by John Leyland
1/700 Away all Boarders (Various)
- USS Guadalcanal CVE 60 Tom's Modelworks
- USS Pillsbury DE133 Skywave Edsall Class
- U-505 Tamiya IXC "U-boat"
On the morning of June 4, 1944 Task Group 22.3 was cruising off the coast of Africa as a hunter-killler force searching for German submarines whose locations had been revealed by Ultra code breaking intelligence.
At 1109, USS Chatelaine reported a sonar contact and attacked with Hedgehog and depth charges. Below in U-505, the explosions caused some of the crew to panic. They reported to the captain that the after torpedo room was flooding, causing him to blow ballast tanks and order "abandon ship".
On their previous cruise, TG 22.3 had encountered a similar situation with another sub (U515) which was surfaced and abandoned, but not immediately sinking. Some of the officers discussed this lost opportunity with Capt. Daniel Gallery, CO of USS Guadalcanal and commander of the task group. All ships in the group developed detailed plans for boarding parties, so when U-505 broke the surface everyone was prepared and the order "Away All Boarders" was given. The plans went like clockwork and the deserted sub was boarded and the scuttling valves opened by the Germans were secured.
USS Pillsbury was ordered to pass a towline to the U505, but in the process hit the underwater forward diving plane and sliced open the first three compartments of her hull. She was forced to retire for damage control. Captain Gallery then moved USS Guadalcanal into position to pass the towline. This is the period depicted in the diorama. The towline is visible at the stern of the carrier as the men on the bow of the sub pull it over with a lighter messenger line. USS Pillsbury lies nearby repairing her flooding.
The capture of U-505 with coding and navigation material intact was an intelligence windfall which remained secret until the end of the war.
USS Guadalcanal CVE 60 was built from a resin kit by Tom's Modelworks. This is an excellent kit with photoetch and a laser etched flight deck. The cast detail on the hull was removed and the detail of foc'sl, fantail with 5in/38, and sides scratchbuilt. The forward elevator was cut from the flight deck and the area of the hangar deck below removed with a Dremel so thet the elevator could be lowered. The galleries were scratched and ladders leading to the gallery deck added. The included photoetch made constuction of the island easy. Some Gold Medal Models etch was used as well. F4F's are by Fujimi with corrected landing gear. TBM Avengers are by Hasagawa with wings folded. Aircraft are in the Atlantic gray and white scheme and are tied down. All crewmen are Tom's photoetch bent to desired pose and "filled out" with thinned green putty. Water base is Liquitex acrylic gel medium painted with Testors enamel and coated with Future.
USS Pillsbury DE133 was built from the Skywave Edsall kit modified to correct configuration. Most cast detail from the hull and deck was replaced with scratch. 3in/50 guns scratch, 40mm mount scratch with Skywave barrels, 20mm from GMM. Considerable work was necessary on the deckhouses, especially the open bridge detail. Mast and rigging are scratch from sprue with Tom's and GMM details.
U-505 Hull and coning tower halves from Tamiya Type IXC kit. Flak guns scratch.
For those too young to be familiar with Admiral Daniel V. Gallery, he went on to be a prolific writer in the 50's and 60's. I was introduced to the story of U-505 as a boy by his "Twenty Million Tons Under the Sea", a fine history of the Battle of the Atlantic. He is less remembered for his light hearted fiction. Several novels of humorous "sea stories" were published, introducing characters such as AMM2 Fatso, the "Captain of the Incinerator", and Ensign "Windy" Day, a nugget naval aviator, both as books and in the Saturday Evening Post. A search for these books in the used book sites would be worth your time and money. He was purged from the navy in the "Revolt of the Admirals" in the 50's for "insubordinate" protests over the cancellation of the supercarrier USS United States in favor of the B-36. He is now remembered as the man who brought U-505 to Chicago, his home town.
