Status - John Skinner - USS O'Brien:
Hornet and Wasp continued to patrol in the Coral Sea. Hornet narrowly escaped a torpedo hit when an escorting destroyer dropped a depth charge that detonated two of the torpedoes bound for Hornet.
Operation Watchtower
Admiral Leigh Noyes had taken command of Task Force 61, flying his flag on Wasp. He created the surface task force from the ships remaining from Task Force 11, which became Task Force 64.
Airplanes and Marines were continually being added to the force at Guadalcanal. This was critical as the Japanese navy was successfully landing troops, about 5,000 more during this time, on Guadalcanal also. The island was consistently pulling in more forces on both sides and was becoming the main flash point of the Pacific war.
The thinning US carrier forces would not grow any time soon. However, surface firepower was coming. The new fast battleships South Dakota and Washington, were moving to the South Pacific, along with some cruisers that were specifically designed to provide potent anti-aircraft fire for task forces. South Dakota, unfortunately, just after arriving, struck a reef and was badly damaged, and returned to Pearl Harbor for two weeks of repairs (it was also becoming an unlucky ship, like Saratoga).
U. S. Navy Task Forces:
- Task Force
16 (Enterprise) was returning to Pearl Harbor, for repairs to Enterprise. Arrives Sep. 10.
- Saratoga was also returning to Pearl Harbor for repairs. Arrives Sep. 21.
- Combined
Task Force 61 remained on patrol in the Coral Sea near Guadalcanal.
- Task Force 17 (Hornet) -> TF 61
- Task Force 18 (Wasp) -> TF 61
More Information:
- Official Navy Chronology, pp. 248-249.
- The First Team and the Guadalcanal Campaign, John B. Lundstrom, pp 164-177.
- The Struggle for Guadalcanal, Samuel Eliot Morison, pp. 104-122.
- Neptune's Inferno, The U.S. Navy at Guadalcanal, James D. Hornfischer, pp. 118-128.
NEXT POST: SEPTEMBER 10TH
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