Comments by "Sar Jim" (@sarjim4381) on "Northampton Class - Guide 056 (Human Voice)" video.
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The Indianapolis was Roosevelt's favorite "yacht". When ever he had to travel by sea, hoe chose the Indianapolis when he could. Consequently, Indianapolis was given the best and most modern of refits and upgrades of any prewar cruiser class. She had undergone at least three major radar refits. the Indy, as she was known to her crew, had about twice the usual numbers of radio, including one of the first radio teletypes installed on a USN ship. this allowed Roosevelt and his staff to keep up with the news and issue directives while at sea. She had eight addition barrels of 40mm guns over other prewar cruisers and many more 20mm, including a number of twins. There were plans on her next refit to replace her 5"/25 DP guns with eight 5"/38 DP guns in four twin turrets. She was also due to have sonar installed but, alas, the one thing that might have saved her was still one refit away on that fateful morning of July 30, 1945. The rest of her story is too well known for me to repeat it here, but at least Roosevelt had already passed away by then so he didn't have to hear of the loss of his favorite ship. I've often wondered if the outcome for the survivors would have been different if the USN was still treating her as a VIP ship. Perhaps she would have gotten the destroyer escort Captain McVay requested, and maybe the Navy would have noticed her missing earlier and launched rescue operations before so many of her survivors died in the sea. All conjecture at this late date, of course, but history is full of these "what ifs".
When rescue finally started, it was quite a heroic story in its own right. Drach, I don;t recall if you've done a video on the USS Cecil J. Doyle and her later quite famous captain, along with the PBY-5A Catalina that was the first "vessel" to engage in rescue operations. If not, it's a story well worth telling of bravery in the finest traditions of the Navy.
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