- Samuel Underhill
Samuel Jackson Underhill (
25 August 1917 -8 May 1942 )was anaval aviator of theUnited States Navy who was killed in action during theBattle of the Coral Sea .Born in
Jericho, New York , he received a bachelor of science fromYale University and attendedHarvard Law School before enlisting in theUnited States Navy Reserve as aSeaman Second Class on8 November 1940 . After serving briefly atFloyd Bennett Field ,Brooklyn, New York , Underhill was appointed an aviation cadet and was transferred on6 February 1941 to the Naval Air Station,Jacksonville, Florida , for flight training. He subsequently underwent further training atMiami, Florida ; was designated a naval aviator on15 July ; and was commissioned an ensign in the Naval Reserve on6 August . Following advanced flight training atNorfolk, Virginia , he reported to Scouting Squadron 5 (VS-5).In May 1942, when Rear Admiral
Frank Jack Fletcher 'sTask Force 17 steamed in theCoral Sea seeking to foil Japan's attempt to extend her influence southward, Underhill was with VS-5 on board carrier USS "Yorktown" (CV-5). When VS-5 raidedTulagi on the morning of4 May he flew hisDauntless dive-bomber against a heavy anti-aircraft barrage and contributed to the sinking or damaging of eight enemy vessels.On the morning of
7 May , a coordinated attack group of 17 SBDs from VS-5 took off from "Yorktown" and, in clear skies with unlimited visibility, launched a dive bombing attack on thelight carrier "Shōhō". The American planes scored nine direct hits and two near misses that sent the hapless enemy flattop to the bottom.The next day, the two naval forces at last found one another and the stage was set for the first great naval action between
aircraft carrier s, theBattle of the Coral Sea . On the morning of8 May , "Yorktown"launched the SBDs of VS-5, dividing the group to accomplish separate missions. One division joined in the attack on Japanese carrier "Shōkaku" and, diving from 17,000 feet through broken cloud cover, dropped bombs which bent the enemy carrier's deck sufficiently to prevent the launching of her aircraft. As the bombers pulled out, Japanese fighter planes swarmed out to repel them but were fought off by the Americans.Later that morning, dive bombers of VS-5 conducted anti-torpedo plane patrol around "Yorktown's" formation. Pressed into service due to the lack of fighters, the slower Dauntless dive-bombers were at a disadvantage with theJapanese attackers. At 1110, eight of the American bombers intercepted and engaged a group of about 17 Japanese fighter planes, shot down six of the enemy and damaged seven more. When the fierce action was over, Ensign Underhill was numbered among those lost in the fight to protect the carrier.
He was posthumously awarded the
Navy Cross for his extraordinaryheroism, and became the namesake for the destroyer escort USS "Underhill" (DE-682).
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