| Category 4 typhoon (SSHS) | |
|---|---|
| Eye structure captured on radar | |
| Formed | December 17, 1944 |
| Dissipated | December 18, 1944 |
| Highest winds | 1-minute sustained: 230 km/h (145 mph) Gusts: 220 km/h (140 mph) |
| Lowest pressure | ≤ 907 mbar (hPa; 26.78 inHg) |
| Fatalities | 790 U.S., unknown elsewhere |
| Areas affected | Philippine Sea |
| Part of the 1944 Pacific typhoon season | |
Typhoon Cobra, also known as the Typhoon of 1944 or Halsey's Typhoon (named after Admiral William 'Bull' Halsey), was the United States Navy designation for a tropical cyclone which struck the United States Pacific Fleet in December 1944 during World War II.
Task Force 38 (TF 38) had been operating about 300 mi (260 nmi; 480 km) east of Luzon in the Philippine Sea conducting air raids against Japanese airfields in the Philippines. The fleet was attempting to refuel its ships, especially the lighter destroyers which had limited fuel carrying capacity. As the weather worsened it became increasingly difficult to refuel, and the attempts had to be discontinued. Despite warning signs of worsening conditions the ships of the fleet remained in their stations. Worse, the location and direction of the typhoon reported to Halsey were inaccurate. On December 17, Admiral Halsey unwittingly sailed Third Fleet into the heart of the typhoon.
Because of 100 mph (87 kn; 160 km/h) winds, very high seas and torrential rain, three destroyers capsized and sank, and a total of 790 lives were lost. Nine other warships were damaged, and over 100 aircraft were wrecked or washed overboard; the aircraft carrier Monterey was forced to battle a serious fire that was caused by a plane hitting a bulkhead.
USS Tabberer—a small John C. Butler-class destroyer escort—lost her mast and radio antennas. Though damaged and unable to radio for help, she took the initiative to remain on the scene to recover 55 of the 93 total that were rescued. Captain Henry Lee Plage earned the Legion of Merit, while the entire crew earned the Navy's Unit Commendation Ribbon, which was presented to them by Admiral Halsey.
In the words of Admiral Chester Nimitz, the typhoon's impact "represented a more crippling blow to the Third Fleet than it might be expected to suffer in anything less than a major action". The events surrounding Typhoon Cobra were similar to those the Japanese navy itself faced some nine years earlier in what they termed the "Fourth Fleet Incident."
A typhoon plays an important role in the novel The Caine Mutiny, and is thought to be based on the authors own experience surviving through Typhoon Cobra.
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On December 17, the typhoon was first observed, surprising a fleet of ships in the open western Pacific Ocean. Barometric pressures as low as 26.8 inHg (907 mbar) and wind speeds up to 120 kn (140 mph; 220 km/h) in gusts were reported by some ships. The storm was last seen on the 18th.
TF 38 consisted of seven fleet carriers, six light carriers, eight battleships, 15 cruisers, and about 50 destroyers. The carriers had been conducting raids against Japanese airfields in the Philippines and ships were being refueled, especially many destroyers running low on fuel. When the storm hit, the procedure had to be aborted.
Some ships experienced rolls of over 70° and damage suffered by the fleet was severe. Three destroyers, Spence, Hickox and Maddox had nearly empty fuel stores (10-15% of capacity) and therefore lacked the stabilizing effect of the extra weight and thus were relatively unstable. Additionally, several other destroyers, including Hull and Monaghan, were of the older Farragut-class and had been refitted with over 500 long tons (510 t) of extra equipment and armament which made them top-heavy. Spence, Hull and Monaghan were sunk either by capsizing outright, or as a result of water down-flooding through their smokestacks and disabling their engines. Without power, they were unable to control their heading and were at the mercy of the wind and seas. Hickox and Maddox, due to ballasting of their empty fuel tanks (pumping them full of seawater) had greater stability and were able to ride out the storm with relatively minor damage.
Many other ships of TF 38 suffered various degrees of damage, especially to radar and radio equipment which severely compromised communications within the fleet. Several carriers suffered fires on their hangars and 146 aircraft were wrecked or blown overboard. Nine ships— including one light cruiser, three light carriers, and two escort carriers—suffered severe damage and had to be sent for repairs.
The carrier Monterey was nearly taken down in flames by its own airplanes as they crashed into bulkheads and exploded during violent rolls. One of those fighting the fires aboard Monterey was then-Lt. Gerald Ford, later President of the United States. Ford later recalled nearly going overboard; when 20° and greater rolling caused aircraft below decks to careen into each other, igniting a fire. He volunteered to take a fire team below decks and fought fires all night, saving his ship from sure destruction at sea.[1]
The fleet was scattered by the storm. One ship, the destroyer escort Tabberer, ran across a survivor from Hull while itself desperately fighting the typhoon. This was the first survivor from any of the capsized destroyers to be picked up. Shortly thereafter, many more survivors were picked up, in groups or in isolation. Tabberer's skipper—Lieutenant Commander Henry Lee Plage—directed that the ship, despite its own dire condition, begin boxed searches to look for more survivors. Eventually, Tabberer rescued 55 survivors in a 51-hour search, despite repeated orders from Admiral Halsey to return all ships to port in Ulithi. She picked up 41 men from Hull and 14 from Spence before finally returning to Ulithi after being directly relieved from the search by two destroyer escorts.
After the fleet had regrouped (without Tabberer), ships and aircraft conducted search and rescue missions. The destroyer Brown rescued the only survivors from Monaghan, seven in total. She additionally rescued 13 sailors from Hull. Eighteen other survivors from Hull and Spence were rescued over the three days following Typhoon Cobra by other ships of the 3rd Fleet. In all, 93 men were rescued of the over 800 men presumed missing in the three ships, and one other who had been swept overboard from the escort carrier Anzio.
Despite disobeying fleet orders, Plage was awarded the Legion of Merit by Admiral Halsey, and Tabberers' crew each were awarded Navy Unit Commendation ribbons (the first ever awarded).
While conducting operations off the Philippines, the Third Fleet remained on station rather breaking up and running from the storm. This led to a loss of men, ships and aircraft. A Navy court of inquiry was convened on board the USS Cascade at the Naval base at Ulithi. Admiral Nimitz, CINCPAC, was in attendance at the court. Forty-three-year-old Captain Herbert K. Gates was the Judge Advocate for the court.[6] The inquiry found that though Halsey had committed an error of judgement in sailing the Third Fleet into the heart of the typhoon, it stopped short of unambiguously recommending sanction.[7]
In January 1945, Halsey passed command of the Third Fleet to Admiral Spruance (whereupon its designation changed to "Fifth Fleet"). Halsey resumed command in late-May 1945. In early June 1945 Halsey again sailed the fleet into the path of a typhoon, and while ships sustained crippling damage, none were lost on this occasion. However six lives were lost, and 75 planes were destroyed, with 70 more badly damaged. A second Navy court of inquiry was convened. This time the court suggested that Halsey be reassigned, but Admiral Nimitz recommended otherwise due to Halsey's prior service to the Navy.[7] Halsey remained in command of Third Fleet until the cessation of hostilities.