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Links to other places... 
Squadron Member Homepages: 
Cats & 
Kiddie-Cats:
PBY Catalina & Black Cats:
PBY - includes
a memorial page
The Catalina Chronicles : Volume 1
Consolidated PBY-5 Catalina Profile
Photo
of PBY-5 Antennas everywhere!
Photo:
of PBY-5 J1-P-24 Photo: 80-G-405453 Caption: PBY landing
at NAS Jacksonville, Florida, March1943.
Photo
of PBY-5
Photo
of PBY-5 - beautiful shot
Photo
of PBY-5 - J1-P-36 Note the pairs of 500-pound bombs under
the wings
Photo: 80-G-405451 (Nat'l Archives)
Caption: VPB-2, OTU2 NAS-JAX
Nice pic of PBY with
floats down - The Ghost Squadron's PBY-6A
The
ORIGINAL Henderson Field - Photo
Pictures
of the War in the Pacific
Related Squadrons:
Squadrons listed here were closely related to VP/VPB-54 - same aircraft, same time, same general locations. The information provided on their websites will many times enhance the knowledge of our own squadron activities.
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Campaigns and Battles:
First
Naval Battle of Guadalcanal
Like weary boxers, the opposing forces slugged it out with one another
in Ironbottom Sound.
The
Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal
spelled the difference between victory and defeat for the United States
in the Pacific war.
Morotai:
Stepping Stone to the Phillipines
The conquest of a small Pacific island brought significant U.S. air
power to
bear on the Japanese-held Philippines.
Battle
for Bougainville: Hell on Hill 700
Losing Hill 700 to the Japanese meant defeat for the American forces
on
Bougainville. To the men of the 37th Infantry Division, that was unthinkable.
The
Cactus Air Force - A Thorn in Japan's Side
A small group of die-hard aviators fended off Japanese invaders at
Guadalcanal, code-named 'Cactus.'
Links to World War II Sites: (1939-1945)
First
Offensive: The Marine Campaign For Guadalcanal
Nice spread on Guadalcanal - great photos and maps!
Asia and the
Pacific
An attractive and complete page covering the Pacific War
[PacWar
LIST] [PacWar List] Patrol Squadrons
Brief Chronology of Naval Patrol Squadrons - from the newsgroup archives
MacArthur
and the Admiralties
Chapter 11 from CARTWHEEL: The Reduction of Rabaul
(Washington, 1959), UNITED STATES ARMY IN WORLD WAR II
REPORT
ON THE NAVY AND THE WAR
Prepared by THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC RELATIONS NAVY DEPARTMENT
October 18, 1943 - Since this is dated, the later campaigns aren't
covered - (sigh!)
The Battle
off Samar
Taffy III at Leyte Gulf (also a Text-based
version)
PELELIU
Timeline of the Battle for Peleliu - includes photos & maps
The Seaplane Tenders:
Complete history of the USS Tangier From: Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
USS Tangier was at Wake Island
USS Orca
- AVP-49
Brief History of the ship
Combat Chronology and Analysis:
NAVY DEPARTMENT
COMMUNIQUES AND PERTINENT PRESS RELEASES
DECEMBER 10, 1941 TO MARCH 5, 1943
USS Washington
BB56
Battle Actions
DECK
LOG BOOK & WAR DIARY - CONDENSED
USS DENVER CL 58
COMBAT CHRONOLOGY OF THE US ARMY AIR FORCES
U.S. Navy in
World War II
Huge page of links - Extensive coverage here.
REPORT
ON THE NAVY AND THE WAR
United States Government Printing Office Washington: 1943
UNITED STATES STRATEGIC
BOMBING SURVEY SUMMARY REPORT (Pacific War)
WASHINGTON, D.C. 1 JULY 1946
Extensive synopsis of the Pacific War
The United
States Navy in WWII
Primary Source documents
Naval Aviation
Chronology in World War II
WORLD WAR II 1940-1945 (The official US Navy site)
Dictionary Of American
Naval Fighting Ships Online Project
The Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, commonly known as
DANFS, is the foremost reference regarding US naval vessels. Published
in nine volumes (from 1959 to 1991), it gives histories for virtually every
US naval vessel. To make DANFS accessible to a larger number of people,
we are working to put all DANFS ship histories online through this site.
Currently the online collection includes over 6000 ship histories, and
more are being added. These files are faithfully transcribed from DANFS,
without updating or corrections.
Wars
and Conflicts of the United States Navy - World War II
This is part of the official Navy site
United States
Naval Chronology
World War II [Naval History Division]
appears to be a work in progress - has great potential
Chronology
of World War II
- British Oriented, beautiful layout.
Short daily accounts of all theatres in WWII.
NOVEMBER
1943
Note: Article is excerpted from the book AIR WAR PACIFIC: Chronology--
America's Air War Against Japan in East Asia and the Pacific, 1941-1945
by Eric Hammel.
I want this book!!!
Military History
and Research
Chronologies, the Battle of Peleliu, and more.
A Mini-History
of Naval Weather & Oceanography - The Forties
What was the weather like during that time? Extremely interesting site!
-
Example:
Weather Training Expands - In
early 1942, classes at the Naval Training School, Aerography, at NAS Lakehurst,
N.J. increased in size and scope to instruct 75 sailors and 7 Marines in
a 12 week course. The school was moved to the former Newman school in Lakewood,
NJ which consisted of five primary buildings. A former Catholic Prep school
on 180 acres served to provide an additional area for messing and berthing.
A Japanese carrier force launched
diversionary raids on Dutch Harbor from 3 to 4 June. Navy PBYs located
the force but AAF bombing attempts were unsuccessful.
WORLD
WAR II PLUS 55
by David H. Lippman
Daily events from around the globe as they happened
55 Years ago.
Burnt Offerings
A very good day-by-day Chronology
The
U.S. Marines and Amphibious War: Its Theory, and Its Practice in the Pacific,
by Jeter A. Isely and Philip A. Crowl
History
of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II, by Robert Sherrod
The
Amphibians Came to Conquer: The Story of Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner,
by George C. Dyer, V. Adm. USN (Ret)
Strong
Men Armed: The United States Marines vs. Japan, by Robert Leckie
To
Foreign Shores: U.S. Amphibious Operations in World War II, by John A.
Lorelli
Storm
Landings: Epic Amphibious Battles in the Central Pacific, by Joseph H.
Alexander
All of the above are at the same location.
War
in the Pacific
Basically a pretty page with links to a better Pacific War site (and
a European War site)
The Drop
Zone
Impressive WWII site - paratrooper oriented, a virtual museum with
lotsa photos.
This link places you in the Pacific War area.
BOOK - Torpedo
Squadron Four:A Cockpit View of World War II
This document presents a view of WW II as seen from the cockpit of
a torpedo plane and later rehashed in the Ready Rooms of three aircraft
carriers. The focus is on the activities of one squadron, Torpedo Four
(VT-4).
Personal Accounts:
USS Pathfinder
OSS-30: Recollections of Those Who Served 1942-1971
Personal histories, official accounts, and non-official published
accounts - This resulting compendium of PATHFINDER lore is primarily directed
towards the WWII exploits of the USS PATHFINDER, but it also traces the
career of the vessel through to its final decommissioning.
An online World
War II aviation history magazine
Planes & Pilots of WWII - Personal Accounts
Cruiser
Scout - Recollections of War in the Pacific
By Paul A. McKinley
A great read - there's a whole book here.
War Stories
- Vol 1
War Stories
- Vol 2
War Stories
- Vol 3
These "war stories" were originally from the jbdavis site, "54 Years
and Remembering." That site closed down some time ago but I
had many of the reader's stories on my hard drive, so, if no one objects,
here they are. New stories that come in from readers will be added
here also -- latest material on top.
Stories of
Aviators Rescued at Sea
SUBMARINE LIFEGUARD LEAGUE OPERATIONS IN WORLD WAR II
Guadalcanal
- A Marine Diary (new links!)
This is probably the best first-person account of what happened
on the island.
Other Interesting Places:
Zeno's Warbird Videos
How to fly the old bombers & fighters - training films from 1943-44
You'll need RealAudio G2 installed to watch these Navy training films
- these are the original full-length films.
Other information on many of the warbirds.
Reunions and Contacts for US Navy
Huge Military & Museums Links page
JOE BAUGHER'S HOME PAGE
This guy is an absolute fanatic about collecting military aircraft
serial numbers
- the awesome listings include whatever plane history he has found
on each and every plane:
US
Navy and US Marine Corps Aircraft Serial Numbers--1917 to Present
USAAS/USAAC/USAAF/USAF
Aircraft Serials -1908 to Present
Joe Baugher's
Encyclopedia of American Military Aircraft
Has everything EXCEPT the PBY - c'mon Joe, get with it!
PBY Catalina International Association
This is the web site of the PBY Catalina International Association.
It is for and about Veterans world-wide who flew PBY/Catalinas during
and after WWII.
The
PBY Cutaway Project - Scads of photos of the interior of a PBY
The Cutaway PBY
Display
A project to restore a 1942 Consolidated Aircraft Corporation PBY-5
Patrol Bomber Seaplane
for Display in the National Museum of Naval Aviation.
PBY.COM
This site is for PBY enthusiasts and researchers.
The main intent is to get as much history as possible about the planes
into the database.
Second priority is to publish documents from various national archives
Naval Historical Center Naval
Aviation History Branch
Pacific Wreck
Database
WW II wrecks are a subject that excites the imagination and curiosity.
The Pacific war witnessed fierce fighting between American, Australian
and Japanese forces that left a trail of wreckage and derelict equipment
that remains a half century later. This site compiles years of research
on this subject, visits to the National Archives, and to Australia and
Papua New Guinea with my grandfather, a war veteran. With the help of internet
collaborators, this site is a comprehensive database for information on
this topic.
People Looking for People :
Guadalcanal
Online: Home Page
This web site is for those looking for information regarding the First
U.S. Offensive Campaign in the Pacific against the Japanese during World
War II.
Veteran
Contact List - Navy
The
Navy Log
The Navy Log records naval service information of present and former
members of America's sea services, living or deceased, in whose names contributions
have been made for the continuation of the mission of the U.S. Navy Memorial
Foundation.
Excellent search and memorial site. - TD
National VETS* Archives
Navy Reunions
