The USS Indianapolis
wreck site is 18,000 feet below the surface of the Philippine Sea. The sinking of this ship resulted in
the largest loss of life in U.S. Naval History. The ship was sunk by the Imperial Japanese Navy with Type 95 torpedoes
on the starboard side and went to the bottom in 12 minutes. The wreckage has rested on the sea
floor for 70 years. It was
discovered August 2017 by an expedition launched by philanthropist Paul G.
Allen. The main portion of the
wreck lies in an enormous impact crater and other sections are in different
locations from .5 to 1.5 miles away.
Launched in 1931 the
USS Indianapolis was a Portland-class heavy cruiser built for the US Navy and named
for the city of Indianapolis. She
was the flagship for the commander of Scouting Force Force 1 for eight years
and then the flagship for Admiral Raymond Spruance in 1943 and 1944. Spruance commanded the Fifth Fleet in
battles across the Central Pacific during WWII. In July 1945, the parts to assemble Little Boy, the first nuclear
weapon ever used in combat were delivered to the island of Tinian. Their next assignment was to sail on
July 30 to the Philippines for training duty. Japanese submarines were operating in the Philippine Sea but
this information was not passed on to the Indianapolis. The ship would have followed a zig zag path instead of a straight path if they had known. There were 1,195 crewmen aboard and
approximately 300 went down with the ship. Awaiting the 89 men in the water was
exposure, dehydration, saltwater poisoning and shark attacks in the open
ocean. The Indianapolis was
expected in the Philippines but no one was notified when she did not arrive. Four days after the sinking, survivors
were spotted by the crew of a PV-1 Ventura on routine patrol. Just 316 men were alive. Everything about this episode is very
interesting. Some of the personal items from the crew members can be seen beside the ship. It was a terrible
tragedy for the men lost and the men floating in the sea. 4 ½* (I really liked this series)
85 min, Doc
directed by Kirk Wolfinger, Lisa Quijano Wolfinger, Rob Y Lyall and narrated by
Kyle Chandler.
Note: TV episode premiered January 8,
2910. Amazon 5* with seven reviews,
PBS 4 ½* with three reviews
Special
Note: There is another film USS
Indianapolis: Men of Courage 2016.
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