VP-204 Miscellaneous
BOOKs: Title: "VPNavy! USN, USMC, USCG and NATS Patrol Aircraft Lost or Damaged During World War II" by LCDR Douglas E. Campbell, USNR (Retired) dcamp@aol.com "VPNavy! USN, USMC, USCG and NATS Patrol Aircraft Lost or Damaged During World War II" Thousands of hours of research have culminated in this First Edition of U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, U.S. Coast Guard and Naval Air Transport Service patrol aircraft lost or damaged during World War II. Within these 600+ pages can be found more than 2,200 patrol aircraft across nearly 300 squadron designations; the majority of the aircraft complete with their stories of how they were lost or damaged or simply Struck Off Charge (SOC) and removed from the Navy’s inventory. Of interest to the reader may be the alphabetical Index to the 7,600+ names of Officers, aircrewmen and others mentioned in the book. Squadrons, etc. mentioned include: VB/VP/VPB, FAW, VD, VH, VJ, VMD, VR, NATS, NAS, etc. You may purchase as copy through: Lulu Press, Inc.. Contributed by LCDR Douglas E. Campbell, USNR (Retired) dcamp@aol.com [26FEB2018]
BOOKs: Title: Eyes of the Fleet: Cloaked by jungle foliage, the unheralded seaplane tenders operated ahead of the Fleet, like the Navy's famed PT boats. As Halsey's South Pacific, MacArthur's Southwest Pacific, and Spruance's Central Pacific forces advanced toward Japan, these ships served as afloat-bases for patrol planes referred to as the "eyes of the fleet." The large fabric-clad PBY "Catalinas" and later PBM "Mariners" combed the seaways for Japanese forces and carried out bombing, depth charge, and torpedo attacks on enemy ships and submarines. Nighttime anti-shipping operations-"Black Cat" or "Nightmare" missions-were dangerous and daytime combat operations even more so, when encounters with more maneuverable and heavily-armed fighters necessitated hiding in clouds to survive. The Japanese were keen to destroy the scouts and their floating bases, and seaplane tenders often lived a furtive existence, particularly early in the war. Pilots, plane crews and shipboard personnel received scores of awards for valor, including the Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross, and Silver and Bronze Star Medals. A few VP Squadrons mentioned include: VP-1, VP-11/VPB-11, VP-12, VP-13/VPB-13, VP-14, VP-16/VPB-16, VP-18/VPB-18, VPB-19, VPB-20, VP-21/VPB-21, VP-22, VP-23/VPB-23, VP-24, VPB-25, VPB-26, VPB-27, VPB-28, VP-32, VP-33/VPB-33, VP-34/VPB-34, VP-41, VP-42, VP-43, VP-44, VP-45, VP-51, VP-52, VP-53, VPB-54, VP-61, VP-62, VP-63/VPB-63, VP-71/VPB-71, VP-72, VP-73, VPB-74, VP-81, VP-82, VP-83, VP-84, VP-91, VP-92, VP-94, VP-101/VPB-101, VP-102/VPB-102, VPB-103, VPB-104, VPB-105, VPB-106, VB-106, VB-108, VPB-109, VPB-110, VPB-111, VPB-112, VPB-114, VP-115, VPB-116, VPB-117, VPB-118, VPB-123, VPB-130, VB/VPB-137, VPB-142, VB-143, VPB-146, VPB-151, VP-202/VPB-202, VP-204, VP-205, VPB-208, VP-216/VPB-216, VD-3, VH-1, VH-2, VH-3, VH-4, VH-6, VS-1D-11, VS-1D-13, VS-1D-14 and VT-3. A few Seaplane Tenders mentioned include: USS Absecon, USS Albemarle, USS Avocet, USS Ballard, USS Barataria, USS Barnegat, USS Belknap, USS Clemson, USS George E. Badger, USS Goldsborough, USS Osmond, USS Ingram, USS Bering Strait, USS Biscayne, USS Casco, USS Castle Rock, USS Chandeleur, USS Childs, USS Chincoteague, USS Cook Inlet, USS Coos Bay, USS Corson, USS Cumberland Sound, USS Currituck, USS Curtiss, USS Duxbury Bay, USS Floyds Bay, USS Gannet, USS Gardiners Bay, USS Gillis, USS Greene, USS Greenwich Bay, USS Half Moon, USS Hamlin, USS Heron, USS Hulbert, USS Humboldt, USS Kenneth Whiting, USS Langley, USS Lapwing, USS Mackinac, USS Matagorda, USS McFarland, USS Norton Sound, USS Onslow, USS Orca, USS Pelican, USS Pine Island, USS Pocomoke, USS Rehoboth, USS Rockaway, USS Salisbury Sound, USS San Carlos, USS San Pablo, USS Shelikof, USS St. George, USS Suisun, USS Swan, USS Tangier, USS Thornton, USS Thrush, USS Timbalier, USS Unimak, USS Valcour, USS William B. Preston, USS Williamson, USS Wright and USS Yakutat. The U.S. Navy's Seaplane Tenders and Patrol Aircraft in World War II is now available from Heritage Books: http://www.heritagebooks.com/. Contributed by CDR David D. Bruhn commanderbruhn@gmail.com [30APR2016]
BOOKs: Title: "Wings over Bermuda - 100 years of aviation in the West Atlantic" by Ewan Partridge and Tom Singfield. Contributed by Tom Singfield tomsingfield@gmail.com [09JUL2015]
The first fixed wing aircraft in Bermuda in 1919 was a USN Curtiss Jenny from the ship SS Elinor. In 1924 the USN sent the first "operational" aircraft to Bermuda in the shape of a Vought UO-1 seaplane from the USS Cincinnati. Visits by the airship Los Angeles commencing in 1925 are detailed as are the much later operations by a variety of US Navy blimps from the airport.
Other pieces in the book that will interest VP Navy readers include the US Navy Naval Operating Base (always known as the NOB) (1939-1965). This massive base (no runway) was built from re-claimed land and housed warships and submarines as well as flying boats and seaplanes. After WW2 the flying boats became the front line force in the Cold War anti submarine "battle". Types operated there included Kingfisher, Goose, PBM Mariner, P5M Marlin and Albatross.
The US Navy was very active in Bermuda during WW2. The book has details of the early neutrality patrols of late 1940 and has extensive coverage of the Battle of the Atlantic and the specialist fleet training operations. The exploits of the Patrol, Scouting and Utility squadrons that were based at Darrell's Island and the NOB are also told.
Post war, the stories continue of the Patrol Squadrons through the cold war and details of support units, accidents, incidents at both the NOB (flying boats and amphibians) and Kindley Field are revealed. The book also includes the never before told story of the Navy Bermuda Flying Club. It also includes details of the many US Navy aircraft carriers that visited Bermuda and the surrounding seas to carry out operations and exercises.
The following US Navy Squadrons are all mentioned in "Wings over Bermuda".
FAW-9, VAQ-141, VB-105,VC-1, VC-13, VC-19, VC-42, VC-58, VC-69, VCS-8, VF-15, VF-41, VF-72, VGF-27, VGF-28, VGS-27, VGS-29, VGS-30, VJ-4, VJ-15, VP-8, VP-10, VP-11, VP-15, VP-16, VP-23, VP-44, VP-45, VP-49, VP-51, VP-52, VP-54, VP-63, VP-74, VP-92, VP-201, VP-204, VP-207, VP-215, VP-661, VP-MS-5, VP-MS-9, VQ-4, VR-1, VR-6, VR-8, VR-44, VRC-40, VS-2D1, VS-32, VS-35, VS-36, VS-41, VS-71, VS-72, VS-201, VS-5D4, VX-1, VX-4. In addition there are stories from FASRON 104, FASRON 111, FASRON 795 and the Naval Air Transport Service (NATS).
US Navy ships mentioned include USS Akron (airship), Bogue, Charger, Chenango, Cincinnati, Cobbler, Core, Croatan, Currituck, Effective, Elinor, Gannet, George E. Badger, Guadalcanal, Hamilton, Hornet, Intrepid, Laffey, Long Island, Mission Bay, Odum, Owl, Patoka (airship), Ray, St. Louis, Sicily, Philadelphia, Ranger, Santee, Savannah, Stansbury, Theodore Roosevelt, Thrush, Timbalier, Valley Forge, Wainwright, Wake Island, Wasp, Yorktown.
Many military bases with US Navy connections are mentioned including Patuxent River, Norfolk VA, Elizabeth City, Keflavik, Azores, Argentia, Charleston, Miami, Newfoundland and San Juan.
The book can be obtained direct from the National Museum of Bermuda for $60 plus P&P. Contact info@nmb.bm for details. The authors (both British) have some signed copies in the UK, contact tomsingfield@gmail.com for details of costs etc.
This book was published in 2014 by the National Museum of Bermuda and for the first time ever tells the intriguing story of aviation in and around the British Colony islands of Bermuda. Historians, former Bermuda US Navy servicemen and women, and relatives of USN personnel based there will be delighted to see such a good coverage of all types of US Navy operations
BOOKs: Title: The Fighting Flying Boat: A History of the Martin PBM Mariner by Richard Alden Hoffman dickdot@san.rr.com.
Squadrons, Tenders, etc. include: VP-13, VP-16, VP-17, VP-19, VP-20, VP-21, VP-22, VP-25, VP-26, VP-27, VP-28, VP-32, VP-55, VP-56, VP-73, VP-74, VP-98, VP-100, VP-104, VP-111, VP-117, VP-119, VP-120, VP-201, VP-202, VP-203, VP-204, VP-205, VP-207, VP-208, VP-209, VP-210, VP-211, VP-212, VP-213, VP-216, VH-1, VH-3, VH-4, FAW-3, FAW-5, FAW-9, FAW-11, FAW-12, FAW-16, USS Albemarle (AV-5), USS Pocomoke (AV-9), USS Casco (AVP-12), USS Chincoteague (AVP-24), USS Pocomoke (AV-9), and USS Chandeleur (AV-10).
The Fighting Flying Boat mentions each and every PBM squadron in both WW2 and Korea as well as details of the RAF, RAAF, Dutch, Argentine and Uruguayan service. Also USCG and commercial activities in US, Colombia and Portugal. Also includes every PBM casualty by name, details of every PBM vs Uboat engagement and every PBM vs Japanese fighter and Korean era vs MIG engagements. [22OCT2004]
"VP-204 Summary Page"
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