Archive for February 14th, 2010

First Book Excerpt: Chapter 2: Remembering Midway

The Book | Posted by Rebekah
Feb 14 2010

For those who have been curious to read portions of my book, here we go.  I’d appreciate CONSTRUCTIVE help only.  If you think there’s a problem, please be specific.  I don’t want to stop doing this because a lot of people just want to say “This Sucks!” and leave it at that.  Not helpful.  If you think it’s good, tell me, if you think there are places where I could use some clarification, or it’s too wordy, or anything else tell me that too.

For my submariner friends out there, let me know if this sounds like something that could have happened in a sub.  The tons of research I have to do in order to attempt to depict submarine culture is no match for your experience.  Let me know if I got it right, wrong, or how to fix it.

This is a large excerpt from Chapter 2: Gateway to War.  The Flier is now north of Australia, on her way to Lombok Strait, the dividing line from Allied to disputed waters.  Al, off duty, is passing through the Mess Hall on his way back to his cabin, when he gets caught up in the conversation between two of Flier’s “plankowners”  (these are men of a submarine’s original crew, the one that she was commissioned with).  They end up  telling the new hand, Elton Brubaker, 17 years old and on his first tour, about the time Flier grounded at Midway, over several hands of poker.

To read the excerpt, click here, or check out the Book Excerpt page for the link at the bottom.

http://www.ussflierproject.com/book-excerpts/midway/

If you don’t want to leave a comment publicly, please feel free to e-mail me at ussflierproject@gmail.com

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USS Macaw Conclusion–Pt. 2

Where was Flier 66 years ago today? | Posted by Rebekah
Feb 14 2010

By 2:30 am, the situation on the Macaw was desperate.  The air in the pilothouse was foul from the steady depletion of oxygen.  According to witnesses on Midway, some men were desperate enough to climb up to Macaw’s Crow’s Nest.  Search and Rescue parties were being organized on Eastern Island, but had to wait for daylight.

Water was washing into the pilothouse and breaking over the roof.  The men of the Macaw were trapped and it was only a matter of time before their options ran out.

Macaw's near sister ship, Florikan (the one that towed Flier back to Pearl). Macaw would have appeared similar to this before she grounded.

The men grabbed whatever floatation device or piece of wreck they thought would float, and threw themselves into the sea, likely praying to God that they would see morning.

By dawn’s light, the search for survivors began.  Men were found washed up of reefs, clinging to buoys, even deep in the lagoon miles away.  Seventeen survivors in all.

Sadly, five men, including Macaw’s CO were not found, and are presumed lost at sea.

And now, Macaw posed an even bigger hazard.  Sunk in the middle of the channel, she was tall enough that her masts protruded above the water, and her superstructure lurked just below, to snag or puncture the hull of any vessel entering or leaving.  She was going to have to be moved, or destroyed.  It took eight months, 1,068 diving hours, and nearly a ton and a half of explosives, but eventually, most of Macaw was reduced to a twisted, flattish mass of metal deep enough beneath the surface to allow ships to safely pass over her grave.  Her loss was officially announced on March 20, 1944.

Midway Island remained an active Naval base for a number of years, finally closing in 1993.  Today, it is maintained by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which keeps a staff on the islands, and, since 1996, has permitted people to visit Midway, though tourism is restricted to 100 people on the islands any given day.

It is a bird sanctuary, a protected fish lagoon, and is one of the last pristine environments.  The Wreck of the Macaw is one of the diving sites available for non-invasive touring.  Despite the shallow depth of the Macaw (25 ft. at the bow, 55 ft at the stern) conditions at the mouth of the channel make diving her impossible for all but the very skilled most days.  (The weather needs to be calm and it needs to be high tide before she can be safely visited) Her bow is the only recognizable portion.

The Bow of the USS Macaw

The wreck was thoroughly (and non-invasively) explored and documented in 2003, and is protected and maintained by the US Fish and Wildlife Service.  Incidentally, a water barge broke loose from its mooring and wrecked on the approximate location of Flier in 1957.  It too, can only be visited occasionally during the season.

For more information,

http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/maritime/expeditions/uss_macaw.html

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