"USS Mississippi (BB-41, later AG . . We hope that visitor conversations at WW2DB will be constructive and thought-provoking. Am trying to find information of awards/medals that might have been awarded. Navy officials said this week the report on the Mississippi was authentic, but pointed out that it was later overruled by higher-ranking investigators. 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 . After an extensive preliminary bombardment, the Marine assault force headed towards the beach and Mississippi and the other ships increased their rate of fire. Thanks for sharing it. This could have led to dangerous debris remaining in the breech when the gun crew assumed it was safe to load. The Navy' s Investigation Only the turret officers can be identified. The ceremony was held at San Pedro, California on 17 June 1924. I'll bet the Prince took something down with her. In the case of theIowa, the devastating blast happened toward the tail end of the Cold War, when the Navy felt it needed 600 ships to counter the Soviets. 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. Very informative. You can follow him on Twitter: @KyleMizokami. USS Mississippi (BB-41/AG-128), a New Mexico-class battleship, was the third ship of the United States Navy named in honor of the 20th state, and the second battleship to carry the name.Commissioned in 1917, too late to serve in World War I, she served extensively in the Pacific in World War II, for which she earned eight battle stars.She was one of several pre-war battleships that . Nov 1, 2021, 1:18 PM. RLoret 1 yr. ago. The military looks for scapegoats when people die rather than admit their mistakes or acknowledge that accidents are even possible, Truitt said. Built while America was a neutral party inWorld War I,Mississippisailed into the atomic age and later served as a massive test platform for surface-to-air missiles. BB-41 suffered another turret explosion killing 43 men 20 November 1943 off Makin Island. 1919-1940, by Harvey M. Beigel. 47 men were killed. In June 1941, in response to the deteriorating war situation in Europe, she was brought back to the Atlantic, operating between the United States and Iceland during much of the rest of that year. Today her name lives on in theVirginiaclass nuclear-powered attack submarine USS Mississippi (SSN-782). USS Mississippi and USS West Virginia departed Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, the latter after extensive repairs and modernization following damage received in the Pearl Harbor Attack. "The sad thing is I understand what they were doing and why they were doing it," Truitt told Task & Purpose. Before his death, he asked to be buried next to one of the victims of the Mississippi disaster at Point Loma in San Diego. The New Mexico-class ships had 13.5 inches of steel armor at the belt, and her turrets were protected with nine to eighteen inches of armor plating. She was launched on 27 August 1942 and commissioned on 22 February 1943. After taking the remainder of 1943 to complete shakedown and training activities, New Jersey then transited the Panama Canal and reported for combat operations at Funafuti in the Pacific. Out of commission? Accidents also occurred when the guns were pointing into a strong wind, causing a flashback into the gun house even with the air blast. "It's a classic example of Navy leaders not being willing to speak truth to power and make the hard decisions," Carroll said. Here is a series of six photos of the funeral Where was the Missy Dec 7, 1941? Truitt was in the magazine below the No. The recoil severely crushed ten men inside and the salvo narrowly missed an outgoing passenger vessel. Only two sailors in the turret firing room, J.F. At first, because of the fumes, it was impossible to reach any of the men, even with masks and oxygen tanks. Borders Makin Lagoon (Butaritari Lagoon). I served aboad the USS . On June 12, 1924, there was an explosion in the USS Mississippi's No. -23), the erstwhile Normandie, pride of the Compagnie . "Interestingly, I was never read my rights, nor did I realize that I was a suspect," Truitt told Task & Purpose. He is the founder and editor for the blogs Japan Security Watch, Asia Security Watch and War Is Boring. Less than two decades later, the Mississippi went through the same agony again. Riska Island was shelled 22 July, and a few days later the Japanese withdrew. Does anyone know or have a list of the sailors killed in the Nov. 1943 #2 turret explosion on the USS Mississippi? Sounding the fire alarm, Brotherton shouted orders to cut electric power, flood the magazines and stop the ship. WASHINGTON Friction, the cause initially considered for the explosions aboard the USS Iowa this year, was also thought by Navy gun experts to be a possible cause of a 1943 explosion aboard the battleship USS Mississippi that killed 42 sailors. He is buried in St Mary's cemetery in Pittsburgh PA. The goal of this "Thus helping Kendall suddenly become a suspect," Truitt said. 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. 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. Trying to contain it.'". An inquiry found that there had been inadequate air pressure forced through the gun to expel the incandescent gases and other flammable residue after firing. "They were trying to build up the Navy. The right gun had just fired and was returned to loading position and the plug opened. USS Mississippi (BB-41) was the second of three ships of the New Mexico-class battleships. German dive bombers would sink both ships in the spring of 1941. Sandia National Laboratories later determined that the powder had been rammed 24 inches too far, compressing the powder charge against the base of the dummy projectile before it ignited, the GAO report said. Nearly twenty yearsand a major refit laterthe USS Mississippi went to war in the Pacific. Mississippi provided gunfire support for the Lingayen landings in January 1945 and for the conquest of Okinawa in March-June. Battleship Mississippi (BB-41) Interactive Map. I still think we will make it without any casualties.". During the latter operation, on 29 November 1943, Mississippi experienced another turret explosion, which took 43 lives . Debris from firing the big guns had again ignited powder bags, causing the same accident and the same damage. Please refrain from using strong language. Later in the year, she was part of the force that invaded Peleliu and Leyte and defeated a Japanese task force in the Battle of Surigao Strait. 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. The next shell was rammed into the gun and the four powder bags on the spanner tray were rammed into place behind it. The World War II Database is founded and managed by WW2DB site administrators reserve the right to moderate, censor, and/or remove any comment. The Oklahoma capsizing is straight dope. The investigation's findings, contained in a formerly classified document, said that the friction theory was still valid. by tommy303 Fri Apr 04, 2014 5:30 pm, Post . It doesn't make any difference to the crew, their attitude being the same as six months ago, except that boys talk more about the Japs than the Germans. The commissioning ceremony aboard the USS Iowa, Feb. 22, 1943. 2 16-inch gun turret aboard the Iowa (BB-61). Those people turned out to be Gunner's Mate 2nd Class Clayton Hartwig, whom the Navy had initially claimed had loaded the gun before it exploded, and his best friend, Gunner's Mate 3rd Class Kendall Truitt. H.M.S. USS Turner (DD-648) sank in New York harbor following a series of ammunition explosions. "Imagine an old timey cap gun, where you remove the caps, and bang them with a hammer," Truitt said. MISSISSIPPI. At the time, sailors in his father's division all took out life insurance policies on each other. They are thick, alright. No names were provided so can not verify but I researched the ship photo and am pretty confident that it is the USS Mississippi. he told Penthouse in a January 1990 interview. The damaged 33,000-ton dreadnought headed back to port. Smoldering material left in the gun had ignited the powder charge of the next shot. Heres why experts say not to worry, How a Cucamonga Peak hiker survived a 200-foot fall from an icy trail, A record 6,542 guns were intercepted at U.S. airports in 2022, How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to Rachel Bloom. Then No. I said, again, this is weird. Mississippi sustained a turret explosion that killed 43 people. Flame and gases immediately filled the gun compartment, passed through the safety doors above the shell table to the other two gun compartments and through the peep doors to the turret officer's booth. Original Reporting. Suddenly, in the midst of the barrage, smoke and gas erupted from the rangefinders on either side of the number two turret. She was bombed from the air. According to the findings from a 1944 investigation by the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance, the explosion in turret No. 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. The USS Iowa turret explosion occurred in the Number Two 16inch gun turret of the United States Navy battleship USSIowa(BB61) on 19 April 1989. They are considered buried at sea by the US Navy. 2 turret of the battleship USS Mississippi in 1943 that killed 43 sailors was caused by a "flareback" when unexpelled gases from a previous round ignited powder bags. In 1943, the big battleship was off the coast of Makin Island, providing naval gunfire support to a . It took the sailors eight hours to douse the blaze. Following repairs, she participated in the capture of Kwajalein in February 1944 and bombarded Japanese-held islands in February and March. "At 10 minutes to 10 a.m., somebody came over the phones and said, 'We're having a problem, Turret 2, center gun,'" Carr recalled. Key point:Twice the same gun turret had an issue that caused it to blow up. 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. 2 turret aboard the battleship Mississippi, which also claimed 47 lives. Mississippi was a heavily armed battleship by the standards of the day. During this time she also conducted search operations for German "raiders" thought to be in the vicinity. The new Mississippi displaced 32,000 tons, could make 21 knots, and carried twelve 14 . USS Mississippi arrived at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for an overhaul. On 19 April 1989, the Number Two 16-inch gun turret of the United States Navy battleship USS Iowa (BB-61) exploded. He braved the flames, smoke, and carnage inside the turret to turn on sprinklers so that bags of gunpowder would not go off, and he secured hatches so that the accumulating water would not sink the ship,he told Penthouse in a January 1990 interview. Mississippi steamed to Australia on a U.S. Fleet good will tour in mid-1925. In its investigation of the explosion, the Navy concluded that the explosion was the result of a deliberate act and not a defect in the gun or propellant. National Security. Initially this had been the area of a flag and platform for ceremonies and visits to the site from 1950-1960. The blast, which killed 47 men on five of the six levels inside the No. RSS. Almost instantly, forty-five men and three officers were dead from asphyxiation. See attached. Your IP address will be tracked even if you remain anonymous. Available for both RF and RM licensing. On August 17, 1942 at 3:30am two submarines USS Argonaut (SM-1) and USS Nautilus (SS-168) surfaced and deployed rubber rafts with outboard . Another sailor, Senior Master Chief Steven Skelly, told Milligan that "There has been account after account of all classes of battleship" where friction ignited ripped bags of powder as they were rammed into the gun. Decommissioned in September 1956, USS Mississippi was sold for scrapping in November of that year, after almost forty years of service. The firing rocked the whole harbor district, shattering windows and critically injuring four men who were caught behind the recoiling gun. Mississippi provided gunfire support for the Lingayen landings in January 1945 and for the conquest of Okinawa in March-June. Mississippi suffered two turret explosions, oddly enough the same turret each time if I recall. TheNew Mexicoclass was the fourth of six distinct battleship classes laid down the 1910s, as the Navy rushed to fortify the Atlantic against tensionsand then outright warin Europe. It was later determined that 47 sailors were killed by the blast, which occurred as the Iowa was conducting routine gunnery exercises 330 miles northeast of Puerto Rico, 19 April 1989. The shell flew harmlessly out to sea. The accident has been a major influence on my life. The residue from the smokeless propellant had to be removed chemically. He had instinctively closed the doors to the ammunition hoist and flooded the magazines. 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. 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. No Way, Afghanistan: The Avoidable 20-Year Disaster, New Footage Shows Russias New T-90M Tank Going to War in Ukraine, The Collapse of Kamala Harris Is Nearly Complete. C. Peter Chen of Lava Development, LLC. The yard long is dated 1942. Abner Read jettisoned her torpedoes which immediately began their runs toward other ships in the group. The deck was armored to 3.5 inches and the conning tower to sixteen inches. TheNew Mexico-class ships had 13.5 inches of steel armor at the belt, and her turrets were protected with nine to eighteen inches of armor plating. 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