In frame 2 at the start, half of the VT-2 pilots were ordered to man PT boats out of Port Moresby to attack the nearby Japanese invasion fleet. I was in a PT boat for this part of the mission.
PT boats, driven by members of VT-2, racing toward the enemy carrier. Brooke
is in the lead, followed by SEseph and Moocher. The Japanese carrier can be
seen on fire in the upper right of the image, with two enemy cruisers in front
of it and varous enemy destroyers about.
Brooke's PT boat, in the middle of the image, as the leading boat of the group
has just come under fire. White columns of water straddle his boat and indicate
near misses. Other shots have already started to hit his boat. Brooke has started
to launch a spread of torpedoes toward the enemy aircraft carrier (the ship
on fire). He has launched two torpedoes so far, as can be seen by their wakes
just right of his PT boat.
Brooke has launched his four torpedoes and begun to evade enemy fire. Another
shot has missed him (column of water to the left rear of his boat). Above and
to the right of Brooke in the image are explosions on an enemy destroyer. Judging
from the torpedo wake, one of his torpedos might have hit it (it is the destroyer
that was close to his front in the previous image). Or it could be that someone
has just hit the destroyer with a rocket salvo. The other three torpedoes continue
on course.
Brooke does a hard turn right and launches a rocket salvo (shown as white streaks
from Brooke's PT boat) at an enemy destroyer (the one with explosions on it
in the previous image). Moocher (the green lettering) seems to be attacking
the enemy cruiser in the upper right of the image.
As Brooke was maneuvering his PT boat (center of the image) to attack the enemy
cruiser in the area, he saw it sinking. This is a shot of the enemy cruiser
sinking, bow first (the ship with the red underside, in the upper right of the
image). PT boats must have gotten several torpedoes into it.
Brooke in a firefight with four enemy PT boats (one is off image to the right).
His is taking evasive maneuvers, but he is trailing black smoke from damage
already taken and is taking more hits from several of the enemy boats. Brooke
is returning fire with his 40 mm gun and getting hits on the enemy PT boat 800
yards to his left rear (as indicated by the flashes on the side of the enemy
ship). Brooke's ship exploded shortly after this image was taken.
After the PT-boat mission, the rest of VT-2 was ordered to take off in TBM Avengers from our beloved Lexington. The first half of VT-2 was just returning, so we all joined up and took off to go attack enemy task groups.
An image of VT-2 over an enemy carrier task group. Brooke's TBM is the black
dot at the center of the image. The rest of VT-2 is indicated by green icons.
There are flak bursts all around, and the enemy carrier group can be seen at
the bottom of the image, with the carrier in the middle, a cruiser in the lead,
and destroyers in the other screening positions.
VT-2 broke up into two groups. Group 2 was lead by Vladd and included Leigh,
SA2, Klem, Have, Gab, and Moocher. Group 1 was lead by Brooke and included HB555,
Hoop, SEseph, and Jungle. Off to Brooke's right in the image is Group 2 on its
attack run, under intense anti-aircraft fire.
Group 2 sinks the carrier! Just before Group 1 launched torpedoes, the enemy
carrier began to sink. Most of Group 1 is able to hold on to its torpedoes.
Klem and Moocher can be seen to Brooke's left in the image, pulling up after
their torpedo runs and working to avoid AA fire.
With the carrier down, Brooke and Group 1 reorient for another attack. Brooke
drops a torpedo for the enemy cruiser.
Brooke's torpedo misses just to the front of the cruiser. Damnation!
While VT-2 was attacking the enemy fleet, one enemy Zero came in to attack us.
With our torpedoes away, we chose to engage the Zero. Here, Brooke follows the
Zero into a vertical climb and puts some hits into his left wing root. Debris
comes off the Zero, and it is leaking fuel (what looks like white smoke trailing
the Zero).
The Zero expodes shortly thereafter. Brooke, HB555, SikBoy, and Rodeo were on
him, all in TBM Avengers.
After VT-2 sank the enemy carrier, elements of VT-2 were ordered to Port Moresby
to help defend it. Brooke uses his TBM to help kill enemy PT boats in the area.
Here, he shoots up an enemy PT boat, getting flashes and hits, helping a friendly
PT boat (shown in the left of the image).
Besides enemy PT boats, there are enemy LVT's in the area (landing craft, containing
troops for taking over Port Moresby). The LVT's are using trees for cover, and
are very hard to find and to attack. As Brooke flies low at about 200 mph, looking
for LVT's, you can barely see one forward and left of Brooke's TBM in the image
(by the red lettering).
The enemy's fleets are decimated by now, but what's left has steamed to Port
Moresby. A cruiser (red underside) is already sinking at the bow, so Brooke
targets a destroyer (at the right of the image) with this torpedo drop.
Finally, Brooke seems to have aimed well. This image shows the instant before
Brooke's torpedo hits the enemy destroyer.
The result: a touch up amidships.
Near dusk, with Japanese carriers and cruisers sunk and Port Moresby defended,
all planes are called back to their carriers for landing. Brooke lines up his
Avenger for landing on Lady Lex.
Touching down.
Brooke ended Frame 2 with 2 torpedo hits, 2 kills (PT boats), and 7 assists (one Zero and PT boats)
by Brooke P. Anderson
e-mail: brooke@electraforge.com
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