting point was about sixty miles ahead.McCluskey was down to five gallons after sixty nautical miles, so he began to descend to land on a nearby aircraft carrier.He recognized the Yorktown, and since he was anxious to report to Spruance, he continued on to the Enterprise.He ignored the signal to fly away.After landing on the ship, his plane had only enough fuel left to wash a tie.As he walked to the bridge, a staff officer saw his blood dripping down his left hand onto the deck, and exclaimed: My God, Mike, you are dead!McCluskey was immediately taken to the patient compartment.He took two swigs of whiskey and the wound was bandaged.His injuries were not serious, but he was unable to take off to participate in future battles because of this. [Note: Bard's interview with McCluskey, June 30, 1966; VF|6 Unofficial flight log. 】 Captain Clarence Dickinson, the leader of Gallagher's second squadron, returned home full of joy after a fight.He was very satisfied with his fight that day.On the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor, he was one of the pilots who took off from the Enterprise on the morning flight, and happened to encounter the Japanese planes coming to attack.He wasn't panicking when he skydived over Oahu that day.He was very happy to have the opportunity to avenge his shame this time.He dropped one of the bombs that hit the Kaga.As he returned, he repeatedly zigzag to avoid anti-aircraft fire.He didn't know how he could fly for so long, it seemed that he was stuck and couldn't fly.His Dreadnought can fly two hundred and fifty knots, but the speedometer reads only ninety-five knots.He suddenly realized that he had mistakenly lowered the landing gear while engaging the dive brake.So he immediately corrected and returned to normal speed. [Note: McLens E. Dickinson's "Flying Cannon", one hundred and fifty-five | one hundred and fifty-seven pages.Hereinafter referred to as "Flying Cannon". 】 Due to a deviation in the hydraulic gauge, Dickinson fell to the surface of the ocean twenty nautical miles from the Enterprise.He landed near a destroyer.He was very pleased to find that it was the Phelps gliding towards him.He served two years on the ship before being transferred to learn to fly.When the old acquaintances on the ship rescued him, they were also very excited.They gave him dry clothes, gave him wine, and asked him a lot of questions. [Note: "Flying Cannon", one hundred and sixty-two | page one hundred and sixty-six. 】 Lieutenant Joe R. Penland, the operational staff officer for VB|6, was much less fortunate.About twenty-five miles from the target and one hundred miles from point O, his plane's engine died.He and the machine gunner, Private H. F. Hurd, climbed into the life raft, but they didn't expect to float at sea until the next afternoon before being rescued by the Phelps.Dickinson was also leaning on the rails to help pull them aboard. [Note: Bard's interview with retired U.S. Navy Captain Joe E. Penland on May 18, 1966. 】 Ensign Thomas W. Ramsey and his machine gunner, Private Sherman L. Duncan, had a similar encounter with Dickinson, but over a longer period of time.They drifted at sea for six days before being rescued by a PBY plane.Ramsay climbed into the cockpit to thank the pilot, only to discover that the ensign turned out to be August A. Bath, a high school friend of his in Biloxi, Mississippi.They haven't seen each other since they left high school.Even novelists dare not invent such a coincidence, only history can make such an arrangement. [Note: "Honolulu Advertiser", June 17, 1942. 】 On the way back to the Enterprise, Best found another aircraft carrier exploded and burned in the billowing smoke to the east of him.He also saw a group of torpedo planes flying over.There is no doubt that this is the VT|3 led by Messi, which is attacking the Flying Dragon.Four Zero planes flew below Best, ready to intercept the torpedo plane.A pontoon feebly charged at him, but was shot off by Best's machine gunners. After Best returned to the aircraft carrier, he still had about 30 gallons of fuel left.But this excellent pilot could no longer serve the U.S. Navy after the Battle of Midway.That morning, he checked the oxygen cylinders for caustic soda spillage.As soon as he took his first breath, he smelled a strong smell of gasoline.After he exhaled that breath, he didn't seem to feel any discomfort.But the next day he kept coughing up blood.He thought it might be a ruptured blood vessel, so he went to the doctor and told the doctor about the problem with the oxygen cylinder.In fact, this was the onset of his latent lung disease, although he knew that there was no history of lung disease in his family.He did not fight again after that, and after a lengthy hospitalization, he was discharged from the Navy due to medical incompetence. [Note: Bard's interview with Best, May 16, 1966. 】 In the plane of VS|6 Ensign William R. Pittman, Private Floyd D. Adkins held the two-seat active machine gun on his lap and fired.The 175-pound machine gun had been dislodged from its mount as the plane dived.As soon as Pittman pulled out of the dive, he was attacked by a Messerschmitt fighter.Under normal circumstances, this unwieldy and ugly machine gun required three men to operate.Edkins was a thin young man.But at this critical moment, a superhuman power arose in him, which sometimes doubles the vitality of a brave man in danger.He put his machine gun against the fuselage and it fired well and took that fighter down.After returning to the Enterprise, someone asked him to pick up the machine gun on the deck, but he couldn't lift it anyway. [Note: VF|6 unofficial flight log; "Amazing Victory", page 176; "Flying Cannon", page 159. 】 Not far from the battlefield, Fujita finally got rid of the parachute that almost wrapped him up.He immediately looked towards the place where the sea and the sky meet, and saw three black smoke columns, which was really chilling.It was undoubtedly the Japanese ship that was burning.Fujita couldn't swim this distance.He recalled: At that time, I felt that I had to resign myself to fate. Still, he made an effort.He took off his boots, gloves, and flying cap, and began to swim cautiously.At one point, a Japanese seaplane flew low overhead but missed Fujita's emergency signal.Discouraged, he let himself go with the current, thinking he didn't know how he was going to die, drowned, or buried in the shark's bloody maw? [Note: Interview with Fujita, January 4, 1965. 】 At the same time, the lifeboat that Nanyun and others were riding was bumping forward in the water, and the waves stirred up by the oars were like pearls, and also like teardrops shed by some paddlers, shining brightly.The trained officers have a tradition of not being dominated by passions and desires, and they hold back their grief without shedding tears.Genda sat next to the photographer Makishima.Makishima's camera, film and other things were lost, and only one life was recovered.Genda said in a low voice: If the Xianghe and Zuihe were here, they would not have ended up in such a disastrous defeat.After hearing Genda's words, Makishima couldn't help being stunned. He looked around nervously, wanting to see if Nagumo or Kusaolu heard it. Genda, who was regarded as the hope of the Japanese navy, said the word fiasco. Admiral Morita looked at Genda and said calmly: The outcome of this battle will definitely determine the fate of Japan.Hearing what he said, everyone on the boat suddenly raised their heads, but no one said anything. Nagumo raised his gray crew-cut head, staring intently at the bridge on which he once proudly gave orders, and then lowered his head again.Makishima thought that the wrinkles on Admiral Nagumo's face had deepened.He seemed to be praying for the spirits of the dead. Fuchita has a small mustache, and his eyes are always staring at people, so Makishima secretly nicknamed him Hitler.At this moment, Fuchida stood up and turned his head to look at the burning aircraft carrier.Makishima felt sorry for him.He is the most promising flight captain of the Japanese carrier-based aircraft. Now the parachutist's wings have been cut, and he has left his beloved subordinates. The military doctor on the Akagi told Fuchida: Mitsuo, you must lie down.Fuchita nodded silently, and lay down. Among these people, the grass deer is the most self-possessed.He believed in Zen Buddhism for a long time, and possessed the noble self-discipline tradition.In these extraordinary times, both play a role.However, he also couldn't control the twitching of the muscles at the corners of his mouth. The lifeboat docked beside the flagship Nagara, the flagship of Rear Admiral Susumu Kimura, Commander of the 10th Destroyer Squadron.After Nagumo and his staff boarded the ship, they immediately went to the bridge.On the flagpole, Kimura's handsome flag was quickly replaced by Lieutenant General Nagumo's handsome flag.Nagara is now the flagship of the First Air Fleet. [Note: Tragic Battle "Amazing Victory", page 185. ]