USS Johnston, sunk at the Battle of Samar, found

oldbrownhat · Apr 3, 2021

Wreckage of long-lost WW II ship, sunken with its Native American skipper and half its crew, identified

The outgunned destroyer, USS Johnston, slugged it out with Japanese battleships in 1944 to protect U.S. fleet.

“Men were floating on the water’s surface or sinking beneath it,” a Japanese sailor reported. “Half-naked crew members jammed themselves into lifeboats and rowed away … We were close enough to see their unkempt beards and the tattoos on their arms.”

A Japanese gunner opened fire, but was ordered to stop. And as the Johnston went down, a Japanese officer was seen saluting from his ship..."

Amazing story

Ole Joe Clark · Apr 3, 2021

I had read about this battle, these brave sailors saved many lives. Some of the commanders failed to follow orders and left many soldiers and sailors exposed without protection. If my memory is working this morning, they were part of the larger battle of Leyte (spelling?) Gulf.

Have a blessed day,

Leon

blues7 · Apr 3, 2021

An excellent book on this subject is "The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors".

A worthwhile read.

[ame]https://www.amazon.com/Last-Stand-Tin-Sailors-Extraordinary-ebook/dp/B001L83PM0[/ame]

ron 57 · Apr 3, 2021

For an in depth analysis of the battle, the ships and the crews, I can recommend the book “The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors” by James Hornfischer. It’s outstanding.

Jim R · Apr 3, 2021

I have read everything I could ever find about the the battle of Leyte Gulf. My father was on the deck of the USS Kitkan Bay during that battle. There are many books written about it, but way too many of them cover for Halsey and his quest for fame.
The best book I have found with the real facts is "The Battle of Leyte Gulf" By Thomas J. Cutler.

mckenney99 · Apr 3, 2021

I don't know why, but it has always bothered me for these "explorers" to violate these sacred tombs. This is especially true when the location of the ship is known and nothing is to be gained by the violation. Even more so when HOW or WHY the ship was lost is already known.
I do appreciate when they find the location of a missing ship/sub as that may provide some measure of closure for the families. As long as the final resting place is not disclosed to the general public so as to not encourage grave site tourism or scavenging
To me it is no different than just digging your way through a cemetery to see what you can find.

bigmtnman · Apr 3, 2021

In the movie Red October, Sean Connery says a line "Halsey acted stupidly". I am pretty sure this is a reference to Halsey ordering his main battle fleet to chase the Japanese carriers. The Japanese had placed them to hopefully draw him from the landing area so their attacking ships would have less opposition. "Taffy 3" saved his/our butt. It is one of the most heroic naval actions in the history of our Navy.

Turn the sound down..... [ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNlFeEcNlPs&ab_channel=JWalker[/ame]

oldbrownhat · Apr 3, 2021

bigmtnman said:
In the movie Red October, Sean Connery says a line "Halsey acted stupidly"...

I'd forgotten that. Undoubtedly a reference to Halsey.

I reading about the Leyte Gulf battle late last night. I had been unaware of the Samar fight until I read the article on the Johnston. Simply astounding.

"Turn the sound down" indeed. Totally inappropriate and annoying. Ugh!

@mckenney99; I can see your point, although as long as they don't disturb the remains (irrespective of whether it is "them" or "us") I'm OK with it. No question we have a morbid fascination with such things.

timjake · Apr 3, 2021

Taffy 3 faced 4 battleships, 8 cruisers, and 11 destroyers. Yamato by itself outweighed all the ships of Taffy 3 combined.

A bit short on specifics, this one solely about Johnston:
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmiMxDhWnMw[/ame]

Much more detailed timeline of the overall action - talks about all the ships engaged (discussion of Taffy 3 begins ~9:45):
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4AdcvDiA3lE[/ame]

USS Johnston, sunk at the Battle of Samar, found

oldbrownhat

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Ole Joe Clark

Absent Comrade

blues7

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ron 57

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Jim R

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mckenney99

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bigmtnman

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oldbrownhat

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timjake

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