Chapter Summaries

The American fleet’s 2nd Capital Ship Formation awaited rescue from General Kimmel’s 1st Formation while German forces attacked both it and the 3rd Formation. The chapter left the Iowa-class battleships exchanging fire as the German fleet closed in and rescue remained about an hour away.

• A staff officer told Lieutenant General Ingersoll that General Kimmel’s 1st Capital Ship Formation was coming to help the 2nd Formation and would arrive in about an hour.
• Rear Admiral Ingram ordered the 3rd Capital Ship Formation northeast to rendezvous with the main force after learning that the 1st Formation had gone to rescue the 2nd.
• The German Atlantic Fleet attacked the 3rd Formation’s four South Dakota-class battleships, and Rear Admiral Ingram ordered them to return fire.
• The German Home Fleet and Mediterranean Fleet attacked the 2nd Formation’s six Iowa-class battleships, concentrating fire on the Illinois and Kentucky.
• Lieutenant General Ingersoll ordered the six Iowa-class battleships to return fire as the German fleet closed in.

The German and American fleets fought a fierce nighttime naval battle as Lieutenant General Görcke ordered the German ships to close the range before American reinforcements arrived. The German bombardment repeatedly struck the battleship Illinois, leaving its survival uncertain.

• Lieutenant General Ingersoll braced the American 2nd Capital Ship Squadron to hold out until the 1st Capital Ship Squadron arrived.
• Lieutenant General Görcke ordered the German fleet to close to ten thousand meters before American reinforcements reached the battlefield.
• Lieutenant General Ingersoll ordered his ships to hold their positions despite the Germans closing in.
• A 380mm Shell from Thuringen struck Illinois's forward deck and started a fire ten minutes into the battle.
• German shells hit Illinois again, destroying a secondary gun and damaging the hull, and an officer warned Ingersoll that the ship was in extremely bad condition.

The German Navy's encirclement left the American battleships Illinois and Kentucky badly damaged while their formation waited for reinforcements. The New Jersey finally scored the Americans' first hit by setting the German battleship Catherine ablaze, and Ingersoll ordered the fleet to concentrate fire on her.

• German battleships repeatedly struck the burning Illinois, while German battlecruisers damaged the Kentucky and reopened leaks from earlier torpedo hits.
• An officer warned Admiral Ingersoll that both American battleships might soon sink, and he learned that the 1st Capital Ships formation needed at least half an hour to arrive.
• The New Jersey landed the 2nd Capital Ships formation's first hit, damaging the Catherine and igniting fires aboard her.
• Lieutenant General Ingersoll ordered all fire concentrated on the German Navy's third battleship to sink her.

The German and American fleets intensified their fire as Catherine burned and Illinois began sinking under sustained German attacks. Illinois went down, and the German ships then concentrated on Wisconsin, leaving the American fleet in a worsening position.

• Catherine caught fire, and both fleets redirected fire in an attempt to destroy enemy battleships.
• Illinois’s captain ordered its watertight compartments sealed and flooded the opposite side to counter its list, but the ship continued taking on water.
• After ten minutes of bombardment by four Helgoland-class battleships, Illinois sank.
• Obritt ordered the four Helgoland-class battleships and Wörth and Wörth to attack Wisconsin.
• Ingersoll learned that Illinois had sunk and saw that Kentucky was in grave danger while Wisconsin was surrounded.

The German Atlantic Fleet’s eight battleships encircled and outgunned the American 3rd Capital Ship Formation west of Flores Island. After a German shell set Alabama ablaze, Rear Admiral Ingram feared the Americans would lose another battleship before help arrived.

• The German Atlantic Fleet’s eight battleships fired on the four American South Dakota-class battleships, and a shell hit South Dakota’s Turret Z without penetrating its armor.
• Major General Leze and Lieutenant General Wechs discussed how their formation had time to sink the American ships, while General Görcke’s forces fought the 2nd Capital Ship Formation at closer range before American reinforcements arrived.
• A German 380mm shell pierced Alabama’s after-deck armor and started a fire inside the battleship.
• Lieutenant General Wechs ordered the German battlecruisers to exploit the fire, and their gunfire intensified as the flames improved their aim.
• Rear Admiral Ingram worried that Alabama would be sunk, while its sailors struggled to extinguish the fire.

The German and American fleets battered each other as the Catherine, Kentucky, and Wisconsin came under heavy fire. After all three battleships sank, the American Navy's 1st Capital Ship Formation arrived, leaving the battle's outcome uncertain.

• German Capital Ships heavily damaged the Wisconsin and Kentucky, while four American battleships battered the Catherine.
• Lieutenant General Görcke approved the Catherine's request to withdraw and ordered her to return to the homeland for repairs.
• A 410mm shell detonated the Catherine's magazine as she turned, and the battleship sank.
• The Kentucky flooded and capsized under German fire.
• The battered Wisconsin sank after taking repeated hits from 410mm and 380mm shells.
• The American fleet's 1st Capital Ship Formation arrived at the battlefield.

Admiral Husband Kimmel’s 1st Capital Ships formation arrived to reinforce the battered 2nd formation, bringing five Montana-class Battleships against a larger German fleet. The fleets resumed fighting at night, and the chapter ended with a German shell striking Montana’s heavily armored A turret without penetrating it.

• Admiral Husband Kimmel learned that the 2nd Capital Ships formation had lost three Battleships and feared the American fleet’s losses had crippled its strength.
• Lieutenant General Ingersoll saw the 1st Capital Ships formation arrive, while Lieutenant General Görcke ordered the German fleet to widen the distance.
• Admiral Husband Kimmel ordered his fleet to pursue the Germans, and three Iowa-class Battleships joined the five Montana-class Battleships against fifteen German Capital Ships.
• The Montana-class Battleships opened fire on the German flagship Kaiser as both fleets launched a fierce nighttime exchange.
• A 410mm shell from Kaiser struck Montana’s forward A turret, but its 571-millimeter armor stopped the shell.

The German fleet struggled to damage the American Montana-class battleships, while American fire forced two German capital ships to withdraw. Lieutenant General Görcke ordered the fleet to break contact and leave the fighting to land-based and carrier-based aircraft.

• Lieutenant General Görcke and Rear Admiral Rudolf recognized that German guns could not pierce the Montana-class battleships’ vital armor, though German fire-control radar helped the fleet score hits.
• An American 410mm shell damaged the battlecruiser Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm, and Admiral Husband Kimmel ordered the Montana-class ships to concentrate their fire on it.
• Lieutenant General Görcke ordered Kurfürst Friedrich Wilhelm to withdraw, and its speed allowed it to escape the American fleet.
• American ships hit and set fire to the battlecruiser Wörth, forcing Görcke to order its withdrawal as well.
• With two capital ships withdrawn and the Montana-class battleships still fighting effectively, Görcke ordered the German fleet to break contact and left the next attack to aircraft.

The German fleets withdrew after inflicting heavy losses on the American formations, while Admiral Husband Kimmel decided not to pursue them and ordered his battered ships to retreat before German aircraft could attack at dawn. The chapter ended with Kimmel requesting Carrier-based aircraft from the Essex to escort his remaining fleet.

• Lieutenant General Görcke ordered the German Home Fleet's Capital Ship formation to withdraw after it could not overcome the Montana-class Battleships.
• The German Atlantic Fleet sank four South Dakota-class Battleships west of Flores Island, leaving the American 3rd Capital Ship Formation effectively destroyed.
• Admiral Husband Kimmel refused to pursue the retreating Germans because dawn would expose his damaged fleet to German aircraft.
• Kimmel ordered the American fleet to leave the area immediately and abandon further attacks on the German bases.
• After learning that all four South Dakota-class Battleships had been sunk, Kimmel sent a Telegram to the Essex requesting Carrier-based aircraft to escort his fleet after dawn.

The German fleet’s Capital Ship formations withdrew after sinking seven American Battleships while losing one of their own, but they could not overcome the Montana-class Battleships. German commanders prepared land-based and Carrier-based aircraft to attack the surviving American ships after dawn.

• Major General Rudolf reported that the Atlantic Fleet’s Capital Ships had sunk four South Dakota-class Battleships, though the Baden was heavily damaged and withdrew.
• Lieutenant General Görcke ordered fleet commanders to rely on land-based and Carrier-based aircraft to destroy the remaining American Capital Ships after dawn.
• A Communications Officer reported to Marshal Lütjens that Germany had sunk seven American Capital Ships and lost one Kaiser-class Battleship, with three more damaged.
• Marshal Lütjens ordered the Azores bases to prepare aircraft and directed the German fleet west to support the coming attack.
• The Atlantic Fleet and Mediterranean Fleet independently prepared to launch Carrier-based aircraft against the surviving American formation after dawn.

Admiral Nimitz waited anxiously west of the Azores as the American fleet prepared for the capital ship formation’s mission to destroy German airfields. He acknowledged the U.S. Navy’s disadvantages in aircraft and pilot experience, while hoping the coming battles would help them catch up with Germany.

• The American fleet halted six hundred kilometers west of the Azores to avoid entering range of German land-based aircraft and risking an attritional fight.
• Nimitz stayed awake in his office, worried that General Kimmel’s capital ship formation might fail to destroy the airfields on Flores and Corvo.
• Halsey reassured Nimitz that the American battleships, especially the Montana-class, were powerful, but Nimitz cautioned him not to underestimate Germany.
• Halsey reported that the carrier aircraft and pilots were ready to deploy at daybreak, with pilots scheduled to wake at five o’clock.
• Nimitz and Halsey discussed the F4U’s ability to face German fighters and the American Navy’s disadvantage in aircraft performance and pilot proficiency.

Admiral Nimitz learned that the American Capital Ships Formation had suffered a crushing defeat and ordered Lieutenant General Halsey to prepare fighters to protect its retreat. At dawn, German aircraft began taking off from the Azores as the German fleets advanced to attack both American formations.

• A staff officer reported to Admiral Nimitz that German torpedo boats, submarines, and the main fleet had sunk seven American battleships and damaged the eight survivors, while the Americans had sunk one German capital ship and damaged three.
• General Kimmel ordered the Capital Ships Formation to withdraw and requested fighter escorts after dawn, so Admiral Nimitz directed Lieutenant General Halsey to protect the retreating ships and arrange the carrier fleet's air defenses.
• Lieutenant General Halsey prepared seventy-two F4U fighters from the four carriers of the 1st Carrier Fleet to escort the Capital Ships Formation.
• German ground crews repaired bomb-damaged runways on Flores Island and Corvo Island and prepared aircraft at Azores airfields and aboard the three German fleets.
• At sunrise, German Navy aircraft took off from the Azores as the German fleets sailed west to attack the American Capital Ships Formation and Aircraft Carrier Formation.

German aircraft took off from the Azores to attack the fleeing American Navy Capital Ship formation. As Admiral Husband Kimmel’s ships prepared their air defenses, radar detected a German air group approaching from the east.

• German pilots launched from Flores Island, Corvo Island, and central Azores airfields to pursue the American fleet.
• The German Navy held its carrier aircraft back while patrol ships and submarines searched for the American Aircraft Carrier Formation.
• The American fleet’s five Montana-class and three Iowa-class Battleships spread out under cruiser and destroyer protection as they fled west.
• Admiral Husband Kimmel was told the fleet had prepared its air defenses and hoped carrier aircraft would escort the ships home.
• American radar detected approximately 120 German aircraft approaching from the east, and Admiral Husband Kimmel ordered every ship to prepare for air defense.

Admiral Husband Kimmel warned that the Germans would send more aircraft against the American Capital Ship formation, while Admiral Nimitz sent seventy-two F4U Corsairs to provide limited fighter cover and focused on finding the German carriers. The Corsairs reached the fleet as the first German aircraft approached, leaving the American warships expecting air support for the coming attack.

• Admiral Husband Kimmel requested fighter cover from the Essex after radar detected a German aircraft group approaching the American Capital Ship formation.
• The American Aircraft Carrier Formation had already launched seventy-two F4U fighters, which flew toward the Capital Ship formation while the carriers maintained radio silence.
• Admiral Nimitz refused to launch more fighters and ordered additional aircraft and seaplanes to search for the German aircraft carriers.
• The chapter described the Corsair's speed and weapons and noted that its performance matched the German carrier-based BF-109 but fell somewhat short of the FW-190.
• Rear Admiral Corville reported that radar detected aircraft approaching from the west, and Admiral Husband Kimmel recognized them as American fighters.

American and German carrier aircraft clashed in a fierce aerial battle, revealing that the F4U fighters could shoot down German bombers but struggled against the superior FW-190s and more experienced German pilots. The American fighters gradually lost the upper hand as the battle continued.

• Corville asked Kimmel whether the F4U fighters could match German aircraft, and Kimmel said combat would decide.
• American F4U fighters intercepted the German air group before it reached the fleet, and both sides ordered their fighters to attack.
• American F4Us shot down German dive bombers and torpedo bombers, while FW-190s attacked and destroyed American fighters.
• German pilots and FW-190s outmatched the American fighters, which increasingly failed to shake their pursuers and were shot down.

German aircraft from the Azores reinforced the first wave and launched a massive attack on the American fleet after its F4U fighters were driven off. Admiral Husband Kimmel prepared the fleet’s anti-aircraft defenses as the German planes approached, while a German cruiser detected the American carriers’ location.

• German FW-190 fighters shot down many F4U fighters, while the first wave lost fourteen Dive Bombers and eighteen Torpedo Bombers.
• A second wave of 240 German aircraft appeared on American radar, and Admiral Husband Kimmel ordered the fleet’s anti-aircraft crews to prepare without requesting more carrier fighters.
• The German commander learned that reinforcements were arriving and was ordered to join the two waves before attacking together.
• The combined German force of 142 FW-190 fighters, 94 Dive Bombers, and 90 Torpedo Bombers headed for the American fleet as the surviving F4Us fled.
• A German Light Cruiser deduced the American carriers’ location from where the F4Us landed, while the fleet opened fire on the approaching German aircraft.

German carrier aircraft attacked the American fleet, breaking through its anti-aircraft defenses and sinking or heavily damaging several destroyers and cruisers. The battleships remained protected at the fleet’s core as German aircraft worked to clear a corridor for a later attack.

• German FW-190 fighters drew American anti-aircraft fire and strafed the gun positions, killing several gunners.
• German dive bombers sank an outer destroyer guarding the battleship New Hampshire.
• German aircraft attacked the Cleveland-class cruiser Santa Fe, and American anti-aircraft fire shot down some of the attackers.
• German bombs and torpedoes set American cruisers ablaze and caused severe damage across the fleet.
• The German aircraft group continued targeting cruisers and destroyers to weaken defenses before attacking the American battleships.

German aircraft tore through the American fleet’s outer defenses and then concentrated their attack on the Battleship New Hampshire. New Hampshire suffered bomb and torpedo hits, while her damage-control crews struggled to contain the flooding.

• German aircraft sank a Cleveland-class Light Cruiser and inflicted heavy losses on American cruisers and destroyers.
• Rear Admiral Corville warned Admiral Husband Kimmel that the German aircraft were overwhelming the fleet, but Kimmel remained confident in the Capital Ships’ defenses.
• The German Commander ordered an Encirclement Offensive against New Hampshire after most of her nearby escort ships had been dealt with.
• FW-190 fighters attacked New Hampshire’s anti-aircraft positions as Dive Bombers and Torpedo Bombers launched their assault.
• Three aerial bombs and one torpedo hit New Hampshire, adding damage to the torpedo injuries she had suffered earlier.
• New Hampshire’s damage-control crews entered the flooding compartments to plug the breaches and pump out seawater.

German aircraft sank the battleship New Hampshire after repeated bombing and torpedo attacks, while the American fleet prepared to face another massive German air attack. The ship’s surviving crew abandoned it as the German third wave arrived to attack the remaining US warships.

• Admiral Husband Kimmel ordered the fleet to prepare for air defense after radar detected more than two hundred German aircraft approaching from the east.
• German aircraft bombed and torpedoed the New Hampshire, while its crew fought to contain the damage and repel the attackers.
• The New Hampshire took seventeen heavy torpedoes and thirty-eight heavy armor-piercing aerial shells before its captain ordered the crew to abandon ship.
• The German air formation commander ordered aircraft with remaining weapons to attack the other US warships as the third wave arrived.
• The American fleet faced another formation of more than two hundred German aircraft, with its officers and sailors still fighting for survival.

Marshal Lütjens ordered the Azores bases to commit all available aircraft against the American capital ships while German carrier forces searched for the American carriers. A German cruiser detected retreating American F4U fighters and tracked them toward the carriers, leaving their approximate location known to the Germans.

• Marshal Lütjens ordered the Azores bases to send every available aircraft against the American capital ships and reserve German carrier-based aircraft for attacking American carriers.
• Lieutenant General Karl Wetzell arranged for seaplanes to carry Lütjens's orders to the Azores while German carrier forces maintained radio silence.
• A German light cruiser patrolling five hundred kilometers from the Azores detected aircraft on its radar and tracked them as possible American carrier-based fighters.
• The radar operator reported that the aircraft disappeared from the screen as they descended, and the radar officer estimated that the American carriers were about 150 kilometers northwest of the cruiser.