Marshall Islands Raid

Raid on the Marshall Islands

On February 1, 1942, Task Force 17, led by VADM William Halsey, Jr. (USNA '04) struck Jaluit, Mili, and Makin (Butaritari) islands. The Task Force was centered on USS Yorktown (CV 5), with USS Louisville (CA 28) among her escorts.

George Bellinger '32, Francis Maher, Jr. '35, and Jack Moore '36 were all flying from Yorktown and were all lost that day. George Bellinger's plane simply "failed to return;" he had last been seen in the vicinity of Jaluit as the leader of a bombing section. Jack Moore's plane also "failed to return;" no other information was given in the after-action report. Francis Maher may have been the pilot of the plane observed in the water approximately 20 miles astern of the carrier, presumably having crashed due to a lack of fuel. The crew were seen getting into rubber rafts, but "a destroyer was immediately sent back but failed to make contact."

A fourth graduate, Edward Worthington '34, was lost when his float plane, launched from Louisville, went missing and was possibly shot down by a Japanese patrol bomber.

Separately, Task Force 8 was raiding other islands in the group. Hallsted Hopping '24, commanding officer of Scouting Squadron (VS) 6, flying from USS Enterprise (CV 6). His aircraft was shot down by a Japanese fighter and he and his gunner were both killed.

All three of the documents below are via Matt Robbins '04. Note times are in Greenwich mean time.

Aircraft lost from Yorktown during the raid
Louisville's after action report
Louisville's after action report

Hallsted Hopping

Class of 1924

Lieutenant Commander, US Navy

New York City, New York

February 1, 1942 (39 years old)

KIA, WWII, Marshall Islands Raid, Pacific, Scouting Squadron (VS) 6, Ship Namesake, Fixed Wing

	Hallsted Hopping
	Class of 1924
	Lieutenant Commander, US Navy
	KIA, WWII, Marshall Islands Raid, Pacific, Scouting Squadron (VS) 6, Ship Namesake, Fixed Wing

George Bellinger

Class of 1932

Lieutenant, US Navy

Oneida, New York

February 1, 1942 (31 years old)

KIA, WWII, Bombing Squadron (VS) 5, Marshall Islands Raid, Pacific, Scouting Squadron (VS) 5, Fixed Wing, USNA 6th Company

	George Bellinger
	Class of 1932
	Lieutenant, US Navy
	KIA, WWII, Bombing Squadron (VS) 5, Marshall Islands Raid, Pacific, Scouting Squadron (VS) 5, Fixed Wing, USNA 6th Company

Edward Worthington

Class of 1934

Lieutenant, US Navy

Baltimore, Maryland

February 1, 1942 (29 years old)

Operational loss, WWII, Cruiser Scouting Squadron (VCS) 4, Marshall Islands Raid, Pacific, Fixed Wing, USNA 3rd Company

	Edward Worthington
	Class of 1934
	Lieutenant, US Navy
	Operational loss, WWII, Cruiser Scouting Squadron (VCS) 4, Marshall Islands Raid, Pacific, Fixed Wing, USNA 3rd Company