>>12423919 lb/pb Midway memories
I'll always remember Ensign George Gay of Torpedo Squadron 8 from the USS Hornet.
Photo caption: Ensign George H. Gay (left) and With McCuskey's F4F-4 Wildcat fighter, June 1942, following the Battle of Midway. Note seven victory flags painted below the cockpit. Ensign Gay was the sole Battle of Midway aircrew survivor of USS Hornet's Torpedo Squadron Eight. During the battle, McCuskey served with USS Yorktown's Fighting Squadron Three.
"Suddenly Gay felt something hit his left arm, and found blood on his hand. Squeezing a dark lump on his arm a spent Japanese machine gun bullet popped out. Moments later something hit the back of his left hand, disabling his use of it. Soon Huntington called over the intercom that he was hit and then the radio went silent; Gay was on his own. Meanwhile, the remainder of the squadron’s aircraft fell to enemy cannon and machine guns, smashing into the water and disappearing beneath the waves.
In less than 15 minutes, enemy fighters had annihilated VT-8 except for Gay’s aircraft. Although damaged by enemy fighters, he spotted a target, the Sōryū, and moved to attack. At a distance of 800 yards from the ship, Gay dropped his torpedo and managed to hop his Devastator over the carrier. Circling back around, Gay found himself facing five Japanese fighter planes. In an instant machine gun and cannon fire ripped into the torpedo bomber, wounding Gay. A 20mm cannon shell exploded by his left rudder pedal, blowing apart the pedal and setting the engine on fire. Gay suffered severe flash burns on his left leg. Despite having his rudder and aileron controls shot out, Gay managed to somewhat control the crash of the Devastator into the sea, cartwheeling on impact
Despite the cockpit frame jamming on impact, Gay smashed out of the canopy and unsuccessfully attempted to extricate Huntington. All the while enemy planes continued to strafe the sinking Devastator and its lone survivor. As the plane sank away, Gay bid his comrade goodbye and swam to the surface, bumping into his uninflated life raft that floated free of the sinking aircraft. Bobbing in the ocean in considerable pain while riding the life raft between his legs, Gay spotted a black cushion from the plane floating nearby. Recognizing it as the cushion located in the crawl space beneath the pilot’s seat, Gay grabbed it to put it over his head in an inverted V shape to provide him some camouflage from the enemy while still having some semblance of visibility. Nearby he could see three of the carriers steaming in his direction with other Japanese warships. Of the 15 Devastators and 30 aircrew of VT-8, only Gay remained alive. All 15 torpedoes failed to score"
"With a grandstand seat for the ensuing action, Gay watched and cheered as the Kaga, Akagi, and Sōryū all sustained fatal bomb hits and turned into floating cauldrons of searing flames and secondary explosions."