Stories of Faith and Courage From World War II (13 page)

Young people are often associated with a lack of life experience and a corresponding lack of wisdom. Yet youth also goes hand in hand with idealism and courage in every arena, as evidenced by the young Marines whom this officer observed on Midway Island. The apostle Paul charged Timothy to ignore any criticism of his youth and to set an example for all generations in the way he lived his life for the Lord. No matter our age, we are never too young or too old to make a difference in the world around us, and to bring glory to Christ in so doing. (JG)

Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.

—1 Timothy 4:12

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EBRUARY 20

Jack Waldron

Lt. Cdr. Jack Waldron was the only experienced pilot in his squadron. He had graduated from the Naval Academy in 1924 to become a naval aviator. At Midway he commanded Torpedo Squadron 8 aboard the USS
Hornet
. Early on June 4 he knew that their first combat action was imminent. He briefed his aircrew with prophetic words: “I want each of us to do his utmost to destroy our enemies. If there is only one plane left to make a final run, I want that man to go in and get a hit. May God be with us all.”
⁷¹

He knew that his men were piloting obsolete aircraft. Top speed for his fifteen TBD Devastators was two hundred miles per hour, compared with three hundred fifty for the Japanese Zeros. Not a man in his squadron had ever carried a torpedo in his aircraft, much less flown off a carrier with one. Their training had consisted mainly of “chalkboard” exercises. Even with all these disadvantages, however, Waldron knew that he and his men faced one of those grave, historic moments that found a few men in a desperate but vital role. They had to do whatever was humanly possible. One hit on an enemy carrier might make all the difference.

Jack Waldron exemplified great leadership in a crisis situation. One of his pilots said of him later: “I know that if I had it all to do over again, even knowing that the odds were going to be like they were, knowing him like I did know him, I’d follow him again through exactly the same thing because I trusted him…”
⁷²
This kind of trust is built over time by a leader who puts the needs of those under him ahead of his own. The model of this servant attitude was Jesus Christ.

The greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.

—Luke 22:26

TBD Devastator torpedo bombers in formation. (U.S. Naval Historical Center)

SBD Dauntless dive bomber. (U.S. Dept. of Defense) (public domain photo from militaryfactory.com)

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EBRUARY 21

Torpedo 8

Naval aviation tactics in World War II called for coordinated attacks on enemy ships. The torpedo planes were to come in low, dive bombers would strike from high altitude, and fighters would provide air cover against enemy fighters. During the Battle of Midway there was no such coordination. The various types of squadrons arrived on the scene piecemeal and disorganized. Low on fuel and knowing that any opportunity might be fleeting, leaders had to make split-second decisions.

The fifteen slow-moving TBD Devastators of Torpedo 8 found the Japanese carriers first at 9:20 a.m. on June 4. Sighting the enemy ships on the horizon at a distance of about four miles, Jack Waldron waggled his wings, signaling, “Follow me,” dropped down in altitude and bore in on the
Soryu
, one of the four enemy carriers. Suddenly, anti-aircraft fire began exploding among his aircraft. Japanese Zeros appeared and began riddling the formation. One by one Waldron’s aircraft plunged into the sea. The rest continued the attack. Within eight minutes only three were left. Then two more went down. The last TBD, piloted by Ens. George Gay, was able to drop a torpedo, passed over the Soryu, and crashed into the sea.

Twenty-nine airmen died in this attack. Ensign Gay was the only survivor. The individual courage of every one of these pilots is almost unfathomable. During the agonizingly slow, low-altitude run, every pilot witnessed the destruction of his fellow airmen and his own leader. Any pilot could have rightly concluded that this was a futile effort. Anyone could have turned back. Not one did.

Because the hand of the L
ORD
my God was on me, I took courage.

—Ezra 7:28

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EBRUARY 22

Apparent Futility

The sacrifice of Torpedo 8 in its attack on the Japanese strike force might seem like a gallant, but useless, gesture. The “Charge of the Light Brigade” comes to mind:

Theirs not to make reply,
Theirs not to reason why,
Theirs but to do and die:
Into the valley of Death
Rode the six hundred.
⁷³

Only in retrospect do we know that Torpedo 8’s attack was indeed not futile. In fact there are few instances in any war when such an apparently futile effort accomplished so much. As the Japanese carriers maneuvered to avoid these attacks, they could not launch their own aircraft. The American carriers may have been saved because of this delay. Of equal importance, the Zeros that shot down the aircraft of Torpedo 8 at low altitude found themselves hopelessly out of position minutes later at the climax of the battle. The skies high above the Japanese carrier fleet were undefended when the American dive-bombers appeared.

My father used to quote Robert E. Lee: “Duty is the sublimest word in the English language.” These intrepid young pilots individually demonstrated the full meaning of this sentence. Fortunately, most of us do not face such life-and-death situations. However, we are all called to do the right thing every day. Sometimes it isn’t easy, and often we don’t see the immediate benefit. But we know what we should do.

Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.

—Ecclesiastes 12:13

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EBRUARY 23

Ensign Gay

Watching his fellow pilots go down around him, Ens. George Gay pressed his attack on the Japanese carrier
Soryu
. He stayed in the air long enough to successfully launch his torpedo and was the sole survivor of Torpedo Squadron 8. He recalled:

Everything was shooting at me. I flew right down the gun barrel on one of those big pom poms up forward… I figured the only way that I could evade all that anti-aircraft fire was not to throw my belly up in a turn away from the ship, but was just to go right straight to her and offer as small a target as I could. So I flew right down the gun barrels, pulled up on the port side, did a flipper turn right by the island, I could see the little Jap captain up there jumping up and down raising hell. Just a little bit after that… the Zeros jumped on me and… shot my rudder control and ailerons out and I pancaked into the ocean.
⁷⁴

After struggling from his sinking aircraft, Gay found a cushion floating nearby. He hid himself as best he could from the Japanese fleet, which passed by him several times that day. He was witness to the destruction of three of the enemy carriers. Gay was rescued the next day and returned to duty for other operations in the Pacific war. He eventually returned to the States, where he made frequent public appearances in support of the war effort and continued speaking as a civilian.

In 1980 Gay came to Charleston, South Carolina, to talk to naval science cadets at The Citadel and to deliver a message calling for military preparedness. I heard him say, “I was lucky. I’ve never understood why I was the only one that came back.” He felt that his mission in life since that day was to ensure that American boys not be sent again into a conflict without the best equipment and training that their nation could provide.

While Ensign Gay attributed his survival to luck, as Christians we can be sure that God has numbered our days for a specific reason (Psalm 139:16). It is our responsibility to be ready for the tasks that he has determined we should accomplish.

Get ready; be prepared, you and all the hordes gathered about you, and take command of them. After many days you will be called to arms.

—Ezekiel 38:7–8

The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the L
ORD
.

—Proverbs 21:31

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EBRUARY 24

Suicide

Ensign Gay fought to control his Devastator during his long, tortuous torpedo run on the
Soryu
. Through every burst of enemy gunfire he kept the nose of his aircraft pointed at his target. He witnessed his fellow pilots going down and was very aware that his own life could be measured in seconds. Every detail seemed to stand out as he focused his eyes on the looming enemy carrier. The flight deck was full of aircraft and scrambling figures. For an instant, a strange thought flashed through his mind: “I had a thought right in a split second there to crash into those planes… because I could have started a beautiful fire.” However, his thought process then changed course rapidly: “The plane was still flying and I felt pretty good and I didn’t see any sense in crashing into those planes. I thought maybe I’d get a chance to go back and hit them again someday and as long as there’s life there’s hope. So I pulled up and went over them.”
⁷⁵

For some reason America seems to face foes who glorify suicide. The Japanese in World War II sent countless young kamikaze pilots on one-way missions. Terrorists of today kill themselves and innocent victims for their own “higher” cause. American values, thankfully, do not permit this approach. In the beginning, our Founding Fathers acted on the firm belief that the value and dignity of every human being comes from God and that every citizen is “endowed by his Creator with certain unalienable rights.” In wartime our leaders sometimes have to send men on dangerous missions. However, every effort is made to provide for their safe return. Every American soldier knows that he will never be considered “expendable.”

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

—Genesis 1:27

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EBRUARY 25

Prepare to Abandon Ship

Lt. Joseph Pollard went aboard the USS
Yorktown
on May 27 and sailed with her three days later. As one of the ship’s medical officers, he prepared his men and equipment for the action ahead. On June 4, the Japanese task force was finally sighted. The Yorktown’s aircraft were armed, fueled, and launched late that morning. An eerie lull ensued. Finally, at about 2:00 p.m. the aircraft began returning, many with battle damage. In the midst of recovery operations, the general quarters alarm was sounded, alerting the crew to an enemy attack. Suddenly two sickening thuds shook the ship, resulting in an immediate hard list to port.

Pollard remembered: “Just then word came over the speaker, ‘Prepare to abandon ship!’ I was dumbfounded. It was uncomprehensible. A man lying beside me with one foot shot away and a severe chest wound turned his head towards me and asked, ‘What does this mean for us?’ and turned his head away. He knew that he would have no chance in the water.”
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