More Guadalcanal action - and a very sad story [:(]
[4180 Juneau - by Robert Jenkins]
.B Engine Output: 75,000 hp
.B Top Speed: 32.5 Knots
.B
Main Armament: eight dual 5-inch (127mm) gun mounts (16x 5-inch guns), 16 x 1.1-inch (28mm) guns in quad mounts
The Atlanta class were the only class of U.S. Navy cruisers in World War II to be armed with torpedoes tubes (8x 21-inch (533mm) torpedo tubes in two quad launchers)
.B Displacement (full load): 8,340 tons
.B Thickest Armour: 3.75-inch (belt)
.P The
Atlanta class consisted of eleven light cruisers built for the United
States Navy (USN) between 1940 and 1946. The last three ships of the class were
not completed until well after the Second World War had finished and as a result,
World In Flames allows the US player to build the first eight ships of the class
only.
.P These ships were the smallest cruisers to serve with the USN during the war,
being twenty-five foot shorter than the much earlier
Omaha’s; the ships they were
designed to replace. The first four were completed to a slightly different design
to the second group of four (see below).
.P In accordance with the 1936 London Naval Treaty, they were designed to a 6,000
ton restriction, although they actually came in slightly over this.
.P
The Atlanta class was designed as fast scout cruisers, flotilla leaders, and later proved to be effective anti-aircraft cruisers. The main armament selected for the class came in the form of the U.S. Navy's existing Mark 12 dual-purpose 5"/38 calibre (127mm) gun. Which provided excellent anti-aircraft (AA) protection as well as the ability to overcome enemy destroyers.
The guns were fitted in no less than eight twin turrets, six forward,
six aft and two in the waist. Note - only the first four ships were fitted with
the waist guns as the later ships were provided with additional close-range AA
guns instead. For the first four ships AA weaponry was originally four quadruple
1.1-inch guns and eight 20mm.
.P The
armour protection was significantly lighter than that fitted to the
Brooklyn’s - the previous light cruiser class - although this is not surprising
given the 4,000 ton weight differential.
.P Their 75,000 hp gave a top speed in line with all contemporary US cruisers but
was slightly less than the designed speed of 34 knots.
.P In line with naming convention, the class were named after large cities in the
United States.
.P USS Juneau was completed in February 1942, two months after the Japanese
surprise attack on Pearl Harbor that brought the United States into World War II.
She was initially deployed on the Atlantic seaboard. After undergoing trials and
crew work-up, she was ordered to the West Indies, where she monitored the
movements of Vichy French ships that were holed up in the islands of Martinique
and Guadeloupe.
.P Juneau returned to the dockyard for minor work and was then used on patrol and
escort duty in both the North Atlantic and the Caribbean. However, her time on
the Eastern Seaboard came to a close towards the end of August 1942; her presence
was desperately needed in the southwest Pacific.
.P On the 9th August, US Marines from the 1st Marine Division had landed on two
of the Solomon Islands; Tulagi and Guadalcanal (see Transport Counter 4247). The
subsequent fighting - on land, sea and air - for the right to own the latter
island was to last six months, and would cost both the Americans and the Japanese
thousands of lives, hundreds of aircraft and a great many ships. USS Juneau was
one of the ships that would find their ultimate resting place in the waters that
surrounded the Solomon Islands. Her loss also provided World War II with one of
its more tragic episodes.
.P All that was in the future however. Having reached the Pacific, Juneau was
ordered to join Task Force (TF) 18, which she did on the 10th September. TF18,
which was centred around the carrier Wasp, was deployed south of Guadalcanal with
three objectives: to supplement the small number of aircraft based on Guadalcanal
itself; to provide protection for American troop and supply convoys to the
island; and to stop the Japanese fleet from intervening in the waters around the
Solomon Islands.
.P But, just five days after joining up with Wasp, the carrier was sunk by
torpedoes fired from the Japanese submarine I-19. Juneau was ordered immediately
to join TF17, to provide protection for the carrier USS Hornet. Sadly, at the end
of October, in what was Juneau's first major battle, Hornet was sunk too; this
time to enemy air attack. The battle, known as the Battle of the Santa Cruz
Islands, was on paper, a Japanese victory, but the large cost to the Japanese
Navy in terms of experienced pilots was one they could ill-afford, and would cost
them dearly in operations in and around Guadalcanal in the coming weeks.
.P Juneau's last operation took place in the middle of November, in a battle that
became known as the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. The fight for Guadalcanal
was reaching its climax. By November, the Japanese were about to make their final
all out attempt to capture the island.
.P Before any fresh offensive could be launched, the Japanese troops on the
island needed reinforcing. A large convoy, containing eleven transports, put to
sea with its close escort on the 11th November and sailed for Guadalcanal. The
Japanese intended to use two fast battleships - Hiei and Kirishima - for the
first time in the confined waters north of Guadalcanal. The plan was to use the
battleships to shell the American airfield on the island in the early hours of
the 13th November, and so render the airstrip inoperable. With no interference
from American aircraft, the transports would be left in peace to unload their
valuable cargo.
Rear-Admiral Hiroaki Abe flew his flag in Hiei, the light cruiser
Nagara and six destroyers escorted the two battleships. Also available to Abe
were four destroyers that would be used to sweep ahead of his
bombardment force, and three more that would be used to patrol the area whilst
the battleships were busy rendering Henderson airfield (named after one of the
American Marine heroes from the Battle of Midway) hors de combat.
.P The Americans themselves planned to run two convoy operations to Guadalcanal
at around the same time. In support of these operations a Task Group (TG) 67.4
was gathered together from two smaller TG's. This task group, commanded by
Rear-Admiral Daniel Callaghan consisted of the heavy cruisers Portland and San
Francisco (Flagship); the light cruisers Atlanta, Helena and Juneau; and the
destroyers Aaron Ward, Barton, Cushing, Fletcher, Laffey, Monssen, O'Bannon and
Sterett.
.P The odds, based on the number of ships, the calibre of guns and number of
torpedoes available, were heavily stacked in the favour of the Imperial Japanese
Navy. However, a couple of factors combined to ensure that this advantage would
be wasted. Firstly, the Japanese ships sailed through an extremely heavy rain
shower that caused the Japanese commander to decide to postpone the bombardment.
He ordered a reversal of course, but then later changed his mind. In the poor
weather conditions, these course changes caused confusion in the positioning of
Abe's ships. Secondly, the battleships were not armed with armour-piercing shells
as Abe expected no opposition on his way to bombard Henderson airfield.
.P For Callaghan, there was no such drama, and his ships, sailed northwest in
relatively calm seas. The American admiral placed four destroyers in line astern
at the head of the formation; Cushing followed by Laffey, then Sterett and
O'Bannon. At the rear of the column were Aaron Ward, Barton, Monssen and
Fletcher. Sandwiched between the two groups of four destroyers were the cruisers:
Atlanta, San Francisco, Portland, Helena and Juneau. Unfortunately, none of the
five ships equipped with the most up-to-date radar were placed at the head of the
column, negating what should have been a key advantage in the coming battle.
.P When the two fleets came across each other just before 0130hrs on the morning
of the 13th, the range was just 1,000 yards between the closest ships. The
position of the Japanese ships was essentially as follows: the destroyers
Harusame and Yudachi were some distance ahead of the main force; behind them came
Nagara, Hiei and Kirishima. To starboard, between the cruiser and Hiei were the
destroyers Inazuma, Akatsuki and Ikazuchi. To the port side of the battleships
were the destroyers Yukikaze, Amatsukaze and Terezuki. Meanwhile, the final three
destroyers Samidare, Murasame and Asagumo were behind Kirishima and were
initially sailing northeast, away from the main fleet.
.P The American column turned to port and headed straight for the Japanese fleet.
So, when firing began at 0148hrs, the battle very quickly developed into a free
for all at very close-range. Trying to record what happened that morning to each
ship is almost impossible and the writer would refer any reader to the excellent
account contained within Richard B Frank's Guadalcanal. Suffice to say that in
the intensity and confusion of battle both sides suffered heavy losses. The
battle lasted less than three quarters of an hour, but in that time there were
numerous incidents of friendly fire accidents.
.P At the head of the American line, Cushing was an early casualty (although she
only sank later that day) as was Laffey, which blew up as she sank; both were
victim to shells from multiple enemy ships. Both Sterett and O'Bannon were able
eventually to withdraw despite taking varying degrees of punishment during the
engagement.
.P Atlanta had Rear-Admiral Norman Scott aboard. He was Callaghan's second in
command and had been the victor at the Battle of Cape Esperance just a month
before. At one point Atlanta was
pummeled by shells from San Francisco. Atlanta
was turned into a fireball and Scott was killed. The cruiser sank long after the
battle had ended, despite heroic efforts to save her. San Francisco herself
received hit after hit from Hiei's 14-inch guns and was lucky to survive.
However, despite losing Callaghan and most of the senior officers, San Francisco
remained in the fight during the whole battle.
.P Portland too was badly damaged, but despite receiving a hit from a long-lance
torpedo on her starboard side, she remained afloat. Helena was the least mauled
of the US cruisers that morning, having been hit less than half a dozen times.
Last but not least of the cruisers came Juneau. she took little part in the
battle having also been badly damaged by a torpedo early on.
.P Of the four destroyers that brought up the rear, Aaron Ward survived a number
of hits from either Hiei or Kirishima. Barton was hit by two torpedoes that
caused her to break in two and sink in a ball of fire with heavy loss of life.
Monssen too became a mass of flames as a result of almost forty shell hits and
she sank later that morning. Fletcher was the only American ship to escape any
damage in the chaos.
.P For the Japanese, the damage was less severe, with the destroyers Akatsuki
and Yudachi sunk: the former blew up in the heat of the battle, while the
latter's drifting hulk was sunk by Portland sometime after the battle. Fellow
destroyers Amatsukaze, Ikazuchi and Murasame were damaged. But the biggest loss
to the Japanese was that of the seriously damaged Hiei later that morning. In
the thick of the action from the start, she had taken countless 5, 6 and 8-inch
shell hits, although it was damage from American torpedoes that was to seal her
fate.
.P Unable to steer properly and with her speed down to single digits, Hiei was
a magnet for American aircraft from Guadalcanal, from the carrier Enterprise,
and even long range B-17's, as she tried in vain to get to safety during the
daylight hours. She sank later that evening after numerous bomb and torpedo
strikes.
.P USS Juneau meanwhile, having survived the torpedo hit, was sailing at reduced
speed with many of the other damaged warships and heading for Espiritu Santu. But
just after 1100hrs that morning, she was struck by another torpedo - this time
from submarine I-26. The effect of the torpedo hit was cataclysmic; Juneau blew-
up and disappeared beneath the waves in seconds.
.P Aboard Juneau since she commissioned, were five brothers from Waterloo, Iowa:
George, Francis, Joseph, Madison and Albert Sullivan. Four of the brothers are
believed to have died instantly while the fifth, George, was one of the 100 or
so initial survivors that found themselves in the water after Juneau had gone
down. Sadly, the decision was taken not to stop to pick up survivors and before
these men could be rescued - - a combination of shark attack, exhaustion, thirst
etc - meant that most of these men would die. Just ten men who survived the
initial sinking were rescued; George Sullivan was not amongst them.
.P In tribute to the five Sullivan brothers,
the Fletcher class destroyer USS The Sullivan’s (DD-537), was commissioned in 1943.
She was the first US warship to be named after more
than one person. Juneau's loss of life - 683 officers and crew - was the largest
suffered by an
American ship of her size in World War II.
Note: They were also known as the Atlanta-Oakland class. The Oakland and later ships of the class were designed as Flagships with additional space for a flag officer and his staff but the additional space was used for additional crew necessary to man anti-aircraft weapons and electronics. They also had their two "wing" mounts of dual 5-inch guns replaced with 8x 40mm/56 cal anti-aircraft guns.
USS Oakland (CL-95)
USS Reno (CL-96)
USS Flint (CL-97)
USS Tucson (CL-98)
Note: The Fighting Sullivans (movie 1944)
