13 June 1924 He justified his role by saying his men would have wanted to have a word from the old man more than anyone else. Over more than a decade, she operated with the fleet's other battleships, conducting exercises and training operations in the Pacific and in the Caribbean. turret II as the crew loaded the gun. The last U.S. warship to experience an explosion in a similar-type gun turret was the battleship USS Mississippi when it was shelling Japanese-held Makin Island in the Pacific in November 1943 . You need to be a member in order to leave a comment. "They were trying to build up the Navy. Here is a portion of a realphoto postcard showing the removal of the dead once the ship returned to port. 24 were killed. Suddenly, in the midst of the barrage, smoke and gas erupted from the rangefinders on either side of the number two turret. Thanks for posting. This could have led to dangerous debris remaining in the breech when the gun crew assumed it was safe to load. The gunners on all three battlewagons were competing for a $20 prize that Congress had voted to award the fleets most proficient naval marksman. 2 aboard the Mississippi resulted from either the presence of a burning ember left . "Interestingly, I was never read my rights, nor did I realize that I was a suspect," Truitt told Task & Purpose. Even $1 per month will go a long way! 2s 14-inch guns went off again. Sign up for a new account in our community. Meanwhile, Mississippi and Nashville had to take emergency evasive actions to avoid the torpedoes. 2 turret as Carr and other sailors donned their firefighting gear. Following repairs, she participated in the capture of Kwajalein in February 1944 and bombarded Japanese-held islands in February and March. If Germany has declared war on the U.S., they should be bombing Iceland soon.". Although investigators concluded that a faulty gas-ejection system prevented one of the guns breech plugs from closing securely, thereby permitting a jet of flame to spurt back into the powder-filled room when a salvo was fired, the Mississippis skipper, Brotherton, still faced the Navys unforgiving notions of a commanders accountability. Lt. Bruce Coles, a spokesman for the Navy, this week discounted the similarities between the accidents aboard the Iowa and the Mississippi. On 19 April 1989, the Number Two 16-inch gun turret of the United States Navy battleship USS Iowa (BB-61) exploded. In 1943, the big battleship was off the coast of Makin Island, providing naval gunfire support to a landing force preparing to secure the island. If anyone knows how to trace yard long personnel to the the active units assigned please let me know thanks. "We stand by the results of the investigation," Coles said. Forty-eight sailors were killed, and only one of the sailors manning the turret survived. During his early months aboard the MISSISSIPPI, Seaman Fidler maintained a log book. I said, again, this is weird. She arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, in June but soon shifted her base to Newport, Rhode Island. In 1924 and 1943, open breech explosions had occurred in the Turret Two center gun aboard Mississippi, each time killing most of the crewmen in the turret. It was a foreseeable result of lack of training and the running . It's easy! The photo was from the book Battleship Country--The Battle Fleet at San Pedro-Long Beach, Ca. Because there were still unfired rounds in the other two guns of Turret No. -November 1943, the battleship USS Mississippi, while shelling Makin Island in World War II, had an explosion in turret No. by tommy303 Thu Apr 03, 2014 11:55 pm, Post The Senator from Michigan has asked for a Court Martial of leading admirals and in the 14th Naval District. On June 12, 1924,Mississippifound herselfoff the coast of California conducting gun trials. Battlecruiser Invincible suffers an explosion after it's turret Q is hit by a 12-inch shell from German battlecruiser Ltzow. HTML tags are not allowed. The deck was armored to 3.5 inches and the conning tower to sixteen inches. Prewar and during the Pacific War located in the Gilbert Islands. The recoil severely crushed ten men inside and the salvo narrowly missed an outgoing passenger vessel. The photo was from the book Battleship Country--The Battle Fleet at San Pedro-Long Beach, Ca. In 1943, she took part operations against Kiska Island, in the Aleutians, and in the capture of the Gilbert Islands. 2 Turret was cold, meaning it hadn't been fired yet. 1919-1940, by Harvey M. Beigel. Please refrain from using strong language. He said the owners told him that the yard long was the crew of the ship but I figure that it contains the sailor that was assigned to the ship pictured. As the rammer was withdrawn, there emerged from the breech a small grayish ball of smoke and flame followed by a large flash. Powered by Invision Community, USS MISSISSIPPI (BB-41) 1924 Turret Explosion, US MILITARIA FORUM - COLLECTORS PRESERVING HISTORY. A battleship force on station at the northern entrance to Surigao Strait consisting of battleships USS Mississippi, California, and Pennsylvania screened by cruisers USS Phoenix, Boise, Nashville, and HMAS Shropshire along with destroyers Ammen, Bush, Leutze, Newcomb, Bennion, Heywood L. Edwards, Robinson, Richard P. Leary, Bryant, and Claxton came under an intense Japanese air attacking force that included special attack aircraft. 43 killed, 19 injured. Published April 02, 2018 09:40:36. Then No. Mississippi steamed to Australia on a U.S. Fleet good will tour in mid-1925. Note the crew assembled on deck to view the event and the details on the cage masts and gun turrets. All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB. The investigations produced conflicting conclusions. Assigned to Task Group 58.2, the battleship supported operations in the Marshall Islands in January 1944 including the invasion of Kwajalein. Rather than admitting that the age of the battleship was over, Navy leaders cut corners on training, manpower, and maintenance to get theIowaback out to sea, he said. 3 other similar ships, the USS New Jersey, the USS Wisconsin, and the USS Missouri were built at the same time. Seconds before Turret No. At the time of the 1943 explosion, the Mississippi, a New Mexico-class battleship built at Newport News Shipbuilding and commissioned in 1917, was shelling Makin Island in the Pacific. According to the findings from a 1944 investigation by the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance, the explosion in turret No. US Battleship Turret Explosions 1904-1989. USS Turner (DD-648) sank in New York harbor following a series of ammunition explosions. 12:00 a.m. June 9, 1999: For the Record Los Angeles Times Wednesday June 9, 1999 Home Edition Metro Part B Page 3 Metro Desk 2 inches; 37 words Type of Material: Correction Battleship photo--A photo of a naval funeral that accompanied the L.A. Then and Now column in Sundays Times was incorrectly credited. Forty-two sailors were killed and another sixteen wounded. 3. Copyright 2004-2023 Lava Development, LLC., all rights reserved, Battleship Mississippi (BB-41) Photo Gallery, See all 12 photographs of Battleship Mississippi (BB-41), Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign, 8 Babcock & Wilcox boilers, 4 steam turbines, 4 screws, 12x14in/50cal guns, 14x5in/51cal guns, 4x3in/50cal guns, 2x21in torpedo tubes, 8-13.5in belt, 18in turret face, 16in conning tower, 3.5in decks. C. Peter Chen of Lava Development, LLC. Based on the survivors account, the Navy believed that a fire or burning debris was present in the gun barrel and ignited the powder bags. The battleships three remaining turrets continued firing until the naval support phase of the invasion had ended. The deadly blast aboard the Iowa marked the first explosion in a battleship turret since 1943, when 43 sailors aboard the USS Mississippi were killed, the Government Accountability Office later . Mississippi was instrumental in the testing and eventual fielding of the Convair RIM-2 Terrier, the U.S. Navys first surface-to-air missile. When Navy technical experts began their examination of the April 19, 1989, Iowa explosions, they too drew preliminary conclusions that friction caused the deaths in the No. Battleship USS Mississippi, cruiser USS Minneapolis, and destroyers USS Shaw and McKean departed Suva, Fiji bound for Pago Pago, Samoa. I'm looking for any information on a Lt (jg) Millay who served aboard the USS Mississippi (BB-41) during it's WWII Pacific Tenure (1942-1945) He was at the Pearl Harbor Naval Barracks Dec 7, 1941 . 1941- Enroute Hvalfordur, Iceland to Portsmouth, Va. At last we are steaming homeward in company with the U.S.S. After having sent almost 100 sailors to their deaths in two separate explosions, the 39-year-old Mississippi was scrapped in 1956. It was the deadliest peacetime naval disaster ever to occur along the California coast, an explosion that tore through a gun turret on the battleship Mississippi, killing 48 sailors and injuring dozens more. At roughly one horsepower per ton, she was not terribly fast, with a top speed of just twenty-one knots. Laid down in April 1915 at the Newport News Naval Yard, Virginia,Mississippiwas commissioned in December 1917, a month after the end of World War I. I never researched the turret explosion story, but the one aboard the Iowa in 1989 (killing 47) was what spurred my grandfather to relay the story to me regarding his brother. Navy investigators allege that Hartwig, the captain of the gun, had encouraged the rammer that day to push the load that far. She was commissioned in December 1917, and operated in the western Atlantic area until July 1919, when she transited the Panama Canal to the Pacific. -1924, the battleship USS Mississippi, the same ship, had an explosion in turret No. The main battery was distributed two turrets forward and two aft. We just outran several units of the German fleet (submarines). Based on the survivors account, the Navy believed that a fire or burning debris was present in the gun barrel and ignited the powder bags. She was redesignated AG-128 and equipped with a number of radars and prototype air defense missile systems. Also served on USS TENNESSEE, USS KULA GULF (CVE108) and USS FRANK FRIDAY FLETCHER. 2 turret during gunnery practice. On April 19, 1989, the day of the blast, the ship was preparing for live-fire training at Vieques, Puerto Rico Naval Training Range. Seamen in the upper chambers of the gun turret died instantly in the fiery explosion; those in the lower levels were suffocated as the blast siphoned off their oxygen. Assigned to USS IOWA Commissioning Crew on 22 February 1943. It's been 30 years since an explosion inside the number two gun turret on the USSIowakilled 47 American sailors, but for Mike Carr, it still feels like yesterday. As a battleship, theMississippiwasheavily armoredto slug it out with enemy ships. The "Missy," as she was affectionately called by her crew, proudly displayed the large letter "E" on her stack for all to see. US MILITARIA FORUM - COLLECTORS PRESERVING HISTORY Thank you. In 1943, the big battleship was off the coast of Makin Island, providing naval gunfire support to a landing force preparing to secure the island. According to the findings from a 1944 investigation by the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance, the explosion in turret No. "USS Mississippi (BB-41, later AG . Mississippi was a heavily armed battleship by the standards of the day. In 2009 he cofounded the defense and security blog Japan Security Watch. Battleships USS Idaho, USS Mississippi, and USS New Mexico, escorted by 2 cruisers and 13 destroyers, were dispatched to patrol the Denmark Strait to protect American merchant shipping. I heard they are going to put up a telephone line from Portsmouth, Virginia, to Hvalfordur, Iceland, using the periscopes for poles. German dive bombers would sink both ships in the spring of 1941. The World War II Database is founded and managed by On the back, he marked the place where each body was found! Today her name lives on in the Virginia class nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Mississippi (SSN-782). Your IP address will be tracked even if you remain anonymous. An explosion in the No. Does anyone know or have a list of the sailors killed in the Nov. 1943 #2 turret explosion on the USS Mississippi? They are considered buried at sea by the US Navy. Less than two decades later, the Mississippi went through the same agony again. USS Mississippi, a 32,000 ton New Mexico class battleship, was built at Newport News, Virginia. In 1924 and 1943, open breech explosions had occurred in the Turret Two center gun aboard Mississippi, each time killing most of the crewmen in the turret. After the war,Mississippiwas effectively defanged, with three of her four main battery turrets removed. On 20 November the Mississippi suffered an explosion in a main turret, killing 43 men. WW2DB site administrators reserve the right to moderate, censor, and/or remove any comment. Although I don't have any documentation to support thismy uncle was a musician serving aboard the Tennessee (a plankowner) and this story was mentioned by my grandfather - that several band members from the various battleships were called to provide ceremonial music for the service in San Pedro. The Invasion of Lingayen Gulf (Filipino: Paglusob sa Golpo ng Lingayen), 6-9 January 1945, was an Allied amphibious operation in the Philippines during World War II.In the early morning of 6 January 1945, a large Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen from Lingayen Gulf, on the island of Luzon. The 1924 disaster was attributed to insufficient air blast to clear the gun barrels, resulting in smoldering debris igniting powder bags as they were rammed in during reloading. Iowa's turret two on fire immediately following the explosion. USS Mississippi, a 32,000 ton New Mexico class battleship, was built at Newport News, Virginia. Naval Academy, The Sullivan Brothers and the Assignment of Family Members, Historic Former U.S. Navy Bases and Stations, The African American Experience in the U.S. Navy, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. Navy, Contributions of Native Americans to the U.S. Navy, The World Cruise of the Great White Fleet, Navy Underwater Archaeology Return Program, Annual Navy History and Heritage Awards - Main, Research Permits for Sunken & Terrestrial Military Craft, Scanning, Copyright & Citation Information, Obtain Duplications of Records and Photos. Anyone knows how to trace yard long personnel to the findings from a 1944 investigation by results... The sailors manning the turret survived uss mississippi turret explosion 1943 me know thanks at roughly horsepower! Anyone knows how to trace yard long personnel to the the active units assigned please let me know thanks radars. And prototype air defense missile systems and Nashville had to take emergency evasive actions avoid... 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