| A Douglas TBD-1 Devastator torpedo plane from USS Enterprise (CV-6) Torpedo Squadron 6 flies over Wake during the raid. Note fires burning in the lower center. View looks about West North West, with Wilkes Island in the center and the western end of Wake Island in bottom center. Peale Island is at right. The aircraft, “6-T-5,” is probably Bureau Number 0326, piloted by Lieutenant Junior Grade John P. Gray (December 2, 1914 – June 4, 1942) with Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Orval G. Fowe (February 1, 1920 – December 6, 1987) and Radioman 2nd Class Harold F. Littlefield (September 16, 1920 – June 4, 1942). Gray is flying 0326 6-T-5 about 12,000 feet (3,650 meters) above Wake. 1 of 9 TBD-1 Devastators attacking that morning, all were armed with 12 AN-M30 100-pound (45 kilogram) general purpose bombs. Some 3 weeks after raiding the Imperial Japanese Navy’s base on Kwajalein, Task Force 16 under Vice Admiral William F. “Bull” Halsey (October 30, 1882 – August 16, 1959) with his flag in USS Enterprise again raided Japanese bases across the north Pacific, striking Wake Island on February 24, 1942, and Marcus Island on March 4. The attack on Wake Island destroyed several aircraft and several 100,000 liters of fuel, and knocked this base out of the war for several months. The Marcus Island raid shocked the Japanese military mindset — that island was only 1,000 air miles (1,600 kilometers) from Tokyo and some 600 miles (950 kilometers) from the Bonin Islands, with its large military base, and all were situated in local, Japanese-controlled waters. It was another warning to the Japanese command that the Empire’s capital city was within reach of the US carrier navy. The action also revealed deficiencies in cooperative action among United States Navy forces; USS Northampton (CA-26) lost radar during sustained gunfire, and Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters of the Combat Air Patrol became fixated on trailing Japanese aircraft, allowing 2 bombers to penetrate the Task Force perimeter. The gunfire on Wake gave valuable lessons for shore bombardment that were applied for the rest of the war. During the Battle of Midway on June 4, 1942, Ensign Gray flew with Torpedo 8 in “8-T-7” Bureau Number 0284, with Aviation Radioman 3rd Class Max A. Calkins (June 4, 1917 – June 4, 1942) off of USS Hornet (CV-8). The squadron was wiped out in their attack on the Imperial Japanese Navy’s Kido Butai (“Mobile Force”). Littlefield flew with Lieutenant Junior Grade Lloyd Thomas (March 10, 1912 – June 4, 1942) in “6-T-7,” Bureau Number 0294, with Torpedo 6 off of USS Enterprise. Of 14 TBD-1 Devastators launched by Enterprise, only 4 returned, including 0326. Thomas and Littlefield were shot down over Kido Butai. After surviving the June 4 attack on the Imperial Japanese Navy’s carriers, “6-T-5,” Bureau Number 0326, piloted by Ensign Irvin H. McPherson (April 15, 1914 – November 14, 1950) and Aviation Radioman 2nd Class William D. “Don” Horton (November 11, 1919 – July 9, 2004), flew the last combat sortie of a TBD-1 Devastator on June 6, 1942, against the Japanese heavy cruisers Mogami and Mikuma off Midway Atoll. By then, the deficiencies of the TBD-1 Devastator in combat were so obvious that the few remaining pilots were told not to engage if they encountered Japanese fighters. Bureau Number 0326 was reassigned to training squadrons stateside. It was later stricken on May 9, 1944. Photographer Machinist Steven Burdette Smith (May 12, 1903 – November 10, 1970) joined the Navy in 1919 and soloed in 1927. Promoted to Chief Machinist, flew TBD-1 0338 during the Battle of Midway strike on June 4, 1942, in USS Enterprise’s (CV-6) 2nd Division. He survived the mission. He had to be physically restrained from shooting Fighting Squadron 6’s James S. “J. P.” Gray (February 1, 1914 – August 28, 1998), waving his Colt pistol. He blamed Gray for the catastrophic losses in Torpedo Squadron 6. He received the Navy Cross and a commission as an Ensign for his role in the Battle of Midway at age 39. As an officer in 1943, he earned $730 a month, his “fogies,” – years of service – making him the best-paid Lieutenant at the time. In 1945, TIME Magazine claimed he had more hours in torpedo bombers than any man in the United States Navy, with 6,200 hours flying the type. He received numerous citations before retiring in 1949. After retirement, he lived in Benton, illinois, until his death. | |
| Image Filename | wwii1966.jpg |
| Image Size | 1.83 MB |
| Image Dimensions | 5715 x 4499 |
| Photographer | |
| Photographer Title | United States Navy |
| Caption Author | Written or Adapted by Jason McDonald |
| Date Photographed | February 24, 1942 |
| Location | |
| City | |
| State or Province | |
| Country | Wake Atoll |
| Archive | Naval History and Heritage Command |
| Record Number | 80-CF-1071-1 |
| Status | Caption ©2026 MFA Productions LLC Please Do Not Duplicate or Distribute Without Permission; Image in the Public Domain |
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