Never Call Me a Hero: A Legendary American Dive-Bomber Pilot Remembers the Battle of Midway by N. Jack "Dusty" Kleiss & Timothy Orr & Laura Orr

Author:N. Jack "Dusty" Kleiss & Timothy Orr & Laura Orr [Kleiss, N. Jack "Dusty"]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
ISBN: 9780062692368
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2017-05-23T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 12

RETURN TO THE CENTRAL PACIFIC

March–June 1942

On March 9, my ship, USS Enterprise, returned to Pearl Harbor, and for the next week we took time to rest. Altogether the war had inflicted a terrible toll on my squadron. Since the war began, Scouting Six had lost nineteen men: eight pilots and eleven gunners. Of the original nineteen pilots who traveled from San Diego in May 1941, only eight—including me—still served with the squadron.* After we returned to Pearl, three more veterans departed. Cleo Dobson and Edward Deacon both transferred, becoming assistant landing signal officers. They remained on board Enterprise, so we still saw them, but now they helped us with our final approach. Also, LTJG Ben Troemel mysteriously disappeared. I don’t know the particulars, but the rumor—and I must stress that this was only a rumor we heard—was that the Navy decided to investigate him because of his German surname.

Troemel left the squadron but stayed in the Navy, serving at naval air stations in the continental United States. I’d probably dismiss the stories about the Navy investigating him as mere hokum, but the Navy questioned my loyalty as well, as my surname is German in origin. Eventually officers who I didn’t recognize began asking me questions, trying to see if I had ties to the “Fatherland.” For whatever reason, they asked me subtle questions to see if I had a vast fortune or if I went to opulent parties. I don’t know why they tried to connect wealth to German sympathy, but I was asked all sorts of leading questions to see if I gave off a whiff of disloyalty. I endured multiple visits from personnel officers, who asked me detailed questions about my family history and my personal travels. They checked and rechecked what I had to say, and then they just stopped coming. I don’t know what I said, but I must have passed their test. As a result, I stayed with the squadron.*

After that, we lost five other pilots, all replacements who joined Scouting Six after Pearl Harbor. To fill the vacancies caused by transfers, promotions, and casualties, we received twelve new pilots. We also got two veterans who returned from injuries. Bill West had been wounded in the shoulder during the Marshall Island strikes. He was now healed and ready to fly. Mac McCarthy had broken his leg during a parachute jump at the attack on Pearl Harbor. He returned to us as well. We were elated to see them again. Dickinson became the new XO, taking command of the second division, and LT Charlie Ware—a Naval Academy graduate—commanded the third division as flight officer.

Meanwhile, I became a section leader. I now commanded the second section attached to LT Gallaher’s first division, which meant I was responsible for my own plane and those of my two wingmen. “Number Two” section leader was an important position. As “Number Two,” the other pilots in the squadron would watch my bombs fall, making corrections based on where they landed.

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