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USS Yorktown Battled Two Typhoons in just Six Months

Chris Hauff Aug 20, 2019

Hurricane season is officially underway here in the Lowcountry, and since the USS Yorktown hasn’t braved any tropical disturbances so far this year, we’ll tell you about past ones instead.

Did you know the USS Yorktown sailed through two typhoons while she was commissioned? In December 1944 and June 1945, Admiral Bull Halsey directed his men to weather the storms. Those decisions caused millions of dollars in damage to aircraft carrier fondly known as “The Fighting Lady” and the task force she was sailing with.

Round One

On the morning of December 17, 1944, the rain and winds picked up several hundred miles off the coast of the Philippines.

During the first day of “The Great December Typhoon,” aircraft tires and shock absorbers were bled and tanks degassed. Every aircraft was triple tied down in an attempt to keep them in their places. As the storm raged on, the men were told to get their storm preparations done quickly and get out of the dangerous open areas on the ship and to safety as fast as they can.

During the thick of the typhoon, one of the destroyers in the task group couldn’t go any longer without refueling; this wasn’t a task for the weary due to the ships dramatically rocking back and forth. As the Yorktown drew closer to the destroyer, the swell raised the destroyer as high as the flight deck and then the destroyer went down out of sight except for the top of the mast. After strategic ship handling, two men above deck on the destroyer were able to connect the fuel hose. That’s when a large swell came between the two ships and hit the superstructure of the destroyer. The impact of the swell killed both men and washed them overboard. The fuel hose and other lines were also broken. All refueling attempts were canceled until further notice.

Soon the visibility dropped from twelve miles to six miles, and then to a mere .25 miles as the fleet went deeper into the typhoon. The waves grew stronger, in one instance even tilting the ship 63 degrees. But, the USS Yorktown stayed afloat.

The ship and crew battled the “Great December Typhoon” until they reached the eye of the storm and pushed forward through the other side. After three days, millions of dollars in damages, and several lost lives, The Fighting Lady made it through the storm.

Round Two

Six months later, June 1945, the Yorktown was just off the coast of Japan and Admiral Halsey and crew faced yet another looming typhoon.  At first, Halsey gave his men the same order as before and instructed his men to go through the storm.  Then he changed his mind.  He decided instead to head northwest and navigate around the heavy seas.  A long-range air-strike mission remained green-lit for the next day.

That call cost lives.  On June 2, the typhoon made a turn.  The pilots who were sent out on the air-strike encountered thick weather and target push-back.  Several pilots went down in the storm.  One of them, bomber pilot Ensign “Pop” Koellers, managed to ditch his plane while over rough seas.  After hitting the water, his rubber boat and parachute both sank forcing him to cling to a wing of his aircraft overnight until he was recovered by rescue crews the next morning.

On June 3rd, the Yorktown was approaching the northwest corner of the storm and Halsey instructed his crew to advance through the outer band of the storm.  The ship eventually passed through the typhoon unharmed for the second time.

Typhoons and Hurricanes

Within six months during World War II the USS Yorktown battled two typhoons while fighting the Japanese at sea.

Since being docked here at Patriots Point in 1975, the USS Yorktown has continued to fight her share of storms, even standing tall against the catastrophic hurricane Hugo in 1989.  So far the coast has been clear for the 2019 hurricane season.  But if a storm develops, our crew at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum will be prepared to battle Mother Nature again.