USCG HISTORY: On this day, November 8, 1942 - Operation Torch, the Allied landings in Vichy-French-held North Africa, commenced. Coast Guard-manned Navy vessels participated in the assault, including the attack transports USS Leonard Wood, Joseph T. Dickman, and Samuel Chase. Coast Guardsmen also manned the landing craft on the Navys USS Arcturus, Charles Carroll, Joseph Hewes, William P. Biddle and Exceller. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Anthony L. Fraticelli Two weeks before war broke out, Anthony tried to enlist in the Coast Guard but was turned down for having a few extra pounds. Dec 7th 1941, changed that, and he successfully enlisted on Dec 10th 1941. Anthony grew up on the streets of Hells Kitchen, also known as Clinton and Midtown West. His love for the water, and expert ability for woodwork, seemed a good fit for a sailor. He hoped the Coast Guard might put him closer to home, but that would change when he was assigned to the Thomas Stone. He became an expert swimmer, and also received training on 20mm anti-aircraft guns during the summer of 1942, (months before shipping out). When the Stone was struck early morning November 7th, 1942, Anthony was on the flying bridge manning a 20mm. In his memoirs, he wrote about the dangerous LCV journey which almost led to disaster. His gun training would prove invaluable as he and his shipmates tried desperately to hold off attacking Stukas and JU88s targeting the helpless ship which had been washed on the beach from a fierce storm. I dedicate this documentary film to my father. He passed away March 19th 1991. see more at: ww2survivorstories/veterans-cc.html ------------------------------------------------- Their target was indeed the old enemy. Almost alongside them was HMS Walney, a former US Coast Guard cutter designed with nothing more lethal in mind than intercepting Prohibition bootleggers across the Great Lakes. Together with her sister ship, HMS Hartland, she had been one of Roosevelts Lend-Lease handouts at the beginning of the Battle of the Atlantic, when the Royal Navy took anything that could drop a depth charge or sweep a mine. But tonight most of the people on the Walney were not British. The crew were far out numbered by their US passengers, as were the sailors on its identical twin, Hartland, which was facing similar point-blank broadsides from the Typhon. Crammed onto the main decks of these single funnel cutters were some 400 helmeted US infantry. Their task was to prevent the Vichy French from destroying Oran’s docks by holding them until they were relieved by much larger forces being landed on the beaches on either side of the town. see more at: historytoday/colin-smith/operation-torch-north-africa-landings-70-years ------------------------------------------------------------ The Story (Background) The documentary was initially inspired by a journal written by (my father), Anthony L. Fraticelli, in 1942-43. He wrote about his experiences as a Coast Guardsman, aboard an ill-fated transport ship, the USS Thomas Stone during Operation Torch. Torpedoed and run aground November 7th 1942, the Stone carried the 39th Regimental Combat Team of the newly formed 9th Division into Algiers. From landings in various ports of North West Africa including; Algiers, Oran, Casablanca, Safi, and others, British and American forces would learn to fight side by side. This Anglo-American invasion force would eventually capture more than 250 thousand German and Italian soldiers pushing them into Tunis. From there, American forces of the 9th Division would continue into Sicily gaining evermore experience, but not without cost. see more at: ww2survivorstories/story-new.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------ U.S. Coast Guard Veterans (Brief History - Operation Torch) On 9 November 1942, Commander Roger C. Heimer (USCG) anxiously peered into the distance as word was passed that enemy aircraft were approaching. His vessel, the transport Samuel Chase (APA-26), for the past day had repelled successfully several enemy air attacks. Moments seemed like hours as everyone on the bridge strained to identify the planes. Finally they could be seen clearly, they were German dive bombers. As the dive bombers screamed out of the sky Heimer prepared Chase to get underway. His ships gunners maintained a scathing fire on the aircraft as they released their bombs. Bombs missed the Chase on two separate occasions by just yards but they damaged the nearby transport Dempo. At dusk a torpedo plane approached the large Coast Guard transport. The plane came under immediate fire but banked behind an anchored British transport. With Chase now underway, Heimer began maneuvering the nearly five hundred foot vessel in a narrow bay to avoid the aircraft. Coming from behind the transport the torpedo plane flew toward the Chase just over the water and released its torpedoes. Heimer managed to steer the transport so that both torpedoes missed the stern by 100 yards. These tactical maneuvers won the ships crew high praise and Heimer a bronze star. This was just one minor incident of the Coast Guards involvement in the invasion of North Africa in November 1942. The invasion was the first offensive operation that the United States undertook against Germany during World War II and was then the largest amphibious operation ever undertaken. Dubbed Operation Torch this strategically important expedition allowed the Coast Guard with its unique experiences to play a significant role. see more at: ww2survivorstories/veterans-cc.html ------------------------------------------------------------------------- VIDEO: northafrica1942-43/trailer.html (20 photos)
Posted on: Sat, 08 Nov 2014 16:31:07 +0000
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