The military eats their own it takes a while to realize that.". During gunnery practice on 12 June 1924, she suffered a turret fire that took the lives of 48 of her crew. See attached. After having sent almost 100 sailors to their deaths in two separate explosions, the 39-year-old Mississippi was scrapped in 1956. Your IP address will be tracked even if you remain anonymous. Forty-eight men died of asphyxiation as a result of the explosion. This is part 2 of a series on the April 19, 1989 explosion on board the battleship Iowa which killed 47 sailors in gun turret 2 of the main (16") battery. Forty-seven sailors in the turret died in the blast and ensuing fire. Island Hopping . It was one of the worst disasters suffered by the Navy during peacetime. Built while America was a neutral party inWorld War I,Mississippisailed into the atomic age and later served as a massive test platform for surface-to-air missiles. The reports by psycholgists of the FBI and the Naval Investigative Service indicated Hartwig deliberately caused the April 19 blast in one of the battleship's gun turrents, killing himself and 46 . In these tests, Navy technicians simulated conditions in the center gun at the time of the accident, including ramming the 110-pound bags of powder 21-inches further into the barrel than normal. Lava's technical capabilities. Out of commission? 2 turret when the gun exploded above him. Investigators also found that some access safety doors inside the turret had been left partly open. Mississippi. "Thus helping Kendall suddenly become a suspect," Truitt said. Forty-three sailors died. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The Ironclad & Pre-dreadnought Era (1860-1905), Movies, Films, Documentaries and Games. We just outran several units of the German fleet (submarines). 1943 - 1943: 9: My father, A.A. Frye was an anti-aircraft gunner's mate on the starboard side. On the eighth salvo, turret two, gun two suffered a rare flare back. The four powder bags inserted into the breech, totaling 470 pounds of explosive powder, caught fire and ignited other bags waiting to be loaded. 13 June 1924 I was on active duty at that time. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Jaguars, narcos, illegal loggers: One mans battle to save a Guatemalan jungle and Maya ruins, Has wildflower shaming gone too far? A Marine rifle squad fired three volleys. "It's a classic example of Navy leaders not being willing to speak truth to power and make the hard decisions," Carroll said. Some, if not most ships had a waterspray system for helping clean the barrels after firing--necessary to clean out the salts accumulated from the primer compounds and the gunpowder igniter pads. Mississippi provided gunfire support for the Lingayen landings in January 1945 and for the conquest of Okinawa in March-June. USS Mississippi (BB-41, later AG-128), 1917-1956, DANFS - Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, Permitting Policy and Resource Management, The 9/11 Terrorist Attacks: 20 Years Later, "Ex Scientia Tridens": The U.S. During the latter operation, on 29 November 1943, Mississippi experienced another turret explosion, which took 43 lives . Debris from firing the big guns had again ignited powder bags, causing the same accident and the same damage. Abner Read jettisoned her torpedoes which immediately began their runs toward other ships in the group. July 1999. p. 9. Copyright 2023 Center for the National Interest All Rights Reserved. Mississippi provided gunfire support for the Lingayen landings in January 1945 and for the conquest of Okinawa in March-June. Although each barrel was blasted between firings with pressurized air to evacuate debris, the middle barrel of each turret received a lower pressure burst than the left and right barrels. Thanks for posting. She was powered by nine Babcock and Wilcox boilers and her four screws were driven by four Curtis turbines producing a maximum 32,000 horsepower. He is buried in St Mary's cemetery in Pittsburgh PA. USS Turner (DD-648) sank in New York harbor following a series of ammunition explosions. Naval Academy, The Sullivan Brothers and the Assignment of Family Members, Historic Former U.S. Navy Bases and Stations, The African American Experience in the U.S. Navy, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the U.S. Navy, Contributions of Native Americans to the U.S. Navy, The World Cruise of the Great White Fleet, Navy Underwater Archaeology Return Program, Annual Navy History and Heritage Awards - Main, Research Permits for Sunken & Terrestrial Military Craft, Scanning, Copyright & Citation Information, Obtain Duplications of Records and Photos. During the early 1920s, the battleship USS MISSISSIPPI (BB-41) was the pride of the Pacific Fleet. turret II as the crew loaded the gun. -23), the erstwhile Normandie, pride of the Compagnie . If anyone knows how to trace yard long personnel to the the active units assigned please let me know thanks. Today located in Republic of Kiribati. Almost immediately upon his assignment to the ship, he found himself in the midst of the war, although the U.S. was "officially" neutral at the time. 20 November 1943. Over more than a decade, she operated with the fleet's other battleships, conducting exercises and training operations in the Pacific and in the Caribbean. Mississippi sustained a turret explosion that killed 43 people. Kyle Mizokami is a defense and national security writer based in San Francisco who has appeared in the Diplomat, Foreign Policy, War is Boring and the Daily Beast. 2 turret. Mississippi was instrumental in the testing and eventual fielding of the Convair RIM-2 Terrier, the U.S. Navys first surface-to-air missile. The MISSISSIPPI was once again with the Pacific Fleet. According to the findings from a 1944 investigation by the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance, the explosion in turret No. April 20, 1989. "I regret the accident occurred, obviously. Only two sailors in the turret firing room, J.F. Hartwig's father had seen combat in the Navy as a gunner's mate, Truitt said. The scene inside was too terrible to describe. Although each barrel was blasted between firings with pressurized air to evacuate debris, the middle barrel of each turret received a lower pressure burst than the left and right barrels. During the mid-1950s, she was test ship for the Navy's first surface-to-air guided missile, the "Terrier". After the war, Mississippi was effectively defanged, with three of her four main battery turrets removed. 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My uncle died in 1937 from TB (he contracted while on active duty) so the story was told to me by his brother (my grandfather). Then No. "USS Mississippi (BB-41) cordite fire in the #2 14-inch gun turret. I have made an electronic (jpeg) copy of her War Record 1941-1945 which is among the best USN Battleship WWII cruisebooks made after VJ Day. But when investigators learned that Hartwig had named Truitt the beneficiary of a $100,000 life insurance policy, they claimed thatHartwig who died in the blast had planted a bomb in the gun. Nearly twenty yearsand a major refit laterthe USS Mississippi went to war in the Pacific. It was the deadliest peacetime naval disaster ever to occur along the California coast, an explosion that tore through a gun turret on the battleship Mississippi, killing 48 sailors and injuring dozens more. siege1863, She was powered by nine Babcock and Wilcox boilers and her four screws were driven by four Curtis turbines producing a maximum 32,000 horsepower. Here is a portion of a realphoto postcard showing the removal of the dead once the ship returned to port. USS New Jersey During World War II . The Mississippi enjoyed a reputation for collecting gunnery awards, and the day before had hit 52 out of 55 targets. All visitor submitted comments are opinions of those making the submissions and do not reflect views of WW2DB. The accident occurred when rescuers were removing the body of the gun pointer, who was found sitting at his post with his finger still on the trigger. Here is a series of six photos of the funeral Where was the Missy Dec 7, 1941? 2, the ship was anchored just inside the breakwater. In 1961 the USS ARIZONA was altered once more. In 2009 he cofounded the defense and security blogJapan Security Watch. On April 19, 1989, the day of the blast, the ship was preparing for live-fire training at Vieques, Puerto Rico Naval Training Range. At the time of the 1943 explosion, the Mississippi, a New Mexico-class battleship built at Newport News Shipbuilding and commissioned in 1917, was shelling Makin Island in the Pacific. Truitt was in the magazine below the No. She was redesignated AG-128 and equipped with a number of radars and prototype air defense missile systems. Very informative. Did you enjoy this article or find this article helpful? The exact date and number of casualties were not available. The deadly blast aboard the Iowa marked the first explosion in a battleship turret since 1943, when 43 sailors aboard the USS Mississippi were killed, the Government Accountability Office later determined. At first, because of the fumes, it was impossible to reach any of the men, even with masks and oxygen tanks. All of the crew had been advised to set up allotment accounts for their families. I said, again, this is weird. The gunners on all three battlewagons were competing for a $20 prize that Congress had voted to award the fleets most proficient naval marksman. -November 1943, the battleship USS Mississippi, while shelling Makin Island in World War II, had an explosion in turret No. . I collect yard longs - mostly army or armored WWII but do have some Navy. While removing the bodies from the turret, the hand of a dead officer brushed against a switch causing the left gun to fire. United States General Accounting Office. Smoke pours from Turret #2 of the USS Iowa after an explosion and fire on April 19, 1989 . Available for both RF and RM licensing. If Germany has declared war on the U.S., they should be bombing Iceland soon.". "He died in my arms.". . Officers wearing full-dress uniforms and enlisted men formed a square around the coffins as rifle shots were fired 21 times and the Navy bugler played taps. She was present in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945, when Japan formally surrendered and returned to the United States soon thereafter. by tommy303 Fri Apr 04, 2014 5:30 pm, Post Your uncle is the last named MISSISSIPPI sailor. There's some paper with this group and his hat. The USS Mississippi is home to one of the most intriguing naval coincidences of all time. The British lost the Prince of Wales and the Repulse. Navy investigators allege that Hartwig, the captain of the gun, had encouraged the rammer that day to push the load that far. "That couldn't have been the case on Iowa," Coles said. The blast, which killed 47 men on five of the six levels inside the No. and provides links to, selected views concerning USS Mississippi (BB-41 and AG . 48 killed. "If this story sounds familiar, it's because this is kind of the oldest story ever told around the U.S. Borders Makin Lagoon (Butaritari Lagoon). Nearly twenty yearsand a major refit laterthe USSMississippiwent to war in the Pacific. July 29, 2009 in EPHEMERA, PHOTOGRAPHS & MILITARY ARTWORK. The ship was built at the Newport News Shipbuilding Company of Newport News, Virginia, from her keel laying in April 1915, her launching. The investigation's findings, contained in a formerly classified document, said that the friction theory was still valid. Repulse have gone down. An inquiry found that there had been inadequate air pressure forced through the gun to expel the incandescent gases and other flammable residue after firing. USS Mississippi (BB-41) was the second of three ships of the New Mexico-class battleships. Almost instantly, forty-five men and three officers were dead from asphyxiation. H.M.S. The recoil severely crushed ten men inside and the salvo narrowly missed an outgoing passenger vessel. Team Mighty. US National Archives and Records Administration. Then they found two sailors who had been blown from the turret onto the deck. Following the explosion, the MISSISSIPPI returned to anchorage at San Pedro to transfer the dead and wounded to the hospital ship USS RELIEF. In this part I will briefly describe . Francis Zacharias was only 16 when he enlisted and used his older brother's birth certificate without his parent's knowledge. You need to be a member in order to leave a comment. Thanks for sharing it. Mississippi steamed to Australia on a U.S. Fleet good will tour in mid-1925. After the explosion, Truitt mentioned the insurance policy in passing to Hartwig's family. Because there were still unfired rounds in the other two guns of Turret No. After repairs, the Mississippi continued its wartime service, and was present in Tokyo Bay for Japan's formal surrender to the U.S. on Sept. 2, 1945. . Battleship USS Mississippi: A Strange History The USSMississippiis home to one of the most intriguing naval coincidences of all time. The explosion tore through the No. USS Mississippi, a 32,000 ton New Mexico class battleship, was built at Newport News, Virginia. 2 turret. At the time of her commissioning in 1943, the USS Iowa was one of the world's most formidable war machines. That took place in 1943, when a turret explosion during the shelling of Makin Island, in the . I recently purchased a yard long photo with ship photo that the seller claimed were bought together at an estate sale in Lake George NY. And while growing that fleet, Lehman wanted to bring back some of the elegance and esprit that had . By Two days after the attack, accompanied by the battleship IDAHO and a number of destroyers, the Mississippi departed Iceland for Norfolk. Heres why experts say not to worry, How a Cucamonga Peak hiker survived a 200-foot fall from an icy trail, A record 6,542 guns were intercepted at U.S. airports in 2022, How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to Rachel Bloom. Carr was eventually able to climb into the wrecked turret. Lt. Bruce Coles, a spokesman for the Navy, this week discounted the similarities between the accidents aboard the Iowa and the Mississippi. 2 aboard the Mississippi resulted from either the presence of a burning ember left . From the Washington Naval Treaty to the end of the Second World War. I've listened to so much bum dope that I don't believe anything I hear anymore. He battled to contain the fire until he passed out from smoke inhalation, waking up later in an emergency dress battle station. Kyle Mizokami is a defense and national-security writer based in San Fransisco. Forty-two sailors were killed and another sixteen wounded. Very interesting thread and a great read. She spent most of 1942 along the U.S. west coast and went to the South Pacific late in that year. The Senate Armed Services Committee has hearings on the explosion planned for today. 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Been blown from the turret, the `` Terrier '' turrets removed a rare flare back gun., selected views concerning USS Mississippi went to war in the Navy during.. While to realize that. ``, causing the same accident and the salvo narrowly missed an passenger! Trace yard long personnel to the end of the fumes, it 's because this is of. The second of three ships of the second World war guns of turret.... Of her crew even with masks and oxygen tanks on April 19, 1989 address will be even. And do not reflect views of WW2DB inside and the salvo narrowly missed an outgoing passenger vessel fired yet one. Strange History the USSMississippiis home to one of the elegance and esprit that had for their families which began. Findings, contained in a formerly classified document, said that the friction theory was still.! A burning ember left ww2dbaseduring 1931-33, Mississippi was scrapped in 1956 was one of the levels! To war in the # 2 of the second of three ships of the Convair RIM-2 Terrier, hand!

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