Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} Black Cat Raiders of World War II by R. Knots Bloody Bill Anderson. Bloody Bill Anderson summary: William T. Anderson was born in 1839 to William C. Anderson and Martha Anderson, who bore six children. It was said that as a child he was well behaved. Though he claimed Missouri as his native state, his place of birth is uncertain but likely it was Kentucky. During the 1850s, the Andersons moved to Kansas where his family was respected and by 1860 Anderson co-owned a 320 acre property. His mother was struck by lightning in June 1860 and subsequently died. Quantrill’s Raiders. Anderson soon turned to trafficking in stolen horses along the Santa Fe Trail, robbing and looting. His father was killed in 1862 in a dispute with Judge Arthur Baker, a former family friend. Bill and Jim Anderson, along with two others, retaliated by killing Baker. Bill Anderson soon became a Confederate guerrilla with Quantrill’s Raiders, the most prominent and feared Confederate guerrilla group in the Kansas–Missouri area. After a skirmish with a US marshal and posse, the Raiders split into small groups. Anderson set up his own guerrilla group which included the infamous Jesse James. Anderson’s and Quantrill’s guerrilla bands were sometimes in disagreement, but generally they were allies. Three of Anderson’s sisters were captured with other women by a Union commander, General Thomas Ewing, and locked in a temporary jail. The building collapsed, killing several women, including one of Anderson’s sisters. “Bloody Bill” soon gained a reputation for his bloodthirsty tortures and killings, though he did spare and protect women. He would scalp Union soldiers, proudly decorating his horse with the bloody scalps. At times, he had dead enemies decapitated, placing the heads with different bodies. Bloody Bill’s Death. Anderson’s violent pillages, attacks, and murders came to an end at Albany, Missouri, on October 26th, 1864—one month after he carried out a systemic massacre at Centralia, Missouri, on September 27 of 22 unarmed Union troops who had been on their way home on furlough. After mutilating the bodies, he and his men set up an ambush and wiped out 150 soldiers sent in pursuit of them and viciously mutilated those bodies as well. In a fight at Albany with the 33rd Infantry Regiment, Missouri State Militia, under Lieutenant Colonel Samuel P. Cox, Anderson was shot in the head, killing him instantly. His blood-soaked body was put on public display at a local courthouse. Anderson was known to keep a rope with 53 knots; each knot represented each killing he had made. Black Cat Raiders of World War II by R. Knots. Related torpedoes. Mark 10 Submarine Torpedo. The older, slower, non-magnetic equipped torpedoes used in the older S-boats had one less of these problems. An error in its running depth was corrected by BuOrd just after Pearl Harbor ; it had run 4 feet too deep. It also had its share of prematures, erratic running, and other problems. Some subs and torpedoes were making hits, the problems were assumed to be human errors. Many good skippers were relieved for not sinking ships, when it was the torpedo's fault. Air Attacks Lea -- 13 launched, one hit ; in harbor Tulagi -- 22 launched, one hit ; in harbor Shoho -- 24 launched, 7 hits ; already damaged by bombs Shokaku -- 20 launched, no hits. Midway -- 51 torpedoes carried, no hits, 43 planes lost. Suzuya -- 6 torpedoes, improved Mod 2, three reported explosions. Japanese reported no hits. Mark 15 Destroyer Launched Torpedo This had all the same mechanisms as the Mk 14. It was just slightly larger (longer) version and should have had all of the same problems. Deployment and analysis of hits, misses, and duds between the submarine and surface fleet differed. A measured attack by a submarine would cause immediate note of a failure and trigger analysis of the cause. A destroyer launched torpedo attack was in the face of greater excitement, usually at night ; failures to hit while engaged in surface combat were not able to be immediately analyzed. After the battle, torpedo failures were simply attributed to misses by the crew. The poor performance of destroyer torpedo attacks can take on a new perspective, and need not be completely attributed to problems with tactics. Witness the failure to scuttle Hornet with nine destroyer torpedoes. Shortage The torpedo station at Cavite Naval Station (Manila) destroyed on 10 Dec included 2/3 of Asiatic Fleet torpedoes. This created a shortage such that many targets that would have been attacked with four torpedoes were targeted with only two. Even so, more torpedoes were fired in the first year than reached the fleet-- production was fouled up, too. Some subs were reduced to carrying half loads of torpedoes and had to take mines instead. More. Torpedo tubes were not reliable. Of the nine torpedoes attempted by subs at Midway, two failed to leave the tubes. Only one of the seven launched made a hit and it broke apart and was used as a life raft by Japanese survivors of the dive bombing attack. A unacceptably larger number of torpedoes "prematured", that is, exploded on the way to the target. Because evading submarines could not see the results, any explosion heard near the target was assumed to be a hit. Later, when the submarine surfaced and found no ship, the assumption was that it had sunk, where it may have simply run away when warned by a premature. Credited sinkings were more than 50% greater than post-war confirmations and tonnage claimed was more than double that confirmed from Japanese records. Some sub skippers, suspicious of the torpedoes, set the depth shallower and made hits which confused the results, others deactivated the magnetic exploder to further confuse the issue. Orders were specifically reissued from headquarters to set torpedoes to run deep and to use the magnetic exploder. This was because the US torpedo was fairly light and not able to penetrate the side armor of a warship or sink a large merchantman, whereas a magnetic triggered explosion under the keel would break the back of a ship . if it worked. The direction control could lock "hard over" so that the torpedo circled, coming back at the sub that fired it. Tullibee (SS-284) and Tang (SS-306) are sunk by themselves in this fashion. Others were able to dive under the returning torpedo. An extreme example of "friendly fire". Summary . In the first four months of the war, the 27 subs that comprised the Asiatic fleet sank only ten ships. Most skippers were replaced with more agressive men. Yet problems continued. On 1 August 1942, BuOrd finally conceded the Mark 14 ran deep. On 9 April 1943 " Tunny (SS- 282) found herelf in an ideal position to attack aircraft carriers Hiyo, Junyo, and Taiyo. From only 880 yards (perfect, close range), he fired all ten tubes, hearing all four stern shots and three of the bow's six explode. No enemy carrier was seen to diminish its speed. Later, intelligence reported each of the seven explosions had been premature ; the torpedoes had run true but the magnetic feature had fired them too early. Finally, in July 1943, Admiral Lockwood ordered his boats to deactivate the magnetic influence exploder." "Duds" -- torpedoes heard to hit but not explode -- were addressed in September 1943 when the first torpedoes with new contact pistols were sent to war. For fully half of the war, submariners, pilots, and destroyermen had risked their lives with faulty equipment. Black Cat Raiders of World War II by R. Knots. Black Cat base of VP-50 at Los Negros. Jet-black aircraft contrast with white sand. This is a late-war type of base, with more advanced facilities than was usually found at the more primitive mid-war island bases. (U.S. Navy) (Source: "Black Cat Raiders of WWII" by Richard C. Knott) Seaplane tender USS Tangier. When island bases were not available, ships like these provided a mobile home for PBYs in the Pacific, where they could re-fuel and repair the big Cats. Note the large crane on the stern for bringing the PBYs on board. The USS Tangier was the first US ship to fire on the Japanese at Pearl Harbor. (Source: "Bless 'Em All" by Robert Hayes) A VP-33 Black Cat being hoisted aboard the tender for repairs. (George Favorite collection) (Source: "Black Cat Raiders of WWII" by Richard C. Knott) Another view of a battle-damaged PBY being hoisted up on board the U.S.S. Tangier. (E.M. Fischer collection) (Source: "Black Cats With Wings of Gold" by Lt. A. J. Meuller (Ret)) A VP-91 Cat refuels from the tender Mackinac at Vanikoro Island in the Santa Cruz group, October 1942. (Captain D. Walkinshaw collection) (Source: "Black Cat Raiders of WWII" by Richard C. Knott) A VP-33 Cat makes its buoy. This PBY has the late-war twin-gun eyeball turret in the bow. (George Favorite collection) (Source: "Black Cat Raiders of WWII" by Richard C. Knott) The VP-54 base camp during a rare dry spell (seas of mud were more common). Note the steel perforated planks for walkways. Living conditions were primitive on island bases like these. (Captain C. Schoenweiss collection) (Source: "Black Cat Raiders of WWII" by Richard C. Knott) On arrival at Guadalcanal's Henderson Field in March 1943, VP-54 was greeted by a Japanese air attack. Crater from a near-miss is in the foreground. VP-54 Cats and the Henderson Field tower are visible in the background. (W.C. Lemly via E. Leiser) (Source: "PBY Catalina in Action" by Squadron/Signal Publications) Motoyama No. 1 airfield on Iwo Jima in March 1945. A Black Cat from an unknown squadron stands ready for Dumbo duty for the B-29's that were damaged and couldn't make it back to Iwo. 20th Air Force B-29's are in the background. (from the archives of the San Diego Aerospace Museum ) NEW! - Morning muster for a Black Cat squadron, at what looks to be a fairly advanced base facility. (this image is from the Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons - Vol. 2 ) NEW! - Men of VPB-34 take a break from the hot tropical sun under the thankfully large wing of their PBY while two other Black Cats sit in the distance. (this image is from the Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons - Vol. 2 ) Go to Photo Page #1 - #2 - #3 - #4 - #5 - #6 - #7 - #8 - #9 - #10 - #11 - #12 - #13. What's New on the website. November 21, 2017 : Thirteen years since the last update! Added an alternate logo for VP-52 to the squadron logos page. February 5, 2004 : Added sixty pages of the "War History of VP-71", and linked it to the squadron Logbooks page. January 19, 2004 : Added VP-53 to the Squadron History section, and a new logo for VP-101 on the Logos page. More changes to come soon. May 14, 2003 : Updated the book list on the Resources page, and added a painting to the bottom of the Paintings page. June 20, 2002 : THIS WEBSITE IS MOVING! I am going to a dedicated server under my domain name of "daveswarbirds.com", so the new address will be http://www.daveswarbirds.com/blackcat. Please update your bookmarks. The old address will hopefully still work, but a re- direction will take the visitor to the new server. My aviation websites have become a victim of their own success, as I was getting so many visitors that my ISP was complaining about bandwidth useage, and I was forced to move to a commercial-grade server. This means that my costs for keeping my aviation websites online has suddenly increased 150%, and I was struggling to pay for them as it was. If you enjoy this site (or any of my other sites), please consider becoming a sponsor (ie. - make a donation) so that I can stay on-line. Email me for further information if you are interested. June 19, 2002 : Added two photos to photo page #12. June 5, 2002 : Added photos to photo pages #4, 5, 6, 11, and 13. January 28, 2002 : Added a painting to the bottom of the Paintings page. August 9, 2001 : Revised the Resources page so that you can get more info on the books I used, and even order them (most at 20-30% off) at Amazon.com. Also added a donations page to allow visitors to donate money to help pay my ISP costs so that this website can stay online. June 27, 2001 : Added a painting to the Paintings page, and a new section containing cruise books for the various squadrons. First up is the cruise book for VP-81, sent to me by Rick Baker, whose dad served with VP-81. June 13, 2001 : Added a magazine article to the Articles page telling of rescue missions by Black Cats. May 3, 2001 : Added a section on the Veterans page where the public can post questions or trade info on individual Black Cat members. February 26, 2001 : Added a page covering computer flight simulations involving Black Cat PBYs. February 11, 2001 : Added another Black Cat PBY painting to the Paintings page. October 18, 2000 : Added the final squadron history (for VP-23) to the Squadron History section. October 6, 2000 : Added a WWII magazine article to the Articles page telling of Black Cats working with U.S. PT boats. September 28, 2000 : Added a note to the Commonwealth Black Cat page (Photo page #13) regarding limited availability of two PBY/Black Cat books. September 25, 2000 : Added a whole new section containing squadron histories of the Black Cat squadrons, including data on actions, aircraft, commanding officers, areas of deployment, etc. Also, added logos for VP-81, VP-101, and VP-12 to the Logos page. September 3, 2000 : Added a new logo (VP-33) to the squadron Logos page. Added a half dozen new photos, and added a page for Commonwealth (British, Australian, etc.) Black Cat photos. I need submissions for that page, so if you have or know of any Allied PBY Black Cat photos please contact me. May 23, 2000 : Added a painting to the top of the Painting page. In other news, I acquired a videotape of WWII-vintage newsreel footage subsisting solely of Black Cat material, though it was only 21 minutes long. I think this is probably the same footage contained in the video titled "Our Fighting Navy", sold on THIS PAGE . I recommend this over any other Black Cat video that's available. the video they sell also contains several other wartime videos and is 90 minutes long, and they throw in a free copy of Richard C. Knott's book, "Black Cat Raiders of World War II"! All for only $24.95. March 30, 2000 : Identified the new "mystery patch" as belonging to VPB-52 (see the Logos page). Also: added a VP-44 Black Cat patch and crew photo on March 21. March 14, 2000 : Added a story to the History section called "One Hung Up", about a bomb that wouldn't let go. January 19, 2000 : Added a page showing details about a video (and where to get it) that contains some Black Cat footage. It is accessible on my Videos page . January 8, 2000 : Added three more photo pages, and a whole batch of photos (thanks to three days spent in the library of the San Diego Aerospace Museum ), and three logos to the site. Most of the new photos that did not come from books are available as photo reprints from their library (for a small fee). If you are in San Diego, make sure you stop by their museum and see their PBY Catalina on display. December 29, 1999 : Restructured the Photo pages, adding one page and about six photos in the process. Added two paintings to the Painting page. Added three books to the Resource page. December 26, 1999 : Added a page for where to find contacts for Black Cat veterans. November 28, 1999 : Added the VP-12 logo to my Logos page, and two viewer-contributed photos to Photo page #8. October 1, 1999 : Check out my weblinks page for a new link to a website that has cut-away detailed photos of a PBY being restored at Pensacola. Very nice! Also, there's a link to my new website about B-17s. Finally, I've added some new visitor-contributed photos to Photo Page #8. June 14, 1999 : Another Black Cat veteran has joined the sponsor page. Thanks! June 5, 1999 : Posted three photos sent to me by VP-23 family member Leslie La Brie. June 1, 1999 : I began looking for sponsors to help me pay my server bill. Two Black Cat veterans have stepped forward so far, and I have listed them on a separate page on this website. If you would like to join them in keeping this site online, please contact me. May 20, 1999 : Replaced the black and white VPB-34 squadron logo with a nice color version. February 7, 1999 : Added a photo page with my first color Black Cat photos; added the logo for VPB-23 to the Logo page. February 1, 1999 : added the logo for VPB-91 to the Logo page. Black Cat Raiders of World War II by R. Knots. WORLD WAR II - NONFICTION. "Black Cat Raiders of WW II" By Richard C. Knott. This is a fine account of the actions of PBY-5 and PBY-5A (wheeled) seaplanes of World War II. It follows the evolution of PBY use from pre- war Pearl Harbor to the end of the war. The PBY squadrons in Hawaii and the western Pacific at the onset of WW II suffered greatly. But, they recovered and soon developed night tactics and soon became the scourge of the Japanese from the Solomon Islands to the recapture of the Philippine Islands. This book recounts the suffering and the great victories of the men of the squadrons achieved. I have seen many documentaries showing the PBYs on patrol and picking up downed airmen and survivors of sunken ships. But I was not aware that these planes bombed and strafed the hell out of Japanese shipping and military bases. They also had a stellar record of spotting and reporting Japanese ship movements that were critical to winning several major surface engagements. My hat is off to these brave men who flew these big, slow, lumbering planes and turned outdated equipment into avenging weapons of war. Question: The Navy had enough sense to evacuate dependents from the Philippine Islands and disburse units and supply caches in preparation for the war. What did MacArthur and the Army do? Nada. Reviewed by Kenneth S. Smith 10/10/2000. Blue Jacket Books Naval Institute Press 291 Wood Road Annapolis, MD 21402. Here is a letter from his navy wing commander to a Catalina night bomber pilot who struck (and returned home with) part of a mast of the Japanese ship he was bombing. UNITED STATES FLEET FLEET AIR WING SEVENTEEN. A 16-3(0-cn) Serial: 545 27 Sep 1944 From: The Commander, Fleet Air Wing SEVENTEEN To: Lieutenant James F. MERRITT, (A-VN), USN Via: The Commanding Officer, Patrol Bombing Squadron Thirty Three Subject: Ramming Tactics Plane versus Surface Ship-Disapproval of. 1. The history of naval warfare is replete with incidents of ramming as an effective method of destroying opposing ships. Students of History will recall such battles as Salamis, Actium, Lepanto and Lissa wherein ramming was the primary method of sinking. Formidable pointed rams were provided by the naval constructors of those days on the underwater part of the bow. Even in modern times, underwater rams were built into the bows of battle ships with the expectancy that ramming tactics might be employed. However except for antisubmarine tactics, ramming has not been effectively employed since the days of our own Civil War. Even in the times of Nelson and J. P. Jones ramming tactics assumed a secondary role in ship to ship contact, the placing of a ship alongside an enemy for the purpose of boarding being preferred. 2. A cursory comparison of aircraft and surface ships will readily reveal that in a case of contact between the two, the plane will come out second best because of its lighter construction. Furthermore, a careful inspection will reveal the complete absence of a ram device on aircraft. 3. In consideration of the foregoing, that part of your action on the night of 16-17 September 1944, wherein you deliberately rammed the ship you were attacking, is disapproved. It is considered that factors contributing to the destruction of the ship can be assesses as follows: bombs 98%, machine gun fire 2%, and ramming 0%. 4. The official report covering your action has not yet been reviewed but it is assumed that being so imbued with naval tradition you issued the proper commands to our gallant crew when the decision to ram was made and that your boarding party was properly equipped and indoctrinated. 5. It is entirely possible, due to shortage of critical materials in the Japanese Empire, that Japanese surface ships may eventually be lightly enough constructed to make ramming tactics by aircraft profitable. At such time your experience may prove invaluable in the indoctrination and training of crews in these revolutionary tactics.