Naval History Magazine - April 2021 Volume 35, Number 2

The main battery on board the Japanese flagship Matsushima during the Battle of the Yalu River, 17 September 1894.

On Our Scope

By Eric Mills

April 2021

Highlights from the April 2021 issue of Naval History.

Founders of a legacy: The original members of the Blue Angels proudly display one of their first awards, won on 11 August 1946.

Naval History News

April 2021

Naval History News from the months of March and April.

A Mark 7 16-inch/50 caliber gun is fired aboard the battleship USS MISSOURI (BB-63) as night shelling of Iraqi targets takes place along the northern Kuwaiti coast during Operation Desert Storm.

In Contact

April 2021

Readers weigh in on topics from the USS Blue Ridge to Operation Desert Storm.

Passing Morro Castle, the Maine enters Havana Harbor on 25 January 1898. She was destroyed by an explosion there some three weeks later, on 15 February.

‘I Did Not Expect She Would Be Blown Up . . .’

By J. M. Caiella

April 2021

The sinking of the Maine in Havana Harbor on 15 February 1898 was the pivotal event initiating the Spanish-American War.

An Egyptian galley (foreground, right) engages with the enemy at close quarters as the fierce fighting in the Battle of the Delta begins to turn into a rout.

The Last Great Pharaoh vs. The Sea Peoples

By Eric Mills

April 2021

The Battle of the Delta, ca. 1175 BC, is the name given to the first-ever described clash of fighting ships.

Construction of a rope often starts when fibers are twisted into yarns, which are then twisted in the opposite direction to form strands, after which they are twisted in the original direction to become a line.

The Art of Marlinespike Seamanship

By Lieutenant Commander Thomas Cutler, U.S. Navy (Retired)

April 2021

Marlinespike seamanship is named for a handheld, spike-like tool used in working with wire rope.

The Lacoste Ship Brake is shown, looking aft, installed on the USS Indiana (BB-1) at Philadelphia on 1 April 1910. The simple door configuration was complicated by the curvature of the battleship’s hull.

The Ship Brake

By J. M. Caiella

April 2021

Not long after steam became prevalent in the 1870s, the first patents for “ship brakes” were granted.

17 September 1894: Fresh on the heels of the resounding Japanese victory on land in the Battle of P’yongyang, the Imperial Japanese Navy deals China yet another crushing blow at the Battle of the Yalu River. China’s quest for maritime dominance in the 21st century is arguably “in part to prevent another such humiliation.”

The Enduring Legacy of the War of Jiawu

By Andrew Blackley

April 2021

A degrading naval defeat inflicted by Japan in the 1890s left China with wounded pride that still bears the scars.

Cuban troops lead away a captive CIA officer (left) after the disastrous amphibious landing attempt at the Bay of Pigs. The decision to hold off on air support, and the failure to make fuller use of the offshore U.S. fleet, sealed the undertaking’s doom.

Debacle at Bahía de Cochinos

By Norman Friedman

April 2021

Herein, through a naval lens, a 60-year look back at the calamitous Bay of Pigs invasion of April 1961.

Is it an Aichi D3A “Val” or a Mitsubishi Ki-51 “Sonia” closing in for a kamikaze strike on the USS Columbia (CL-56) in early 1945? Amid the chaos of such an attack, U.S. observers easily mistook Sonias for the more familiar Vals, which is what happened on 27 March 1945.

Misidentified in the Heat of Battle

By Mike Yeo

April 2021

More than 75 years after a kamikaze crashed into the USS Dorsey off Okinawa, artifacts from the suicide plane close the door on a lingering mystery.

The crew of the USS Halibut (SS-232) who were serving on board during her tenth and final war patrol.

The Last Cruise of the Halibut

By Commander Graham C. Scarbro, U.S. Navy

April 2021

A remarkable World War II account of an imperiled Gato-class submarine and a mascot whose bravery matched that of the indefatigable crew.

HMS Cossack and Comet offload troops at Santander, Spain, on 23 June 1808.

The Duke of Wellington’s Navy

By Philip K. Allan

April 2021

As Napoleon’s forces became bogged down on the Iberian Peninsula, Wellington was able to bedevil them relentlessly thanks to the Royal Navy’s coastal dominance.

The Fire Support Coordination Center at besieged Khe Sanh Combat Base is a beehive of activity on a typical night in February 1968. Working in the cramped, smoky space, Captain Munir “Harry” Baig (inset), would plot targets for U.S. artillery and aircraft.

Right Marine at the Right Place

By Michael Archer

April 2021

Captain ‘Harry’ Baig, USMC, was instrumental in the survival of besieged Khe Sanh Combat Base.

Acts of Valor: Lieutenant (j.g.) John Koelsch, U.S. Navy

By Kelly Swann

April 2021

Graphic artistry conveys the story of a Navy lieutenant whose selflessness and courage never flagged, even in a North Korean POW camp.

The world’s first twin-engine helicopter, the XHJD-1, also was the largest. Though it never entered production, it provided data for the development of subsequent rotary-wing aircraft.

The First BIG U.S. Helicopter

By Norman Polmar, Author, Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet

April 2021

The world’s first twin-engine helicopter, the XHJD-1, also was the largest.

The U.S. Navy and Its Cold War Alliances, 1945–1953 Cover

Book Reviews

April 2021

Experts review The U.S. Navy and Its Cold War Alliances, Airpower Over Gallipoli, and other new and noteworthy books.

As executive officer of VP-22 in the 1960s, John Coughlin ramped up cold-weather training for the aircrews prior to an Alaskan deployment in the dead of winter.

Deployment to Adak

By Rear Admiral John T. Coughlin, U.S. Navy (Retired)

April 2021

As executive officer of VP-22 in the 1960s, John Coughlin ramped up cold-weather training for the aircrews prior to an Alaskan deployment.

Pieces of the Past

By Michael Markowitz

April 2021

Americans have always been a seafaring people, and U.S. coins reflect that history. The first “ship coins” were minted in 1892 and 1893.

Atomic Energy Commission: Post-World War II

By Taira Payne

April 2021

Vice Admiral Jackson discusses his tour as Chief of Military Development at the nascent Atomic Energy Commission.

Nursing to Combat

By Midshipman First Class Hannah Hirzel

April 2021

The ever expanding role of women in the Navy.

From Small-Town Girls to Prisoners of War

By Frankie Witzenburg

April 2021

A brief history of the U.S. Army and Navy nurses held as prisoners of war in the Philippines.

Admiral John S. "Jimmy" Thach, USN (Ret.) (1905-1981)

Meeting “Butch” O’Hare

By Taira Payne

April 2021

13 March marks the birthday of the U.S. Navy's first flying ace and the first Navy recipient of the Medal of Honor in World War II.

The Life and Service of a World War II Mine Warfare Sailor: Part 15

By Jason Schreck

April 2021

The USS Sway (AM-120) travels to Miami in March 1945.

Target: Truk Atoll

By Aryeh Wetherhorn

April 2021

Culled from ships’ war diaries, here is a vivid, you-are-there account of the U.S. offensive against Japanese forces in the Caroline Islands in February 1944.