IMO this video left out the coolest thing about the Samuel B Roberts: they literally fired through their entire 5 inch ammunition supply, both armour piercing and high explosive. The fires they set were chemical fires using star shells, the last ammunition they could scrounge to fire.
its a disservice to not read the full copy if possible, but if you want to share the story with someone younger or get a more visual experience alongside what can be read, there is a graphic novel or the book as well, it'd be perfect for a teenager who is interested in history
While they were in the water for two and a half days, they lost more than a few crew members to sharks. When the Japanese fleet first spotted Taffy 3, they reported that they were attacking 8 to 10 Essex class carriers, and 6 heavy cruisers. This is the reason that they used armor piercing shells against the destroyers and DE's......Many of them passed through the ships without exploding. PS. The last crewmember of the Roberts died just this March. Thank you for putting this out.
Some of the Japanese Destroyer Captains accurately identified what they were facing. It seems the officers of the larger ships didn't want to admit they were defeated by smaller ships or were unable to process what they were facing.
God rest his soul, along with the other combatants of this conflict. A blessing to know them and learn from them, but hopeful this conflict should never be repeated...
@@Sinvare I read somewhere that the commanding Japanese Admiral did not learn the true size of his adversary until some time after the war, and he was reported to be absolutely flabbergasted.
Damn...If they think facing 10 fleet carriers why dont they pursued and destroyed them. Its a golden opportunity to catch the fleet carrier within their big gun bb range.
Wow. "Fought well above her weight class" indeed!! Thank you for telling us this and for comparing her to an Iowa. It makes the story of the USS Samuel B. Roberts even more mind blowing!
So much more to this story, the Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors book describes this battle and the Roberts in great detail. According to the action report of the USS Samuel B. Roberts, "The crew were informed over the loud speaker system at the beginning of the action, of the Commanding Officer's estimate of the situation, that is, a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival could not be expected, during which time we would do what damage we could." Again: "from which survival could not be expected". And then they charged the cruisers and battleships.
By pure luck I I was at the same hotel in Tucson at the same time as the survivors reunion of Taffy 3 discussed in the book. I actually got to meet many of them.
@@ronmaximilian6953 The best pep talk from the battle was reassuring AA gunners that they wouldn't be left out of the action. "Just wait a little longer boys, we're suckering them into forty millimeter range."
@@iansneddon2956 I wonder if any of the destroyers or destroyer escorts try to launch their hedgehog mortar at enemy ships. Sure, they have to get in really close, but a dozen shells with 35 lb of torpex could still cause some damage to anything short of a battleship.
The context of the battle needs to be remembered. There were 200,000+ US soldiers landed and establishing a beachhead with many transports loaded with their supplies parked offshore. Yamato was poised to do a lot of damage to these forces, with "just" the escorts of Taffy 3 in the way. It was very much an "over our dead bodies" response.
Due to the number of command miscommunications, assumptions, and Halsey buying the Japanese decoy force as a threat made it, in any normal evaluation, what should have been the most one sided short skirmish in history. The bravery of those sailors to actually win at such cost remains astonishing.
Halsey was right to go north. His assigned mission was to locate and kill the carriers. His mistake was in failing to activate the battleship task group and leaving it behind as planned prior to his run north, which was a failure in 2 regards. 1. He left Taffy 1-3 uncovered along with the landing beaches 2. He also slowed himself down by taking his South Dakota's and North Carolina's which limited him to 27kts instead of 32+ if he'd just taken the Iowa's with him. He was supposed to leave 4 BB's behind, he failed on that, not in taking the carriers north.
It's the story of crews like this that I honor when flying the flag. When people fly it upside down or use it to promote their own selfish cause, it pays disservice to all the brave men and women who served.
Someone once made the comparison of Taffy 3 - in terms of lopsidedness - as a junior high football team going up against the NFL superbowl champs..........and holding their own.
I'd like to add that another thing she excelled at was a crew with heart AND courage to face such odds to protect their carriers. Rest in Peace brave sailors! SALUTE!
Gunners Mate Paul Carr is a true inspiration. He loaded his 5 inch gun so quickly during the battle that it overheated. The next to last shell cooked off earlyand caused a breech explosion. Carr was found by shipmates with one arm blown off. He refused their attempts to rescue him, instead asking for help to load the last shell.
One hell of a ship and crew. Glad she and the Johnston have been found so more people can learn of their heroic deeds. They emptied all their magazines and were firing star shells AT the enemy towards the end. Drachinifel has a great video on Samar if anyone wants to learn more.
Ryan - Thanks for this very timely video. LCDR Copeland stayed in the Naval Reserves reaching the rank of RADM and passed in 1973. He received the Navy Cross for his actions. CDR Ernest Evans was Captain of the USS Johnson and was awarded the MOH (posthumously) for his actions during that battle.
My father served on FFG-58 in Desert Storm. Hearing the stories of the various ships called Sammy B always fill me with pride, no matter how many times I hear them.
My great-uncle was aboard the Missouri during the war. I was too young to remember his stories before he died, but, according to the family, he always talked about Taffy 3.
I've been waiting for you guys to finally make a video about her. Now they just need to find my grandfather ship the Gambier Bay and make a video about her as the only carrier in us history to sunk by navel gun fire not good honor to have but she fought to end.
Hey, also that besides supposedly HMS Formidable at the Battle of Cape Matapan when she joined the battle line of battleships at the start of the battle and is said to have fired her guns, the CVL's of Taffy 3 are the only carriers to have engaged surface combatants with guns!
There's a good chance he won't find the Gambier Bay. In that particular part of the world there's a really bad issue of certain countries Of going in and disturbing war graves. The individual who found the Samuel B was in the area looking for the Gambier Bay.
@@jedhaney3547 The carriers of Taffy 3 where CVEs Escort Carriers, not CVLs light carriers. They both carried about the same amount of aircraft, but light carriers could keep up with the fast task forces and escort carriers were built for convey escort and screening landings.
@@AsbestosMuffins I think star shells back in the day were white phosphorus. That can get pretty exciting! Especially if it gets near the long lance torpedoes or aviation gasoline!
Uh, actually, there was one 5-inch shell not fired. After having his arm blown off in a breech explosion, Gunners Mate Paul Carr was found. He asked his rescuers to help him load the last shell into what was left of the gun.
I saw the news of the wreck and thought the name was familiar, yep sure enough was Taffy 3. Always amazing how those ships managed to go so fast towing those big steel balls behind them
I am not entirely sure why The Battle Off Samar has been getting more attention in the last 3-4 years or so, but I am glad to see it. Around 20 years ago when I first learned about the details of this battle I was astonished at how obscure it was given how incredible it was. For so many years it annoyed me that this action never got the recognition it deserved and I truly am glad that in the last few years people have been noticing how epic it was. Truly one of the absolute greatest last stands in all of human history and one of very few that were actually successful defenses.
well last stand of the tin can sailors came out in 04-05 I bet that has something to do with it as it has slowly entered peoples libraries over the years and folks recommend it to others.
I think the generation just didn't want to talk about the fact that it was a tactical defeat for the US that only avoided being a complete disaster by the action of these few ships. I think later historians and people are more interested in the times when things went horribly wrong but were saved by heroics like this because they're interesting and obscure
@@starshipmechanic Yeah, that book no doubt has much to do with it, but I don't think it can claim responsibility for it or even most of the responsibility. This is part of an overall trend I have noticed with an uptick in the popularity of military history in general over the last 15 years or so. I really think that there is no easy answer to why this is. I think the answer is truly multifaceted. But I also readily admit that this could be nothing more than confirmation bias at work. At the very least, one fact I do know is that I am not alone in thinking there to be more interest in military history these days.
@@starshipmechanic btw, 2005 which is right around the time I started noticing that uptick, is also the year Sabaton released their first album (even if it was not the first they recorded). While I am not suggesting this was caused by Sabaton, I really do wonder just how much influence they have had on the popularity of military history. Personally I know a bunch of people who got interested in military history specifically from listening to their songs. So I am going with the assumption that they have had quite an impact on the popularity of military history. Though I place emphasis on assumption.
@@AsbestosMuffins I think you have a very different definition for the word "defeat" than the dictionary has. The IJN turned and ran, by any measure that is a victory for the USN. It might have been costly to the USN, but you are straight up selling them short by calling it a defeat of anyone but the IJN who failed tactically, operationally and strategically here. It might have been some stupidity on the part of Halsey that put the USN in the position it was in at the start of the fight, but that is not defeat in and of itself. As the battle itself would prove. edit: also if it is about what you claim, where is the love for The Battle of Castle Itter?
Yeah, my impression of the Roberts is the same -- she's in surprisingly good condition. Unfortunately the same can't be said of poor old USS Johnston, which is a mangled wreck. I'll also join others wondering when Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg are going to produce a movie/series documenting the Battle of Samar. It really deserves it. I'd also like to see a good dramatic series about the naval battles off of Guadalcanal. Although there were enough juicy explosions with that one that maybe Jerry Bruckheimer will want to get involved! 😉
The 3rd series after Band of Brothers and The Pacific - now the 3rd one based on the 8th Air Force in Europe is in pre-production - Can't remember it name. Hopefully your idea would be the 4th series based on a UK or US naval ship in WW2.
I was thinking about this the other day, when news came out they found her. The story is so fantastic no one would believe it if they told it like it happened.
There's a few seconds of the battleships doing shore bombardment in the USMC-centric epic "The Pacific", and I want more of that, they should definitely make a series on the naval side of things, covering Taffy 3 and Washington and SoDak's fight against Kirishima, both of those actions need some Spielberg CG love. (Not Bruckheimer, though -- I want it realistic, and AP shells --- actually even HE shells -- don't make big fireballs, just at most a puff of brown smoke. I guess Bruckheimer could do the muzzle flashes.)
I understand battleships were high-value units with large crews and tended to be used fairly conservatively. WWII destroyers on the other hand were considered expendable, destroyer escorts were even cheaper to build and treated accordingly. Royal Navy WWII destroyers came with captains and crew that were basically rabid and genetically lacked the 'fear' emotion. ( See HMS Glowworm vs. KMS Admiral Hipper - 04/08/1940 )
@@michaelsommers2356 Water Tender they tended to the boilers and fires in the engine room. The rate was changed n 1948 to boilerman then in 1966 to machinist's mate in 1966
This video hits close to home. I knew two veterans of the Battle off Samar. The second one I met was Joe Cunneely, a neighbor and good friend of my parents. Joe was a quartermaster on the USS Kitkun Bay, one of the escort carriers. The first one I met was Jack Roberts. He was a senior manager in the construction management division of the engineering & construction firm I worked for. I transferred to the field construction department after dinner with him and another senior manager. During that dinner Jack Roberts mentioned his service in WW2. He was on the Samuel Roberts, which was named for his older brother. I do not recall him dueling on how long they were in the water. I do clearly recall him mentioning the impact of the ship’s own depth charges detonating after she went down. I totally lost contact with Jack. Later on, when Joe described his experiences on the Kitkun Bay it did not occur to me to mention talking with Jack from the Roberts. Joe passed relatively young due to lung cancer in the late 1980s. Occasionally, when I visit my parent’s grave at Calverton National Cemetery I also swing past the grave of Joe and his wife.
The first ever history book I ever read as a teen was 'Little Ship, Big War!" This story, plus of her other escorts such as Johnston, are the most incredible story of insane bravery in modern naval history I've ever heard! The only other tale off that immediately comes to mind that's comparable is HMS Glowworm bs KMS Admiral Hipper and her escorts, her fighting then eventually ramming the heavy cruiser!
I just read the book: “For Crew and Country: the Inspirational True Story of Bravery and Sacrifice Aboard the USS Samuel B. Roberts”. I bought my copy direct from the author, John Wukovits. I highly recommend this book, what a great story.
Eternal Father, strong to save, Whose arm hath bound the restless wave, Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep Its own appointed limits keep, O hear us when we cry to thee For those in peril on the sea! God rest the brave men of the Sammy B.
Hi, James A. Michner wrote a book entitled " Space ". In the novel was a tale of a destroyer that was very similar. A very gallant story on both ships.
Our old friend the Sammy B who won a gunnery duel with not one but two heavy cruisers; as Chief always said “our job is to go down HARD.” [redacted] I’m in.
She still has her hedgehog depth charges on the stern in the racks ready to drop off they had to stay well clear of that area it was some dive! The live ammo rounds you can still see in the turrets she's in half ive posted the link to the dive find
Watched the video! The depth charges still intaked as well as the 40 mil white tip rounds! They did'nt stay on the front very long! But was amazing to see!
i read somewhere once that as the Samuel B Roberts was sinking one of the Japanese cruisers had officers and men lining the Rails to salute her crew for the Samurai like fight they gave against her...
This is described in chapter 9 of John Wukovits' book "For Crew and Country". It states that Japanese sailors tossed wooden crates into the water for survivors to cling to and that the officers on the bridge of one of the ships turned in unison and saluted the American sailors in the water.
The brave crews of Taffy 3 all went above and beyond. To charge a force that was so large with ships so small was a credit to each and every man. I was lucky enough to meet some of the sailors of the Sammy B. I was at a hotel and I saw a sign that said Samel B Roberts DE 413 reunion. I sat and waited for the men to start going toward the banquet room and as the passed I extended my hand and thanked them for thier service. It did not seem to be adequate but it eas all I could think of. Each one I met smiled and shook my hand. It reminded me of something I learned long ago. Athletes are great but the real heros wear the uniform of our country not a sports team.
I knew one of the guys in the water from the Gambier Bay. He spent five hours in the water. He was a happy man, he went to the Bank every day to give candy to the clerks. Life was bliss after surviving being sunk by the Kondo or Yamato.
4 knots over the top speed is absolutely insane when you really think about it. I think in a video on this channel or drachnifels they mentioned a battleship needing twice as much power just to reach 31 knots versus 28
You can bet that, had she survived the engagement, she'd have spent a lot of time back in the yard replacing boilers and significant other parts of her engineering plants.
@@seafodder6129 Apparently, there was at least one discussion of "If we do anything more, it'll destroy the engines!" "We won't *need* the engines ever again in an hour or so" in the engineering section.
My dad served on the Destroyer escort McGinty (DE 365) which was a sister ship of the Roberts. The McGinty survived the war and went on to serve in the Korean war and the Vietnam war after which it was decommissioned and sold for scrap. My heart breaks thinking of the men on the Roberts, but also I am very grateful to them, and for their heroism in the defence of our nation. Were it not for all the men who served in World War II, we very well might not now have a nation, or if we did, it would not be the one which has accomplished so very much as it has. My gratitude goes out to them, to all who served, and to their families. Our lives would be very different without those men who served.
First time hearing about Taffy 3 was when the HISTORY CHANNEL (back when it could still be called that) aired an episode of "DOGFIGHTS!". Always had an interest in the era & even Wikipedia has a decent write-up on it. Definitely grips the imagination. The USS Johnston made perhaps the biggest singular impact of any of the DEs//DDs. The Johnston was a combat destroyer & armed to the teeth by comparison w/ 2x or better the firepower but the Roberts IMO can still edge out simply because it was doing FAR MORE than it was ever meant to do. ST's Scotty would have been proud of that engineering crew... The Skipper's reaction to the order...same frame of mind as General McAuliffe.
You've spoken about the overcapacity built into USN ship's engines; Sammy B is a shining example of what those engines could do when pushed. Now I so wish they had pushed the New Jersey during the Vietnam strip down. Bet she could have added a few more knots to that 35.1 record.
What's really missing from your list is a Cold War era ship - more specifically a Adams class DDG. They were in time to participate in the naval blockade of Cuba, providing gunfire support for our ground troops in Vietnam, through the first Gulf war. Designed from the keel up to carry guided missiles, this class was a significant forward leap in destroyer capability. It should have been preserved.
"A large Japanese fleet has been contacted. They are fifteen miles away and headed in our direction. They are believed to have four battleships, eight cruisers, and a number of destroyers. This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can." - Lt. Cmdr. Robert Copeland, mere minutes after ships of the IJN was seen on the horizon off Samar.
One of the escort carriers. While being chased by the enemy task force. Was able to score a single hit with it single 5-inch gun on the stern. Which caused the Japanese cruiser torps to blow up. The only gun hit by American flattop. Against an enemy warship during ww2.
Apparently the wreck of Chokai, when found, proved that it was not the torpedoes that went up, as the torpedoes were still intact, not saying it didn't cause something to cook off, it just wasn't the torpedoes
@@FltCaptAlan Ok. I read the enemy cruiser was chasing the flattop. They started shooting at it with the stern 5 inch gun and there was a huge explosion on the enemy cruiser. I wonder what blow up on it?
Love the videos. Stopped by to check out the ship for the first time today and loved it. I especially loved that you guys left the 40mm guns moveable so people could experience them.
The Japanese crews had been awake and at battle stations for over 36 hours and expected to be killed at any moment. When they were ferociously attacked by the escorting DDs and DEs they really didn't know how to react. Kurita foolishly failed to utilize his cruisers, holding them back in favor of allowing his battle ships to pick their own targets while he was on the Yamato running away from a torpedo attack. He lost all control of his force.
I first heard about it from my grandfather. He was on the Gambier Bay. He was there. Soon as I heard they were looking for all of Taffy 3 including the Gambier. I was happy. Sadly they couldn't find her in time.
A video I have a connection to here. I was on the precom and commissioning crew of the USS Copeland FFG 25, heard all about the USS Samuel B Roberts, especially when we sailed to Seattle Washington, the home of Admiral Copeland after commissioning.
I have a disagreement...Sammy B went against odds that defied any known abilities of an Iowa Class BB against a Yamato class...they fired almost everything on the ship. She'd fire, reverse to obscurity, turn around and come back firing again, all to protect her charges. Hell even the escort carriers were never envisioned to fight a surface warfare battle but their 5" 58s gave their all. None of Taffy 3 should have survived, but many did. A testament to the ships, crew, and heart of the task force's bravery.
"Little Ship, Big War" (written by Commander E. P. Stafford, USN retired) gives a very good accounting of the Sammy B. and the battle off Samar. That book and "The Big E" are well worth the read.
This is arguably one of the greatest stories I’ve learned about recently. What the Samuel B. Roberts and the USS Johnston did. Was nothing short of pure bravery, courage and hero like behavior. To be so small but put up that big of a fight. The crews of both those ships and others have just blown me away. They fulfilled their job and fought to very end. What an amazing story! I want to know more.
The Roberts was originally assigned escort duty in the Atlantic. On her First deployment she struck a whale and lost a screw. Returning for repairs she was repainted in Pacific dazzle and reassigned to the Pacific and her glory
One of my favorite books is Little Ship, Big War. The Saga of D.E. 343 by Edward P. Stafford. I cannot recommend it highly enough! It was a sister ship to the Samuel B Roberts and was not far away at Samar.
Good news--finding the Samuel B. Roberts! That epic banzai charge of a handful of light warships charging the biggest battleship in the world is a data point for "it's the size of the fight in the dog, not the size of the dog in the fight."
The story of Taffy-3 is an epic tale of bravery and dedication by US Sailors in the face of a superior force. God Bless the men of the USS Samual B Roberts.
What's amazing is the Sammie B and her Fletcher class brethren could float under the sheer weight of their crews' massive balls. Into hell they sailed, undeterred by the odds... AND WON!!!
I forget the name of the book, but I found a book that went into great depth as to this battle, and what the Samuel B. Roberts and the other Destroyer escorts did to try and protect their aircraft carriers. In my mind the U.S. Congress should have authorized a special edition of an "Extra Duty Medal of Honor and awarded it to each, every and all of the men in Taffy 3. The Samuel B. Roberts was so heroic that the Navy subsequently named two subsequent ships the Samuel B. Roberts, and this is something that has not been done before or since, with the exception of USS Enterprise.
And Wasp (11 ships have borne the name). And Hornet (8). And Bonhomme Richard (5). And Lexington (5). And with the new class of frigates coming up, we're going to have our fifth USS Constellation. The names that are reused are carried on for a reason, to remember the traditions and the standards that the earlier ships and their crews set.
I can't wait to see the pictures. Taffey 3 was one of the major catalysts to my interest in Naval History of WW2. I can't imagine charging a Kurita's Center Force in any ship, much less a DE. Hands down one of the greatest acts of bravery in any war IMHO.
According to the Wikipedia article about Samuel B. Roberts, his younger brother, Jack, was serving on Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413) at the Battle of Samar. He survived the sinking. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_B._Roberts
Japanese battleships: you're surrounded you can't beat us USS Samuel B. Roberts: I'm not trapped in here with you, you're trapped in here with ME *DOOM MUSIC PLAYS AT FULL VOLUME*
A slight correction - Taffy's 3's CVE's did have shore bombardment ordnance - which would have at least some effectiveness against the main forces lighter ships and at least harass and possibly start fires on larger ships/knockout unprotected guns. Where they actually ended up really kinda screwed was that another, arguably larger role they had been prepared for was anti-submarine - which that shore ordnance could double against subs, in which some of their pilots that launched were actually trying to use depth charges against the ships cause it was what they had at the time. Basically hoping it'd either detonate and damage with the shockwave same as a sub or go off like a regular bomb and do something if it hit the ship. In some ways it was similar to 'Nagumo's Dilemma' - while Taffy 2 when it sent planes had rearmed with torpedoes and AP bombs that the all the ships had in the unlikely event of major surface ships needing to be attacked, because the fleet was on top of them Taffy 3 launched it's planes with whatever they had, bombs that could be used against subs and ground targets, depth charges, and basically the fighters just strafing ships to knock out AA crews and maybe get a lucky hit on something that goes boom.
The Samuel B. Roberts was a DESTROYER ESCORT, Not a DESTROYER. My Dad served aboard a DE during WWII, The USS FOSS. The FOSS" biggest gun was a 3-inch/Fifty. Maybe, the later DEs had larger deck guns. I'm not sure. However, this is an excellent Documentary. Bravo Zulu!!!
Now I have to dig up my copy of 'Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors'; gonna take a minute, I got something in my eye. 'Small boys Attack!' Also to quote a sailor near to Adm 'Ziggy' Sprague; as the Yamato and consorts turn away, 'They're getting away!'
IMO this video left out the coolest thing about the Samuel B Roberts: they literally fired through their entire 5 inch ammunition supply, both armour piercing and high explosive. The fires they set were chemical fires using star shells, the last ammunition they could scrounge to fire.
I doubt there would even be any Oerlikon ammo left on the wreck!
@@Ragefps Apparently there's still hedgehog shells and depth charges on Sammy B.
Her and the Johnston are the definition of “hero ships“! Crewed by giants with balls of steel.
That’s why they were on ships, the only way they could get around, haha.
If you haven’t read it, Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors by James Hornfischer is an excellent book.
I just finished it today.
Surreal. A great book, no doubt.
Absolutely fantastic read.
Excellent!?
*Understatement*
its a disservice to not read the full copy if possible, but if you want to share the story with someone younger or get a more visual experience alongside what can be read, there is a graphic novel or the book as well, it'd be perfect for a teenager who is interested in history
While they were in the water for two and a half days, they lost more than a few crew members to sharks.
When the Japanese fleet first spotted Taffy 3, they reported that they were attacking 8 to 10 Essex class carriers, and 6 heavy cruisers. This is the reason that they used armor piercing shells against the destroyers and DE's......Many of them passed through the ships without exploding.
PS. The last crewmember of the Roberts died just this March.
Thank you for putting this out.
Some of the Japanese Destroyer Captains accurately identified what they were facing. It seems the officers of the larger ships didn't want to admit they were defeated by smaller ships or were unable to process what they were facing.
God rest his soul, along with the other combatants of this conflict. A blessing to know them and learn from them, but hopeful this conflict should never be repeated...
@@Sinvare I read somewhere that the commanding Japanese Admiral did not learn the true size of his adversary until some time after the war, and he was reported to be absolutely flabbergasted.
Lovely story... Thank you
Damn...If they think facing 10 fleet carriers why dont they pursued and destroyed them. Its a golden opportunity to catch the fleet carrier within their big gun bb range.
Wow. "Fought well above her weight class" indeed!! Thank you for telling us this and for comparing her to an Iowa. It makes the story of the USS Samuel B. Roberts even more mind blowing!
So much more to this story, the Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors book describes this battle and the Roberts in great detail. According to the action report of the USS Samuel B. Roberts, "The crew were informed over the loud speaker system at the beginning of the action, of the Commanding Officer's estimate of the situation, that is, a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival could not be expected, during which time we would do what damage we could."
Again: "from which survival could not be expected". And then they charged the cruisers and battleships.
Honesty. Not sure if it is the worst pep talk ever or the best response since "Good. We will fight in the shade."
By pure luck I I was at the same hotel in Tucson at the same time as the survivors reunion of Taffy 3 discussed in the book. I actually got to meet many of them.
@@ronmaximilian6953 The best pep talk from the battle was reassuring AA gunners that they wouldn't be left out of the action. "Just wait a little longer boys, we're suckering them into forty millimeter range."
@@iansneddon2956 I wonder if any of the destroyers or destroyer escorts try to launch their hedgehog mortar at enemy ships. Sure, they have to get in really close, but a dozen shells with 35 lb of torpex could still cause some damage to anything short of a battleship.
The context of the battle needs to be remembered. There were 200,000+ US soldiers landed and establishing a beachhead with many transports loaded with their supplies parked offshore. Yamato was poised to do a lot of damage to these forces, with "just" the escorts of Taffy 3 in the way. It was very much an "over our dead bodies" response.
Due to the number of command miscommunications, assumptions, and Halsey buying the Japanese decoy force as a threat made it, in any normal evaluation, what should have been the most one sided short skirmish in history. The bravery of those sailors to actually win at such cost remains astonishing.
Halsey was right to go north. His assigned mission was to locate and kill the carriers.
His mistake was in failing to activate the battleship task group and leaving it behind as planned prior to his run north, which was a failure in 2 regards.
1. He left Taffy 1-3 uncovered along with the landing beaches
2. He also slowed himself down by taking his South Dakota's and North Carolina's which limited him to 27kts instead of 32+ if he'd just taken the Iowa's with him.
He was supposed to leave 4 BB's behind, he failed on that, not in taking the carriers north.
It's the story of crews like this that I honor when flying the flag. When people fly it upside down or use it to promote their own selfish cause, it pays disservice to all the brave men and women who served.
Someone once made the comparison of Taffy 3 - in terms of lopsidedness - as a junior high football team going up against the NFL superbowl champs..........and holding their own.
@@mindeloman Yamato weighed more than all of Taffy 3 together, I have to agree that is a bit lopsided. :D
Historians were denied an Lee vs Kurita superheavyweight showdown but instead got something much more special
I'd like to add that another thing she excelled at was a crew with heart AND courage to face such odds to protect their carriers. Rest in Peace brave sailors! SALUTE!
Gunners Mate Paul Carr is a true inspiration. He loaded his 5 inch gun so quickly during the battle that it overheated. The next to last shell cooked off earlyand caused a breech explosion. Carr was found by shipmates with one arm blown off. He refused their attempts to rescue him, instead asking for help to load the last shell.
Did he get a cmh?
@@jackdundon2261 Silver Star
One hell of a ship and crew. Glad she and the Johnston have been found so more people can learn of their heroic deeds. They emptied all their magazines and were firing star shells AT the enemy towards the end. Drachinifel has a great video on Samar if anyone wants to learn more.
Finally another ship from taffy 3 has been found, now those sailors families can have closure about their loved ones final resting place
Samuel B. Roberts is one of the most hallowed names in all of US Navy lore. But all of the fighting sailors of Taffy 3 should well be remembered.
No Higher Honor
Ryan - Thanks for this very timely video. LCDR Copeland stayed in the Naval Reserves reaching the rank of RADM and passed in 1973. He received the Navy Cross for his actions. CDR Ernest Evans was Captain of the USS Johnson and was awarded the MOH (posthumously) for his actions during that battle.
My father served on FFG-58 in Desert Storm. Hearing the stories of the various ships called Sammy B always fill me with pride, no matter how many times I hear them.
My great-uncle was aboard the Missouri during the war. I was too young to remember his stories before he died, but, according to the family, he always talked about Taffy 3.
Can we just take a moment and recognize that Ryan definitely gets his geek on when it comes to Naval history???....Its a rare and admired quality 👍
This was one of the ships I REALLY wanted them to discover. I was ecstatic when I heard she had been found.
I've been waiting for you guys to finally make a video about her. Now they just need to find my grandfather ship the Gambier Bay and make a video about her as the only carrier in us history to sunk by navel gun fire not good honor to have but she fought to end.
Hey, also that besides supposedly HMS Formidable at the Battle of Cape Matapan when she joined the battle line of battleships at the start of the battle and is said to have fired her guns, the CVL's of Taffy 3 are the only carriers to have engaged surface combatants with guns!
My friend's grandfather survived the sinking of Gambier Bay. One hell of a story.
There's a good chance he won't find the Gambier Bay. In that particular part of the world there's a really bad issue of certain countries Of going in and disturbing war graves. The individual who found the Samuel B was in the area looking for the Gambier Bay.
@@jedhaney3547 The carriers of Taffy 3 where CVEs Escort Carriers, not CVLs light carriers. They both carried about the same amount of aircraft, but light carriers could keep up with the fast task forces and escort carriers were built for convey escort and screening landings.
USS Samuel B Roberts emptied her 5" magazines against the IJN cruisers. This includes all AA and star shells.
tbf star shells are a great way to clear a deck and start fires if you've got nothing else
@@AsbestosMuffins I think star shells back in the day were white phosphorus. That can get pretty exciting! Especially if it gets near the long lance torpedoes or aviation gasoline!
Uh, actually, there was one 5-inch shell not fired. After having his arm blown off in a breech explosion, Gunners Mate Paul Carr was found. He asked his rescuers to help him load the last shell into what was left of the gun.
I saw the news of the wreck and thought the name was familiar, yep sure enough was Taffy 3. Always amazing how those ships managed to go so fast towing those big steel balls behind them
I recommend the book The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors. It gives amazing perspective from the crews of the ships from Taffy 3.
I am not entirely sure why The Battle Off Samar has been getting more attention in the last 3-4 years or so, but I am glad to see it. Around 20 years ago when I first learned about the details of this battle I was astonished at how obscure it was given how incredible it was. For so many years it annoyed me that this action never got the recognition it deserved and I truly am glad that in the last few years people have been noticing how epic it was.
Truly one of the absolute greatest last stands in all of human history and one of very few that were actually successful defenses.
well last stand of the tin can sailors came out in 04-05 I bet that has something to do with it as it has slowly entered peoples libraries over the years and folks recommend it to others.
I think the generation just didn't want to talk about the fact that it was a tactical defeat for the US that only avoided being a complete disaster by the action of these few ships. I think later historians and people are more interested in the times when things went horribly wrong but were saved by heroics like this because they're interesting and obscure
@@starshipmechanic Yeah, that book no doubt has much to do with it, but I don't think it can claim responsibility for it or even most of the responsibility.
This is part of an overall trend I have noticed with an uptick in the popularity of military history in general over the last 15 years or so.
I really think that there is no easy answer to why this is. I think the answer is truly multifaceted. But I also readily admit that this could be nothing more than confirmation bias at work. At the very least, one fact I do know is that I am not alone in thinking there to be more interest in military history these days.
@@starshipmechanic btw, 2005 which is right around the time I started noticing that uptick, is also the year Sabaton released their first album (even if it was not the first they recorded). While I am not suggesting this was caused by Sabaton, I really do wonder just how much influence they have had on the popularity of military history. Personally I know a bunch of people who got interested in military history specifically from listening to their songs. So I am going with the assumption that they have had quite an impact on the popularity of military history. Though I place emphasis on assumption.
@@AsbestosMuffins I think you have a very different definition for the word "defeat" than the dictionary has. The IJN turned and ran, by any measure that is a victory for the USN. It might have been costly to the USN, but you are straight up selling them short by calling it a defeat of anyone but the IJN who failed tactically, operationally and strategically here.
It might have been some stupidity on the part of Halsey that put the USN in the position it was in at the start of the fight, but that is not defeat in and of itself. As the battle itself would prove.
edit: also if it is about what you claim, where is the love for The Battle of Castle Itter?
Yeah, my impression of the Roberts is the same -- she's in surprisingly good condition. Unfortunately the same can't be said of poor old USS Johnston, which is a mangled wreck. I'll also join others wondering when Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg are going to produce a movie/series documenting the Battle of Samar. It really deserves it. I'd also like to see a good dramatic series about the naval battles off of Guadalcanal. Although there were enough juicy explosions with that one that maybe Jerry Bruckheimer will want to get involved! 😉
These directors are way too busy with producing the Jan 6 committee hearings.
@@Pozi_Drive Could this please be one of the few places I can enjoy without politics? Please.
The 3rd series after Band of Brothers and The Pacific - now the 3rd one based on the 8th Air Force in Europe is in pre-production - Can't remember it name. Hopefully your idea would be the 4th series based on a UK or US naval ship in WW2.
I was thinking about this the other day, when news came out they found her.
The story is so fantastic no one would believe it if they told it like it happened.
There's a few seconds of the battleships doing shore bombardment in the USMC-centric epic "The Pacific", and I want more of that, they should definitely make a series on the naval side of things, covering Taffy 3 and Washington and SoDak's fight against Kirishima, both of those actions need some Spielberg CG love. (Not Bruckheimer, though -- I want it realistic, and AP shells --- actually even HE shells -- don't make big fireballs, just at most a puff of brown smoke. I guess Bruckheimer could do the muzzle flashes.)
I understand battleships were high-value units with large crews and tended to be used fairly conservatively.
WWII destroyers on the other hand were considered expendable, destroyer escorts were even cheaper to build and treated accordingly.
Royal Navy WWII destroyers came with captains and crew that were basically rabid and genetically lacked the 'fear' emotion.
( See HMS Glowworm vs. KMS Admiral Hipper - 04/08/1940 )
Vian's Tribal group against Bismarck
@@wierdalien1 Especially the ORP Piorun (G65)
@@benterbenter9281 ehhh, Vian's Tribal group were all mad like fully mad
USS Samuel B. Roberts was a Butler Class Destroyer Escort. My Father Was a WT/3C aboard the USS Gambier Bay.
What was a WT?
@@michaelsommers2356 Water Tender they tended to the boilers and fires in the engine room. The rate was changed n 1948 to boilerman then in 1966 to machinist's mate in 1966
@@markmclaughlin2690 Thanks. I think they were called boiler technicians in my day. I was on a nuke, so there weren't any around on my ship.
Admiral: "DE's hold back"
Sammy B: "WITTNESS ME!!!"
To be fair all 4 ships that charged Center force where complete badasses with crews to match. 07
This video hits close to home. I knew two veterans of the Battle off Samar.
The second one I met was Joe Cunneely, a neighbor and good friend of my parents. Joe was a quartermaster on the USS Kitkun Bay, one of the escort carriers.
The first one I met was Jack Roberts. He was a senior manager in the construction management division of the engineering & construction firm I worked for. I transferred to the field construction department after dinner with him and another senior manager. During that dinner Jack Roberts mentioned his service in WW2. He was on the Samuel Roberts, which was named for his older brother. I do not recall him dueling on how long they were in the water. I do clearly recall him mentioning the impact of the ship’s own depth charges detonating after she went down.
I totally lost contact with Jack. Later on, when Joe described his experiences on the Kitkun Bay it did not occur to me to mention talking with Jack from the Roberts. Joe passed relatively young due to lung cancer in the late 1980s. Occasionally, when I visit my parent’s grave at Calverton National Cemetery I also swing past the grave of Joe and his wife.
The first ever history book I ever read as a teen was 'Little Ship, Big War!" This story, plus of her other escorts such as Johnston, are the most incredible story of insane bravery in modern naval history I've ever heard! The only other tale off that immediately comes to mind that's comparable is HMS Glowworm bs KMS Admiral Hipper and her escorts, her fighting then eventually ramming the heavy cruiser!
Thank you for bringing Sammy B to light! Glorious!
I just read the book: “For Crew and Country: the Inspirational True Story of Bravery and Sacrifice Aboard the USS Samuel B. Roberts”. I bought my copy direct from the author, John Wukovits. I highly recommend this book, what a great story.
I finally read "Last Stand Of The Tincan Sailors" this spring and what an outstanding story!
I'll have to look for this book now! Thank you.
I just bought it as well!
Taffy 3 was a "Profile in courage" ! We should honor such men for their sacrifice..
good report Ryan thank you. Men brave men
Eternal Father, strong to save,
Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,
Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep
Its own appointed limits keep,
O hear us when we cry to thee
For those in peril on the sea!
God rest the brave men of the Sammy B.
most excellent post- i hear the navy chanters chorus singing this magnificent salute hymn to these brave men
Hi, James A. Michner wrote a book entitled " Space ". In the novel was a tale of a destroyer that was very similar. A very gallant story on both ships.
Ave, USS Johnston. We will never forget you or your amazing crew. ^_^
Our old friend the Sammy B who won a gunnery duel with not one but two heavy cruisers; as Chief always said “our job is to go down HARD.” [redacted] I’m in.
My grandfather served on a John C Butler class during WW2-DE 346 USS Edwin A Howard
She still has her hedgehog depth charges on the stern in the racks ready to drop off they had to stay well clear of that area it was some dive! The live ammo rounds you can still see in the turrets she's in half ive posted the link to the dive find
As a former destroyer sailor the battle put up by the Samuel B Roberts and the USS Johnston is one for the ages!
Watched the video! The depth charges still intaked as well as the 40 mil white tip rounds! They did'nt stay on the front very long! But was amazing to see!
i read somewhere once that as the Samuel B Roberts was sinking one of the Japanese cruisers had officers and men lining the Rails to salute her crew for the Samurai like fight they gave against her...
This is described in chapter 9 of John Wukovits' book "For Crew and Country". It states that Japanese sailors tossed wooden crates into the water for survivors to cling to and that the officers on the bridge of one of the ships turned in unison and saluted the American sailors in the water.
The brave crews of Taffy 3 all went above and beyond. To charge a force that was so large with ships so small was a credit to each and every man. I was lucky enough to meet some of the sailors of the Sammy B. I was at a hotel and I saw a sign that said Samel B Roberts DE 413 reunion. I sat and waited for the men to start going toward the banquet room and as the passed I extended my hand and thanked them for thier service. It did not seem to be adequate but it eas all I could think of. Each one I met smiled and shook my hand. It reminded me of something I learned long ago. Athletes are great but the real heros wear the uniform of our country not a sports team.
those guys that sallied out to do battle with what faced them, is something we all aspire to.
I knew one of the guys in the water from the Gambier Bay. He spent five hours in the water. He was a happy man, he went to the Bank every day to give candy to the clerks. Life was bliss after surviving being sunk by the Kondo or Yamato.
4 knots over the top speed is absolutely insane when you really think about it. I think in a video on this channel or drachnifels they mentioned a battleship needing twice as much power just to reach 31 knots versus 28
You can bet that, had she survived the engagement, she'd have spent a lot of time back in the yard replacing boilers and significant other parts of her engineering plants.
@@seafodder6129 Apparently, there was at least one discussion of "If we do anything more, it'll destroy the engines!" "We won't *need* the engines ever again in an hour or so" in the engineering section.
OH HELL YEAH!!! SAMMY B HAS BEEN FOUND!!!!
My dad served on the Destroyer escort McGinty (DE 365) which was a sister ship of the Roberts. The McGinty survived the war and went on to serve in the Korean war and the Vietnam war after which it was decommissioned and sold for scrap. My heart breaks thinking of the men on the Roberts, but also I am very grateful to them, and for their heroism in the defence of our nation. Were it not for all the men who served in World War II, we very well might not now have a nation, or if we did, it would not be the one which has accomplished so very much as it has. My gratitude goes out to them, to all who served, and to their families. Our lives would be very different without those men who served.
First time hearing about Taffy 3 was when the HISTORY CHANNEL (back when it could still be called that) aired an episode of "DOGFIGHTS!".
Always had an interest in the era & even Wikipedia has a decent write-up on it. Definitely grips the imagination.
The USS Johnston made perhaps the biggest singular impact of any of the DEs//DDs. The Johnston was a combat destroyer & armed to the teeth by comparison w/ 2x or better the firepower but the Roberts IMO can still edge out simply because it was doing FAR MORE than it was ever meant to do. ST's Scotty would have been proud of that engineering crew...
The Skipper's reaction to the order...same frame of mind as General McAuliffe.
I maintain that the most dangerous force in WWII was a destroyer with nothing to lose.
Ryan thank you for all you do to share your passion of history. Thanks for this story. The bravery of these men deserves to be remembered.
Its wild that you can still see the paint scheme on the Samuel B.
You've spoken about the overcapacity built into USN ship's engines; Sammy B is a shining example of what those engines could do when pushed. Now I so wish they had pushed the New Jersey during the Vietnam strip down. Bet she could have added a few more knots to that 35.1 record.
What's really missing from your list is a Cold War era ship - more specifically a Adams class DDG. They were in time to participate in the naval blockade of Cuba, providing gunfire support for our ground troops in Vietnam, through the first Gulf war. Designed from the keel up to carry guided missiles, this class was a significant forward leap in destroyer capability. It should have been preserved.
"A large Japanese fleet has been contacted. They are fifteen miles away and headed in our direction. They are believed to have four battleships, eight cruisers, and a number of destroyers. This will be a fight against overwhelming odds from which survival cannot be expected. We will do what damage we can." - Lt. Cmdr. Robert Copeland, mere minutes after ships of the IJN was seen on the horizon off Samar.
I love this story! Such courage!
Sammy Bs been on my mind lately. Was a hell of a thing she did. Johnston too if im honest.
One of the escort carriers. While being chased by the enemy task force. Was able to score a single hit with it single 5-inch gun on the stern. Which caused the Japanese cruiser torps to blow up. The only gun hit by American flattop. Against an enemy warship during ww2.
Apparently the wreck of Chokai, when found, proved that it was not the torpedoes that went up, as the torpedoes were still intact, not saying it didn't cause something to cook off, it just wasn't the torpedoes
@@FltCaptAlan Ok. I read the enemy cruiser was chasing the flattop. They started shooting at it with the stern 5 inch gun and there was a huge explosion on the enemy cruiser. I wonder what blow up on it?
One of the dirtiest jobs I ever had was the time I was called on as a maritime cadet was cleaning out the economizer.
I am endlessly grateful that I was able to know my grandfather, a WWII USN veteran very well. His truly was the greatest generation.
Love the videos. Stopped by to check out the ship for the first time today and loved it. I especially loved that you guys left the 40mm guns moveable so people could experience them.
The Japanese crews had been awake and at battle stations for over 36 hours and expected to be killed at any moment. When they were ferociously attacked by the escorting DDs and DEs they really didn't know how to react.
Kurita foolishly failed to utilize his cruisers, holding them back in favor of allowing his battle ships to pick their own targets while he was on the Yamato running away from a torpedo attack. He lost all control of his force.
I hope there is a movie about USS SAMUEL B ROBERTS. Together with USS JOHNSTON…. i gonna watch that for sure
Love the shots from the USS Kidd! So recognizable with the bridge in the background
I first heard about the Battle Of Samar and Taffy 3 from an episode of Dogfights.
I first heard about it from my grandfather. He was on the Gambier Bay. He was there. Soon as I heard they were looking for all of Taffy 3 including the Gambier. I was happy. Sadly they couldn't find her in time.
The show dogfights has several episodes on UA-cam. It was a great show.
Same! That was a terrific show, and that particular story blew me away.
The history Channel documentary on Taffy3 is really amazing at bringing this engagement to life.
A video I have a connection to here. I was on the precom and commissioning crew of the USS Copeland FFG 25, heard all about the USS Samuel B Roberts, especially when we sailed to Seattle Washington, the home of Admiral Copeland after commissioning.
When I saw they found the Sammy B I was so freaking HAPPY! What a shop what a crew what a mind boggling story!
I have a disagreement...Sammy B went against odds that defied any known abilities of an Iowa Class BB against a Yamato class...they fired almost everything on the ship. She'd fire, reverse to obscurity, turn around and come back firing again, all to protect her charges. Hell even the escort carriers were never envisioned to fight a surface warfare battle but their 5" 58s gave their all. None of Taffy 3 should have survived, but many did. A testament to the ships, crew, and heart of the task force's bravery.
Yes, _Sammy B._ is remarkably well-preserved. Now to find _Gambier Bay_ and _Hoel_ . They may well be even deeper.
"Little Ship, Big War" (written by Commander E. P. Stafford, USN retired) gives a very good accounting of the Sammy B. and the battle off Samar. That book and "The Big E" are well worth the read.
This is arguably one of the greatest stories I’ve learned about recently.
What the Samuel B. Roberts and the USS Johnston did. Was nothing short of pure bravery, courage and hero like behavior. To be so small but put up that big of a fight.
The crews of both those ships and others have just blown me away. They fulfilled their job and fought to very end. What an amazing story! I want to know more.
the Samuel B. was even outclassed by the fletchers. all of them fought above their weight that day.
Another great video. Thanks
No Higher Honor! I served on USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) 1992-1994
Just goes to show you, It's not the size of the ship in the fight, It's the size of the fight in the ship!!!
The Sammy B and the Johnston, true heroism. God bless them all!
Thank you for the video. I’m a fan of P.T. Boats and the footage you had I’ve never seen before. Keep up the great work!
Now the deepest shipwreck in history..... A new record.
Was this the battle that the USS Johnston fought in aswell?
Yes
The Roberts was originally assigned escort duty in the Atlantic. On her First deployment she struck a whale and lost a screw. Returning for repairs she was repainted in Pacific dazzle and reassigned to the Pacific and her glory
Great American story of braveness
One of my favorite books is Little Ship, Big War. The Saga of D.E. 343 by Edward P. Stafford. I cannot recommend it highly enough! It was a sister ship to the Samuel B Roberts and was not far away at Samar.
Good news--finding the Samuel B. Roberts! That epic banzai charge of a handful of light warships charging the biggest battleship in the world is a data point for "it's the size of the fight in the dog, not the size of the dog in the fight."
The story of Taffy-3 is an epic tale of bravery and dedication by US Sailors in the face of a superior force. God Bless the men of the USS Samual B Roberts.
Samuel*
Every time I hear about the Samuel B. Roberts, the Johnston, and the Huel, I'm around at the bravery and fight of the ships and her crews
Hoel*
What's amazing is the Sammie B and her Fletcher class brethren could float under the sheer weight of their crews' massive balls. Into hell they sailed, undeterred by the odds...
AND WON!!!
God bless these amazing heroes! Where do such men come from?
I forget the name of the book, but I found a book that went into great depth as to this battle, and what the Samuel B. Roberts and the other Destroyer escorts did to try and protect their aircraft carriers. In my mind the U.S. Congress should have authorized a special edition of an "Extra Duty Medal of Honor and awarded it to each, every and all of the men in Taffy 3. The Samuel B. Roberts was so heroic that the Navy subsequently named two subsequent ships the Samuel B. Roberts, and this is something that has not been done before or since, with the exception of USS Enterprise.
And Wasp (11 ships have borne the name). And Hornet (8). And Bonhomme Richard (5). And Lexington (5). And with the new class of frigates coming up, we're going to have our fifth USS Constellation. The names that are reused are carried on for a reason, to remember the traditions and the standards that the earlier ships and their crews set.
I can't wait to see the pictures. Taffey 3 was one of the major catalysts to my interest in Naval History of WW2. I can't imagine charging a Kurita's Center Force in any ship, much less a DE. Hands down one of the greatest acts of bravery in any war IMHO.
Those brave, brave men. R.I.P
Let's go find Shinano. As well as Gambier Bay! Amazing find to an incredible story.
According to the Wikipedia article about Samuel B. Roberts, his younger brother, Jack, was serving on Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413) at the Battle of Samar. He survived the sinking. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_B._Roberts
Battle off Samar
It all because of the brave and courageous of her crew that makes earn that nickname.
USS Samuel B Roberts deserves a movie. Tom hanks and Steven Spielberg need to look at this story.
What I would Like to know, is compared to the Navy of WW2, what kind of Navy do we have now??
Japanese battleships: you're surrounded you can't beat us
USS Samuel B. Roberts: I'm not trapped in here with you, you're trapped in here with ME *DOOM MUSIC PLAYS AT FULL VOLUME*
A slight correction - Taffy's 3's CVE's did have shore bombardment ordnance - which would have at least some effectiveness against the main forces lighter ships and at least harass and possibly start fires on larger ships/knockout unprotected guns. Where they actually ended up really kinda screwed was that another, arguably larger role they had been prepared for was anti-submarine - which that shore ordnance could double against subs, in which some of their pilots that launched were actually trying to use depth charges against the ships cause it was what they had at the time. Basically hoping it'd either detonate and damage with the shockwave same as a sub or go off like a regular bomb and do something if it hit the ship. In some ways it was similar to 'Nagumo's Dilemma' - while Taffy 2 when it sent planes had rearmed with torpedoes and AP bombs that the all the ships had in the unlikely event of major surface ships needing to be attacked, because the fleet was on top of them Taffy 3 launched it's planes with whatever they had, bombs that could be used against subs and ground targets, depth charges, and basically the fighters just strafing ships to knock out AA crews and maybe get a lucky hit on something that goes boom.
The Samuel B. Roberts was a DESTROYER ESCORT, Not a DESTROYER. My Dad served aboard a DE during WWII, The USS FOSS. The FOSS" biggest gun was a 3-inch/Fifty. Maybe, the later DEs had larger deck guns. I'm not sure. However, this is an excellent Documentary. Bravo Zulu!!!
Not like an Iowa class battleship but this little gob-fly sunk a battleship. Amazing!
Now I have to dig up my copy of 'Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors'; gonna take a minute, I got something in my eye. 'Small boys Attack!' Also to quote a sailor near to Adm 'Ziggy' Sprague; as the Yamato and consorts turn away, 'They're getting away!'
It's not the dog in the fight, but the fight in the dog.
If you'd like to learn more about the Samuel B Roberts I highly recommend "The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors" by James D. Hornfischer.