16 DECEMBER 1907 RADIO FAUX PAS Communication between ships at sea had been line-of-sight visual to date, even in foul weather. Experimentation had been in the works for years, indeed in 1888 a genius of naval invention, CAPT Bradley A. Fiske, Read More
11 NOVEMBER 1940 GERMAN RAIDER ATLANTIS Recognizing at the outset of WWII that the Kriegsmarine had not the strength to match the Royal Navy’s warfleet, Hilter’s maritime strategy concentrated on guerre de course, interrupting the flow of merchant ships carrying the Read More
5 NOVEMBER 1940 MV SAN DEMETRIO The Eagle Oil and Shipping Company operated in England from 1912-59 moving petroleum products between Mexico, the Caribbean, and the United Kingdom. Each of their tankers was given the Spanish name of a Christian saint. Read More
20 OCTOBER 1924 DREXLER AND CHOLISTER OF TRENTON The light cruiser USS TRENTON (CL-11) was commissioned in April of 1924, one of the last of ten Omaha-class vessels authorized during WWI. The principal difference between light and heavy cruisers of that Read More
16 OCTOBER 1891 THE TRUE BLUE SALOON Frictions between the President of Chile, José Manuel Balmaceda, and the Chilean Congress erupted into civil war in January 1890. US sympathies leaned weakly toward Balmaceda, but in the main, President Benjamin Harrison was Read More
20 AUGUST 1998 OPERATION “INFINITE REACH” Osama bin Laden had already earned the respect of senior Islamic extremists for his efforts, both financial and personal, supporting the mujakideem against the Russian invasion of Afghanistan. Bin Laden became further incensed during Operations Read More
26 JUNE 1993 BAGHDAD MISSILE ATTACK The decade following Operation “Desert Storm” was marked by Iraqi frustration over continuing United Nations sanctions and Coalition policing. Then seemingly to rub salt in Iraq’s wounds, on 14 April 1993 a specially chartered Kuwait Read More
25 APRIL 1914 1ST OPERATIONAL SORTIE Though the Navy and Marine Corps had been experimenting with the new-fangled flying machines of the early 20th century, their operational role was still being defined. Aerial reconnaissance seemed a logical task, as such technology Read More
26 MARCH 1943 RETIRING VICTORY VADM Boshiro Hosogaya’s heavier force pursued the American cruiser/destroyer squadron of RADM Charles H. McMorris, gaining steadily. CAPT Bertram J. Rodgers in SALT LAKE CITY, with the longest-range US guns, kept up impressive fire from the Read More
26 MARCH 1943 BATTLE OF THE KOMANDORSKIS One Japanese success at the battle of Midway was an effort intended only to be a diversion. As Yamamoto’s Combined Fleet closed on Midway Island, a smaller force of two carriers and supporting ships Read More