all hands naval bulletin - feb 1945

8/3/2019 All Hands Naval Bulletin - Feb 1945

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T was sort of like a double reverse,I winding up with a wide sweeparound end: U. S. troops made two newlandings on Mindoro and seized Marin-duque; then, with the J aps apparentlyoff-balance and thinking we weregoing to carry the ball across to Ba-tangas in the south, an 800-ship con-voy loomed off the west coast of Luzon,churned northward around the Japconcentrations and cut into LingayenGulf in their rear.Thus on 8 January 1945 began theinvasion of the main island of thePhilippines, .which the Ja ps had in-vaded 37 months before and whereAmerican and Filipino forces hadfought one of the most valiant battlesin all military history. VengefulAmerican troops were back now onthis bloody soil, ready to start an-other Death March of Bataan . . onlythis time the death was to be forthe Japs.While one fleet was putting theArmy ashore, another was going aboutthe task of seeing to it that this wasgoing t o be strictly a private affairbetween Gen. MacArthurs men andthe Ja p defenders. No outsiders wereto be permitted to butt in.Admiral Halseys 3rd Fleet carrier-borne planes saw to that. It was more

than an air umbrella that they threwup; it was an awesome, sky-blackeningawning that extended from FrenchIndochina to the Ryukyu Islands.Fanning out like bullets from aswiveling machine-gun, Admiral Hal-seys planes swept over Jap navalbases on Formosa, China and Indo-china, shattering freshly-formed con-voys just nosing out to sea and balk-ing attempts to form others. The car-rier planes daring strikes carried evenbeyond the China coast inland toCanton.Unlike last October, when the Japfleet came out to try t o smash ourforces off Leyte, the Nips this -time didnot hurry right out to do battle-eventhough General Masaharu Homma,who had led the Jap invasion forces

in 1941, broadcast an invitation tothe honorable Navy to come to theImperial Armys assistance on Luzon.But the Jap navy apparently had noimmediate desire to rush in again andmix it with Admiral Kinkaids 7thFleet and Admiral Halseys 3d. Fleet,which coordinated their efforts in sup-port of the Luzon landing as they hada t Leyte and later in the Battle of thePhilippines. Further prod that theJaps had suffered crushing losses inthe latter engagement was offered

while the Luzon invasion was in itsearly days. Fleet Admiral Chester W.Nimitz announced from Pearl ?arbortha t the newest Japanese super-battleship, the 45,000-ton M usash i ,had been destroyed by air attack last24 October. Previously, it had beenestablished that the Musashis sistership, the Y a m a t o , had been damagedby bombs in the same action.Although the Japs offered practi-cally no naval resistance to the land-ings in Lingayen Gulf, they hurledfurious blows from the skies at ourinvasion convoy as it drove northwardoff the coast past Manila and againas it entered Lingayen Gulf. The at-tacking Jap land-based planes concen-trated their assaults on the escortingwarships and managed to inflict somedamage.The amphibious operation a t Linga-yen Gulf was described by observersas the greatest of them all in a warthat has played so much emphasis onsuch operations. Not so many men o rships were involved as in the success-ful assault upon the Normandy coastla st June. But, in tha t operation, menand materials were seaborne a com-paratively few miles across the En-glish channel; in the Ltlzon invasionthe convoy traveled many miles, mak-

Official U. S. Navy photographEYES UP: Naval gunners watch for the return of Japbombers that set fire-.)$ the LST in the background during the landing on Mindoro Island, which helped putour forces in position for last months assaulf on Luzon.


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LANDINGS /UP w l PP/NES

g a daring passage through the Sur- bombers and fighters raked shipping strike a t Formosa and a t Okinawa inStra its, the Mindanao and Sulu in Lingayen Gulf. On the same day, the Ryukyu Islands, in which we, the Mindoro Stra it and thence Marine Corsairs straf ed the Batangas sank or destroyed one large cargoSome 2,500,000 area , blowing up an ammunition tra in, ship, one medium cargo ship, one smalls of combat and assaul t shipping causing explosions in three others and cargo ship, one patrol craft , ten smallsmashing about 20 locomotives. The coastal cargo ships and 11 small craftf o r more than 80 miles, and following day Navy patrol planes at- and damaged one destroyer, four DES,50,000 naval personnel tached to Gen. MacArthurs command six patrol craf t, one landing ship, twooff the struck a t Formosa, shooting down fou r landing craft, two large cargo ships,Jap planes and setting fire to five one medium cargo ship, 34 small cargoships, seven small craft. In sweeps a tC. Kinkaid, Then, on 31 December, U. S. flyers ground installations during these at-shepherded the huge convoy on boomed a hear ty farewell to the year tacks, the naval Planes destroyed 11perilous trip. According to press 1944 with sweeping attacks up and locomotiveS, four tank cars, severals, Vice Admiral Jesse B. Old- down the entire western coast of trucks and fre igh t cars, a railway

USN, was in command of the Luzon, sinking or setting afire 25 Jap bridge Over the sui River, a rail-and fire-support ships, rang ing from a 7,000-ton trans- road stat ion a t OkaYama and build-s. Ber- port to a large trawler. Meanwhile, ing% warehouses, fuel and m ~ ~ - ~ ~ n i t i oUSN, commanded the close cover- Marine flyers continued to hammer the all Over the ishnds. While de-E. Batangas area, hitting railway , in- stroying 121 Planes, we lost only 17.USN, directed the San Fabian stallations, barracks, reservoirs and Next, the 3rd Fleets fa st carr ierwhich was directly con- barges along the coast. task force swept down on Luzon on 5me Japs attention was focused January, destroying enemy aircr aft,more intently on this area, i n the shipping and ground installations toS. Wilkinson, USN, led the southern tip of L ~ ~ ~ ~ ,he very next help blast a boulevard t o the beach f orday- jan. 945 -when ~~~~i~~~ the invasion to come and to disrupttroops made an unopposed landing J a p preparat ions to block it.set- before dawn on the ea st coast of Min- On 6 January the carrier-basedd in command in the overall Opera- doro. At ju st about th e same hour on planes continued thei r assaults on2 January other troops landed unop- Luzon and accounted fo r 18 aircraftThe overall stra tegy for liberation posed on the west coast of this island shot down, 93 destroyed on thes most prized of the Philippine. ju st southwest of Luzon. On 3 J a m - ground, 117 damaged; 12 ships de-was Dlanned by Fleet Admiral ary, making thei r third landing in as stroyed, 14 damaged; and, in attacksand General of the Army Mac- many days, troops seized control of on ground installations, destroyed onelatters headquarters on Marinduque Island, only 10 miles off locomotive, 15 freight cars, 46 truckssometime just before Christmas. the lower Luzon coast. The s tage and wiped out numerous barracks,Soon after, the softening up of the seemed set fo r a drive across th e str ait buildings and fuel dumps.p defenses and the confusing of the t o Batangas. Meanwhile, Tokyos radio began bel-On 29 Decem- It was on 3 January t ha t Fleet Ad- lowing reports of a large invasion fleet;ration of the miral Nimitz disclosed that the 3rd being sighted somewhere off the coastd Philippines bv Lt. Gen. Fleets carrier-borne planes were at of Luzon and claimed th at Ja p forcesC. Kenneys land-based planes, that very moment staging a two-day had sunk or damaged a total of 32

The 7th Fleet, under command of coastal freighters.

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enemy war vessels, including six car-riers and 18 transports.The Ja ps were partly right. Therewas, indeed, a huge U. S. convoy offLuzon, but it wasnt going to the bot-tom as fast as the wishful-thinkingJap newcasters would have had you be-lieve; instead, it was chugging unde-terred righ t into the mouth of Linga-yen Gulf, and the Japs were soon tofeel the earth-shaking shock of broad-sides from ships tha t they had sunk.In *its voyage up th e coast, the con-voy had.been subjected t o intense Ja pair attacks. Communiques reportedthat the Japs made repeated and des-perate attacks against our naval forceformations in an endeavor to break thecohesion of our movement. These at-tacks continued even after our en-trance into the Gulf and while ourwarships were blasting enemy shoredefenses.The Jap air attacks were deby a newspaper correspondent-the bombardment groups lead ship:We have been hit in a Japaneseattack f or the second time in two day8

-this time way inside Lingayen Gulf + We are battered and scarred,mpurning our dead and individuallyshaken. We are to live to hear thejust off the beachhead where Americantroops will go ashore. . . . We havehelped bombard the entrances andbeachhead. We have beaten or stag4gered through the iqcreasingly persis-tent J ap air attacks and have seen Ja paviators g o flaming time after timeinto the sea as we have made history.We were the first big ship to sailinto the China Sea since the early daysof the war as lead ship of this power-ful advance bombardment group, in-cluding battleships, carrie rs and cruis-ers. We were the first big ship pas tManila Bay with its Corregidor, carry-ing American armed might back to theplace from which it was ejected aftertha t gallant fight three years ago. Wefired the first big shells a t the plannedbeachhead, clearing the way fortroops. We sailed boldly ahead--spearhead of th e mighty drive capableof deciding the fa te of the war withJapan.We are just off the Lingayen Gulflanding beach. It is landing day-SSday-minus three and our batt le lineshave opened up, throwing heavy shellsinto the beach area and poundingenemy troops away from the shores.This is the second bombardment todayand the invasion action against Luzonis on.

Official U. S. Navy photograpt1H I S T O R Y . ( n o w reversed): Gen.Homma lands on Luzon 24 Dec. 1941to lead Jap invaders of Philippines.

call Ships on th e horizon! and weare to see the mighty landing armadafinally comjng in behind us.- war-ships, carriers, command shlps andtransports of all types crowding thesea.Men working with burned andbandaged hands will smile throughfaces covered with grease, We are tohear t ha t our troops are safely ashoreand .know ou r 8 gallant vessel andothers of the bombardment group tha tbore the first brunt of the Japaneseair assault have made it easier forthe American soldiers and done theirjob. But, right now, it is not hell, itis worse than hell as we burn topsidewith this ammunition-jammed steelcasing threatening t o explode andmany of our controls temporarilygone.This hit occurred on the starboardside of the flag bridge where the ad-miral is holding a hose with sailorsagainst the blaze despite grievousburns. He has t o be physically ejectedfrom the bridge by his chief of staf f,who takes over the fight against theflames despite burned hands a n dshock.The crew is swiftly running hosesemploying chemical equipment, elec-trical units are stringing wires andrepair ing communications, m e d i c a 1corpsmen are aiding the wounded.Some of these stagger past, burnedto the waist or all over. On the bridge,some men have been blown to piecesand others are burned so badly theyare unrecognizable but still living.Even many of the wounded fight on.tween U. S. ships and.Jap planes an&shore battdries were Rear AdmiralTheodore E. Chandler, USN, CaptainR. W. Fleming, USN, Lt. e n WilliamLumsden of the British Army, andWilliam Chickering, correspondent ofTime magazine. The bomb th at killedGen. Lumsden and Mr. Chickeringalso almost hit Admiral Sir BruceFraser, Commander in Chief of theBritish Fleet in the Pacific, who acompanied the invasion troops to, in

Killed in t he pre-invasion duels be- -

his words, get experience in thework in th is pa rt of the world.For three days American warshipsstood of the strip of beach selectedfor the landing assaults and poundedenemy emplacements. Then, on 8 Jan-uary, the transports hove into theGulf and began putting down theirlanding craft. Shortly aft er 0900 thenaval and aerial barrages moved in-land and the amphibious craft beganzig-zagging shoreward under a blan-ket of fire from rocket craft. Over-head, 7th Fleet carrier-based planeskept the skies clear of J ap planesand strafed the beachhead sector indirect support of the landing troops.Then, as the troops dug into thebeach, the planes moved inland, hit-ting installations at San Fernando,Baguio and Rosario. Many ammunl-tion and supply dumps, warehouses,barracks, defense works and motor ve-hicles were wrecked and numerousfires started.Opposition to our landing forcesmelted away and was practically non-existent. One division reported it lostonly two men during the landingoperations, both by drowning near thebeach. American patrols, who imme-diately began to finger their way in-land, were bothered only by rearguarrlaction, coming mainly from mortarsand an occasional machine gun o rsniper. Supplies and wave upon waveof troops were landed under protec-tion of naval guns. The march downthe valley toward Manila was under-way.Meanwhile, powerful Pacific Fleetcarrier forces were pounding away a tenemy air, land and sea facilities overa wide ar ea of the western Pacific insupport of the amphibious operations.Ishigari and Miyako, i m p o r t a n tislands in the Sakishima group of theRyukyus, were brought under attack8 January in one of the fiercest as-saults ever made by fleet carri er units.Formosa also was blasted, and so wasOkinawa. Supporting the carrier-based planes were Superfortresses of-the 20th Bomber Command frpmChina bases.Tremendous havoc was wrought inthe Formosa area. The attacking


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..Naval AA fire dots sky above U. S.DDs or DES,

27 smaller ships and 37DD, fivetwo oilers, one tanker, five largesmall ships, 42 small craft and 61Ground installat ions were mer-

Their nearby bases thus neutral-

Official U. S. Navy photographsdestroyer during landing on Mindoro.battle, the. Ja ps tried desperate, al-most childish methods to t r y - t o dis-rupt ou r landing operations in Lin-gayen Gulf. On the second night ?fthe invasion, while the Gulf was stlllcrowded with the greatest convoy inPacific history, 12 little Jap swim-mers paddled out toward the ships,pushing boxes of explosives ahead ofthem, hoping to torpedo the trans-ports. All were killed or capturedwithout causing damage. Other Japspiled into small boats laden with ex-plosives, stole into the transport areaand attacked several ships. Theycaused negligible damage.

And, so , troops and supplies con-

tinued to pour ashore. And, as Gen.MacArthurs men e x p a n d e d a n djoined their four beachheads andheaded toward Manila, naval units at-tached to his command caught a Japconvoy on 11 January trying to un-load at San Fernando, north of theLingayen landings, and all 46 shipswere sunk o r badly damaged. A nava lofficer described the action as shootingducks in a pond. After obliteratingthese Jap ships, the victorious U. S.forces then stood off shore and.shellcdthe port of San Fernando, destroyingthree large ammunition dumps.A s this action solidified the Luzonbeachheads and eventual victory inthe Philippines, dispatches from PearlHarbor told of the first attack byAdmiral Halseys 3d Fleet planes onthe Indochina coast, 1,000 miles westof Luzon, on 11 January. Hundredsof carrier planes swooped down si-multaneously on airfields and harborsat Saigon, Camranh Bay, Cap St.Jacques, Cat-Lai and Qui-Nhon andshattered four convoys that had beenorganized to send to the relief of theLuzon Japs. Admiral Halsey seemedto have achieved almost complete sur-prise. Over Saigon, Indochinas com-mercial port and a J a p base since thefall of France in 1940, U . S. flyersencountered only 18 planes and shotdown 10.The toll taken by the car rier planeswas staggering. They sunk 41 ships,totaling about 127,000 tons, includinga light cruiser, and damaged 28 ships,totaling 70,000 tons. They shot downa total of 15 planes, destroyed 77 onthe ground and 20 on the water, anddamaged 50 on the ground. Damaget o ground installations included de-struction of a lar ge dock a t Camranh

(Continzced on Page 7 0 )We Have to Pay a Price for Big bains

By FRANK L. KLUCKHOHNBY WIRELESSTO THENE WYORK IMESABOARD N AMERICANWARSHIP,Jan. 7 (Delayed)-A Marine guardstood a t present arm s and the shipscrew, lining the deck and the upperworks, saluted as taps soundedfrom a batteredbugle, while fromunder an Ameri-can flag the bodyof Rear AdmiralTheodore E.Chan-dler slipped intothe ocean. In ourears the wordsrepeated by thec h a p 1 a i n stillrang: I am theresurrection a n t lthe life. Admiral Chandlercalled how late yesterday afternoonthe entire flag bridge was ablazeafter a Japanese plane had scored abomb hit. Many men were blown tobits or burned to death. From thec a u l d r o n a staggering figureemerged, shirt and trousers ablaze.A staff officer slapped out the flamesof the shirt. Suddenly the figure washelping the sailors of the damagecrew to man a hose playing on the

E ve r yone r e -

/blaze. The figure was th at of Ad-miral Chandler. He had to be phy-sically ejected from the bridge andinsisted on walking below by him-self t o .the sick bay. The next af ter-noon, just before 6 p.m., he diedafter a magnificent fight.

But last night his body waswreathed in bandages and grease,and liquid was being injected intohis mouth by tube. He called f o r me.His first words, I being his guest,were: Are you all rig ht ? Thenhe said: We have to pay a pricefo r big gains. My grandfather wasa Secretary of the Navy; my fatherwas an admiral. I had their tradi-tions.

One had to know t hat this ship hadbeen hit on the day before and hadhad a serious fire. It was the leadship proceeding t o Lingayen GuIfdays before the landing and hadtaken the brunt of the enemys airattacks; and one had to know howo u r nerves were str ung tense to rea-lize how truly wonderful was thatreal interest of a dying man in some-one else.Reprinted with permission fconz TheNew Y o r k Times

Ted was not one of those who fool-hardily do not count risks. In fact,he said to me: Stay up here dur-ing the a ttacks if you like. Youllsee some good dogfights, but remem-ber you may get it any time. Nev-ertheless, he trod the deck fearlessly,keeping an eye on his division.Ted Chandler had a distinguishednaval career after his graduationfrom Annapolis, where, as a Navyson, he was born. He was in theclass of 1915. After having beencommissioned a rear admiral in Oc-tober 1942, he assumed command ofall the forces in the Aruba-Curacao-Netherlands West Indies, part ofwhat was termed the Caribbean SeaFron tier Command. There he dem-onstrated the diplomacy that wasone of his special traits.He distinguished himself in actionas the task group commander incharg-e of the landing forces in south-ern France and then took a cruiserdivision there and saw action againstthe shore batteries. He had threebattleships under his command thathelped t o sink two Japanese battle-ships and other vessels in the south-ern battle off by t e a f t e r t he firstPhilippines landing.

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Official U. S. Navy photographsis the keyword o f CASU organization. Here i s a CASU machine-shop-on-wheels in action at Kwaialein.

Our Island FlattopsStationary Carriers, Built and Mann ed by Acorns and CASUs,Multiply Striking Pow er of U.S. Naval Air Arm in the Pacific

AST month saw American carrierL planes over the China coast for thefirst time as 3d Fleet airmen slicedJapans lifeline through FormosaStrait t o her stolen empire (see page2) . Their strikes, closing the last gapin U. S. Navy air cover westwardacross the 6,000-mile breadth of thePacific, fit neatly into a patternshaped by the Pacific Fleets 1944aerial offensive against the Ryukyu,Kuril and Bonin Islands to close therange on the enemy homeland fromthree sides.For more than two years the Jap-anese have been reeling back underour carr ier blows. They knew th atthey were being h it and that Americanplanes were hit ting them. Beyondthat, they must have been doing a l o tof wondering :How could U. S. carrier task forcesstay a t sea over extended periods and

still have all the planes they neededfor continuous operations? How didthe carriers get new planes t o replacetheir losses? How did they repa ir andrecondition planes that were damagedor burned out from prolonged use?Answers t o the questions, aboutwhich the enemy was long kept in thePage G

dark, are found in the story that nowcan be told of two closely geared Navyoutfits-the Acorn and the CASU. An Acorn is an advance airfieldassembly, a typically American pro-duct of prefabrication, all packagedand ready t o follow our landing forcesinto enemy territory to set up an ad-vance air base or convert a capturedairstrip t o our needs in a minimumof time.

A CASU-Carrier Aircra ft ServiceUnit-is a commissioned, shore-basedunit composed of aviation mainte-nance, repair and ordnance personnel.It is one of several units attached t othe Acorn. (Another such unit i s theCB, the now-famous ConstructionBattalion.) The CASU readies newplanes for combat and keeps themready, handling service jobs whichwould get in the way of other workaboard carriers but which are no t bigenough t o require the major overhaulfacilities of assembly and re pair shopsof naval air stations. They support allflight operations, this support includ-ing the making of minor repairs anddoing routine upkeep work, in addi-tion t o performing necessary adminis-trative duties.

CASUs ar e a wartime product. Be-fore the war each squadron had itsown men and equipment for mainte-nance and repair. When wa r came,the Navy utilized all existing aviationfacilities in the Pacific to handle itsexpanding air arm and began to buildadditional air bases on islands avail-able to U. s. forces. Carr ier planeswent ashore at advance bases, fol-lowed by their own maintenance andre pan crews. Trouble was, the planesgot there first; and valuable time waslost in waiting for the ground crewsand equipment. The solution was tosend CASUs into the Pacific.

But there were other problems.CASUs, it was found, were sloweddown by having t o handle their ownequipment, transporting it from islandt o island, base to base, as operationsmoved westward.In the summer of 1942, therefore,the Acorn was created t o be thesource of supply and housekeeper forthe CASU. The CASU, reduced insimplest terms to personnel and, asone officer put it, what they have intheir pockets and on their backs, be-came more mobile.The result was speed, efficiency and


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air-a story ofa secret. The men of the

e art of packaging and loading,a veil of secrecy.

t. They fought the Japanese andmy ai r raiders. Theyof

Each Acorn had its own Seabee unitin. Byor ship, the CASU comes in toself on th e Aeorn. Carr ierPersonnel of the squad-

Acorns and CASUs derive the nu-ny sources-from Class A technicalm personnel of naval air stations,

t Norfolk, Va., but recently moved toLouis, Mo.CASU personnel repair and per-nes and guns; rearm planes

e weather and the enemy.Another CASU job is the disem-ng of naval a irc raf t tha t have

so as to resist tropical climates inshipment to carriers and advancedbases. These air craf t must be un-packed, disembalmed as it were, as-sembled and then put into condition,ready to fly away and fight.An Acorn, without a CASU, in-cludes sufficient trained personnel t o

opepate the control tower, field light-ing, aerological unit, transportationand medical facilities, and to main-ties to be used by the CASU and air-craft squadron crews when they re-

In addition to the orig-Seabee Maintenance Unit (CBMU)

orce of Seabees ha s been with-drawn.In order to simplify the assembly,all personnel and material availablef o r the entire advance base programhave been grouped into what ,?reas functional components. Afunctional component is composed ofthe technical or professional per-sonnel, equipment and workshops,buildings, materials and living quar-ters required tp do a particular typeof job. A group of functional com-ponents is called an advance baseunit. Acorns and CASUs fit into thelogistic picture as two of the advance

L:a iBL

cSIinin


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ardly r e c o p b l e as being the Bamear ea which ad appeared as a mass ofhambles, masonry and twisted iron aPerhaps the most remarkable fea-ure of these naval aviation units(and other functional components foradvance bases) is their capability ofproducing something out of nothing.Men roam the dumps, crawlingthrough masses of twisted iron and

emerging with parts of a Japanese,crane o r enough material to build asmall hand truck, o r even a n overheadtrolley for lifting out engines, thedemolition units cooperating in thesearch.All units must necessarily proceedto the new destinations with the small-est amount of handling ear and sup-plies consistent with t f e operation.They foilow in the combat wave, cleanup, and with the aid of the Seabees,turn the airstrip or the seaplaneapron into something which can beused almost immediately and whichbecomes an aircraft servicing activity

a week or two later. During this timeh e officers and men are exhaustedo r bombs, but theyre at it again at daylight becausee planes ,:re arriving and the showo on.

A recent reorganization affects bothe training and the mission of CASUs.he CASUs in the forward areasCASUs ( F ), o r Combat Aircraft Ser-earming land as well as carrier-basedircra ft. Also changed to CASUs (F )re a number of PATSUs-PatrolAircraft Service Units.Both Acorns and CASUS are estab-at Port Huenemend at adjacent airfields under theurisdiction of the Acorn Assemblynd Trainin Detachment, Train ingCommand, 8.S. Pacific Fleet. Theraining program is conducted in co-peration with ComFairWest.Before Acorn personnel joins upwith a CASU as a team, the Acornhas accomplished several times intraining the same job it will later doin action. At Port Hueneme, thereare loading sheds whose interiors du-plicate LST holds. An advance ai rbase assembly is packaged in contain-ers of uniform size, placed on pallets,loaded and unloaded. When men ofthe Acorn have mastered the loadingjob in the sheds, they move to thewaterfront and repeat it on LSTs.Onve teamed together, the Acornand th e CASU go into operation train-ing at a designated airfield, s etting upan air base and aircraft maintenancefacilities with the tools and equip-ment and under the conditions underwhich the y will operate lat er on i n theadvanced area.When the big push comes-the real

thing-the Navy plan ts an Acorn.The Acorn grows into an advance airbase, into an airstrip with its o w nassembly and repair facilities, with aCASU on the line and squadrons ofnaval planes coming and going. Andin this war, an Acorn matures to amighty oak in a very short time.

carriers, fer-.he planes i ssembly line.

Dove), dis-3nes guns)r combat.


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Wars Are Won By People . . . So Meet the Navy BureauThat Looks After Some 3,200,000 of Them-BuPers

HETHER you wear a ratingW adge on your sleeve or scram-bled eggs on your cap, whether yourun a gun crew, an engine or a fleet,a large part of your life these days isaffeoted by what goes on inside a long,warehouselike building overlookingWashingtons Potomac River.

Officially, its the Bureau of NavalPersonnel. Or, in shorter fonn, justBuPers. Its business is people-themore than 3,000,000 of them who, likeyourself, help to make up the U. S.Navy.Its BuPers business to know whoyou are and where you go and whatyou do. It determines largely how youare trained and how your ship ismanned and how good a crew you willbe in battle. It brings you into theNavy, gives you training or indoctri-

nation, assigns you to duty, arrangesfor your promotion, advancement ordiscipline, and looks after your trans-portation, recreation and welfare.Some day, it will be helping most ofYOU return to civilian life again.From the day you come into the

Navy to the day you go out, BuPerswill somewhere, somehow have a handin your life. So lets take a look atthat hand.- What really goes on atBuPers? What do people do there,and how, and why, and who doeswhat? What happens when you findyourself running a Navy 26 times aslarge as it was in 1939? What weresome of the wartime problems, andwhat did they do about them?Postman Rings 55,000 Times

Every day BuPers gets 55,000 piecesof mail about you. In addition, manyof the envelopes ar e thick with en-closures; the enlisted personnel filessection, for instance, sorts and putsinto jackets more than 300,000 sepa-ra te sheets of information every week.Each piece of mail that comes in ison its way to someone in the Bureauwithin 35 minutes, on the average.That little piece of paper may be onethat changes your life considerably. Itmay result in a different Navy assign-ment for you, a change in rate or apromotion in rank, orders t o travel t o

a new base or be assigned to a newship. In some cases, fortunately feu-,the news is not so good: disciplinaryaction, notices of casualty status, lossof a ship and its men.Follow along behind the mail de-livery truck as it st art s its rounds andyou can see some of the things th athappen as pieces of paper are trans-lated into action.

Machines at WorkFew buildings contain more factsabout more people than the Navys Ar-lington Annex, which houses BuPers.Each days mail brings new facts in,asks for facts from the Bureau, callsfor decisions which can be made onlyon the basis of facts. To track downfacts on a big scale, and do it accu-rately and swiftly, the Bureaus Rec-ords division unleashes a flock of me-chanical bloodhounds known as sort-ers, collators, tabulators, interpreters,reproducers, key punchers and veri-

fiers.Those machines in that room overthere, for instance, clicking away ascards whirr through them by the thou-sand, ar e mechanical sorters. Supposeyou were ready to retake Guam fromthe Japs and wanted to know thePage 10


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of the country. Some 3,000,000 officersand men, over 90% of whom were re-cently civilians, had to be screened andplaced in naval jobs where they couldmake their best contribution to the war.The Navy also had a responsibility tothe men themselves-to see to it thatthey were, as far as possible, properlyused and given tasks worthy of theirability and skill.No job of th is magnitude has everbeen done perfectly. The adjustment

of a man to a job is always a delicatetask. Further, there is in any war aninevitable degree of misplacement be-cause the processes of war requiregrea t numbers of men in jobs forwhich nobody is trained in peacetime.It is few peoples civilian skill to ca rrya musket, yet millions must do sowhen war comes. What the Navy didt ry t o prevent was the type of mis-placement which results simply f r ominefficiency or from a failure to ana-lyze thoroughly the jobs to be filled an dthe men available t o fill them.A major device in officer placementwas the fleeting-up system, whichtook advantage of the fact th at juniorofficers aboard a ship or at an advancebase gain additional knowledge andexperience as they perform the ir tasks.Then, to man new construction, theNavy would skim off the cream of themore experienced officers, fleeting-upthe newer ones behind them into the

jobs so vacated. A similar techniquewas followed with enlisted men.Unlike officer uersonnel. whose as-signments a re -carefully controlled byRuPers, the placement of enlisted menis mo re decentralized, with the serviceforce subordinate commands of theAtlantic and Pacific Fleets given widelatitude in the actual assignment ofmen to operating units and t o specifictasks. However, throughout the wa rthe Bureau has been constantly re-vising and refining the rating struc-ture in order that a mans rate mayrepresent a more specific descriptionof the dut ies for which he is qualified.Much progress has already been madein this, much yet remains to be done.In a continuing program of billetanalysis, careful study is given by agroup of highly qualified specia liststo typical sample billets filled by of-ficers and enlisted men. Their findingsare then recorded and edited intomanuals of job descriptions which arepaying dividends in better placementand in better programs for trainingcourses.Incidentally, officers in the fleet maysometimes wonder whether detailingofficers at BuPers are sufficientlyaware of conditions a t sea t o do agood job of assigning officers afloat.An occasional gripe will rise from thewardroom to the effect that assim-ments are made by shore-bound land-

ing out joint use of the latters facili-ties and .instructors.Distributing Manpower

Faced with a constantly tighteningmanpower situation in the country,BuPers strove for economy in the useof the Navys own manpower, attempt-ing to prevent increases in comple-ments beyond those actually neededbecause of expanding jobs and newequipment, and attempting t o relievethe shortage of physically qualifiedmale enlisted men by the use ofwounded, limited-service personnel,and other substitutes fo r able-bodiedfighting men.The most significant developmenthere was the use of women in uni-form. Following legislation initiatedby the Bureau and passed by Congresson 30 July 1942, recruiting startedimmediately. Today the Womens Re-serve, better known as the Waves, hasreleased thousands of able-bodiedfighting men for combat areas.(Waves have replaced 72% of the en-listed men on duty a t BuPers.) Thereare now on duty 8,744 officers and73,000 enlisted Waves. By a change inlegislation last year, Waves may nowbe sent outside the continental limitsof the U.S. to restricted rear areabases.In the field of placement, BuPerswas faced with one of the most tre-mendous personnel jobs in the history


17/84

lubbers who cant possibly haveenough knowledge of the fightingfronts and the moblems and vicissi-. ~ _ _ ~tudes of sea ducy to do a thoughtfuljob of detailing.A little investigation of the detailoffice would quickly dispel that idea.Actually, one of the Bureaus bestsources of detail officers is the fleetitself. Of the 37 male officers directlvconcerned with officer detailing, 2%wear a total of 11 decorations, fromNavy Cross down, and 70 service ;ib-bons, including 46 area campaignmedals with 54 engagement stars forthis war.Performance

BuPers groups promotion and dis-cipline together under the generalheading of performance on the the-ory that neither reward nor disciplineshould operate in a vacuum but shouldbe balanced to provide both the bestincentive and the best control.The major change in officer pro-motion was the securing of legisla-tion early in the war to set aside thepermanent promotion system for theduration in order to permit freer ac-tion on promotions.There has also, been an increasingdegree of decentralization of author-ity to fleet and field commanders tomake promotions of enlisted men.Such promotions, under overall poli-cies laid down by the Bureau, enable

the officer in the field to reward hismen promptly and t o rat e his men upas needed to fill actual vacancies.In the field of discipline, the Navysmajor effort has been to maintain afairly realistic attitude, recognizingth at the purpose of discipline is not t openalize people who violate rules, butto maintain morale and order in th eservice.WelfareNavy welfare activities fall into twofundamental classes-services to youyourself, and a series of broader mea-sures which contribute to morale byproviding for your long-range welfareor that of your dependents.Included in these services are theprovision of such things a s recrea-tional and sports facilities and equip-ment, movies, libraries. camp shows,radio programs, V-Discs, ships ser-vice stores, officers messes and, in-cidentally, the INFORMATIONULLETINitself. Each of these has been ex-panded into a major business, supply-ing the needs of 3,000,000 people in-stead of 100,000.Other services include such pro-grams as insurance, dependents bene-fits and family allowances, and similarbasic provisions for the financial wel-fare and peace of mind of naval per-sonnel and their dependents.More than two and a half milliondependents of naval personnel arenow receiving family-allowance bene-

SPEC IAL A S f l f l A N 1

fits monthly. Combined payments forfamily-allowance benefits to depen-dents of Navy personnel run morethan $90,000,000 a month-more than$2,000 every minute of the day.In administering such services,BuPers attempts t o carry out thespirit as well as the letter of con-gressional action. F o r instance, Con-gress in 1943 amended the family al-lowance law t o include great numbersof personnel previously excluded. Theamendment stipulated that all changesin procedures and rates should be ac-complished within four months fromthe date of the act.At BuPers this involved authorizingover 125,000 allowances per month.By careful planning through themonths while the amendment wasbeing considered, BuPers was able t ohave this operation entirely current80 days after its effective date.Much of the night sh ift work a tBuPers occurs in two sections of theDependents Welfare division, thosewhich deal with benefits to dependentsand with the processing and notifica-tion of casualty status. In these twosections, where prompt and accurateaction means so much t o the familiesof Navy men, work has been at timeson a three-shift basis where needed:at present it is on two shifts, with astaff of several hundred, most of themin the dependents benefits section, atwork from 0730 to 2400.


18/84

The Navys insurance business is95 out of every 100 carry NationalService Life Insurance, with an av-erage policy of well over $9,000. Theyare covered for the fairly astronomicalsum of about $30,000,000,000!Even apart from ships service ac-tivities afloat, there are more than400 ships service departments ashore,and a large number of branch depart-ments. A long way from the earlybumboat sales or financially haphaz-ard canteen of other days, the mod-ern ships service store is a big-busi-ness operation that brings its benefitsdown to every man and every officerin the Navy.Movies are seen by naval personnelall over the world. Outside conti-nental limits, the Navys 35-mm.prin ts and 16-mm. prints (in coopera-tion with the Army), reach the fur-thest advance bases. Within the U . s.,the optional naval district motion-picture plan permits Navy men to seepre-release pictures at little or nocost.Chaplains

An additional function which Bu-Pers must discharge bears directlyupon the religious interests and themorale of men in service and the peacemind of their families. This is ac-complished by providing religious ser-vices, spiritual guidance and religiouscounsel through the Chaplains Corps.The Chaplains Corps of the Navyhas expanded from 206 officers in De-cember 1941 to 2,379 on l January1945. Their record has been one ofthe bright pages in the public historyof the war, and men who have livedthrough combat know the full mean-ing of the contribution which theyhave made to the spiritual comfortand well-being of our officers and men.Four chaplains have given theirlives in this war, two are missing in

Official U. S. Navy photographRECRUITING of Waves by BuPersfreed thousands of men for combatareas, Gi rl applying here i s nowassigned to recruiting duty at LorAngeles, Calif., ONOP. /Page 16

New Set-Up for District Personnel StaffsParallels BuPers, Provides Close LiaisonA new and functional-type person-nel organization, along lines similart o th at of BuPers, has been providedor in all naval districts within thecontinental limits of the UnitedStates, by a directive of the ViceChief of Naval Operations.In place of the former set-up,which varied from district to district,the directive sets up a standard Dis-trict Personnel Staff organization,the purpose of which is to securebetter administration of personnelmatters by:-providing both BuPers and dis-trict commandants with more in-tegrated and effective machineryfor personnel administration ;-providing one officer on the staffof each district commandant t owhom BuPers can look for assis-tance on its problems;-providing on the staff of the dis-trict commandants an organization

which parallels insofar as feasiblethe organization of BuPers in orderthat channels fe r conduct of busi-ness may be clear and reasonab!ystandard in all districts.The reorganization provides for theestablishment of an a ssistant chiefof staff for personnel in each district,and for the grouping under him ofall district staff functions and officersdealing with personnel matters.These are regrouped into five divi-sions: distribution, training, welfare,discipline and chaplains.The new set-up covers personnelmat ter s only. All BuPers field activi-ties (except recrui ting offices an d of-fices of naval officer procurement)remain under the commandant andsubject to his control the same asany other activity in his district. Itis expected that the districts willhave the new plan in operation thismonth.

action and five ar e prisonore Of warin Japanese prison camps.Records and TransportationTwo Bureau functions which affectthe millions of men and women in theNavy are those of transporting navalpersonnel and their dependents withinthe country, and maintaining adequaterecords of all personnel.More than 130 people are kept busyin the Transportation division attend-ing to such tasks as arranging pas-senger transport by rail, sea and air,including air priorities for personnelin U. S. and overseas.. . ccumulatingdata on transportation expenses . . .obtaining refunds on unused tickets;handling travel claims, including thosefor dependents, and advising the ser-vice at large as to their. rights -totransportation under varylng condi-tions.Before the war a job that could bedone by a dozen people, transportat ionhas become a $100,000,000 travel busi-ness. A major development has beena highly successful degree of coopera-tion with the Army in joint use of the

railroads of the country.Keeping and filing the records of3,000,000 men has taxed the space andfacilities of the Bureau. The majordevelopments have been the adoption?f modern techniques of record keep-ing, some of which were describedbriefly earlier.All the tasks that have been out-lined above called for a Bureau ableand ready to take on a job for 3,000,-000 men that it had formerly done ononly a limited scale fcr a hundredthousand or so men. To meet that job,BuPers completely reorganized itselfabout three years ago.Reorganizing the BureauIn J an uar y of 1942 the Secretaryof the Navy and the Chief of theBureau asked one of the countrysleading firms of management engi-neers to come in and study the Bu-reau and make recommendations as to

what steps it might take to enable itto do its job better.As a result, divisions and activitiegwere regrouped and a new func-tional type of organization set up.For instance, there had been in theold Bureau a Reserve Division, con-cerned with the recruiting, trainingand employment of men of the NavalReserve. There were many such lit-tle navies-each engaged in all ornearly all personnel functions for itsown personnel.These were all merged in a seriesof new and functional divisions. Onedivision was assigned the task of re-cruiting all enlisted personnel, an-ether division the task of getting allofficer personnel. A training divisionwas assigned the job of training alltypes of personnel, and distributiondivisions (officer and enlisted) weremade responsible for distributing per-sonnel to all types of activities. Awelfare division was established to ad-minister all programs designed f or the( C o n t h e d o n page 55)


19/84

HILE a Navy11 Wave

tes filed down .thep l a n k of at Pearlon the morn-g of 6 Jan. 1944-the first large con- After mustering in the pier sheds, Prior t o embarkation from the U. s.,of naval women reserv ists to the women reservists were loaded on the init ial contingent of Hawaii-boundfor duty outside continental buses for the tr ip to NAS, Honolulu, to Waves had reported t o a West CoastStates. get squared away before lunch. The naval train ing and distribution centerWearing their Summer working uni- menu consisted of th at old favorite, t o make preparations for the trip. Theof gray and white pin-stripe Navy beans, with broiled weiners, hash program there included daily drillsand the new garrison caps, brown potatoes, fresh Hawaiian pine- and classes in such subjects as warorientittion, the Hawaiian area, mili-

Each girl carried a small musette Following chow, checking in was the ta ry courtesy, censorship, shipboardovernight bag and a raincoat. The firs t order of business, followed by procedure, abandon-ship drill and de-proved an unnecessary precau- assignments to duty a t NAS, Hono- portment aboard ship. The Waves re-the sun obligingly breaking lulu, and NAS, Puunene, on the Island ceived the usual inoculations and phys-ical examinations and also were taughtOf Maui*The new arrivals included a medical how t o pack their gear in duffle bags.officer, a technical medical specialist, Uniforms were inspected fo r service-he occasion.Their heavy gear , packed in seabags, two supply officers, and one officer on ability, and new items of uniform weretemporary duty, and enlisted ratings acquired.When the Waves set in most of the 30 fields in which they Wave officers assisted in inspectingn the pier, more sailors were ar e needed in activities of the 14th gear before it was packed and helpedt o greet them, waving their N. D. They constitute the vanguard of assemble records and att end t o lasta total of 5,000 which have been re- minute details. Recreational gear andFi rst Wave ashore was Mary Ba- quested by the 14th Naval District to such items as flashlights, cameras,E. R. fill vacancies in complement o r release radios, irons and other electrical ap-h Hollywood, men for duty at sea o r in for ward pliances were boxed at TADCen andareas o r for return to the U. S. under shipped with the draf t.t o give her the the rota tion program. All were volun- The voyage began with as mucht o Hawaii. teers for duty outside the continental secrecy as surrounds the embarkationA~~~~ the arrivals was one girl limits for a minimum of 18 months. of armed troops fo r overseas duty.was particularly anxious to get a The contingent of Waves went to And, like the men who had gone to theat the islands which had inspired Hawaii under the provisions of Public sea in ships before them, the g irlsname. she was Aloha M. cassity, Law 441, 78th Congress, signed by the found they had to wear or carry theirModesto, calif., whose parents President on 27 Sept. 1944, making it life preservers at all times, and thatad visited ~ ~ ~ ~ i iefore she was possible for women reservists of the smoking or showing any light on openNavy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard decks o r exposed portions of the trans-t o be assigned anywhere in the Ameri- por t was strickly forbidden.orn.In command of the contingent was can Area (including North and South The women reservis ts scored almosltUSNR, Moorefield, America) and in the Terr itor ies of 4.0 in seaworthiness on the voyage.. Va., who rendered a snappy salute Alaska and Hawaii, if they volunteer Their days at sea were occupied byK. Lewis, USN, personnel fo r such duty. (Regulations governing movies, music and games; only one orficer of the 14th Naval District, a s overseas duty for women reservists two admitted they had missed chowAlso on hand t o and procedure for making application during the tri p across. The transportet the Waves was Lt. Comdr. were published in the November 1944 crew said thei r seagoing abil ity com-uSNR, District Director issue of the Information Bulletin, page pared favorably with any dr af t of

troops the transport has carried.f Waves for the 14th Naval District. 69.)Page 17

pie, cocoa and


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HELPING YOURSELF TO SHOWSNeToWPC Books Authorized301 Writing TalentOf All Ships &StationsEvery ship and every station shouldbe able, in the nea r future, t o haveits own musical comedy . . . o r drama-

tic presentation . . . o r vaudevilleshow, whether o r not it boasts anauthor o r composer in its crew. Ready-made entertainment will be theirs forthe asking. They wont have to writea line o r a note. All theyll have to dois read em and sing em.In an effort to make full use of thevast and barely tapped store of talentnow in the Navy, BuPers has author-ized publication in book form of se-lected scripts and musical scoreswhich have been produced by and fornaval personnel, and these books willbe distributed to all activities inter-ested in having them.The books will include comedy skits,dramatic sketches, songs, blackouts,parodies-scripts of all sor ts an d sizessuitable for presentation t o navalaudiences.The program is similar to that setup by the Army Special Services Divl-sion, which has produced almost ascore of booklets filled with varioustypes of entertainment, to the gr ea tenjoyment of Army personnel.It is one of the biggest steps takenby the Navy to assure entertainmentfor its personnel, and is especially in-tended for the battle-weary aboard

ships f a r from home and the boredom-battling personnel a t far-flung over-seas bases. ( F o r t a b l e s h o w i n g allavailable recreatio n services and equip-m e n t a n d h o w t o g e t t h e m , s ee J a n -u a r y 1945 INFORMATIONULLETIN,p a g e 70.)In the past, if a ship or a stationhad a particularly sharp-witted gag-ster o r a deft songwriter, th at ship orstation alone received the benefit ofhis talent. Under the new plan it willbe available to all, and a lo t of mate-rial that has been filed away afterone or two wildly cheered perform-ances will relive again and again atother ships and stations. A musicalcomedy that tickled the ears at GreatLakes will re-echo under the palms ofa Pacific Island; a blackout that pan-icked audiences at Norfolk will lay acrew in the aisles of a warships recroom; a dramatic skit that shiveredI How to Submit Material I

Authors and composers who de-sire to have their material reviewedfor inclusion in the forthcoming en-tertainment booklets should sendit to: Officer in Charge, Navy Liai-son Unit, Entertainment Section,Special Services Division, A.S.F.,25 West 45th St., New York 18,N. Y., with an information copy ofwritten material to BuPers, NavyDepartment, Washington 25, D. C.,attent ion of Special Services Divi-sion, Welfare Activity.

Page 18

TYPICAL audience a t a rem ote Southwest Pacific base, soldiers and sailorslike these will be supplied fresh scripts and music by Navy show booklet.the spines at San Diego will tingleothers in some European port.

To make all this possible, naturally,the cooperation of authors and com-posers is required. In BuPers Circ.Ltr. 382-44 (NDB, 31 Dec., 1944, 44-1452), which authorizes publication ofthe collection of entertainment mate-rial, authors and composers are in-vited t o submit all material they have.Accompanying the material shouldbe any helpful information and sug-gestions such as dimensional stagediagrams, prop lists, lighting plots, di-rection notes, playing time and SOforth. Of course, it is realized that,in many instances, original skits havebeen performed without any stage fa-cilities a t all. Even so , these skitsshould be submitted, along with adescription of any improvisation thatwas made by ingenious minds andhands. And, too, BuPers is interestedin material that perhaps has neverseen the footlight of day. If you havepenned what you personally believe isa masterpiece of fun, o r drama, o rmusic, but those immediately aroundyou dont agree, o r you dont have theopportunity to present it to an audi-ence, send it in anyway. Maybe thosein charge of the book will say aye-aye with you, and your opus will pos-

sibly enjoy more performances thanAbies Irish Rose.Each ship and station is requestedto fill out a special form, enclosureNo. 2 of the circu lar letter. Thisform requests a detailed descriptionof the existing theatrical facilities atthat particular naval activity andthus will be of value in determiningthe most suitable material.A board of competent critics, whoby experience know what Navy menlike in the way of entertainment, willcarefully review all the material sub-mitted and will select the best f o r in-clusion in the book.It is planned th at the first book willin the main contain material that hasbeen and can be produced with littleo r no facilities. Thus, men at ad-vanced bases and aboard ships in com-bat areas, where there are no scenes,props and such, will be able to profitquickly from the program and slapa show together with a minimum oftime, trouble and talent.Some faraway bases have goodshow-making facilities. For instance,a t one Pacific base, th e 95th CBshave just opened a huge open-airtheater with a seating capacity of6,700 which they have fondly chris-tened Radio City. At other bases,show-minded CBs have pitched up half


21/84

a Quonset hut, leaving off the front,to provide a perfect stage and band-stand. But the entertainment unithopes its booklet will convince all thatso-called theatrical facilities arentnecessarily needed-that a show cansprout up anywhere, from the gun-fringed flight deck of an a irc raf t car-rier to the fantail of a destrover witha backdrop-of depthbomb ra enin d

tertains aboard a Navy patrol craft.the blue Pacific sky as a backdrop.

evenings entertainment. There will,of course, be no obligation to followthe material word-for-word, and eachdirector will be free to alter the songs,gags or situations to suit local condi-tions.A wealth of top-flight materialshould be available for t he book. Somereally professional-like shows havebeen produced by naval personnel bothashore and at sea. A carrier aircraftservice unit presented a new andnautical musical comedy, Waves andWolves, at NAS Norfolk. Waves ofthe 4th Naval District produced a re-vue entitled Barnacle Belles. Per-sonnel at NTC, Sampson, N. Y.,staged a star-studded revue, TheShow is On. And the Waves at Cor-pus Christi, Tex., put on the USSPetticoat, a musical comedy whichgot rave notices as f a r away as NewYork.A t one advanced base personnel pro-duced a variety show and costumepar ty called Spook Night. A sub-marine base put on a musical produc-tion titled Night of Music. A Sea-bee unit in Europe staged Blow ItOut! I n the Pacific, Bluejackets onParade was such a hit a t its origin-ating base that it was taken on tourto other bases, giving a total of 49performances, not including bits thatwere staged in hospitals. Another Pa-cific show, Navy Showboat, enjoyeda ru n of five weeks. Lanny Ross, th eradio singing star, enjoyed it so muchthat he joined up with it on tour and

stayed for 10 performances, sayingit was the best military production hehad ever seen.No longer will only a comparativefew enjoy these shows. Soon theyllcome aboard each ship and sta tion inbooklet form, ready to be produced.Page 19


22/84

The Wallop of W d*3S21sSez

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1

in addition to supervisory naval per-sonnel. It is hoped to have part of itin operation by 1 March 1945. Theplant is named for the late Capt.Samuel R. Shumaker, USN, who, ashead of the Research and Develop-ment Section of BuOrd, was one ofthe nation's leaders in rocket develop-ment.Rockets have proved their value inall theate rs of this war. In combattingsubmarines, in attacking shipping, inslashing at enemy beach defenses tocover troop landings, in blasting shoreestablishments - n practically alltypes of offensive action they havebeen used with increasing success.The weapons are not, by any means,intended to supplant gunfire; theymerely supplement it. Their primaryadvantage is in thei r lack of recoil,thus making it possible t o assembletremendous hitting power on smallcraft which could not stand the shiver-ing shock of guns of equivalent de-structiveness.Although rockets were not used incombat by the Navy until early in1942, they are not new to the militaryworld. Rockets a s war weapons a reactually more than 70 0 years old. De-veloped first by the Chinese in.the 13thcentury, they were used in Europeanwars from then until the 16th century,when the accuracy and mobility ofcumbersome cannon were improvedand the rockets went into dec!ine.In the 19th century the British re-

0 Planes spitting with the fierce destructiveness of warships. . .0 Tiny amphibious craft, buckin!beachward, scattering a thunderoubarrage that would do justice to 2battery of field guns. . .All this-and more, too-has bee1made possible by the development an(use of rockets by the Navy in thi,war. So important have these weapon:become, BuOrd revealed recently, thabefore the middle of this year thcNavy will be s ending $100,000,000 imonth for ro cie t ammunition aloneThis is as much as was spent monthl:during the l atte r pa rt of 1944 on a1types of naval ammunition, from sidearm cartridges to 16-inch projectilesTremendous numbers of amphibiou:craft will be equipped with multiplcbanks of rocket launchers; hundred!of naval warplanes will have rocke'projectiles slung under their wings.To step up rocket production thcNavy has made the Naval OrdnanccPlant, Shumaker, near Camden, Ark.the No. 1 item on its current production and procurement program. Thilnew plant will be the only naval ordnance plant working exclusively 01rockets and-since the Navy procures most of the rockets for thcArmy as well as itself-the principarocket-loading, assembly and storagcplant f o r the entire country.The plant will cover approximatelj110 square miles-70,000 acres-ancemploy about 5,000 civilian workers

nvelop thems, usingpenhagen,,ainst our3altimore.?merit hastar spun-The rock-Americanican Warlost everyled ,''rock-'L--. .LT

ON THE WINGS of the Navy's carrlong -rang e artillery. Planes' speed 1Paae 20

Official U. S. Navy photographsnier planes, rockets provide high ly mob ileadds to speed and accuracy of rockets.

iensely improved by de-rifled bores and fire con-rocket's light as a waragain dimmed.irld War I there Fereand ineffective instances.ig used as weapons. But,the military limited thei to signaling until 1941.year the airblitzed Brit-scatter and shatter theleets with antiaircraftduring the summer, the,eiled their famed andet launcher, Katusha, tonan hordes.ins, however, were the


23/84

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rocket work has been done at Califor-nia Tech, and BuOrd unstintinglypraises th e civilian scientists there fortheir work in helping make the rocketth e effective weapon that it is today.As simple in principle as the old-

time Fourth of July skyrocket, Amer-ican rockets and launchers are artil-lery-like weapons: the rocket is theequivalent of a shell, plus the propel-lant powder charge; the launcher isthe gun. Both rocket and launchervary in length and diameter. The rock-ets have warheads th at carry varyingamounte of high explosives, or smokeor incendiary chemicals. The tubethat extends af t of the head containsthe propellant-a materia l that, whenelectricalb ignited, generates expand-ing gas which propels the rocket for-ward by pushing against the head.Some rockets have fins, either fixed orfolding, t o stabilize flight.The size of the rockets is determinedby the job cut out for them. The sizeof the head chamber depends upon thedetonation desired, and the size of thepropellant chamber depends upon thedistance which the rocket must traveland its velocity.

1 forces.le rockettle moreNazi U-ieir iron3attle on3em, theaircraftivaluable

Ift were; ate in1 rthpera-f-e manu-Califor-nd flownthe bat,Ec a pro-tval andcessarilyassaulted fromlandingath andmachinein wait

1used forI is thintremen-


24/84

.. .. . .., _


25/84

MANY HANDS are needed to load multiple rocket launch

The birth of the Navy airborneis being used so effec-Someairborne rockets were brought

a fewto make them moreed with such ef-

The new 5.0-inch aerial weaponat Rabaul. Among

a 450-ton en-The flyers were most en-so satisfyingn i ts continuing performancesthe Navy is now equipping manyits planes, both amphibious and

Navy rocket-equipped planes werely successful at Mille, the Pal-a Japanese strong-a naval torpedo

f the Philippines in which the centra lSan Bernar-ra it with heavy losses.Equipped with rockets, fighter

planes now have theof artillery, without,weight and recoil ofAs with landing crajare not intended to 1armament but rath erThe customary praa plane with eightfour slung under eaeight such projectilesof the pilot, the attaproximates the blastlight cruisers salvo.the cruisers guns whand again during conrocket launchers justapiece and cannot be ICombining its ownthe forward motionplane, the airborne r oconsiderable velocity.creased speed makesfar more accurate tfrom slow-moving orOne of the most i rtages of the airborneenemy shipping and bantiai rcraft gun empfact th at the attackinhave to come in a s clcas when it is divebomgunning. Rockets canconsiderable accuracgreater distance frcThus pilots lives aremuch as on bombing Esions when they aretrate a heavy blanketshort-ranged protectiiThe Navy has carelits rocket program vArmy in what is a pecooperative procuremc

:raft. No te cylinder fin of t h i s type.successful bazooka, the 2.36-inch an-titank weapon which weighs merelythree and one-third pounds, yet canblast through steel armor plate, isstrictly an Army product; but allother rockets used by the two servicesare produced under naval contractswith the Army furnishing the explo-sive and propellant powders and theNavy furnishing the metal parts, anddoing the loading and assembly.The Army A ir Forces have equippedP-38 Lightnings, P-39 Airacobras,P-40 Warhawks, P-47 Thunderboltsand P-51 Mustangs with rocket launch-ers. In the China-Burma-India thea-ter P- 51 ~) ach carrying Army-type4.5-inch rockets, fired 290 rounds anddestroyed six large warehouses, 12medium-sized warehouses, one foun-dry, four locomotives, 10 aircra ft, tworiver boats and four native shacks, anddamaged two medium-sized ware-houses, five medium-sized buildings,one locomotive and 13 aircraft. Inone sortie against a railroad yard inFrance, P-47s, in the first run, scoreda direct hit on a flak tower, puttingit ou t of action and then on subsequentruns destroyed 25 locomotives, threerepair shops and a roundhouse.Such reports show why BuOrd nowrates rocket weapons as a must pro-duction item; why rocket research andproduction have top priorities.

For rockets success, in both Europeand the Pacific, have turned an agelessdream into a nightmare for ou r foes.The gadget which starry-eyed inven-tors once talked of firing at the Manin the Moon is now carrying the warever closer to the little men behindthe Rising Sun.Page 23


26/84


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Ward: What was the approximatedistance and course of the sub-marine you sighted?Condor: The course was about wha t

we were steering at the time, 020magnetic and about 1,000 yardsfrom the entrance.Ward: Do you have any additionalinformation on the sub?Condor: No additional information.Ward: When was the last time ap-proximately that you saw the sub-marine?Condor: Approximately 0350 and hewas apparently heading for theentrance.If the Condor people saw anything,it isnt out here now, Outerbridgeconcluded. Secure from quarters, Mr.Doughty. Set cypdition two and keepa sharp lookout.The bosun passed the word t o se-cure, and the ship relaxed. Those mennot on watch straggled back to theirsleeping quarters and hit the sack.Doughty returned to his bunk, andOuterbridge to his cot in the chart-house. Ensign Pl at t turned over thedeck to Lt. (jg) 0. W. Goepner, USNR,a young Chicagoan who had enteredthe service via the naval ROTC unitat Northwestern University. He wasalso gunnery officer of the destroyer.At 0637, Outerbridge was againawakened, this time by Goepner shout-ing: Come on the bridge, Captain!Come on the bridge!Outerbridge grumbled sleepily, ashe swung his feet to the floor. Butwhat Goepner had to say caused thedestroyer captain to cancel his com-ment on overzealous young reserve of-

ficers. Hs grabbed his spectacles andJapanese kimona. On the bridge inthe next insta nt he followed Goepnersexcited directions: off the port bowwas the target ship Antares, towingher cumbersome raft to Pearl Harbor,and between ship and raft was asmaller object which had no right tobe there.Weve been watching it, sir, andwe think its moving, Goepner said.He hurriedly explained that the ob-ject had been first sighted to port asWard and Antares came abreast, andthat he had ordered the destroyerscourse reversed to bring it to closerview.Go to general quarters, instantlyordered Outerbridge. Go to generalquarters-and bear a hand!One look at the suspicious object,and he knew that it was a submarineconning tower; he knew, too, it wasunlike any submarines silhouette wi t twhich he was familiar. And, withthat, Antares blinker-messaged hersuspicion that she was being followed.Later Outerbridge admitted to anawful moment when it occurred tohim that the submarine might justpossibly be one of our own; that if heattacked and sank it he would be send-

ing some of his own brothers-in-armsto death. Whatever his thoughts,they caused no delay in his actions.He had his orders. He acted uponthem.Outerbridge rang up full speed andordered the helmsman t o come hard


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4. Have clear Navy record for fiveyears and no offenses indicatingmoral turpitude.For temporary appointment from1. Have had five years continuousactive duty (afloat and. ashore) ;or equivalent experience inclosely related civilian job; ortwo years of college, one yearafloat;

C PO or POlc to ensign, one must:

7 RP nhvsirnllv fit fn r n l l rliitiec. -- _-I-- --- -----Iafloat and ashore, with waiverpossible for inorganic defectswhich are not likely to interferewith performance of duty. Visionmust be 15/20 in each eye (12/20in exceptional cases), fully cor-rectible ;3. Have at least two years highschool;4. Have a clear Navy record withno offenses for five years, or forentire service if less than fiveyears.From CPO and POlc t o temporary1. Have had five years continuousactive duty afloat and ashore, orthree years afloat since 7 Dee.1941; or equivalent experience incivilian job; or two years of col-lege and one year afloat;2. Be physically fit, with waiver fordefects which are not organicand not likely t o interfere in theperformance of duty. Vision8/20, fully correctible;3. Be not more than 50 years old(men over 40 must be outstand-ing) ;4. Have education sufficient t o dopaper work;5* Have Navy record fo r atleast two years with no offensesshowing weak character o r moralF~~appointmentsot requiring sea-going qualifications (such as carpenter(CEC) and personnel in the aviationcategory) service outside the continen-ta l limits may be considered equivalentIf physical disability is incurred of Sea du ty ; and, in exceptional cases,Certain types of service within theU.S. are acceptable.

Coast Guard

mmMm IRECT warrant :FROM C/yL LIF

in the future calling for applications of his permanent status is assuredeach enlisted man or warrant who ac-or such highly specialized jobs. cepts a temporary commisdon. Undercandidate must submit an application thereby in regards to promotion, ad-to BuPers, via his co, Who Will ret- vancement, o r appointment and hisommend only the very best Prospects. rights, benefits, privileges and gra tui -If granted a commission, the man ties shal l not be lost,,or abridged inusually is sent t o an indoctrination any respect whatever.school for two months o r so . In ex-ceptional cases a new officer may g odirectly to his billet without indoc- while serving in a temporary appoint-ment in the line of duty the officer istrination.

entitled to retirement pay at the rateTo be eligible to apply for tempo- of 75% Of the duty pay Of hisra ry appointments, men must be rated temporary rank.petty officers first class o r above, o r be For tempora ry appointment from Like the Navy the Coast Guard iswarran t officers. Appointment as tem- warrant o r chief warrant to ensign o r with the achievement Of fo r -mer enlisted men who have risen tocommissioned rank and t o warrantorary officer must be initiated by the lieutenant ( jg ) one must :CO and is based on the recommenda-tion of CO, service record, civilian 1. Have had 12 months continuous grade, and it Continuing its Policyof gleaning the ranks for the bestbackground and leadership qualities. available men t o fill officer billetsThere are no fixed educational require- whenever they are open. However,ments, and the age limit varies with 2. Be physically fit for all duties the Coast Guard does not part icipatethe commission applied for. A certain in the V-5, V-7 or V-12 programs (ex-amount of sea duty is required but possible f o r defects which ar e cept fo r V-12 medical o r dental grad-this may be waived in exceptional not organic and not likely to in- ua te work) and, a t present, is up to itscases, and shore duty outside the con- ter fere with performance of duty. full commissioned and war ran ttinental limits is sometimes accepted Vision must be 15/20, with ex- strength.in lieu of sea duty. ceptionally qualified candidatesaccepted at 12/2~,correctible to Vacancies occur from time to timebecause of retirements, resignationsor deaths of officers and thus a lim-ents to temporary and permanentcommissions is that six months after 3. Have had education sufficient so ited number of highly qualified en-the war the temporary officer reverts listed men are sought for the Reservet o his form er status. Full protection work. Officer Training Course at the CoastPage 28

For Permanent appointment. the the law, he shall not be prejudiced turp itude on record.

active duty, as warrant and/orchief warrant ;afloat and ashore, with waiver

The difference between appoint- 20/20.that he can do necessary paper

$


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1. Have reached his 21st, but nothis 34th, birthday at time applicationis made;2. Meet regular Coast Guard physi-cal requirements;3. Not have been previously en-rolled in the academy course anddropped out for any reason.Any eligible man desiring this train-ing may make application to his CO,who will indicate by endorsementwhether or not he recommends trans-fer. If he recommends the man, the COwill then arrange for administrationof the new Officer Candidate Qualifica-tion Examination and the physical ex-amination. Reports of these then willbe forwarded with the mans applica-tion and the COs endorsement toCoast Guard Headquarters. If the manis not recommended, the CO will for-ward the application to headquarters

with a statement of the reason whythe man isnt recommended.The Coast Guard Academy courseis a general one and graduates arecommissioned f o r general duty only.Personnel retain their ratings through-out the course. Upon successful com-pletion, members of the regular CoastGuard are promoted t o temporary of-ficer st atus and members of the re-serve receive reserve commissions.For selection of men t o fill vacan-cies in wa rrant grades, eligibility listsare maintained by the Coast GuardProcurement Office.

Under this system, when it becomesappar ent tha t certain types of war-rant officers will be needed-say, f o rinstance, carpenters-an Alcoast is is-sued notifying COS hat approved ap-plications of qualified enlisted menwill be accepted for consideration.The COs recommendations of thesemen are briefed by the ProcurementOfficer, a panel of officers grade thecandidates and an eligibility list isestablished. The best available appli-cant is.placed at the top of this list,the next best is second; etc. Then whenthe need for a warrant carpenterarises, the top man on the list, if stillqualified and available, will be se-lected and appointed. No warrant car-penter is appointed except from thislis t of enlisted men, and no othe rnames are solicited or considered forthe list until the original group is ex-hausted. This is true in the case ofelectricians, machinists, gunners, payclerks, etc. Only exception is the war-ra nt boatswain. Names of prospectivewarrant boatswains are not solicitedby the Procurement Officer, sinceenough candidates are received with-out solicitation from COS. Thesenames are kept available for consid-eration when need arises.

In compiling eligibility lists theCoast Guard Procurement Office givesparticular attention t o length of ser-vice, health and general experience(ashore and afloat). No applicant canbe more than 50 years of age.Marine Corps

Enlisted men of the Marine Corpsare not only still participating in the

Offic?$l. S . Navy photographCAMPAIGN RIBBONS lend color to g roup a t Purdue as V-12 trainees (left)swap combat yarns with two veterans (right) assigned to unit as consultants.

Platoon Commanders School (former-ly pre-O.C.S.), leading t o further as-signment t o the Platoon CommanderSchool, formerly O.C.S. (Marine CorpsLetter of Instruction 878).An applicant for transfer to thePlatoon Commanders School, MarineCorps Schools, must fulfill the follow-ing requirements:1. Be on active duty;2. Have completed four months ac-tive service immediately prior to datewhen recommended by G O ;3. Be a male citizen who has-reached his 19th birthday, but not his32d, on date of application;4. Be phvsicallv aualified for rnm-missioned rank, including minimQm

vision of 15/20, correctible t o 20/20.5. Have a minimum education oftwo years ( four semesters) of collegework successfully completed in an ac-credited institution; or a minimum ofone year (two semesters) in collegeand one year service outside contin-ental limits when application is made.6. Have passed the Marine CorpsGCT with a minimum standard scoreof 110.7. Be recommended by his CO onthe basis of clearly demonstrated of-ficer-like qualities.The applicant should address his ap-plication in his own handwriting t othe Commandant, Marine Corps, andsubmit it via his CO along with birthcertificate, physical report by Navymedical officer and certified t ranscriptof college record.A warrant officer or enlisted manseeking appointment as a second lieu-tenant for aviation ground duty mustbe on active duty, be a citizen who hasreached his 25th, but not his 40thbirthday on date of applicatlon, andhave two years college or its equi-valent.The application should be accom-n n n i m l h xr ( 1 ) R letter from the can-- -._.... .questing a commission as aviationground officer and outlining brieflyhis education, career and service rec-ord; (2) a birth certificate under theseal of office of issue; ( 3 ) a Navymedical officers certificate.All candidates recommended will beconsidered by a selection board at Ma-rine Corps Headquarters. Those se-lected will be commissioned as secondlieutenants and, where necessary, or-dered to the Aviation Ground Officers

School a t Quantico, Va. Men ap-pointed from the first three pay gradeswill receive temporary appointmentsin the Marine Corps o r its reserve;those from below the first threegrades will receive permanent appoint-ments in the reserve.


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Harvey had no sooner mentioned theamwa than all hell broke loose in thengme. Smoke start ed pouring fromnder the cowl, and the engine startedunning very rough. My cylinder-head290 de-rees. I noticed my windshield wasure had dropped to between 15 andpounds. I t suddenly dawned on methat w.2 had been hit and that ourof ending up in the briny deepJust as I was telling Harvey t o pre-a water landing and to getft out, I saw one of our boys goI saw him he was at aboutfeet and going straight down.a big splash

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of traits or char-acteristics, whichmeant different things t o differentpeople.The new form, NavPers 310A, isnow being distiributed t o supersede theold fitness-report forms, NavPers 310and 311.In addition to providing a moreclearly delineated description of expe-rience and performance, it is an im-provement from the standpoint of ef-ficient mechanics and has been geared

into other BuPers procedures devel-

The revised form represents thework of many persons over a periodof months, and reflects the commentsand suggestions of more than a hun-dred officers of mature judgment t owhom it was submitted for comment.The new rating factors are the boiled-down result of more than 200 questionswhich were considered.Alnav No. 222-44 (NDB, 15 Dec.

1944, 44-1379), which announced the

Quar terly repor ts will continue to besubmitted on captains and command-ers who command units afloat, indi-vidual ships o r operating commands.Periods covered by these reports willbe the three months ending on thelast day of February, May, Augustand November.This arrangement of reporting dateswas designed t o stagger paper workon ships and stations and to aver t con-flict with dates on which material, in-ventory and other periodic reparts aresubmitted.Existing instructions for submissionof reports upon any change of per-manent duty of the officer or his re-

porting senior aemain in effect.

Standard Symbols in Use by U.S. Forces0 make maps, charts and similar pictorial materialTmean the same thing to all men who use them, a setof standard symbols has been adopted fo r use by UnitedStates forces all over the world. The complete se t of sym-bols is reproduced on the two pages which follow.

9 These symbols are intended for use in connection withphotographic interpretation reports, photographs, mosaics,overlays, overprints, target charts, damage assessments,beach studies, maps and map substitutes made from aerialphotographs, three-dimensional terrain models, etc.Standard symbols are used to represent all kinds of in-formation needed in military operations, such as terrainfeatures, weapons, emplacements, obstacles, military areas,hydrography, damage, naval and air bases.Their adoption as standard practice follows an agree-ment by the Joint Chiefs of Staff on 2 Aug. 1944, and theywere prepared under the direction of CNO (PhotographicIntelligence Center), Navy Department , with the concur-rence of the Assistant Chief of Staff, G-2, War Department,and Assistant Chief of Air Staff, Intelligence, W a r Depart-ment. The symbols were announced for immediate use inan OpNav letter dated 14 Dec. 1944 to all ships and sta-tions, Navy Department bureaus and Commandant, U. S.Marine Corps (NDB, 15 Dec. 1944, 44-1386).In order to effect standardization of additional symbolsrequired from time to time, proposed new symbols may beforwarded by initiating service agencies to the CNO (att:Op 16-V-P), Navy Department, Washington 25, D. C., forconcurrencc and dissemination.

Of f i c i a l U. S. Navy photographITS EASY to read a three-dimensional model like this,used here on way to invasion of Saipan. Bu t most mapshave to take such information and put it in somerecogn izable symbol form. To see how, turn to . +Page 33


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tetaining wall


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Rock in the high Sierraswith the 'potlight On thewhose home if is. Accurate detail,keenly observed and told with asensitiveness that borders on fan-tasy.JUNGLE DIPLOMACYy William F.and provocative book about u. S.- 0- -Gibran,' THE PROPHETyearsGood Neighbor policy.

the best reading from old classics to O-i4--Ho~ e,'I NEVER EFTHOMEthe newest best sellers, published only , " : : ~ = ~ ~ ~ , ' , s l N ~ ~ ~ ~for the Army and Navy. Their size 0-17-Burnett NOBODY IVESFOREVERand shape make them especially easy 0-18-Runyon: RUNYON LA CARTEreading. They are to be freely used , " : 2 ' ~ - " ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ c ~ ~ s , ~ ~ R I E sand passed from man to man so that 0-21-simeno;l ON TH E DANGER INEthey may be enjoyed by as many as 0-22-Burroughs. TH E RETU RNF TARZANpossible. Send any commentsyou may 0-23-Sturgis. MEN LIKE GODS0-24-Hergesheimer. THE THREEBLACKhave, or inquiries, to ~ ~ p ~ ~ ~ .0-25-Spearman, SELWOODF SLEEPYCATBooks currently being shipped are: 0-26-Helmericks. WE LIVEIN ALASKA0-28-James, SELECTEDHOSTSTORIES0-30-Kossak. BLESSED RETH E MEEX0-31-Wolfe. LOOKHOMEWARD,NGELO-32-Cannon. LOOK O TH E MOUNTAIN

These books are special editions of 0-13-White LOSTWORLDS

PEWNYS

Sands and J. M. Lalley. Revealing o- SELECTED poEn5s 0-27-Gaither. THE RED COCK CROWSLatin American relations of forty 0- 3-Mulholland, TH E ART O F ILLUSION 0-2g-Wi11iams* HER To HEAVEN0- 4-Grayson, THEY PLAYED HE GAME

0-&-Hudson, TALESOF THE PAMPAS0- 6-Faulkner. PLOWMAN'S F O L L Ybefore the days Of the36


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PONTOONS3-Year-Old War BabiesHave Important Role inAmphibious Operations-

is ex

AT I

kontoon ge ar th at can quickly beassembled into self-propelled barges,lighters, piers, floating drydocks o rtugs h as played a vital role in nearlya!l our amphibious operations.

The Navys present types of pon-toon gear were designed three yearsago and have proved so successfulthat no important changes in basic de-sign have been required.The pontoons are manufactured intwo types. The stand ard section isrectangular in shape, five feet byseven and five feet deep. A secondtype, seven feet by seven and thesame depth as the other, has one endcurved fo r use as the prow on barges.Both types are of welded construction,capable of withstanding an internalpressure of 25 pounds per square inchand an external pressure submergedto a depth of 28 feet.Supplies of pontoons a re placedaboard invasion-bound ships and areassembled en route by the Seabees.At the scene of operations the pon-toon assemblies are pu t over the sideand floated into position. (See Sea-bees, page 46.)When used as lighters, barges andtugs, the pontoons are fitted withspecial propulsion units of either _theoutboard or inboard type. Such unitscan make up to eight knots. They getsupplies ashore equally well on rock-bound coasts or sandy beaches.A pontoon assembly which is usedthe first day of invasion as a tem-porary wharf can soon be convertedinto a lighter. A few men withwrenches can do t he job.During the invasion of Kwajalein,according to Rear Admiral Alva D.Bernhard, USN, now an atoll com-mander, pontoons manned by Seabeeswere lifesavers in getting heavyequipment, ordnance and materialashore with dispatch. There all ma-terial unloaded from LSTs traveledover pontoon causeways, and theyhave proved equally useful in otherlandings.One of the most ingenious uses ofpontoons has been as floating dry-docks for repairing small craft. Manyvessels that otherwise could not havebeen repaired without towing themhundreds or thousands of miles havebeen repaired on th e spot. To sub-merge the drydock, a controlledamount of water is admitted to thedeck pontoons; to raise it, the water:pelled by compressed air.

--

Official U. S. Navy photographRIGHT: This floating highway ofpontoon sections was used tounload supplies a t Kwajalein.


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As we renew our own efforts, the Home Frontputt ing on more steam too. Production quotas

The year 1944 has brought success and addedto our advancing forces. But thefic is an ocean of fantastic distances. Thet o Tokyo is rough and long. While we are1. U. S. ships, B-29s, Liberators hit Iwo Jima (23 Dec.).2. Americans take Palompon in Leyte landing (24 Dec.) .3. Jap battleship, cruiser damaged and 3 destroyers sunkattempting t o hi t U. S. positions on Mindoro (26 Dec.) .UOT ES O F T H E MO hI T H 4. U. S. troops relieved a t Bastogne (27 Dec.) ; Allieshalt Nazi offensive in Belgium and go over t o offensiveB r i g . Gen. Anthony C . McAulifle, USA, in answer to a (28 Dec.) ; Germans withdraw (20 Jan.).at Bastogne: NUTS ! 5. U. S. carrier planes attack Formosa and OkinawaFleet Admiral King: Our enemies are harassed on all Jima, destroying o r damaging 331 Jap planes, 95nts; we are taking advantage of every opportunity to ships (2-3 Jan.).ar making machinery and the ir will to take 6. 35 JaP ships sunk o r damaged by u. s. Planes inNor do we now have to wait for Subic Bay and Lingayen Gulf (2-3 Jan.).unities to present themselves-we ar e arranging 7- U. s. troops take Marinduque Island (4 an.).8. British-Indian troops, in amphibious operations alongGen. Masaham Homma, former Japanese commander in


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blows at enemy ships, planes and in-stallations along a huge arc extendingfrom the Ryukyu Islands southwestthrough Formosa and down the Chinacoast from north of Hong Kong toIndochina. (For detai ls of these CO-ordinated of fensives, see P. 2.)Prior to the Luzon landings Gen-eral MacArthur announced that theLeyte-Samar campaign had been com-pleted a t a cost t o the Japs of 113,221men and 2,748 planes. Our personnelcasualties were 11,217, including 2,623killed.

Far t o the northeast our surfaceforces, together with Army and Navyplanes, battered Jap positions on IwoJima in the Volcano Islands and onChichi Jima and Haha Jima in theBonins. And, at opposite ends of thelong Pacific front, U.S. naval unitsshelled Paramushiru in the ICurils asBritish carrier planes smashed oil re-fineries on Sumatra.U.S. and British submarines operat-ing in the Pacific came in for theirshare of the kill las t month with U.S.subs sinking their first aircraft car-

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The 150th anniversary of Navy Sup-ply will be observed on 23 February,marking the day in 1795 when theoffice of the Purveyor of Public Sup-plies was created. With the establish-ment of the U. S. Navy, ships had beenauthorized to carry a purser of mili-tary rank, but supply duties ashorewere handled by civilians. The appoint-ment of the Purveyor of Public Sup-plies was the beginning of the Navyssupply and procurement system ashore.His first duty was to outfit ships tosail against the Bar bar y pirates.

Later supply was handled by theSecretary of the Navy, la ter by aBoard of Commissioners and still laterby the Bureau of Provisions an d Cloth-ing. In July 1892, af te r the office ofPaymaster General of t he Navy hadalready been created, the Bureau ofSupplies and Accounts came into being.Since then, BuS&A ha s continued togrow, with new responsibilities beingadded such as messing aboard ship,until it has reached its present status,charged with procurement, storageand movement of supplies for theNavy. (See INFORMATIONULLETIN,Ja nuar y 1945, p. 12.)0 Progressively closer price and profitcontrols by the Navy over war ma-terials have resulted in an increase

all hands naval bulletin - feb 1945

Documents