V-4 DIVISION

Aircraft carriers are put to sea for one reason, as the striking arms of the fleet. That striking arm must have clout, and the clout is provided by the men (the pilots) who deliver the bad news to the enemy. They in turn, depend on the men who maintain their planes and load their guns and bombs. That brings us to the bomb handlers and the ordnancemen. That's the gang that everyone aboard ship depends on to make the least mistakes and be ready for any eventuality. We had an unusually good ordnance gang. They had to be. They were over worked because they had a big job assigned to them. I'm sure at the time, some may have thought they were never going to get any rest unless they helped get the war over with. It is very true that they (we) averaged only 4 hours in 24 in the sack. But who needed all that fat around our middles? Any anyway what would be doing if we didn't have all that work to keep us out of mischief?

The V-4 Division of the NATOMA BAY handled more ordnance material than any CVE in the fleet, only because we had our noses stuck in more operations than any other CVE in the fleet. It was a very physical war that these boys fought. Everything had to be done by hand and sometimes done within minutes, due to the rapid changes on the beaches. We were very durable, we had to be, we always had the brass on the bridge above, overlooking our work. From a safe distance, of course. We were fast, we had to be, who wants to start walking home in the middle of a nice party? On the serious side, we had our hours of satisfaction, like when we found out what our efforts had done at Leyte and the many chances we had to see our pyrotechnics at work at Iwo Jima (yes, we were that close).

We also had our casualties. Manning was so weary and bleary-eyed that he walked into a turning prop, gashing his jaw. Ford (yep, Jerry Ford) was cut on the beard and face by a landing aircraft as it veered over the side of the ship. Kaminsky smashed his toes in the elevator. Pagni made the newspapers by having his appendix removed during a typhoon, Pagni and Dr. McCune even made the Stars and Stripes, an Army publication. I even got into the act by coming down with lymphangitis of the leg and after a stint in the sick bay was returned to the flight deck in a specially made shoe. My foot at one time looked like an elephant's paw.

I think all the boys realize now, that all their work and their devotion to duty paid off handsomely because they all have the distinction of having played a prominent role in piling up the record of their ship.

We were all part of "The Fleet That Came To Stay". Some made it part of the way, some made it half way, some made it most of the way -- But WE MADE IT ALL THE WAY.

John J. Sassano, Historian

Ex-Chief Aviation Ordnanceman

V-4 Division

PS. We also had the best basketball team aboard ship.

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