ABOUT THIS BOOK

A long-overdue history of America's "forgotten flattop."

On November 24, 1943, a Japanese torpedo plunged into the starboard side of the American escort carrier USS Liscome Bay. The torpedo struck the thin-skinned carrier in the worst possible place the bomb storage area. The resulting explosion could be seen 16 miles away, literally ripping the Liscome Bay in half and killing 644 of her crew. In terms of lives lost, it was the costliest carrier sinking in United States naval history.

Liscome Bay's loss came on her first combat operation: the American invasion of the Gilbert Islands. Despite her short career, she touched a number of remarkable and famous lives. Doris Miller, the first black American sailor to win the Navy Cross, lost his life, as did Rear Admiral Henry Mullinax, one of the Navy's first "air admirals." John Crommelin was the senior officer to survive the sinking. Later in his career, Crommelin, a decorated naval aviator himself, sparked the famous Revolt of the Admirals, which helped save the role of naval aviation in America's Cold War military.

James Noles's account of the Liscome Bay and those who served aboard her is based on interviews with the ship's survivors and an unpublished memoir that the ship's pay officer made available to the author. This readable, compelling book pays homage to the crew by telling their story of experience and sacrifice.

To follow Jim Noles on Twitter, access his stream here: http://www.twitter.com/mightyby

AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY

James L. Noles Jr. is an independent historian and partner with the Birmingham, AL, law firm of Balch and Bingham. He is author of several books, including Mighty by Sacrifice (which he co-authored with his father James L. Noles Sr.), and Twenty-Three Minutes to Eternity: The Final Voyage of the Escort Carrier USS Liscome Bay.

REVIEWS

"The author's ability to stitch together the individual accounts [of crew members] into a moving history of the short life and sudden death of Liscome Bay makes this book a fascinating read."--Jeffrey G. Barlow, author of Revolt of the Admirals: The Fight for Naval Aviation, 1945-1950— -

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents
List of Illustrations 000
Preface 000
Prologue 000
Abbreviations 000
1. The Baby Flattops 000
2. A Crew for the "Listing Lizzie" 000
3. Wildcats, Avengers, and a Rear Admiral 000
4. Into the Breach 000
5. Galvanic and Kourbash 000
6. Three Task Forces, Three Brothers 000
7. "The God of Death Has Come" 000
8. Twenty-Three Minutes and Counting 000
9. Abandon Ship! 000
10. Pacific Dawn 000
11. Surviving 000
12. Aftermath 000
Notes 000
Bibliography 000
 

Library of Congress Subject Headings for this publication: Liscome Bay (Escort Carrier : CVE 56)World War, 1939-1945 Naval operations, American, World War, 1939-1945 Campaigns Kiribati