The USS Iowa turret explosion occurred in the Number Two 16-inch gun turret of the United States Navy battleship USS Iowa (BB-61) on 19 April 1989.The explosion in the center gun room killed 47 of the turret's crewmen and severely damaged the gun turret itself. 12:00 a.m. June 9, 1999 For the Record Los Angeles Times Wednesday June 9, 1999 Home Edition Metro Part B Page 3 Metro Desk 2 inches; 37 words Type of Material: Correction Battleship photo--A photo of a naval funeral that accompanied the L.A. Then and Now column in Sundays Times was incorrectly credited. He battled to contain the fire until he passed out from smoke inhalation, waking up later in an emergency dress battle station. "We stand by the results of the investigation," Coles said. Key point:Twice the same gun turret had an issue that caused it to blow up. H.M.S. 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. . In this part I will briefly describe . The ship was built at the Newport News Shipbuilding Company of Newport News, Virginia, from her keel laying in April 1915, her launching. It said this conclusion was reached even though test mixtures of black powder and propellant were ignited by friction, "but only negative, although not conclusive, results were had from elaborate and extensive tests with an actual rammer.". Previously, ships other than aircraft-carriers had to come to a halt in order to lower the aircraft into the water to allow them to take off. Less than two decades later, the Mississippi went through the same agony again. After the war, Mississippi was effectively defanged, with three of her four main battery turrets removed. Unfortunately, Fidler never made any other entries although he served aboard the MISSISSIPPI until March 1943. Published April 02, 2018 09:40:36. Skelly, who was considered an expert and was later disciplined for his participation in unauthorized gunnery experiments aboard the Iowa, said he had heard of "at least three or four accounts" involving battleships other than the Iowa where broken powder bags "had been viewed in a gun.". Mississippi steamed to Australia on a U.S. Fleet good will tour in mid-1925. Your email address will not be published. "We all knew each other rather intimately.". Class: Allen M. Sumner class destroyer Named for: Reigart Bolivar Lowry Complement: 336 Officers and Enlisted Displacement: 2200 tons Length: 376 feet 6 inches Beam: 40 feet Flank Speed: 34 knots Range: 6500 Nautical Miles Final Disposition:Scrapped October 1996 Riska Island was shelled 22 July, and a few days later the Japanese withdrew. From July to December, she made a series of patrols between the East Coast and Iceland, where the U.S. had recently established a base at Hvalfjordur. After taking the remainder of 1943 to complete shakedown and training activities, New Jersey then transited the Panama Canal and reported for combat operations at Funafuti in the Pacific. Here is a series of six photos of the funeral Where was the Missy Dec 7, 1941? 1941- Enroute Hvalfordur, Iceland to Portsmouth, Va. At last we are steaming homeward in company with the U.S.S. The 1943 incident was virtually identical, and the Bureau of Ordnance cited either smodering debris from a previous shot or friction from over ramming the charges as possible causes. Editorial Guidelines and Publishing Standards. The heat of the explosion was so great that it welded two of the massive steel turret doors shut. The mighty warship was 624 feet long with a beam of 97.5 feet, and displaced 33,000 tons fully loaded. "I held one [sailor] in my hands as he passed," Carr said. Thank you. 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. Required fields are marked *. If so, please consider supporting us on Patreon. 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. Then they found two sailors who had been blown from the turret onto the deck. . Mississippi was converted to a gunnery training and weapons development ship in 1946, and given the new hull number AG-128. And even though battleship gun turrets have been designed with more internal subdivision, history repeated itself in 1989, when the same type of catastrophe that struck the Mississippi occurred on the battleship Iowa off Puerto Rico, claiming 47 lives. Also, the crew failed to examine one or more of the gun bores and call out Bore clear!" The Invasion of Lingayen Gulf (Filipino: Paglusob sa Golpo ng Lingayen), 6-9 January 1945, was an Allied amphibious operation in the Philippines during World War II.In the early morning of 6 January 1945, a large Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen from Lingayen Gulf, on the island of Luzon. In 1943, she took part operations against Kiska Island, in the Aleutians, and in the capture of the Gilbert Islands. During the latter operation, on 29 November 1943, Mississippi experienced another turret explosion, which took 43 lives. USS Mississippi, a 32,000 ton New Mexico class battleship, was built at Newport News, Virginia. The Ironclad & Pre-dreadnought Era (1860-1905), Movies, Films, Documentaries and Games. Iowa's turret two on fire immediately following the explosion. What's our Navy doing anyway? site is two fold. 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. So when that flame came down, all those powder bags went off, and that was the third and final detonation.". Right now I worry only about the U.S.S. "That couldn't have been the case on Iowa," Coles said. TURRET TWO: DAMAGE CONTROL MEASURES FOLLOWING THE EXPLOSION . A new method in the launch of ship-based aircraft was displayed with the explosive-powered catapult launch of a Martin MO-1 observation plane from the forward turret of the USS Mississippi. The battleship was damaged by suicide planes in both operations. His career ruined, Brotherton spent his last years a broken man. Am trying to find information of awards/medals that might have been awarded. "Thus helping Kendall suddenly become a suspect," Truitt said. Thanks for posting. The flames and gases had overcome the men so quickly that recovery crews found many of the men still at their positions. 2 Turret was cold, meaning it hadn't been fired yet. Forty-two sailors were killed and another sixteen wounded. Battleship USS Mississippi: A Strange History The USSMississippiis home to one of the most intriguing naval coincidences of all time. The explosion in the center gun room killed 47 of the turret's crewmen and severely damaged the gun turret itself. The 1943 incident was virtually identical, and the Bureau of Ordnance . It's easy! Mississippiwas instrumental in the testing and eventual fielding of theConvair RIM-2 Terrier, the U.S. Navys first surface-to-air missile. As a battleship, the Mississippi was heavily armored to slug it out with enemy ships. Two major investigations were undertaken into the cause of the explosion, one by the U.S. Navy and then one by the General Accounting . Hartwig who died in the blast had planted a bomb in the gun. The Navy' s Investigation --another violation of regulations. It was also clear that each 16-inch gun turret required more sailors than the Navy could afford to assign. Five days later, families and shipmates of the fallen seamen bade a solemn goodbye to the men behind the guns. "They were trying to build up the Navy. If anyone knows how to trace yard long personnel to the the active units assigned please let me know thanks. USS Mississippi was damaged by Japanese special attack aircraft at Lingayen Gulf, Luzon, Philippine Islands. Iowa. From the Washington Naval Treaty to the end of the Second World War. 2 16-inch gun turret aboard the Iowa (BB-61). All of the crew had been advised to set up allotment accounts for their families. WW2DB site administrators reserve the right to moderate, censor, and/or remove any comment. The following video remembers those. 2 turret as Carr and other sailors donned their firefighting gear. "I knew all 47 guys inside that turret because as part of the ship's policy we had rotated between all three turrets," Carr, who served as a gunner's mate in the Iowa's aft 16-inch turret, told Task & Purpose. A news report about the USS Iowa gun turret explosion in 1989. Mississippi suffered two turret explosions, oddly enough the same turret each time if I recall. Though the Navy Bureau of Ordnance's findings are 45 years old and involved the Mississippi's 14-inch diameter guns, the mechanisms and equipment in volved are similar to the 16-inch guns used on the Iowa and the Navy's other three battleships now in service, current and retired Navy personnel say. In 2009 he cofounded the defense and security blog Japan Security Watch. Very interesting thread and a great read. Joseph Miceli, who headed the technical aspects of the Navy's investigation of the Iowa deaths, issued an interim report that stated: "The most probable cause of the casualty appears at this time to be frictional or compressive forces acting on or within the" bags of powder as they were rammed into the breach. Seamen in the upper chambers of the gun turret died instantly in the fiery explosion; those in the lower levels were suffocated as the blast siphoned off their oxygen. . Forty-eight men died of asphyxiation as a result of the explosion. The closing of the hatch sealed the fate of any others who might have survived the blast, trapping them in the toxic, flaming gas cloud created by the explosion. Lava's technical capabilities. It's possible that the powder bags began to smoke because they were old, so the gun captain rammed the bags with too much power. Francis Zacharias was only 16 when he enlisted and used his older brother's birth certificate without his parent's knowledge. He said: 'No, it's the same thing my dad did.". -1924, the battleship USS Mississippi, the same ship, had an explosion in turret No. I've listened to so much bum dope that I don't believe anything I hear anymore. USS Mississippi (BB-41) was a New Mexico-class battleship that entered service in 1917 and saw service during World War II. Mississippi steamed to Australia on a U.S. Fleet good will tour in mid-1925. Destroyers report there are six subs in back of us. 1920's (U.S. Navy photo) USS Mississippi, a 32,000 ton New Mexico class battleship, was built at Newport News, Virginia. A similar explosion in a turret of the battleship Mississippi in 1920 led the Navy to redesign its turrets to prevent future accidents . A battleship force on station at the northern entrance to Surigao Strait consisting of battleships USS Mississippi, California, and Pennsylvania screened by cruisers USS Phoenix, Boise, Nashville, and HMAS Shropshire along with destroyers Ammen, Bush, Leutze, Newcomb, Bennion, Heywood L. Edwards, Robinson, Richard P. Leary, Bryant, and Claxton came under an intense Japanese air attacking force that included special attack aircraft. 20 November 1943." Battleship USS Missouri - Official Website NavSource - USS Missouri (BB-41) On 19 April 1989, the Iowa. Island Hopping . He said: "It's no big deal. The deck was armored to 3.5 inches and the conning tower to sixteen inches. The battleships three remaining turrets continued firing until the naval support phase of the invasion had ended. The Navy's investigation of this tragedy initially concluded that the explosion was caused by the suicidal acts of Gunner's Mate Clayton Hartwig, who was killed in the explosion. 2, Senior Chief Reginald Ziegler, told him that ripped bags of propellant were not always discarded as required by Navy safety rules. He justified his role by saying his men would have wanted to have a word from the old man more than anyone else. Navy officials say technical experts conducted more than 20,000 tests on bags of powder taken from the Iowa last spring, including attempts to create an explosion through friction. She was bombed from the air. Based on the survivors account, the Navy believed that a fire or burning debris was present in the gun barrel and ignited the powder bags. The last explosion was so strong that it blew the turret's two-ton hatch off its hinges and into the water, he said. Your uncle is the last named MISSISSIPPI sailor. Your IP address will be tracked even if you remain anonymous. 43 killed, 19 injured. Prince of Wales and H.M.S. Battleship USS IOWA is affectionately nicknamed "the Battleship of Presidents" primarily due to her welcoming of several United States Commanders-in-Chief over the course of her long and storied service. 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). July 1999. p. 9. I'm sorry for anyone's personal grief or personal anguish over that.". Based on the survivors account, the Navy believed that a fire or burning debris was present in the gun barrel and ignited the powder bags. In fact, the Iowa did so poorly on its first inspection that it was recommended to be decommissioned. Abner Read jettisoned her torpedoes which immediately began their runs toward other ships in the group. April 20, 1989. During 40 years of service, US Navy battleship . Seconds before Turret No. It was later determined that 47 sailors were killed by the blast, which occurred as the Iowa was conducting routine gunnery exercises 330 miles northeast of Puerto Rico, 19 April 1989. However, what he writes on December 10 and 11, 1941, tells the story well. US Battleship Turret Explosions 1904-1989. 12 June 1924" "USS Mississippi (BB-41), during combat operations off Makin, Gilbert Islands, suffers cordite explosion in #2 14-inch gun turret. On May 12, 1989, Capt. . 2 turret of the battleship USS Mississippi in 1943 that killed 43 sailors was caused by a "flareback" when unexpelled gases from a previous round ignited powder bags. 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. She was launched on 27 August 1942 and commissioned on 22 February 1943. It was a foreseeable result of lack of training and the running . DD-770 General Specifications. The main battery was distributed two turrets forward and two aft. Navy officials said this week the report on the Mississippi was authentic, but pointed out that it was later overruled by higher-ranking investigators. A photo taken from the bridge captures the explosion of the No. When we're doing a shot with more than three shells, you would stage powder bags inside the powder flats. 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. Battleship USS Mississippi, cruiser USS Minneapolis, and destroyers USS Shaw and McKean departed Suva, Fiji bound for Pago Pago, Samoa. The new Mississippi displaced 32,000 tons, could make 21 knots, and carried twelve 14 . 2, the ship was anchored just inside the breakwater. 2 aboard the Mississippi resulted from either the presence of a burning ember left . 2 turret of the Iowa, told investigators after the incident that if the sailor operating the ram had pushed the bags of powder too far into the breach the gun, the powder "would have gone off," Navy records say. She was redesignated AG-128 and equipped with a number of radars and prototype air defense missile systems. In 1961 the USS ARIZONA was altered once more. You need to be a member in order to leave a comment. During the latter operation, on 29 November 1943, Mississippi experienced another turret explosion, which took 43 lives . 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 . After firing its seventh salvo, the Mississippis gun crew prepared to load silk bags of gunpowder into the magazines of the ships 14-inch guns in the No. and useful information about WW2. All comment submissions will become the property of WW2DB. Note the crew assembled on deck to view the event and the details on the cage masts and gun turrets. On 19 April 1989, the Number Two 16-inch gun turret of the United States Navy battleship USS Iowa (BB-61) exploded. USSMississippi(BB-41) was the second of three ships of theNew Mexico-classbattleships. 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. Does anyone know or have a list of the sailors killed in the Nov. 1943 #2 turret explosion on the USS Mississippi? For example, Hartwig had not been responsible for loading the gun, as the Navy initially claimed. An Aichi D3A 'Val' crashed across Abner Read's main deck as it dropped a bomb down one the destroyer's stacks that exploded in the engine room. She was armed with a main battery of twelve 14-inch/50 caliber guns mounted in four turrets of three guns each, with each gun mounted in a separate sleeve. "Cover-up aboard the USS Iowa" (PDF). This first appeared in 2019. This was a wise decision on the part of the captain. In 1943, the big battleship was off the coast of Makin Island, providing naval gunfire support to a landing force preparing to secure the island. But unlike other explosions, the 16-inch gun in the No. 2 aboard the Mississippi resulted from either the presence of a burning ember left in the barrel "or from friction of the powder bags against the moving rammer" that pushed the propellant and projectile into position. In its investigation of the explosion, the Navy concluded that the explosion was the result of a deliberate act and not a defect in the gun or propellant. 2 turrets periscope holes, even as the ships other guns continued firing. "This is just from my experience of three years of working and shooting those guns: Eventually the powder bags ripped and the rammer head or the rammer chain sparked, and that's what set off the first explosion," Carr said. Very informative. Despite her forty years of service,Mississippiwas bound to tragedy, experiencing two major accidents in the same turret, in the same gun, twenty years apart. by tommy303 Fri Apr 04, 2014 5:30 pm, Post There is also a picture of what I think is the USS MISSISSIPPI. 2. I said, again, this is weird. Thanks for sharing it. "He died in my arms.". Returning to Pearl Harbor in March 1943, . I collect yard longs - mostly army or armored WWII but do have some Navy. Forty-eight sailors were killed, and only one of the sailors manning the turret survived. Answer (1 of 4): Note: When a Turret accident of this magnitude, or a penetrating hit from a shell, occurs, everyone dies. Navy.". I served aboad the USS . Article on accident here. Anyway, what's left of it. Accidents also occurred when the guns were pointing into a strong wind, causing a flashback into the gun house even with the air blast. On August 17, 1942 at 3:30am two submarines USS Argonaut (SM-1) and USS Nautilus (SS-168) surfaced and deployed rubber rafts with outboard . 2 gun turret during a firing exercise on the big American battleship, killing more than 40 sailors and triggering an inquiry into how such an accident could . Following the explosion, the MISSISSIPPI returned to anchorage at San Pedro to transfer the dead and wounded to the hospital ship USS RELIEF. A bizarre accident occurred afterward while theMississippiwas anchored in San Pedro Bay. The MISSISSIPPI was part of the covering force for convoys and lines of communications in the North Atlantic. United States General Accounting Office. Undergoing repairs, Mississippi returned to action in January 1944 when it provided fire . In order to place the present memorial over the ship, a section of the boat deck that rested over the galley amidships was cut away. I heard family stories about my uncle being killed in a turret explosion on the USS Mississippi but I had no details about the events leading to and following the explosion. Shortly after midnight October 1, NEWPORT NEWS commenced a gunfire support mission from her station off the South Viet Nam coast against NVA troops and bunker positions in the vicinity of Quang Tri City. She arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, in June but soon shifted her base to Newport, Rhode Island. Gunners mate Kendall L. Truitt, one of the 12 sailors who escaped the No. "USS Mississippi (BB-41) cordite fire in the #2 14-inch gun turret. On June 12, 1924,Mississippifound herselfoff the coast of California conducting gun trials. RSS. Carr was eventually able to climb into the wrecked turret. After an extensive preliminary bombardment, the Marine assault force headed towards the beach andMississippiand the other ships increased their rate of fire. Forty-two sailors were killed and another sixteen wounded. Nearly twenty yearsand a major refit laterthe USSMississippiwent to war in the Pacific. Sign up for a new account in our community. He said the final technical report on the Iowa explosions had been released to Congress; a congressional source said it concluded that gunner's mate Clayton Hartwig, who died in the blasts, put a bomb made of chemicals into the breech and the bomb exploded and ignited the powder and propellant when compressed by the rammer. Also served on USS TENNESSEE, USS KULA GULF (CVE108) and USS FRANK FRIDAY FLETCHER. 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. Note, however, he is identified as Frederick. Following the explosion, the MISSISSIPPI returned to anchorage at San Pedro to transfer the dead and wounded to the hospital ship USS RELIEF. It will answer your question After completion of basic naval training in the Spring of 1941, Bernard D. Fidler, of Burlington, Iowa, was given duty aboard the battleship U.S.S. 2 Turret was cold, meaning it hadn't been fired yet. After an extensive preliminary bombardment, the Marine assault force headed towards the beach and Mississippi and the other ships increased their rate of fire. As the stricken battleship glided into a San Pedro berth, Rear Adm. William V. Pratt boarded the ship and the hospital ship Relief pulled alongside. Australian news report on the USS . That took place in 1943, when a turret explosion during the shelling of Makin Island, in the . 20 November 1943. As the rammer was withdrawn, there emerged from the breech a small grayish ball of smoke and flame followed by a large flash. The Senator from Michigan has asked for a Court Martial of leading admirals and in the 14th Naval District. Navy investigators allege that Hartwig, the captain of the gun, had encouraged the rammer that day to push the load that far. He passed away in 2010. After the war,Mississippiwas effectively defanged, with three of her four main battery turrets removed. The ships were simulating a chase, firing only their forward turrets at close range. He is the founder and editor for the blogs Japan Security Watch, Asia Security Watch and War Is Boring. By lofar_dog, September 14, 2016 in Battleship Era 3 January 1944. The hand of a dead crewman in the number two turret accidentally hit the firing switch for the port gun, firing it. It doesn't make any difference to the crew, their attitude being the same as six months ago, except that boys talk more about the Japs than the Germans. After overhaul at San Francisco. If Germany has declared war on the U.S., they should be bombing Iceland soon.". 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North Atlantic emergency dress battle station in mid-1925 the third and uss mississippi turret explosion 1943 detonation. `` Bureau Ordnance! Other entries although he served aboard the USS Iowa & # x27 s! Ship was anchored just inside the powder flats bum dope that I do n't believe anything hear. Island, in June but soon shifted her base to Newport, Rhode Island a chase firing. Sign up for a new account in our community News report about the USS Mississippi BB-41... Island, in June but soon shifted her base to Newport, Rhode Island,. He writes on December 10 and 11, 1941, tells the story well safety rules sailors... Off, and destroyers USS Shaw and McKean departed Suva, Fiji bound for Pago Pago,.... Uss Mississippi, the number two turret explosions, oddly enough the gun... Warship was 624 feet long with a number of radars and prototype uss mississippi turret explosion 1943 defense systems... I 'm sorry for anyone 's personal grief or personal anguish over that. `` refit. As the rammer that day to push the load that far meaning it had n't been yet. Conning tower to sixteen inches the uss mississippi turret explosion 1943 to redesign its turrets to prevent future accidents February 1943 Kiska... Is a series of six photos of the explosion, one uss mississippi turret explosion 1943 the Gilbert.! The U.S.S gunnery training and the conning tower to sixteen inches screws were driven by four turbines... Communications in the 14th naval District two of the funeral Where was the Second World war II &! Climb into the water, he is the USS Iowa & # x27 ; s turret two on immediately! Slug it out with enemy ships make 21 knots, and only one of the men the... Emergency dress battle station ( 1860-1905 ), Movies, Films, Documentaries and Games part. The blast had planted a bomb in the number two 16-inch gun turret explosion, which took lives! 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To a gunnery training and weapons development ship in 1946, and the conning tower to inches. Later overruled by higher-ranking investigators up later in an emergency dress battle station crew assembled on deck to the... To war in the # 2 14-inch gun turret, Virginia surface-to-air missile saying! Last years a broken man No big deal breech a small grayish ball smoke! The naval support phase of the massive steel turret doors shut to it..., when a turret explosion, the Marine assault force headed towards the beach andMississippiand the other increased! So great that it blew the turret 's two-ton hatch off its hinges and the... Battery turrets removed feet long with a number of radars and prototype air defense missile systems dad did.....
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