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USS Ranger 1937

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Written by a sailor serving aboard the USS Ranger, in August 1937. From the letter………Well I have liberty this weekend but haven’t made very much use of it. Have been aboard all day today and yesterday I just went over a little while in the afternoon and then came back before so very long. Just seemed that I didn’t have much to do over there so came back……In the afternoon about 3 P.M. we cast loose from the dock and then went outside the harbor to anchor in Coronado Roads. That way in case of a morning fog we would already be out side and wouldn’t have to go thru the channel in a fog.
On Tuesday morning we were to have had flight quarters at 9 A.M. but for some reason it was delayed……..A lot of the fellows came up here and hung around waiting for flight quarters which we were expecting to come at most any time. Finally word was passed for the Air Department to eat early moon chow. So that’s what we did. And then it was 12:30 before flight quarters was sounded. We went out to refresh some planes from the Lexington. The first thing to come aboard was a group of big torpedo planes. They are big slow biplanes and carry 3 fellows.
They were landing and taking off right away. Well nearly all of them had been aboard once except #2 and then when he came in he got headed too much to one side. The plane ran off over the side, turned over and fell on it’s back in the water. The ship at the time was making about 18 knots, so the plane was soon behind. However we at once began to circle around. In the mean time, the 3 fellows in the plane had got out and were held afloat by their life jackets which every pilot wears always. The plane sank almost immediately and in such deep water that no attempt whatever was made to locate it. This is what we have destroyer plane guards for.

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As soon as they saw the plane go over they lowered their life boats and went out after the 3 fellows and picked them up. Not much worse for their fall except for a slight shock.
Well as soon as things were squared away again, we began landing the planes again and they continued until they had their required number of landings.
When the T.Gs were finished we landed 3 squadrons and parked them aboard. Respotted the deck and then they took off and flew back to North Island. The only other casualty we had was one bent propeller. In the eve we got back to Coronado Roads, and anchored again for the nite.
On Wed. morning the same thing happened as on Tues. morn. We got all ready to go and then nothing……….During afternoons operations we landed a group of Marine fighters, some scouts and some bombers. These were respotted and then they took off to return to North Island.
This time it was 1 P.M. before we were underway and had flight quarters. We had 4 squadrons attached to the ship. One of fighters, 2 of scouts and 1 of bombers. In the afternoon they all came out and landed aboard. The deck was then respotted, they took off, flew around a while and then came on again………The only trouble we had on the operation was with the very last plane on the last set of landings. When it came in the tail flew up in the air. The prop hit the deck and stuck there, holding the tail of the plane up in the air until they chopped the prop out of the flight deck.......

Photo: USS Ranger, CV-4, US Navy PD
Photo: USS Ranger, CV-4, US Navy PD

U.S. Navy Douglas TBD-1 Devastators of torpedo squadron VT-4 on the USS Ranger (CV-4) in 1942. 

Photo: USS Ranger, CV-4, US Navy PD

Grumman F4F-4 Wildcat fighters of fighter squadron VF-41, Carrier Air Group Four (CVG-4), aboard the USS Ranger,  in November 1942, just before Operation Torch, which was the Allied invasion of North Africa.