| Army Airman in Sailor's Hats By Norman
Rozeff (1991)
SS Brig. Gen. Alfred J. Lyon ....
Can you visualize US Army Air force servicemen dressed in sailor blue fatigues or dungarees and wearing white sailor hats? Believe it or not 5,000 highly-trained AAF 'seaman' were part of the war effort. They were part of a facilities SUPPORT "floating project" code-named Ivory Soap. Their unusual story has gone largely untold. I learned of this unheralded facet of WWII history through Bill Blockley, an old friend who experienced Far East service. |
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| It began with the
military strategy for the Pacific Theater. The concept of
island-hopping was to minimize casualties and to divide and conquer the
enemy in the quickest time. Islands were selected for their military
potential but especially for their airstrips from which could be
launched "softening-up" missions, with Japan itself as a special
target. Since the assaulted islands would have sustained considerable
damage to extant facilities the AAF wanted to provide a means to
accelerate repairs and provide aircraft support. The concept of a
floating project came into being. Twenty new Liberty ships were to be
converted into floating depots. The Army Aircraft Repair Ship (Liberty
Class) would be committed to repairing everything but engines. they
did, in fact, repair control surfaces, paint, fabric, props, cameras,
electrical, batteries, instruments, radios, radar, sheet metal,
plating, tires, armament, carburetors, and also packed parachutes. The
ships stocked the smallest items, the largest ones and everything in
between. View another
story at Eagle Speak The implementation of the project moved quickly. Its uniqueness lay in its manning. Each ship was to be commanded by an AAF lieutenant colonel, but the ship's captain, deck officers and engine room crew would be Army Transport Service (Merchant Marines). The Navy would provide sailors to man the armament and the remainder of the crew, even the deck hands, would be AAF. Either through the interdiction of 'lady luck' or a stroke of genius, the right man for training AAF people in seagoing skills was found. Col. Matthew Thompson (now retired in florida) of the Army Air corps was recalled from the European theater. He had been involved in landing mainly Italy. curiously enough, his background included 14 years service with the British royal Navy. Called back from Anzio in May, 1944, he quickly organized a training program. The Grand Hotel in Point Clear, Alabama became the training site. Merchant Marine and Coast Guard instructors began the schooling on July 10, 1944. AAF officers and enlisted men were soon awash in basic seamanship and aquatic training. They began to use navy terms such as deck for floor, bulkhead for wall, hatch for door, 'smoking lamp' being lit for permitting smoking period, and kept time by a ship's bell. Additional training took place at Brookley Field near Mobile and at Bates field where modification and repair facilities were available. The courses given included swimming, special calisthenics, marching drill, navigation, ship identification, signaling, cargo handling, ship orientation, sail making, amphibious operations and more. Two men from each ship were even trained to be underwater divers. Ivory Soap consisted of six Liberty and eighteen F/S ships made it into service before the war ended. they saw service in the Philippines, Guam, Tinian, Okinawa and Iwo Jima. those at Iwo were able to repair P-51s and B-29s damaged over Japan, so they could get back to the depot on Guam. A typical story of these ships is that of the B J Lyon. First commissioned as the SS Nathaniel Scudder named after a Revolutionary War hero. It was a Liberty Ship which have EC2-S-C1 hulls. The 440' ship had been constructed in Houston and modified in Mobile. Initially it was identified as the 6th Floating Air Depot and later the 6th Aircraft Repair Unit (floating) or the 6th ARUF for short. Its armament included a 5" gun and 40mm AA guns. Its crew was activated March 15, 1944 at Kelly field, Texas. When the final work on the ship was completed in Biloxi, its AAF crew traveled there to board. Col. Leland D. Crawford was assigned commanding officer. The organization chart shows a complement of 23 officers and 362 enlisted men.
Click ship below for detauils
 John Nasal, assigned
to the Lyon
on its way to the Pacific Theater, had this to say on his stint:
Upon arrival in the Philippines the maintenance began immediately on the many B-24's operating from Palawan. Palawan was strategically important as planes operating from it could seal off the South China Sea lanes. All had an added incentive to succeed. This was because Palawan held sad memories for many serviceman and their families. Here American defenders were defeated in Japan's swift attack. An infamous event occurred. 150 American POW's were killed in a direr massacre; only three escaped. the massacre lead to the conviction and death sentences for 30 Japanese officers and camp guards. General Mac Arthur ordered the sentences reduced to five years each in order not to upset the peace talks then in process. Doing what the Air Force called 'fourth echelon' work the ARUF's promptly returned to combat many planes that otherwise would have been abandoned or returned to major bases in the U.S. Priority parts were often flown in from the major depot in Oakland. After the passage of 45 years, shipmates of the B J Lyon began to contact one another. Stan Adams and Charles Ross were the spark plugs in collecting information. A photo filled book called "The Buccaneer" which chronicled the Lyon and its men had been put together in Japan in 1945. This became one resource. a reunion attended by more than 75 shipmates was held in Nashville in august, 1989. a second one was held in Cincinnati in august, 1990. This location was selected among other reasons because of its proximity to the AF Museum at Wright-Patterson AFB. Dayton. In 1991 a reunion is scheduled for Plainview, Texas. 'Sailors' in the Army Air Force were unique. That they ever existed is known to few. Belated as it may be, they deserve recognition. We pay tribute to them for their valuable service. *** |
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The crew's naval
training was put to good use when amphibious craft known as 'ducks'
were used to transport items from ship to shore. The 6th had three
Sikorsky R-4 helicopters in operation, and later R-6s Click
image left,
were
sent to the
ship when it was in Manila. The ARUF's had a special landing platform
to accommodate the 'coptors'. from The Diecast
Hanger
had
volunteered to fly behind enemy lines on Luzon. They successfully
evacuated 34 casualties from the front lines in the last two weeks of
June, 1945.First Lt. James H. Brown and second Lt. John r. Noll were each awarded an air Medal for meritorious achievement. In what may have been one of the earliest uses of helicopters to evacuate wounded soldiers, the two assigned to the Lyon |
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