USS Sangamon (CVE-26)

Composite Squadron 26 (VC-26) aircraft on Sangamon in November 1942.

USS Sangamon (CVE-26) was an escort carrier converted from an oiler, the second ship to carry her name. She was one of 12 Cimarron class oilers built on a joint Navy-Maritime Commission design later duplicated by the T3-S2-A1 type. Sangamon was laid down as Esso Trenton (MC hull 7) on 13 March 1939 by the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Kearny, New Jersey; launched on 4 November 1939, sponsored by Mrs. Clara Esselborn; operated by Standard Oil of New Jersey on runs from gulf coast ports to the east coast; and acquired by the United States Navy on 22 October 1940. Renamed Sangamon and designated a fleet oiler, AO-28, she was commissioned on 23 October 1940, with Commander J. H. Duncan in command.

After service off the west coast and in Hawaiian waters, Sangamon shifted to the Atlantic Fleet in the spring of 1941, and through the Neutrality Patrol period, carried fuel from the gulf coast oil ports to bases on the east coast, in Canada, and in Iceland. On 7 December 1941, when the U.S. entered World War II, she was at Naval Station Argentia, Newfoundland, offloading her liquid cargo. Within the week, she started south again to renew her schedule on a tighter time frame.

Sangamon and USS Hambleton in the Atlantic, 1942.

In early 1942, she was designated for conversion to an auxiliary aircraft carrier. On 11 February, she arrived in Hampton Roads. Three days later, she was reclassified AVG-26; and on 25 February, she was decommissioned and conversion was begun at the Norfolk Navy Yard.

During the spring and summer, the need for auxiliary carriers, later called escort carriers, increased. Work on Sangamon, three other Cimarron-class oilers, and 20 C-3 merchant hulls was continued and sped up. In August, Sangamon — the first of her class of escort carriers – was ready. Her conversion had added a flight deck 502 ft (153 m) long and 81 ft (25 m) wide, elevators, a hangar deck, an aircraft catapult, sonar gear, aircraft ordnance magazines, workshops, and stowage space for aviation spares. Her accommodations had been enlarged to house her increased complement and embarked aviation personnel, and her armament had been changed to two 5"/127mm guns, eight 40 mm guns, and twelve 20 mm cannons to increase her anti-aircraft defense. On 20 August, she was redesignated ACV-26; and five days later, she was recommissioned, with Captain C. W. Wieber in command.

Sangamon and her three sister T3 conversions were considered very successful escort-carrier designs, larger and more stable than the smaller C3-derived Bogue class; additionally, they retained substantial oil bunkerage, useful in refueling destroyers in company. The late-war purpose-built Commencement Bay-class escort carriers were derived from the Sangamons.

Operation Torch[edit]

Composite Squadron 26 (VC-26) aircraft on Sangamon in November 1942.

Shakedown in Chesapeake Bay and off Bermuda followed a return to the yard for repair and improvements to her ventilation system, and on 25 October she sailed east with Task Force 34 (TF 34) to provide air cover for Operation Torch, the invasion of North Africa. Assigned to the Northern Support Force, she arrived off Port Lyautey on 8 November. Prior to and during the landings, and subsequent action, her air group, Composite Squadron 26 (VC-26) flew combat air patrol (CAP), anti-submarine patrol (ASP), and ground support missions. At mid-month, she got underway to return to Norfolk, Virginia, whence, after repairs, she sailed for Panama and the Pacific.

1943[edit]

By mid-January 1943, Sangamon had arrived at Éfaté, New Hebrides. As a unit of Carrier Division 22 (CarDiv 22), she operated in the New Caledonia—New Hebrides—Solomon Islands area for the next eight months. With Suwannee and Chenango, she provided protection for resupply convoys en route to Guadalcanal and for the assault forces moving on the Russell Islands.

Captain E. P. Moore took over as captain on 5 April 1943. Redesignated CVE-26 on 15 July 1943, Sangamon shifted her base of operations from Efate to Espiritu Santo in August, and, in September, she returned to the United States for an overhaul at Mare Island. There she received more modern equipment for her flight deck and a combat information center.

On 19 October, she departed San Diego with VC-37 embarked and sailed for Espiritu Santo. She got underway from the latter on 13 November, rendezvoused with Task Force 53 the next day, and on 20 October arrived in the Gilberts to support the assault on Tarawa Atoll. During the first two days of this operation, her planes struck enemy positions on the island. Then, through 6 December, they were sent out on CAP and ASP missions to protect the escort carrier group and the target area.

1944[edit]

The escort carrier then set course to return to San Diego. In early January 1944, she trained off southern California, and on 13 January sailed west. Steaming via Pearl Harbor, she pushed on toward her next amphibious operation, the assault on Kwajalein in the Marshall Islands. At 16:51 on 25 January, during routine flight operations, a returning fighter failed to hook a wire on landing, broke through the barriers, and crashed into parked planes on the forward flight deck. Its belly tank, torn loose, skidded forward, spewing flaming fuel. Fire soon spread among the planes.

It raged along the flight deck and flames beat up over the bridge, making ship control extremely difficult. The former oiler was turned out of the wind, so that the fire could be fought. By 16:59, it was under control. Seven of the crew died in those eight minutes. Seven others were seriously injured, and of the 15 who jumped over the side to escape the flames, 13 were picked up, two were missing.

Palaus[edit]

Temporary repairs were made at sea, and from 31 January to mid-February, Sangamon supported the assault and occupation of Kwajalein. She then moved on to Enewetak, where her planes covered the landing forces from 17–24 February. On the latter date, she departed the Marshalls and headed back to Pearl Harbor to complete repairs. Captain M. E. Browder flew aboard on 1 March to relieve Captain Moore and assume command.

On 15 March, the CVE got underway again. Departing Hawaii, she rendezvoused with Task Group 50.15 (TG 50.15) — the fast carrier force support group – on 26 March. For the remainder of the month and into April she escorted that group as it operated north of the Admiralty Islands to refuel and resupply the fast carrier force after it had conducted strikes on the Palaus. In early April, Sangamon retired to Espiritu Santo and at mid-month, sailed for New Guinea. Briefly attached to the 7th Fleet, she covered the landing at Aitape from 22–24 April; retired to Manus Island for two days, then returned to the Aitape area where she conducted patrols until 5 May.

Sangamon then returned to Espiritu Santo, whence she departed on 19 May. Rehearsals for the Marianas campaign followed, and on 2 June, she sailed for the Marshalls. Rendezvousing with TF 53 en route, she covered that force to Kwajalein, then to the Mariana Islands. From 17–20 June, she guarded the force as it steamed to the east of Saipan as a backup force for TF 52, which was then engaged in the assault on, and the occupation of, the island.

After the Battle of the Philippine Sea, Sangamon was detached from TF 53. On 21 June, she joined TF 52, and into July conducted operations in support of the occupation of Saipan. On 4 July, she steamed for Eniwetok; arrived on 7 July; and sortied again on 10 July. From 13 July – 1 August, she covered the bombardment groups engaged in the capture of Guam. On 4 August, she returned to Eniwetok, where on 9 August she proceeded to Manus where she was anchored for almost a month.

On 9 September, Sangamon departed Seeadler Harbor and steamed for Morotai. There, from 15–27 September, she again covered Allied assault forces. After the initial waves had landed, her planes shifted from combat support to bombing and strafing missions to destroy Japanese airfields on nearby Halmahera.

Philippines[edit]

The CVE again anchored in Seeadler Harbor on 1 October. Twelve days later, she sortied with TG 77.4, the escort carrier group of the Leyte invasion force. That group, composed of 18 CVEs, was broken down into Task Units 77.4.1, 77.4.2, and 77.4.3 (TU 77.4.1, 77.4.2, and 77.4.3), and referred to as "Taffy 1, 2, and 3", respectively. During the operation, they would steam to the east of Leyte Gulf: Taffy 1, including Sangamon, was off northern Mindanao, Taffy 2 off the entrance to Leyte Gulf; and Taffy 3 off Samar.

Prior to the 20 October landings on Leyte, Sangamon launched regular flights in support of the advance units of the invasion force and sent strikes against Leyte and Visayan airfields. On the 20th, her planes covered the landing forces and the ships in the transport areas. That day, she also came under enemy air attack and took a hit at the main deck level. The bomb, dropped by an A6M5 Zero, tore a 2 ft × 6 ft (0.61 m × 1.83 m) section of plating loose, then fell into the sea and exploded some 300 yd (270 m) away from the "jeep" carrier.

Enemy airfields again became Sangamon '​s primary targets in the days immediately following the landings. On 24 October, however, her planes fought off waves of Japanese aircraft over the landing area. Early on 25 October, two flights took off: one toward the Mindanao Sea to locate and finish off Japanese survivors of the Battle of Surigao Strait, the other toward Leyte for CAP missions. About an hour later, Sangamon received word that Taffy 3, 120 mi (190 km) to the north, had been attacked by the Japanese Center Force which had transited San Bernardino Strait during the night.

Battle off Samar[edit]

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