29 MAY 44
At 0457 Princeton was underway from berth B-22 and would make the short journey around the northern end of Ford Island to drop anchor in East Loch where, with some relatively open water around her, she could conduct "dead load" testing of her catapult.
Testing was completed by 1130 and at 1200 ship and crew "commenced making preparations for getting underway."
At 1338, 11 days after entering Pearl Harbor, Princeton weighed anchor and was once again underway "in accordance with secret despatch orders from CinCPac dated 26 May 1944." Those orders directed Carrier Division 12, organized specifically for the transit west, to proceed directly to Majuro Atoll where the P would take on provisions for upcoming operations in addition to delivering 499 one hundred pound bombs that had been onloaded during the availability period.
Leaving the channel, carriers Yorktown, Monterey and Princeton formed up in column and, training time being precious, wasted none while commencing anti-aircraft gunnery practice at target sleeves being towed by shore-based aircraft.
At 1714 the Officer in Tactical Command, RADM Ralph E. Davison (see below), ordered the carriers to turn eastward into the wind and begin preparations to recover each carriers' respective Air Groups. 27 minutes later "VF aircraft crashed into barrier; slight damage to plane, no injury to pilot." 17 minutes after that, "while taxiing forward, another VF aircraft applied brakes injudiciously and nosed over, striking propellor on deck; plane damaged, pilot uninjured."
Welcome aboard Fighting 27!
By 1826, all three carriers had recovered their Air Groups, Princeton's comprising 25 Hellcats and 9 Avengers.
At 1830 the Carrier Division had crossed its first time zone and was making 22 knots on a southwesterly course. Local sunset was at 1907 and at 2038, with a faint horizon likely still discernible...
"a surface contact was reported dead ahead of the formation, distant 7 miles. This showed as two indications on this vessel's radar screen. No further report was made by any of the screening vessels, although the indications were observed to pass between two of the destroyers. At 2050 two small craft were sighted visually, identified as PC's or SC's, abeam to starboard about 900 yards on an opposite course. These vessels had not been challenged by the screen and were not positively identified. OTC directed screen to challenge and establish identity of all contacts in the future."
30 & 31 MAY 44
The last two days of May saw Princeton, Yorktown and Monterey give their respective Air Groups and flight deck personnel ample opportunity to get back in the operational groove, launching multiple cycles of aircraft for training events on both days.
In the the 2 1/2 days since leaving Pearl, Princeton had travelled 883 miles, a little less than half the distance to Majuro Atoll. With May 1944 drawing to a close, Princeton and her new flyers would continue to build a solid working relationship.
In his book War, Sebastian Junger attempts to explain the bonds created by men who experience armed conflict, something most of us, thankfully, cannot begin to comprehend:
The only thing that matters is your level of dedication to the rest of the group, and that is almost impossible to fake. That is why the men say such impossibly vulgar things about each other’s sisters and mothers. It’s one more way to prove nothing can break the bond between them; it’s one more way to prove they’re not alone out there.
We had a saying in my first squadron that corroborates Junger's observation:
If you can't hit a guy when he's down, when can you hit him?
I always thought this was hilarious. And while it may be difficult for people not in that world to understand, I can attest that it was a real and valuable thing.
As a guest at two reunions of the men of the Peerless P, I saw glimpses of a similar attitude and banter, but more importantly, I observed that the decades had not dimmed their mutual respect.
At the Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C. Dad on far left.
The 1991 reunion, I believe in Philadelphia. Dad back row second from left. (Note the egregious error - "CVL 27" vice "CVL 23." I don't think they cared too much though!)
In less than 3 weeks, Princeton and her brand new Air Group would be involved in one of the largest naval air battles in history. And "punching above their weight" with just 34 aircraft, the Peerless P would contribute significantly to that battle being called a "turkey shoot."
Addendum: Rear Admiral Davison would, in March 1945, be the Commander of Task Force 58.2.
His flagship, USS Franklin (CV-13), "The Ship That Wouldn't Die," would become one of the most famous of the war, largely because of some impressive photos taken upon her return to America:
Franklin's damage report is equally impressive.
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