1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier; Part 14 – Guadalcanal, From the Start, A New and Different Context; CV Withdrawal (3/4)

Posted on July 28, 2019 by Ed

Blown Slick Series #13 Part 14 (3/4)

“It is true, Marines will take a pounding until their own air gets established (about ten days or so), but they can dig in, hole up, and wait. Extra losses are a localized operation. This is balanced against a potential National tragedy. Loss of our fleet or one or more of these carriers is a real, worldwide tragedy.”  Colonel Melvin J. Maas, USMC TF-61 Staff

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TF-61 at Guadalcanal: three of the for carriers in the Pacific in August 1942 – Wasp, Saratoga, and Enterprise.

In a series on carrier operations at the beginning of WWII it would be remiss not to discuss the controversial decisions made by VADM Fletcher concerning withdrawing his TF-61 carriers from the immediate vicinity of the attack after the initial landings. The basic role of the carriers in the Watchtower landings was, of course, to provide air support, in particular fighter cover.

This piece is not intended to cover the events in detail but only to provide basic context in the early evolution of carriers in warfare.  In hindsight it is useful to reflect on two items: 1) TF-61 was composed of three of only four US carriers in the Pacific and 2) it is well worth highlighting how much the rough parity of carrier forces of the two sides contributed to the protracted nature of the overall bloody struggle for the island.

Withdrawal of the Carriers

Continue reading →

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1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier; Part 13 – Guadalcanal, From the Start, A New and Different Context; Problems (2/4)

Posted on July 23, 2019 by Ed

 Blown Slick Series #13 Part 13 (2/4)

It was one thing to defend Midway operating in open ocean; being closely tied to the geography of the island and surrounding waters to provide air support was a whole other thing. With intelligence far inferior to that during Midway, staying in one general area exposed the carriers to submarine, land and sea based attack. There was much to be learned – at the expense of all participants.

First Day’s Air Support -Problems 

Bridge_off_USS_Wasp_(CV-7),_August_1942

Lieutenant Commander Wallace M. Beakley, Commander Wasp Air Group (CWAG), debrief of operations over Tulagi on the bridge wing of the USS Wasp (CV-7), during operations off Guadalcanal on 7 August 1942 after eight hours airborne. Present are (from left to right) Wasp Commanding Officer Captain Forrest P. Sherman, (wearing helmet), Rear Admiral Leigh Noyes, Commander Task Group 61.1 (facing camera), and CWAG Beakley.

The initial operations of 7 and 8 August though mostly successful posed multiple problems. This was most certainly an emerging warfare environment and thus operational learning was critical both in regard to holding Guadalcanal but also in regard to preparation for support of the planned operations of 1943-45 on the pathway to Japan itself. Indeed carrier aviation in 1945 would barely resemble that of ’42.

To understand the evolution of carrier warfare  to include expeditionary warfare here  are abbreviated summaries of the problems noted at the initiation of the Operation Watchtower campaign. Continue reading →

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1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier; Part 12 – Guadalcanal, From the Start, A New and Different Context; First Day Overview (1/4)

Posted on July 23, 2019 by Ed
RS Note: With the close of Chapter 2 of the Testimony of Pilot series, this posts continues with the 1942- The Year of the Aircraft Carrier series picking up with the story of the initial attack on Guadalcanal 7-8 August, 1942. Given the long break here is the link to Part #9 the Guadalcanal Introduction: http://rememberedsky.com/?p=2201

Blown Slick Series #13 Part 12 (1/4)

First Day’s Air Support – Overview

An hour before dawn on 7 August, Dog Day, Fletcher’s three TF-61 carriers (with Noyes, CTG-61.1, in tactical command) closed Point Victor, thirty miles west of Guadalcanal. … TF-61 was ready to begin the first Allied counter-offensive of the Pacific War. Ghormley exhorted Fletcher, Turner, and McCain, “Electrify the world with news of a real offensive,” and “Sock ’em in the Solomons.”

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Reflecting on the Battle (Campaign) of Guadalcanal, most likely the first thought to mind is the brutal aspects of Marine combat in terribly hot, wet, insect and snake infested jungle with an enemy who simply would not give up. But as noted previously the U.S. victory  was a function not only of the land battle but also of the linkage of land, sea and sea and  land based airpower.

The intention of this post in the Guadalcanal portion of the stories of the CVs in 1942 is not to retell the actions of August 7-9 1942, but rather to use the early events to highlight several serious problems that began to emerge. These problem areas would remain throughout the Guadalcanal Campaign and are telling context for the last two carrier battles of 1942 – Battle of the Eastern Solomon’s and the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands. Indeed, their resolution can be viewed as stepping stones in large part for the U.S. victory in the Pacific. Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (13): Chapter Two – Final Reflection on “harnessing the sky”

Posted on July 14, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot# 13

This second chapter takes its characterization as “harnessing the sky.” Remembering the sky trajectories from Kill Devil Hill to Paris to the Battles of Britain and Midway, to transcontinental airlines and to the edge of the atmosphere and eventually the Moon provide superb “this is no s…t” stories of so many great men and women. They were not only brave risk takers and great “sticks” but extraordinary engineers using aircraft as their data sources and computers in a continual effort to stretch the envelop of flight. Here to complete Chapter Two ARE reflections on three of the greatest with most significant impact on harnessing the sky. TINS

Special thanks to Fritz Trapnell and Dana Tibbitts – son and granddaughter of Admiral Trapnell – authors of Trap’s biography Harnessing the Sky!!!

Masters of the Sky

From

The Aviators

By Winston Groom

THE LIVES OF RICKENBACKER, LINDBERGH, AND DOOLITTLE give weight to the question: where do we find such men? Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (12): So, Where Does the Sky End?

Posted on July 11, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot# 12

The whole history of the space program is part of moving on and making life better for people on Earth. I want to carry on their work on through the Shuttle, the Station, and the space exploration initiative. I think that’s the way I see it now, and that’s the way I will continue to feel, throughout this flight and, and even afterwards. Eileen Collins

Endeavor

Space Shuttle Endeavor comes to Los Angeles to retire to museum life.

James Tiberius Kirk, Where Are You?

Update and Re-post of Rememberedsky’s fourth offering on 21 September 2012

Ask any pilot, why or how they got into flying and you’ll find multiple answers, many will overlap but some will be unique, but all will be a personal thing long remembered. Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (11): Cockpits – Situational Awareness in the the Arena

Posted on July 11, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot# 11

An airplane is just a bunch of sticks and wires and cloth, a tool for learning about the sky and about what kind of person I am, when I fly.  An airplane stands for freedom, for joy, for the power to understand, and to demonstrate that understanding.  Those things aren’t destructible.

Nothing by Chance, Richard Bach

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SPAD XIII  cockpit (c. 1918) as flown by Eddie Rickenbacker in the 94th AERO Squadron and the F-35 Lightning Joint Strike Fighter “glass” cockpit (2018)

Once I determined to make Trap’s story of the F4U  Corsair development and test the centerpiece of Chapter Two, it wasn’t hard to pick other aviators and their stories with similar experiences in the advancement of aviation – problem was who to leave out. Three in particular were difficult to exclude (Rickenbacker, Doolittle,Yeager).

But in the parsing of stories I found some intriguing pictures of the cockpits of the aircraft used to push the ole envelop. So here in keeping with Chapter One’s pictures as stories here is an offering of history via the cockpit. TINS: Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (10): Eileen Collins – Return to Flight

Posted on July 5, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot# 10

In 1990, Eileen Collins was only the second woman to graduate as a test pilot and be selected as a NASA astronaut. She became the first woman to pilot a space shuttle mission during the Discovery’s rendezvous with Mir space station in 1995 and became the first female commander of a US spacecraft on Space Shuttle Columbia on STS-93.

sts-114-discovery-return-to-flight

Her fourth and final mission was to resupply the International Space Station (ISS) as commander of Space Shuttle Discovery on STS-114 which heralded the “return to flight” of the Space Shuttle after the Columbia disaster. Discovery launched on July 26 and spent almost 14 days in orbit. During this mission, Astronaut Eileen Collins became the first person to fly the Space Shuttle through a 360 degree pitch maneuver so astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) could check the belly of the Shuttle and make sure there was no threat from debris related damage on reentry.

The thoughts of Eileen Collins related to the Space Shuttle return to flight seem most appropriate as testimony in the Chapter entitled Harnessing the Sky. TINS

Selected Comments of Eileen Collins, STS-114 Discovery Mission Commander

From

From NASA Interviews and Speeches

Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (9): Bob Hoover – the Best There Ever Was

Posted on June 14, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot #9

the greatest pilot I ever saw.- Chuck Yeager

Hoover’s “the finest acrobatic pilot we’ve seen in our lifetime”  -Astronaut Wally Schirra

greatest stick-and-rudder man who ever lived – Jimmy Doolittle

Aero Commander

Diversity of experience over their careers is certainly a characteristic of the aviators featured in this second offering of “harnessing the sky” stories within the testimony series. Bob Hoover taught himself aerobatics as a teenager, as a fighter pilot shot down a FW-190, served as a prisoner of war with aviators from various countries/services, escaped and stole a German fighter, as an Air Corps test pilot, among other missions was back-up pilot and chase for Chuck Yeager’s supersonic run in the Bell X-1, developed bombing techniques for the F-86, taught them in Korea while flying combat missions as a civilian, went to US Navy Test Pilot School, carrier qualified and did multiple carrier oriented tests, tested the F-100, and by demonstration convinced the Air Force it was the right plane for the Thunderbirds. Then he got famous. His airshow performances in the P-51 and Shrike Commander made him a household name.

If aviators like Yeager. Schirra and Doolittle consider him the “best” then his testimony just might have some value. TINS

Cockpit to Cocktail Party: The Bob Hoover Story

From

Interview with Bob Hoover (2002)

By Kathleen Bangs (re-posted with her permission)

It was a lucky break. In 2002, across the wide expanse of a Florida trade show conference hall, I recognized an unmistakable aviation icon. A lanky figure, under his signature Panama hat, moving as a swarm of fans buzzed around him. It was Bob Hoover. Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (8) Neil Armstrong – Research Pilot

Posted on May 23, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot# 8

I thought the attractions of being an astronaut were actually, not so much the Moon, but flying in a completely new medium.

Armstrong ETP

The pictures above do not represent the common perspective  of Neil Armstrong the astronaut and first man to step on the moon. Rather using our characterization of harnessing the sky, they and this post provides a testimony of pilot  – Korean War Navy fighter pilot and a NACA/NASA research pilot – related to exploring  the hypersonic flight regime existing above Mach 5 and the study of the possibilities of flying a winged vehicle outside the sensible atmosphere – the region where aerodynamic control surfaces will function. TINS

Trouble At the Edge of Space
from

First Man –
The Life of Neil Armstrong
The Authorized Biography

by James R. Hansen

“. . . I always felt that ‘form follows function,’ that engineering would decide the best way to go. I thought the attractions of being an astronaut were actually, not so much the Moon, but flying in a completely new medium.” This is not to say that Armstrong did not continue to prefer a winged pathway into space, via trans-atmospheric vehicles like the X-15 and X-20 Dyna-Soar. Even after the first suborbital Mercury flights in 1961, Armstrong thought “we were far more involved in spaceflight research than the Mercury people. “I always felt that the risks we had in the space side of the program were probably less than we had back in flying at Edwards or the general flight-test community. The reason is that we were exploring the frontiers, we were out at the edges of the flight envelope all the time, testing limits. That isn’t to say that we didn’t expect risks in the space program. But we felt pretty comfortable because we had so much technical backup and we didn’t go nearly as close to the limits as much as we did back in the old flight-test days.”

A significantly higher rate of fatalities in the world of flight test supports Armstrong’s contention. Continue reading →

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Testimony of Pilot (7): Frederick Trapnell – Test Pilot at War

Posted on May 15, 2019 by Ed

Testimony of Pilot #7

Aeroplane testing . . . demands for satisfactory results the highest training. It occupies no special place by virtue of this—it merely comes into line with the rest of engineering. Now, one can learn to fly in a month . . . but an engineer’s training requires years. It is evidently necessary, therefore, that engineers—men with scientific training and trained to observe accurately, to criticize fairly, to think logically—should become pilots, in order that the development of aeroplanes may proceed at the rate at which it must proceed if we are to hold that place in the air to which we lay claim—the highest. 
CAPTAIN William S. Farren, British Royal Aircraft Factory, 1917

Lead

1) 1933, Trap in F9C Sparrowhawk testing the trapeze recovery system on the airship USS Macon; 2) jet testing; 3) book cover; 4) April 1943, first naval aviator to fly a jet – the Bell P-59A Airacomet at Muroc

This second chapter takes its characterization as “harnessing the sky.”  Below are excerpts from the book of that title telling the story of the test pilot who led naval aviation out of bi-planes to the airwings that won the war in the Pacific, and along the way became the US Navy’s first jet pilot, then founding the Navy Test Pilot School. With way too many critical stories for a complete picture of Trap, specific focus here is on his crucial role in the design and testing of the F4U Corsair of WWII and Korean War fame. TINS

Making the F4U Corsair a Combat Star
from

Harnessing the Sky:
Frederick “Trap” Trapnell, the U.S. Navy’s Aviation Pioneer, 1923-1952

by Frederic M. Trapnell Jr. and Dana Trapnell Tibbitts

Since when were Navy test pilots redesigning their aircraft? Continue reading →

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