May 25, 2017

Ensign George H. Gay's Fateful Day, June 4, 1942

For Ensign George H. Gay, Jr. of Waco, Texas, the morning of June 4, 1942 began with groggy trepidation. With knowledge of a large Japanese invasion fleet moving towards Midway Island outnumbering the assembled American naval force, Gay did not sleep well. He and his fellow aviators of Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) aboard the carrier Hornet (CV-8)

May 5, 2017

The Battle of The Coral Sea's 75th Anniversary: Intelligence Lessons for Today

May 4th marks the 75th anniversary of the Battle of the Coral Sea, an epic maritime engagement between the U.S. and Imperial Japanese Navies in early World War II.This was history's first sea battle where opposing ships never saw or fired upon each other and only carrier-based aircraft engaged the enemy. The outcome was a tactical draw (each side

May 5, 2017

Battle of the Coral Sea and the Bomb that Changed the Course of the War

Editor's Note: Last night, speaking aboard the museum ship Intrepid at an event honoring the Battle of the Coral Sea, President Donald Trump discussed how impressed he was by the bravery of one American Sailor. It's a sentiment shared by Naval History and Heritage Command Director Sam Cox who recounts the story of the pilot whose honor, courage,

April 24, 2017

Toughness: Aviation Machinist Mate First Class (AMM1/C) Bruno Peter Gaido

Editor's note: The following is part of NHHC Director Sam Cox's larger "H--gram" series. Inspired by Admiral Zumwalt's series of Z-grams used to communicate with Sailors throughout the Navy, H-grams are an avenue by which NHHC provides significant historical context to aid today's decision-makers. For more information, visit the NHHC Director's

April 12, 2017

Lessons Learned on Bataan

The Battle of Bataan was the defense of the Philippines by General Douglas MacArthur's Philippine Army controlled by headquarters, United States Army Forces Far East (USAFFE) against the invading Imperial Japanese 14th Army commanded by General Masaharu Homma. The battle began on 6 January 1942 when the USAFFE, with ten understrength Philippine

April 3, 2017

Junior Officers and the Halsey-Doolittle Raid

NH-64472. Lieutenant Colonel Doolittle (left front) and Captain Marc A. Mitscher, Hornet commanding officer, pose with a 500-pound bomb and USAAF aircrew members during ceremonies on Hornet's flight deck prior to the raid.  The Halsey-Doolittle Raid in April 1942 was the first strike by U.S. forces against Japan itself. Vice Admiral William F.

March 23, 2017

Navy Medal of Honor Recipients at Iwo Jima

The first Medals of Honor were presented on March 25, 1863. To commemorate this date, in 1990, Congress designated March 25 "National Medal of Honor Day" to recognize recipients of the Medal of Honor, the highest and most prestigious military decoration awarded to U.S. service members who have distinguished themselves through acts of valor. In

Dec. 7, 2016

Why Commemorate Pearl Harbor?

Editor's note: Pearl Harbor Day is a day of remembrance during which we often hear from historians, veterans and Navy leadership about the importance of honoring our past and how this day of infamy inspires our future. But what do today's Sailors, the young women and men wearing the cloth of the nation, ready to go in harm's way, think? What does

Dec. 6, 2016

Pearl Harbor Diorama: More than 25 Years in the Making

More than 25 years ago, historian Reverend Todd Hammond decided to make a model display of the center of Pearl Harbor based in part on photos taken prior to the attack. The model has only been seen by personal invitation by a number of veterans and other interested persons over the years, but has not been on public display. An earlier, much smaller

Dec. 6, 2016

As Infamy Dawned in the Pacific, War Simmered in the Atlantic

Although Dec. 7, 1941 is marked as the entry of the U.S. into WWII, the fact is that the U.S. Navy was already in an undeclared shooting war with Nazi Germany at sea well before that. President Roosevelt and other senior U.S. and political leadership were convinced that England could not be allowed to fall. U.S. Navy leaders were particularly