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Mural of Intrepid Ablaze
After Kamikaze Attack on
November 25, 1944
(Click to Enlarge)
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Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum
USS Intrepid (CV-11) survived five hits by kamikaze planes, more than
any other single aircraft carrier in the U.S. Navy [1].
Although Intrepid had the
nickname of "Fighting I," she was also called the "Ghost
Ship," since the carrier returned to battle each time the Japanese thought
she had been put out of commission. The ship had to return to the U.S. for
repairs three times during World War II after suffering damage from torpedoes and
kamikaze attacks.
After the end of World War II, Intrepid was decommissioned, but she
was recommissioned in 1954. The ship served as NASA's prime recovery vessel for
Mercury and Gemini astronauts in the early 1960s, and she did three tours off
Vietnam during the late 1960s. Intrepid was decommissioned in 1974, and the
historic carrier avoided the scrap yard in 1982 when she opened as the Intrepid
Sea, Air & Space Museum, berthed on the Hudson River at 46th Street in
Manhattan.
The hangar deck and the flight deck of the Intrepid Museum
display over 30 vintage and modern aircraft and have a wide variety of exhibits
on aviation, ships, military technology, space exploration, and Intrepid's
history. The museum complex also has the submarine USS Growler and a
British Airways Concorde jet, both available for visitors to tour. Other museum
highlights include a virtual flight thrill ride, the original mold of the Iwo
Jima Memorial statue, and a 9/11 exhibit. Visitors also can explore many areas
of this vast aircraft carrier.
Intrepid was commissioned in August 1943, and her first crew of 3,500
men soon entered the war by participating in the invasion of the Marshall
Islands, the air strikes against Truk, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest
naval battle in history. Intrepid
suffered its first kamikaze attack on October 29, 1944,
when 10 men in one of the gun tubs were killed [2]. November 25, 1944, turned out to
be the worst day in Intrepid's history, when two kamikaze planes hit
the ship within five minutes of one another, killing 69 and seriously wounding
85 [3]. After repairs in the U.S., Intrepid returned to battle. Another
kamikaze approached on March 18, 1945, but the carrier escaped serious damage when
the plane crashed fifty feet away. However, the plane sprayed burning fuel onto
the hangar deck, killing 2 men and wounding 43 [4].
On April 16, 1945, the fifth and last kamikaze plane hit Intrepid, killing 20 men and forcing the ship
to return to the U.S. again for repairs [5].
Intrepid Flight Deck
and Manhattan Skyline
A vivid mural painting of a kamikaze attack on Intrepid is one of
the features on the hangar deck. The mural measures about 20 feet high and 30
feet wide, and many tourists have their photos taken in front of it. Next to the
mural is a small sign displaying three historical photos and briefly explaining the
history of the kamikaze attacks that occurred on November 25, 1944. Near the
mural is displayed a Grumman F6F-5 Hellcat carrier based fighter, which
downed many kamikaze planes during the war before they could reach their
targets. A big sign
next to the kamikaze attack painting says that coming soon will be:
"KAMIKAZE"
Day of Darkness, Day of Light
The Immersive Experience
That Puts You Here
November 25th 1944
The two people at the information desk only knew that this "immersive
experience" would be loud and should open by September 2004.
"The Men of Intrepid" exhibit displays several mementos and
photos. These include four fragments of bomb shrapnel and a shard of aluminum
skin from a Japanese kamikaze plane. The continuously running film shown in this
exhibit room has a seven-minute segment on the five kamikaze attacks experienced
by Intrepid. Ten veterans give their recollections of these attacks
that killed over 100 of their shipmates.
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