CHAPTER 21
JUNE 10,1945 -- JULY 24, 1945
EMBARKED ABOARD USS STEAMER BAY.
BACK TO THE WAR |
While we were at this rest camp, a typhoon hit Okinawa and reeked
havoc with the invasion fleet. The cruiser Pittsburgh lost it's
bow and returned to Guam to go into dry dock and have a temporary
bow constructed for the trip back to the states. This meant the
Steamer Bay had to vacate the dry dock. We were loaded aboard
and returned to the battle where death and mayhem was still in
progress.
Guam theater |
On June 15th I was scheduled for a TCAP mission. I was
again in the fourth plane to do a fly away take-off. As per the
usual procedure I ran up the engine for its pre-take off check.
Everything was normal with no indications of any problems. On
the signal from the deck officer I applied the power and began
my run down the deck. About two thirds the way down the deck
the engine began detonating and would not increase power. I was
beyond the point of |
no return and was forced to continue with an air speed that was
considerably "iffy". I went off the end of the deck
and the plane hung in a three point attitude but refused to climb.
As a matter of fact it was settling closer and closer to the
water. I had to hold the plane on a straight course to prevent
a stall for as long as possible. I could look out either side
and see the water licking at the bottom of the plane. I could
not see anything in front of the plane but knew that one of the
other carriers was directly ahead about three miles away. Not
knowing how far I had traveled and knowing I was going to get
wet I decided to set the plane down while I had control rather
than stall and turn it over.
I pulled back on the throttle and immediately hit the water.
The plane flipped on it's back and I was under water again. This
time I did not have my parachute attached to the harness, came
out freely from the cockpit, came to the surface and looked around.
The first thing I saw was one gigantic carrier bearing down on
me and not far away. I took off swimming on a course 90 degrees
to that of the carrier. I was having trouble doing the crawl
stroke because of the waves and the parachute harness so I took
to the sidestroke. I was a little off to the side when the bow
passed even with me. I saw the bow of the ship strike the plane
square on. Then I looked up and saw that I was still under the
flight deck but far enough to the side to see the sailors in
the catwalk motioning for me to keep swimming. They knew, as
well as I, that the screws of the ship would suck the water and
me under the ship and through the screws if I remained too close.
At that moment I must have been about 20 feet to the side. I
took off doing the sidestroke again and when I passed the stern
of the ship I could have reached out and touched it. The screws
do pull the water in!
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I was on the starboard side of the ship when it passed.
I was treading water as the waves from the wake of the ship were
breaking over my head then suddenly I felt something touch the
back of my head. With a start, I turned around fully expecting
to find that shark that I had seen two months earlier staring
me in the face. But, " Saints be praised", it was a
little flame on the tip of a smoke bomb that had not yet began
to smoke. It had been thrown off the stern of the ship as I passed.
I have no idea if it ever smoked. Regardless, I was relieved. |
Ensign George Vigeant
(Photo courtesy of Ty Theivagt) |
Swimming is not exactly easy with clod hopper shoes on your feet
so I began removing them. That wasn't easy either since I was
exhausted from my swim. The first shoe untied easily and I struggled
out of it. The other shoe string knotted and I was unable to
get the shoe off so I forgot about it. Then, looking around again
I spotted a four man rubber raft inflated and floating a short
distance away. I took off after it and that wasn't easy since
I was dog tired. I discovered that they had thrown the raft off
the port side of the ship and down wind of me so it was moving
away from me. This made the swim even longer and more tiring. |
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