VOL. 11 NO. 9 June 4, 2010 - June 17, 2010
Local Sailor looks back at the Battle of Midway Island By Eric Sesit
At last count, the Navy has on file the names of 292 survivors of the Battle of Midway. Recently, I had the opportunity to sit down and talk with one naval aviator whose introduction to war began as a 22-year-old Ensign and ended more than 20 years later after accumulating more than 7,500 hours of flight time, the Distinguished Flying Cross and two Navy Air medals.
Photo by Eric Sesit
Thomas McKelvey points to photos of his VP-23 shipmates stationed on various islands during WWII. McKelvey was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and two Navy Air Medals for his service in the Southwest Pacific.
When you meet Thomas McKelvey, he appears to be just another senior citizen, living his days out in peace and quiet in a comfortable house in Charleston, S.C. He is 90 years old, quickly approaching 91. His handshake is firm, his eyes are clear and he walks unaided by a cane or walker. Yet it is his mind that will impress you. He has an amazing recollection of the events surrounding Pearl Harbor, Midway and WWII. And when some of the details get a little blurry, which is understandable for anyone trying to remember events from 70 years ago, he turns to his tattered photo albums, each black and white image clearly marked with the names of his shipmates and friends that he met during his career. He grew up in Monck’s corner. He remembers the area before engineers dammed the river and made the Santee lakes. “I spent two and a half years at the University of South Carolina before going into the Navy. I was sent to Pensacola where I learned to fly and was assigned to VP-23, a squadron that flew the PBY or sea-plane which was used for surveillance and rescues at sea.” McKelvey joined his squadron on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor about two weeks before the surprise attack of Dec. 7th. “I was in the BOQ when the first attack wave hit battleship row. By the time we got out of the building, the second wave was strafing our planes, circling around our barracks and hangars at about 800 feet. After the attack, out of 12 planes in our squadron, only three were still able to fly.” In the weeks following the attack,
McKelvey’s squadron was assigned patrol duties, flying 800 nautical miles every day. “Those were long days. I was a co-pilot then and we flew 12-hour missions looking for any signs of the Japanese,” Mckelvey said. In mid-May, 1942, VP-23 aircraft flew to Midway Island. It’s a well-known story how American code-breakers were able to decipher
the Japanese messages marking Midway as the next point of attack. “I attended a briefing a week before the June 4th attack,” said McKelvey. “We knew the attack was coming and knew that it would probably be from the north-northwest and that a land invasion would come in from the west. We already had three
See Survivor, continued on page 3
Battle of Midway turned the tide for the U. S. in the Pacific By CHINFO Public Affairs Regarded as the turning point in the Pacific during World War II, the Battle of Midway took place June 4-7, 1942. During the battle, U.S. Navy carrier strike forces, augmented by shore-based bombers and torpedo planes, decisively defeated a Japanese navy carrier task force. In a larger strategic sense, the Japanese offensive in the Pacific was derailed and their plans to advance on New Caledonia, Fiji and Samoa had to be postponed. The balance of sea power in the Pacific shifted from Japan to parity between America and Japan. Two months after the Battle of
Midway, the U.S. and its allies would take the offensive at Guadalcanal. The Japanese lost four large carriers – four of the six that had attacked Oahu on December 7, 1941. The Americans lost USS Yorktown (CV 5) after her extensive contribution to the enemy’s defeat. USS Hammann (DD 412) was also sunk while assisting Yorktown. The Japanese lost more than 100 trained pilots and more than 700 trained aircraft mechanics whose expertise could not be easily replaced. The victory at Midway defeated the Japanese attempt to draw the U.S. carriers into
IN THIS EDITION
decisive battle. The Japanese opportunity for victory was lost and bought time for the Allies to execute what was termed the Grand Strategy, to give priority to defeating Nazi Germany before applying the full force of the war effort to defeat Japan. Thanks to American code breakers, judicious aircraft carrier tactics and providential timing, the U.S. Navy inflicted a devastating defeat on the Japanese navy at Midway. American courage, determination, heroic sacrifice and training proved equal to the task of drawing the Japanese carriers into battle and destroying them.
Next issue street date
Friday, June 18 Submission deadline
Friday, June 11
5,000 M-ATVs See page 3
Summertime Short Stay style See page 12
Watercraft safety See page 16