Evening star., 1942-06-16
Navy Flyers Tear Jap Aircroft Carrier Apart
In Debut Fight Between Seo-Borne Planes

uub o~~
(This Is the fourth OF nins
stories supplied to the Associated
Press by the Chicago Tribune,
whose correspondent, Stanley
Johnston, pas the only American
reporter aboard the aircraft car
rier Lexington In the Coral Sea
battleJ
BY STANLEY JOHNSTON,
Foreisn Correspondent of the Chicaso
Tribune.
CHICAGO, June 16.-A pillar of
flame and smoke-the funeral pyre
of II Japanese airmen-opened the
second stage of the epic five-day
Coral Sea battle. This was one of
the unforgettable sights I saw dur
ing the tense moments of this, the
first of the worlds fights between
modern aircraft carrier forces.
1t was awful, majestic and a
threat of what was ahead for all
Of us, for the big Nipponese patrol
plane that burned there so fiercely
in the sky and on the sea, fell right
into the heart of our speeding two
carrier task force.
Our fighter planes, patrolling in
pairs, found the Jap-a Kawanishi
our-engined, long-range flying boat
with a 132-foot wing span-lurking
in the cloud layer that covered us
at the 8,000-foot level. The plane
was first seen right over the Lex
ington. which was in the center of
our protective cruiser and destroyer
screen.
1t. Comdr. Jorgensen. leader of
the patrol then in the air, called to
us on the signal bridge over the
fighter radio circuit: "Tally-ho, a
plane. Kawanishi at $500 feet, right
over you" His voice died away,
then came in strongly from the
loud speakers that carried its sound
to every part of the great 880-foot
vessel. He said: Wait a minute
and I'll show him to you"
Spinning From Sky.
All of us who could rushed to
scan the sky. We saw only the
clouds for a moment. then a glow
showed through. Out of the cloud
vspor less than a mile away popped
the huge Jap plane, afire and spin
ming madly in an uncontrolled
descent. This ship was larger than
the Pan-American Always Martin
transoceanic air liners, but 1t spun
exactly like the small German
fighters and bombers I'd seen shot
down over England two years ago.
The flame, barely visible at first,
bloomed swiftly. The turning wreck
age crashed into the water. The
fire turned to thick black smoke.
1t. Comdr. Jorgensen called his shots
for the whole feet to see, and de-
livered as he promised.
All this was just an incident in
the broader battle picture. 1t hap
pened the morning of May while
rs planes from our nest were in the
air speeding toward Japanese car
rier force that had been located at
dawn IT'S miles northeast Of us. 1t.
Comdr. Jorgensen's feat served to
ease momentarily the pre-action
tension that inevitably built up
among the carriers crew when her
planes were out on q fighting
mission.
Our task force had drawn away
southwark after the victory on May
4 at Tulagi Harbor in the Solomon
Islands. Although we had not rec
ognized 1t as such, total destruction
of the occupation force, cruisers, de-
stroyers and all the important trans
ports in Tulagi Harbor had been
only the opening wedge Of the des-
perate fight in which we now found
ourselves.
Refuel Under Way.
On May and 6 we had refueled
at sea-never stopping our steam
ing, but taking on fuel through hose
lines that connected tankers with
us. 1t was not essential for us to
fuel, but Rear Admiral Frank j.
Fletcher, who was commanding the
entire task force, and Rear Admiral
Aubrey Fitch, commanding the Lex
ington group, believed that they
should have their tanks as nearly
full as possible at all times.
During the afternoon Of May 6,
our air scouts located the first Of
the Jap pincers fleet. 1t was $50
miles northeast of what then was
our positions. and was described as
two big carriers, four heavy cruisers
and a dozen or more deStroyers.
This was the fleet sent to hold the
Jomard passage at the southeastern
tip of New Guinea. Admiral Fletcher
at once turned our force and
steamed hard to be in position to
hit the Japs the next day.
Oh before dawn the morning Of
May 7, our scouts did not find the
enemy for some hours. Shortly
after 8 o'clock, however, they made
contact. The Japs had split up
during the night, and our planes
found only one carrier, three heavy
cruisers and six destroyers. The
other cruisers and carrier, plus six
destroyers, had parted company with
the main force and we're not seen
again on May 7.
The American air fleet stalking
the Japanese consisted of "a torpedo
planes, each with one heavy torpedo;
36 scouts and dive bombers, each
with one 1,000-pound bomb or one
500-pound bomb and two 100-pound
bombs, and 16 fighter planes to deal
with Japanese defensive and scout
plane patrols.
Spotted 50 Mines Away.
The route they followed was
chosen to bring the airmen against
the Japanese near the island of
Misima, the northernmost island of
the .Louisaides Archipelago that Is
flung out of the eastern tip Of New
Guinea. Climbing through the
clouds, they leveled of in clear air,
then were able to see the ocean
when the cloud layer ended.
Their course took them along the
northern edge of the island Of
Tagula, then north past the eastern
tip of Misima. 1t. Comdr. Hamilton,
leading the dive bombers, picked
out the japanese so miles away.