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USS Hoggett Bay


Lightning Ace
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I'm looking for information regarding what planes were on this Carrier in WW II.

Thanks

Mike

 

Did you try a Google search? There seems to be quite a bit of info about her. Try this (LINK). Looks like there were different squadrons and planes during her service. Some FM Gruman Wildcats and TBM Avengers.

 

Nick

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Lightning Ace

Thanks Nick I guessed I didn't look long enough when I was at Google. My uncle was in the engine room on the carrier and said he got to fly off the carrier in a TBM, for what reason I can't remember.

Thanks

Mike

 

 

 

 

 

 

Did you try a Google search? There seems to be quite a bit of info about her. Try this (LINK). Looks like there were different squadrons and planes during her service. Some FM Gruman Wildcats and TBM Avengers.

 

Nick

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USS Hoggatt Bay was commissioned 11 January 1944. CVEs usually carried what were called composite squadrons, a term which meant a squadron with more than one time of aircraft; the designation for a composite squadron was “VC”. Assigned to Hoggatt Bay at the time of her commissioning was VC-14, then stationed at NAS Los Alamitos, CA. In the 18 January 1944 BuAer Aircraft Location Report, - and these report squadron make ups as of 5 to 7 days previous - VC-17 is show as being, made up of 12 FM-1, 6 TBF-1, and 3 TBM-1. Remember, though, the same report shows the ship, itself, is up in Astoria WA.

 

Looking at reports of subsequent dates, on 23 February 1944, Hoggatt Bay is shown to be at San Diego with VC-14 still at Los Alamitos and consisting of 11 FM-1, 4 TBM-1, 1 TBF-1, and 4 TBM-1C. In March, Hoggatt Bay makes a aircraft ferry run out to Pearl Harbor and back while VC-14 takes up residence at NAAS Holtville CA. By 29 March, Hoggatt Bay is back in San Diego and VC-14 has moved to nearby Ream Field at Otay Mesa. VC-14 gradually shifts aircraft around and by 18 April has an inventory of 12 FM-2 and 9 TBM-1C.

 

The 2 May 1944 report, though illegible in places, gives us Hoggatt Bay at sea, enroute to Pearl Harbor, but this time, and for the first time in one of these reports, with VC-14 aboard, with the last noted complement of aircraft.

 

And so it goes. And at the end of the war, in the 7 September 1945 report, Hoggatt Bay is shown in the North Pacific with VC-99 aboard with 16 FM-2 and 12 TBM-3E. According to DANFs she was on the way to duty in the Aleutians when the war ended.

 

You can trace Hoggatt Bay through her travel in the Pacific using the BuAer Location reports. They are roughly weekly, and give a location if at a particular place or port and vague at see locations such as for the 7 September report where the location is "Nor Pac".

 

VC squadrons were usually made up of these FM/TBM combinations. Early VC’s used F4Fs and FM-1s combined with TBF’s, but as the war went on, these, not really older, but not as new types, were replaced in deploying squadrons with the more up to date FM-2 and TBM-3 types.

 

Was there a specific time frame you were looking for?

Go to http://www.history.navy.mil/a-record/ww-ii/loc-ac/loc-ac.htm at the Naval Historical Command web site and you'll find all the available location reports. You can get to the DANFS entry for Hoggatt Bay by going to the Haze-Grey site http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/carriers/cve75.txt. It's a bit faster than going to the Historical Command DANFS entries.

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Lightning Ace

RAL,

thanks for the information. My uncle was on the Hoggett Bay during WW II and was in the engine room. He told me several times about his experiences in WW II and how he got to fly off of the carrier in a TBM during the war but I can't remember for what reason. A few years ago while watching a "Victory At Sea" episode it showed a TBF or ? with the tail markings the planes on his carrier would have had and it was taking off of the Hoggett Bay.

Thanks Again

Mike

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