Battle of Midway 80th Anniversary

While there is nothing I could possible write today that would add anything of significant value to the incredible amount of published research on the Battle of Midway, I cannot allow the 80th anniversary of this momentous event in our national history to pass without...

SBD-3 Lt. (j.g.) Jack ‘Dusty’ Kleiss, Scouting Six (CV6)

SBD-3 BuNo 3232, Lt. (j.g.) Jack ‘Dusty’ Kleiss and radioman 3/c John John Snowden, Scouting Six, USS Enterprise (CV6), June 4, 1942. On the morning of June 4, 1942 Jack ‘Dusty’ Kleiss was flying one of 32 SBD-3s from USS Enterprise led by the...

Film of USS Enterprise SBDs launching prior to Battle of Midway

This video has some incredible footage of planes from USS Enterprise just prior to the Battle of Midway (my guess is May 1942 as the pre-war markings have been painted over for the BoM aircraft, and since some of these were lost on June 4th and are unarmed, we know it...

SBD-3 Ensign Frank O’Flaherty VS-6

SBD-3 BuNo 3224, Ensign Frank O’Flaherty and AMM 1/c Bruno P. Gaido, Scouting Six, USS Enterprise (CV6), June 4, 1942.   Ensign Frank O’Flaherty participated in the first attack of the Battle of Midway, completing a dive bombing run on the Japanese carrier...