The FReeper Foxhole Remembers John Waldron and The Battle of Midway (6/4/1942) - June 4th, 2003

http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/pers-us/uspers-w/j-waldrn.htm ^

[SAMWolf]

Dear Lord,

There's a young man far from home,
called to serve his nation in time of war;
sent to defend our freedom
on some distant foreign shore.

We pray You keep him safe,
we pray You keep him strong,
we pray You send him safely home ...
for he's been away so long.

There's a young woman far from home,
serving her nation with pride.
Her step is strong, her step is sure,
there is courage in every stride.
We pray You keep her safe,
we pray You keep her strong,
we pray You send her safely home ...
for she's been away too long.

Bless those who await their safe return.
Bless those who mourn the lost.
Bless those who serve this country well,
no matter what the cost.

Author Unknown

.

FReepers from the The Foxhole
join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time.

.

.................................................................................................................................

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Lt. Commander John Waldron
Torpedo 8 at The Battle of Midway

John C. Waldron was born at Fort Pierre, South Dakota, on 24 August 1900. Graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1924, he became a Naval Aviator in 1927. During the years prior to World War II, he served in several air units, was an instructor at the Naval Academy and at Pensacola, Florida, and performed other duties connected with aviation. In 1941, LCdr. Waldron became Commanding Officer of Torpedo Squadron Eight (VT-8), which was to serve on the new aircraft carrier Hornet (CV-8). He led that unit during the Battle of Midway, when all fifteen of its planes were lost to overwhelming enemy fighter opposition while making an unsupported attack on the Japanese aircraft carrier force. Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron was killed during that action.

Lieutenant Commander John Charles Waldron, USN (1900-1942)

John Waldron was commanding officer of Torpedo Squadron 8 which the lost the entire squadron of 15 TBD's at the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1942. His body was not recovered.

As reported in Captain M. A. Mitscher's report to the Commander in Chief, U. S. Pacific Fleet on June 13, 1942: "Torpedo 8 led by Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron was lost in its entirety. This squadron flew at 100 knots below the clouds while the remainder of the group flew at 110 knots, climbing to 19,000 feet. Lieutenant Commander Waldron, a highly aggressive officer, leading a well trained squadron, found his target and attacked.... This squadron is deserving of the highest honors for finding the enemy, pressing home the attack, without fighter protection and without diverting dive bomber attacks to draw the enemy fire. Ensign G. H. Gay, A-V (N), U. S. N. R. is worthy of additional praise for making a torpedo hit and for the presence of mind he showed in hiding under his seat cushion, after being shot down, for several hours, thereby probably saving his own life and giving us an excellent eye-witness picture of the damage caused by the attack on the enemy carriers".


The last of Torpedo Eight's TBDs, T-16 (BuNo 1506), flown by LCDR John C. Waldron with Horace Franklin Dobbs, CRMP, in the rear seat, taking off Hornet on 4 June 1942. Notice the unstowed twin .30 cal. Photo courtesy Mark Horan

Captain Mitscher later added in his report the following , making reference to recommended awards: "In particular, the Commanding Officer feels that the conduct of Torpedo Squadron Eight, led by an indomitable Squadron Commander, is one of the most outstanding exhibitions of personal bravery and gallantry that has ever come to his attention in the records of the past or present".

Commander Waldron was awarded the Navy Cross for heroism posthumously. The Battle of Midway has been termed the turning point in the Pacific Theatre in WW II and was the subject of an epic motion picture film.



Waldron Field was named 5 March 1943, prior to establishing of station, in honor of Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron, killed in action leading the attack of Torpedo Squadron 8 in the Battle of Midway; 4 June 1942. The former NAAS now an OLF to NAS Corpus Christi.

On August 10, 1941, Waldron became commander of Torpedo Squadron 8, based on the USS Hornet. Waldron was forty-one when he was killed in the Battle of Midway, the turning point of the war in the Pacific. Flying without fighter protection and without sufficient fuel in which to make it back to his carrier, Waldron, leading the rest of his Torpedo Squadron 8, delivered an attack against the Japanese on June 4, 1942. Battling fierce Japanese fire, Waldron’s squadron had little chance. He and others tried to escape their planes as they were hit, but few were successful. Of the fifteen planes and thirty men, only one officer lived to tell of the heroic leadership of Lt. Cmdr. Waldron. It is apparent that Waldron’s outstanding leadership motivated his men to die for him and with him and the cause for which they stood.


John Waldron (left), and Horace Dobbs (right) during Coral Sea

An airfield at Corpus Christi, Texas, was named for Cmdr. Waldron in April of 1943. A destroyer, USS Waldron, also became his namesake. In addition, a street in Ft. Pierre, South Dakota is named for John Waldron, WW II hero.

[SAMWolf]

The American Aircraft Carriers Search for Nagumo's Carriers

At about 8.00 a.m. on 4 June 1942, Rear Admiral Fletcher had reduced the distance between his carrier task forces and the Japanese carriers to about 150 miles (240 km). Fletcher and Spruance intended to operate their task forces separately, but never far apart.

A TBD from the ill-fated Torpedo Eight begins its take off run off Hornet. This plane was the twelfth of fifteen TBD's (probably ENS W. R. Evans, Jr., A-V(N) USNR and R. E. Bibb, Jr., ARM3c in T-4, BuNo 0321) launched by VT-8 on the morning of 4. Photo courtesy Mark Horan

Although he would have preferred to reduce the range still further, Rear Admiral Spruance had already launched thirty-three of his Douglas SBD-3 Dauntless dive bombers from USS Enterprise . Spruance knew that the first wave of Japanese carrier aircraft had struck Midway about 6.30 a.m., and he believed that these aircraft would be likely to return to their carriers about 8.30 a.m. He was so eager to catch the Japanese by surprise, while their flight decks were congested with aircraft landing, and being refuelled and rearmed, that he ordered his airborne dive bombers to head for the Japanese carriers without waiting for their Wildcat fighter escorts to take off from the carrier. If the American aircrews had been as superbly trained and as battle-toughened as their Japanese opponents, it would not have been a risky decision. The American torpedo and dive bombers aboard the carriers at Midway were underpowered and painfully slow and, in theory at least, the Wildcat fighters should have been able to overtake and escort their bombers to the Japanese carriers.



Dauntless dive bombers and escorting Wildcat fighters were then launched from USS Hornet , and they were followed by a third wave of dive bombers and fighters from Enterprise. The attack groups from Enterprise and Hornet set course for the anticipated position of Nagumo's carriers on the assumption that he was unaware of the presence of American carriers so close to him, and was continuing on his south-easterly course for Midway. However, after recovering all of his Midway strike aircraft shortly after 8.30 a.m., Nagumo had turned north to engage the American carriers. The dive bombers and fighters from Hornet failed to locate the Japanese carriers, and either flew on to Midway or returned to their carrier.



While it was clearly imperative for the Americans to strike, if possible, before Vice Admiral Nagumo was able to launch his own air strike at their carriers, the American Navy had a history of problems in coordinating torpedo, dive bomber and fighter strikes, even when these aircraft were all launched from the same carrier. This flaw in American naval aviation training, when combined with obsolete aircraft, defective torpedoes, lack of combat experience, and rushed aircraft launches on this particular day, would all combine to produce tragic consequences for American torpedo bomber aircrews and bring the United States very close to a major defeat on this morning of 4 June 1942.

The Courage of American Pilots
Proves A Match for Japan's Overwhelming Naval Power

Guided by instinct rather than reason, Lieutenant Commander John Waldron, leading his squadron of fifteen obsolete Douglas TBD Devastator torpedo bombers from Hornet (Torpedo Squadron VT-8), responded to the absence of the Japanese carriers at their anticipated position by diverting his bombers in a north-westerly direction. He was troubled by the fact that his torpedo squadron had not been joined by its Wildcat fighter escorts from Hornet. He knew that the Devastator was slow and very vulnerable to attack by Japanese Zero fighters. However, his duty was to find the Japanese carriers and sink them if he could, and he pressed on. Waldron found Nagumo's carriers at 9.20 a.m., and ordered his aircraft to attack even though they had no fighter escorts. Although the attack was pressed home with great courage, the Japanese Zero fighters guarding the carriers overwhelmed the low-flying American torpedo bombers and shot them all down before any torpedoes could be launched. Only one American airman survived this attack. Although no damage was done to the Japanese carriers, the sacrifice by Waldron and his aircrews was not in vain. The Americans now knew the location of the Japanese carriers.

Two further waves of American TBD Devastator torpedo bombers followed Waldron in low-altitude attacks on the Japanese carriers, and although these attacks were also pressed home with great courage, most of the American bombers were shot down by the swarming Zeros or by intense anti-aircraft fire.

Torpedo Squadron VT-6 from Enterprise, led by Lieutenant Commander Eugene E. Lindsay, attacked the carrier Kaga with fourteen TBDs. Nine were shot down and no hits on Kaga were registered. Torpedo Squadron VT-3 from USS Yorktown, led by Lieutenant Commander Lance E. Massey, lost all but two TBDs in its attack. Massey's TBDs were escorted by six Wildcat fighters, but the Wildcats were so outnumbered by Zeros that they were forced to defend themselves while Massey's TBDs pressed home their hopeless attack. Again, no damage was done to the Japanese carriers. Even the Japanese were impressed by the bravery, discipline and self-sacrifice of the American airmen whom they had been taught to despise as lacking courage and discipline.

The few torpedoes that were launched from American aircraft at the Battle of Midway were either evaded by skilful handling of the Japanese ships or failed to explode on impact.

However, the sacrifices of these gallant American aircrews had also not been in vain. They had forced the Japanese carriers to take evasive action and delayed preparations by Admiral Nagumo to launch his own air strike at the American carriers. The flight decks of the Japanese carriers were crowded with aircraft loaded with fuel, torpedoes and bombs, when at 10.25 a.m. a thunderbolt struck the Japanese carriers in the form of the thirty-three Dauntless dive bombers which had been the first aircraft launched from Enterprise by Admiral Spruance. They were joined by Dauntless dive bombers from Yorktown. The Japanese Zeros guarding the carriers had been drawn down close to sea level while attacking the low-flying American torpedo bombers, and the American dive bombers hurtling down from a great height on the Japanese carriers had only to be concerned about intense anti-aircraft fire. The American bombs struck the flight decks of Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu, and produced massive chain reaction explosions fuelled by the fully armed Japanese bombers and fighters. Within minutes all three carriers were reduced to fiercely burning wrecks. Kaga and Soryu sank late that afternoon. Akagi sank before dawn on 5 June.

The thirty-three Dauntless dive bombers from Enterprise were led by Lieutenant Commander Clarence W. McCluskey, who found Admiral Nagumo's carriers by an extraordinary stroke of luck. He had been engaged in a fruitless search for the Japanese carriers when he observed a Japanese destroyer speeding in a north-easterly direction. McCluskey suspected that the destroyer was part of Nagumo's carrier force and decided to follow it. If McCluskey's dive bombers had not arrived over the Japanese carriers at the same time as the single dive bomber squadron from Yorktown, and joined the Yorktown squadron in well-coordinated attacks on Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu, it is likely that the Battle of Midway would have ended quite differently. In great battles, luck can often be as important as sound planning.




Unfortunately for the Americans, Admiral Nagumo's fourth fleet carrier Hiryu was steaming ahead of the other three Japanese carriers and escaped the American dive bomber attack. Aboard Hiryu at this time was the commander of Carrier Division 2 of the First Carrier Striking Force, Rear Admiral Tamon Yamaguchi. Yamaguchi was one of Japan's most able and daring commanders of carrier air operations. Undeterred by the fate of Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu, Yamaguchi held course for the expected location of the American carriers, and prepared to launch his own air strike against them. At this stage, he only believed that he was facing Enterprise and Hornet. The Japanese would not have expected that Yorktown could have been repaired in time to participate in the battle at Midway.

[SAMWolf]

Preparations for Battle,
March 1942 to 4 June 1942

By March 1942, Japanese Navy strategists had achieved their initial war goals much more easily than expected. They had therefore abandoned the prewar plan to then transition to a strategic defensive posture, but there was still dispute on how to maintain the offensive. Moving further south in the Pacific would isolate Australia, and possibly remove that nation as a threat to the freshly-expanded Japanese Empire.



However, the American island base at Midway was also an attractive target, and the Doolittle Raid on Japan prompted a decision to attack there as the next major offensive goal. Midway was a vital "sentry for Hawaii", and a serious assault on it would almost certainly produce a major naval battle, a battle that the Japanese confidently expected to win. That victory would eliminate the U.S. Pacific fleet as an important threat, perhaps leading to the negotiated peace that was Japan's "exit strategy".

The Japanese planned a three-pronged attack to capture Midway in early June, plus a simultaneous operation in the North Pacific's Aleutian Islands that might provide a useful strategic diversion. In the van of the assault would be Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's aircraft carrier force, which would approach from the northwest, supress Midway's defenses and provide long-range striking power for dealing with American warships. A few hundred miles behind Nagumo would come a battleship force under Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto that would contain most of the operation's heavy gun power. Coming in from the West and Southwest, forces under Vice Admiral Nobutake Kondo would actually capture Midway. Kondo's battleships and cruisers represented additional capabilities for fighting a surface action.



Unfortunately for the Japanese, two things went wrong even before the Midway operation began. Two of Nagumo's six carriers were sent on a mission that resulted in the Battle of Coral Sea. One was badly damaged, and the other suffered heavy casualties to her air group. Neither would be available for Midway.

Even more importantly, thanks to an historic feat of radio communications interception and codebreaking, the United States knew its enemy's plans in detail: his target, his order of battle and his schedule. When the battle opened, the U.S. Pacific fleet would have three carriers waiting, plus a strong air force and reinforced ground defenses at the Midway Base

Japanese Air Attack on Midway,
4 June 1942

At 0430 in the morning of 4 June 1942, while 240 miles northwest of Midway, Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's four carriers began launching 108 planes to attack the U.S. base there. Unknown to the Japanese, three U.S. carriers were steaming 215 miles to the east. The two opposing fleets sent out search planes, the Americans to locate an enemy they knew was there and the Japanese as a matter of operational prudence. Seaplanes from Midway were also patrolling along the expected enemy course. One of these spotted, and reported, the Japanese carrier striking force at about 0530.



That seaplane also reported the incoming Japanese planes, and radar confirmed the approaching attack shortly thereafter. Midway launched its own planes. Navy, Marine and Army bombers headed off to attack the Japanese fleet. Midway's Marine Corps Fighting Squadron 221 (VMF-221) intercepted the enemy formation at about 0615. However, the Marines were immediately engaged by an overwhelming force of the very superior Japanese "Zero" fighters and were able to shoot down only a few of the enemy bombers, while suffering great losses themselves.

The Japanese planes hit Midway's two inhabited islands at 0630. Twenty minutes of bombing and straffing knocked out some facilities on Eastern Island, but did not disable the airfield there. Sand Island's oil tanks, seaplane hangar and other buildings were set afire or otherwise damaged. As the Japanese flew back toward their carriers the attack commander, Lieutenant Joichi Tomonaga, radioed ahead that another air strike was required to adequately soften up Midway's defenses for invasion.



U.S. Attacks on the Japanese Carrier Striking Force,
4 June 1942

While their aviators flew back from Midway, the Japanese carriers received several counterstrikes from Midway's own planes. Faced with overwhelming fighter opposition, these uncoordinated efforts suffered severe losses and hit nothing but sea water. Shortly after 0700, torpedo attacks were made by six Navy TBF-1s and four Army Air Force B-26s. Between 0755 and 0820, two groups of Marine Corps bombers and a formation of Army B-17s came in. The only positive results were photographs of three Japanese carriers taken by the high-flying B-17s, the sole surviving photos of the day's attacks on the Japanese carriers.

Meanwhile, a tardy Japanese scout plane had spotted the U.S. fleet and, just as Midway's counterattacks were ending, reported the presence of a carrier. Japanese commander Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo had begun rearming his second group of planes for another strike on Midway. He now had to reorganize that, recover the planes returning from Midway and respot his flight decks to launch an attack on the U.S. ships. Nagumo's force barely missed having enough time.



In the hour after about 0930, U.S. Navy planes from the carriers Hornet (CV-8), Enterprise (CV-6) and Yorktown (CV-5) made a series of attacks, initially by three squadrons of TBD torpedo planes that, despite nearly total losses, made no hits. The sacrifice of the TBDs did slow Japanese preparations for their own strike and disorganized the defending fighters. Then, at about 1025, everything changed. Three squadrons of SBD scout bombers, two from Enterprise and one from Yorktown, almost simultaneously dove on three of the four Japanese carriers, whose decks were crowded with fully armed and fueled planes that were just starting to take off. In a few minutes, Akagi, Kaga and Soryu were ablaze and out of action.



Of the once-overwhelming Japanese carrier force, only Hiryu remained operational. A few hours later, her planes crippled USS Yorktown. By the end of the day, though, U.S. carrier planes found and bombed Hiryu. Deprived of useful air cover, and after several hours of shocked indecision, Combined Fleet commander Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto called off the Midway operation and retreated. Six months after it began, the great Japanese Pacific War offensive was over.

Japanese Attacks on USS Yorktown,
4 June 1942

After the 4 June mid-morning U.S. Navy attacks on the Japanese carrier force, only the Hiryu remained operational. Shortly before 1100 she launched eighteen dive bombers, escorted by six fighters, to strike a retaliatory blow. At about noon, as these planes approached USS Yorktown (CV-5), the most exposed of the three American aircraft carriers, they were intercepted by the U.S. combat air patrol, which shot down most of the bombers. Seven, however, survived to attack, hitting Yorktown with three bombs and stopping her.



While Yorktown's crew worked to repair damage and get their ship underway, a second force left Hiryu, this one consisting of ten torpedo planes and six fighters. Though the U.S. carrier was moving again by 1430, and even launched more fighters, the Japanese aircraft penetrated heavy air and gunfire opposition to hit Yorktown with two torpedoes, opening a huge hole on her midships port side. The stricken ship again went dead in the water and took on a severe list. Concerned that she was about to roll over, her Captain ordered his crew to abandon ship.

Actions and Activities after 4 June 1942

Following the 4 June attack on Midway's facilities and the day's great battles between opposing aircraft carrier forces, the Japanese briefly considered continuing their campaign. However, as the full extent of their disaster became clear, they began a general retreat. After a brief withdrawal to avoid the risk of a night action, the two remaining U.S. carriers pursued the enemy forces, unsuccessfully attacking a destroyer on the 5th.



On 6 June, U.S. planes found and attacked two Japanese cruisers, sinking the Mikuma. Meanwhile, USS Yorktown had remained afloat. A salvage party returned to try to save her, but this effort was thwarted on the afternoon of the 6th, when a Japanese submarine found and torpedoed the carrier and the accompanying destroyer Hammann. The battered, gallant Yorktown sank the following morning.

As Battle of Midway combat activities gradually wound down, PBY patrol seaplanes and ships busied themselves rescuing downed aviators, the last of whom was recovered on 21 June. A U.S. submarine found two Mikuma survivors, and 35 of Hiryu's crewmen were picked up on 19 June. Earlier, men from Yorktown and Hammann had been taken to Pearl Harbor, where reinforcements were being forwarded to Midway and the nearby carriers. USS Saratoga (CV-3) arrived from the west coast on 6 June with a full load of aircraft. She quickly returned to sea, en route to join Enterprise and Hornet. Later in the month, fresh Marines were landed at Midway, which remained an important U.S. base for the rest of World War II, and beyond.

Additional Sources:

www.stjohnshistoriccemetery.com
www.globalsecurity.org
www.users.bigpond.com
www.strategypage.com
www.history.navy.mil
www.wwiitech.net
www.centurytel.net
www.walldrawn.com
www.brooksart.com
www.military-art.com
www.history.navy.mil
library.nps.navy.mil
www.psns.navy.mil
www.turkishnavy.com

[SAMWolf]

Remembering Torpedo Squadron 8

June 4, 1942: Torpedo Squadron 8, off the USS HORNET, attacked the Japanese carriers off Midway. Flying old, slow aircraft armed with defective torpedoes and lacking fighter cover, they were all shot down without inflicting any damage on the enemy. But by attracting the attention of the Japanese combat air patrol, their sacrifice made possible the success of the American dive bombers that arrived overhead minutes later, to devastate the Japanese carriers Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu, bringing victory at Midway

Lt. Commander John C. Waldron	KIA
Lt. Raymond A. Moore	KIA
Lt. James C. Owens	KIA
Lt.(jg) George M. Campbell	KIA
Lt.(jg) John P. Gray	KIA
Lt.(jg) Jeff D. Woodson	KIA
Ens. William W. Abercrombie	KIA
Ens. William W. Creamer	KIA
Ens. Harold J. Ellison	KIA
Ens. William R. Evans	KIA
Ens. George H. Gay	WIA
Ens. Henry R. Kenyon	KIA
Ens. Ulvert M. Moore	KIA
Ens. Grant W. Teats	KIA
Robert B. Miles, Aviation Pilot 1c	KIA
Horace F. Dobbs, Chief Radioman	KIA
Amelio Maffei, Radioman 1	KIA
Tom H. Pettry, Radioman 1	KIA
Otway D. Creasy, Jr. Radioman 2	KIA
Ross H. Bibb, Jr., Radioman 2	KIA
Darwin L. Clark, Radioman 2	KIA
Ronald J. Fisher, Radioman 2	KIA
Hollis Martin, Radioman 2	KIA
Bernerd P. Phelps Radioman 2	KIA
Aswell L. Picou, Seaman 2	KIA
Francis S. Polston, Seaman 2	KIA
Max A. Calkins, Radioman 3	KIA
George A. Field, Radioman 3	KIA
Robert K. Huntington, Radioman 3	KIA
William F. Sawhill, Radioman 3	KIA

[SAMWolf]

[snippy_about_it]

.......FALL IN to the FReeper Foxhole!

Good Morning Everyone!


If you would like added or removed from our ping list let me know.

[stainlessbanner]

Good Morn'n Sam. Great job on today's foxhole, sir!

[Soaring Feather]

Good morning SAM, snippy, everyone!
Great new day today!

[GailA]

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning feather.

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning Gail, nice graphic today as always. You're early today. :)

[gridlock]

An amazing story today. When you think of the degree of luck involved in our victory at Midway, you can't help but credit Divine providence. If those dive bombers had not found the Japanese fleet at precisely that time, Midway would be remembered as a tremendous US defeat, and the US Navy could have been eliminated as a contender in the Pacific for a very long time.

We would have prevailed eventually, but at an even higher cost.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Snippy.

[snippy_about_it]

Good Morning SAM.

[SAMWolf]

Thanks stainlessbanner.

The Battle of Midway is a facsinating one to study but the sacrifice of Torpedo 8 is just amazing. The bravery of those men is aweinspiring, knowing they had little chance but pressing the attack without aircover anyway.

[SAMWolf]

HI Feather.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning GAilA. Beautiful graphic! That would look great on my computer hutch.

[snippy_about_it]

:)

[SAMWolf]

Yep. God was on our side that day. All the things that had to fall into place that day. The precise timeing of events, the dive bombers and torpedo bombers arriving at the same place at the same time, the Japanese scout plane failure, the loaded planes on deck, the straggler DD that lead the Dive bombers to the carriers. Nothing short of a miracle.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on June 04:
1694 Fran‡ois Quesnay France, economist, leader of the Physiocrats
1738 George III English king during American Revolution (1760-1820)
1867 Carl Gustaf Mannerheim Finland, military hero, Pres (1944-46)
1877 Heinrich Wieland German chemist (bile acids-Nobel 1927)
1895 Dino Conte Grandi Italy, delegate to league of nations (1925-32)
19-- Lindsay Frost actress (As the World Turns)
19-- Priscilla Morrill Medford Mass, actress (Edie Grant-Mary Tyler Moore)
1902 Richard Allen India, field hockey goal tender (Olympic-gold-1928)
1908 Rosalind Russell actress (Mame, Take a Letter Darling)
1909 Paul Nordoff Philadelphia, composer (Frog Prince)
1917 Charles Collingwood Mich, news commentator (CBS, Chronicles)
1917 Howard Metzenbaum (Sen-D-Ohio)
1917 Robert Anderson author (Tea & Sympathy)
1917 Robert Merrill Bkln NY, baritone (NY Metropolitan Opera)
1922 Irwin Bazelon Evanston Illinois, composer (Duo for Viola)
1924 Dennis Weaver Joplin Mo, actor (Chester-Gunsmoke, Duel, Battered)
1926 Nan Leslie LA Calif, actress (Kings Row, The Californians)
1926 Robert Earl Hughes became heaviest known human (486 kg)
1932 John Barrymore Jr Beverly Hills Calif, actor (Pantomine Quiz)
1936 Bruce Dern Winnetka Ill, actor (Coming Home, Silent Running, Tatoo)
1937 Freddie Fender Mexico, country singer (Feelings)
1944 Michelle Phillips singer/actress (Mamas & Papas)
1944 Roger Ball saxophonist (Average White Band)
1945 Gordon Waller Scotland, singer (Peter & Gordon-World Without Love)
1945 Ivan "Ironman" Stewart Mickey Thompson off-road champ (1983, 84, 90)
1945 Margaret Impert Horseheads NY, actress (Maggie, Spencer's Pilots)
1946 Bettina Gregory newswoman (ABC-TV)
1948 Rosemary Joyce model/actress (Daphne Draper-Search For Tomorrow)
1950 Wayne Powers New Rochelle NY, actor (Laverne & Shirley, 13 East)
1952 Catherine Watkins Hartford Ct, actress (It's Not Easy, Mary)
1952 Parker Stevenson Phila Pa, actor (Falcon Crest, Stroker Ace)
1958 Julie Gholson Birmingham Ala, actress
1961 El Debarge rocker (Debarge-All this Love)
1963 Xavier McDaniel NBA forward (Seattle SuperSonics)
1964 Chris Kavanagh rocker (Sigue Sigue Sputnik-Love Missile F-111)
1965 Andrea Jaeger Chicago, tennis player (retired as a teenager)
1968 Stacy Leigh Arthur Naperville Ill, playmate (Jan, 1991)

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Deaths which occurred on June 04:
1954 Harold Hoffman (Gov-NJ), dies at 58
1960 Lucien Littlefield actor (Mr Beasley-Blondie), dies at 64
1970 Menasha Skulnik comedian (Menasha the Magnificent), dies at 78
1973 Arna Bontemps writer/educator, dies at 72 in Nashville, Tenn
1973 Murray Wilson father of beachboys Brian, Carl & Dennis, dies at 55
1989 Ayatalloh Ruhullah Khomeini of Iran, dies at 86 of internal bleeding
1990 Jack Gilford comedic actor, dies at 82 of stomach cancer

---

Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1967 ROBINSON LEWIS M. SAGINAW MI.
[REMAINS IDENTIFIED 04/16/99]
1968 BRICE ERIC PARKER ROCKY MOUNT NC.
1970 HUGGINS BOBBY GENE TROY AL.
[REMAINS RETURNED 11/03/97]
1970 WILSON HARRY TRUMAN GRAND PRAIRIE TX.
1975 CONWAY ROSEMARY A.
[08/75 RELEASED]


POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

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On this day...
780 -BC- 1st total solar eclipse reliably recorded by Chinese
1070 Roquefort cheese created in a cave near Roquefort, France
1647 British army seizes King Charles I as a prisoner
1745 Prussians defeat Austrians at Hohenfriedeberg
1783 Montgolfier brothers launch 1st hot-air balloon (unmanned)
1784 Mme Thible becomes 1st woman to fly (in a balloon)
1792 Capt George Vancouver claims Puget Sound for Britain
1805 Tripoli forced to conclude peace with US after war over tribute
1812 Louisiana Territory officially renamed "Missouri Territory"
1825 Unseasonable hurricane hits NYC
1832 3rd national black convention meets (Phila)
1850 Empire Engine Company No 1 organized
1862 Confederates evacuate Fort Pillow, Tenn
1878 Cyprus ceded by Turkey to Britain for administrative purposes
1896 Henry takes his 1st Ford through streets of Detroit
1900 M Wolf & A Schwassmann discovers asteroid #456 Abnoba
1912 Cone of Mount Katmai (Alaska) collapses
1912 Massachusetts passes 1st US minimum wage law
1918 M Wolf discovers asteroid #894 Erda
1919 Senate passes Women's Suffrage bill
1919 US marines invade Costa Rica
1927 1st Ryders Cup (Golf), US beats England 9«-2«
1929 George Eastman demonstrates 1st technicolor movie (Rochester NY)
1934 C Jackson discovers asteroid #2066 Palala
1940 1st night game at Forbes Field (Pirates 14, Braves 2)
1940 1st NL night game at Sportsman's Park (Dodgers 10, Cardinals 1)
1940 British complete miracle of Dunkirk by evacuating 300,000 troops
1940 German forces enter Paris
1942 Battle of Midway begins; Japan's 1st major defeat in WW II
1942 Capitol Record Co opens for business
1943 St Louis Card Mort Cooper pitches his 2nd consecutive 1 hitter
1944 1st submarine captured & boarded on high seas-U 505
1944 5th Army enters & liberates Rome from Mussolini's Fascist armies
1946 Largest solar prominence (300,000 mi/500,000 km) observed
1949 "Cavalcade of Stars" debuts (DuMont); Jackie Gleason made host in 1950
1951 Pirate's Gus Bell hits for the cycle helps beat Phillies 12-4
1954 Arthur Murray flies X-1A rocket plane to record 27,000 m
1956 Speech by Khrushchev blasting Stalin made public
1957 1st commercial coal pipeline placed in operation
1963 1st transmission of "Pop Go the Beatles" on BBC radio
1964 Beatles "World Tour" begins in Copenhagen Denmark
1964 LA Dodger Sandy Koufax 3rd no-hitter beats Phil Phillies, 3-0
1965 Rolling Stones release "Satisfaction"
1967 Emmy Awards-Monkees win for comedy series
1968 Don Drysdale pitches his 6th straight shutout, en route to 58 innings
1969 Nicky Hopkins quits rock & rolls, Jeff Beck Group
1970 Tonga gains independence from Britain (National Day)
1971 Oakland A's beat Wash Senators, 5-3, in 21 innings
1972 Angela Davis, black activist, acquitted of killing a white guard
1974 NFL grants franchise to Seattle Seahawks
1977 Violence during Puerto Rican Day in Chicago kills 2
1981 E Bowell discovers asteroids #2494 Inge, #2797 Teucer, #2870 Haupt, #3169 Ostro & #3726
1982 Israel attacks targets in south Lebanon
1984 Bruce Springsteen releases "Born in the USA"
1985 STS 51-G vehicle moves to the launch pad
1985 Supreme Court strikes down Alabama "moment of silence" law
1986 Jonathan Pollard, spy for Israel, pleads guilty in US court
1987 Danny Harris beats Edwin Moses, ends streak of 122 cons hurdle wins
1988 Longest game in Balt Memorial Stadium (5:46) 14 inn (beat NY 7-6)
1989 - 645 people were killed in the Soviet Union when a gas explosion engulfed two passing trains.
1998 - Terry Nichols received a life sentence for his role in the bombing of an Oklahoma City Federal Building.
1989 Beijing cop shoots & wounds Chinese priemer Li Ping
1989 Eastern Europe's 1st somewhat free election in 40 years held in Poland
1989 Largest parade in Bronx history honors 350th anniversary
1989 Red Sox lead Blue Jays 10-0 in 7th, but lose 12-11 in 12 for Blue Jays 12th consecutive victory at Fenway
1989, hundreds, possibly thousands of people died as Chinese army troops stormed Beijing to crush a pro-democracy movement.
1990 Greyhound Bus files bankruptcy
1990 NY Telephone company announces that it wants Bronx areacode 917

---

Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Botswana : Commonwealth Day
Finland : Flag Day (1867)
International : Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression
Tonga : Independence Day
Massachusetts : Teachers' Day - - - - - ( Sunday )
Ireland : Bank Day - - - - - ( Monday )
Bahamas : Labour Day - - - - - ( Friday )
New Zealand : Queen's Birthday - - - - - ( Monday )
Western Australia : Foundation Day (1838) - - - - - ( Monday )

---

Religious Observances
Christian : Feast of SS Quirinus & Optatus
Christian : Feast of St Saturnine
Unification Church : Day of all things
RC : Commemoration of St Francis Caracciolo, confessor

---

Religious History
1820 Birth of Elvina M. Hall, American Methodist poet who authored the hymn, 'Jesus Paid It All' (a.k.a. 'I Hear the Savior Say').
1873 Birth of Charles F. Parham, American charismatic church pioneer. In 1898 he founded a Bible training school in Topeka, Kansas, where the modern Pentecostal movement began in 1901.
1878 Birth of Frank N. Buchman, American exponent of the social gospel. He founded the First Century Christian Movement (1921), the Oxford Group (1929) and the Moral Re-Armament Movement (1938).
1900 Birth of Nelson Glueck, American Jewish archaeologist. Director of the American School of Oriental Research in Jerusalem between 1932 and 1947, he explored and dated over 1,000 ancient sites in Palestine and the Near East.
1948 In Manilla, the first missionary radio station built in the Philippines by the Far East Broadcasting Company (FEBC) first went on the air.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

---

Thought for the day :
"It is always the best policy to speak the truth--unless, of course, you are an exceptionally good liar."

[SAMWolf]

1940 German forces enter Paris

We should have let them keep it.

[skeeter]

There aren't many more inspiring stories than those of the doomed US torpedo squadrons at Midway. They knew exactly what the odds were going in - Waldron had said as much to his crew on the eve of the battle.

For 67 out of the more than 80 crewmen it would be their final mission.

[SAMWolf]

Current Military News
Welcome Home 3rd Infantry

Justin Sefo, right, helps Shandra Brown, center, and Trisha Davis place a banner at Cottrell Field at Fort Stewart, Ga., Tuesday, June 3, 2003, that welcomes home Brown's husband from a year deployment to the Middle East. Brown's husband is one of 300 soldiers from the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division to return from the war in Iraq. (AP Photo/Stephen Morton)


David Gray, center, waits Tuesday, June 3, 2003, with his daughter in-law Myra Gray, right, and his granddaughter, Katelyn Gray, at Ft. Stewart, Ga., for more than 300 soldiers from the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division to return from deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Fredom. They were waiting for Spc. David Gray Jr. (AP Photo/Stephen Morton)


Shannon Mosley, right, and her 6-month-old son Blake, left, waits Tuesday, June 3, 2003, for her husband to return from the war in Iraq along with other family members and friends at Ft. Stewart, Ga. Mosley's husband, and Blakes father, Spc. Anthony Mosley, was deployed in August 2002 to Kuwait and has only seen his son during a short leave in January.


Shannon Mosley, left, and her 6-month-old son, Blake, greets husband and father Spc. Anthony Mosley Tuesday, June 3, 2003, during a homecoming ceremony for more than 300 soldiers at Ft. Stewart, Ga.


Spc. Anthony Mosley, right, Shannon, left, and their son Blake Tuesday, June 3, 2003, during a homecoming for more than 300 soldiers at Ft. Stewart, Ga. Mosley was deployed in August 2002 to Kuwait but was fortunate to see his son briefly during a short leave in January.


Karma Wheeler, left, and her son Caleb wait for her husband, and Caleb's father, Staff Sgt. Brian Wheeler, to get off the bus after Brian returned with the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division Tuesday, June 3, 2003, at Ft. Stewart, Ga., after the division was deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. (AP Photo/Stephen Morton)

[manna]

Present!

[SAMWolf]

Makes you swell up with pride when you read about men like that.

[Johnny Gage]

Well, I've already done both the TBD and Dauntless, with todays thread, they deserve a second look.

MIDWAY - one of my favorite battles of WWII and a great movie to boot. I saw it in the theater when I was a kid, and watch it on TV anytime it's on.

The bravery of the TBD crews was extraordinary.

[beachn4fun]

[SAMWolf]

You can always do the SB2U-3 Vindicator (Wind indicator). :-)

[Darksheare]

I'm also over here browsing about.

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Beachn4fun.

[Johnny Gage]

There seems to be a difference between the specs I have and the accounts of the crews. It's stated that in Midway the TBD flew with a crew of 2, while the specs I have say it held a crew of 3.

Air Power
Douglas TBD-1 Devastator

(by Earl Swinhart)

The XTBD-1 first flew on April 15, 1935 and nine days later was delivered to Navy for testing. It was designed to a specification for aircraft operating from a new class of carriers the Navy was launching, the first of which was the USS Ranger. On June 25, 1937 Douglas began delivery of 114 TBD-1s and by 1938 the type had proved very successful in trials and combat exercises. There was an additional order for 15 aircraft in 1938 to replenish operational losses.

Upon its introduction, the Devastator was the most modern and effective torpedo bomber perhaps in the world, the design often referred to as "radical". There were a number of "firsts" associated with the TBD; the "Devastator" was the first monoplane design ordered for service with the US Navy; it was the first with hydraulic (as opposed to "manual") folding wings; it was the first "all metal" aircraft ordered by the Navy. The carriers Saratoga, Enterprise, Lexington, Wasp, Hornet, Yorktown and Ranger were all equipped with the Devastator as the standard torpedo bomber. And, although Devastator production totaled only 129 aircraft, it achieved a notoriety completely out of proportion to its numbers (as we shall see).

It had a crew of three; a pilot, a gunner facing aft and a bombardier who sat in between. In combat, the bombardier lay prone just behind the engine, peering through a window in the bottom of the fuselage to release the torpedo or bomb. The Devastator was furnished with one forward firing Colt/Browning .30 caliber machine gun operated by the pilot. Depending on the circumstances (and the CO) the forward gun was replaced with a .50 caliber. Exterior indications of which gun was mounted could be determined by the presence of a blister behind the air intake on the starboard side. This blister was a breech fairing for the Colt/Browning .50 caliber M2. Another .30 caliber Colt/Browning was mounted in the rear gunners position. The engine was the Pratt-Whitney 1830-64 Twin Wasp rated at 850 hp. (634 kW). It’s wings spanned 50 feet (15.24 m), taking up a lot of room in the cramped innards of a carrier. So, Douglas designed them to fold upwards reducing the space to 26 feet (7.92 m). The wheels folded backwards into the wing, though they were designed to protrude about 10" (254 mm) below the wing just in case the TBD had to make a wheels-up landing. The sleek 35’ (10.67 m) fuselage was covered with a "greenhouse" canopy reaching over halfway to the tail.

Near the beginning of the new decade (1940), naval intelligence indicated the TBD might be losing its combat edge to foreign designs and wheels were set in (slow) motion to find a replacement. There seemed to be no rush in spite of the wars heating up in Asia and Europe. A mere 3 years earlier, the Devastator had been state-of-the-art and it couldn’t have become totally obsolete in that short of period, or so the thinking went.

Two years later the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. At that time the Navy still had a hundred TBDs on the rosters, spread out among the aircraft carriers. By chance, the aircraft carriers were not in Pearl Harbor and escaped destruction when the Japanese assaulted "Battleship Row" on December 7, 1941.

But the Navy’s squadron commanders were beginning to worry about some of the planes their men would take into battle, particularly the TBD with its top speed of 206 mph (332 km/h). Intelligence reports on the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero-Sen (Zero) indicated its top speed was well over 325 mph (523 km/h). The fact Japan had such a fast and nimble aircraft came as a great shock to American military planners who had been led to believe the Japanese had only inferior copies of European designs. The Devastator was scheduled to be replaced by the Grumman TBF Avenger. The question was; when? During this initial phase of WWII, the development and delivery of new aircraft was agonizingly slow.

During the first five months of 1942, the TBD seemed to lead a charmed life. By February 1942, the carriers were making raids on island bastions in the Marshalls and Gilberts held by the Japanese which were largely successful and the Devastator gave a good account of itself during these battles. On May 7, TBDs were instrumental in the sinking of the Japanese carrier "Shoho" in the Battle of the Coral Sea.

It was during this time when defects were first noted in the Mark XIII torpedo used by the TBD. Many of these torpedoes were seen to strike the target yet fail to explode. Submariners were having the same problems with the Mark XIV Field ordinance men attempted to modify the weapon until the Navy Bureau of Ordinance in Washington sent a direct order forbidding any modifications and assuring everyone the Mk XIII torpedo was faultless. BurOrd stuck with this position in spite of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. It seems the carrier groups took it at face value and looked for solutions in the maintenance and delivery of the weapon. Fortunately, the submariners persisted. Several problems with the torpedoes were eventually located. One problem was incredibly similar to the recent Mars Space Vehicle which "landed" 20 feet (6.1 m) after it impacted the surface due to a failure of technicians to convert altitude to metric units in the guidance computer programming.

The torpedoes had been tested with dummy warheads, that is, the space for the warhead had been filled with water when the torpedo was tested. No one apparently thought to ask how heavy the actual warhead would be, and the cost of the torpedoes entered the picture as a reason to curtail further testing of the torpedo. Due to the difference in weight of the dummy warhead and the actual warhead, the torpedo ran eleven to 14 feet below set depth. Several other problems prevented the weapon from working properly. These problems persisted for over two years because of the bone-headed attitude of BurOrd. Eventually, the top man in the Navy, Admiral Ernest King ordered BurOrd to get off its butt and test live torpedoes.

However, long before the torpedo problem could be solved, operational problems doomed the TBD on the basis of a single mission. The mission began on June 4, 1942 when the TBDs were sent to attack the Japanese Imperial Fleet north of Midway Island and quite suddenly, the worst suspicions of Navy squadron commanders were confirmed.

At 0700 hrs., Torpedo Squadron Eight (VT-8) of the aircraft carrier Hornet launched 15 TBDs, VT-6 of the Enterprise launched 14. VT-3 on the Yorktown launched 12. Due to cloudy weather they lost their fighter escort and arrived at the scene of the battle without "top cover". Japanese A6M "Zeros" immediately attacked from the rear while the Imperial Fleet ships put up a wall of anti-aircraft fire from the front. The Zeros attacked while the TBDs were still more than 12 miles from the Imperial Fleet boats and one by one the TBDs splashed in. Not a single torpedo from these planes found a target. Of the 41 Devastators launched by the US Navy aircraft carriers, 37 failed to return to their ships. A loss rate of over 90%! After the Battle of Midway, the Navy struck the Douglas TBD "Devastator" from combat roles and it was relegated to training and communications roles.

Specifications:

Type: Three seat naval torpedo bomber
Accommodation: Pilot, bombardier and radioman/ rear gunner in enclosed greenhouse canopy

Dimensions:
Wing span: 50 ft 0 in (15.24 m)
Length: 35 ft 0 in (10.69 m)
Height: 15 ft 1 in (4.59 m)

Weights:
Empty: 6,182 lbs (2,804 kg)
Gross: 9,862 lbs (4,473 kg)
Max T/O: 10,194 lbs (4,623 kg)

Performance:
Maximum Speed: 206 mph (331 km/hr) @ 8,000 ft (2,438 m)
Cruising Speed: 128 mph (205 km/hr)
Landing Speed: 68 mph (109 km/hr)
Service Ceiling: 19,700 ft (6004 m)
Range: 435 mi (700 km) with Mk XIII Torpedo 716 mi (1,152 km) with 1,000 lbs (453 kg) bombs
Powerplant: Pratt-Whitney R-1830-64 "Double Wasp" air-cooled radial. 900 hp (671 kW) take-off 850 hp (634 kW) at 8,000 ft. (2,438 m)

Armament:
1 Mk XIII Torpedo - Diameter: 21 in (533 mm), Length: 15 ft. (4.57 m)
Weight: 1,200 lb (544 kg) or 1,000 lbs. (453 kg) bombs

VT-6 in "V" formation, 1938.

TBD-1 over Wake Island on 24th February, 1942.


A TBD of VT-8 taxiing into position at Coral Sea.

All photos Copyright of WWII Tech - History

[Johnny Gage]

Air Power
Douglas SBD-6 Dauntless

The right plane at the right time. That's what the "Slow But Deadly" SBD Dauntless was. When the US Navy was forced to go to war it did so in an aircraft that was considered by many to be obsolete.
By the end of the war this "obsolete" plane was responsible for sinking more enemy ships than any other aircraft in the US inventory.

The first version of the Dauntless was the dash one and was found to be unsuitable for Navy service. As was Navy tradition, these first 50 aircraft were destroyed on the gound at Pearl Harbor.
The most produced versions were the improved dash three and dash five aircraft. These planes ranged from the skies over the Coral Sea to the final victory flight over the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay
and are now recognized as treasured museum pieces.

The SBD Dauntless was a two-place, low-wing Navy scout bomber, powered by a single Wright R1820, 1200-horsepower engine. The Dauntless became a mainstay of the Navy's air fleet in the Pacific,
with the lowest loss ration of any U.S. carrier aircraft. A total of 5,936 SBDs were delivered between first delivery in 1940 and the end of production in July 1944.

The Dauntless was the standard shipborne dive-bomber of the US Navy from mid-1940 until November 1943, when the first Curtiss Helldivers arrived to replace it. The SBD was gradually phased out during 1944,
and the June 20 strike against the Japanese Mobile Fleet - in the Battle of the Philippine Sea - was therefore its last major action. In 1942-43, in the Battle of the Coral Sea, in the bitter Guadalcanal campaign
and - most of all - at the decisive Battle of Midway, the Dauntless did more than any other aircraft to turn the tide of the Pacific War. At Midway it wrecked all four Japanese carriers, and later in the battle sank
a heavy cruiser and severely damaged another. From 1942 to 1944, in addition to its shipboard service, the SBD saw much action with the Marine Corps flying from island bases.

In the Guadalcanal Campaign the Dauntless - operating from US carriers and from Henderson Field on Guadalcanal itself - took a huge toll of Japanese shipping.

It sank the carrier Ryujo in the battle of the Eastern Solomons, and damaged three other Japanese carriers at Eastern Solomons and in the Battle of Santa Cruz. In the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal SBDs sank the heavy
cruiser Kinugasa and, in company with TBD Avengers, sank nine Japanese transports

The Dauntless was older and slower than its Japanese opposite number, the Aichi D3A2 "Val" - but the SBD was far more resistant to battle damage, and its flying qualities perfectly suited it to its role.
In particular - as Dauntless pilots testified - it was very steady in a dive. When the more modern and powerful Helldiver went into action alongside the SBD it was soon realized - particularly at Philippine Sea -
that the new aircraft was inferior to the Dauntless. However, the Helldiver was already well into large-scale production, and it was too late to reverse the decision that it should supplant the SBD.

Specifications:

Type: Two-seat carrier-based and land-based dive-bomber

Dimensions:
Wing span: 41 ft 6 in (12.65 m)
Length: 33 ft 0 in (10.06 m)
Height: 12 ft 11 in (3.94 m)
Weights: Empty: 6,535 lb (2,964 kg) Max T/O: 9,519 lb (4,318 kg)

Performance:
Maximum Speed: 255 mph (410 km/h) @ 14,000 ft (4,265 m)
Service Ceiling: 25,200 ft (7,680 m)
Range: 773 miles (1,244 km)

Powerplant: One Wright R-1820-66 Cyclone , 1,350 hp (1007 kw), 9-cylinder radial, air cooled engine.
Armament:
Two forward firing .50 inch (12.7 mm) machine guns
and two 0.30 inch (7.62 mm) machine guns on flexible mounts.
Fuselage mount for up to 1,600 lbs (726 kg) of bombs plus,
up to a total of 650 lbs (295 kg) of bombs carried on the wings.

All photos Copyright of their respective websites.

[snippy_about_it]

Great!

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning!

[snippy_about_it]

Good pictures. We don't see too many night time homecomings.
Anytime is a good time to come home.

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning Darksheare. Any luck yet?

[SAMWolf]

Some of those pictures show 3 crewmen, I wonder if there was a field modification to elimenate the bombadier?

[SAMWolf]

One of my favorite Monogram Model kits when I was a kid was the Dauntless.

[SAMWolf]

The Army has a habit of doing things either at O'Dark:30 or late at night.

[SpookBrat]

Good morning you guys. It's raining and the kids and I are working a 1,000 piece puzzle.

[SAMWolf]

Spooky!!! How you been?

[Valin]

Give yourself an attaboy.
ATTABOY!!

[Valin]

Victor Davis Hanson devotes a chapter in his book "Carnage and Culture" to the battle of Midway. Highly recomended reading (and it's now out in paperback).

[Darksheare]

Explained on last post of previous thread...
Nope.
No luck.
The PNP part of the bios refuses to detect the 'newer obsolete' card. (geforce2 mx200 pci)
But it will detect my 'older obsolete' card (Riva TNT pci)
Seems it refuses to recognise cards made after a certain date. (Mid 2000.)
And as an added bonus, the bios rom itself would need to be replaced anyway to get it to recognise the 'newer obsolete card'. *chuckle*
Guess what the odds are on finding a compatible PNP bios rom?
Slim and none.
*chuckle*
I guess I'm just gonna have to get 'un-stingy' and buy a new motherboard, maybe one for my new but empty ATX case...

[snippy_about_it]

Stop it, you're making my head spin. lol.

At least it seems you had 'fun' trying to make it work. And hey, who doesn't want a new motherboard. *grin*

[snippy_about_it]

0 dark 30. lol.

[snippy_about_it]

Hiya Spooky, good to see you, what's the picture of for the puzzle?

[snippy_about_it]

Explained on last post of previous thread...

I apologize, I was reading backwards and didn't see your last post on previous thread until now.

[Darksheare]

Spinning heads?
Not accompanied with a voice saying, "This one belongs to us now!"?
*Darn*

I use my machine for various different things.
Vid games, mp3's, and my scanned drawings.
(I've pretty much maxed out what this MB can do.. as well as crammed my hard drive full.) ;-)
Yes, I dream of having a new motherboard.
Have Tigerdirect's new catalogue here in my very own little hands, now somewhat dog-eared and drooled on though. (Hey, techy types or technophiles drool about POWER, pure absolute computing POWER..)

'Course, I also have to balance out the fact that I'm way too cheap to buy anything at full current market price..
(That leaves out the Barton core AMD Athlon XP3200.. @$424.99 with fan and 3 year warranty..)
But the XP 2200 is only $65.
And I know people who can get one for me for less should I farm out the shopping like that.
(I'm and AMD man, after having a 386 [normal operation, not overclocked] melt down on me once upon a time and having Intel say "It's not our processor's fault, regardless of the defect in the chip, it's YOUR fault." I kinda have it in for Intel..)
Kinda unique.
One NEVER forgets the smell of melted CPU.
Smells almost like a fried Selenium Stack on an elevator..

I had fun, yes.
Now it's time to find out solutions for this new problem.

[Darksheare]

No prob.
Just letting you know that an explanation that PROBABLY made more sense was elsewhere..
I find I make less sense as the day wears on.
(???)
*chuckle*

But hey, it's ENTERTAINMENT!
"Entertainment is where you find it."
"I know a bad idea when I see it. And this, is a bad idea." -said right before popping several circuit breakers and frying a stereo.