Intrepid War YEARS
Continued
To keep the fighting edge in a finely honed condition, the intensive training schedule was maintained while INTREPID was enroute from the Canal Zone to San Francisco, where the dry dock awaited her. The 30 days work was completed in two weeks. INTREPID picked up her air group and on Jan 6, 1944 was again on her way to the war.
INTREPID arrived at Pearl Harbor and Air Group 8 was detached and assigned to the Naval Air Station at Puunene Maui, and Air Group 6 reported aboard. January 27, 1944 Intrepid was en route to support the invasion of Roi and Namur Islands, Kwajalein Atoll.
On the night of 17 February 1944 an aerial torpedo struck Intrepid's starboard quarter, 15 feet below her waterline, flooding several compartments and jamming her rudder hard to port. By racing her port screw and idling her starboard engine, Captain Thomas L. Sprague kept her on course until two days later strong winds swung her back and forth and tended to weathercock her with her bow pointed toward Tokyo. Sprague later confessed: "Right then I wasn't interested in going in that direction." At this point the crew fashioned a jury-rig sail of hatch covers and scrap canvas which swung Intrepid about and held her on course. Decorated by her crazy-quilt sail, the carrier sat in Pearl Harbor in February 1944. Damage to the strbrd side of the 3rd deck aft caused by the torpedo hit. INTREPID left Hunters Point for Pearl Harbor, 9 June 1944, after repairs. As was often the case, she was ferrying aircraft and vehicles to Hawaii, before returning to the forward battle areas.
She operated, camaflaged, in the Philippine Sea in November of 1944 and on the 25th, a Japanese Kamikaze suicide plane disintegrated in flames after hitting INTREPID off Northern Luzon. Crew members had to clear away wreckage from the hangar deck, following a fire resulting from the attack of two kamikaze aircraft. Six officers and 59 Sailors were killed in this 2nd attack of the day but Intrepid held on station, and in less than two hours had extinguished the blaze. INTREPID continued operations near Luzon despite the kamikaze hits. During the Okinawa Campaign, March-June 1945, off of Okinawa on April 16, 1945, she was hit by another Kamikaze.
On April 13th, word was passed that President Roosevelt had died. While deathe was not a stranger, the presidents' passing was particularly saddening to the men of the Navy to whom he had been truly beloved, and memorial services were held on every Naval shore station and ship on the 2nd Sunday after Easter, April 15th.
On April 16th, INTREPID launched a large strike against Kokubu. Part of a 5 plane Kamikaze attack, the 5th plane plunged into the flight deck near the #3 elevator. The force was so great that the plane's engine, and part of the fuselage were forced through the flight deck. The bomb it had been carrying exploded in the hangar bay. In 51 mins the fire was out but 40 planes were damaged so badly they had to be jettisoned. Repair to the flight deck were made immediately so that three hours later retriving aircraft was possible. Eight enlisted men were killed, one was missing and 21 were wounded as a result of this attack. INTREPID was ordered to Ulithi for temporaryrepairs by the 21st Service Squadron. Funeral services were held on April 18th on #2 elevator as the ship headed for Ulithi.
INTREPID needed more than temporary treatment so on May 10th, 1945. Admiral
Nimitz ordered INTREPID to Pearl Harbor for onward routing to Hunter's Point.
At NAS Alameda, CA, Air Group 10 was detached for temporary shore duty while
INTREPID went into drydock. She than headed for Pearl Harbor on June 29, 1945,
arriving of July 5th. On July 30, she departed Pearl for Iniwetok. Hunter's Point
had " their ship " to work on again, and they spared no effort in getting INTREPID
ready in time to keep her date in " Tokio "
