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Reading Wichita's history of WW2 is like a summary of US
naval
operations, she was involved in Neutrality Patrols in 1940, duty in the
frigid North Atlantic in 1941 (including escort duty on ill-fated
convoy PQ-17), and the 1942 landings in North Africa.
Then,
in 1943, Wichita sailed to the Pacific, where she took part in
the
landings in the Marshalls, in the Philippines, and on Okinawa. During
the war she was attacked by German Heinkel bombers, lost an admiral
overboard in stormy weather, was fired on by Vichy French coast
artillery, was attacked by a Japanese Zero, and hit by friendly fire
off Okinawa. In addition to all her good work escorting convoys,
landings, and carrier Task Forces, she (and another cruiser) sank the
Japanese carrier Chiyoda by gunfire.
The first Wichita (CA-45) was laid down on 28 October 1935 at
the
Philadelphia Navy Yard; launched on 16 November 1937; sponsored by Mrs.
William F. Weigester, the daughter of the Honorable W. A. Ayres,
chairman of the Federal Trade Commission; and commissioned on 16
February 1939, Capt. Thaddeus A. Thomson in command. (CA-45:
dp. 10,000; l. 608'4"; b. 61'9"; dr. 19'10" (mean); s. 32.5 k. (max.);
cpl. 929; a. 9 8", 8 5", 8 .50-cal. mg.; cl. Wichita)
After fitting-out, Wichita sailed south for the Gulf of Mexico
and
arrived at Houston, Tex., on 20 April to take part in a dedicatory and
memorial service at the San Jacinto Battle Monument and War Relic
Museum. Ten days later, she received a silver service from
representatives of the city government of Wichita, Kansas, the
cruiser's namesake city. After leaving Houston on 1 May, Wichita
conducted her shakedown cruise, visiting the Virgin Islands, Cuba, and
the Bahamas before she returned north to her builder's yard for
post-shakedown repairs. She was still undergoing availability
when war broke out in Poland on 1
September 1939. Less than a month later, on the 25th, Wichita
reported
for duty to the Commander in Chief, United States Fleet and was
assigned to Cruiser Division (CruDiv) 7, Atlantic Squadron. She
accordingly departed Philadelphia, bound for the Virginia capes, and
reached Hampton Roads two days later.
Wichita departed Hampton Roads on 4 October and relieved
Vincennes
(CA-44) on Neutrality Patrol that day. She remained at sea until the
9th, when she returned to Hampton Roads. She then shifted to the
Norfolk Navy Yard on the 12th and underwent repairs there until 1
December.
Three days later, Wichita got underway for Cuba and arrived at
Guantanamo Bay on the 8th. Upon her arrival there, her commanding
officer, Capt. Thomson, assumed command of the newly formed Caribbean
Patrol which included: Wichita and Vincennes; the flush deck
destroyers
Borie (DD-215), Broome (DD-210), Lawrence (DD-250), King (DD-242), and
Truxtun (DD-229); and patrol plane (VP) squadrons VP-33 and VP-51. All
units were based upon Guantanamo Bay or San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Over the ensuing weeks, Wichita and her consorts of the
Caribbean
Patrol exercised out of Guantanamo Bay. Four days before Christmas, the
heavy cruiser departed Cuban waters bound for Puerto Rico and reached
San Juan two days later. She then visited St. Thomas, Virgin Islands,
briefly on 28 and 29 December 1939 before returning to San Juan and
remaining there until 2 January 1940. Arriving back at Guantanamo
Bay on the 3d, Wichita exercised locally
from 8 to 24 January and then departed Cuban waters as flagship of the
newly constituted Antilles Detachment, which also included Vincennes
and Destroyer Squadron (DesRon) 10. Two days later, the force
separated, with Wichita and Destroyer Division (DesDiv) 82
visiting
Willemstad, Curacao, Netherlands West Indies from 26 to 30 January
before getting underway to rendezvous with Vincennes and her group of
destroyers on 31 January, en route back to Puerto Rican
waters. Wichita conducted exercises in the
Guantanamo-Culebra, Puerto Rico,
area through late February, when she sailed for Hampton Roads. She
arrived at Norfolk on 4 March and spent five days before moving north
to Philadelphia, where she remained a fortnight. After returning to
Norfolk at the end of March, Wichita then operated out of
Hampton Roads
on exercises well into the spring.
In June, however, the heavy cruiser drew the assignment of "showing the
flag" in South American waters to counter German propaganda in some of
America's "good neighbors" to the south. As early as mid-May 1940,
while the Germans were executing their devastating blitzkrieg against
the Low Countries and France, Edwin C. Wilson, the United States
Minister to Uruguay, had reported from Montevideo of an upsurge in Nazi
propaganda. The State Department and the President himself came to
share Wilson's concern over the German effort to extend its influence
into the western hemisphere. Quincy (CA-39) was the first ship
dispatched to Uruguay's capital city,
Montevideo, reaching that port on 20 June to a tumultuous reception.
Ten days later, Wichita—with Rear Admiral A. C. Pickens,
Commander,
CruDiv 7 embarked—joined Quincy there after stopping at Rio de Janeiro
en route. The influence of those heavy cruisers, ". . . to
furnish a reminder of
the strength and the range of action of the armed forces of the United
States . . ." continued when Wichita and Quincy sailed on 3
July. They
visited Rio Grande de Sol; Santos; Rio de Janeiro; Bahia; and
Pernambuco, Brazil, before they returned to Montevideo on 23 August.
The ships then "showed the flag" at Buenos Aires, Argentina, and at Rio
de Janeiro again before they returned to Hampton Roads on 22 September.
Wichita stayed at Norfolk for a week before she proceeded to New
York
City, arriving there on 30 September. During the next three months,
Wichita served as a training ship for Naval Reserve midshipmen
of the
V—7 reserve program and conducted gunnery practices, primarily in the
vicinity of the Southern Drill Grounds off the Virginia capes.
The heavy cruiser departed Hampton Roads on 7 January 1941, bound for
Cuban waters, reaching Guantanamo four days later. During the next two
and one-half months, Wichita participated in fleet maneuvers in
the
Caribbean and took part in practice amphibious landings at Puerto Rico.
During that time, the shipcalled at Portland Bight, Jamaica; Culebra;
Guayanilla, Fajardo Roads, and Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, before she
arrived at the New York Navy Yard on 23 March. Wichita
sailed for
Bermuda on 6 April and reached her destination two
days later. Subsequently, in company with Tuscaloosa (CA-37), Wichita
operated in the North Atlantic, sailing to within 800 miles of Ireland;
she then returned to the New York Navy Yard on 17 May and went into
drydock on 21 June. After finishing that period of repairs on 2
July, Wichita shifted to
Newport, R.I., whence she sortied on 27 July and headed for Iceland in
the van of Task Force (TF) 16 as part of Operation "Indigo II," the
occupation of that strategic island. She arrived at Reykjavik on 6
August but returned to Newport on the 20th. She then shifted to Casco
Bay, Maine, from 25 to 27 August before she sailed for Newfoundland,
reaching Placentia Bay soon thereafter for a month-long stay. American
planners, however, fearing a German response to the United States'
increasing role in the Battle of the Atlantic, meanwhile authorized the
movement of a task force to Iceland, to base there and sweep into the
Denmark Strait. As part of this movement, Wichita set sail for
Icelandic waters on 23 September—in company with Wasp (CV-7),
Mississippi (BB-41), Vulcan (AR-5), and four destroyers—and arrived at
Reykjavik on 28 September.
Two days prior to Wichita's arrival, the ships of the Atlantic
Fleet
received orders to protect all ships engaged in commerce in United
States defensive waters. The Navy was authorized to patrol, cover,
escort, and report or destroy any German or Italian naval forces
encountered. This action came within a week of the first United States
Navy-escorted convoy eastbound to Great Britain and within two weeks of
President Franklin D. Roosevelt's "shoot-on-sight" orders authorizing
American naval units to attack any vessel threatening United States
shipping or shipping under American escort.
Wichita—as part of Task Group (TG) 7.5 (nicknamed the "White
Patrol")—remained engaged in patrol operations in Icelandic waters
through the end of the fateful year 1941, and the ship lay at anchor at
Hvalfjordur, Iceland, when the Japanese attack upon Pearl Harbor
plunged the United States into World War II on 7 December 1941.
Wichita got underway on 5 January 1942 and made a refresher
training
and raider sweep into the Denmark Strait before returning to
Hvalfjordur on the 10th. Five days later, a hurricane-force storm, with
gusts up to 100 knots, hit Iceland. Wichita rode out the storm
well
until the seaplane tender Albemarle (AV-5) began to drag her anchors in
the gale, as did the nearby merchantman SS West Nohno. Wichita
maneuvered to avoid Albemarle, but West Nohno fouled the heavy
cruiser's anchor cable and struck her side against Wichita's
bow. Later
Wichita collided with a British trawler, before she ran aground
at 1641
on an even keel. The cruiser then spent the rest of the night where she
was, in the wind, sleet, and rain that resulted in reduced visibility
conditions. The next day, Wichita took stock of her
condition.
Investigation
disclosed minor damage from the collisions, some leakage, and
"repairable" damage to hull and stem from grounding. After effecting
temporary repairs, Wichita sailed for the New York Navy Yard
and
arrived there on 9 February.
After repairs and alterations at the yard, Wichita sailed for
Newport,
R.I., on the 26th, touching briefly there before moving on to Boston
the following day. Shifting from thence to Casco Bay "Base Sail,"
Maine, the heavy cruiser exercised in those waters until 11 March, when
she sailed for Boston for ammunition but returned to Casco Bay soon
thereafter.
Wichita was then assigned to a task force formed around Wasp and
Washington (BB-56), the group coming under the command of Rear Admiral
John W. Wilcox, Jr., embarked in the latter. Wichita sortied on
26
March, slated to report to Commander, NavalForces, Europe, for duty, in
company with Wasp, Washington, Tuscaloosa, and eight destroyers. The
next day, the force ran into heavy weather, during which time Admiral
Wilcox was washed overboard from his flagship. Despite an intensive
search, none of the ships recovered the missing flag officer. Command
of the task force thus devolved upon Rear Admiral Robert C. "Ike"
Giffen, who flew his flag in Wichita.
On 3 April, Wichita's task force rendezvoused with three
British light
cruisers, HMS Edinburgh, HMS Gambia, and HMS Frobisher. Edinburgh then
guided the American ships into Scapa Flow, their new base of
operations, arriving there on the 4th. Over the weeks that ensued,
Wichita exercised out of Scapa Flow with units of the British
Fleet.
The heavy cruiser, her training and indoctrination with the Royal Navy
completed, subsequently put to sea on 28 April to cover the movement of
Convoys QP-11 and PQ-15—ships sailing to and coming from the vital
lend-lease port of Murmansk. Evidence of German activity soon appeared
in the form of reports of shadowing aircraft and lurking U-boats.
Moreover, there were problems on the Allied side. On 1 May 1942, the
British battleship, HMS King George V, rammed and sank the destroyer
HMS Punjabi, necessitating the former's returning to port for repairs.
Her place was taken by sistership HMS Duke of York.
After the force had completed its coverage of QP-11, it returned toward
Seidisfjord, Iceland. The men-of-war from the United States Navy of the
mixed American-British force were detached and put into Hvalfjor-dur
where they arrived on 6 May.
Following almost a week in port, Wichita got underway on the
12th and
relieved Tuscaloosa on patrol in Denmark Strait, between Iceland and
Greenland. A week later, she returned to Hvalfjordur only to put to sea
as part of a joint American-British covering force protecting one leg
of the movement of Murmansk-bound Convoy PQ-16 and eastbound QP-12
before returning to Scapa Flow, her mission accomplished, on the 29th.
While at that port, King George VI inspected Wichita and other
ships of
the task force, including Washington, on 7 June.
Underway for Hvalfjordur on the 12th and arriving on the 14th, Wichita
relieved the heavy cruiser HMS Cumberland on "White Patrol" in Denmark
Strait soon thereafter. While on patrol on the 17th, Wichita
spotted a
Focke-Wulf (FW) 200 "Condor," a four-engined maritime reconnaissance
and bomber aircraft, and opened fire, driving off the snooper. Three
days later, the heavy cruiser scared off another FW-200. Enemy
activity near the Murmansk convoy routes and in Denmark Strait
area did not let up over ensuing days. On the 21st, Wichita
sighted a
submarine periscope and took evasive action—no attack was forthcoming,
though, and the cruiser soon resumed her patrolling. The next day, she
spotted her third "Condor" but did not fire.
Wichita then proceeded to Hvalfjordur and steamed thence to
Seidisfjordur at the end of June. Underway from the latter port on the
30th to cover Convoy PQ-17, the warship sortied as part of the "Cruiser
Covering Force" (Wichita with three other heavy cruisers and a
trio of
destroyers). Other support forces included two battleships, a carrier,
one heavy and one light cruiser apiece, and nine additional destroyers.
The convoy itself was a large one—36 merchantmen (laden with a variety
of war cargo consigned to the Russians under lend-lease) and one
"CAM-ship" (a catapult-equipped merchantman with one "Hurricane"
fighter for local convoy defense). Unfortunately, an ordeal lay ahead
of these Allied ships. By 1 July, it was evident that the Germans
had detected this movement
of shipping since directionfinder bearings indicated increasing U-boat
activity to the east. One intercepted German message actually told of
the convoy's being spotted. Wichita sailors notedthat the
weather was
becoming foul. Visibility was poor; ceilings never rose above 200 feet
and sometimes closed down completely.
At 2340 on 2 July, German aircraft—long-range "Condors"—radioed the
position of the convoy as it headed through the wintry seas toward
Russia. The next day, an intercepted message revealed that the Germans
were dispatching a strong surface force—built around the vaunted
battleship Tirpitz, the sistership to the late Bismarck—to intercept
the convoy. Early in the afternoon, photo reconnaissance of Trondheim
(Norway) harbor, confirmed that Tirpitz, the heavy cruiser Admiral
Hipper, and four destroyers were at sea. U-boats and "Condors"
consistently shadowed the ships of PQ-17—an
ominous portent. On 4 July, Independence Day, Wichita launched
two
Curtiss SOC Seagull floatplanes, each armed with depth charges, to
reconnoiter the fringes of the convoy and attack the shadowing U-boats.
The planes returned at 1645 having sighted no enemy submarines but
having tangled with some of the enemy's scouting planes. The
feared attacks finally materialized later that day—25 Heinkel (HE)
111 bombers, armed with torpedoes, swarmed against the starboard side
of the convoy: three ships took "fish"—they were later abandoned and
sunk; one ship had already been torpedoed the previous night. The
situation, however, would not get better. The presence of German
heavy units—Tirpitz and Admiral Hipper with
their screen—at sea forced the convoy to change course. At 1923, the
convoy received the fateful message: "Owing to threats from surface
ships, PQ-17 is to disperse and proceed Russian ports." That order
sealed the fate of most of the merchantmen. At 1936, the Admiralty
message came through: "Convoy is to scatter." The pell-mell rush
to Murmansk was on, unhelped by the covering force,
for on the heels of the orders to "scatter" came the dispatch to the
cruiser force at 1944: "Withdraw to westward at high speed." Obeying,
Wichita and the others came about and, at 2025 on the 4th,
increased to
25 knots. The next day, while south of Spitzbergen, the ships were
spotted and shadowed by a pair of FW-200's. Both Wichita and
Tuscaloosa
opened fire with their antiaircraft guns, but the elusive "Condors"
slipped away.
Wichita joined up with the rest of the Fleet on 6 July and
proceeded
thence to Hvalfjordur, arriving two days later. Within a week, the
heavy cruiser again became a flagship, this time for Rear Admiral
Giffen once more, for TF 99. Underway for Scapa Flow on the 19th, the
ship arrived on the 21st, only to set out the next day for the
Admiralty dockyard at Rosyth, Scotland. Arriving on the 23d, Wichita
was drydocked for repairs on the 24th and remained there until 9 August.
However, the repairs to correct a propeller vibration appeared to be
ineffective as the naval attache in London radioed on 12 August that
the ship's combat efficiency was seriously lessened at speeds in excess
of 20 knots. Accordingly, two days later, Wichita received
orders to
head, via Hvalfjordur, for the United States. As she returned homeward,
the cruiser was complimented on her "smartness and efficiency" by
Admiral John C. Tovey, Commander in Chief, Home Fleet, who visited the
ship prior to her departure and addressed her crew.
After a quick stop at Hvalfjordur, Wichita reached New York on
22
August and entered drydock at the New York Navy Yard the same day.
Undocked on 5 September, the heavy cruiser underwent post-repair trials
before moving down to Hampton Roads within a week. She conducted
gunnery exercises in Chesapeake Bay; visited Baltimore from 24 to 28
September; and returned to the Virginia capes operating area to resume
exercises and training.
Underway for Casco Bay on 5 October, she reached her destination on the
6th. She then loaded ammunition at Boston and returned to Casco Bay for
exercises which lasted into
late October, when the cruiser was assigned to TG 34.1. Commanding the
task group was Rear Admiral H. Kent Hewitt in Augusta (CA-31). Other
ships included the new battleship Massachusetts (BB-59), Tuscaloosa,
Cruiser Division 8, and Destroyer Squadrons 8 and 11. Underway on 24
October, Wichita set course for North African waters, screening
the
passage of the invasion convoy slated to carry out Operation
"Torch." On the day of the initial assault, 8 November 1942,
Wichita went to
general quarters at 0540, tasked with neutralizing French shore
batteries at Point El Hank and Table d'Aukasha and French warships in
Casablanca harbor. Because of the unknown attitude of the French forces
toward the landings, Wichita and the other ships were ordered
not to
open fire "unless and until hostile intent" was indicated.
However, the French decided to resist; and they proved stubborn.
Ordered to attack at 0623, Wichita stood toward the North
African
coast, her spotting planes—Curtiss SOC's—airborne to spot her fall of
shot. French fighters—possibly Dewoitine 520's or American-built
Curtiss Hawk 75's—attacked the "Seagulls," and one had to make a forced
landing. Its crew was picked up by one of the heavy cruiser's
escorts. At 0704, the guns of the French battleship Jean Bart
boomed from
Casablanca harbor, as did the ones em-placed at El Hank. Although
moored to a pier and still incomplete, Jean Bart packed a powerful
"punch" with her main battery. Massachusetts subsequently opened fire
in return at 0705; and Tuscaloosa did so shortly thereafter.
Wichita's 8-inch battery crashed out at 0706, aimed at El Hank.
Checking fire at 0723 when her spotting planes informed her that the
French guns appeared to be silenced, the heavy cruiser shifted her
8-inch rifles in the direction of French submarines in Casablanca
harbor. Subsequently checking fire at 0740, Wichita began
blasting the
French guns at Table d'Aukasha shortly before 0800.
After resumption of firing on French shipping in Casablanca's harbor,
Wichita received orders at 0835 to cease fire. At 0919, however,
she
opened fire again— this time directing her guns at French destroyers in
harbor and at the light cruiser Primauguet. Later, at 1128, Wichita
came within range of the French battery at El Hank, and the Vichy
gunners scored a hit on the American cruiser. A 194-millimeter shell
hit her port side, passed into the second deck near the mainmast, and
detonated in a living compartment. Fragments injured 14 men—none
seriously—and the resulting fires were quickly extinguished by
Wichita's damage control parties.
Torpedoes from a Vichy French submarine caused Wichita to take
evasive
action at 1139. Two "fish" went by a length ahead of the ship, and
another passed deep under the bow or slightly ahead. After ceasing fire
at 1142, Wichita received orders an hour later to attack French
ships
making for the harbor entrance at Casablanca. Accordingly, the heavy
cruiser—aided by improved visibility and air spotting—again battered
Primauguet, starting fierce fires that gutted a large part of that
ship. At 1505, Wichita ceased fire; and her guns remained quiet
for the
rest of the day. That evening, she steamed seaward to avoid nocturnal
submarine attacks and, over the ensuing days, patrolled offshore
between Casablanca and Fedhala. Ordered to return to the United States,
her task with "Torch" completed, Wichita sailed for Hampton
Roads on 12
November. Diverted to New York while en route, she reached her revised
destination on the 19th for repairs.
Soon thereafter, Wichita sailed for the Pacific. On 29 January
1943,
the heavy cruiser tasted her first action in her new theater during the
night torpedo attack by Japanese planes off Rennell Island.
Unidentified aircraft had
appeared on Wichita's, radar screen
throughout
the afternoon, circling at 40 to 50 miles, sometimes approaching as
close as 20 miles before widening the range. Wichita and the
other two
heavy cruisers in the force, Louisville (CA-28) and Chicago (CA-29),
together with their screen, had zigzagged after nightfall. At 0842 (Z)
time, the Japanese "snoopers" closed enough to strafe the ships before
retiring. Intermittent attacks followed. Making radar contact on
approaching enemy aircraft at 0843 (Z), Wichita opened fire on
them a
minute later. Events followed one another in rapid succession.
The planes,
torpedo-carrying "Betty" bombers, sought out Chicago and illuminated
her with flares. That cruiser took two torpedo hits within a minute.
Wichita and Chicago nevertheless kept up a heavy barrage in
their
sector and set two "Betties" ablaze. Wichita then took a
"Betty" under
fire as it passed overhead from the starboard quarter. One torpedo
dropped by that plane broached and ran parallel to the ship to
starboard; the other "fish" headed directly for the ship. Fortunately
for Wichita, the enemy's torpedo proved to be a dud. Chicago
was later
taken in tow by Louisville, and the formation
attempted to retire from the area. However, Japanese torpedo planes
caught the ships again the next day. Chicago took four more torpedoes
and went down quickly.
Wichita then trained out of Efate, in the New Hebrides, before
sailing
for Oahu on 7 April 1943 and arriving at Pearl Harbor a week later. The
heavy cruiser's time in Hawaiian climes was short, though, for she was
soon underway for the inhospitable Aleutians, heading on 18 April for
Adak, Alaska, as flagship for TG 52.10. Reaching her destination six
days later, Wichita led an offensive sweep to the west and
northwest of
the island of Attu as flagship of TG 16.14 —Wichita, Louisville,
and
four destroyers—before returning to Adak on the 26th.
Subsequently underway for the Attu covering area as flagship of TG
16.7, Wichita operated with the battleships New Mexico (BB-40)
and
Nevada (BB-36) and their screens from 29 May to 18 June. Later in June,
she operated to the north of the Aleutian chain with the battleships.
She shelled Kiska on 22 July as flagship of TG 16.21 before steaming
southwest of that island and returning to Adak at the end of the
month. Wichita remained in the Aleutian theater through
mid-August and then
steamed south and entered the Puget Sound Navy Yard, Bremerton, Wash.,
on 4 September. She underwent repairs and alterations there until 3
December 1943 and, on the following day, sailed for San Francisco. She
reached that port on the 6th but sailed for the Hawaiian Islands the
next day.
The heavy cruiser trained and exercised in the Hawaiian operating
area
until she sortied on 16 January 1944 for the invasion of the Marshall
Islands. The cruiser was assigned to TG 58.3 which also included one
carrier, two light carriers (CVL's), two battleships, and nine
destroyers. The group was under the overall command of Rear Admiral
Frederick C. Sherman in Bunker Hill (CV-17).
While Wichita screened the task group, Bunker Hill and the two
light
fleet carriers launched air strikes that pummelled enemy positions on
Kwajalein on 29 January. On the 30th and 31st, they struck Eniwetok
while American marines and soldiers were landing on Kwajalein and
Majuro. Subsequently arriving at Majuro Atoll on 4 February,
Wichita sortied
for Truk on the 12th, attached to TG 58.2. The carriers launched the
first strikes against that strategic Japanese base on the 16th. Enemv
ships, shore installations, and aircraft all felt the heavy blows of
bombs from the American carrier planes as Vice Admiral Marc A.
Mitscher's "pet hate" took a pounding from the aviators of TF 58.
The enemy struck back that night with nocturnal air strikes aeainst the
American warships and succeeded in torpedoing Intrepid (CV-11) shortly
aftermidnight. Wichita was then assigned to Task Unit (TU)
58.2.4, a
new task unit formed to escort the crippled carrier back to safety and
repairs. The group reached Majuro on the 20th.
A little over a week later, on 28 February, Wichita sailed for
Hawaii
and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 4 March. Becoming the flagship for
CruDiv 6 on 9 March, the warship set sail for Majuro on the 15th,
arriving there on the 20th. She then supported the fast carriers as
their planes hit Japanese installations on Yap, Woleali, and in the
Palaus; on 30 March, she catapulted off two of her floatplanes, and
picked up the three-man crew of a ditched Grumman TBF Avenger from
Lexington (CV-16). Wichita subsequently remained with the fast
carriers
as they continued air strikes against the Palaus and Woleali, returning
to Majuro each time.
On 13 April, Wichita headed for New Guinea to support strikes
on
Hollandia and Wakde. A little over a week later, her carriers remained
north of Hollandia while conducting air strikes on Japanese positions
that were neutralized by the afternoon of the 22d. Wichita then
patrolled off the coast of New Guinea.
Task Group 58.2 returned to the vicinity of Truk and launched more air
attacks against the Japanese base there on 29 April. Japanese torpedo
planes attacked the formation but scored no hits. Because of her
position in the formation, Wichita did little firing. Following
on the
heels of the Truk strike, Wichita, together with other cruisers
and a
screen of destroyers, left the carriers and shelled Japanese targets on
Satawan Island in the Nomol group of the Caroline Islands.
Returning to Majuro on 4 May, Wichita trained there for a month
before
shifting to Kwajalein, a staging point for operations against the
Japanese-held Mariana Islands. As an element of TU 53.10.8, Wichita
operated southeast of Saipan, to seaward of the ships shelling the
southern part of that island on 14 June. The next day, she, too, added
to the destruction wreaked upon Japanese installations ashore, pounding
those enemy positions on the south coast of Saipan. That evening, she
covered the retirement of empty transports. The next day, Wichita
shelled Japanese gun positions on the west coast
of Guam before returning to Saipan later that day, the 16th. On the
17th, the heavy cruiser rendezvoused with TG 58.7 west of the Marianas;
over the three days that ensued, she patrolled back and forth, east to
west, to the westward of the Marianas, in hope of contacting elements
of a large Japanese carrier task force known to be approaching that
island group. During the morning and afternoon hours of 19 June,
Wichita contributed
to the antiaircraft barrage which was so effective in warding off enemy
air attacks in an action which came to be known as the "Marianas Turkey
Shoot," or the Battle of the Philippine Sea. During that engagement,
Wichita's gunners claimed assists on two "Kates." In the
aftermath of
the battle, one of the heavy cruiser's floatplanes rescued an American
fighter pilot whose plane had been shot down by the Japanese.
Detached for duty off Saipan, Wichita reached that island on
the 25th
and covered transports that evening. She remained in the vicinity,
covering the vital troopships, as well as escort carriers (CVE's), into
the first week of July 1944. Later, after her task unit (TU 52.17.8)
was redesignated as TU 53.18.1, Wichita shelled Japanese
installations
on the west coast of Guam from the 8th through the 12th. After
returning to Saipan from the 13th to the 17th, the heavy cruiser took
up close-support bombardment chores off Guam on the 18th—remaining thus
engaged into early August.
Departing Guam on 10 August, Wichita reached Eni-wetok three
days
later. Underway again on the 29th of that month, the heavy cruiser
rendezvoused with TG 38.1 soon thereafter. Wichita screened
that fast
carrier task group as their planes hit Japanese targets in thePalaus,
Carolines, Philippines, and Netherlands East Indies, pounding airfields
and shipping and extending their operations as far as the Central
Philippines. On 12 September, a Wichita floatplane picked up a
ditched
pilot from Hornet (CV-12) in the Camotes Sea. Two days later, the
cruiser's airmen performed another rescue, saving two pilots and two
aircrew from downed planes from Wasp (CV-18).
In mid-September, while TG 38.1's planes were providing air support for
the unfolding invasion of Morotai, Wichita was again screening
the
carriers. The group covered the Morotai landings until the 20th, when
it began a high-speed approach toward the island of Luzon in the
Philippines.
On 21 September, the group launched aircraft that proceeded toward the
vicinity of Manila, leaving destruction in their wakes. Returning
strikes reported "considerable damage to enemy aviation and shipping."
Shortly after dawn on the 22d, however, the Japanese attempted to
strike back. At 0734, Wichita splashed an attacker some 50
yards from
her, the plane's bomb falling harmlessly into the sea. The heavy
cruiser downed a second plane at 0745, splashing the enemy aircraft
into the sea some 8,000 yards on her port quarter. Wichita
continued her screening activities on the 24th, northeast of
the island of Samar, while TG 38.1's planes hit Japanese shipping and
shore installations on Cebu, Negros, and Coron. On the 25th, the
cruiser set course for the Admiralties and reached Manus three days
later.
Underway for a raid on Okinawa on 2 October, Wichita
encountered heavy
seas and high winds en route, through the 7th, and began the high speed
approach with the fast carriers on the 9th. The following day, the
flattops launched strikes against Okinawa. At 1350 on the 10th, a
Vought OS2U Kingfisher from Biloxi (CL-80) ran out of fuel and made a
forced landing near Wichita, who obligingly picked her up and
repaired
the plane.
The next day, the 11th, found Wichita northeast of Cape Engano,
on
Luzon, while the fast carriers' planes hit Aparri, Luzon. On the 12th,
the fast carriers launched strikes against Formosa, pounding Japanese
airfields and installations there as part of the overall preparation
for the upcoming assault against the Philippine island of Leyte.
Although the American ships encountered considerable resistance, they
shot down many enemy planes and inflicted heavy damage upon Japanese
installations ashore. The fast carriers inflicted considerable damage
upon the enemy
throughout the following day, but the enemy managed to strike back and
cause enough damage of his own, making determined and skillful attacks
against the ships of TG 38.1. After Canberra (CA-70) took torpedoes
that flooded her engine rooms and two fire rooms, Wichita took
the
crippled Canberra in town and, screened by three light cruisers and
five destroyers, steamed for a point east of Luzon. The following
day, the enemy drew blood again, torpedoing Houston
(CL-81), forcing that ship to be taken under tow by Canberra's
sistership Boston (CA—69). On the morning of the 15th, a tug relieved
Wichita of towing Canberra; but, as Wichita headed back
to rejoin TG
38.1, she was ordered to form part of the screen for the "cripple
division" built around Canberra and Houston. On the 16th,
Japanese planes hit the formation, torpedoing Houston
again in spite of the heavy concentration of combat air patrol (CAP)
fighters from two light carriers. Fortunately, one plane managed to
score a hit —the CAP took care of the rest, breaking up the raid before
more damage could be inflicted. Wichita launched one of her
SOC's at
1522 and rescued the pilot of a fighter from Cabot (CVL-27) who had
ditched during the defense of the crippled cruisers.
After evading a typhoon on the 18th, Wichita left the cripples
three
days later and, after fueling, proceeded for operations in the area
west of Luzon. Shethen turned south toward the waters west of Leyte.
The carriers which she was screening launched searches to try to locate
enemy ships. Subsequently steaming: north in an attempt to close the
enemy fleet units, Wichita took station with TF 34, battleships
under
Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee. When the enemy was reported 140 miles
north—a force of three carriers, four cruisers and six destroyers—TF 34
received orders to close at 20 knots. Carrier planes found the Japanese
and attacked, scoring hits.
Later, TF 34 received orders detaching them to go to the aid of the
escort carriers caught by a superior Japanese surface force off Samar.
While en route, Wichita and New Orleans (CA-32) joined a
surface
striking force to finish off the "cripples" left by the carrier planes
to the northward. Some five hours later, the ships sighted a target—the
crippled carrier Chiyoda. The 8-inch guns of the two heavy cruisers
soon spoke and, within one-half hour's time, had reduced the ship to
wreckage, observers reporting "great clouds of smoke with intermingling
flashes of fire" boiling upward. Wichita was the last ship to
cease
fire at 1642; 13 minutes later, Chiyoda sank.
That was not to be the last of Admiral Ozawa's decimated striking force
to be dispatched, however, for the cruisers, led to the target by night
fighters from Essex (CV-9), soon came upon Hatsuzuki at 1840, shortly
before nightfall. Hatsuzuki put up a stubborn fight but only postponed
the inevitable—slowed up by torpedo attacks from some of the screening
destroyers, the Japanese man-of-war soon came under fire of the heavier
guns of the cruisers. Wichita commenced firing on her at
1910—ultimately, at 2056, Hatsuzuki blew up and sank. She had however,
straddled Wichita several times, and shell fragments wounded
one man,
slightly, on board that heavy cruiser.
Wichita resumed her screening operations for fast carriers in
the
aftermath of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, operating primarily east of
Samar before supporting ground troops on Leyte on 28 October. She later
fought off a determined air attack on the 30th, although Franklin
(CV-13) and Belleau Wood (CVL-24) were damaged. Heading for Ulithi on
the last day of October, Wichita reached her destination on 2
November.
Wichita then operated off Leyte and Luzon into mid-November,
after her
replenishment at Ulithi, before she detected very heavy vibrations in
number four engine unit. Investigation revealed that the tail shaft had
broken, and the propeller was trailing. It was then considered unsafe
for the ship to make high speed. Detached as a consequence, Wichita
headed for Ulithi on the 18th and reached the Carolines on the 20th.
After Commander, Cruiser Division 6, Rear Admiral C. Turner Joy,
shifted his flag from Wichita to San Francisco (CA-38), the
former
underwent a brief inspection by divers before she was to head
"stateside" for repairs. They found that a strut for number three screw
was cracked. With only two shafts, now, Wichita sailed for the
United
States on the 27th. Fueling at Eniwetok and stopping briefly at Pearl
Harbor while en route, Wichita pushed on for San Pedro, Calif.,
on the
9th of December. Reaching the west coast six days later, the heavy
cruiser entered the Terminal Island Navy Yard soon thereafter. She
remained in dockyard hands, undergoing necessary repairs and
alterations, until 8 February 1945.
Underway for Pearl Harbor on 28 February, Wichita arrived in
Hawaiian
waters on 6 March, remaining at Pearl Harbor only five days before
heading for the Carolines, via the Marshalls, on the 11th. Refueling at
Eniwetok, the heavy cruiser arrived at Ulithi on the 20th.
The next day, Wichita, as part of TF 54, set sail for Okinawa
in the
last great invasion of World War II. As an element of TU 54.2.3,
Wichita covered minesweeping units in fire support sector four
on 25
March, retiring to seaward for the night. As part of Fire Support Unit
3 the following day, Wichita was off Okinawa when lookouts
spotted a
periscope to starboard at 0932. Making an emergency
turn to starboard, the heavy cruiser evaded the torpedo that was fired.
At 1350, Wichita commenced firing with her main battery,
shelling
Japanese installations on Okinawa, before she ceased fire at 1630 and
retired to sea for the night. Soon after dawn the following morning, 27
March, several Japanese planes attacked the formation in which Wichita
was proceeding; the heavy cruiser's gunners shot down one. That morning
and afternoon, Wichita again lent the weight of her salvoes to
the
"softening-up" process; even her SOC joined in, dropping two
bombs. After floating mines—which had been delaying the start of
the morning
bombardment—had been cleared, Wichita resumed her bombardment
activities on the 28th. The next day, the 29th, Wichita put
into Kerama
Retto to replenish ammunition. That rocky outcropping near Okinawa had
been invaded to provide an advance base for the operations against the
island. It was still in the process of being cleared of defenders even
as Wichita entered the harbor, among the first ships to utilize
the
newly secured body of water. "You are the first to receive the keys of
Kerama Retto," radioed the senior officer present afloat to Wichita,
"with scenery and sound effects."
When she had replenished her stock of ammunition, Wichita
resumed her
shellings of the Japanese defenders on Okinawa, covering the movement
of underwater demolition teams (UDT's). She performed the same covering
services for UDT's the next day, 30 March, as well as bombarding
selected targets ashore. On the 31st, Wichita shelled the beach
area to
breach the sea wall in preparation for the landings. That evening, the
heavy cruiser retired to seaward to cover the approaching
transports. On Easter Sunday, 1 April 1945, the day of the
initial assault across
the shores of Okinawa, Wichita provided neutralization fire on
Japanese
positions defending the southern beaches. She kept up a rapid, nearly
continuous fire with everything from 8-inch to 40-millimeter guns. Near
noon, her services temporarily not needed, she replenished
ammunition. After performing a call-fire mission on the 2d,
Wichita replenished
fuel and ammunition at Kerama Retto on the 3d. She subsequently took up
a fire support station near le Shima and supported the minesweepers
operating off that point on the 4th. During the night, Wichita
fired
harassment missions against the Japanese defenders. On the 5th, she was
to join TG 51.19 east of Okinawa to carry out a bombardment of Tsugen
Shima in company with Tuscaloosa, Maryland (BB-46), and Arkansas
(BB-33), but the approach of enemy planes cancelled the mission. That
evening, though, Wichita shelled Japanese shore batteries at
Chiyama
Shima which had taken Nevada (BB-36) under fire earlier that day.
On 6 April, Wichita searched for troop concentrations, tanks,
vehicles,
and boat revetments on the east coast of Okinawa—targets of opportunity
for her batteries. Shortly before sunset, a "Zeke" (Mitsubishi A6M5)
came out of the clouds on the port quarter. The encounter was
apparently one of mutual surprise, as Wichita's commander later
recounted: "We seemed nearly as much of a surprise to the plane as it
did to us." As the "Zeke" dove for the heavy cruiser's bridge,
antiaircraft fire reached up and tore the plane apart— it disintegrated
over the ship and splashed in the sea off the starboard bow. There was
no damage to the ship.
The following day, Wichita entered Nakagusuku Wan —a body of
water
later renamed Buckner Bay—during the morning to bombard a pugnacious
shore battery. The enemy managed to land several shots "very close
aboard the port side" but was ultimately silenced. For the next two
days, Wichita carried out a similar slate of harassing fire on
Japanese
shore batteries, pillboxes, and other targets of opportunity. Underway
for Kerama Retto on the afternoon of 10 April, the heavy
cruiserreplenished her ammunition supply that evening and returned to
the bombardment areas the following day.
Wichita subsequently served four more tours of duty off Okinawa,
her
8-inch guns providing part of the heavy volume of firepower necessary
to support the troops advancing ashore against the tenacious Japanese
defenders. She hit pillboxes, ammunition dumps, troop concentrations
spotted by her observers aloft in one of her SOC's, camouflaged
installations and caves, waterfront areas suspected of supporting
suicide boat launching ramps and harboring swimmers, as well as
trenches and artillery emplacements. During that period of time, she
was damaged twice: the first time came when a small caliber shell
penetrated a fuel oil tank, five feet below the waterline, on 27 April.
After repairs at Kerama Retto on 29 and 30 April (she had spent the
28th firing harassment rounds against Japanese positions ashore and
making unsuccessful attempts to patch the hole), Wichita
provided more
harassment and interdiction fire before being hit by "friendly" fire
during an air raid on 12 May. A 5-inch shell hit the port catapult,
with fragments striking the shield of an antiaircraft director. Twelve
men were injured, one so severely that he died that night.
Withdrawn to Leyte for rest and replenishment, Wichita returned
to
Okinawa on 18 June. For the remainder of the war, the heavy cruiser
provided surface and air protection for minesweepers operating to the
west of Okinawa. She was off the island when, on 15 August 1945, she
received word that the war with Japan was over.
Wichita, became part of the occupying force in Japanese waters
soon
thereafter. She sortied from Buckner Bay on 10 September and reached
Nagasaki on the following day as part of TG 55.7. During the ship's
first stay at Nagasaki, 10,000 ex-prisoners of war (POW's) were
repatriated through that port, their long captivity at the hands of the
Japanese over at last.
Wichita shifted briefly to Sasebo on the 25th and stayed there
for four
days before returning to Nagasaki on the 29th. Back to Sasebo shortly
thereafter, the heavy cruiser was in port when a severe typhoon struck
that area from 9 to 11 October. Wichita was not damaged during
those
storms. While at Sasebo, Wichita inspected harbor
installations
and ships to
monitor Japanese compliance with the terms of surrender. The heavy
cruiser later received orders; on 5 November, her first passengers
reported on board for transportation back to the United States.
Underway on the latter date, the ship fueled at Tokyo before she headed
for San Francisco, reaching that port on 24 November 1945.
Drydocking at the Mare Island Naval Shipyard two days later, Wichita
underwent repairs and alterations in preparation for further "Magic
Carpet" duty, before she was undocked on 1 December. Departing the west
coast for the Hawaiian Islands on the 6th, Wichita reached
Pearl Harbor
on the 12th, bound, ultimately, for the Marianas. The heavy cruiser
brought back homecoming servicemen from Saipan, arriving at San
Francisco on 12 January 1946. Departing "Frisco" on 27 January,
Wichita transited the Panama Canal
Zone between 5 and 9 February and reached Philadelphia on the 14th.
Assigned to the 16th Fleet, Wichita was placed in reserve on 15
July
1946. Decommissioned on 3 February 1947, the heavy cruiser was laid up
at Philadelphia. She was struck from the Navy list on 1 March 1959.
Later that year, on 14 August, she was sold for scrapping to the Union
Minerals and Alloys Corp.
Wichita was awarded 13 battle stars for her World War II
service.
Sources: Public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
and pictures from my father's 1943 Naval Recognition Manual
Continue the discussion at the Ships Forum or email me (photos of WW2 ships welcome).
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