When the USS Cooper (DD-695) was hit by Japanese torpedoes in the Battle of Leyte, a famed PBY “Black Cat” was up to the task.
December 3, 1944 – the Leyte Gulf is a hotspot for skirmishes between the U.S. and Imperial Japanese Navies. The USS Cooper (DD-695) joins a patrol along with the USS Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) and USS Moale (DD-693), searching for a fight in Ormoc Bay. They wouldn’t have to look for long.
Almost immediately, just after midnight, the U.S. Navy destroyer group spotted the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyers Take and Kuwa. The three ruthlessly bombarded both targets and set two ships ablaze within minutes.
The Japanese didn’t go quietly. Waves of aircraft fought back, mostly targeting the USS Allen M. Sumner. The Japanese lost ten airplanes to the destroyers’ defenses. In the chaos, the Allen M. Sumner and Moale report seeing torpedoes streaming through the water. They’re headed for the Cooper.
At thirteen minutes past midnight, the USS Cooper is catastrophically hit on her starboard side. A massive column of water shoots into the air and the destroyer rolls onto its side before splitting in two. The ship is completely under the sea in less than a minute. Deciding a rescue attempt would be too dangerous, the Allen M. Sumner and Moale turn south and head for friendlier waters in San Pedro Bay. The Cooper’s surviving crew is on their own.
At 14.00, a full fourteen hours after the skirmish, the U.S. Navy’s Patrol Bombing Squadron (VPB) 34 finally arrived for their rescue operation. One “Black Cat”, commanded by Lt. (j.g.) Melvin S. Essary, fits 44 rescued sailors aboard the flying boat. The other, commanded by Lt. (j.g.) Joe F. Ball, fits 56 more. Both rescue flights shatter previous records and carry out their operation within range of Japanese shore batteries over the course of an hour. The Black Cats of VPB-34 returned 2 days later, on December 5, and rescued another 24 survivors who had made it to land on Leyte.
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The airplanes, overloaded by around 3,000 pounds (1,360 kg), needed a whopping three miles (4.8 km) to taxi and take off from the waters of Ormoc Bay. Lt. (j.g.) Ball is later awarded the Navy Cross, and Lt. (j.g.) Essary the Distinguished Flying Cross.
In all, 168 of the Cooper’s crew were rescued while 191 were killed. The Battle of Ormoc Bay would go on to claim six American ships and 31 Japanese.
Ironically, the USS Cooper was named for Elmer G. Cooper, a PBY Catalina pilot that had been killed in a crash in 1938. It’s only fitting that the crew of the ship named in his honor would be rescued by the same Catalinas he once flew.
The PBY Catalina and the Black Cats
Consolidated’s PBY Catalina was born out of a need to keep America’s sea superiority in the late 1930’s. The U.S. Navy’s then-current fleet of Consolidated P2Y and Martin P3M flying boats suffered from being underpowered and having limited range. The prototype aircraft, the XP3Y-1, flew for the first time in 1935. The PBY was used by 31 nations over its 46-year career until finally retiring with the Brazilian Air Force in 1982.
The Black Cats, assigned to ten Patrol Bomber squadrons, got their name from the matte black paint schemes they wore for “stealth” missions carrying various weapons to attack Japanese targets after dark. The large, lumbering flying boat may have been a target during the day, but in the days before modern detection methods, you could hide pretty much anything with a coat of paint. The Black Cats would go on to contribute to the Catalina’s impressive combat records.
The aircraft has gone on to achieve legendary status in the aviation community. The unparalleled search & rescue, convoy escort, maritime patrol, and resupply abilities of the type were instrumental in the United States’ victory in the Pacific Theater of the Second World War.
The usefulness of the airplane is something still being explored today, as Florida-based Catalina Aircraft is now seeking to bring a Next-Generation Amphibious Aircraft” (NGAA) Catalina II to the market for both commercial and government customers.
