The daily monitor leader. [volume] (Mount Clemens, Mich.) 1942-19??, 1944-06-22
Fleet
Continued on Page One)


or more battleShips, five or SIN
carriers, five fleet tankcrs ano
unSpccified number Of cruiser:
and dcStroycrs.
He listed these casualties in
ficled ON the enemy.
"One carrier. believed 10 be
the Zuikaka U1,000 tonS) re-
ceived three 1000 pound bomb
hits. J
zone HaNataka class carrier
was severely damaged and lett
burning furiOusly.
"Onc light carrier probably
10000 tons ZuihO Iaiho class
received at least one bomb hit.
zone KOngO class battleshIp
$4,000 tons was damaged.
"One cruiser was damaged"
Three deStrONcrS were ram
aged, one of which is believed 10
have sunk.
Three tankerS were sunk.
Two tankers were severely
damaged and left burning.
Fifteen to 90 defending arr
craft were shot down"
The destruction or damaging
Of Ii ships Was the third great
est single blow dealt the Japa-
ncSe battle fleet of the war.
The greatest was the battle of
Midway in June, 1912, when an
other carrier force under Ad-
miral Spruance sank four en-
envy carriers and nearly a score
of other ships.
The second biggest defeat was
Nov. 1915, 1912, in the battle
off Guadalcanal when the enc
my lost more than 80 ships sunk
and damaged.
The battle summary for Sun
days and Mondays action
shows conclusiVcly why Admir-
al Nimitz in a Monday Press
Conference stated he hoped the
enemy would close with the
United States fleet for a decisive
Naval action.
On Sunday Jap planes at
tackled Admiral Spruance fifth
fleet. They achieved no surprise.
They lost 1853 planes-335 10
our fighters and Is TO our ships
only superficial damage on only
anti-aircraft. They inflic d
three of our ships.
Admiral Mitscher's carrier
force pursued the japanese. On
Monday afternoon it located the
Japanese and attacked. There
was time for just one assault be-
fore nightfall. But in just those
two or three hours Of daylight
his bombers and torpedo planes
sank or damaged IA enemy
ships.
They destroyed Is or 20 Jap
anese planes which rose in weak
defense of the enemy's great
force.
And Mitscher's force achieved
such surprise that the enemy
was not able 10 counter attack.
WITH PLANES DOWN
Admiral MItscher has one ad-
vantage Monday. He caught the
japanese with their planes
downtown in the ocean.
This enemy fleet which Ad-
miral Mitscher riddled Monday
now has been fairly we'll estab-
lished as the one which attacked
our force Sunday. Loss of 353
planes from its five or six car
riers virtually wiped out its
planes so that it had to rely
largely on anti-aircraft for de-
Tense which proved pretty flu
tile.
The fact that only 20 Japa-
nese planes were downed Mon
day further indicates the enemy
had very few aircraft to offer
resistance.
Our loss OF 40 aircraft does
not necessarily mean anywhere
near that total was lost TO enc
my action.
Because the battle was closed
so late in the day and at nearly
extreme range in order TO catch
the Jap fleet, all of our planes
were not able 10 return TO their
carriers. Many Of these 40 land
cd in the water and the crews
took TO rubber life RATS.
Some Of these already have
been picked up and others I'M
doubtedly were rescued after
dawn Tuesday although reports
arc incomplete.
Three out of every four pedcs-
frian fatalities are male.