USS Bush (DD-529)
Encyclopedia
USS Bush (DD-529), a Fletcher-class
destroyer
, was the second ship of the United States Navy
to be named for Lieutenant
William Sharp Bush
, USMC
, who served on the during the War of 1812
.
Bush was launched
27 October 1942 by Bethlehem Steel
Co., San Francisco, Calif., sponsored by Miss Marion Jackson, great-great-grandniece of Lieutenant Bush; and commissioned
10 May 1943, Commander
W. F. Peterson in command.
4 December 1943, she commenced operations as a patrol, escort, and fire support ship throughout the Pacific
, from the Ellice Islands to New Guinea
, the Philippines
, and Okinawa. She participated in
the Bismarck Archipelago
operations, including
the Cape Gloucester
,
New Britain
landings and
the Admiralty Islands
landings (26 December 1943 – 31 March 1944);
Saidor, New Guinea, operations (18–21 January);
Morotai
landings (15 September);
Leyte landings (20–24 October),
Luzon
operation, including
the Mindoro
and
Lingayen Gulf
landings (12–18 December 1944 and 4–18 January 1945);
Iwo Jima
operation (19 February–9 March); and
the Okinawa operation (1–6 April).
On 1 November 1944, while operating in Leyte Gulf
, Bush splashed two of ten Japan
ese planes during a severe air attack. She was showered by flying shrapnel and suffered two men wounded.
Bush was operating as radar picket ship off Okinawa 6 April 1945 and had splashed at least one plane when she was hit and subsequently sunk by three Japanese kamikaze
s. At 1515, the first plane hit at the deck level on the starboard side between number one and two stacks causing its bomb or torpedo to explode in the forward engine room. Although much damage was sustained the ship was not believed to be in severe danger and tugs
were requested. was closing in to assist when she was hit by a suicide plane and was so severely damaged that she had to be sunk by United States forces.
At 1725, a second kamikaze crashed into the port side of Bushs main deck between the stacks, starting a large fire and nearly severing the ship. At 1745, a third crashed onto the port side just above the main deck. Some of the ship's ammunition caught fire and began to explode. Although it was believed that she would break amidships, it was thought that both halves would be salvageable. However, an unusually heavy swell rocked the ship, and Bush began to cave in amidships. Other swells followed, and the ship was abandoned by her 227 survivors just before she folded and sank. 87 of her crew were lost.
Fletcher class destroyer
The Fletcher class were a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The class was designed in 1939 as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
, was the second ship of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
to be named for Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
William Sharp Bush
William Sharp Bush
William Sharp Bush was an officer in the United States Marine Corps during the War of 1812. He was also the first Marine Corps officer to be killed in combat....
, USMC
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
, who served on the during the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
.
Bush was launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
27 October 1942 by Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
Co., San Francisco, Calif., sponsored by Miss Marion Jackson, great-great-grandniece of Lieutenant Bush; and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
10 May 1943, Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
W. F. Peterson in command.
Service history
Between 29 July and 27 November 1943 Bush acted as a patrol and escort vessel in Alaskan waters. Arriving at Pearl HarborPearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
4 December 1943, she commenced operations as a patrol, escort, and fire support ship throughout the Pacific
Pacific Theater of Operations
The Pacific Theater of Operations was the World War II area of military activity in the Pacific Ocean and the countries bordering it, a geographic scope that reflected the operational and administrative command structures of the American forces during that period...
, from the Ellice Islands to New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, and Okinawa. She participated in
the Bismarck Archipelago
Bismarck Archipelago
The Bismarck Archipelago is a group of islands off the northeastern coast of New Guinea in the western Pacific Ocean and is part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea.-History:...
operations, including
the Cape Gloucester
Cape Gloucester
Cape Gloucester is a headland, in the northwest of the island of New Britain, Papua New Guinea, at . During World War II, the Japanese captured New Britain, and had driven most of Cape Gloucester's native population out to construct two airfields...
,
New Britain
New Britain
New Britain, or Niu Briten, is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from the island of New Guinea by the Dampier and Vitiaz Straits and from New Ireland by St. George's Channel...
landings and
the Admiralty Islands
Admiralty Islands
The Admiralty Islands are a group of eighteen islands in the Bismarck Archipelago, to the north of New Guinea in the south Pacific Ocean. These are also sometimes called the Manus Islands, after the largest island. These rainforest-covered islands form part of Manus Province, the smallest and...
landings (26 December 1943 – 31 March 1944);
Saidor, New Guinea, operations (18–21 January);
Morotai
Morotai
Morotai Island Regency is a regency of North Maluku province, Indonesia, located on Morotai Island. The population was 54,876 in 2007.-History:...
landings (15 September);
Leyte landings (20–24 October),
Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
operation, including
the Mindoro
Mindoro
Mindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan. The southern coast of Mindoro forms the northeastern extremum of the Sulu Sea.-History:...
and
Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
landings (12–18 December 1944 and 4–18 January 1945);
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
operation (19 February–9 March); and
the Okinawa operation (1–6 April).
On 1 November 1944, while operating in Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf is a body of water immediately east of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, adjoining the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, at . The Gulf is bounded on the north by the island of Samar, which is separated from Leyte on the west by the narrow San Juanico Strait, and on the south by...
, Bush splashed two of ten Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese planes during a severe air attack. She was showered by flying shrapnel and suffered two men wounded.
Bush was operating as radar picket ship off Okinawa 6 April 1945 and had splashed at least one plane when she was hit and subsequently sunk by three Japanese kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
s. At 1515, the first plane hit at the deck level on the starboard side between number one and two stacks causing its bomb or torpedo to explode in the forward engine room. Although much damage was sustained the ship was not believed to be in severe danger and tugs
Tugboat
A tugboat is a boat that maneuvers vessels by pushing or towing them. Tugs move vessels that either should not move themselves, such as ships in a crowded harbor or a narrow canal,or those that cannot move by themselves, such as barges, disabled ships, or oil platforms. Tugboats are powerful for...
were requested. was closing in to assist when she was hit by a suicide plane and was so severely damaged that she had to be sunk by United States forces.
At 1725, a second kamikaze crashed into the port side of Bushs main deck between the stacks, starting a large fire and nearly severing the ship. At 1745, a third crashed onto the port side just above the main deck. Some of the ship's ammunition caught fire and began to explode. Although it was believed that she would break amidships, it was thought that both halves would be salvageable. However, an unusually heavy swell rocked the ship, and Bush began to cave in amidships. Other swells followed, and the ship was abandoned by her 227 survivors just before she folded and sank. 87 of her crew were lost.